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I have found reverse snobbery to be one of the biggest irritants out there ... and a source of friction with friends and coworkers. I won't elaborate with stories, because they'll be boring. Unless asked, I don't bring up what I've studied or whatnot. If it comes up, I've seen a wince or two. And, with that, the person's attitude toward you changes. With people who like discussing the school experience(s), I will gladly discuss it. If people come to for advice, I will gladly give them my opinion on the topic.
I've found that, in traveling to either Europe or South America, this doesn't come up as much, it seems. They might ask what you do and leave it at that. I've been invited into very humble people's homes overseas ... sure, I was in shorts, t-shirt and flip-flops, but they could also tell I wasn't a dolt. I once found a batch of newborn pups in a neighborhood, advised a nearby neighbor who knew of them, wound up talking to him for half an hour, and he said to bring my rental car around and he was going to open up some good wine.
Americans seem to have a real chip on their shoulder when it comes to credentials, and I've seen friction or bad-mouthing come from those who, for example, might have a bachelor's degree toward those who have more than that, and are qualified for similar jobs/work.
The anti-elitism might be due to the numbers of people with advanced degrees from 2nd and 3rd tier schools and people without jobs with advanced degrees out there. It doesn't help that these days with the economy in the tank, college grads are turning to graduate school in droves to escape the economy and/or reality. I admit there are plenty of people with Masters who do not impress me much given the frequent show of poor judgement. But I will always hold respect for the guy who finished all three levels of CFA exams while finishing his JD and working full time at a law firm.
The anti-elitism might be due to the numbers of people with advanced degrees from 2nd and 3rd tier schools and people without jobs with advanced degrees out there. It doesn't help that these days with the economy in the tank, college grads are turning to graduate school in droves to escape the economy and/or reality. I admit there are plenty of people with Masters who do not impress me much given the frequent show of poor judgement. But I will always hold respect for the guy who finished all three levels of CFA exams while finishing his JD and working full time at a law firm.
I'm talking prior to the current economy. The schools in question are good. People choose to get advanced degrees because they want to, and set aside the time and money. In some cases, these people playing the reverse snobbery card were generally smart enough to have done the same and, if in a support capacity, had no business being in college, so they had nothing to b itch about.
People are competitive by nature, but you are right in other countries/cultures it seems to be less of an issue.
For example, on this forum, I see people talking about how stainless steel for the house is now "out". These same people will malign posters with advanced degrees, and say they are useless. This attitude is prevalent in American society, cognitive dissonance ("sour grapes" mentality). Petty and shallow
In cases like this I ascribe to the sage advice:
The people who mind don't matter, and the people who matter, don't mind.
I used to be guilty of this when I was younger. Mostly as a reaction for being verbally attacked for not having as much money, etc. as my classmates. One idiot teacher in junior high school asked those of us with parents who hadn't gone to college raise our hands and then told the class how kids with college educated parents were more likely to go to college. It was an honors class so going to college was a goal/desirable thing. My family background is blue/pink collar and most of my classmates were from white collar/professional backgrounds. Most of my classmates' parents made more money and owned homes, while my family rented. The other girls were big on clothes as status items and gave me a hard time about mine because I couldn't afford to keep up with them.
A few friends, when I was in my 20s, were kind enough to point out my reverse snobbery was just as obnoxious as what I'd experienced. I realized they were right. Kids born into families with more money didn't have any choice in the matter, so it was just as unfair to judge them. I made a conscious effort to change my thinking and comments in that area.
Though sometimes, it can be inadvertent. At work, 2 of us from backgrounds which didn't have as much money growing up were talking about using the bathtub in an apartment as a "beach" or "pool" on a hot day when we couldn't get to either. I noticed a 3rd co-worker who came from a background with more money looked uncomfortable, so I made an effort to change the topic a bit and include her in the conversation.
I don't think college/university degrees are useless, but I do think there is degree inflation. And that only exacerbates economic inequities as people without the means to pay as they go for college end up in staggering amounts of debt before they even start their careers.
I have found reverse snobbery to be one of the biggest irritants out there ... and a source of friction with friends and coworkers. I won't elaborate with stories, because they'll be boring. Unless asked, I don't bring up what I've studied or whatnot. If it comes up, I've seen a wince or two. And, with that, the person's attitude toward you changes. With people who like discussing the school experience(s), I will gladly discuss it. If people come to for advice, I will gladly give them my opinion on the topic.
I've found that, in traveling to either Europe or South America, this doesn't come up as much, it seems. They might ask what you do and leave it at that. I've been invited into very humble people's homes overseas ... sure, I was in shorts, t-shirt and flip-flops, but they could also tell I wasn't a dolt. I once found a batch of newborn pups in a neighborhood, advised a nearby neighbor who knew of them, wound up talking to him for half an hour, and he said to bring my rental car around and he was going to open up some good wine.
Americans seem to have a real chip on their shoulder when it comes to credentials, and I've seen friction or bad-mouthing come from those who, for example, might have a bachelor's degree toward those who have more than that, and are qualified for similar jobs/work.
The one-up mentality is indicative of a person's level of security with oneself.
Perhaps they want to establish a sort of pecking order.
True power comes from security with oneself. So when people are secure, the less likely they are to have to prove what they have.
The one-up mentality is indicative of a person's level of security with oneself.
Perhaps they want to establish a sort of pecking order.
True power comes from security with oneself. So when people are secure, the less likely they are to have to prove what they have.
I don't get what you're saying it all. The one-up then comes from those who have more education? I'm talking about those who don't have specific education/experience who have an issue with those who do. That's the whole gist of the thread.
I don't get what you're saying it all. The one-up then comes from those who have more education? I'm talking about those who don't have specific education/experience who have an issue with those who do. That's the whole gist of the thread.
I wasn't implying on those who have education feel the need to one-up those who don't. That's not my point.
The gist of what I was saying is when someone feels they have the need to prove something, usually it stems from a source of insecurity in general.
I can't imagine someone like Einstein feeling the need to one-up someone like Stephen Hawking, but I can see the reverse.
Maybe I'm not making myself clear. Once an ESL student here, and no, I'm not one-upping you.
When I was in college and for some period of time after graduating, there were frequently people talking down to me that they "had to work" and didn't go to to college because they "couldn't afford it", implying, I suppose, that all kids in college must have parents that pay for them to go there. They didn't know that I also worked jobs in addition to attending college, and my parents didn't give me one thin dime. Also, there have been snotty remarks made by some physical labor jobs people I've known that they have "real" jobs and they don't get to "sit on my butt in an air conditioned office". I will fully admit I am not built for physical labor and could not do those jobs, and I don't have spatial awareness enough to do such things as carpentry jobs. However, I've had many emotionally and psychologically difficult jobs that cause sweat despite air conditioner, as well as other negative physical and stress conditions. That is something they were refusing to consider when talking down to me.
Can't say I was really bothered by reverse snobbery, though. Folks can say and think what they want, and to be frank, I am not concerned about the opinions of the overwhelming majority of people.
The best one I heard is when someone I knew was describing somebody at a company we had to deal with. He was describing a division president or some such mucky-muck. (Actually, the only Houstonian I've met who was a real a-hole). At any rate, in describing this guy, the person said "He's college." There you have it: reverse snobbery, illiteracy, everything.
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I'm talking about those who don't have specific education/experience who have an issue with those who do. That's the whole gist of the thread.
