social background differences, and age differences.

The elaJ:>oration of the 'visible' status system tended to have only adverse effects among the firms studied. The desire for promotion was greater as the elaborations increased.
In general it seems that the more apparent the status division the more promotion minded are the subordinates. By way of example one firm with higher than average promotion drive scores ensures that following each' grade' change the manager has his 'new desk' or 'external telephone' installed within a maximum of 3 days, proclaiming in a most visible way the change in status. One of their three staff dining rooms caters for two levels of middle management. Not only are the tables graded by the presence or absence of table cloths but also at the coffee section china cups are provided for the higher grade while paper cups are provided for the others. One manager told me of an occasion when a new waitress was working in this section. Seemingly she issued the china cups on a first-come first-served basis and then started to use up the paper cups. There was no problem until the china cups ran out, but after this great embarrassment was caused by a number of the higher grade managers refusing to use the paper cups-insisting on their 'rights'. Because of this and other similar problems, this company is in the process of solving 'this problem by constructing yet another dining room to separate the two grades.
Other visible differentials had the similar effect of increasing the desire for promotion, viz, supervisory level, superior's power, social background differences, and age differences.