Individuals who seek status through dominance are more likely to be deceived for self-gain

In this preregistered study, we tested the hypothesis that how people acquired their social status can influence others’ tendency to behave dishonestly towards them. Participants (N = 151) had the opportunity to lie for self-gain or be truthful to opponents with varying social status levels (i.e., high, middle, or low) which they had achieved through different strategies (i.e., competence, dominance, or virtue). Self-gain lies were significantly fewer when dealing with virtuous high-status opponents than dominant and competent ones. Moreover, opponents who gained high status through dominance elicited negative emotions (i.e., anger, disgust, pity), while virtuous and competent opponents elicited admiration and respect. This work highlights that it is the strategy used to attain high status, rather than the status itself, that significantly influences people's moral behaviors and attitudes toward others.