Women responded more modestly to a compliment than men did; & responded more modestly after receiving a compliment from a same or lower status—compared to higher status—peer, but men showed no effect of relative status

Perilloux, C., & Cloud, J. M. (2022). This old thing? Responding to compliments depends on sex and relative status. Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences, 16(2), 128–137. https://doi.org/10.1037/ebs0000259

Abstract: The purpose of the current research was to explore responses to compliments based on participant sex and relative status. We predicted that women would respond more modestly to compliments than men would, and that women would respond more modestly to compliments from equal or lower status women as opposed to from higher status women, whereas men’s responses would be unaffected by status. In Study 1, participants read three vignettes in which they imagined being complimented by a same-sex peer and chose the reaction they would most likely give. Consistent with our prediction, women responded more modestly to a compliment than men did. In Study 2, we randomly assigned participants to one of three hypothetical scenarios in which they received a compliment from a member of the same sex whose relative status to them was either higher, lower, or equal, and participants entered their response in an open-ended format. Confirming our second prediction, women responded more modestly after receiving a compliment from a same or lower status—compared to higher status—peer, but men showed no effect of relative status. Our results converge with those of past research showing that women are more sensitive than men to same-sex peers perceiving them as potential competitors.