Keith Johnstone (pioneered improv theater) makes a pretty convincing argument in his book Impro that status is the most important thing to humans (and that much of our interactions involve status). It's the invisible fabric of our life in society that we aren't supposed to talk about.

Also, plenty of psychological research has shown that status is usually valued more than money in one's job, where status encompasses things like "my boss tells me I'm doing a good job" (which means more coming from your boss or the VP than the intern) or "my team appreciates the work I do".

    > but in technology people spend
    > a lot less time worrying about
    > that

Ways in which people in technology chase after status:

- Big-name employer (Google, Facebook, etc)

- Inflated job titles (CxO or VP at a 2 person firm)

- Going into management when they don't enjoy it

- "Meritocracy"

- Arguing in architecture or planning meetings

- Using the latest and coolest technology

- Speaking at every opportunity at events

It's possible to do all and any of those -- and to any degree -- without status seeking. But many people do those for the status.

EDIT: Personally I spent a fair amount of time and money on a mid-career Ivy League MSc I didn't need, almost entirely for the signalling effect.

Technology is considered an "elite" job in this market, and not just because it pays well. It's also kind of ridiculous to claim that technology professionals are are less status seeking than the other professions you've listed. Satire like Silicon Valley exists because that behavior is rampant in our industry.

Rampant, but (hopefully) not normal. There are at least some tech companies where that kind of behavior isn't rampant.

> but in technology people spend a lot less time worrying about that

That has not been my experience. I'd say people in technology are just as political and status obsessed as anyone else. I think people in general don't want equality as much as they want dominance. They want to have it better than the other guy and high status helps achieve that.

Technology is an "elite profession", if you want to look at it that way. It's the nouveau riche to finance and law's old money.

You're not wrong that many in tech don't worry about status or power or politics, whatever you choose to call the great messy interplay of self-interested humans nominally assembled toward a common goal. Those who don't are vulnerable to exploitation by those who do, and frequently find themselves hosed in extremely consequential ways as a result. Is that healthy?