name-dropping
{{Short description|Practice of mentioning famous people}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2021}}
{{For|the iOS feature|NameDrop}}
Name-dropping (or name-checking) is the practice of naming or alluding to important people or institutions in order to indicate one's association with them. The term often connotes an attempt to impress others; it is usually regarded negatively, and under certain circumstances may constitute a breach of professional ethics.{{citation|title='Yeah, I work with Beckham': Issues of confidentiality, privacy and privilege in sport psychology service delivery|first=Mark B.|last=Anderson|pages=3–13|journal=Sport & Exercise Psychology Review|volume=1|issue=2|year=2005|url=https://ess220.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/2005volume2.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151005164006/https://ess220.files.wordpress.com/2008/02/2005volume2.pdf|archive-date=5 October 2015|url-status=live}}. It may be done within a conversation,{{citation|title=It's Hard to Eradicate the Name-Dropping Pest|first=Leonard|last=Wibberley|journal=Los Angeles Times|date=24 February 1950}}. a story,{{citation|title=Bibliographic name-dropping|first=Harry C.|last=Bauer|journal=Library Review|volume=17|issue=6|year=1960|pages=408–410|doi=10.1108/eb012326}}. a song, an online identity,{{citation|title=Public displays of connection|first1=J.|last1=Donath|first2=D.|last2=Boyd|journal=BT Technology Journal|volume=22|issue=4|year=2004|pages=71–82|doi=10.1023/B:BTTJ.0000047585.06264.cc}}. or other communication.
When used as part of a logical argument it can be an example of the false authority fallacy.{{citation|title=Understanding arguments|first1=Donald|last1=Evans|first2=Humphrey|last2=Palmer|publisher=Drake Educational Associates|year=1986|page=286}}.
Purposes
Name-dropping is used to position oneself within a social hierarchy. It is often used to create a sense of superiority by raising one's status.{{Citation needed|date=May 2012}} By implying (or directly asserting) a connection to people of high status, the name-dropper hopes to raise their own social status to a level closer to that of those whose names they have dropped, and thus elevate themselves above, or into, present company.
Name-dropping can also be used to identify people with a common bond. By indicating the names of people one knows, one makes known their social circle, providing an opportunity for others with similar connections to relate.{{citation|contribution=Name-Dropping|title=5 steps to professional presence: how to project confidence, competence, and credibility at work|first1=Susan|last1=Bixler|first2=Lisa Scherrer|last2=Dugan|publisher=Adams Media|year=2000|isbn=978-1-58062-442-8|pages=154–155}}.
As a form of appeal to authority, name-dropping can be an important form of informal argumentation, as long as the name being dropped is of someone who is an expert on the subject of the argument and that person's views are accurately represented.
Methods
{{Expand section|date=May 2011}}
Use of the first name may be effective, as in the case of "Kingsley" for Kingsley Amis.Joseph Epstein, "A Nice Little Knack for Name Dropping" in Narcissus Leaves the Pool, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2007, p. 80ff.
Name-dropping is also sometimes used in works of fiction to place a story in a certain historical timeframe, or to imply the involvement of a historical figure in the action (for example, in a story set during World War II, mentioning Adolf Hitler or Winston Churchill). {{citation needed|date=February 2017}}
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{wiktionary-inline|name-dropping}}
- [http://www.appealtoauthority.info Appeal to Authority Breakdown]