Varieties of Conspicuous Consumption

In Afghanistan, one of the poorest countries in the world, bridegrooms
are expected to pay not only for their weddings, but also all the
related expenses, including several huge pre-wedding parties and money
for the bride's family, a kind of reverse dowry.

NY times article

Using data from the Consumer Expenditure Survey for 1986-2002,
economists Kerwin Charles, Erik Hurst, and Nikolai Roussanov find that
blacks and Hispanics indeed spend more than whites with comparable
incomes on what the authors classify as "visible goods" (clothes,
cars, and jewelry). A lot more, in fact—up to an additional 30
percent. The authors provide evidence, however, that this is not
because of some inherent weakness on the part of blacks and Hispanics.
The disparity, they suggest, is related to the way that all
people—black, Hispanic, and white—strive for social status within
their respective communities.

Slate article