One reason for the expense is perception: students view price as a proxy for quality; universities worry that low fees will signal a second-rate product.

学费提高的原因之一有关人们的看法：学生视学费为教学质量的代表；大学担心学费低让人以为学校是次品。

youdao

Price too low, and it impacts the quality perception of the product.

FORBES: Price; Marketing's Most Delicate "P"

Tests have shown that even slight changes in paper content will cause people to order more -- or less -- due to their perception of the quality of the product.

CNN: Catalog company going lean and green