The primary purpose of this study is to present and test components of a proposed model of nepotism to establish a more organized state of the literature that illuminates both the positive and negative sides of this highly polarizing selection practice. The model and hypotheses are based on a wide variety of cross-disciplinary research and theoretical perspectives, including affirmative action, family-owned businesses, organizational justice, and evolutionary psychological theories. To test sub-components of the model, five hundred and fifty seven student and non-student participants completed the online study. A number of individual-level variables were hypothesized to be related to offers of nepotism received and accepted, and their subsequent impact on perceptions of fairness. Support for the hypotheses was mixed. Contrary to predictions, gender and education were not significantly related to whether or not offers of nepotism were received or accepted. Individual allocentrism and idiocentrism were also not significantly related to offer extension or acceptance. Neither number of siblings within the family nor birth order was significantly related to offers or acceptance of nepotism. Lastly, contrary to Bellow's (2003) core argument that nepotism occurs equally at all levels of the social hierarchy, this study found that, nepotism occurs most frequently among families higher in SES. Overall, the findings both support and contradict some of the more traditional views of nepotism. However, the findings in general support the claim that nepotism is prevalent in America today, with at least one-third of participants having attempted, received, or accepted offers of nepotism. Nepotism experiences may vary with age and work experience, which has implications for future research on nepotism and the importance of considering the sample from which results and conclusions are drawn.