Fair enough Desert Warrior, there will be many varied opinions on this no doubt.
I too have been in the business long enough, 21 years. A large part of that as an f/o and as a captain as well. Alot of it for a major carrier and also for several other large scheduled operators in different parts of the world and whilst the term "lowly" is probably a bit harsh the rest of my post I very definitely stand by. I am sorry you came from a place that sounded worse but if pilots like you deem this culture as acceptable then you aren't helping to improve things.
As for "THINKING" like a captain, surely as a first officer you should be doing this every minute you are at work, it is an integral part of being a "team" and being part of a flight deck crew. Or are you inferring that most of the time when you are not "THINKING" like a captain you are just the third auto pilot?
There is also a big difference in this part of the world being called "Captain" by people you work with as opposed to being treated like one. I would suggest more to do with brown noseing than anything else.