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The Economic Basis of Social Class

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  • John H Goldthorpe
  • Abigail McKnight

Abstract

In this paper we adopt a theory of class positions based on employment relations to assess what implications individuals¿ class positions have for their economic life. In particular we consider economic security (the risk of unemployment), economic stability (the variability component in earnings) and economic prospects (lifetime earnings profiles). Our findings provide empirical support for the theory itself and little evidence for the currently fashionable claims of the decline, or even death, of class in today¿s society.

Suggested Citation

  • John H Goldthorpe & Abigail McKnight, 2004. "The Economic Basis of Social Class," CASE Papers 080, Centre for Analysis of Social Exclusion, LSE.
    • Handle: RePEc:cep:sticas:080
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    File URL: https://sticerd.lse.ac.uk/dps/case/cp/CASEpaper80.pdf
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    2. Andrew E. Clark & Sarah Flèche & Claudia Senik, 2016. "Economic Growth Evens Out Happiness: Evidence from Six Surveys," Review of Income and Wealth, International Association for Research in Income and Wealth, vol. 62(3), pages 405-419, September.
    3. Chiara Assunta Ricci, 2016. "The mobility of Italy’s middle income group," PSL Quarterly Review, Economia civile, vol. 69(277), pages 173-197.
    4. Ã lvaro Choi & John Jerrim, 2015. "The use (and misuse) of PISA in guiding policy reform: the case of Spain?," DoQSS Working Papers 15-04, Quantitative Social Science - UCL Social Research Institute, University College London.
    5. Francis Green & Stephen Machin & Richard Murphy & Yu Zhu, 2012. "The Changing Economic Advantage from Private Schools," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 79(316), pages 658-679, October.
    6. Yelena Avraamova & Dmitry Loginov, 2016. "The Socio-Economic Value of Teacher Salaries Rise," Economy of region, Centre for Economic Security, Institute of Economics of Ural Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, vol. 1(4), pages 1135-1145.
    7. Brian Nolan & Sarah Voitchovsky, 2016. "Job loss by wage level: lessons from the Great Recession in Ireland," IZA Journal of European Labor Studies, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 5(1), pages 1-29, December.
    8. Elena Sochirca & Pedro Cunha Neves, 2018. "Optimal policies, middle class development and human capital accumulation under elite rivalry," CEFAGE-UE Working Papers 2018_04, University of Evora, CEFAGE-UE (Portugal).
    9. Luis López-Calva & Eduardo Ortiz-Juarez, 2014. "A vulnerability approach to the definition of the middle class," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 12(1), pages 23-47, March.
    10. Elena Sochirca & Pedro Cunha Neves, 2020. "Optimal policies, middle class development and human capital accumulation under elite rivalry," Eurasian Economic Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 10(4), pages 727-744, December.
    11. Álvaro Choi & John Jerrim, 2015. "The use (and misuse) of Pisa in guiding policy reform: the case of Spain," Working Papers 2015/6, Institut d'Economia de Barcelona (IEB).
    12. Avraamova, E. M. & Loginov, D. M., 2016. "Socio-Economic Importance of Raising Teachers' Remuneration," R-Economy, Ural Federal University, Graduate School of Economics and Management, vol. 2(4), pages 490-499.
    13. Ronelle Burger & Cindy Lee Steenekamp & Servaas van der Berg & Asmus Zoch, 2014. "The middle class in contemporary South Africa: Comparing rival approaches," Working Papers 11/2014, Stellenbosch University, Department of Economics.
    14. Guillermo Cruces & Luis Felipe López Calva & Diego Battistón, 2011. "Down and Out or Up and In? Polarization-Based Measures of the Middle Class for Latin America," CEDLAS, Working Papers 0113, CEDLAS, Universidad Nacional de La Plata.
    15. Richard J Shaw & Michaela Benzeval & Frank Popham, 2014. "To What Extent Do Financial Strain and Labour Force Status Explain Social Class Inequalities in Self-Rated Health? Analysis of 20 Countries in the European Social Survey," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 9(10), pages 1-11, October.
    16. Francis Green & Stephen Machin & Richard Murphy & Yu Zhu, 2008. "Competition for private and state school teachers," CEE Discussion Papers 0094, Centre for the Economics of Education, LSE.
    17. Sauer, Robert M. & Wilson, John & Mantovan, Noemi, 2019. "The Economic Benefits of Volunteering and Social Class," IZA Discussion Papers 12713, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    18. Loayza, Norman & Rigolini, Jamele & Llorente, Gonzalo, 2012. "Do middle classes bring about institutional reforms?," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 116(3), pages 440-444.
    19. Elena Sochirca & Pedro Cunha Neves, 2018. "Optimal policies, middle class development and human capital accumulation under elite rivalry," NIPE Working Papers 16/2018, NIPE - Universidade do Minho.
    20. Bob Jeffery & Dawn Devine & Peter Thomas, 2018. "‘There’s Nothing’: Unemployment, Attitudes to Work and Punitive Welfare Reform in Post-Crash Salford," Sociological Research Online, , vol. 23(4), pages 795-811, December.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    social class; relations and conditions of employment; lifetime earnings; employment stability; employment security;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J33 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Compensation Packages; Payment Methods
    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure

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