Ch. 4: Demographics and Social Stratification

1. Ch. 4: Demographics and Social Stratification Demographics describe a population in terms of its size, distribution, and structure. • Size: • Distribution: • Structure:

2. Social Standing/Class One’s position relative to others on one or more dimensions valued by society. Socioeconomic factors Occupation Education Ownership Income Heritage Social Standing Upper class Middle class Working class Lower class Unique Behaviors Preferences Purchases Consumption Communication 1) Bounded, 2) ordered, 3) mutually exclusive, 4) exhaustive, and 5) influential.

3. Not All Behaviors within a Social Class Are Unique Behaviors shared with other social classes Behaviors associated with a particular social class Excluded behaviors Unique Shared behaviors behaviors Behaviors not engaged in

4. Percent Distribution of Five-Category Social-Class Measure SOCIAL CLASSES PERCENTAGE Upper 4.3 Upper-middle 13.8 Middle 32.8 Working 32.3 Lower 16.8 Total percentage 100.0

5. Social Class Groups Social Class General Consumer Behavior UPPER AMERICANS (UPPER-UPPER, LOWER-UPPER, UPPER-MIDDLE) (14 % of population)

6. Social Class Groups (cont.) Social Class General Consumer Behavior MIDDLE CLASS (32 % of population)

7. Social Class Groups (cont.) Social Class General Consumer Behavior WORKING CLASS (38 % of population)

8. Social Class Groups (cont.) Social Class General Consumer Behavior LOWER AMERICANS (16 % of population)

9. Measuring Social Status • Single-Item Indexes • Education • Occupation (Socioeconomic Index: SEI) • Income • Relative Occupational Class Income • Subjective Discretionary Income • Multi-Item Indexes • Hollingshead Index of Social Position • Warner’s Index of Status Characteristics • Census Bureau’s Index of Socioeconomic Status

10. Hollingshead Index of Social Position (ISP) Occupation Scale (Weight of 7) Description Score Higher executives of large concerns, proprietors, and 1 major professionals Business managers, proprietors of medium-sized businesses, 2 and lesser professionals Administrative personnel, owners of small businesses, and 3 minor professionals Clerical and sales workers, technicians, and owners of little 4 businesses Skilled manual employees 5 Machine operators and semiskilled employees 6 Unskilled employees 7

11. Hollingshead Index of Social Position (ISP) Education Scale (Weight of 4) Description Score Professional (MA, MS, ME, MD, PhD, LLD, and the like) 1 Four-year college graduate (BA, BS, BM) 2 One to three years college (also business schools) 3 High school graduate 4 Ten to 11 years of school (part high school) 5 Seven to nine years of school 6 Less than seven years of school 7

12. Hollingshead Index of Social Position (ISP) ISP score = (Occupation score X 7) + (Education score X 4) Classification System Range of Description Scores Upper 11-17 Upper-middle 18-31 Middle 32-47 Lower-middle 48-63 Lower 64-77

13. Warner’s Index of Status Characteristics (ISC) Characteristics Source of House Score Occupation Income Type Dwelling Area 1 Professionals and pro- Inherited Excellent Very high: Gold Coast, prietors of large businesses wealth houses North Shore, etc. 2 Semiprofessionals & Earned Very good High: better suburbs & officials of large businesses wealth apartment house areas 3 Clerks and kindred Profits & Good houses Above average: areas all residential, workers fees space around houses, apartments in good condition 4 Skilled workers Salary Average Average: residential neighborhoods, houses no deterioration 5 Proprietors of small Wages Fair houses Below average: area beginning to businesses deteriorate, business entering 6 Semiskilled workers Private relief Poor houses Low: considerably deteriorated, run down and semi-slum 7 Unskilled workers Public relief & Very poor Very low: slum nonrespectable houses income

14. Warner’s Index of Status Characteristics (ISC) ISC score = (Occupation X 4) + (Income source X 3) + (House type X 3) + (Dwelling area X 2) Classification System Range of Population Social Strata Scores Breakdown Upper-upper 12-17 1.4% Lower-upper 18-24 1.6 Upper-middle 25-37 10.2 Lower-middle 38-50 28.8 Upper-lower 51-62 33.0 Lower-lower 63-84 25.5

15. Census Bureau Index of Socioeconomic Status (SES) Income Education Occupation Category* Score Category Score Category Score Under $3,000 15 Some grade school 10 Laborers 20 $3,000-$4,999 31 Grade school graduate 23 Students 33 $5,000-$7,999 62 Some high school 42 Service workers 34 $7,500-$9,999 84 High school graduate 67 Operators 58 $10,000-$14,999 94 Some college 86 Craftsmen 58 $15,000-$19,999 97 College graduate 93 Clerical sales 71 $20,000-$29,999 99 Graduate school 98 Managers 81 $30,000 and over 100 Professionals 90 *Note: Income levels should be adjusted by consumer price index before using. Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, Methodology and Scores of the Socioeconomic Status, Working Paper No. 15 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1963).

16. Census Bureau Index of Socioeconomic Status (SES) (Income) + (Education) + (Occupation) SES score = 3 Classification System Range of Population Social Strata Scores Breakdown Upper 90-99 15.1% Upper-middle 80-89 34.5 Middle 45-69 34.1 Lower-middle 0-44 16.3 *Note: Income levels should be adjusted by consumer price index before using. Source: U.S. Bureau of the Census, Methodology and Scores of the Socioeconomic Status, Working Paper No. 15 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1963).

17. Problem with the multi-item indexes • A person with under seven years of school who started a small manufacturing firm which later grew into a medium sized firm of which he is now president. • A person with an MA in English owns and operates a very small bookstore located near the university specializing in classical literature.

18. “Upward Pull” Strategy Targeted at Middle Class Middle class Aspirations To belong to upper-middle class Prefer Products consumed by upper-middle class Positioning Upper-middle class symbolism for middle-class products

19. Positioning Within Social Class Working-class aristocrats Disdain Upper-middle class Prefer Working-class products and brands Positioning Working-class symbolism for working-class products