Social Class Identities

Question 1

Bourdieu (1986) Capital

Answer 1

Bourdieu was a neo-Marxist
He identified 3 types of capital
Economic: income, finance, wealth
Cultural: education based
Social: Resources gained from social connections

Question 2

Lyon (1994) Postmodern view - pick n mix

Answer 2

the world is a consumer society
the expansion of popular culture results in a decline off traditional culture
individuals can pick n mix different styles which were originally associated with distinct social classes

Question 3

Willis (1977) Working class cultural identity

Answer 3

traditional working class communities have a shared culture
“learning to labour”
70’s and 80’s lads felt they could get employment through family connections

Question 4

Savage et al (2005) Interviews with Manchester people

Answer 4

found a strong culture of manual labour, which gave the area a ‘practical flavour’
men were employed in physical labour
half of all men were part of a social club which formed the basis of their activities
the women organised social life around family or social contacts
only 21% had clear idea of what class they fitted into

Question 5

Savage (1992) middle class lifestyle

Answer 5

middle class are split based on lifestyle and employment
lifestyle is related to occupational grouping
private sector workers had more distinctive lifestyles

Question 6

Wynne (1998) classy Cheshire

Answer 6

Wynne found people living here possessed economic, cultural and social capital. His work shows a middle class culture very different to the culture savage found in manchester

Question 7

Devine et al. (2005) interviewed doctors and teachers in manchester

Answer 7

both doctors and teachers fitted the middle class identity but the individuals were fearful of identifying themselves as having a particular social class as they did not want to appear being labelled

Question 8

British Social Attitudes Survey (2006) social class perceptions

Answer 8

Found no decline in the number of people identifying themselves as having a social class. However, less people identify as working class (57%) than in the past.

Question 9

Reay (1998) class and mothering

Answer 9

shows how middle class mothers can influence their pupils schooling more than working class mothers.
the research found working class mothers could spend less time on helping with their children's education than middle class mothers

Question 10

Cater and Coleman (2006) Teen mum’s and class

Answer 10

found that the risk of teenage pregnancy was 10 times higher for teens who came from an unskilled labour family background compared to a professional background.

Question 11

Power et al. (2003) Middle class educations

Higher educational achievement

Answer 11

Found a close relationship between children from middle-class backgrounds, and achievement at top public schools and gaining places at elite universities. She suggests these schools actively push pupils into pursuing elite university placement.

Question 12

Bourdieu (1990) Middle class at uni

Answer 12

suggests that for the middle class people going to university is like being a “fish in water” coompared to the experience for the working class which can be intimidating and daunting

Question 13

Medhurst (1999) media portrayal of class

Answer 13

found that group of middle school pupils believed that ‘The Royle Family’ was an accurate portrayal of working class life in the UK

Question 14

Brundson (1997) satellite dishes and class

Answer 14

shows how middle class people saw satellite dishes as being tasteless and a symbol of the working class

Question 15

Mac an Ghaill (1994) masculinity at different social classes

Answer 15

describes different masculinities where some of the masculinities are clearly identifiable with certain social classes

Question 16

Brah (1999) skinhead social class identity

Answer 16

working class identity was a crucial part of the group of skinheads ‘whiteness’