Social Class Identity

Question 1

Bourdieu (1986) NEO-MARXISM

Answer 1

identified different types of capital that people could possess. some were ascribed to them at birth, others were achieved.

1. economic capital = wealth/ income, ascribed an achieved, tend to be those in higher paid jobs
2. cultural capital = in relation to education, often ascribed, includes a knowledge of classical music, classical literature and art
3. social capital = social connections and group membership, generated through networking with different groups of people.

Question 2

Lyon (1994) POSTMODERNIST

Answer 2

suggested that the postmodern world is a consumer society . in this postmodern view the expansion of popular culture results in decline of traditional class cultures.

Question 3

Willis (1977) WC

Answer 3

‘Learning to Labour’ says communities are based around shared culture. features = manual/ unskilled jobs, traditional gender roles and males in employment

Question 4

Skeggs (1997) WC

Answer 4

WC women in caring professions in the Midlands tried to distance themselves from their traditional WC norms and values.

Question 5

Wynne (1998) MC

Answer 5

studied MC housing in Cheshire, found that residents of Heathtown possessed economic, cultural and social capital. Shows MC as very different from the WC of Savage’s study of manual culture in Cheadle

Question 6

Devine et al. (2005) MC

Answer 6

did 50 in-depth interviews on doctors and teachers in Manchester. found that even though both the professions would be considered middle class, most of the sample did not refer to the concept of social class in their interviews.

Question 7

Reay (1998) - Family

Answer 7

shows how middle class mothers are able to influence their children’s primary schooling more than working class mothers, due to WC negative experience therefore difficult to assist.

Question 8

Cater and Coleman (2006) - Family

Answer 8

conducted research on ‘planned’ teenage pregnancies, the risk of becoming a teenage mother was 10 times more likely for a girls form an unskilled background compared with professional ones.

Question 9

Power et al. (2003) - Education

Answer 9

they show a close relationship between middle class backgrounds and achievement at top public schools, gaining places at elite universities.

Question 10

Bourdieu (1990) - Education

Answer 10

suggests for middle class students going to university is like being a ‘fish in water’ compared with the working class experience which can be isolating and daunting.

Question 11

Medhurst (1999) - Media

Answer 11

shows how a group of middle class students watching the Royle family thought it was an accurate portrayal of working class life

Question 12

Brundson (1997) - Media

Answer 12

shows how middle class people saw satellite dishes as being a symbol of the working class, gradually media technology has become popular culture.

Question 13

Mac and Ghaill (1994) - Peers

Answer 13

describes different types of masculinities in a school and locates some of these (‘Real Englishmen’ and ‘Macho Lads’ as he calls them) clearly with different class positions

Question 14

Brah (1999)

Answer 14

researched skinheads in Kempton Dene in the west midlands, show how working class identity was crucial for this group of males who worked hard at constructing a culture of ‘whiteness’

Question 15

Savage (1992) - Workplace

Answer 15

Studied middle class doctors in a working class area in Cheadle where a ‘practical flavour’ was observe, both indicate strong relationship between occupation and class identity in the UK.