There’s a lot of debate about the real meaning of social classes, and whether it’s an accurate representation of people’s status and place in society. However, there’s a generally accepted consensus about there being three social classes based on people’s finances, professions, and educational level, constructing what we know as upper, middle, and lower classes.
These terms are widely accepted in the US and the rest of the world, but many people can’t say exactly what makes them belong to any of these classifications. Keep watching to know the characteristics of each social class and how they apply to you, what most Americans consider themselves as, and the difference between the social classes in the US versus the rest of the world.
Contents
What Are The Three Social Classes?
Let’s explain the characteristics of every social class, from upper to lower, considering not only people’s income but also social, educational, and cultural aspects, and how they influence wealth. This will give you a clear idea of where you stand according to these markers in the US.
Upper Class
According to the Cambridge Dictionary, the upper class consists of people who ‘have the highest social rank’, which is most commonly understood as ‘rich’. The Pew Research Center defines this class in financial terms, stating that everyone whose income is $169,800 or higher can be considered upper class, as long as their household only has three people, which is the average in the US.
However, if the aforementioned data applies to you, that doesn’t mean that you’re wealthy, only that your income is far higher than around 90% percent of the US population, according to a survey from 2006. That said, wealth is measured by the assets a person or household owns, meaning that someone’s properties, houses, cars, and company stocks are counted as part of their net worth. It’s also worth noting that funds and individual retirement accounts also form part of someone’s wealth, while debts are subtracted from the estimation to get to the actual net worth.
Educational level is also a factor to consider when it comes to social classes, because higher educational accomplishments are commonly associated with higher salaries and the potential to create wealth. Last but not least, belonging to the upper social class in financial terms is commonly translated as a higher social status, because money usually means power and influence.
🚨In @ESR_news I provide experimental evidence of discrimination in hypothetical hiring based on social class cues from a social media Twitter profile🚨
Individuals w. upper-class signals in their profile are preferred & seen as more competent and warm https://t.co/q86pXZMW8D🧵 pic.twitter.com/y0Zdfcn0T6
— Diana Galos (@diana_galos) April 14, 2023
Middle Class
People considered part of the middle class aren’t rich or poor, and have a stable financial situation and social status which allows them to live a comfortable life. In 2022, the Pew Research Center stated that middle-class individuals have an income as low as $56,600 and as high as $169,800, though many people consider themselves middle-class without considering all the factors that play a role in it.
For a start, the lifestyle of those who are close to either of the aforementioned income limits could be drastically different. That’s why sociologists argue that there is an upper-middle class which is commonly formed by people with higher levels of education than the lower-middle class, whose individuals have technical education and make a living out of their skills and knowledge.
Especially in the US, the higher the level of education, the higher the social class is assumed to be, given the financial cost of pursuing higher education. So overall, a high or medium educational level is often associated with middle-class people.
Lower Class
The lower class is considered poverty, but what makes a person poor by financial standards? While the Cambridge Dictionary defines a lower-class person as someone who has ‘the lowest position in society’ and has ‘the least money’, the Pew Research Center defines it as individuals whose annual income is less than $56,600 in 2022 in the US.
Usually, Americans in poverty receive assistance from government-led programs such as food stamps and lack social security, including housing. They might also incur huge debts relative to income, and have difficulty accessing basic living necessities and services.
The educational level of people in this class is also taken into consideration, as a lower educational level in most cases also means lower salaries. A 2020 investigation by Pew Research revealed that most Americans don’t blame a lack of work ethic for the lack of money possessed by lower-class people. Instead, 76% of interviewed people affirm that poverty is caused by a lack of opportunities and too many obstacles.
The Rest Of The World
Now that the definitions of lower, middle, and upper classes in the US have been identified, it’s only fair to wonder how exactly these markers apply to the rest of the world.
The World Bank has observed and investigated these differences in depth, allowing us to not only get a good idea of how income influences classes in countries around the world but also how these compare to the US.
It’s worth noting that the World Bank considers the existence of classes from upper, upper-middle and lower middle, and low. They also base each country’s economic size estimations on the Atlas Gross National Income (GNI) method. Based on this, the World Bank has estimated that Canada, Chile, Japan, Australia, Saudi Arabia, and several Western and Central European countries are considered to have individuals with high incomes, though the US keeps its position as the wealthiest country in the world.
In the upper-middle category, there are several countries in Latin America, the Caribbean, Russia, China, Indonesia, and Thailand. The lower middle includes several African countries such as Nigeria, Ghana, and Morocco, while Iran, Pakistan, India, and the Philippines are identified from the Middle East and Asia. Lastly, the low-income category is formed by countries such as Sudan, Chad, and Madagascar.
How Do These Compare To The US?
As seen in the estimations done by the World Bank, there are many countries around the world which are considered to have a low and lower middle financial elements of the population. The organization estimates that there has been a positive change in recent times, passing from 30% in low-income countries in the 1980s to 12% in 2022. The most positive changes have been observed in South Asia, where low-income countries passed from being 100% percent to 13% of them in that section.
Compared to the US, where most of the population considers themselves middle class, the situation is very different. However, this doesn’t mean that Americans have gone through their fair share of economic mishappenings, as in 2020 the country entered a recession as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak, which was unfortunate in many ways, as before it had been reported that child poverty in the country had reached its lowest historical point.
Nowadays, global economies have been recovering from the financial consequences of the COVID-19 crisis while in the US more people have been reaching upper-class status. However, it’s fair to note that while economic circumstances around the world vary, it’s necessary to take into account the previously mentioned markers to reach an accurate idea of what social class you belong to.
