Comparing Social Classes

None of the three social class groupings is exclusively made up of white respondents; in fact, the racial/ethnic distribution is fairly consistent across the social groups. The only exceptions to this generalization are that the working-class and middle-class group includes a more substantial Hispanic population than does the professional middle-class group, and the few Asian respondents were all members of the professional middle class.

The groups do differ in other ways, as might be expected. Not only on aver­age do the professional middle-class respondents have higher incomes than do those who are working class or middle class, but on average the professional middle-class respondents are also older than the middle-class and working — class respondents. The professional middle-class respondents were also older than their less privileged peers when they had their first child. Moreover, the professional middle-class respondents were least likely to have only one child and most likely to have the modal number of two children.

Updated: 11.11.2015 — 04:24