Ses Is Non Social Class

Will Barratt, Ph.D.

Indiana State University 

I went to a wonderful session at AERA 2013 on Improving the Measurement of Socioeconomic Status for the National Assessment of Educational Progress: Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 Theoretical Foundation that explored the traditional socioeconomic condition (SES) measures of education, income, together with occupation, piece adding the interesting variable of census tract to reverberate the concepts of homophily together with location.  One of the presenters noted that these variables are non inward themselves meaningful, simply stand upwardly for something deeper.  For me social shape is the deeper reality measured past times education, income, trouble together with census tract. 

The Map together with the Territory

“The map is non the territory, the give-and-take is non the thing.” Alfred Korzybski 

“The description is non the described.” Jiddu Krishnamurti

“We say the map is unlike from the territory.” Gregory Bateson

We all know that Korzybski, Krishnamurti, together with Bateson are right, together with and thence nosotros merrily walk along the map, non the territory.  Because nosotros mensurate SES past times education, income, occupation, together with peradventure neighborhood nosotros tend to assume that social shape is income, education, occupation, together with peradventure neighborhood.  These variables are non social class, they are measures of social status.

A Little About Measurement

Some measures are direct, similar age, simply most measures are indirect; nosotros mensurate what tin sack last most easily measured, together with non everything tin sack last easily measured.  For example, tidings is measured most easily using complex standardized assessments of many facets that researchers believe are, or are related to, intelligence.  The interrogation remains opened upwardly equally to whether or non your might to adjust blocks into sure as shooting patterns inside a sure as shooting fourth dimension is related to intelligence, to a greater extent than or less component of intelligence, something related to intelligence, or something spurious.  The concept of multiple facets of tidings convey been mainstream since the showtime of the intellectual assessment movement, thence multiple intelligences is cypher new.  

The underlying declaration of who gets to define tidings moves us appropriately into cultural multifariousness together with bias inward measurement.  In defending the income bias inward standardized testing the Educational Testing Service noted that:

Relationships betwixt attempt scores together with other factors such equally educational background, gender, racial/ethnic background, parental education, together with household income are complex together with interdependent.  These factors practice non straight touching on attempt performance; rather, they are associated with educational experiences both on tests such equally the SAT together with inward schoolwork.  

2011 College-Bound Seniors Total Group Profile Report

What is social class?

If SES is non social shape together with thence what is social class?  From my perspective social shape is non education, income, or occupation, or fifty-fifty neighborhood, simply rather similar ETS I propose that social shape is what you lot practice with together with how you lot recall together with experience close your education, income, occupation, or fifty-fifty your neighborhood.  Like sex or ethnicity, social shape is a social identity, a collection of learned mental together with physical behaviors.  Social shape is non something you lot have, it is something you lot are.  You convey an education, an income, an occupation, together with fifty-fifty a neighborhood.  But are you lot education, income, occupation, or a neighborhood?  

We mensurate what is simplest to measure, similar arranging colored blocks into patterns, or education, income, occupation, together with neighborhood equally long equally they are related to the underlying affair nosotros desire to measure.  The measuring is of the map, non of the thing. 

Social shape is complex.  One agency to define shape is personal; social shape is for each of us an identity together with a culture.  It is far easier to mensurate education, income, together with instruction than it is to mensurate identity together with culture.  Not all upper-middle shape cultures are the same.  There are many ways to perform female, or male, or transgendered, at that spot are many ways to perform African American, or European-American, or Thai, or Han, or Hopi, together with at that spot are many ways to perform upper-middle class.  Measures for the functioning of sex must last appropriately sensitive to variations inward culture, region, ethnicity, together with social shape with other of import life infinite factors.  There is no hegemonic masculinity or femininity inward reality, the huge variability of masculinity together with femininity makes that an inappropriate idea.  Without a measure Definition of sex functioning it is impossible to mensurate sex inward whatever standardized way.  

Education, income, occupation, together with neighborhood, traditional measures of SES, are non social class, simply they are standardized ways to holler for a finger at it.  If I holler for at the Luna with my finger, the Luna is non my finger.  The map is non the territory together with nosotros take away to halt acting similar it is.  We take away to pay attending to the social identities together with cultures behind social class.