Dennis Gilbert's Model Of Social Class

Throughout history people of all races have strived to reach the highest social class possible. Today that still has not changed and people continue to strive to move up in classes. There are so many different ways you can define and categories social classes today. According to Ballantine,Korgen, and Roberts, page 213, they state “most social scientists measure social class by looking at the income, education, and profession of respondents”. You can even sub- categories social classes. For example, Ballantine,Korgen, and Roberts, page 213, state, “Sometimes, social scientists break down members of the middle class into two groups the white-collar middle class and the working class”. In this paper, I will be using Dennis Gilbert’s model of
“What social class would you describe us to be in?” She stated, “Middle class.” After explaining to her Gilbert’s model, I asked “Would you say we are Upper Middle or Middle Class and why?” My mom continue to explain that she would say we are in the Upper Middle Class because our income is more than $80,000 a year. This did not surprise me because just like my mom I also would say that we are in the middle class. When asked in class what social class do I think my family belongs to, without any in depth knowledge of social classes, I also said middle class. My exact reasoning then was because “I am not rich but I am also not poor”. Now that I know more about social class, I would also agree that we are in the upper-middle class due to the amount of income my family brings in. My mom and I are just like most Americans today. Ballantine,Korgen, and Roberts, page 213 state, “When given a choice among lower, middle, and upper class, almost all Americans will say they are middle class” Due to middle class being the most common one I believe that is why there are sub categories to it. After speaking to my mom about her lifestyle growing up, she would not say the same answer. According to my mother, she would describe my grandma and everyone before her in my family in the underclass. My grandma was unemployed and had very low resources when raising my mother and so did my grandma’s mother. My
Growing up, I would describe my family and I to be in between the working class and middle class. My family and I did not achieve the upper middle class status until my mom met my step dad 7 years ago. Before than it was just my mom, my two sisters, and I living on our own. When I was younger, we moved around a lot in the chicago area. During that time, Chicago was not the best area to live to get the best education from. My mom decided that it was time we move out of the city and into the suburbs when I was in 3rd grade. I lived in a suburb name Bellwood for the years of 3rd-8th grade. Even though education was a little better there then the city, it was not until my freshman year where I felt I was getting the best education possible. During this time, my mom had married my step dad and he joined our family. This is when I notice our social mobility was