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How Do the Middle Class and the Poor Grow Apart? An Empirical Test of the Psychological Well-Being Pathway in Middle-Income Countries

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Abstract

How to define who exactly qualifies as middle class is a long-standing discussion, but has been given new impetus by recent contributions in behavioural economics and social psychology. This study investigates the plausibility of the claim that the middle class can be meaningfully defined as those with higher levels of mental well-being. To this purpose we explore the pathway from occupational class to locus of control, and further link this pathway to behaviour that is often associated with middle-class status. The article tests for interdependencies between these variables with data from 23 middle-income countries using the 2005 World Value Survey. We show by structural equation modelling that the data are at least consistent with a psychological well-being pathway. The analysis thus supports the idea that middle classes not only fare better because they have more stable financial means, but also because these socioeconomic circumstances allow them more mental resources.

Abstract

La définition de qui, exactement, fait partie de la classe moyenne est une discussion de longue date, mais qui a reçu un nouvel élan grâce aux contributions récentes de l’économie comportementale et la psychologie sociale. Cette étude examine la plausibilité de l’allégation selon laquelle la classe moyenne peut être définie comme ces personnes qui ont un niveau supérieur de bien-être mental. A cette fin, nous explorons le cheminement entre la classe professionnelle et le lieu de contrôle, et nous relions ce cheminement à un comportement qui est souvent associé avec le statut de classe moyenne. L’article cherche les interdépendances entre ces variables et les données provenant de 23 pays à revenu intermédiaire en utilisant le World Value Survey de 2005. Nous montrons par modélisation à équation structurelle que les données sont au moins compatibles avec un cheminement de bien-être psychologique. L’analyse soutient donc l’idée que les classes moyennes s’en tirent mieux non seulement parce qu’elles ont une situation financière plus stable, mais aussi parce que ces circonstances socio-économiques leur apportent davantage de ressources mentales.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Radboud University Nijmegen, Nijmegen, The Netherlands

    Rick Mourits & Luuk Van Kempen

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  1. Rick Mourits
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  2. Luuk Van Kempen
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Correspondence to Rick Mourits.

Appendix

Appendix

Descriptive Tables for All Variables

Table A1

Table A1 Descriptive statistics for all respondents before full information maximum likelihood
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Table A2

Table A2 Descriptive statistics for working respondents before full information maximum likelihood
Full size table

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Mourits, R., Van Kempen, L. How Do the Middle Class and the Poor Grow Apart? An Empirical Test of the Psychological Well-Being Pathway in Middle-Income Countries. Eur J Dev Res 28, 893–915 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1057/ejdr.2015.59

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