Types of Social Classes of People

Social class refers to a group of people with similar levels of wealth, influence, and status.
Sociologists typically use three methods to determine social class:

The objective method measures and analyzes “hard” facts.

The subjective method asks people what they think of themselves.
The reputational method asks what people think of others.

These classes are divided as follows:

1. The lower class:

This class is divided into lower upper class and lower lower class.

a) The lower class is typified by poverty, homelessness, and unemployment. People of this
class, few of whom have finished high school, suffer from lack of medical care, adequate
housing and food, decent clothing, safety, and vocational training. The media often
stigmatize the lower class as “the underclass,” inaccurately characterizing poor people as
welfare mothers who abuse the system by having more and more babies, welfare fathers
who are able to work but do not, drug abusers, criminals, and societal “trash.”

b) The upper lower class (The working class)

The working class are those minimally educated people who engage in “manual labor”
with little or no prestige. Unskilled workers in the class—dishwashers, cashiers, maids,
and waitresses—usually are underpaid and have no opportunity for career advancement.
They are often called the working poor. Skilled workers in this class—carpenters,
plumbers, and electricians—are often called blue collar workers. They may make more
money than workers in the middle class—secretaries, teachers, and computer technicians;
however, their jobs are usually more physically taxing, and in some cases quite
dangerous.
 2. The middle class

The middle class are the “sandwich” class. These white-collar workers have more money than
those below them on the “social ladder,” but less than those above them. They divide into two
levels according to wealth, education, and prestige.

a. Individuals of the lower middle class, such as managers, entrepreneurs of small

businesses, trainers, and secretaries, tend to have lower earnings and less education.
Lower middle-class individuals often hold jobs requiring less formal education or skills
than upper-middle-class professionals.

b. Highly educated business and professional individuals with high earnings, such as
doctors, lawyers, stockbrokers, and CEOs, typically make up the upper middle class.
Upper-middle-class individuals earn higher incomes and have more accumulated wealth
than lower-middle-class individuals

3. The upper class

This class divides into two groups: lower‐upper and upper‐upper.

a. Those having "new money," or money earned from investments, commercial endeavors,
etc., are considered to be members of the lower–upper class.

b. The aristocratic and "high society" families with "old money" that have been wealthy for
many generations are considered to be in the upper-upper class. The money from their
inherited wealth supports the lifestyle of these extraordinarily wealthy people. In
comparison to the lower upper class, the upper upper class enjoys greater prestige.
Wherever their money comes from, both segments of the upper class are exceptionally rich. Both
groups have more money than they could possibly spend, which leaves them with much leisure
time for cultivating a variety of interests. They live in exclusive neighborhoods, gather at
expensive social clubs, and send their children to the finest schools. As might be expected, they
also exercise a great deal of influence and power both nationally and globally