SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS
An index of socio-economic status, Social class
Socio-economic status is a term which is often contrasted with that of social class.
Socio-economic status, largely an American usage, has developed as a way to operationalize or measure social class on the assumptions that class groupings are not real groups.
Socio-economic status is a rather arbitrary category and is developed by combining the position or score of persons on criteria such as income, amount of education, type of occupation held, or neighborhood of residence.
The scores can then be arbitrarily divided so as to create socioeconomic divisions such as upper class, middle class, lower class. Sociologists are interested in socioeconomic status, as they are in class, since it is assumed that this status affects life chances in numerous ways.
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Socio-Economic Status and Delinquent Behavior: A
Retest
Ronald L. Akers, Department of Sociology, University of Kentucky
Abstract: Some years ago F. Ivan Nye conducted a study in Washington in which he strongly
questioned the traditional findings of a pre ponderance of delinquent behavior among the
lower classes. Using self-reported behavior rather than official criteria, he found no sig
nificant relationship between delinquent behavior and socio-economic status. The
respondents in that study were the students of high schools in three small communities.
The present paper reports a retest of the hypothesis of that study in an urban community.
Using essentially the same procedure as the Nye study and employing Nye-Short delinquent
behavior scale items and other items from that study, anonymous questionnaires were
adminis tered to 992 junior high school students in a large Northeastern Ohio community.
Delinquent behavior was self-reported, and socio- economic status was determined by
employing the North-Hatt occupational prestige scale to rank the occupations of the
respond ents' fathers.
A number of significance tests revealed no significant differences in delinquent behavior
by socio-economic status, and correlational analysis revealed no correlation between the
two variables. The results confirmed those of the Nye study. Thus, those theories of
delinquency positing a disproportionate amount of delinquent behavior in the lower
socio-economic levels are again met with empirical contradiction, this time in a large
city.
Assessing the Socio-Economic Status of Families -
Albert F. Osborn
Abstract: Occupational classifications have long been the conventional method of assigning
individuals, families and household to social class or socio-economic status positions.
This practice has been subject to mounting criticism in recent years, either because of
doubts about the validity of scales such as the OPCS Classification of Occupations or
because of objections to the use of husbands' occupations to assign their wives and
families to a class position. This article reviews this debate, and proposes an
alternative method of assessing the socio-economic status of families by means of a
composite Social Index comprising seven social indicators: occupation and education of the
heads of household, housing tenure, type of accommodation, persons per room, car and
telephone ownership. The construction and rationale of the Index are described and its
special advantages explained. These include the capability of providing an assessment of
the socio-economic status of single-parent families having no relevant occupational
information, and increased sensitivity and reliability compared with OPCS social class. -
Socio-economic Position, Gender and Health - How Do They Interact?
Sally MacIntyre, MRC Medical Sociology Unit, University of Glasgow, Scotland
Kate Hunt, MRC Medical Sociology Unit, University of Glasgow, Scotland
Abstract: There is a large research literature on socio-economic inequalities in health
(and explanations for these inequalities); there is also a large literature on gender
differences in health (and explanations for these differences). However, the two bodies of
research are rarely integrated to ask, for example, whether socio-economic inequalities
vary by gender, or whether gender differences vary by socio-economic position. The
separation of these two research traditions may be to the detriment of theoretical
development in both of them; and in particular, asymmetrical treatment of men and women in
research in inequalities in health may hinder our ability to explain the mechanisms
producing inequalities. This article reviews the intersection of socio-economic position
and gender, and argues for more systematic and symmetrical examination of the interaction
between socio-economic position and gender in the social patterning of health. -
Health and Socio-economic Position - A Commentary
Douglas Carroll, University of Birmingham, George Davey Smith, University of Bristol,
Abstract: This Special Issue focuses on health variations contingent on socio-economic
position. Among the numerous reasons why health psychologists should attend to such
variations are their pervasiveness, their magnitude and their continuation into better-off
social groups. The latter raises the possibility that psychosocial factors may be
involved. Recent data revealing that socio-economic health inequalities have increased in
recent years, in parallel with increasing income inequalities in countries such as the UK
and USA, provide further reason. Understanding the underlying physical, behavioural and
psychosocial mechanisms is clearly an important research mission. However, effective
intervention will require structural approaches that directly counter socio-economic
disparity. -
Physical Activity Behaviors in Lower and Higher Socioeconomic Status Populations
Earl S. Ford, Robert K. Merritt, Gregory W. Heath, Kenneth E. Powell, Richard A. Washburn,
Andrea Kriska and Gwendolyn Haile
Abstract: Few data on physical activity habits among populations of low socioeconomic
status have been published. The authors studied physical activity habits—leisure-time
physical activity, job-related physical activity, household physical activity, and
walking—among 172 lower socioeconomic status women and 84 lower socioeconomic status
men and compared their habits with those of 208 higher socioeconomic status women and 95
higher socioeconomic status men. All subjects resided in the greater Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania, area. Data collection occurred throughout 1986. Lower socioeconomic status
women, the least active group, averaged 1,536 ± 1,701 minutes/week (±standard deviation)
of total physical activity, whereas higher socioeconomic status women, the most active
group, averaged 2,079 ± 1,807 minutes/week (p < 0.0001). Higher socioeconomic status
men averaged 1,952 ± 1,799 minutes/week, and lower socioeconomic status men averaged
1,948 ± 1,916 minutes/week. Higher socioeconomic status women spent significantly more
time each week in leisure-time physical activity, job-related physical activity, and
household physical activity than did lower socioeconomic status women. Lower socioeconomic
status men spent significantly more time each week walking and doing household chores,
whereas higher socioeconomic status men tended to be more active in leisure-time physical
activity. These data suggest important quantitative and qualitative differences in
physical activity among population subgroups. In view of the important role of physical
activity in promoting physical and mental health, reasons for the differences among groups
of varying socioeconomic status must be examined and elucidated.
Books
on the impact of socio-economic status
Socio-Economic Status And Living Arrangements Of Older
Persons In Lithuania by Sarmite Mikulioniene and V. Stankuniene
Population Ageing and Socio-Economic Status of Older Persons in Estonia by United Nations
Coordinated Approach to Raising the Socio-Economic Status of Latinos in C Alifornia by
Elias Lopez, Ginny Puddefoot, and Patricia Bandara
The burden of disease associated with being African-American in the United States and the
contribution of socio-economic status [An article from: Social Science & Medicine] by
P. Franks, P. Muennig, E. Lubetkin, and H. Jia
Don't throw out the baby with the bathwater: the case for a reformed SES funding
scheme.(socio-economic status): An article from: Australian Journal of Education by Louise
Watson
Individual socio-economic status, community socio-economic status and stroke in New
Zealand: A case control study. by P. Brown, M. Guy, and J. Broad
The impact of socio-economic status on the practice, perception and attitudes of secondary
school girls towards Female Genital Mutilation (FGM).: An article from: Ahfad Journal by
Ahmed Abdel Magied, Huda Failed, Marwa Salama, and Hanaa Salama (Digital - Jul 31, 2005) -
HTML
Measures of Socio-Economic Status: Current Issues by Mary G. Powers (Hardcover - Aug 1982)
Hispanic origin, socio-economic status, and community college enrollment.by Noga O'Connor
Social capital, socio-economic status and psychological distress among Australian adults
[An article from: Social Science & Medicine] by P. Phongsavan, T. Chey, A. Bauman, and
R. Brooks
Students' attitude towards religion in relation to personality characteristics,
intelligence, and socio-economic status by O. P Kohli
Socio-economic Status of Farming Communities in Northern India by Ajit Kumar Singh
Children of Preschool Age: Studies in Socio-Economic Status, Social Adjustment and Mental
Ability, with Illustrative Cases by Ethel Kawin
Resting frontal brain activity: linkages to maternal depression and socio-economic status
among adolescents. by A.J. Tomarken, G.S. Dichter, J. Garber, and C. Simien
Air pollution, health, and socio-economic status: the effect of outdoor air quality on
childhood asthma. by M.J. Neidell
Socio-Economic Status of Scavengers- A Study by Sabir Ali
Vitamin A deficiency among children from low socio-economic status living in different
environments in Khartoum State.: An article from: Ahfad Journal by Elham Ahmed Hamed,
Ahmed Abdel Magied, and Ammar Hassan Khamis.
Understanding the role of mediating risk factors and proxy effects in the association
between socio-economic status and untreated hypertension [An article from: Social Science
& Medicine] by A. Colin Bell, L.S. Adair, and B.M. Popkin.
Eco Tipping Points: how a vicious cycle can become virtuous.(Thailand's socio-economic
status): An article from: Earth Island Journal by Amanda Suutari and Gerald Marten.
Inequity and disparity in oral health--Part II. Socio-economic status and deprivation: can
dental hygiene diminish the impact?(EVIDENCE FOR PRACTICE): ... from: Canadian Journal of
Dental Hygiene by Joanna Asadoorian.
Socio-economic Status and Living Arrangements of Older Persons in Finland by Economic
Commission for Europe, Anneli Miettinen, Mauri Nieminen, and United Nations.
CHILDREN OF PRESCHOOL AGEStudies in Socio-Economic Status, Social Adjustment and Mental
Ability, with Illustrative Cases by Ethel Kawin.
Health hazards and socio-economic status: a neighbourhood cohort approach, Vancouver,
1976-2001.: An article from: The Canadian Geographer by Michael Buzzelli, Jason Su, Nhu
Le, and Tenny Bache.
Sister to Sister Gestational 'Surrogacy' 13 Years on: A Narrative of Parenthood / Prenatal
Depression Effects on the Foetus and Neonate in Different Ethnic and Socio-Economic Status
Groups / Using the Menstrual Attitude Questionnaire (Journal of Reproductive and Infant
Psychology, Volume 20, Number 3 - August 2002) by PhD Suzanne Zeedyk.
John Henryism, self-reported physical health indicators, and the mediating role of
perceived stress among high socio-economic status Asian immigrants [An article from:
Social Science & Medicine] by J. Haritatos, R. Mahalingam, and S.A. James.
Children of Preschool Age Studies in Socio-Economic Status, Social Adjustment and Mental
Ability, with Illustrative Cases by Ethel Kawin.
Children's education and maturation process: A study in relation to socio-economic status,
sex, and intelligence by Pushpa Agarwal.
Socio Economic Status of Women and Fertility by Harvinder Kaur.
The socio-economic status trends of the Mexican people residing in Arizona by Raymond
Johnson Flores.
Socio-economic status, health and lifestyle by P. Contoyannis and A.M. Jones.
Differences in attachment security between African-American and white children: ethnicity
or socio-economic status? [An article from: Infant Behavior and Development] by M.J.
Bakermans-Kranenburg, M.H.v. IJzendoorn, and Kroo.
Children's growth and socio-economic status in Hungary [An article from: Economics and
Human Biology] by O. Eiben and C. Mascie-Taylor
Socio-Economic Status of Widows by K. Padmanabhan
Muslims in India: Their Educational, Demographic and Socio-Economic Status With
Inter-Community Comparisons Based on Field Survey Conducted in 1991 by Aijazuddin Ahmad
A census-based socio-economic status (SES) index as a tool to examine the relationship
between mental health services use and deprivation [An article from: Social Science &
Medicine] by J.E. Tello, J. Jones, P. Bonizzato, and M. Mazzi
Dalit women: Socio economic status and issues by S. K Singh
TOBACCO USE: DO SMOKEFREE AIR POLICIES, POLITICAL FACTORS, HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE
FACTORS, AND SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS MATTER? by Sesime Adanu
Contemporary Croatia in the Yugoslav federation: Its constitutional status and
socio-economic position by Branko M Pes̀Œelj
Diversity, regeneration status and socio-economic importance of the vegetation in the
islands of Lake Ziway, south-central Ethiopia by H. Zegeye, D. Teketay, and E. Kelbessa
Women, family demands and health: the importance of employment status and socio-economic
position by L. Artazcoz, C. Borrell, J. Benach, and I. Cortes
A European comparative study of marital status and socio-economic inequalities in suicide
by The EU Working Group, V. Lorant, A.E. Kunst, and Huisma
Socio-Economic Political Status and Women & Law in Pakistan
Socio-Economic Status And Living Arrangements Of Older Persons In Latvia by Latvijas
Universit Ate