Outlet society-low cost society: the middle-class comes back home

Authors

  • Sergio Andrés Cabello Universidad de La Rioja

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15257/ehquidad.2015.0007

Keywords:

Crisis, Middle classes, Outlet, Low cost, Social stratification.

Abstract

The crisis of capitalism has resulted in a new scenario which is increasing inequality and generating a change of social stratification, and which affects also the middle-classes. This social group has generated a large number of discussions within Social Sciences concerning its conceptualization, not to mention the links between social status and social mobility. In the field of consumption, outlet establishments and low-cost products have expanded in the last decade. Not only important contingents of middle-classes have gain access to them, but lower-classes, which means they have acquired signs of the upper-class status. This paper links the evolution of middle-classes to the process of consumption of outlet and low-cost products as well as, the emergence of a society, which does not differ much from that kind of products. This fact leads to an increase in social inequality, poverty and exclusion. The main results and conclusions lead us to a scenario in which, the middle-class, after social mobility in recent decades and the adoption of indicators of the upper-class status, which are their reference groups, comes back to its origins, that is to say, the lower class (the working class).

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Published

2016-05-29

How to Cite

Andrés Cabello, S. (2016). Outlet society-low cost society: the middle-class comes back home. EHQUIDAD. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF WELFARE AND SOCIAL WORK POLICIES, (4), 11–30. https://doi.org/10.15257/ehquidad.2015.0007

Issue

Section

Artículos

Most read articles by the same author(s)

1 2 > >>