Social Class – A Never-Ending Story of Inequality

When it comes to voting, those who have less, vote less (Laurison, 2016). This post will explore how social class affects political engagement. Social class is used to position people within society and despite having much to gain from political participation, people from lower socioeconomic classes are less likely to engage than their upper-class counterparts (Krauss, 2015). I argue that this is partly due to children’s political socialisation and its life-long effects.

Political engagement, as explained in my last post, is about the ability to influence democratic institutions. In the UK, those from a lower social background are less able to politically engage and are therefore largely excluded from the political processes. The result? A political agenda which are disproportionally biased against them and consequently reinforces existing inequalities. What do you think about a political class divide?

Political engagement is formed throughout childhood and if your family are politically disengaged, it’s likely are you too! Children’s political understandings are formed through political socialisation, which largely determine their ability to participate politically as adults (Landtsheer et al., 2014). How successful the political socialisation process is, relates to political reproduction. This is when guardians pass down cultural, economic and social resources, which includes political skills and understandings, or lack thereof, to their children. Due to the importance of the family, these influences will affect children’s voting behaviours, political engagement and attitudes later in life (Brady et al., 2015).

In addition to the family, the school is an important place for political socialisation. In the UK, open classroom discussions and participatory activities are used to teach children about politics. Schools, however, often fail to provide equal access to civic learning, as students’ social backgrounds are determining factor for their ability to participate. Due to more successful political socialisation from the home, middle-class children have often developed more ‘appropriate’ communication skills needed in these learning environments. In contrast, lower social class students often lack these skills. Consequently, this can have an accelerating social effect where current inequalities are reinforced as middle-class students have a more successful learning experience (Hoskins and Janmaat, 2019). These differences reinforce a sense of hopelessness, political alienation and an inadequate understanding of political authorities for lower-class students.

The psychological aspect of being from a lower class are therefore reinforcing the sense of being less able to influence politics than the rest of society (Krauss, 2015). Political participation can’t therefore be said to be of a lack of interest but relates to a sense of entitlement of having political opinions (Nordhagen, 2019). This shows how important political socialisation is for people’s levels of political engagement as adults. In addition to having fewer political and psychological resources, such as paying a party membership and the ability to politically reflect, those from lower socioeconomic groups are also affected by how political participation is structured. Figure 1 (2019) explains how those from a lower social class are less likely to engage in political activities because such activities often require time, money and often means of transportation. This exemplifies how societal structures creates barriers a political class divide (Beeghley, 1986).

Because the middle class have grown, political parties strategically appeal middle class values which leaves little focus on lower social class interests (Arzheimer et al., 2016). Additionally, there are few lower-class parliament representatives which makes it possible for disadvantaged groups to view politics as by the rich for the rich (Wheeler, 2012). Not feeling adequately represented creates a distance between the neglected public and the political system. If you don’t think the system benefits you, it is easy to disconnect yourself from it altogether! This disproportionality results in political alienation and a sense of great distance from the political system (Blackwell et al., 2019). This is exemplified through voter turnout in general elections. In 2019, described by Figure 2 (2019), the voter turnout by DE voters – those from the lowest social class, was 53 percent, significantly lower compared to the higher social classes. Consequently, political absence from lower social classes is deemed a democratic threat as governmental policies will be largely biased against them (Lijphart, 1997).

Unequal political engagement reinforces societal inequalities. Throughout their whole lives, from childhood political socialisation to the ability to vote as adults, lower social classes are put in a disadvantaged position. This is a never-ending cycle where societal barriers, such as education and money, makes them less able to engage. This position lower social groups as less visible within the public sphere and are therefore labelled as outliners by wider society. This reinforce a notion of ‘there is no need to consider them’ in the political decision-making process which again leads to further inequalities and alienation.

It might not be possible to erase the political class cleavage but acknowledging the barriers the lower social classes face is vital. I believe that focusing on children’s socialisation process is an absolute necessity for increasing political engagement for lower socioeconomic groups. Giving parents necessary resources, as well as focusing on including lower social class children in political school activities can increase levels of political engagement later in life.

What are your thoughts? Let me know!

Talk to you soon,
Johanne

References:

Arzheimer, K., Evans, J. and Lewis-Beck, M. S. (2016). The Sage Handbook of Electoral Behaviour. 2 Volume Set. London: Sage

Beeghley, L. (1986). Social Class and Political Participation: A Review and an Explanation. Sociological Forum. 1(3) pp. 496-514.

Blackwell, J., Fowler, B., Fox, R., Mackey, L. and Mitchell. L. B. (2019). Audit of Political Engagement 16. The 2019 Report. The Hansard Society: London

Brady, H. E., Schlozman, K. L. and Verba, S. (2015). Political Mobility and Political Reproduction from Generation to Generation. The ANNALS of the American Academic of Political and Social Science. 657(1) pp. 149-173

Hoskins, B. and Janmaat, J. G. (2019). Education, Democracy and Inequality: Political Engagement and Citizenship Education in Europe. London: Palgrave MacMillan

Ipsos Mori (2019) How the voters voted in the 2019 election. Available at: https://www.ipsos.com/sites/default/files/ct/news/documents/2019-12/general-election-2019-poll-aggregate-v8.pdf (Accessed at: 02.03.21).

Krauss, M. W. (2015). The Inequality of Politics: Social Class Rank and Political Participation. IRLE Working Paper No. 120-15. Available at: http://irle.berkeley.edu/workingpapers/120-15.pdf (Accessed at: 24.02.21)

Landtsheer, C. I. D., Farnen, R. and German, D. B., Dekker, H., Sünker, D., Song, Y. And Miao, H. (2014). E-Political Socialization, the Press and Politics the media and government in the USA, Europe and China. Frankfurt: Peter Lang

Laurison, D. (2016). Social Class and Political Engagement in the United States. Sociology Compass. 10(8) pp. 684-697.

Lijphart, A. (1997). Unequal Participation: Democracy’s Unresolved Dilemma Presidental Address, American Political Science Association, 1996. American Political Science Review. 91(01) pp. 1-14.

Nordhagen, V. (2019). Social Inequality and Political Disengagement: Social Class and The Sense of Entitlement to Have an Opinion. Master’s Thesis, Sociology. University of Oslo. Available at: https://www.duo.uio.no/bitstream/handle/10852/70606/Vebj-rn-Nordhagen_Final-Draft-MA_26-06-2019.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y (Accessed at 28.02.21).

Wheeler, B. (2012). Denis MacShane urges ‘all working class’ MP shortlists. Available at: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-politics-18969789 (Accessed at: 08.03.21).