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Holding Fast To A Dream: Estimating The Probabilities Of Class-Vulnerability And Class-Security Among The American Middle Class

dc.contributor.authorBradford, Ashonen_US
dc.contributor.chairHirschl, Thomas Aen_US
dc.contributor.committeeMemberLichter, Daniel T.en_US
dc.date.accessioned2012-06-28T20:56:23Z
dc.date.available2017-06-01T06:00:35Z
dc.date.issued2012-01-31en_US
dc.description.abstractThe middle class has become increasingly vulnerable over the last 30 years for a number of reasons, which in part has compromised their capability to hold on to the American Dream. Still, we know very little about what proportion of the middle class is vulnerable at any given particular time and we know even less about why or even if these proportions fluctuate over time. Utilizing household and family data from the (PSID), my thesis uses survival analysis to assess the odds of experiencing class-vulnerability and/or class-security among the American middle class. My results indicate that through major stages of adulthood, over 90 percent of individuals in the middle class will experience either economic event. Results also indicate that the risk of experiencing either economic event is dramatically stratified by race and education. While income may purchase a ticket into the middle class, this research shows that the lack of economic assets or net worth is leaving the American middle class very vulnerable to economic shocks.en_US
dc.identifier.otherbibid: 7745003
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/1813/29186
dc.language.isoen_USen_US
dc.subjectAmerican Dreamen_US
dc.subjectWealthen_US
dc.subjectMiddle Classen_US
dc.titleHolding Fast To A Dream: Estimating The Probabilities Of Class-Vulnerability And Class-Security Among The American Middle Classen_US
dc.typedissertation or thesisen_US
thesis.degree.disciplineDevelopment Sociology
thesis.degree.grantorCornell Universityen_US
thesis.degree.levelMaster of Science
thesis.degree.nameM.S., Development Sociology

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