These days, Americans are considerably less likely to identify themselves as middle class or upper-middle class – a growing percentage put themselves in the working or lower class. This is the finding of a recent Gallup Poll.
Gallup tells us that 51% of Americans say they are middle class or upper-middle class, while 48% say they are lower class or working class. In multiple surveys conducted from 2000 through 2008, an average of more than 60% of Americans identified themselves as middle or upper-middle class. So, these 2015 numbers show the sharp decrease in how they view their economic lot.
Americans have become less likely than earlier years to identify as middle class and one explanation focuses on changes in the job market. A big downshift in middle-class identification is found among those with less than a college education, suggesting that increasingly fewer “middle-class” jobs may be available for those without college educations.
Further, middle-class identification dropped the most among Americans in their middle-age years, showing that the shifting economy and job market may be most likely to affect the class perceptions of those who are more anchored in their careers, rather than those just starting out or those who are at or near retirement.
Similar attitudinal changes among Republicans and Democrats suggest that politics has not been a major factor in the shift in self-identified class labels.
Gallup researchers surmise that Americans have shifted into a “new normal” way of looking at their class standing. It is suggested that America’s Great Recession has “convinced a number of Americans that they are not now, nor are they going to be, middle class — but rather are firmly ensconced in either the working or lower class.”
Key public opinion numbers:
- 51% of Americans say they are in middle or upper-middle class
- This is down from the 61% average from 2000 through 2008
- 48% now say they are in working or lower class
