In the light of the economic, political and social significance of the middle class for South Africa's emerging democracy, we critically examine contrasting conceptualisations of social class. We compare four rival approaches to empirical estimation of class: an occupational skill measure, a...

In a polarised and highly unequal country such as South Africa, it is unlikely that a definition of the middle class that is based on an income threshold will adequately capture the political and social meanings of being middle class. We therefore propose a multi-dimensional definition, rooted...

The wave of upbeat stories on the developing world's emerging middle class has reinvigorated a debate on how social class in general and the middle class in particular ought to be defined and empirically measured. With the aim of adding clarity to this debate, this dissertation provides a...

In a polarised and highly unequal country such as South Africa, it is unlikely that a definition of the middle class that is based on an income threshold will adequately capture the political and social meanings of being middle class. We therefore propose a multi-dimensional definition, rooted...

Existing empirical research on consumption patterns of the South African black middle class leans either on the theory of conspicuous consumption or culture-specific utility functions. This paper departs from treatment of the black middle class as a homogenous group. By differentiating between a...

According to calculations based on the Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) study, the proportion of middle-income group in Germany fell by six percentage points from 1991 to 2013, taking it to 54 percent. Germany is not the only country to have experienced such a downturn, however. Analyses of the...

Die Gruppe der Bezieher eines mittleren Einkommens ist in Deutschland von 1991 bis 2013 um sechs Prozentpunkte auf 54 Prozent zurückgegangen. Das zeigen Berechnungen auf Basis des Sozio-oekonomischen Panels (SOEP). Damit steht Deutschland nicht allein, denn vergleichbare Analysen für die USA...

Die Gruppe der Bezieher eines mittleren Einkommens ist in Deutschland von 1991 bis 2013 um sechs Prozentpunkte auf 54 Prozent zurückgegangen. Das zeigen Berechnungen auf Basis des Sozio-oekonomischen Panels (SOEP). Damit steht Deutschland nicht allein, denn vergleichbare Analysen für die USA...

This paper investigates the channels through which the middle class may matter for consumption growth and development. Determinants of the size and the growth of the middle class are also examined. Using several different middle class measures and a panel of 72 developing countries spanning the...