SOCIAL CLASS AND BRITISH POLITICS

In: Public opinion quarterly: journal of the American Association for Public Opinion Research, Band 25, Heft 3, S. 342-350

Abstract

A report of the findings of a sample survey carried out in GB during 1960 to examine the relationships between 'objective' SC (determined by occup), self-assessed SC & pol'al loyalties. Manual workers & their adult dependents form 66 2/3% of the L electorate; 40% of these described themselves as Mc & 56% as Wc (4% undecided). While a majority of the first group supports the Conservative Party & a majority of the second group supports Labor, yet in each the minority is so large that we must think in terms of a fourfold division of the `objective' Sc. When asked to describe their pol'al values it is clear that manual workers who consider themselves Mc & vote Labor have something important in common with manual workers who describe themselves as We & vote Conservative: both have a non-class, `altruistic' approach to politics. Similarly manual workers who call themselves Mc & vote Conservative have much in common with manual workers who call themselves We & vote Labor: both give a class & self-interest account of their pol'al motives. A comparison between self-styled Mc & self-styled Wc showed one outstanding diff in their backgrounds: among the children of the former a much higher proportion were receiving or had received higher educ; diff's in income & ownership of durable consumer goods etc, were comparatively slight. AA.