Socioeconomic Class and Its Influence, Essay Example

Socioeconomic class of people in any given society or community setting often plays a major role in their lives. Depending on the social setting, it will determine the manner, in which you are treated, perceived, and even handled in cases that you go against the law. Most social classes are often inherited while others are achieved over time. Way, these either play very important roles in an individual’s life and largely frame people’s perception and opinions regarding them.

In places like the UK, an individual’s socioeconomic class is often looked at in terms of the personal qualities and attributes, socioeconomic values and the level of educational attainment. People who have successfully attained these qualities are often regarded among the top class. The middle class may have some of these qualities though not in abundance and the low class may have none.

Consequently, socioeconomic often determine people’s levels of access to healthcare facilities within the society, community or the nation. Most people from the noble families often find it easy to gain access to public facilities; this comes automatically due to respect and honor of their social class. Their presence in any place causes people to act in a manner that is presentable and linked to that class.

In most cases, the socioeconomic class that an individual belongs to may influence the type of company or friends the person walks with. As the saying goes, “birds of the same feather fly together,” the same people from the same social class always walk together. This may be largely attributed to the numerous characteristics and family attributes that they share. The type of life they live and the places they go to are often related. For this reason, they may never have time to interact with people from the low class.

A social class that has been inherited from birth is often a great determinant of our identities. Persons born in rich families are often unaware of the sufferings that the low class people face. Things like money problems, hunger, suffering, despair or even poor health care. On the contrary, a person born in low class families grow up in such tribulation and even gets used to it at a tender age. For such people, their destinies are always in their hands and their determination to succeed is often their push towards attainment of the social class that they deserve. This is why many at times, people rise up from poor background and become great people in the social class.

Relatively, a person’s social class will determine the manner in which the law is applied against them. For instance, people from the high class who find themselves in theft scandals are never mishandled; they are always called into the police station and requested to write their statements. On the other hand a low class member accused of stealing 2 packs of beer will find himself man handled face down and probably suffer a couple of beatings before getting the cells. All these are the aspects and impacts of socioeconomic class.

Despite the general myth that anybody is capable of rising above their social class, only a few cases are always presented. Thus, many people always find themselves in the social class in which they were born. This study therefore aims to make an in depth illustration on the impacts of an individual’s socioeconomic class.

Works Cited

Abernathy, Dixie Friend, and Marjorie Ringler. Affluence and influence a study of inequities in the age of excellence. Greenville, N.C.: East Carolina University, 2009. Print.

Bulmer, Martin, Julie Gibbs, and Laura Hyman. Social measurement through social surveys an applied approach. Farnham, Surrey: Ashgate, 2010. Print.

Costello, Carrie Yang. Professional identity crisis race, class, gender, and success at professional schools. Nashville, Tenn.: Vanderbilt University Press, 2009. Print.