La clase social como elemento limitador de la movilidad, la inmovilidad persistente

With data from survey 3178 of the Centro de Investigaciones Sociológicas on Social Mobility and Inequality, we analyze the explanatory factors of mobility. Mobility is measured by comparing the interviewee's occupation with that of the father when he was 16 years old. We classify individuals into three groups, those who ascend, those who descend, and those who remain in the same social class. We incorporate variables related to four kinds of capital: economic, social, cultural, and human capital. In the survey, social class is determined by socioeconomic status, which relates Occupation and Socioeconomic conditions of the individual. Social class appears as the most influential variable in mobility, both downward and upward. Our results seem to reaffirm Bourdieu's theories of social reproduction against meritocratic theories, which reflects a scenario in which social inequality, far from being reduced, is widening. These results are considered to contribute to both theory and practice.