Mobility and the Middle Class Extended Family

Abstract

The paper reports the findings of intensive research on 120 middle class families. The geographical distribution of the members of the extended family was wider, and contact between them was less frequent than among the middle class families sampled by previous authors. In these seemingly adverse conditions the middle class extended family was nevertheless a functioning social entity. The relationship between the head of a household and his father or father-in-law was found to be frequently of great importance. It is by means of this link that the elder middle class generation channels financial aid to the next generation. This aid enhances the living standard of the recipients. It is an aspect of social mobility overlooked by studies concentrating upon occupational mobility.