Are Advanced Industrialized societies characterized by the existence of an "underclass' Give USA and England as eg's.

Are Advanced Industrialized societies characterized by the existence of an "underclass' Give USA and England as eg's.

BY: INDIAN DIVA

Yes advanced industrialized societies such as England and the USA which are both developed countries are characterized by the existence of an underclass. Sociologists who support his view include Murray, Dahrendof, Giddens, Gallie, Runciman and so forth. Marx disagreed that they are characterized by an underclass.

In the 1980's and 1990's the argument that a new underclass is emerging or re-emerging in the class structure of advanced industrial societies has become a central focus of debate. In modern usage the underclass has been used by Rex and Tomlinson (1979) as well as Field. The underclass means a sub stratum of society below the working class and is socially distinct from the rest of society. Kirk Mann claims that the underclass comprises of excluded groups, marginalized groups, those in the reserved army of labor, housing and social security classes and so forth.

A segment of a social network

Due Northwest

Underclass hero

Murray 'In Losing Ground' (1984) argued that the USA and England had a growing underclass. He claimed that government policies were encouraging Americans to become dependent on state benefits. In the 1960's welfare reforms led to an increase in never married black single parents and black youths losing interest in getting a job. Therefore increases in the level of benefits and changes in the rules of governing them led to the growth of the underclass by discouraging a self-sufficiency which is seen as a threat to the social and economic well being of a country.

With respect to England Murray used a cultural approach to define the underclass. He claims that they have little or no interest in contributing to society has a distinct set of values which justify crime, living of state benefits and uninterested in finding employment.