Workers derive a sense of power from believing their class is the numerical majority.

Evidence

Power, like happiness, is awarded to the working (or lower middle) class. The sheer fact of numbers gives a sense of strength and importance. Costa, a factory operative, says, for example, “People like you [the interviewer] are the minority and people like me are the majority, so we get taken care of in the long run.” Whether a person sees himself as middle class or working class, he is likely to believe that most people belong to his class. This being true, his class, people like him, become the most important force in electoral decisions. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 2186

Categorization

• XREF: The perception of being the majority connects to pluralistic ignorance and the ‘false consensus effect’ in social cognition, and to democratic legitimacy beliefs. — connects to: Lower-status workers maintain self-esteem by claiming superiority in non-material goods. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology: Key Readings, 2179