Working-class Swiss shared middle-class character structures despite economic differences

Evidence

Although a clear line can be drawn between the middle classes and the working class in economic terms, the same is not the case in social-psychological terms. The working-class inquiry has already shown the extent to which typically petty-bourgeois character structures also occur among workers. In Switzerland this is the case to an even greater extent, and the working class can be considered as psychologically middle class to a very great extent. The difference is mainly in standard of living. This means that, from this point of view, we ought to distinguish, rather, between better-off and less well-off members of the middle class. — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School, 565

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the earlier German working-class inquiry finding the same petty-bourgeois character structures among German workers, now reinforced by the Swiss case. — connects to: Economic class boundaries do not align with psychological character structures — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School: Its History,…, 565; The Swiss family questionnaire yielded no class-specific differences even under statisticians — Rolf Wiggershaus, The Frankfurt School: Its History,…, 566; Social class fuses both serial and group structures simultaneously — Fredric Jameson, Marxism and Form, 558 (+2 more)

Broader Connections

• Postwar affluence shifted class structures from embedded tiers to consumption-based forms #corroborates (0.75)
• Postindustrial class structures arose from consumer affluence and corporate capital #corroborates (0.72)