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- Another factor that shapes people’s identity is their socio-economic status.
- Socio-economic refers to an economic situation shared by a group of people and some determinants are occupation, income, education and ownership of wealth.
- One’s socio-economic status is usually determined by objective indicators which can be constructed from single or multiple measures.
- In Singapore, an individual or household’s income level is used as the indicator for socio-economic status.
- The socio-economic status of an individual may shape one’s life experience as it affects the choice of housing, food, entertainment and activities.
- This will then influence the circle of friends that one interacts with.
- Through hard work, an individual can move from lower to higher levels of income and this movement is called “social mobility”.
The Different Socio-economic Status Groups
| Higher socio-economic status | · Individuals can have a higher socioeconomic status in different ways. · They could be born into a wealthy family or accumulated their wealth through work or investments. · They usually have access to better housing, food vacations and modes of transport. |
| Middle socio-economic status | · Individuals in this group are generally involved in jobs performed in offices and are also known as “white-collar” workers. · A common term that is used to categorise jobs in this category is “PMETs”, referred to as professionals, managers, executives, and technicians. |
| Lower socio-economic status | · Usually do not possess much wealth and at times, they do not have the financial means to fully support themselves. · Many such individuals take on jobs that usually require manual labour or jobs which do not require much skill. · These are sometimes referred to as “blue-collar” jobs. · Those who are unemployed, homeless, or receive financial assistance from the government are another group who are of lower socioeconomic status. |
- There is concern that Singapore’s income gap is widening.
- However, when taking into account the role of taxes and transfers by the government in terms of subsidies and assistance, the income gap has shrunk a bit in 2014.
- Income gap is one factor shaping socio-economic diversity that can be seen in Singapore today.
- Income inequality may result when income gaps between the higher and lower socio-economic groups widen over time.
- In order for social mobility to happen, many measures have been put in place to support the needs of the lower socio-economic status groups, especially in the areas of healthcare and education financing
- It is important that these two areas are well supported as they enable people in lower socio-economic status groups to meet their basic needs and work towards improving their well-being and social mobility.
