7.4d3 Unequal Childhoods

Pierre Bourdieu (1930-2002) suggested that social classes reproduce themselves from one generation to the next because of habitus. Habitus refers to how physical appearance and ways of thinking and behaving reflect the social class status one had as a child. For example, a person’s childhood social class is reflected in their teeth as an adult. A higher income, a job with dental insurance, or both is necessary to pay for preventive dental care and corrective treatments like braces.  

At the micro-level, researchers have observed how a class-based habitus develops through socialization. Lareau (2003) used interviews and participant observation of 12 families, each with a third-grade child, to understand how parents raise their children. Lareau and her research assistants spent several months with each family. They went to children’s soccer games, observed family dinners, and even spent the night at participants’ houses to study socialization. While the families in the study were of different races and social classes, and some children were boys and some girls, she was surprised to learn that social class was the most crucial factor in parenting differences.

Lareau (2003) identified two primary parenting styles that correlate with social class. First, concerted cultivation is associated with middle-class families and includes making decisions and resolving disagreements through discussions between parents and children. The families also structure their daily lives around children’s organized activities. Second, accomplishment of natural growth is associated with working-class and low-income families. It establishes clear boundaries between children and adults so that instead of eliciting the opinions of children, parents tell children what to do. Children participate in fewer organized activities and have more control over their leisure time.

Photo 7.14

People in Management Are Likely to Have Had Middle-Class Upbringings, and People Who Are Factory Workers Are Likely to Have Had Working-Class Upbringings

Class-based parenting styles have distinct consequences for upward mobility through careers. Lareau (2003) observed that middle-class children felt comfortable questioning and negotiating with adults. As a result, they learned how to navigate social settings so the rules worked for them, such as by asking teachers for special treatment like extra credit. In contrast, working-class and low-income children learned to not question authority and did not ask for the kind of special treatment that middle-class children did. Middle-class children learned to communicate with and negotiate with authority figures, such as coaches and teachers, gaining practice for future negotiations with authority figures in the workplace, including managers. Working-class and poor children learned to take orders and not ask questions – characteristics associated with careers where employees do not have much decision-making power. Consequently, middle-class children more often have the kind of cultural capital that schools and employers value, thereby reproducing inequality.