Throughout the social classes the amount
of emotional behaviors experienced varies, upper class experiencing the least negative
emotional behavior and lower class experiencing the most negative emotional
behavior. The low, middle, and upper
class develop different levels of emotional behaviors because of the
experiences they encounter due to their status in society. They have different
experiences by how they’re viewed within society and their socioeconomic status
which is measured by one’s income, education, and occupation. The different
social classes develop different emotional behaviors due to their income, interactions
in social places, and in their workplace.
The lower class are usually educated equal
to a high school diploma or GED, occupied in minimum wage jobs, and their
income is just enough to live pay check to pay check. Middle class at least
have some college education or college degree, have jobs with less physical
labor than lower class, and have an income enough to pay the bills and to spend
during leisure time. The upper class usually have a college, masters, or
doctorates degree, also have white collar jobs, and have enough income to enjoy
the luxuries of the world. Despite the inequalities we all have emotions and we
react differently due to our social classes.
Emotional behaviors are different in the
social classes when comparing them to a person’s income. The lower class suffer
more psychological when it comes to their income which includes how they earn
their income. In the lower class there are a lot of unemployed people who are
suffering from poverty and those who are employed they work minimum wage jobs
earning just enough to live. Some emotions that emerge in the working class are
signs of stress, frustration, and being overwhelmed. They have signs of stress
because their income is not enough sometimes to get through the week and get
overwhelmed trying to think of solutions. In a sociological point of view
sometimes people get so frustrated trying to get fast money and they turn into
the underground market to sell drugs. For example, in the book Ain’t No Makin’ It, lower class adults
have trouble looking for a job and they get frustrated that they start selling
drugs in order to feed their family. A guy named “Shorty” from the book shouts,
“. Every fucking penny that my brother got he threw right into the family,
right into the house (MacLeod 2009:53)”. Trying to live day by day just to have
where to live which is a major stressor and can be frustrating when not knowing
if you’re going to have an income to support your family. Sometimes they also
have unhealthy ways of coping with their income problems which include doing
drugs or drinking. The lower class sometimes react to this coping mechanism
because their emotions can cause them to make such a decision because they
believe the outcome will solve their problems. In reality they’re just forgetting about their
problems and unhealthy.
In the case of the middle class their
income can be more beneficial than the lower class which enables them to live
well enough. The middle class income is in between the lower and upper class
which are more neutral when comparing them to their emotional behavior. The
middle class have less to worry about than the lower class because they have
greater source of income. They do experience stress, frustration, and fear, but
not to the extent of worrying if they’re going to have enough money to eat or
support their family.
The
upper class don’t show the same signs than the lower and middle class show due
to their negative emotional behavior when relating it to their income. The
upper class thrive in the economy which worrying or having negative emotions
about their income is not a factor. They rather enjoy their income in having
luxuries instead of necessities which bring happiness, pleasure, and
superiority. Psychologically the upper class sometimes act due to their
emotions and can be negative because they do have a sense of superiority in our
society. For example, in the book Class
Acts, upper class people have entitlements to certain services because of
the income they earn. In luxury hotels guests want to feel that the hotel is
honored to have them as guests and also they’re entitled to anything (Sherman:46).
This entitlement is known to make the upper class to feel superior because of
their income.
Education and one’s occupation
correlate because the amount of education or knowledge you have can determine
the occupation you have. Therefore, the lower class can show emotions of
embarrassment, stress, sadness, and frustration. Education in itself is the
reason why many lower class people either don’t have a job or have a minimum
wage job. White collar jobs include having to be educated which is a stressor
when having a job that may be hard physical labor or a job that they don’t
like. Lower class people also experience sadness because they might not like
the job they’re doing, but have no option thoughtful of their family and need
of money to survive. Looking at stress related to work people in the lower
class are more likely to work for small businesses and, therefore, less likely
to have access to health insurance, paid vacations, and sick days which can
cause financial stress (www.apa.org).
Health insurance is very important because it makes an individual feel safe,
not having a doubt that if there’s a problem with my body I will know the
results eventually. Not having health insurance in itself can be stressful if a
person’s job includes physical labor. Not having sick days not only affect
their health if they really can’t work, but is lethal to their life if they get
fired which can cause anger and can be overwhelming. Also, lower class workers
are less likely to be allowed to use paid time off for sick child care which
can also have a negative impact on one’s emotional behavior when working. Another
emotion that emerges among the working class in their job includes fear of
losing their job, but in some cases also fear of their hierarchy which is their
boss. At times regulations done be their boss may be unfair, but rules have to
be followed if they want to keep their job.
Middle class is less emotional when
talking about education and occupation compared to the lower class. The middle
class usually have a stable job and a reason can be because they had a decent
enough education to prepare them for the work force being a privilege. Even
though the middle class can experience different emotions in their work place
like sadness, stress, and being overwhelmed they react differently to these
instances than the lower class people because it is not to the same extent that
one experiences these emotions. For example, feeling angry because they might
not feel like going to work is not as stressful as being angry because you
didn’t earn enough money for the week to buy enough food. Even though the middle
class can have certain stressors they’re also seen as being neutral because
they can also have privileges. I believe I am part of this class and I see how
I can react different to certain emotions because I consider myself privileged
in having a home, a job, a pursuing education, and also have a car which is useful
in this city.
The upper class compared to the
lower and middle class have the most successful education and occupations that
enable them to feel the less negative emotions. I’m not saying that the upper
class doesn’t feel negative emotions during their education and their
occupations, but are less likely to experience the same amount of negative
emotions as the lower and middle class. They differ in these emotional
behaviors because the upper class had to put more effort psychologically when
in school which might have experienced stress, being overwhelmed with work, and
mental exhaustion. There are different reactions through these levels of
emotions compared to the lower class because school work can cause stress, but
not as much as trying to survive without having a source of income. The upper
class also have different emotional behaviors in their occupations since they
are usually the hierarchy in the workplace which give them entitlements towards
certain things and also make them feel superior. The upper class are usually
the CEO’s that are their own boss giving the orders to the lower class or
middle class. The upper class may feel some stress in their workplace because
they can be in control of a big corporation, but they have workers that make
things manageable for them to succeed in their occupation. The amount of power
the upper class have because of their occupation is overwhelming, but they see
it positively as an accomplishment therefore being happy and joyous to their
successful career.
The different social classes differ
in the amount of negative emotional behaviors one experiences due to their
income, education and occupation. Low, middle, and upper class mostly
experience the same behaviors during their lives, but there is a wide range of
inequality when mentioning the negative emotional behaviors experienced between
these classes. The lower class experience the most negative emotional behaviors
compared to the middle and upper class because of their struggle to find a good
enough occupation because of their education which psychologically impacts them
the most. The major issues include not having the opportunities available for
the middle class because of the social reproduction among the same social
classes which is why there is this inequality of negative emotional behaviors.
-
MacLeod, Jay. 2009. Ain’t No Makin’ It:
Aspirationsand Attainment in a Low-Income Neighborhood. Boulder, CO:
Westview Press.
-
Sherman, Rachel. Class Acts: Service and
Inequality in Luxury Hotels. Berkeley: U of California, 2007. Print.
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