Climbing up a steeper staircase: Intergenerational class mobility across birth cohorts in Argentina (2003–2010)

Abstract

This article introduces Argentina as a relevant case of intergenerational class mobility in Latin America because of its earlier modernization, relatively open and integrated class structure and its subsequent economic decline in the last quarter of the 20th Century. The article explores trends of intergenerational class mobility rates and social fluidity across men and women birth cohorts born from 1940 to 1985 and focuses on the opportunities of upward mobility from working class origins. The results firstly show the relevance of the expansion of vacancies in the service class in impelling of upward class mobility processes. The rates of vertical upward mobility have been lower for men when compared with other Latin American countries, Italy and Spain. These rates are higher for women, situated in similar levels to those in late industrialized countries which have experienced substantial economic advances. These results are related to higher rates of class structure upgrading for women than men. Secondly, results demonstrate that long distance upward mobility to the service class as well as recruitment of the service class from working class have decreased over time for both men and women in a context of low and unsteady economic development. Thirdly, the results about social fluidity across birth cohort suggest that underneath a general trend of constant fluidity, there have been suggestive changes on the pattern of class mobility that consist of an increment of fluidity between classes at the bottom half of the class structure and less long-distance mobility between working classes and the service class. The offspring's of working class families have been climbing a steeper stairway because class barriers in the upper middle classes have increased, especially among men. These findings contribute to support previous studies which emphasize the decisive role of structural upgrading of class structure in vertical upward class mobility and the effect of the corrosion of working class welfare conditions on negative social fluidity.