Trend Analysis of Inter-Generational Income Mobility and Subjective Class Identification

Abstract

We investigate whether inter-generational income mobility influences subjective class identification by analyzing data for men from the Social Stratification and Social Mobility 1955 to 2015 surveys in Japan. To examine the effect of intergenerational income mobility, we use estimates of the father’s income in conjunction with an income regression model. We posit the following three hypotheses: 1）Inter-generational income mobility has no effect on subjective class identification （the absolute status hypothesis）, 2）upward（downward）inter-generational income mobility has a positive（negative）effect on subjective class identification （the relative status hypothesis）, and 3）upward（downward）inter-generational income mobility has a negative（positive）effect on subjective class identification （the inertia status hypothesis）. We find a significant positive effect of intergenerational income mobility on subjective class identification in 1975 and a significant negative effect of inter-generational income mobility on subjective class identification in 2015. On the one hand, Hypothesis 2）is supported for 1975, while Hypothesis 3）is supported for 2015. These findings suggest that intergenerational income mobility is a determinant of subjective class identification whose effects have changed over time.