According to Dennis Gilbert's model of class structure, which of these groups is the largest?

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We start by restating the question and the available choices to frame what we’re evaluating.
Question: According to Dennis Gilbert's model of class structure, which of these groups is the largest?
Answer options: Capitalist class; Upper-middle class; Working poor; Underclass

Option 1: Capitalist class. This group represents the top tier of wealth and ownership in many class models, typically a relatively small, wealthy segment rather than the largest group. Gilbert’s framework positions capitalists as a minority compared to other classes, so this option is unlikely to be the largest.

Option 2: Upper-middle class. This group includes professionals and managers with substantial education and earnings, but in most class models—including Gilbert’s—the upper-middle class is large, yet not the largest group. It’s generally outnumbered by those in lower paying or less stable employment, so this option is not typically the biggest category.

Option 3: Working poor. This group comprises people who are employed but earn wages that keep them near or below the poverty line, often facing job instability or low wages. In Gilbert’s model and similar stratifications, the working poor can represent a very large segment because they fall within the broad category of working-class individuals who do not achieve sufficient income, making this option plausibly the largest group.

Option 4: Underclass. The underclass is usually described as a smaller, marginalized group facing chronic unemployment or social exclusion. It is not considered the largest cohort in Gilbert’s typology, so this option is unlikely to be correct.

Now, weighing the options, it becomes clear that capitalists are a minority, the upper-middle class is substantial but not the largest, and the underclass is comparatively small. The key distinction is whether the largest segment is the broad working-class category or specifically the “working poor.” Gilbert’s model emphasizes a large, persistent presence of workers at the lower end of the wage spectrum who are employed but still poor, which aligns with the idea that the working poor constitute the largest group within the structure described. Therefore, among the provided choices, the reasoning supports selecting Working poor as the largest group in this model.

SOCIOL 1102 AU2025 (28012) Quiz 5: Stratification and Inequality

According to Dennis Gilbert's model of class structure, which of these groups is the largest?

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