Rethinking income mobility

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Volume Title

School of Business | Master's thesis

Date

2024

Major/Subject

Mcode

Degree programme

Economics

Language

en

Pages

57

Series

Abstract

This thesis conducts a comprehensive literature review to examine the multidimensional nature of social mobility, with a particular focus on income as a measure. The main objective is to understand how conceptualizations of social status and mobility through income correspond with broader definitions of social status and mobility. By reviewing research on social mobility from the field of social science, this thesis aims to gain a comprehensive understanding of how income mobility aligns with economic, social and cultural dimensions of status. This thesis addresses research gaps on the relationship between income mobility and social and cultural dimensions of social mobility by examining how income mobility is associated with corresponding social and cultural mobility. Understanding the limitations of income-based measures and under-researched aspects of income mobility may broaden the current literature in the field of economics to address issues of intergenerational mobility and equality of opportunity. Moreover, including aspects such as social and cultural dimensions of social mobility in income mobility research addresses the multidimensionality of social mobility and may strengthen future empirical research on the topic to make more robust conclusions, therefore guiding policymakers with a more comprehensive understanding of social mobility. The findings of this thesis show that income-based conceptualizations of social mobility capture corresponding mobility in cultural and social dimensions with reasonable accuracy. Through the intertwining of multiple social mobility conceptualizations across social sciences, this thesis makes evident that what constitutes social status and mobility is a complex social and societal process.

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Thesis advisor

Sarvimäki, Matti

Keywords

tuloliikkuvuus, sosiaalinen liikkuvuus, tulomittarit, sosiaalinen asema

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