| Main Entry: | social mobility |
| Part of Speech: | n |
| Definition: | the ability of individuals or groups to move within a social hierarchy with changes in income, education, occupation, etc. |
| a fool or simpleton; ninny. |
| a gadget; dingus; thingumbob. |
The ability of individuals or groups to move upward or downward in status based on wealth, occupation, education, or some other social variable.
Note: American society operates on the principle that an individual's achievements can be rewarded by upward social mobility.
social mobility
movement of individuals, families, or groups through a system of social hierarchy or stratification. If such mobility involves a change in position, especially in occupation, but no change in social class, it is called "horizontal mobility." An example would be a person who moves from a managerial position in one company to a similar position in another. If, however, the move involves a change in social class, it is called "vertical mobility" and involves either "upward mobility" or "downward mobility." An industrial worker who becomes a wealthy businessman moves upward in the class system; a landed aristocrat who loses everything in a revolution moves downward in the system
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