Social Mobility: Chile and Spain in Comparative Perspective (2023)

In recent decades, Chile and Spain have undergone processes of development and economic growth, each with different political and governmental approaches. Chile has adopted a neoliberal model characterized by a subsidiary state, while Spain has tended towards a welfare state model, promoting social policies of protection and resource allocation in this area. This study examines the multiple dimensions of social inequality, focusing on social stratification and its manifestation in intergenerational social mobility, as well as intragenerational mobility. Our methodology is based on quantitative analysis, using national databases to analyze gender differences and taking a long-term perspective through a cohort-based approach. The results highlight the fundamental importance of education for social mobility and examine how educational inequalities can influence the transmission of social inequalities between generations. Despite upward mobility, the weight of social origin remains significant, highlighting the greater mobility of women and the need for policies to promote gender equality and work-life balance. Furthermore, this study highlights the importance of work experience, labor market entry and the first job as crucial determinants of future mobility opportunities. Work experience can influence the breaking down of the associations between social origin and destination. These findings have important implications for understanding the occupational and social trajectories of individuals in both countries from an academic perspective.

Author: Cristian Segura Carrillo

Supervisor: Pedro López-Roldán & Sandra Fachelli

Date of thesis defense: 28/11/2023

Link: http://hdl.handle.net/10803/691231

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