Occupational classifications have long been the conventional method of assigning individuals, families and household to social class or socio-economic status positions. This practice has been subject to mounting criticism in recent years, either because of doubts about the validity of scales such as the OPCS Classification of Occupations or because of objections to the use of husbands' occupations to assign their wives and families to a class position. This article reviews this debate, and proposes an alternative method of assessing the socio-economic status of families by means of a composite Social Index comprising seven social indicators: occupation and education of the heads of household, housing tenure, type of accommodation, persons per room, car and telephone ownership. The construction and rationale of the Index are described and its special advantages explained. These include the capability of providing an assessment of the socio-economic status of single-parent families having no relevant occupational information, and increased sensitivity and reliability compared with OPCS social class.
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