Is the Underclass Really a Class?

The concept of an underclass departs from previous determinations of social class based on criteria of education, occupation, and income in favor of the more subjective and less quantifiable criteria of the degree of social dislocation and the departure of a population from middle class norms and values. A study reviews current definitions of the underclass ; contrasts this class description with the poor in the 60\u27s and before; and suggests that the underclass is a pejorative label which has the effect of blaming the victim , and has negative implications for the formulation of public policy directed toward the population thus labeled