Moroccan Middle Classes between Reality and Perception: A Comparative Analysis of Monetary and Subjective Approaches

Abstract:This article has a twofold purpose: the first is to compare the lifestyle, the socio-demographic profile and perceptions of the middle classes measured according to several monetary approaches. This comparison makes it possible to determine which approaches lead to a middle class that represents the typical characteristics of this group as described in the literature and that is most consistent with the self-identified social status. The second is to analyze the determinants of the self-perceived social status and to explore to what extent it is in line with the objective reality. Thus, four objective definitions of the middle class based on living standards were compared according to several objective and subjective characteristics. Using data from the 2014 National Household Consumption and Expenditure Survey, our results show that, regardless of the approach, the Moroccan middle class is characterized by great diversity in terms of socio-demographic and subjective characteristics. However, these characteristics, as well as the magnitude of the differences between the objective stratification and the subjective one, depend largely on the approach used to delimit this group, suggesting a positive correlation between living standards and self-identified social status. The study of the latter's determinants confirms this positive correlation, although it is far from perfect. Indeed, other factors influence this self-assessment, such as education, occupation and status on the labor market, housing comfort, upward or downward trajectories of the household's standard of living, etc.