Hello everyone,
I was wondering if anyone would be able to help me answer a question (or steer me toward potential resources that may help) regarding SES, and how best to delineate low/medium/high SES groupings.
I am setting up a study where I will be recruiting using quota sampling in order to ensure sufficient variation in the full sample to represent observed diversity in SES – across high, medium, and low SES quotas. What I am seeking is established classification criteria for "low," "medium," and "high" SES categories for adults in the USA, based perhaps on some composite of key SES components such as income + education levels, as a simple/efficient yet valid way to sample in order to ensure sufficient sample variability in SES (just using convenience sampling of predefined low/med/high SES quotas, vs. trying to obtain nationally representative stratified samples). I would then give participants sampled a more comprehensive SES measure (e.g., that might include occupation, wealth, subjective SES).
A concern it seems, with just sampling based on observed national income levels (e.g., lower 1/3, middle 1/3, upper 1/3) is that those who would be classified, say, as "low SES" might not fall into conventional "low SES" categories (e.g., 20-year-old college student who currently earns <$15K/year). While SES is presumably continuous and multidimensional, for quota sampling purposes, are there generally accepted/valid approximate SES categories, and if so, how are they defined and by whom?
Thanks!
I was wondering if anyone would be able to help me answer a question (or steer me toward potential resources that may help) regarding SES, and how best to delineate low/medium/high SES groupings.
I am setting up a study where I will be recruiting using quota sampling in order to ensure sufficient variation in the full sample to represent observed diversity in SES – across high, medium, and low SES quotas. What I am seeking is established classification criteria for "low," "medium," and "high" SES categories for adults in the USA, based perhaps on some composite of key SES components such as income + education levels, as a simple/efficient yet valid way to sample in order to ensure sufficient sample variability in SES (just using convenience sampling of predefined low/med/high SES quotas, vs. trying to obtain nationally representative stratified samples). I would then give participants sampled a more comprehensive SES measure (e.g., that might include occupation, wealth, subjective SES).
A concern it seems, with just sampling based on observed national income levels (e.g., lower 1/3, middle 1/3, upper 1/3) is that those who would be classified, say, as "low SES" might not fall into conventional "low SES" categories (e.g., 20-year-old college student who currently earns <$15K/year). While SES is presumably continuous and multidimensional, for quota sampling purposes, are there generally accepted/valid approximate SES categories, and if so, how are they defined and by whom?
Thanks!
