During a 2023 survey, around 35 percent of respondents interviewed in Brazil said they belonged to the middle class. Meanwhile, 24.3 percent of the interviewees defined their social class as "low" and 25.7 percent stated that they were part of the middle class.Furthermore, Brazil's Gini coefficient, an indicator that measures wealth distribution, shows Brazil is one of the most unequal countries in the Latin American region.

ABSTRACT The article presents a panorama of socioeconomic hierarchies in late Nineteenth-century Brazil. Income analysis of social classes underpins these echelons. Within a theoretical and historical approach focused on social class, the article reckons that the Brazilian Empire was relatively egalitarian in terms of wages. A broad expressiveness of the lower classes, rather than a hypothetical robustness of the middle or the upper classes, explains this equality. The analysis of purchasing power and patterns of consumption made it possible to identify the degree of precariousness of the popular classes, as well as the existence of mainly urban middle classes. Lastly, salary data on the upper classes should not hide concentration of wealth, a main characteristic of the Empire’s decay, which was largely due to a polarized structure of slave property.

In Brazil, **** percent of consumers earned at least the equivalent of the highest 40 percent of global income earners as of 2022 in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms. Those who earned at least the equivalent of the top 10 percent of global income earners stood at *** percent.

Against the background of the generalized reduction of poverty in the world, and particularly in Brazil, this article intends to gauge the socio-economic profile of Brazilian households that emerged from poverty and have been identified as integrating a "new middle class". Using indicators of standards of living from the 2008-2009 Survey on Family Budgets (POF/IBGE), we found out that, in contrast to what has been assumed on the basis of average income criteria, this social stratum is markedly heterogeneous, most of it being similar in their consumption patterns to the economically vulnerable or outright poor strata. So, we conclude that, from a sociological perspective that demands additional conditions besides income levels to identify social classes, it is a category mistake to call this social stratum a new middle class. We conjecture that this may be consequential in terms of policy priorities and choices.

Abstract The 1990s, seen as the second lost decade, presented low dynamics of production and of the labor market in Brazil and in the Metropolitan Region of Natal (Northeastern Brazil). In this article, we consider that the labor market shows that the social classes are becoming increasingly segmented. Following this perspective, the article was based on Santos (2002) to study the segmentation of the labor market as a proxy for positions and segments of social classes in the analyzed reality. The hypothesis that guides the article is that possession of material assets, as well as qualification and command positions, are crucial to take on better positions in the structure of classes from the distribution standpoint. The analysis of the empirical data allows to increase the level of trust in the formulated hypothesis.

Regardless of the employment status, the percentage of the population of Brazil whose average per capita income was below the poverty line experienced a downward trend between 2001 and 2014. In the case of the unemployed population, the share fell from 51.6 to 31.6 percent. However, the percentage of people in unemployment living under the poverty line has been oscillating since that year, and in 2023 the share stood at 38 percent. Furthermore, less than six percent of employees in Brazil were living under the poverty line that year.

This dataset contains longitudinal information on the socioprofessional composition of members of the Brazilian Chamber of Deputies elected between 1998 and 2022. It includes occupational backgrounds, partisan and ideological alignments, and classification codes used in the analysis of political professionalization and class-based representation. The dataset was constructed from official electoral data provided by the Brazilian Superior Electoral Court (TSE) and processed with transparent coding procedures. Replication files include scripts for data cleaning, recoding of occupational categories, and statistical analysis (chi-square tests, Cramér’s V, multinomial logistic regression, and longitudinal stratified analyses). Together, these resources allow full reproducibility of the findings presented in the associated article, enabling scholars to explore patterns of recruitment, professionalization, and social representation in Brazilian democracy over nearly three decades.

Buyers: by Social Class: AB data was reported at 32.490 % in 2024. This stayed constant from the previous number of 32.490 % for 2023. Buyers: by Social Class: AB data is updated yearly, averaging 47.180 % from Dec 2000 (Median) to 2024, with 25 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 79.010 % in 2000 and a record low of 32.490 % in 2024. Buyers: by Social Class: AB data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Brazilian Association of Eletronic Commerce. The data is categorized under Brazil Premium Database’s Domestic Trade – Table BR.HF002: E-commerce: Buyers Profile.

The files making up this database correspond to a household survey conducted in 2016 as part of a larger investigation into the lifeways and political subjectivities of Brazil’s “once-rising poor,” the demographic sector comprised of poor and working-class people exposed to various forms of socio-economic mobility in the early 21st century. In the corresponding methodology paper published in the Latin America Research Review (see “Publication” below for citation specifics), we reflect on the challenges of maintaining a critical perspective on class labels and relations that were the subject of intense contestation at the time. Next, we introduce the resultant survey sample (n=1,204), highlighting the variables captured. Rather than an exhaustive summary of all variables measured, we establish the demographic profile, mobility experiences, and political values, attitudes, and behaviors of our sample. As we show, the portrait that emerges for this sector is one of economic precarity, heterogeneous experiences of socioeconomic mobility (and non-mobility) over the past two decades, and significant alienation from formal politics. Here you will find: the raw BORP dataset, original survey questionnaires (in English and Portuguese), and a codebook (in English).

Overall, the percentage of the Brazilian population whose average per capita income was below the extreme poverty line experienced a downward trend between 2001 and 2020. In the case of the unemployed and inactive population, the share fluctuates. All statuses peak in 2021, being for the unemployed sector with the highest difference with 21.9 in share increase among them.

Abstract: This paper analyzes the effects of social class on the educational performance of young Brazilians students. Our theoretical approach in this study is based on Pierre Bourdieu’s concept of social class. We opted for a quantitative methodology using the database of the Basic Education Evaluation System (Saeb) tests carried out in 2013. We used descriptive statistics, correspondence analysis and multiple linear regression. Empirical results showed the persistence of the effects of social class on academic performance, although these results coexist with the impacts of variables related to schooling, individual life story and pedagogical aspects.

ObjectiveTo assess the prevalence of child development delay and to identify socioeconomic determinants.Study designWe conducted a population-based cross-sectional study of children 2 to 72 months of age residing in the state of Ceará, Brazil. In total, 3200 households were randomly selected for participation in the study and had child development assessed with the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) version 3. Development delay was defined as a score of less than -2 standard deviations below the median of the Brazilian ASQ standard. We present population-level prevalence of delay in five development domains and assess socioeconomic determinants.ResultsA total of 3566 children completed the ASQ development assessment of which 9.2% (95% CI: 8.1–10.5) had at least one domain with development delay. The prevalence of delay increased with age in all domains and males were at higher risk for communication, gross motor and personal-social development delays as compared to females (p-values <0.05). We found robust associations of indicators of socioeconomic status with risk of development delay; increasing monthly income and higher social class were associated with reduced risk of delay across all domains (28,2% in the poorest and 21,2% in richest for any delay, p-values <0.05 for all domains). In addition, children in poor households that participated in conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs appeared to have reduced risk of delay as compared to children from households that were eligible, but did not participate, in CCT programs.ConclusionsThere is a relatively high population-level prevalence of development delay in at least one domain among children 0–6 years of age in Ceará, Brazil. Integrated child development, social support, and poverty reduction interventions may reduce the population-level prevalence of development delay in Ceará and similar settings.

Brazil Metal Structure and Heavy Boiler Works: Social Welfare Contribution data was reported at 365,094.000 BRL in 2017. This records a decrease from the previous number of 393,560.000 BRL for 2016. Brazil Metal Structure and Heavy Boiler Works: Social Welfare Contribution data is updated yearly, averaging 429,861.000 BRL from Dec 2007 (Median) to 2017, with 11 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 554,137.000 BRL in 2014 and a record low of 210,513.000 BRL in 2007. Brazil Metal Structure and Heavy Boiler Works: Social Welfare Contribution data remains active status in CEIC and is reported by Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics. The data is categorized under Brazil Premium Database’s Metal and Steel Sector – Table BR.WAM005: Metal Financial Data: Metals Structure and Heavy Boiler Works.

Conducted in 1973-1974 in Brazil, this survey was designed to measure two sets of respondents' preferences regarding salient policy issues, their evaluations of political life and government performance, and their conceptions of relationships between themselves and their representatives in labor unions and in the political arena at large. Interview schedules for each group of respondents are nearly identical, but the sampling frames are very different. Therefore, the data from the separate samples are supplied as Part 1 (Mass Sample) and Part 2 (Union Sample) in two separate files. Variables include respondents' preferences as to which course of action the government should take in each of a series of policy domains, ranging from birth control and income redistribution to the limits on political opposition and governmental controls over organized labor. There are variables indicating respondents' opinions elicited on several current issues of controversy, including the political role of the military, censorship, and the system of indirect elections. The survey also contains data on the respondents' degree of organizational involvement of unionized workers, including variables pertaining to their participation in sindicatos (unions), their evaluation of the performance of the sindicato leadership, and indications of how the represented might hold the leadership to account for their actions. Additional variables deal with membership evaluation of sindicato functions and influence, respondents' party identification, past electoral choices, and evaluations of post-1964 government policies. Other variables include respondents' interest in politics and in the operation of government, as well as their perceptions of the effect of government on their lives. Variables provided by the interviewers include perceptions of the respondents' interest in the interview, the sincerity with which questions were answered, and the presence and behavior of other persons at the interview. A full range of background information is also contained in the data collection, including variables on respondents' age, sex, race, religion, educational level, occupation, income, marital status, birthplace, father's education and occupation, migration, and media use.

This dataset contains files for the replication of "Racial Social Norms among Brazilian Students: Academic Performance, Social Status and Racial Identification". Data comes from the project Attitudes and Relationships among Primary and High School Students. The project interviewed more than 4 thousand students in five Brazilian public schools. It contains information about the students, their beliefs, and friendship ties between them. Paper Abstract: Studies in the United States show that minority students might face a trade-off between better academic performance and peer acceptance, the so-called ``acting white''. This paper investigates the relationship between grades and social status in five Brazilian schools and how it differs between racial groups. Social status is measured using friendship ties among students, assigning higher status to students more central in the network. The racial composition of friendship ties is diverse, although friendships tends to favor racial peers, especially for black students. We find a positive correlation between grades and social status of nonwhite students that is driven by their status among their white classmates. This differs from the pattern observed in the US, where a negative correlation between minorities' grades and their status among racial peers is not compensated by their status among white students. We also investigate how academic performance is associated with racial identity choice conditional on skin color, finding a weak negative relationship between higher grades and the odds of classification as mixed-race.

In 2023, the prevalence of extreme poverty among black men and women in Brazil was higher than that observed in other demographic groups. In particular, the rate of extreme poverty among black men reached two percent, which was the highest among all demographic groups.

We aim to analyze the trajectory of poverty in Brazil and the metropolis of Rio de Janeiro, from 1976 to 2015, considering the structural changes in the Brazilian economy and society and the metropolitan context’s particularities. The poverty line used was defined by double the level of income sufficient for the acquisition of food necessary to guarantee the individual’s social reproduction. We could observe that the poverty rate varied according to the economic situation, with differences in levels and intensity between the metropolis and the country. Currently, unlike decades ago, people living in poverty are generally younger, have higher levels of education, and work in occupations that represent more prominent social positions in the social structure, which may have important implications in the changes in expectations of overcoming this condition, especially in the metropolitan context.

Abstract: The objective of the present study was to evaluate the association between social position and anthropometric status in women and men Brazilian adult. This was a cross-sectional study that used baseline data collected from 2008 to 2010 for the Brazilian Longitudinal Study of Adult Health (ELSA-Brasil, in Portuguese), in the six major Brazilian state capital cities. A total of 15,105 active and retired civil servants aged from 35 to 74 years. Two latent variables were defined by latent class analysis, social position and anthropometric status. Both constructs and the analyses were separately evaluated by sex. Associations were assessed using multivariate logistic regression analysis with adjustment for age, self-reported skin color/race, and marital status. Around 44% of the women and 26% of the men were classified as overweight or obese. Social position tended to be lower in women (43.2%) and higher among men (40.4%). Heavier women were more likely to be black and brown-skinned, whereas slimmer women were more likely to be white. After adjustment, women’s weight increased as social position decreased (OR = 1.52; 95%CI: 1.36-1.70), whereas in men weight decreased as social position decreased (OR = 0.87; 95%CI: 0.76-0.99). Social position affected the anthropometric status of women and men differently, with body patterns also being affected by ethnicity/skin color, showing the potentiality of taking the intersectional perspective when investigating the possible social determinants of the phenomenon.

Prior analyses of authoritarian populism have linked it to hypotheses referring to cultural backlash and negative partisanship, suggesting that conservative values and hatred of opposing parties fuel the desire for strong leadership. This article adds to the previous literature by testing the influence of social class resentment on Bolsonaro coming to power in Brazil. Based on the AmericasBarometer 2018/19 survey, the analysis highlights the central role of the rejection of the Partido dos Trabalhadores (Workers’ Party) in explaining the propensity to vote for the far-right candidate, and to a lesser extent, the influence of authoritarian values in this case study. Our findings lend some support to the hypothesis of social class resentment as well. Social class resentment was found to significantly moderate the relationship between anti-PT sentiment and voting behavior, which sheds light on Bolsonaro’s ability to capture resentful voters who were disposed to subordinate social redistribution to the defense of previously acquired privileges.

Abstract: Introduction: There are still many economic and racial barriers for black and indigenous peoples regarding access to a university degree in Brazil. Although Brazil is mistakenly considered a racial democracy, black people, indigenous peoples and those of low social status are the most affected by such difficulties regarding access to the university. Medical schools are traditionally attended by white, wealthy and upper-middle-class groups, although 54% of Brazilians consider themselves to be African descendants. To deal with this scenario, since 2013, 50% of all vacancies in public universities have been reserved for low social classes, indigenous peoples and African descendants. Our objective was to describe the socioeconomic and racial profile of those attending a public medical school in the state of Rio de Janeiro during a five-year period, analyzing the associations between the Brazilian segregationist structure and inclusion policies. Method: A census study was carried out, including all groups that entered the medical school at a public university in the state of Rio de Janeiro between 2013 and 2017. We applied a self-administered questionnaire that addressed social, ethnic, economic and university admission aspects. The data were analyzed by a simple description of the frequencies and by bivariate analysis. Results: The results show that the majority profile is white, with an annual income higher than US$ 8,640, coming from a private school, with financial support from the family, both parents with higher education and no gender difference. As for the inclusion of non-white people into the course, the current quota system has not significantly increased their presence. Conclusion: We conclude that racial inclusion policies subordinated to economic ones seem to be a barrier to the entry of non-whites to medical school, contributing to racial inequality.