Numerous studies in sociology and economics have highlighted the importance of inequalities in social mobility within a single country. This paper proposes to explain these territorial inequalities in France by focusing on the roles of three factors and their interactions: technological and economic transformations, the gendered segmentation of the labor market, and spatial inequalities in access to education. The first objective of the paper is to understand how the transformation of the types of jobs available as a result of technological and economic changes affects intergenerational social mobility. The second objective is to understand how this impact of technological and economic changes varies according to the gendered segregation of the local labor market and the opportunities for access to higher education or vocational training. It uses the French Labor Force Surveys that make is possible to analyze social mobility at the city and neighborhood levels. The occupation is measured with the Weedeen and Grusky's microclass scheme and the social class with the European Socio-Economic Classification (ESeC). The paper shows the diversity of the effects of technological and economic transformations on social mobility. The reduction in skilled worker jobs in industry affect mostly men’s social mobility, while the increase in the personal services sector, especially for the elderly, mostly affect women's social mobility. Similarly, the creation of new jobs in scientific fields affect men and women differently, depending on their specialization, with men more often trained in physics and women in biology. Finally, the creation of new types of jobs has different consequences depending on the possibility of accessing to higher education in the territory. It is thus the interaction between these three factors that must be better understood in order to explain the evolution of social mobility and spatial inequalities.
Numerous studies in sociology and economics have highlighted the importance of inequalities in social mobility within a single country. This paper proposes to explain these territorial inequalities in France by focusing on the roles of three factors and their interactions: technological and economic transformations, the gendered segmentation of the labor market, and spatial inequalities in access to education. The first objective of the paper is to understand how the transformation of the types of jobs available as a result of technological and economic changes affects intergenerational social mobility. The second objective is to understand how this impact of technological and economic changes varies according to the gendered segregation of the local labor market and the opportunities for access to higher education or vocational training. It uses the French Labor Force Surveys that make is possible to analyze social mobility at the city and neighborhood levels. The occupation is measured with the Weedeen and Grusky's microclass scheme and the social class with the European Socio-Economic Classification (ESeC). The paper shows the diversity of the effects of technological and economic transformations on social mobility. The reduction in skilled worker jobs in industry affect mostly men’s social mobility, while the increase in the personal services sector, especially for the elderly, mostly affect women's social mobility. Similarly, the creation of new jobs in scientific fields affect men and women differently, depending on their specialization, with men more often trained in physics and women in biology. Finally, the creation of new types of jobs has different consequences depending on the possibility of accessing to higher education in the territory. It is thus the interaction between these three factors that must be better understood in order to explain the evolution of social mobility and spatial inequalities.
Numerous studies in sociology and economics have highlighted the importance of inequalities in social mobility within a single country. This paper proposes to explain these territorial inequalities in France by focusing on the roles of three factors and their interactions: technological and economic transformations, the gendered segmentation of the labor market, and spatial inequalities in access to education. The first objective of the paper is to understand how the transformation of the types of jobs available as a result of technological and economic changes affects intergenerational social mobility. The second objective is to understand how this impact of technological and economic changes varies according to the gendered segregation of the local labor market and the opportunities for access to higher education or vocational training. It uses the French Labor Force Surveys that make is possible to analyze social mobility at the city and neighborhood levels. The occupation is measured with the Weedeen and Grusky's microclass scheme and the social class with the European Socio-Economic Classification (ESeC). The paper shows the diversity of the effects of technological and economic transformations on social mobility. The reduction in skilled worker jobs in industry affect mostly men’s social mobility, while the increase in the personal services sector, especially for the elderly, mostly affect women's social mobility. Similarly, the creation of new jobs in scientific fields affect men and women differently, depending on their specialization, with men more often trained in physics and women in biology. Finally, the creation of new types of jobs has different consequences depending on the possibility of accessing to higher education in the territory. It is thus the interaction between these three factors that must be better understood in order to explain the evolution of social mobility and spatial inequalities.
Keywords
Intergenerational mobility
Social class
Spatial inequalities
