Middle Class, but Feeling Economically Insecure

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Middle Class, but Feeling Economically Insecure
Middle Class, but Feeling Economically Insecure by Patricia Cohen is an article that addresses the concept of middle class and what it means for the American people. According to Cohen, the issue of middle class in longer just about earnings and assets as it was in the past. To prove this point, she presents statistics which show that almost nine out of ten people view themselves as middle class regardless of their income. It is not even hard to see people who are hanging on the poverty line and others who are among the top earners referring to themselves as middle class.
In order to make the reader understand why there seems to be a confusion on people’s understanding, Cohen quotes a senior research associate at Pew who claims that the middle class does not mean the same thing as middle income. This according to Cohen explains why the number of people that identify themselves as middle class keeps on increasing even as the proportion of the middle-income earners keeps on falling. This means that the middle class brand has more to do with the Americans aspirations and not economics. This also explains why the perspective of middle class that was once distinguished by comfort and hope has been superimposed with stress and apprehension.
According to Cohen, a major reason for this change is the loss of employment and salaries that remain unchanged. The other reason for this phenomenon is the psychological frame or rather the general feeling among Amer...