Post-industrial Society Research Articles

Negative Impacts of the High-Tech Implementation in the Russian Higher Education Sector

Introduction. The institute of education in modern society is currently in the process of serious transformation associated with the large-scale introduction of high technologies, which is due to a similar process in post-industrial society as a whole. There is a growing understanding of the negative consequences of digitalization of society and education along with the understanding of the objective necessity of such transformation. The article contains an analysis of the negative consequences and problems arising in the course of the spread of digitalization of higher education in Russia. Methodology and sources. The methodology of the research is based on the methods of comparative analysis and extrapolation of transformations of social environment and anthropological factors under the influence of technological progress in the field of higher education. The signs of “high technology poisoning” considered by J. Naisbitt in his book “High Tech – High Touch: Technology and Our Search for Meaning” and the concept of extensive and intensive types of creativity formulated by A.I. Stoletov are a conceptual basis for analyzing the impact of high technology on education. Results and Discussion. Seven symptoms of technological poisoning in higher education, representing the main risks of the modern educational system, their manifestations in the educational process and prospects in case the existing trend persists, have been considered. One of the sources of manifestation of these symptoms is the extensive character of creativity inherent in scientific and technological activity of the society, which stakes on innovative development and mastering of material aspects of nature. The technogenic character of the emerging innovation process levels out the activities associated with the intensive type of creativity, aimed at the meaning-creating and existential aspects of human existence. Conclusion. Minimization of negative consequences presupposes the strengthening of the humanitarian component in education, allowing to form a culture of “pause of contemplation” (Grigory Pomerantz), in which technology will acquire, as it was suggested by J. Naisbitt himself, a fullness of meaning that goes beyond instrumental values into the realm of ethical and existential ones.

Khat-Chewing, Adiaphorisation and Morality: Rethinking Ethics in the Age of the Synopticon

In June 2014, the UK Government made khat (Catha edulis) a Class C drug under the UK Misuse of Drugs Act. Based on limited evidence, this decision went against the Government's own Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs and has divided members of the British–Somali diaspora, where khat is a popular form of recreation. The Government’s decision to ban khat highlights broader questions regarding how ethical legislation is implemented within post-industrial societies, exposing postcolonial power systems that ‘Other’ migrant groups through synoptic control. Based on qualitative interviews with members of the Somali diaspora and external agencies in Northern England, the research explores how this system fails to consider khat's complex moral position while framing users and those living within the diaspora as deviant.

Генезис советской интеллигенции и изменение ее отношения к власти в годы реформ Н.С. Хрущева

This article is devoted to understanding the genesis of the Soviet intelligentsia and identifying meaningful changes in its attitude to power in 1953–1964. The research methodology is based on complementing the historical-party approach with sociological theories of functionalism and structuralism, as well as the theory of elites and the new class. The hypothesis of the study is the complex nature of the Soviet intelligentsia, which included the remnants of the pre-revolutionary educated layer, as well as representatives of the “new” Soviet intelligentsia who emerged during the years of Soviet power, possessing high cognitive qualities, partisanship and the ability for social conformism and mimicry. The modernization of the socio-political course under N.S. Khrushchev and his opening of the floodgates of criticism of the “cult of personality” of J.V. Stalin revived the function of critical analysis and construction of new meanings, characteristic of the intelligentsia, which was successfully suppressed in the USSR. The growth of critical sentiment among the Soviet intelligentsia in the conditions of desacralization of power and half-hearted de-Stalinization, the articulation of doubts about the effectiveness of the Soviet system began in the early 1960s to failures in economic policy. The economic uncompetitiveness of socialism in the conditions of weakening mobilization mechanisms for its development gives rise to a crisis of confidence in power among the Soviet intelligentsia. In the conditions of the USSR's transition to a post-industrial society, there is a growing dissonance between the humanization and technocratization of the Soviet intelligentsia and the further dogmatization of the CPSU system of ideological education. The result is an increasing trend since the mid-1960s anomie of the Soviet intelligentsia from power.

THE DEVELOPMENT OF HUMAN CAPITAL IN PRIORITY GEOSTRATEGIC TERRITORIES AS THE BASIS OF SOCIO-ECONOMIC SECURITY OF THE STATE

The events taking place in the country and the world in recent years urge us to reflect, rethink the deformed pyramid of values that has become entrenched in our country, and reorient it towards a post-industrial society, where human capital and innovative development are recognized as the main wealth of the country. The quality of human capital, expressed in education, health, professionalism, life satisfaction, freedom of creative approach to their development, high labor productivity, is the main driving force for the development of science, technology, innovation and socio-economic growth in general. Without high-quality human capital, all ambitious government projects are ephemeral: there will simply be no one to implement them. It is high-quality human capital that creates the prerequisites for preserving and strengthening the socio-economic security of regions and countries. In recent years, the Russian regions have maintained a high migration decline in the population, the leakage of highly qualified personnel is increasing, poverty and property segregation are increasing, the nutritional structure is deteriorating, morbidity and crime are increasing, and in general, the standard of living of the population is decreasing. This can become a prerequisite for the growth of tension and instability in society. The Far Eastern Federal District has been recognized as a priority strategic territory of Russia, and it has been assigned the appropriate tasks to achieve advanced socio-economic development. The latter is possible only with the provision of high-quality human capital. The author tried to describe the relationship between the quality of human capital and the level of socio-economic security, analyzed the main parameters of the standard of living of the population of the Far Eastern regions, identified the main problems and identified conceptual directions for their solution. The article is of an overview and analytical nature, and may be of interest to both theoretical researchers and practical managers dealing with issues of human capital development and regulation of socio-economic processes

A vision of a more sustainable Slovakia in the light of participatory processes

The paper reflects the results of the ongoing discussion about sustainable development in Slovakia as an increasingly urgent topic resonating across scientific disciplines. Specifically, it deals with the participation processes, which were realized in 2022-2023 under the auspices of the Ministry of Investments, Regional Development and Informatization of the Slovak Republic (MIRRI), and the second part of which was implemented at the Institute of Management of the Slovak University of Technology in Bratislava using its expert and organizational capacities. The mentioned activities follow the strategic document entitled Vision and Development Strategy of Slovakia 2030 and are related to the preparation of the document Vision and Development Strategy of the Slovak Republic until 2050 – Slovakia 2050. In the light of the outputs from the participation processes, the paper deals, among other things, with the necessity of accelerating the transformation of regional economies from the industrial towards the post-industrial society, including sustainable innovation-oriented circular economy less dependent on raw materials and energy, with the simultaneous optimization of the system of decision-making and effective management, based on partnership and division of responsibilities between different levels and various actors of sustainable development. It also points out that discussions about this vision have the potential to significantly frame the creation of concepts of integrated territorial innovation-oriented clusters, the urgency of which - in parallel with the frustration of the ineffectiveness of fragmented development processes and activities - is felt at different levels by practically all participating subjects of the professional discourse analyzed in this paper. The results of the participation process fully confirm that Slovakia is not adequately prepared to respond to the challenges associated with all the necessary transformation processes.

Social Control of Everyday Life and Political Construction of (Montenegrin) Identity

Abstract The research problem is the influence of global crisis on identity and daily life of Montenegrin people. The subject is the political construction of (Montenegrin) identity, as a result of social control on everyday life, where identities are born. For the purpose of researching this relation, the starting point is the explanatory potential of J. Habermas’s contemporary socio-political theory about the colonization of the lifeworld by an expansionist logic of the political-economic constellation (system). Scientific goals are: 1) description of the colonization of the lifeworld and the construction of (Montenegrin) identity, as an indicator of social crisis (in Montenegro); 2) understanding the causal factors (causes, motives) of (Montenegrin) identity construction; 3) generic explanation of the political construction of (Montenegrin) identity, through strategies, policies, educational and media influences. Social goals refer to: 1) expansion of the fund of knowledge about contemporary (Montenegrin) society and its problematic aspects; 2) pragmatic explanations of the problem of social control of everyday life through the re-actualization of socio-political concepts; 3) indication of guidelines for possible changes for the better in the sphere of everyday life in the foreseeable future. The methodology concerns the main hypothesis that by constructing the identity of people in the post-industrial society, social control of everyday life is realized. Auxiliary hypotheses are: 1) Identity construction takes place through strategies, policies, educational and media influences as segments of social control aimed at managing social resources from the local to the global level. 2) With instruments of social control, a desirable system of values of individuals and social groups is established with the aim of preventing, delaying, compensating, and transforming their potential subversive action (undermining the system from within). The independent or causal variable is the social control of everyday life, while the dependent or consequential variable is the constructed identity. Making final findings will be facilitated by the synthesis, inductive and deductive methods of reasoning, as well as the method of comparison with a case study. The results refer to the achieved goals and the general conclusion that the system’s power logic reduces the sphere of free and open communication of individuals, thus their identity becomes a place of permanent crisis due to the threat of the meaning of everyday life within which identity is formulated. This crisis is the reason that identities will remain endangered until the question of alienation of life is raised, in accordance with the capitalist imperatives of unlimited economic growth and consumption, and instrumental-rational interaction. As a reaction to the system dominance, the forces of resistance are strengthening, in the form of new alternative grassroots social movements, such as Civil Movement United Reform Action (URA), in Montenegro, which is pro-European green political party of the left center and social-liberal ideological provenance.

CORRELATION ANALYSIS OF THE INTERDEPENDENCE OF ECONOMY'S INNOVATION AND CREATIVITY INDICES

Creativity and the generation of innovative solutions are means of solving the problems of slow economic development and resistance to instability that have been observed in recent years. The key role of creativity of individuals and groups of workers as a defining feature of modern economic life is increasingly recognised. There is a consensus that people, as a source of creativity, are now a critical resource of the new era. In the new model of economic development, creativity, knowledge and free access to information are seen as powerful drivers of development and catalysts of globalisation. The subject of the research is to study the relationship between innovation and creativity in the economic sphere. In particular, the article examines how the creativity of various economic subjects affects the level of innovative indicators, which synthetically reflect the possibilities of achieving the goals of innovative development. The research methodology includes the use of global reports on innovation and creativity indices, as well as scientific sources on this topic. The study uses the methods of critical analysis of scientific papers and international rankings, comparison and correlation of interdependent indicators. The purpose of the research is to assess the relationship between creativity and the level of innovative indicators, which synthetically show the possibilities of achieving the goals of innovative development. Creativity of business entities and mechanisms for generating innovative solutions are determining factors of success of modern post-industrial societies. In most developed countries, long-term economic growth is supported by innovation and creativity of various economic entities. To create the research algorithm, the authors defined the chain of concepts "sustainable development – innovation – creativity". To assess and analyse creativity, the study uses methodological tools that can be applied in global and local contexts. The most well-known indices are the Global Innovation Index (GII), the Global Creativity Index (GCI), the City Creativity Index (CCI), and the Hong Kong Creativity Index (HKCI). The general correlation coefficients between the global innovation index and the creativity indices of some countries have been calculated. According to the results of the calculations, the correlation coefficients of creativity and innovation are very positive. They are closely related and belong to the group of significantly correlated indicators. This means that there is a very high correlation between innovation and creativity in the economies studied. Conclusions. The positive correlation between innovation and creativity indices confirms, in general and in specific terms, a close relationship between innovation and creativity in the economies of different countries. This may indicate that countries or regions with a higher level of economic development have higher rates of creativity and vice versa. The research demonstrates the importance of innovation for the development of creativity in the economy. Understanding this interaction can serve as a basis for designing strategies and policies aimed at promoting innovative development and the growth of creative potential. The economies of Poland, Bulgaria and Ukraine, which were studied in detail, are not innovative enough. The countries studied represent different levels of economic development and are in the phase of post-industrial development, which requires effective innovation policies and measures to support creativity. In order to increase the level of innovation and creativity, it is necessary to involve national governments and organisations (especially the European Union) that can contribute to this. The conclusions point to the need to develop comprehensive approaches to support innovation and creativity in the economies of the countries studied. This may include not only effective strategies to stimulate research and development, but also policies aimed at the cultural environment, education and other areas.

Examining clothing repair practices, core competences, techniques, tools and community structures involved in extending the life of garments

The rise of fast fashion as a feature of post-industrial societies has distanced people from many of the habitual practices associated with caring for and valuing clothes. This includes both acquiring and applying the skills to make and mend clothes and understanding fibres and fabrics to develop deeper connections to materials. The principles advocated by a circular economy (CE) require societies to recover these once held values and restore our relationship with materials and practices to keep clothing in use for as long as possible and to reduce consumption. Such CE practices will require our societies to align with current socio-technical developments, where people are increasingly adopting technologies (through e.g. applications, tutorials), to support making and mending practices, and to play and express themselves creatively whilst keeping apparel in use. The study aims to examine self-repair practices and repair services from practitioners’ viewpoints, evaluating available support, and identifying challenges and opportunities to integrate repair practices more widely in society. The results suggest it is critical to develop the skills to mend and customize the garments people own and provide additional support for people to become custodians of clothes. This study is part of a larger project to identify opportunities where technology could intervene in a repair process and facilitate opportunities for people to reconnect with materials and acquire repair skills. To develop this idea, we designed an interview study to investigate practices of clothing repair to determine if and where such support might be welcomed. Researchers conducted interviews with three groups of people – brands, repair practitioners and community initiatives to gather insights into repair practices, core competences, techniques, tools and community structures involved in extending the life of garments. Insights from the findings address some of the underexplored areas of a clothes repair practice across the three settings. We identify the important relationship of material knowledge to repair and the limited attention given to different types of repair tools and their application. As material skills and knowledge diminish across society it can undermine the drive to scale-up the practice of repair. Knowledge from the findings will inform further research to map the repair process and break it down into stages to identify opportunities where digital tools could intervene to help facilitate aspects of the process for people across different settings.

Инновационные факторы социально-экономической трансформации

The transformation process is caused by the transition from industrial to post-industrial society, where information and the Internet have come to the fore. Naturally, this restructuring involves a change in the usual conditions of human life, often fundamentally changing their ways of life. The main factors that “bring mankind to a new level” can hardly be called humane, that is why it was decided to write this article. Here we will assess the classification of innovation factors (scientific and technological progress, globalisation and digitalisation, human capital), as well as express our opinion on what it can all lead to if we “follow the given direction”.

ТЕОРІЯ МУЗИЧНОЇ ОСВІТИ: ПОСТНЕКЛАСИЧНИЙ ЕТАП

The article examines the importance of considering a person as the main subject of educational processes and the process of personality formation through a valuable approach to the surrounding world, oneself and others. The author claims that human knowledge, unlike natural sciences, is subjective, individual and filled with existential meanings and values. However, the current education system is often incompatible with the culture and does not contribute to the formation of a "worldview". The article emphasizes the ideological contradiction between the technocratic (scientific) paradigm of education and the idea of education as a humanistic and cultural phenomenon. The sphere of education reacts most sensitively to crisis processes of both a global and local nature, and reveals its own signs of a crisis that was formed as a result of the gap between the technocratic, scientific world and the world of culture, the world of humanitarianism itself. It is substantiated that progressive trends in the development of the world community caused the formation of a human-centered educational paradigm of the new post-industrial society. This direction fully corresponds to the paradigm of both global and national dimensions of social progress, which is normatively established in many international documents and legal acts of the UN, EU, UNESCO, etc. It was found out that it is generally recognized in the scientific discourse that there is currently a transition of humanity from one system of values that was established in the European culture of the New Age, which raised the status of scientific and technical achievements of humanity to a higher pedestal of knowledge, rejecting at the same time value consciousness at the gates of culture, to a new system of values that is commensurate with man, his humanitarian nature and human existence. This is connected with the establishment of the value system of post-non-classical science and culture, so the task is to understand the value matrix of post-non-classical culture, singling out those values that are commensurate with the humanitarian essence of a person.

Can a color be a trademark?

The publication updates the issue of intellectual property of colors and highlights the main changes regarding non-traditional trademarks that have taken place in the world in recent years. The article examines the American, European, and Ukrainian practice of registering colors as non- traditional signs and analyzes the conditions of intellectual property protection in the era of the post-industrial digital society. It is noted that today many companies consider one or more colors to be characteristic features of their brands and seek to protect them from appropriation. And it is not surprising. Marketing methods evolve and keep up with the times. All professional marketers know the influence colors have on people and actively use them [1, p. 4]. They are increasingly playing with clip thinking and the cognitive functions of the human brain. Color is the first thing that the consumer pays attention to. His initial judgments are based on this characteristic. Only then does he see the form and content of the product. Even after a detailed study of the product, the consumer will be actively influenced by the color, because for many, the color of the package is an indicator of quality. In the 21st century, every company tries to create such associations with its brand that are better remembered and emphasize its uniqueness and excellence in the conditions of the information society. The practice of «appropriating» colors is closely related to the struggle of brands for recognition among their target audience and attracting new ones. Obtaining protection for such a specific trademark under trademark law is not easy. De jure, a trademark in the form of a single color or a combination of colors is possible. However, there is still little guidance on the requirements for valid color stamps. That is why there are special difficulties in sufficiently accurate display of such signs.
 The work includes an overview of the main provisions of international legal acts: the Paris Convention on the Protection of Industrial Property Rights, Regulation (EU) No. 2017/1001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of June 14, 2017, on the European Union trademark, the Langham Act (the US Trademark Act ), etc. Several international precedents are also examined: from Owens Corning defending its shade of pink in 1985 to Nestle's battle against Cadbury over a variant of purple. The article notes what criteria must be met by non-traditional trademarks and how Western countries fight the monopolization of colors.

Digging Deeper: What Can We Really Learn about Dementia from History?

In response to Finch and Burstein's provocative argument that the advanced dementias may result from environmental toxins and lifestyle factors associated with post-industrial societies, we call for a more rigorous historical approach, emphasizing the importance of situating ancient texts more fully in their historical and cultural context. Such an approach would also entail consideration of the declining relative rates of dementia in Western countries, which have been linked to population health-level factors and policies that appear to have reduced the risk of dementia by directly and indirectly influencing the social determinants of brain health.

Educational and Technical Tools for Developing Students' Creativity in Computer Lessons

In the modern post-industrial society, the problem of developing creative abilities of students using information technologies is especially relevant. At the moment, society needs specialists who can think differently, find creative solutions to problems, and skillfully work with information. The problem of studying the phenomenon of creativity is not new. Many researchers have presented this problem in different interpretations.

Графічний дизайн в контексті культури смаків: освітньо-виховний потенціал

The article examines the place of graphic design in modern post-industrial society, extending beyond purely applied art and aspiring to play the role of an expert in the interiors of human existence, determining the social and cultural status of an individual. It is argued that graphic design, organically integrating into contexts and actively responding to the challenges of such a social-decorative phenomenon as fashion, plays a significant role in shaping taste culture. This attests to the multiplicity of ambivalent cultural manifestations of graphic design. Special attention is given to identifying the functional potential of graphic design in creating cross-cutting trends that, through non-verbal means of communication, can form and maintain social and cultural unity. In connection with this, an analysis of graphic design is carried out through the prism of philosophical communication, allowing the identification of graphic design as the most effective practice of nonverbal communication and information visualization in post-industrial society. It is determined that graphic design is capable not only of generating new meanings but also of creating communicative gaps. Given this specificity, the article particularly focuses on identifying the educational and upbringing potential of graphic design. It is demonstrated that the process of creating visual images and their subsequent interpretation by consumers of graphic information depends not only on the aesthetic taste, ethical beliefs, and humanistic orientation of the designer (visualizer) but also on their educational and upbringing potential. The necessity of strengthening humanistic orientations in modern Ukrainian design and art education is emphasized.

Working conditions and attitudes towards work: the case of Portuguese youth from Braga.

The purpose of this study is to explore the working conditions and attitudes towards work among the youth of Braga, Portugal. Focusing on residents of the Municipality of Braga born between 1990 and 2000, we employed a quantitative approach using a non-probabilistic convenience sampling method, with a sample size of 406 people. The survey, conducted through questionnaires, reveals a complex interplay between the youth's work attitudes and their conditions. Despite the predominance of precarious employment, their work experiences and expectations do not entirely reflect this instability. Our findings suggest a shift in the role of work in the youths' identity compared to previous generations. This shift, common in post-industrial societies, shows that their identity is increasingly tied to the sociability their work enables and other life spheres where they seek fulfilment, as evidenced by how they utilize their earnings from these occupations.

Economic and Socio-cultural Changes at the Edge of Eras: Post-industrial Society

The article offers an analysis of the most famous scientific works of the 20th century (such as, С. Clark, J. Fourastié, D. Bell, T. Roszak, H.-M. McLuhan, T. Stonier, R. Katz, F. Webster, Z. Brzezinski, A. Toffler, A. Toynbee, J. Baudrillard, J.-F. Lyotard, etc.), related to the study of the key concepts of the information age, its objective foundations of development, which formed the main scientific, sociopolitical currents of the last century, opened perspectives for the development of modern political thought and possible ways of forming society in the 21st century. What happened at the end (or rather in the second half) of the 20th century, forcing even conservative skeptics to recognize the end of a long era of industrial development? The reasons for these processes, as shown by social and socio-political processes, must be sought in the economy. In addition to the primary and secondary sectors of the economy, there has always been a tertiary sector related to the sphere of services. In the second half of the 20th century thanks to the development of technology, the importance of the tertiary, service sector of the economy began to grow steadily, which marked the end of the era of industrial society and the beginning of a new, post-industrial history. The consequence of this was the emergence of new forms of culture and the transformation of social relations. The concepts of “post-industrial society,” “information society,” and “information age” are often mentioned in journalistic texts of the mass media and scientific publications. However, if you set yourself the goal of understanding what a post-industrial society or the information revolution is, it will not be so easy. Different authors often put their own meaning into these concepts, thus turning their texts into what is called in psychoanalysis a flow of free associations. The intention to make certain corrections to the concept of “post-industrial society,” to outline the main trends and features of the postmodern era, and explore the potential consequences of its influence on various spheres of life of modern civilization, became the reason for the creation of this article.

The paradigm of pedagogical innovation as a factor in the development of high-quality education

The article examined the logistics of pedagogical innovations, representing a mechanism for managing an educational holding that is relevant in the conditions of a postindustrial society in the totality of the conceptual provisions and empirical data that substantiate it. A theoretical justification for the cluster approach in education is given. The concepts of “educational clusters” and levels of clustering have been clarified and are meaningfully determined by educational competencies, educational programs, educational organization and territorial educational clusters. Pedagogical innovations have been substantiated as an essential characteristic of educational clusters, and their typology has been developed based on the cluster approach in education.

Повышение качества инженерного образования

Taking the premise that the main driving force of the economy of post-industrial society is the scientific developments of specialists with engineering education, that the basis of building a post-industrial society, its foundation, its foundation is a competent, highly educated, responsible person — a professional in his field of activity, it follows that it is necessary to educate competent creators - individuals capable of transforming society into a post-industrial one. high-performance industry, with a high share of high-tech and innovative services in GDP, with a knowledge industry. The education and training of young people in engineering sciences, and not only in engineering should become the main priority of the state’s domestic policy. Taking into account the increase in the amount of necessary knowledge from the course of the theory of elasticity — the foundation of engineering and architecture — it is proposed to organize the study of the course of the theory of elasticity in two stages: one semester theoretical and one semester practical. A student who has attended a course on the theory of elasticity in two stages and has received an exhaustive amount of knowledge will undoubtedly become a competent, knowledgeable specialist in the field of the theory of calculation and design of civil and industrial buildings and engineering structures. In conclusion, it is proposed to clarify the names of such disciplines as ‘Fundamentals of Technical Mechanics’, ‘Strength of Materials’, ‘Theory of Elasticity’.

A contemporary class structure: Capital disparities in The Netherlands.

The academic and public debate on social inequality has recently been fuelled by large disparities in income and wealth, profound changes in the labour market, and other emerging cleavages in post-industrial societies. This article contributes to the discussion by arguing that class divisions are theoretically based on four types of capital: people's economic means, their social capital, their cultural resources, and the combination of their health and attractiveness ('person capital'). From this premise, the social structure of the Netherlands is examined. A dedicated survey was linked to microdata from the national population register, tax authorities and benefit agencies. Using latent class analysis, we assess contingencies in the distribution of the different resources, and identify a structure consisting of six capital groups. The established upper echelon (15.5% of the adult population) has the most capital, followed by the privileged younger people (12.7%), the employed middle echelon (26.9%) and the comfortable retirees (16.6%). Total capital is lowest among the insecure workers (13.5%) and the precariat (14.8%). Each social class has a distinctive mix of the four types of capital, highlighting the need to look beyond economic differences in order to comprehend structural inequality. The results of this study also indicate that resource disparities between classes coincide with other forms of social hierarchy and contrasts by age. Moreover, the contemporary class structure is associated with divergent views and experiences among the Dutch. Classes with little capital tend to rate politics, society, and their own social position more negatively. In addition, they value self-enhancement and hedonism less than today's upper classes and report lower levels of well-being.

The changing social class structure of London, 2001–2021: Continued professionalisation or asymmetric polarisation?

The changing class structure of cities has been a topic of considerable importance and debate for over a 150 years, since the industrial revolution created a large industrial proletariat in many western cities. But the rise of post-industrial society, the decline of the manufacturing industry, a shrinking industrial working class, and the growth of the professional and managerial class from the 1970s onwards has provoked fresh debate about this, as has the emergence of gentrification in many cities. This paper looks at the changing social class structure of London from 2001 to 2021 using data from the population Census. It shows that the higher professional and managerial class continued its long term growth after a pause in 2001–2011. But the number and proportions of small employers, the self-employed and routine workers have also grown. There is therefore continuing professionalisation but also ‘asymmetric polarisation’. The paper also examines the geography of social class change by borough over the period and shows that while the professional and managerial class grew in all boroughs, suggesting a gradual upward class change across London, it was highest in the most gentrified inner London boroughs. However, the percentage point growth of the self-employed and routine groups was generally higher in the mostly suburban boroughs where professional and managerial class percentage point change growth was smallest (and vice versa) which suggests an intensified social class sorting and divergence across London with the lower class groups growing most rapidly in suburban outer London where housing costs are less.