Social Classes More Fixed in World's Largest Countries

A new report from the World Economic Forum highlights the continuing difficulties in moving up social classes in countries across the world with the largest economies.

In the annual Global Social Mobility Index created by the WEF, countries like the U.K., U.S., China and India held less-than-stellar scores in fostering economic environments for citizens to experience growth and prosperity. Scandinavian countries like Denmark, Norway and Finland were at the top of the index.

Ultimately, the Global Social Mobility score quantitatively shows the ability of a child to experience a better life than their parents in a given country. The higher the score, the healthier the socioeconomic background of the average individual is. To measure its scores, the index looks at drivers of socioeconomic mobility, such as effective policies and institutions, that focus on health, education, technology and other factors.

The key finding of the Global Social Mobility Index 2020 was that only a few nations create enough conditions to foster social mobility, and that most countries underperform on fair wages and working conditions. The report also notes how inequalities are rising the fastest in rapidly developing countries.