ABSTRACT
C ommunication scholars generally, and intercultural com-munication scholars more specifically, have been slow to examine socioeconomic status as a salient cultural issue. Growing up in sub-
sidized low-income housing, I have increasingly become aware of how class is inextricably linked to communication. This recognition was heightened as I traversed the cultural spaces of higher education as an undergraduate and graduate student, and ultimately as assistant/associate/full professor. Over the course of my life, my family’s income has grown from being in the lowest to the highest 10 percent (Yen, 2012). Yet, this economic turnaround has not necessarily transformed my sense of self. Instead, it has resulted in a mindfulness of socioeconomic status that presents a constant
psychological and communicative challenge. Several years ago, I penned the opening excerpt as part of a series of “Author Reflections” that were included in an interracial communication textbook. What I wrote then continues to be true in my current life experiences, something that up until this point I have never engaged in any in-depth scholarly process.
