ABSTRACT
The match between perception and reality can depend on many different elements across societies over time, but subjective and objective dimensions are both relevant particularly in social class analysis. The aim of this chapter is to investigate perceived social position and income inequality with a focus on the middle class in six different countries between the 1990s and 2000s in order to establish whether these dimensions move together or are independent from each other. Some interesting patterns come out on how people judge their relative social condition that have to be considered for a comprehensive analysis of the middle class.
