ABSTRACT
Making a Difference: Building on Young People’s Experiences of Economic Adversity is a study of how children and young people from disadvantaged families experience economic hardship and what this means in their families, at school, and in the communities in which they live. The study documents the experiences and perceptions of 96 young people in New South Wales, South Australia, and Victoria. The two most influential classical sociologists to address issues of class were Karl Marx and Max Weber. To obtain an understanding of Marxism, it is necessary to begin with a discussion of economic activity, especially the production of goods and services. One of the common issues for modern class theorists is how to define class structure, given the complex occupational and industrial structures in capitalist societies today. In particular, class theorists must deal with a number of core groups, in addition to those considered by Marx and Weber.
