ABSTRACT
To use the term ‘class’ in a chapter heading could potentially obfuscate rather than clarify the intentions of that chapter, since the term has developed a wide range of both colloquial and academic denotations. We wish to start, therefore, by specifying which particular sense of the term is being employed here and with reference to which section of the relevant literature. Crompton (1993) provides a useful summary of the current array of positions with regard to sociological approaches to the topic. Within this she defends the continued validity of class as an analytical and descriptive construct.
