The Economic Study of the Latin American “Middle Classes”: A Review from a Class Theoretical Perspective

Abstract

The international development-economical publications on Latin American “middle classes” published in recent years have received great academic and public attention. Although the conceptualisations of “middle classes” used in the economic publications differ significantly from those in the social science research, the findings of economic research are referenced in many social science publications. In order to clarify the question of the connectability of the economic and social scientific research strands, this article discusses the results of economic research on Latin American “middle classes” against the backdrop of the concepts of class and the operationalisation of their middles it uses. The review is based on a systematic publication search of economic research publications on the topic during the observation period 2000-2018.