Upper middle class

The upper middle class is a sociological concept referring to the social group constituted by higher status members of the middle class. This is in contrast to the term "lower middle class", which is used for the group at the opposite end of the middle class stratum, and to the broader term "middle class". There is considerable debate as to how the upper middle class might be defined. According to sociologist Max Weber the upper middle class consists of well-educated professionals with graduate degrees and comfortable incomes.

The American upper middle class is defined similarly using income, education and occupation as the predominant indicators. In the United States, the upper middle class is defined as consisting mostly of white-collar professionals who not only have above-average personal incomes and advanced educational degrees but also a higher degree of autonomy in their work. The main occupational tasks of upper middle class individuals tend to center on conceptualizing, consulting, and instruction.

In the United States the term middle class and its subdivisions are extremely vague concepts as neither economists nor sociologists have precisely defined the terms. There are several perceptions of the upper middle class and what the term means. In academic models the term applies to highly-educated, salaried professionals whose work is largely self-directed. Many have graduate degrees with educational attainment serving as the main distinguishing feature of this class. Household incomes commonly may exceed $100,000, with some smaller one-income earners earning incomes in the high 5-figure range. Typical professions for this class include lawyers, physicians, psychologists, certified public accountants, pharmacists, optometrists, , editors, dentists, engineers, professors, architects, school principals, urban planners, civil service executives and civilian contractors.

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