Capitalists, managers, professionals and mortality: findings from the Barcelona social class and all cause mortality longitudinal study.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the effects of Neo-Marxian social class (i.e. measured as relations of control over productive assets) and potential mediators such as labour-market position, work organization, material deprivation and health behaviours upon mortality in Barcelona, Spain.


METHODS
Longitudinal data from the Barcelona 2000 Health Interview Survey (n = 7526) with follow-up interviews through the municipal census in 2008 (95.97% response rate) were used. Using data on relations of property, organizational power, and education, social classes were grouped according to Wright's scheme: capitalists, petit bourgeoisie, managers, supervisors, and skilled, semi-skilled and unskilled workers.


RESULTS
Social class, measured as relations of control over productive assets, is an important predictor of mortality among working-class positions for men but not for women. Workers (hazard ratio 1.60, 95% confidence interval 1.10-2.35), managers and small employers had a higher risk of death than capitalists.


CONCLUSIONS
The extensive use of conventional gradient measures of social stratification has neglected sociological measurements of social class conceptualized as relations of control over productive assets. This concept is capable of explaining how social inequalities are generated. To confirm the protective effect of the capitalist class position and the ''contradictory class location hypothesis'', additional efforts are needed to properly measure class among low-level supervisors, capitalists, managers, and small employers.
Muntaner
Carles
C
Center for Addictions and Mental Health, University of Toronto, Toronto, Canada.
Borrell
Carme
C
Solà
Judit
J
Marì-Dell'olmo
Marc
M
Chung
Haejoo
H
Rodríguez-Sanz
Maica
M
Benach
Joan
J
Noh
Samuel
S
D030861:Capitalism; D002423:Cause of Death; D004522:Educational Status; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006306:Health Surveys; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009026:Mortality; D009790:Occupations; D012307:Risk Factors; D012923:Social Class; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires