This essay compares social mobility patterns in Brazil over time as well as with other industrialized countries (England, France, West Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Northern Ireland, Poland, Scotland, Sweden, United States, and Japan). Such comparisons are made possible by the classification of Brazilian data into seven social classes widely used in comparative stratified research. Mobility patterns are described in both absolute and relative terms. Absolute mobility rates indicate that the Brazilian patterns are similar to those of other countries that have also undergone recent changes (industrialization and urbanization). In contrast, relative mobility rates indicate that there is a slight reduction in the degree of rigidity in the Brazilian class structure. Despite this reduction, Brazil’s class structure appears to remain more rigid than that of the countries studied in the comparison.
social mobility; social classes; historical comparisons; international comparisons
