The class structure of Australia, 1986

The general aim of this study was to investigate contemporary Australian class structure. As part of this general aim, the study also sought to provide a profile of the class structure of contemporary Australian society in relational terms; relate the class model to a number of specific variables in the area of ideology and political participation; examine the differential nature of men's and women's access to, orientations toward and positions in the labour process; and to provide the Australian component of a major international comparative project on class structure in a number of advanced industrial societies. Two questionnaires were employed: a Workforce Questionnaire which was administered by personal interview, and a separate attitude questionnaire which the respondent completed alone. The Workforce Questionnaire consisted of several sections. The first section, Current Occupation and Employment, asked detailed questions about current job, industry sector, employment status, promotion and seniority, educational qualifications required, and the male-female ratio in the job. Sections on Job Autonomy, Supervision, and Decision-making asked about job flexibility and ability to make effective decisions, job conditions and the respondent's supervisory role. Other sections were Work/Unemployment History, and Union Participation. These sections were followed by a detailed section on the household division of labour, which asked questions on living arrangements, partner's occupation and previous work experience, numbers of children in the household, and an extensive set of questions on many household tasks and who performs them, as well as family decision making. A Family Background section covered financial support and parents' work and educational qualifications, while a section on Friends and Relatives asked about occupation details for the respondent's closest two friends or relatives. A section on Ideology, Interests, Identity and Alliances asked about personal identification, views of Australian society, subjective views on social class, interest in and participation in political process, voting behaviour, political actions and membership of organisations. Finally, this questionnaire included a section for demographic information, covering age, sex, education, birthplace of respondent and parents, religion and church attendance, home ownership, personal and household income, and household composition. The separate attitude questionnaire asked about views on current social and political issues, the media, opinions on poverty and strikes, economic issues such as taxes and big business, government and government institutions, women's issues, attitudes to work and work organisations.