Belief in Economic Mobility

What it measures

Five items capture the extent to which a person believes that upward economic movement is achievable for anyone through effort and motivation. Adapted from an earlier working paper by the lead author, the scale was used in Studies 1 and 5 of a project examining how perceived economic mobility shapes variety-seeking behaviour.

Response format

7-point Likert (1=strongly disagree, 7=strongly agree)

Scale items

• It is highly possible to achieve great wealth regardless of the circumstances of birth.
• "Hard work equals success" describes the way society works.
• There are plenty of opportunities for anyone to go as far as he/she wants.
• Everyone has a fair chance at moving up the economic ladder.
• Society provides enough opportunities to get ahead for those who are motivated.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Alphas were .94 and .93 in Studies 1 and 5, respectively. Factor analysis confirmed unidimensionality.

Citation

Yoon, S., & Kim, H. C. (2018). Feeling economically stuck: The effect of perceived economic mobility and socioeconomic status on variety seeking. Journal of Consumer Research, 44(5), 1141–1156.

Keywords