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==Sociological treatments==
{{original research section|date=December 2013}}
===Wealth and social class===
[[File:Global-share-of-wealth-by-wealth-group-768x409.png|thumb|260px|Global share of wealth by wealth group, Credit Suisse, 2017]]
[[Social class]] is not identical to wealth, but the two concepts are related (particularly in [[Marxist philosophy|Marxist theory]]), leading to the concept of [[social class]].<ref name=":0">{{cite book|author=Grant, J. Andrew|title=Routledge Encyclopedia of International Political Economy: Entries A–F|publisher=Taylor & Francis|year=2001|isbn=978-0-415-24350-6|editor=Jones, R.J. Barry|page=161|chapter=class, definition of|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a29qBofx8Y8C&pg=PA161}}</ref> Wealth at the individual or household level refers to value of everything a person or family owns, including [[personal property]] and [[Financial asset|financial assets]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Team|first=The Investopedia|title=Wealth Definition|url=https://www.investopedia.com/terms/w/wealth.asp|access-date=2021-06-13|website=Investopedia|language=en}}</ref>
In both Marxist and Weberian theory, class is divided into [[Upper class|upper]], [[Middle class|middle]], and [[Lower class|lower]], with each further subdivided (e.g., [[upper middle class]]).<ref name=":0" /> The upper class are schooled to maintain their wealth and pass it to future generations.<ref name="Sherraden, Michael 1991">Sherraden, Michael. ''Assets and the Poor: A New American Welfare Policy''. Armonk: [[M. E. Sharpe]], Inc., 1991.</ref>
====The upper class====
[[File:US Wealth Inequality - v2.png|thumb|250px|[[Wealth inequality in the United States]] worsened from 1989 to 2013.<ref>{{cite news|title=Trends in Family Wealth, 1989 to 2013|url=https://www.cbo.gov/publication/51846|date=August 18, 2016|work=[[Congressional Budget Office]] }}</ref>]]{{Main|Upper class|Upper middle class}}
Upper class encompasses the top end of the income spectrum relative members of society as a whole. Since they have more wealth and privacy, the upper class has more personal autonomy than the rest of the population. Upper class values include higher education, and for the wealthiest people the accumulation and maintenance of wealth, the maintenance of social networks and the power that accompanies such networks. Children of the upper class are typically schooled on how to manage this power and channel this privilege in different forms. It is in large part by accessing various edifices of information,{{Clarify|date=June 2011}} associates, procedures and auspices that Usually, people of the upper class participate as partisans in elections and have more political power than those of lower classes due to their abundance of resources and influence.
The upper class are schooled to maintain their wealth and pass it to future generations.<ref name="Sherraden, Michael 1991">Sherraden, Michael. ''Assets and the Poor: A New American Welfare Policy''. Armonk: [[M. E. Sharpe]], Inc., 1991.</ref>
====The middle class====
{{Main|Middle class}}
The middle class encompasses individuals whose financial situation falls in between those of the upper and lower classes. Generally, the population of America associates themselves as middle class. Lifestyle is a means for which individuals or families decide what to consume with their money and their way of living. The middle class places a greater emphasis on income: unlike the upper class, the middle class measures success and potential in the form of money rather than influence and power. The [[middle class]] views wealth as something for emergencies and it is seen as more of a cushion. This class comprises people that were raised with families that typically owned their own home, planned ahead and stressed the importance of education and achievement. They earn a significant amount of income and also have significant amounts of consumption. However, there is very limited savings (deferred consumption) or investments, besides retirement [[pension]]s and home ownership. They have been socialized to accumulate wealth through structured, institutionalized arrangements. Without this set structure, asset accumulation would likely not occur.<ref name="Sherraden, Michael 1991"/>
The middle class views wealth as something for emergencies and it is seen as more of a cushion. This class comprises people that were raised with families that typically owned their own home, planned ahead and stressed the importance of education and achievement. They earn a significant amount of income and also have significant amounts of consumption. However, there is limited savings (deferred consumption) or investments, besides retirement [[pension]]s and home ownership.<ref name="Sherraden, Michael 1991" />[[File:US Wealth Inequality - v2.png|thumb|250px|[[Wealth inequality in the United States]] worsened from 1989 to 2013.<ref>{{cite news|title=Trends in Family Wealth, 1989 to 2013|url=https://www.cbo.gov/publication/51846|date=August 18, 2016|work=[[Congressional Budget Office]] }}</ref>]]Below the middle class, the [[working class]] and [[Poverty|poor]] have the least amount of wealth, with circumstances discouraging accumulation of assets.<ref name="Sherraden, Michael 1991" />
====The lower class====
{{Main article|Poverty}}
Those with the least amount of wealth are the poor. Most of the institutions that the poor encounter discourage any accumulation of assets.<ref name="Sherraden, Michael 1991"/> Lower class members feel more restrictive in their options due to their lack of wealth. This could lead to complications in solving their personal dilemmas, as predicted by the Class Structure Hypothesis. There are many societal standards and designs intentional sabotage and shortcomings to explain the persistent state of yearning and want the lower classes generally experience with their lower quality and quantity of assets.
===Distribution===
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