The Importance of Being Upward-Oriented

How can we build a better social and political settlement? In Uncomfortably Off: Why the Top 10% of Earners Should Care about Inequality (Policy Press, 2023), Marcos González Hernando an Honorary Research Fellow at the UCL Social Research Institute and Postdoctoral Researcher at Universidad Diego Portale, and Gerry Mitchell a freelance policy researcher, combine a wealth of quantitative analysis with detailed fieldwork interviews to understand the top 10% of contemporary society. Broadening the focus of inequality research away from just a focus on the 1%, the book shows how the top 10%’s self-perceptions and views of society, politics, work and of the future are intertwined with our current social crises. Offering a bracing critique, as well as a framework for change, the book is essential reading across academic social science and for anyone interested in creating a better society.

Dave O'Brien is Professor of Cultural and Creative Industries, at the University of Sheffield.

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