The Effects of War on Occupational Trajectories: A Case Study of the Spanish Civil War

• In Event: 449 - Section on Peace, War, and Social Conflict Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 01. Military Service and Stratification

Abstract

Linking historical context with macro-induced opportunities throughout the life course, I examine the effects of the Spanish Civil War on occupational trajectories. I use the SHARELIFE retrospective survey to capture the entire work life histories of individuals, as well as their residence history. In combination with data on military combat operations, this allows to gauge whether an individual lived near a frontline during the war. Ultimately, I find those individuals who lived near a frontline show significantly lower occupational trajectories compared to those who lived afar a frontline. Additionally, the findings suggest the attainment process of these occupational trajectories are utterly different for both groups. For those who lived near a frontline, father’s occupation had a much bigger role in the attainment process while education showed lower effects. Overall, the results suggest the Spanish Civil War as a major turning point in the status attainment process, and indicate this large scale event could have been a source of economic inequality.

Author

• Daniel Nicholas Ramirez Smith, Pennsylvania State University