Comparison of the Factorial Structure of Oral Coding Patterns for a Middle-Class and a Working-Class Group

The present study was designed to compare the factorial structure of oral coding patterns for a middle-class and a working-class group in terms of a Bernstein derived thesis of greater differentiation and specificity for middle-class subjects because of their ability to manipulate more of the semantic and structural resources of language. Twenty-eight indices of oral coding elaboration were obtained from 40 middle-class and 40 working-class tertiary students. Pearson Product-Moment correlations were obtained and, by using principal components factor analysis, the middle-class matrix yielded nine factors, the working-class matrix eight. By interpretation of the factor patterns and statistical comparisons using Burt's coefficient of congruence, the thesis of greater differentiation and specificity in middle-class code elaboration was sustained.