Making It by Faking It

This study examines upward mobility among working-class law students. It posits that the experiences of these students can be understood from a perspective of stigma. A triangulated methodology consisting of interviews, participant observation, and questionnaires is used to examine the adjustment of these law students to an elite law school environment, where they experience a class stigma which creates identity problems. Like other individuals who experience stigma, these students learn to hide their class background in order to manage their identity. However, in their efforts to conceal their background they experience identity ambivalence. The accommodation strategies that students use to over come this ambivalence are explored.