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This paper tests the hypothesis that there are differences in the occupational choices of those raised in rural and urban communities. For our sample of 9,986 Wisconsin high-school seniors, the proportion choosing high-status occupations increases as the size of community of residence increases. Since sex, intelligence, and socioeconomic status are each associated with both occupational choice and residence, these factors are simultaneously controlled. Differences in occupational choice by residence are eliminated for girls but maintained for boys. These differences are greatest for boys of low intelligence and for boys from high-status families; the greatest differences are for boys of low intelligence from high-status families. Several suggestions are offered regarding the selective way in which community background may operate to produce the results noted.
Sewell et al. (1965) studied this question.