The postwar orthodoxy postulated that education is both a mechanism for upward social mobility and an engine for economic growth. This book challenges these mainstream conceptions. Using Greece and the Roma people in particular as a case study, Themelis examines qualitative and quantitative social mobility findings to explore the changes associated with education and to analyze their importance for individuals and society.

Aims to inform students, scholars, and educators about the complex processes and factors that promote or impede education's potential to enhance individual advancement within the socioeconomic structure of a late-industrialized country within the context of modern capitalism.