In either case, as pointedly suggested by reference to a middle “sector” rather than a “class” (OECD, 2011), these non-poor middle strata of the income distribution do not have the same type of resources and socio-political role as the traditional “middle class” of industrialised countries. Better understanding of which channel drives an observed distributional change and how the underlying forces interact, can also inform ex ante evaluations of policy reforms or exogenous shocks. This can help target which groups are most vulnerable given a change in government policy or external macroeconomic event.