421 Psychology & Marketing  2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Vol. 17(5):421–440 (May 2000) Modes of Thought That Vary Systematically with Both Social Class and Age Paul Henry University of New South Wales ABSTRACT This study examined six psychological characteristics for which the literature review indicated systematic variation by both social class and age group. The results, drawn from a sample of 490 subjects across a major metropolitan area, found systematic difference for five of the six characteristics in terms of both social class and age group. The five include standout drive/expansive, lack of future focus/confidence, preference for stability/regularity, altruistic tendency, and socially withdrawn. A sixth characteristic, stress/ challenge avoidance, differed by social class, but not age. These findings raise questions regarding the mechanisms causing the observed distinctions, together with the relative influence of class and age on each characteristic. The findings present guidance for development of message content and appropriate portrayal in advertising, when targeting individuals in specific social class and age group combinations.  2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. The proposition that particular aspects of an individual’s psychological characteristics vary systematically with both social class position and with age is well established. For example, a range of class-specific vari- ation is presented in Argyle’s The Psychology of Social Class (1994), and for age differences a range of propositions are summarized in the Hand- book of the Psychology of Aging (Birren & Schaie, 1996). Despite the body of propositions regarding psychological profile variation relating