Final answer:
The belief that an increase in service jobs will improve the standard of living in the United States is the exception among materialistic snobbery views. Materialistic snobs generally value manufacturing over service industries, but services now constitute the largest part of GDP and play a significant role in today's economy.
Step-by-step explanation:
All of the following are beliefs of materialistic snobs except (E) the increase in service jobs will increase the standard of living in the United States. Materialistic snobs typically hold the view that only manufacturing can create real wealth and consider nonmanufacturing sectors to be less valuable or even parasitic. They often believe that without adequate manufacturing, there will be little for people to service and that a shift towards a service economy could endanger traditional lifestyles. However, the notion that an increase in service jobs will improve the standard of living contradicts the materialistic snobbery view and points towards a more nuanced understanding of economic progress, taking into account the significant role services play in modern economies.
The growth in the service sector has been linked to a variety of economic outcomes. While some service jobs, like computer programming, pay well and have replaced manufacturing jobs seamlessly for some workers, others have not been so fortunate, having to settle for lower-paying roles. This has led to a bifurcation of the economy, shrinking the lower middle class and expanding the working poor, leading to a widening gap between the haves and the have-nots.
Despite the historical reverence for manufacturing, services have become the largest part of GDP, with leading industries like healthcare, education, and legal and financial services. The modern economy has largely transitioned from focusing on the production of solid objects to a service-oriented structure, reflecting changes in the nature of work and economic output.