Sociology - Chapter 8

Module 7

What is Social Stratification?

Hierarchal arrangement of individuals based on wealth, power, & status

Society ranks people in categories

Some levels have more opportunities than others

What are the 4 basic principles of Stratification?

1. Way society is organized - Societies develop & attach to different roles/statuses

2. Social position - Transmitted across generations

3. Creation of Hierarchies - What is unequal, how, varies from each society

4. Ideology - Involved inequality and beliefs that support access to opportunities/resources. Why people should be unequal

What is Social Inequality?

Unequal distribution of opportunities, resources, rewards

What is the difference between class and status?

Class - Position a person occupies within economic system 

Status - Role/position person occupies within networks of social relationships

What is social mobility?

Movement of individuals within their class/stratification

What are the 3 types of Social Mobility?

Upward & downward - Movement to higher or lower level

Intra-generational - Change of social position during one’s lifetime

Inter-generational - Upward/downward movement of children in relation to parents

What is a dominant ideology?

Beliefs put forth by those with power & resources (ruling class) 

Dispersed through social institutions to support cultural values & practices, reinforces elite position

What is a Neoliberal ideology?

New-Liberal thinking around the belief of individual freedom & equal opportunity

Engage in the free-market

Supporting capitalist economic system

Individuals act as they choose, anyone can achieve success

Yet, seen as rich are smart/work hard, poor are lazy/not talented

What is the difference between an open & closed system?

Open - Allow social mobility, common to move ranking

Closed - No mobility, little chance to move ranks

What is the spectrum in stratification?

Closed ←————————> Open

What is ascription?

What social stratification is based off of

Hereditary from the status/position that holds from birth or personal traits

What are common characteristics of ascription?

Families in each caste perform one kind of work, position passed down generations

People marry others of the same ranking

People keeping in company of their own kind

Strong cultural/religious beliefs that justify division of people

What is endogamy?

Marriage within the same caste, that is, marrying people of same ranking

What is a caste?

Social stratification where status is fixed to birth and remains fixed for life, minimal to no social mobility

Supposed to promote interdependence but instead creates inequality

Ex: India based off of religious beliefs, separated into a hierarchy of sub-caste groups

What is Meritocracy?

Social stratification that is based only on personal strengths & efforts

Based on achievement & merit

What does Meritocracy assume about people?

People have equality of opportunity

Not equality of condition

What is Equality of Condition?

Everyone has the same conditions of wealth, status, & income

What is the most common class system of social stratification?

Ascription & individual achievement

Common in modern capitalist societies 

Ex: Canada, US

Who was Kingsley Davis & Wilbert Moore?

Functionalism

Developed Davis-Moore Thesis to explain why social stratification occurs

Social stratification has beneficial consequences

More talent required, more reward society attaches to it, motivates people to fulfill that role

What does Conflict Theory argue about Social Stratification?

Benefits some, not all

Marx’s position that capitalism is based around Class Conflict, can’t escape inequality

Capitalism produces/reproduces in each generation

Dominant group controls ideology/resources to maintain position

Eventually Working class develops class consciousness

What is the critique of Marx’s theory?

Unequal rewards is necessary to place talented people at the right jobs

Separating reward from performance = low productivity

No socialist revolution has occurred in capitalist societies, Marx is incorrect

What 3 dimensions did Weber propose?

1. Economic Class - Possession of resources/opportunity to require wealth varies

2. Status groups - Holding prestige/honour relates to their roles/identity

3. Parties/Power - Ability to influence others, decision-making, draw upon social connections

What societies is status most important in?

Agrarian/agricultural societies

What economies has most financial inequality?

Capitalist Economy

Where is power & influence most crucial?

Politics & bureaucratic organizations 

What has Webers idea’s influenced for concepts?

Socioeconomic status

Different dimensions of status/class are used to develop rankings

What is the critique of Max Weber’s multidimensional model of stratification?

High-income nations show enduring patterns of social inequality related to income & wealth disparity

What is often used to talk about inequality?

Socio-Economic status

Considers income & wealth

Power & agency

Occupational status/schooling

Family background, social identity can contribute to social inequality, access to resources

What is behind the ancestry of social identity?

Most of rich in Canada gained position through family inheritance (old money)

What is behind racialized status & ethnicity when it comes to social identity?

Shapes how people are treated by others

Higher level income for white compared to ethnic backgrounds

How does Gender shape people’s opportunities?

Women earn less income in Canada

Intersects with racialized status

What is the difference between poverty & absolute poverty?

Person lacks resources & opportunities

Lack of basic necessities 

What is Human Capital?

Sum of useful skills & knowledge that an individual possesses from natural talent, effort, education

What is the individual-level explanation of poverty?

Based off of personal traits

Locate cause “within the person”

Ex: Low intelligence, laziness

What is social capital?

Networks or connections that shape people’s access to resources/opportunities

What is cultural capital?

Knowledge, tastes, habits, open opportunities to gain status, power

What are the three Structural-level explanations that locate poverty & economic inequality?

Economic Organization - Capitalist economy, booms and busts, lack of jobs.

Social Policy - Fail to address economic inequality, like tax collection

Ideology - Belief reinforces privilege of elite, negative images of other groups