STS221: Final Exam Review

Stratification

a system that puts categories of people into a hierarchy; people higher up have more access to power, resources, and the means to success

Examples of Stratification Systems

slavery, class system, gender, race, religion

Social Mobility

the ability of individuals to move up or down the social ladder in terms of status, wealth, education, or occupation in their lifetime

Gilbert's Class Structure

underclass, working poor, working class, middle class, upper middle class, and capitalists (split into three sections of 2 each - lower, majority, and privileged classes)

Social Class

a group of individuals who share a similar economic position

Key Indicators of Social Class

income, wealth, occupation, and education

Marx's Class Structure

Proletariat (workers) vs Bourgeoisie (large business owners/industrialists); peasantry (poor farmers and rural workers) and petite bourgeoisie (small business owners) are part of the Proletariat

Subjective Class Structure

4 tiers of lower, working, middle, and upper class; working and middle class are the largest sectors

Meritocracy

the belief that personal responsibility and individual effort are the sole determinants of success (all agency, no structure)

Functionalism

rich are rich because they do more important, highly skilled jobs

Cumulative Advantage

the rich get richer and the poor get poorer due to existing advantages for the rich and existing disadvantages for the poor

Economic Inequality

the measure of the difference/gaps between classes in the hierarchy measurements

Intersectionality

the way ascribed characteristics like race and gender are related to income/wealth gaps

Desmond's View of Poverty

the persistence of poverty is because of labor and consumer exploitation (undocumented workers are severely underpaid and banking is the most expensive for the poor through payday loans, overdraft fees, check cashing fees, etc.)

GINI Index

a numerical depiction of the degree of income or wealth disparity within a given population; positioned within a range from 0 to 1, where 0 signifies perfect equality and 1 denotes maximum inequality

Absolute Poverty

lacking the basic necessities of life such as food, shelter, and clothing

Relative Poverty

a condition where people lack the resources needed to meet the average standard of living in their society or community; poor in comparison in the eyes of others

Poverty Threshold

the minimum income level required to access the basic necessities of life (the US government defines this as $14,580 for a single person)

Functionalist Theory of Education

schools play critical & crucial roles in keeping society functioning properly

Manifest Functions

provide students with a specific set of skills (reading, writing, math, science, etc.)

Latent Functions

serve unintended purposes, like providing daily childcare, free meals, etc.

Conflict Theory of Education

schools perpetuate and reinforce social inequality and power imbalances within society

Achievement Ideology

success in education is primarily attained through hard work, dedication, and talent, rather than by factors such as socioeconomic background, race, or ethnicity

Social Reproduction

the process by which social structures, norms, and inequalities are passed down and perpetuated from one generation to the next

Social Capital

the benefits that arise from social networks, relationships, and connections within a community or society

Cultural Capital

the knowledge, skills, symbols, and resources that individuals acquire through socialization and education, which can confer social status, prestige, and advantages within a society

Socialization

the process of instilling lessons about class, race, & gender that uphold hierarchies

Hidden Curriculum

unofficial messages to students that teach students how they should behave, expect to be treated, and whose ideas are important; communicated through rules, routines, arrangements of classrooms, & interactions;

Sorting

the process of classifying students based on non-academic, non-merit characteristics, such as socioeconomic status, race, ethnicity; tends to reproduce inequalities

Tracking

the process of sorting students into different groups based on academic characteristics (ability, achievement, or prospects)

Social Class in Schools

a student's _____ ____ affects their ability to learn (poverty, social and cultural capital, parent's intervention, & unequal funding of school districts)

Race & Ethnicity in Schools

segregation and inequality in discipline where Black/Latinx students receive harsher punishments ("school to prison" pipeline)

Gender in Schools

boys are allowed to call out in class, dominate discussion, etc. while girls are discouraged from studying math/science

Family

a group of people who are connected by blood, sexual relationship, or the law

Social Construction of the Family

nuclear family, extended kin networks (extended family), patrilineal/matrilineal (how names, relations, & properties are passed over generations), and marriage types (one spouse vs polygamy)

Nuclear Family

a White middle/upper class phenomenon in the 1950s American idea where a married couple and their children live together under one roof

Functionalist POV on the nuclear family

facilitates the reproduction of the next generation, socialization of children, meeting economic needs, satisfaction of sexual desires, emotional and psychological security

Marxist View on Family

the monogamous nuclear family emerged with capitalism (as a way to pass down accumulated wealth), producing inequality over generations; forcing women into a subordinate position working unpaid labor

Critiques on Nuclear Family

doesn't fulfill the needs of sexual satisfaction, & emotional and psychological security; one income can't economically sustain a family

Relationship between love and marriage

it was once seen as irrational to consider love in marriage (a pleasant by-product), but nowadays it is the foundation of the majority of marriages

Divorce

the termination of marriage; rates rose in the 1970s, but have declined recently

Blended Families

a family with a step-parent, step-sibling, or half-sibling

Cohabitation

the increasingly popular arrangement where two people live together in a domestic partnership without being legally married

Fertility

declining _____ rate overall; more delays in childbirth to age 30 and up

Family-friendly policies

Workplace or government initiatives supporting employees in balancing work and family

Parental Leave

time off from work for parents following childbirth or adoption, allowing bonding and childcare without risking employment

Universal Healthcare

healthcare system providing all residents access to medical services regardless of income or employment status

Free Childcare

government-funded or subsidized childcare services at little to no cost, aiding working parents and promoting early childhood development

Gendered Burden of Unpaid Work

the "second" shift where women bear the brunt of childcare and housework

Wages for Housework Campaign

the recognition and compensation of unpaid domestic labor, particularly housework & caregiving performed primarily by women within the household

Intimate Partner Violence

encompasses physical violence, sexual violence, stalking, & psychological aggression

State Violence

actions by governmental authorities causing harm or coercion towards individuals or groups

Deportation

the legal process of expelling individuals from a country, often due to immigration violations or criminal offenses

Incarceration

the confinement of individuals in prisons or detention facilities as punishment for criminal offenses or as part of immigration enforcement

Child Protective Services System

government agencies tasked with safeguarding the welfare of children, intervening in cases of abuse or neglect, and providing support services to families in need

Deviance

behaviors that violate social norms

Crime

behaviors that violate the law

Folkways

customs, traditions, & etiquette

Mores

fundamental, protected norms that reflect the morals and values of a social group

Laws

codified protected norms that require enforcement

Social Control

the ways societies try to influence members' behavior to prevent and sanction norm breaking & maintaining social order

Formal Social Control

punishment through policing & the legal system

Informal Social Control

the way society regulates behavior without the government (i.e. peer pressure, gossip, teasing, ostracization, etc.)

Stigma

social rejection experienced as a result of a certain characteristic or behavior considered norm-breaking

Moral Panic

over-heated, short-lived periods of intense social concern over an issue

Functionalist Theory on Deviance

deviance clarifies social norms and can lead to positive social change; strengthens social bonds among the people reacting to the deviant

Strain Theory

the theory that when people can't achieve their goals through accepted means, they may turn to deviant behavior as an alternative way to meet those goals.

Differential Association

deviance is a learned behavior primarily learned through close personal contacts

Labeling Theory

the idea that calling someone deviant gives them that self-image, leading to more deviance (i.e. reinforced by things like job applications being denied because of criminal record)

Social Ecology Approaches

dense populations, poor housing conditions, & single-parent households are all correlated as neighborhoods with higher crime

Broken Window Theory

idea that small signs of disorder make larger crimes more likely

Control Theory

stronger ties to mainstream social groups & institutions (e.g. family, school, job) keep people from committing deviance or crime

Conflict Theory

the idea that dominant people see society filled with conflict and inequality, with different groups competing for their power and resources.

Violent Crime

Criminal acts involving force or threat against individuals, resulting in physical harm or injury

Property Crime

Criminal offenses involving theft, damage, or destruction of others' property

White-Collar Crime

non-violent criminal offenses committed by individuals or organizations in positions of power for financial gain, often involving fraud or deception

American Crime Decline Explanations

Improvements to the economy
Increased incarceration rate
Increased prevalence of immigration
End of the crack cocaine epidemic
Decline in lead exposure
Increased access to abortion

Explanations of America’s Increased Violence

A historical culture of violence
Prevalence of guns
High inequality

US Mass Incarceration

the expansion of imprisonment to a level not matched anywhere else in the world or at any point in US history

13th Amendment

the legislation abolishing slavery and involuntary servitude in the US, except as punishment for a crime

War on Drugs

government-led efforts to combat illegal drug epidemic; criticized for their disproportionate impact on marginalized communities

Prison Industrial Complex

the combination of government and private interests involved in the expansion and maintenance of the prison system, often criticized for prioritizing incarceration over rehabilitation and disproportionately affecting certain demographics.

Power

the ability to exercise one's will over others to make things happen

Authority

power that is recognized by a group/society over whom it is exercised

State

A compulsory political organization with continuous operations when its administrative staff successfully upholds a claim to the monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force to maintain order

Aristocracy

heads of state determined by hereditary succession

Authoritarian

power resides in leaders who are not freely chosen by citizens & who exercise arbitrary power that rests on fear/repression (popular participation in government is restricted)

Democratic States

("of the people") political power is distributed across all citizens equally

Direct Democracy

people directly participate in decision-making on all matters that affect them

Representative Democracy

people elect politicians to represent them in decision-making

Competitive Democracy

a political system where political parties compete for power through free and fair elections

Median Voter Theory

democratic governments end up with policies that reflect the desires of the voter in the "middle/moderate" of the issue

Elite Theory

policies reflect the preferences of a small group of elites since lawmakers come from higher-class backgrounds

Pluralism Theory

policies reflect the balance of power between various interest groups; interest groups compete with one another to influence government policies and decisions

Electoral College

a system where citizens vote for a group of electors from their state who are pledged to support a specific presidential candidate

Suffrage

the right to vote in political elections

Institutional Politics

the processes by which people assert influence in official and sanctioned ways (political parties, government agencies, international organizations like the UN)

Contentious Politics

collective demonstrations, strikes, rallies, and other forms of protest, through which individuals attempt to influence politics outside the official & accepted system

Shared Grievances

existing social problems that anger people (contribute to social movements)

Relative Deprivation

particular anger/frustration when a subset of society is worse off than others in terms of resources, rights, or status (contribute to social movements)