Social Stratification and Power Lecture Review

A set of 94 vocabulary flashcards covering social stratification, power, inequality, social movements, and cultural concepts based on the lecture transcript.

Social stratification

A system by which a society ranks categories of people in a hierarchy, resulting in unequal access to resources and opportunities.

Structured inequalities

Social inequalities that are built into the social structure, rather than being the result of individual differences or chance.

Class

A group of people within a society who possess similar economic and social status.

Race

A socially constructed category of people who share biologically transmitted traits that members of a society consider important.

Gender

The socially constructed roles, behaviors, and identities that a society considers appropriate for men and women.

Income

Money received, especially on a regular basis, for work or through investments.

Wealth

The total value of money and other assets, minus outstanding debts.

Quintile

A statistical value of a data set that represents $20\%$ of a given population, often used to analyze income distribution.

Capitalism

An economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit.

Proletariat

In Marxist theory, the social class of wage-earners who do not own the means of production and must sell their labor to survive.

Bourgeoisie

In Marxist theory, the ruling class who own the means of production and employ wage labor.

Means of production

The physical and non-financial inputs used in the production of economic value, such as facilities, machinery, and tools.

Labor

The human effort, both physical and mental, used in the production of goods and services.

Alienation

A condition in social relationships reflected by a low degree of integration or common values and a high degree of distance or isolation.

Crisis of capitalism

A period of economic instability or collapse inherent in the capitalist system, often linked to overproduction or falling profit rates.

Class consciousness

The awareness of one's rank in society and the collective shared interests of one's own social class.

Socialism

A political and economic theory of social organization which advocates that the means of production, distribution, and exchange should be owned or regulated by the community as a whole.

Social mobility

The movement of individuals, families, or groups through a system of social hierarchy or stratification.

Meritocracy

A social system in which advancement is based solely on individual ability or achievement rather than social status or wealth.

Legitimation

The process by which an act, process, or ideology becomes legitimate by its attachment to norms and values within a given society.

The American Dream

The national ethos of the United States, suggesting that freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success achieved through hard work in a society with few barriers.

Ethnicity

A shared cultural heritage, often involving common ancestors, language, and religion, that confers a distinct social identity.

Racism

The belief that different races possess distinct characteristics, abilities, or qualities, especially so as to distinguish them as inferior or superior to one another.

Institutional racism

Racial discrimination that has become established as normal behavior within a society or organization.

Overt racism

Manifest and intentional expressions of racial prejudice and discrimination.

Colorblind racism

An ideology that explains contemporary racial inequality as the outcome of nonracial dynamics, ignoring the reality of racism.

Microaggressions

Indirect, subtle, or unintentional discrimination against members of a marginalized group.

Residential segregation

The physical separation of two or more groups into different neighborhoods, often based on race or income.

Redlining

A discriminatory practice by which banks and insurance companies refuse or limit loans within specific geographic areas, especially those with high minority populations.

Veil of darkness test

A statistical method used to detect racial profiling in traffic stops by comparing stop rates during daylight hours to those after dark.

Sex

The biological and physiological characteristics that define humans as female or male.

The gender binary

The classification of gender into two distinct, opposite forms of masculine and feminine, whether by social system or cultural belief.

Sexism

Prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination, typically against women, on the basis of sex.

Androcentrism

The practice, conscious or otherwise, of placing a masculine point of view at the center of one's world view, culture, and history.

Ideal worker norm

The expectation that the best workers are those who are fully dedicated to their jobs and have no outside responsibilities, such as caregiving.

Intensive mothering norm

A dominant cultural model of caregiving that suggests mothers should spend a tremendous amount of time, energy, and money on their children.

Second shift

The unpaid domestic labor and childcare performed by individuals (typically women) after they return home from their paid jobs.

Intersectionality

The interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage.

Power

The ability of an individual or group to achieve their objectives and influence others, even against resistance.

Power elite

A small group of influential people who occupy the top positions in the major institutions of modern society.

Pluralist theory of power vs. elite theory of power

The debate between the view that power is distributed among many interest groups (pluralist) versus the view that power is concentrated in the hands of a small few (elite).

The revolving door

The movement of high-level employees between public sector jobs and private sector jobs in industries they once regulated or were part of.

Command posts

Top-level decision-making positions within major social, political, and economic institutions.

Interlocks

The practice of individuals sitting on the boards of directors of multiple corporations, creating networks of shared interests.

Oligarchy

A small group of people having control of a country, organization, or institution.

Social reproduction

The processes through which social structures, such as inequality or cultural values, are maintained and transmitted from one generation to the next.

Social closure

The process by which groups maintain their resources and status by excluding others from access to them.

Economic capital

Financial resources such as cash, property, and other assets used for investment and production.

Social capital

The networks of relationships among people who live and work in a particular society, enabling that society to function effectively.

Cultural capital

The social assets of a person, including education, intellect, and speech, that promote social mobility in a stratified society.

Objectified cultural capital

Physical objects and cultural goods, such as books, paintings, and instruments, that signal one's social status.

Institutional cultural capital

Recognized academic credentials and qualifications that confer social authority and status.

Embodied cultural capital

Long-lasting dispositions of the mind and body, including habits, skills, and mannerisms acquired through socialization.

Everyday resistance

Subtle, low-profile techniques used by oppressed groups to resist authority without open confrontation, such as foot-dragging or false compliance.

Interdependent power

Power that results from the mutual dependence of different social groups, where one group relies on another for its own functioning.

Collective action

Action taken together by a group of people whose goal is to enhance their condition and achieve a common objective.

The social construction of social problems

The process through which certain social conditions are defined and recognized by society as problems that need to be addressed.

Insurgent consciousness

A collective sense of injustice and the belief that change is possible through collective action.

Organizational strength

The capacity of a group to mobilize resources, leadership, and members to achieve its goals.

Standing

The recognition of a group or individual as a legitimate claimant or participant in a public debate or legal proceeding.

Frames

Schemata of interpretation that allow individuals to locate, perceive, identify, and label occurrences within their life space and the world at large.

Political opportunity structure

The features of the political environment that influence the success or failure of social movements.

Cultural opportunity structure

The availability of cultural symbols, narratives, and values that social movements can use to justify their claims.

Economic opportunity structure

The economic conditions and resource availability that shape the feasibility of collective action and social change.

Critical events

Specific incidents that disrupt the social order and create new opportunities or motivations for collective action.

Frame alignment

The process by which social movement organizations link their activities and goals to the interests and values of potential recruits.

Echo chamber

An environment where a person only encounters information or opinions that reflect and reinforce their own.

Misinformation

False or inaccurate information that is spread, regardless of whether there is intent to deceive.

Radicalization

The process by which an individual or group comes to adopt increasingly extreme political, social, or religious ideals.

MeToo movement

A social movement against sexual abuse and sexual harassment where people publicize allegations of sex-based crimes.

Defense of Marriage Act

A $\text{1996}$ United States federal law that defined marriage as the legal union of one man and one woman and allowed states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages from other states.

Respect for Marriage Act

A $\text{2022}$ U.S. federal law that requires the federal government and states to recognize valid same-sex and interracial marriages.

Proposition 8

A California ballot proposition in $\text{2008}$ that sought to ban same-sex marriage in the state.

Lawrence v Texas

A $\text{2003}$ Supreme Court case that ruled state laws criminalizing consensual sodomy are unconstitutional.

United States v. Windsor

A $\text{2013}$ Supreme Court case that struck down the portion of the Defense of Marriage Act limiting federal marriage benefits to opposite-sex couples.

Hollingsworth v. Perry

A $\text{2013}$ Supreme Court case regarding California's Proposition 8 that effectively allowed same-sex marriage to resume in California on procedural grounds.

Obergefell v. Hodges

The $\text{2015}$ Supreme Court case that legalized same-sex marriage across the entire United States.

Anonymity

The condition of being anonymous or having one's identity unknown in social or digital interactions.

Persistence

The quality of digital information to remain accessible and visible over a long period regardless of the creator's intent.

Visibility

The extent to which information or individuals are easily observed or accessed in a public or digital space.

Gender models

Cultural archetypes or examples that dictate how individuals should perform their gender roles.

Stay at Home Girlfriends

A contemporary social media trend or gender model depicting young women who are financially supported by their partners and focus on domestic or lifestyle aesthetics.

Blackface minstrelsy

A form of theatrical entertainment from the $\text{19th}$ century that used racial stereotypes and blackface makeup to mock Black people.

Digital blackface

The use of Black imagery, emojis, or slang by non-Black people on social media to express emotions or humor.

The D’Amelio Effect

The phenomenon where specific social media influencers gain rapid, massive success and influence through algorithmic trends and platform promotion.

Cecilia Rouse and Claudia Goldin’s research on blind auditions

A study demonstrating that the use of screens during orchestra auditions increased the probability that women would be hired.

Busing

The practice of assigning and transporting students to schools within or outside their local school districts in an effort to reduce racial segregation.

Devah Pager’s work on the mark of a criminal record

Research utilizing audit studies to show how a criminal record significantly reduces job callbacks, especially for Black men.

Exploitation

The action of treating someone unfairly in order to benefit from their labor or resources.

Labor unions

An organized association of workers formed to protect and further their rights and interests.

Union busting

Activities or practices used by employers to prevent the formation of unions or to weaken existing unions.

Calling

An older dating custom where a young man would visit a woman at her home under the supervision of her family.

Rating and dating

A dating system focused on prestige and social status, where individuals dated those considered most popular or desirable.

Civic engagement

Individual or collective actions designed to identify and address issues of public concern.