Social Class and Social Stratification in the United States

Vocabulary flashcards covering concepts of social stratification, class systems, mobility types, and theoretical perspectives including Marx, Weber, and Davis-Moore.

Social Stratification

A society’s categorization of its people into rankings of socioeconomic tiers based on factors like wealth, income, race, education, and power.

Slavery

The condition where one is bound in servitude as the property of a person or household, often resulting from debt, crime, or war.

Caste System

A closed social system based upon one’s birth where little or nothing can be done to change one’s position.

Endogamy

The practice of marriage within one's own group and the prohibition of intermarriage to maintain a caste system.

Meritocracy

A system of stratification based on personal merit of individual achievement, where education and work experience are valued over race, ethnicity, or gender.

Class System

An open system of stratification practiced in capitalist societies that ranks groups according to economic conditions such as wealth, property, power, and prestige.

Upper Class

The social class comprising $1\%$ of the U.S. population that earns at least $\$250,000$ a year.

Upper-middle Class

Families in the U.S. social ladder who earn between $\$89,000\times\$249,000$ a year.

Average-middle Class

Families in the U.S. social ladder who earn between $\$55,000\times\$88,000$ a year.

Lower-middle Class

Also known as the Working Class, these families earn between $\$23,000\times\$54,000$ a year.

Lower Class

Also known as the Working Poor, these families earn less than $\$10,500\times\$22,000$ a year.

Social Mobility

The ability to change positions within a social stratification system.

Upward Mobility

An increase — or upward shift — in social class.

Downward Mobility

A lowering of one’s social class.

Intragenerational Mobility

Changes in a person’s social mobility over the course of his or her lifetime.

Intergenerational Mobility

Occurs when different generations of a family belong to varying social classes.

Global Stratification

The unequal distribution of wealth, power, and prestige on a global basis.

Davis and Moore Thesis

A structural functionalist view stating stratification is inevitable because more important positions must be filled by the most qualified people who are motivated by greater rewards.

Bourgeoisie

In Karl Marx's view, these are the capitalists who own the means of production, charge high prices, and reap huge profits.

Proletariat

In Karl Marx's view, these are the workers who are paid small wages and whose misery eventually drives them to overthrow capitalism.

Max Weber's Dimensions of Stratification

A multidimensional approach identifying three dimensions of social inequality: Wealth, Status, and Power.

Conspicuous Consumption

The act of buying and using products to make a statement about social standing, often involving unnecessary purchases to be noticed.