AU26 Sociology 1102 Chapter 7: Social Class and Inequality

Social Differentation

Distinguish ourselves within a society.

• Characteristics like race, gender, sexual orientation, education levels, occupations, familial status, etc.

• There is no order to these different characteristics

Social Stratification

the systematic ranking of different groups of people in a hierarchy of inequality

Social Inequality

high degree of disparity in income, wealth, power, prestige, and other resources

closed stratification

not allow for social mobility

open stratification

allows for social mobility

caste sociteties

social positions that are closed, so that individuals remain at the social level of their birth throughout life

class societies

social mobility that allows an individual to change their socioeconomic position

social categories

categories of people who share common characteristics without necessarily interacting or identifying with one another

achived status

social position linked to a person’s acquisition of socially valued credentials or skills

ascribed status

social position linked to characteristics that are socially significant but cannot generally be altered

What happens with the hierarchial positioning of social categories over time?

changes slowly

class

a person’s economic position in society, which is usually associated with income, wealth, and occupation

• policital power also part of the deifinition

life chances

opportunities and obstacles the person encounters in education, social life, work, and other areas critical to social mobility

social mobility

upward or downward status movement of individuals or groups over time

How many structures in social class?

6

upper class

top 1% and most of their wealth stems from assets

upper middle class

working professionals that earn most of their wealth from their salaries, but also from assets

lower middle class

we typically think of as “middle class,” with earnings around the median household income

working class

“blue collar” class with skilled laborers

working poor

individuals below the poverty line, but still work

underclass

individuals below the poverty line, but do not work

income

amount of money a person or household earns in a given period of time

wealth (net wealth)

the value of everything a person owns minus the value of everything a person owes

net financial assets

measure of wealth that excludes illiquid personal assets, such as the home and vehicles

occupation

simply a person’s main vocation (your job)

status

the prestige associated with one’s social position

political power

the ability to exercise influence on political institutions and/or political actors to realize personal or group interests

• If you have political power, you can use that to influence laws and regulations that benefit you and your group