SOC 100 (Exam 2)

Lower-income

households with income less than two-thirds the median household income, after adjusting for household size

ex: if median income is $100k, then lower-income is <$66k

Middle-income

households with income two-thirds to double the median household income, after adjusting for household size

ex: if median income is $100k, then middle-income is $66k-$200k

Higher-income

households with income double the median household income, after adjusting for household size

ex: if median income is $100k, then higher-income is >$200k

Shrinking middle class

since the 1970’s, there are less Americans in the middle-income bracket; meanwhile, the upper class is growing

Income

money received by a person for work, from transfers (gifts, inheritances, government assistance), or from returns on investments

Wealth

family or individual’s net worth (i.e. total assets - total debts)

Wealth inequality

the richest 10% of Americans control about half the nation’s wealth

ex: Elon Musk (FUCK YOU), Mark Zuckerberg (FUCK YOU), Jeff Bezos (FUCK YOU)

Equality of opportunity

everyone has an equal chance to achieve wealth, social prestige, power

ex: the American Dream, Monopoly game

Equality of condition

everyone should have an equal starting point

ex: Affirmative Action, DEIA

Equality of outcome

everyone should end up in the same position

ex: state massively redistributes so everyone has the same income and kind of house

Stratification

hierarchical organization of society into groups with differing levels of power, social prestige, status, economic resources

Estate system

politically-based system of stratification characterized by limited social mobility

ex: feudal Europe

Caste system

religion-based system of stratification characterized by NO social mobility

Slavery

form of social stratification where some people own others as their property

Modern slavery

situations of exploitation a person can’t refuse or leave due to threats, violence, coercion, deception, or abuses of power

ex: forced labor, forced marriage, debt bondage, sexual exploitation, human trafficking

New slavery

people use slaves to get rich, then toss them aside

• focused on big profits and cheap lives

• not about owning people, but controlling them completely

• people are disposable tools for making money

Old slavery vs. New slavery

• legal ownership asserted vs. avoided

• high purchase cost vs. low purchase cost

• low profits vs. high profits

• shortage of potential slaves vs. surplus

• long-term relationship/maintained vs. short-term/disposed

• ethnic differences important vs. unimportant

Status hierarchy system

system of stratification based on social prestige

ex: prestige of a surgeon is much higher than that of a dishwasher

Class system

economically-based hierarchical system characterized by cohesive oppositional groups and somewhat loose social mobility

Differing views of class

• Karl Marx: bourgeoisie (capitalist class) and proletariat (working class)

• Erik Olin Wright: people can fall between bourgeoisie and proletariat class (manager of a company isn’t the owner but is still controlling other people)

• Max Weber: people have property/skills to leverage in the marketplace, class can move up or down (rather than two opposing sides)

Education

key mechanism of social stratification

• pathway to upward mobility

• but also system to reinforce existing class, racial, gender inequalities through unequal access to resources, opportunities, credentials

Social mobility

movement between different positions within a system of social stratification in a society

• more stagnant and lower in the U.S. than other developed countries

• high geographic variation within the U.S.

Factors for social mobility

1. Segregation

2. Income inequality

3. Quality of public schools

4. Strength of social networks

5. Family structures

Intergenerational mobility

movement up or down a social stratification hierarchy from one generation to another

ex: parents work on a farm while child graduates college and works for a big company

Intragenerational mobility

movement up or down a social stratification hierarchy within the course of one’s personal career

Human development index

estimate of a nation’s well-being by measuring its life expectancy, education, and gross national income per capita (size of economy)

Unweighted international inequality

measure of income/wealth for a country

Population weighted international inequality

measure of income/wealth for every person in a country

True world income distribution

measure of income/wealth for the entire population of the world

Modernization theory

• emphasizes internal factors

• all countries follow a uniform evolutionary route

• country must develop the necessary beliefs, values, and norms for trade, industrialization, and rapid economic growth

ex: Jared Diamond’s Guns, Germs, and Steel

Dependency theory

• emphasizes external factors

• disadvantaged position in world economy (bananas vs. iPhones)

• relationships with developed countries are barriers to development

Neoliberalism

free-market forces, achieved by minimizing government restrictions on business, will provide the greatest economic benefit to the widest range of people

• liberalization, privatization, austerity

Geography and global inequality

• high transportation costs

• prevalence of disease

• low agricultural productivity

Development traps

barriers that hinder a country’s growth

• conflict

• natural resources

• landlocked with bad neighbors

• bad governance

Institutions

rules influencing how the economy works and the incentives that motivate people

Inclusive institution

• democratic

• result of low colonial settler mortality

• willingness to share country’s wealth

Extractive institutions

• exploitative

• result of high colonial settler mortality

• power concentrated in the hands of elite

Sex

perceived biological differences society uses to distinguish males from females

a continuum, not a binary

Intersex

people who are born with sex characteristics that don’t fit the male/female binary

Gender

a social position; behaviors and a set of attributes associated with sex identities

Cisgender

people whose gender identity aligns with their assigned sex at birth

Transgender

people whose gender does not align with their assigned sex at birth

Gender identity

how someone internally understands their gender, regardless of their physical body

Gender expression

how someone outwardly shows their gender identity which may or may not align with society’s expectations for their gender/assigned sex at birth

Gender dysphoria

conflict between a person’s gender identity and their assigned sex, causing significant distress

Gender roles

sets of behavioral norms associated with masculinity, femininity, or other

Gender in the workplace

gender plays a powerful role in shaping workplace experiences (e.g. jobs, wages, treatment)

Causes of gender pay gap

• gender segregation in workplace

• socialization

• employer hiring practices

Gender typing in the workplace

women holding occupations of lower status and pay (i.e. secretary or retail) and men holding jobs of higher status and pay (i.e. manager or professional)

Glass ceiling

invisible limit on women’s climb up the occupational ladder

Glass escalator

accelerated promotion of men to the top of a work organization, especially in feminized jobs

ex: a male kindergarten teacher who becomes the principal

Gender at home

• men and women specialize in different chores

• women spend more time doing unpaid housework/care work

• women spend more time on child-rearing responsibilities

Second shift

unpaid work of housekeeping and childcare that faces family members, disproportionately women, when they go home after their paid jobs

Functionalist view of gender inequality

view of gender inequality; gender differences, specifically specialization in different tasks, contribute to social stability and integration

reinforces status quo, inhibits change

Conflict view of gender inequality

view of gender inequality; uneven distribution of power in society; men have had more access to resources (wealth, education, political influence) which they have used to maintain dominance over women

Interactionist view of gender inequality

view of gender inequality; we constantly perform masculinity and femininity; there is potential for change but we tend to reaffirm and reproduce gender norms

Intersectionality

social identities like race, class, gender, ability status, and sexual orientation intersect/interact, shaping unique experiences of advantage and disadvantage

recognition that our lives are shaped by multiple interacting identities

Graying

increasing proportion of a society’s population is older

Practical difficulties of aging

difficulty of aging; physical changes associated with growing older

Symbolic difficulties of aging

difficulty of aging; social and psychological implications that arise from the aging process

Biological aging

• changes in reproductive capacity, immune system response, cardiovascular functioning

• varies by genes, lifestyles, luck

• age-linked, not age-caused

Psychological aging

• how old one feels, acts, behaves

• not necessarily equal to chronological age

• most personality traits, self-concept, self-esteem remain fairly stable from midlife onward

Social aging

• society shapes the meanings and experiences of aging

• expectations/assumptions of behavior and capabilities at different ages

• too young/to old for certain roles or opportunities

Ageism

discrimination/prejudice against a person based on age

Elder abuse

intentional act/failure to act that causes or creates risk of harm to older adult (60+); often perpetrated by caregiver or someone the elder trusts

Physical abuse of elders

illness, injury, functional impairment, or death of an elder resulting from the intentional use of physical force

Sexual abuse of elders

forced or unwanted sexual interaction inflicted upon an elder

Emotional/psychological abuse of elders

verbal/nonverbal behaviors that inflict anguish, fear, or distress on an elder

Neglect of elders

failure to meet an elder’s basic needs

Financial abuse of elders

illegal, unauthorized, or improper use of an elder’s money, benefits, property, or assets for the benefit of someone else

Prejudice

thoughts and feelings about a social group (age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, etc), leading to preconceived notions and judgements about the group

Discrimination

harmful/negative actions against individuals based on age, gender, race, ethnicity, religion, etc regardless of their merit

Conflict theory of discrimination

theory of discrimination; those who benefit from systems of inequality want to protect their privileges and exclude members of subordinate groups

Cognitive theory of discrimination

theory of discrimination; automatic, unconscious cognitive processes distort out perceptions and treatment of others; it’s easier to make snap judgements than consciously think

Categorization

• ingroups and outgroups

• exaggerate similarities and differences

• automatically prefer ingroup members to outgroup members

• discrimination through ingroup favoritism rather than outgroup antipathy

Stereotyping

attributing traits we associate with a group to individuals of that group; strengthened by confirmation bias

ex: Asians are good at math

Attribution bias

our expectations for others affect the meaning we assign to their behavior

• when performance conforms to expectations: attribute to stable, internal traits (ability)

• when performance contradicts expectations: attribute to transient, external causes (task difficulty or luck)

• we expect ingroup members to succeed

Macro-micro link

categorization, in-group preference, stereotyping at individual level —> in-group members accumulate advantages while out-group members accumulate disadvantages

Disengagement theory

it is functional for society to relieve older people of their traditional roles to free up positions for younger people

ex: forced retirement policies

Activity theory

people who are busy and engaged (aka leading fulfilling and productive lives) are functional for society

ex: remain in work and social roles as long as possible

Continuity theory

elders’ well-being is enhanced when doing activities consistent with their personality, preferences, and activities earlier in life

ex: former teacher volunteering at a school

Life course theory

people play an active role in determining their physical and mental well-being, but constrained by context

ex: boys and girls may have had similar career aspirations, but men received more structural support than women

Obesity

excessive body weight indicated by a BMI over 30

Causes of obesity epidemic

Biological: genetics and physiology

Economic: food accessibility (i.e. food desert) and SES

Social: cultural norms (i.e. proportions, fast food) and social networks

Technological: food production (i.e. highly processed foods) and lifestyle changes (i.e. that damn phone)

Health

state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being; not merely the absence of disease or infirmity

• cultural differences: Hmong girl had severe epilepsy but family believed it was spiritual

Medicalization

when problems/issues become seen as medical conditions in need of treatment

ex: pregnancy and childbirth, alcoholism, mental health, aging, obesity, etc

Sick role theory

• functionalist view of health and illness

• describes the social rights and obligations of a sick individual

• describes behavior a sick person adopts to minimize disrupting others with their illness

  • conditional: suffers from temporary condition

  • unconditional: suffers from incurable illness

  • illegitimate: suffers from stigmatized disease

Lived experience theory

• symbolic interactionist view of health and illness

• meaning generated from everyday experiences of health

  • illness work: all tasks directly related to managing medical aspects of chronic condition

  • everyday life work: routine tasks and duties necessary for maintaining everyday life

  • biographical work: psychological and emotional adjustments to integrate chronic illness into their life narrative

Stigma

physical/social characteristic labeled as undesirable by society

• abominations of the body: anorexia, morbid obesity, etc

• tribal stigma of race, nation, religion

• blemishes of individual character: alcoholism. depression, etc

Poverty

• condition of deprivation due to economic circumstances

• diminished capacity to engage in society

• inability to live with dignity in one’s society (shame, stigma, etc)

Absolute poverty

not meeting minimal requirements necessary to sustain a healthy existence; defined using universal baseline with no reference to other people’s income or access to goods

Relative poverty

one’s standard of living is below what is generally considered normal or acceptable in society; defined in comparison to other people’s standard of living

• one can be poor relatively but not absolutely

Reasons to measure poverty

• raise public awareness and address poverty

• identify who is affected by poverty

• monitor progress and evaluate intervention programs

Official poverty measure (OPM)

• measure of pre-tax income that defines poverty in the U.S.

• 3x cost of minimum food diet in 1963

• does not vary geographically

• adjusted for family size and inflation

• no longer relevant to modern expenses (35% of income spent on housing)

Supplemental poverty measure (SPM)

alternative measure of poverty that accounts for non-cash government assistance

Subjective measure of poverty

people evaluate their own situation with questions such as:

• Do you feel poor?

• How much is required weekly to keep your household out of poverty?

• How far above/below that level is your household?

Deprivation measure of poverty

lack of 4+ socially perceived necessities such as:

• eating out once every 2 weeks

• replace worn-out furniture

• three meals a day

• bedroom for every child over 10 of a different sex

Individualistic view of poverty

• poverty is a personal problem

• results from personal failings and inadequacies

• by-product of the poor’s characteristics and behaviors

Structural view of poverty

• poverty is a social problem

• results from economic and political forces outside a person’s control

• limited power to determine whether jobs are available or how much they pay

Cultural theory of poverty

individualistic theory of poverty; poor lack the values and motivation needed to achieve success