Social Stratification and Inequality

Flashcards covering key concepts and terms related to social stratification, inequality, race, and gender.

Social Inequality

Unequal distribution of socially valued resources based on various attributes.

Social Stratification

Hierarchical ranking of people into social classes.

Meritocracy

An ideal system in which personal effort—or merit—determines social standing.

Classism

An ideology suggesting that people's relative worth in society is partly determined by their social and economic status.

Caste System

A system where people are born into a social standing they will retain their entire lives.

Social Mobility

The ability to change positions within a social stratification system.

Endogamous Marriages

Unions of people within the same social category.

Exogamous Marriages

Unions of people from different social categories.

Downward Mobility

A lowering of one’s social class.

Relative Poverty

Living without the minimum amount of income or resources needed to fully participate in society.

Cisgender

Individuals whose gender identity matches the gender assigned at birth.

Transgender

Individuals identifying with a gender that is not assigned to them at birth.

Hegemonic Masculinity

The normative ideal of dominant masculinity.

Sexism

The prejudiced belief that one sex should be valued over another.

Feminist Theory

An approach analyzing the effects of capitalism on women’s lives and the role of social class.

Racism

A set of attitudes, beliefs, and practices used to justify the belief that one racial category is superior to others.

Institutional Racism

A society built on a discriminatory foundation as part of state policies.

Assimilation

The process by which a minority group takes on the characteristics of the dominant culture.

Multiculturalism

The recognition of cultural and racial diversity and the equality of different cultures.

Intersectionality

The acknowledgment that everyone has unique experiences of discrimination and privilege.

Gender Role

Society’s concept of how women and men should behave.

Patriarchy

A set of institutional structures based on the belief that men and women are dichotomous and unequal categories.