IGCSE Sociology Unit 3: Social inequality

Absolute Poverty

Being without some or all of the basic necessities of live.

Achieved Status

A status that individuals acquire through their own effort.

Age

Age is a form of stratification.

Ageism

Prejudice or discrimination against someone based on their age.

Apartheid

The stratification system in South Africa until 1944 based on keeping racial groups apart.

Ascribed Status

A status that is given to individuals by their society or groups, over which they have little or no control.

Blue-collar Worker

A manual worker, member of the working class.

Bourgeoisie

The ruling or upper class in Marxist class theory.

Capitalism

The economic system of most countries today based on private ownership of means of production.

Caste

A closed stratification system traditionally found in India.

Civil Rights

Rights that protect the freedom of individuals.

Closed Society

A society in which mobility between different levels of stratification is not possible.

Culture of Poverty

When poor people have a set of values that keep them in poverty.

Cycle of Poverty

When poverty tends to be inherited, so the new generation cannot escape the poverty of their parents.

Deferred Gratification

Being able to set long-terms goals, planning for the future.

Dependency Culture

A set of values leading people to lose the ability to look after themselves so they become dependent, for example, on welfare benefits.

Disability

Covers a wide range of types of impairment in how the body functions in carrying out activities.

Discrimination

When an individual or group suffers a disadvantage because of their characteristics, for example being refused a job.

Distribution of Wealth

The way in which wealth is distributed.

Domestic Labor

The work that has to be done within the home, such as housework; understanding how domestic labor is divided is important for understanding gender inequality in families.

Elite

A privileged group at the top of a stratification system.

Embourgeoisement

The theory that the higher levels of the working class are becoming middle class.

Equal Opportunities

When all people are given the same chances (for example, in applying for a job) regardless of differences such as age, gender and social class.

Fatalism

Individuals' belief that they cannot control what happens to them.

Feminism

Political movement and sociological perspective advocating equality of the sexes.

Gendered Division of Labor

The way that societies expect women to be responsible for some task (such as cleaning and preparing food) and men for others.

Glass Ceiling

The unseen barrier that seems to prevent women from achieving the highest positions at work.

Horizontal Segregation

Differences in number of people from different groups (such as the sexes) in different occupations.

Human Rights

A wider category than civil rights, including political rights.

Immediate Gratification

Choosing instant satisfaction rather than waiting for a greater reward in the future.

Income

The sum of earnings from work and other sources.

Industrial Societies

Societies that use technology for mass production, in contrast to traditional societies.

Institutional Racism

When the way that an organization works has racist results, even when individuals do not intend this.

Intergenerational Social Mobility

Movement between classes in society from one generation to the next, so then when a child grows up she is in a different class from her parents.

Intragenerational Social Mobility

Movement between classes within one generation, so that an individual is born into one class and moves into another.

Life Chances

The opportunities that people have to improve their lives.

Lifestyle

They way of life of an individual, group or culture.

Market Situation

The economic position of a group of workers in relation to others.

Marxism

A theoretical perspective that sees conflict between classes as the most important feature of society.

Meritocracy

A society in which individuals achieve the level that their talents and ability deserve.

Middle Class

Professional and other non-manual workers, below the upper class and above the working class.

Minority Ethnic Groups

A minority group with a distinct national or cultural tradition.

Minority Groups

A category of people lacking power; can be based on factors such as religion, disability and age.

New Working Class

The supposed new class formed by lower middle-class workers merging with the traditional working class.

Occupational Structure

The hierarchy or occupations in a society.

Open Society

A society in which it is possible to move easily from one class to another.

Patriarchy

The dominance of men over women and children in society.

Poverty Line

The level of income below which people are judged to be in poverty.

Poverty Trap

When poor people are unable to escape from being poor.

Power

The ability to influence people's behavior.

Prejudice

An unexamined opinion that a group of people are inferior or different.

Privileged Groups

Groups enjoying higher status than others or material advantages.

Professional Workers

Someone who works as a professional, such as a lawyer and architect.

Professions

Occupations that require specialized higher level education.

Proletarianization

The theory that the lower levels of the middle class are becoming working class.

Racism

Prejudice or discrimination against an individual or group because of their ethnicity or perceived race.

Redistribution of Wealth

Advocated by Marxists and others to achieve greater equality by giving some of the wealth of the better off to those who are less wealthy.

Relative Poverty

Being poor in relation to the others in the same society.

Reserve Army of Labor

People are employed when an economy is booming or when they are needed, but then are out of work when they are not required.

Scapegoating

When individuals or groups are blamed and sometimes punished for something which is not their fault.

Skilled Worker

Workers who need skills acquired through training to perform their work.

Slavery

A stratification system in which one group is treated as the legal property of another group.

Social Class

A group of people having the same social and economic status.

Social Exclusion

People who are unable to take part in society in the same way as most people are excluded from social goods.

Social Inequality

The inequality between groups in a stratification system, for example in income or wealth.

Social Mobility

The movement of individuals or groups from one class to another.

Social Stratification

A hierarchy in which groups have different statuses and different levels of privilege.

Status

A position that someone has in society.

Traditional Societies

Societies that are still predominantly agricultural and have not yet become industrial.

Underclass

A group below the working class that is effectively cut off from the rest of society.

Unskilled Worker

Workers who need no or minimal training to perform their work.

Upper Class

The highest class in society that is wealthy enough not to need to work.

Vertical Segregation

Occupying different levels within a hierarchy.

Wealth

Money, savings and property that can be bought and sold to generate income.

Welfare State

The way in which governments try to provide for the less well off and reduce social inequality.

White-collar Worker

A non-manual worker, member of middle class.

Working Class

Manual or blue-collar workers.