topics 6-10

Social Stratification

Social Stratification

inequalities between groups in society in terms of their access to valued resources.

Structured inequalities:

social inequalities that result from patterns in the social structure.

Intersectionality

a perspective that identifies how our multiple group memberships affect us in ways that are distinct from any single group membership

Slavery:

A form of social stratification in which some people are owned as property by others

Caste system:

A system of social stratification in which one’s social status is determined at birth and held for life

Class system:

a system of social stratification in which one’s social status is influenced by achieved status as well as ascribed status

How do class systems differ from caste systems? 

In a class system, boundaries between classes are fluid; i.e., there are no clear cut or rigid  demarcations between strata as in caste systems.

Life chances:

A term introduced by Max Weber to signify a person’s opportunities for achieving economic prosperity.

The idea of life chances is important because it emphasizes that although class is a powerful influence on what happens in our lives, it is not completely determining

social stratification carl Marx theory

Marx believed that the maturing of industrial capitalism would bring about an increasing gap between the wealth of the capitalist minority and the poverty of the large proletarian population, and he has been proven correct he believed that laborers would face work that was physically  wearing and mentally tedious, as is the situation in many factories.

Be familiar with functionalist and conflict theories of social stratification. 

“conflict theory seek to identify why people commit crime. Conflict theorists draw on elements of Marxist thought to argue that deviance is deliberately chosen and often political in nature. Conflict theorists reject the idea that deviance is “determined” by factors such as biology, personality, anomie, social disorganization, or labels. Rather, individuals purposively engage in deviant behavior in response to the inequalities of the capitalist system.”

Be familiar with Erik Olin Wright’s theory of social stratification. What is a contradictory class location?

the middle class exerts control over the working class but is still subordinate to the upper class.contradictory class  Locations expansion of the middle class“He argued, for example, that upper-middle-class people such as managers controlled the working class while they were themselves, at the same time, controlled by capitalist owners. In other words, these managers were essentially  exploiting others while also being exploited.”.

Social mobility:

Movement of individuals or groups between different social positions

Intragenerational mobility

Movement up or down a social stratification hierarchy within the course of a personal career.

intergenerational mobility

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

Global inequality:

The systematic differences in wealth and power across countries Two transnational processes have contributed to global inequality: colonialism and globalization

Colonialism: the process whereby powerful nations established their rule in parts of the world away from their home territories.

European colonization of Africa, Asia, and the Americas involved the expropriation of land and resources,the exploitation of labor, and the destruction of indigenous cultures.

Globalization:

The development of social, cultural, political, and economic relationships stretching worldwide.

In the current global era, people are influenced by organizations and social networks located thousands of miles away.

A key part of the study of globalization is the emergence of a world system—for some purposes, we need to regard the world as forming a single social order.

Gross National Income:

is a commonly used measure based on total income earned as a result of a country’s yearly output of goods and services,including income earned abroad.

the value of a country’s annual output of goods and services divided by the total number of people in the country.

Neoliberalism: 

The economic belief that by minimizing government restrictions on business,free-market forces will provide the greatest economic benefit to the widest range of people. “liberal”: freedom of economic choice

Modernization theory:

A version of neoliberal theory that argues that low-income societies develop economically only if they give up their traditional ways and adopt modern economic institutions, technologies,and cultural values that emphasize savings and productive investment.

Dependency theory:

argues that the poverty of low-income countries stems directly from their exploitation by wealthy countries and by the corporations that are based in wealthy countries.

World systems theory:

emphasizes the interconnections among countries based on the expansion of a capitalist world Economy. The economy is made up of core,semi-periphery, and periphery countries.

Theory of global capitalism:

Argues that a transnational capitalist class is increasingly the major player in the global economy today, rather than the nationally oriented capitalists of major countries