Part 3: Weeks 10–11 — Gendered Inequality, Elite Power, and Social Class

sex

The biological differences between males

gender

The social and cultural roles

gender binary

The classification of gender into two distinct

cisgender

A person whose gender identity matches the sex they were assigned at birth.

intersex

Individuals born with biological characteristics that do not fit typical male or female classifications.

transgender

A person whose gender identity differs from the sex assigned at birth.

nonbinary

A gender identity outside the male-female binary; may include genderfluid

sexism

Prejudice or discrimination based on sex or gender

androcentrism

The practice of centering men and male perspectives as the norm or ideal.

hegemonic masculinity

The culturally dominant ideal of manhood that values strength

freedom/power paradox

The idea that social expectations tied to gender can simultaneously offer privilege and restrict freedom.

intersectionality

Concept by Kimberlé Crenshaw describing how multiple social identities (race

patriarch/property marriages

Early American marriage form where wives were legally and economically subordinate to their husbands.

breadwinner/homemaker marriages

Mid-20th-century model in which men worked for wages while women managed the household.

partnership unions

Modern marriages based on equality

industrial economy

Economic system characterized by mechanized production and wage labor in factories.

wage

The monetary payment received in exchange for labor or services.

family wage

An income sufficient to support an entire family on one worker’s salary

ideology of separate spheres

Belief that men belong in public work life and women in private domestic life.

pro-natal ideology

Social belief encouraging childbirth and family formation

greedy institutions

Term for organizations like workplaces or families that demand undivided commitment

ideal worker norm

Expectation that workers should prioritize work above all else

ideology of intensive motherhood

Cultural belief that good mothers devote exceptional time and resources to child-rearing.

second shift

Term by Arlie Hochschild describing how women work paid jobs and perform most household labor.

job segregation

The concentration of men and women in different occupations

feminization of poverty

The growing trend of women making up a disproportionate share of the poor due to wage gaps and caregiving burdens.

glass ceiling

Invisible barriers that prevent women and minorities from advancing to top leadership roles.

glass escalator

The advantage men experience in female-dominated professions

androcentric pay scale

A system where jobs associated with men are paid more than comparable work done by women.

care work

Paid or unpaid labor that involves providing emotional or physical care to others.

stalled revolution

Hochschild’s idea that women entered the workforce but men did not equally take on domestic roles.

domestic outsourcing

Hiring outside help for household or caregiving tasks to balance work and family life.

global care chains

Transnational networks in which care labor is transferred from poorer to wealthier households across countries.

Marianne Weber

Early feminist sociologist who analyzed marriage and the family as sites of women’s subordination.

Anne Parsons & Talcott Parsons

Sociologists who described the family as a key institution for socializing gender roles in industrial society.

Arlie Hochschild

Sociologist who coined “second shift” and analyzed emotional labor and gender inequality in families and workplaces.

Civil Rights Act of 1964

Landmark U.S. law prohibiting discrimination based on race

C. Wright Mills

Sociologist who theorized the “power elite

G. William Domhoff

Sociologist who analyzed how elites maintain power through social networks

power elite

According to Mills

pluralist theory of power

The view that power is dispersed among many groups

elite theory of power

The perspective that a unified elite controls key institutions and decisions in society.

social reproduction

The process by which social class

social closure

Weber’s concept describing how groups maintain privilege by excluding others from resources or opportunities.

Domhoff’s definition of social class

A group defined by its shared economic position

interlocks

Connections between boards of major corporations that allow coordination and consolidation of elite power.

revolving doors

The movement of individuals between government positions and corporate leadership roles.

ethnography

A qualitative research method involving immersive observation of social settings to understand culture and behavior.

field

In Bourdieu’s theory

field notes

Detailed observational records collected by ethnographers to analyze social interactions and patterns.

cultural hegemony

Gramsci’s concept that dominant groups maintain power by shaping cultural beliefs and values.

hegemonic ideologies

Beliefs that justify and sustain existing social hierarchies

ideology of meritocracy

The belief that success is based solely on individual talent and effort

ideology of equality of opportunity

The idea that everyone has the same chance to succeed

ideology of individualism

The belief that people are responsible for their own success or failure

collectivism

A cultural orientation emphasizing group goals and interdependence over individual achievement.

xenophobia

Fear or hostility toward people perceived as foreign or different.

Bohemian Grove

An exclusive gathering of elite men that exemplifies social networking among the power elite.

opioid crisis

A public health and social crisis linked to corporate influence

Pierre Bourdieu

French sociologist who developed the concepts of cultural

economic capital

Material resources like money and property that provide social advantage.

social capital

The resources and benefits gained through social networks and relationships.

cultural capital

Non-economic assets such as education

objectified cultural capital

Tangible cultural goods like books

institutional cultural capital

Formal recognition of cultural competence through credentials or degrees.

embodied cultural capital

Internalized cultural knowledge

fit (Bourdieu)

The compatibility between one’s habitus and the social field

Granfield’s law school study

Research on working-class students at an elite law school showing how class background shapes confidence and belonging.

Granfield – research question

How do students from working-class backgrounds navigate elite educational institutions?

Granfield – methods

Qualitative interviews and participant observation of law students.

Granfield – findings

Working-class students adopted elite cultural cues but felt alienated from their origins.

Granfield – theoretical implications

Demonstrated how cultural capital and meritocratic ideology reproduce class inequality.

Lareau’s research on cultural capital

Showed how middle-class parenting (“concerted cultivation”) gives children advantages in school and institutions.