Social Stratification Notes
Social Stratification
Division of society members into a hierarchy based on income, wealth, power, prestige, age, and gender.
Concepts of Stratification
Sex: Biological label at birth.
Gender: Socially constructed characteristics of men, women, boys, and girls.
Ethnicity: Groups with similar ancestry and loyalty to their background, influenced by endogamy/exogamy and religious differences.
Race: Group sharing similar biological traits passed down through generations (e.g., skin color, hair texture).
Status: Position in society.
Types of Stratification Systems
Closed Systems: Rigid, fixed boundaries, ascribed social status, limited mobility.
Examples: Slavery (based on birth, ability, etc.), caste system (limited socialization and intermarriage between castes).
Open Systems: Social class system, achievement-based social position, mobility.
Wealth, occupation, and income as measures of social class.
Origin of wealth matters: inherited vs. nouveau riche (newly rich).
Functionalist View
Social stratification and inequality are inevitable and necessary for societal maintenance and well-being.
Systems are fair and allocate people based on merit.
Davis and Moore: Society has complex statuses and roles; important jobs need the most able people.
Motivation for demanding roles comes from potential rewards.
Limited positions filled by the most qualified.
Functionalist View Continued
Talcott Parsons: Stratification from common societal values.
Age can be valuable in some societies.
Consensus accepts positions and allows mobility.
Education facilitates social mobility based on merit.
Criticisms of Functionalist View
Melvin Tumin: Difficulty in determining functional importance of jobs.
Ignores dysfunctions: stratification causes conflict, not cooperation.
Competition leads to negative feelings and demotivation.
Oversimplified view of life and agreement on values.
Marxist Perspective
Stratification stems from capitalism, not inevitable.
Two classes: bourgeoisie (capitalists) and proletariat (workers).
Bourgeoisie seeks profit/power; proletariat owns labor.
Workers produce surplus wealth benefiting capitalists.
Capitalists control institutions to maintain status.
Marxist Perspective Continued
Economic structure roots class stratification in inequality, conflict, subordination.
Unequal access to material rewards.
Exploitative system leading to potential worker protest.
Bourgeoisie manipulates acceptance of the system.
Gap between classes widens despite improved worker standards of living.
Marxist Perspective Continued
Advocates for communal ownership of production means to eliminate inequality.
Criticisms of Marxism
Rigid two-class model doesn't account for differences within the working class.
Ignores gender, ethnicity, religion as stratification factors.
Growing middle class defies categorization.
Weberian Perspective
Expands on Marx; identifies three dimensions of stratification:
Economic social class
Status
Party
Weber’s Economic Social Class
Agrees with Marx on the impact of wealth but includes managers/professionals.
Class situation: Economic position influencing life choices based on income and occupation.
Skills, qualifications, and work experience create market advantage.
Social class shared through chances of obtaining scarce resources.
Weber’s Economic Social Class Continued
Market situation (wages/salary) impacts affordability.
Four economic classes:
Propertied upper class
White-collar professionals
Petty bourgeoisie
Manual working class
Weberian - Status
Status situation based on esteem, linked to prestige or social honor.
Can come from various sources (e.g., influential family, reputation).
Impacts behaviour and social relationships.
Weberian - Status Continued
Economic wealth ≠ prestige/social honor.
Social honor awarded/denied based on status.
Restrictions from social groups based on ethnicity, skin color, religion.
Some occupations given more prestige.
Weberian - Party
Groups have varying power levels.
Party: Organized political parties or groups defending interests (e.g., trade unions).
Power and dominance are crucial in stratification.
Complexity in class, status, and party.
Weberian Perspective
Economic power may/may not be independent of political power.
Power from economic standing, party affiliation, status, or combination.
Similarities to Marx: Social conflict from inequality, power through ideas/values, struggles for power.
Feminist Perspective
Sex and gender are essential but overshadowed in class stratification.
Radical feminists: Patriarchy explains gender inequalities; men benefit from women's subordination.
Women have a caste-like status; sexual violence maintains subordination.
Feminist Perspective Continued
Gender relationship as master-servant.
Patriarchy crucial in gender equality; shifting with increasing opportunities for women.
Collective female exploitation by men, segregated into lower-paid, lower-status jobs.
Feminist Perspective Continued
Women's status likened to Black Americans, facing discrimination and expected behaviors.
Caribbean Explanations
M.G. Smith: Stratification based on ethnicity, nationality, race, color over class.
Guyana, Jamaica, Trinidad as closed systems based on color (whites, coloreds, blacks).
Legal/political systems controlled by whites impeded social mobility.
M.G. Smith – The Plural Society Thesis
Ethnic groups have distinct social institutions but are dominated by a single political system.
Industrialization led to new social classes.
Lloyd Braithwaite
Trinidad stratification based on color/race; caste-like with whites at the top, blacks at the bottom.
Ascriptive values associated whites with positive traits, blacks with negative ones.
Lloyd Braithwaite Continued
Middle class emergence among Chinese, East Indians, Syrians maintaining ethnic identity.
Ascriptive values create social distancing in clubs, associations, churches.
George Beckford
Plantation society as a total economic/social entity.
Rigid stratification patterns based on complexion; fairer skin had more wealth, prestige, power.
Evolution of Social Stratification in the Caribbean
Slavery era: stratified by race/color.
Modern factors: class, status, power, gender, education.
Education has promoted mobility.
Social Factors Continued
Education facilitates mobility, but irrelevant programs and poverty cripple some.
Economic Factors
Economic structure changes create diverse jobs.
Income enables better living standards.
Economic dimensions define social structure over cultural (Carl Stone).
Public sector jobs provide stability.
Political Factors
Whites' domination replaced by local governance, increasing mobility.
Immigrants gain representation and power (e.g., East Indians in Trinidad, Indians in Guyana).
Factors Influencing Social Mobility
Education
Wealth
Environment.
Types of Mobility
Vertical mobility: Movement up/down social hierarchy.
New lifestyle required; status dissonance.
Horizontal mobility: Movement within a social class.
No real change in social status.
Types of Mobility Continued
Intergenerational mobility: Change in status between generations.
Lower to middle class movement common.
Intragenerational mobility: Changes within a single generation; career mobility.