Economic Social Institution

Social Structure in a Gesellschaft Society

Culture, Race/Ethnicity, Gender, SexualitySocial Class (SES = OIE), Religion, etc.

• Statuses

• Roles

• Groups

• Institutions

Social Structure

• John– Black, Male, AA degree, Auto Mechanic, 48 years old

• Lisa– Black, Female, MA degree, Social Worker, 29 years old

• Joe– White, Male, HS drop out, Single, No Children

• Mary– Latina, Female, HS drop out, Single, Two Children

Capitalism

1.) private ownership of companies2.) profit driven3.) market competition

CapitalismFree Enterprise or Free Market

• Laissez-Faire Capitalism– Unrestricted (anything goes)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFH6fpxzTBU&feature=related

• State or Welfare Capitalism– Regulated by government– Economic Freedom Index

Capitalism & Modern Societies• Marx

– Alienation

• Weber– Iron Cage

• Ritzer– McDonaldization of Society

Capitalism SocialismPrivate ownership Gov’t controlledProfit Driven Profit immoralMarket competition Competition immoral

Good GoodIndividual Rights Greater Equality

Not So Good Not So GoodGreater Inequality Less Personal Freedom

Culture: what does a country value more? Freedom (capitalism) or Equality (socialism)?

Meritocracy tied to CapitalismAnyone can be successful if they work hard enough.

Mixed Economic System or Convergence Theory

Expansion of capitalism depends on creating consumers

Globalization of Capitalism

Structural Functionalism Variety and selection of inexpensive products Creates employment in developing countriesCreates greater global interconnection

Conflict Outsourcing of industries and jobsAbuse of environment and workersGlobal superclass (multinational corporations)

http://www.screencast.com/users/rpsoc/folders/Jing/media/5130f8be-8dc7-418c-81c2-6c4a29073fda

Corporate Capitalism Multinational Corporations

Monopolies and Oligopolies

University of Zurich (Switzerland, 2011)“Concentration of power is not good or bad in itself but the core's tight interconnections could be. As the world learned in 2008, such networks are unstable. If one [corporation]suffers distress this propagates.”

http://www.screencast.com/users/rpsoc/folders/Jing/media/c06ff27a-0dd5-4f15-8f31-8f5613e6550c

Jobs: Consumption Over Productionhttp://www.pagetutor.com/trillion/index.html http://brillig.com/debt_clock/Federal Budget: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/politics/presidential-budget-2014/

Conspicuous Consumption and Planned ObsolescenceLatent Function: employmentLatent Dysfunction: debthttp://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2012/03/20/149015363/what-america-does-for-work

Health of the EconomyGDP and Budget, Employment, Median Income, PovertyWorld Fact Book (GDP)https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/rankorder/2001rank.html?countryname=United%20States&countrycode=us&regionCode=noa&rank=2#us

Consumption • Meaning of life is in

things we possess

• Does not to satisfy real needs

• Buying things will allow one to become something they could not otherwise be

• Satisfies artificially created desires

Bureau of Labor Statistics, Unemployment: March 2014

All 6.7 Males 6.2 Females 6.2By Race/Ethnicity Only By Education OnlyAsian 5.4 Less H.S. 9.6White 5.8 H.S. 6.3Hispanic 7.9 A.A. 6.1Black 12.4 B.A. + 3.4Over Time Unemployment: http://data.bls.gov/pdq/SurveyOutputServlet Labor Participation Rate Over Time: http://data.bls.gov/timeseries/LNS11300000 State: http://www.bls.gov/web/laus/laumstrk.htm

Poverty: U.S. Census – 2012 Poverty Line Family (4) $23,492. Federal Minimum wage $7.25/hr.

Overall Poverty 15% or 46.5 million

Race/Ethnicity Asian 12.3White 9.9Hispanic 25.3

Black 26.7http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/income_wealth/cb13-165.html

Poverty: U.S. Census – 2012Households

Married-couple families 6.3Male householder 16.4Female householder 30.9

AgeChildren 21.8Seniors 9.1

For every $1 earned by men women earn .77 http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/income_wealth/cb13-165.html

Median Income: U.S. Census - 20121999: $55, 627.2011: $51, 100.2012: $51, 017.

Asian $68, 636. White $57, 009.Hispanic $39, 005.Black $33, 321.

http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/income_wealth/cb13-165.html