Sociology: Chapter 8 Sec 1

“Social Inequality”

“Systems of Stratification”

Standards: 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4, 3.5, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3

Types of Stratification

Social Stratification: ranking of individuals or categories of people on the basis of unequal access to scarce resources and social rewards

Social Inequality: The unequal sharing of scarce resources and social rewards

Types… 1. Caste System 2. Class System

Caste System -Usually occurs in an area where resources are

scarce for a variety of reasons -Ascribed Status: Status that is assigned based on

factors that one can not control -One can not marry outside of one’s own Caste -Endogamy: Marriage w/in one’s own social group -Exogamy: Marriage outside of one’s own group -Think about it… If your arm was in a “CASTE”

you would not be able to “MOVE” it *It is impossible to move between Castes

Indian Caste System: 187

19th Century 1. Brahman: Priests 2. Kshatriya: Warrior, Landowner, Ruler 3. Vaishya: Merchants 4. Shudra: Artisans, Agriculturalists

(Farmers) 5. Harijan: “Outside” the Caste System “Untouchables”

The Class System Class System: Based on ACHIEVED status Achieved Status: Variable; can change -People judged by accomplishments -Based on who owns the Means of Production:

Tools, Buildings, Materials needed to produce goods

Bourgeoisie: Own the means of production Proletariat: Workers who sell labor Social Class: Grouping of people with similar

levels of wealth, power, and prestige

Socioeconomic Status Socioeconomic Status: Rating of individuals based

on 1. Educational Level 2. Occupational Prestige 3. Income 4. Place of ResidenceDimensions of Stratification:1. Wealth: Individual’s Assets2. Power: Ability to control the behavior of others3. Prestige: Respect, Honor and Recognition one

receives from other members of society (See p. 209)

Explaining Stratification

Functionalist Perspective: Stratification is necessary for social order

Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore -Reward must match the task Ex: Doctor: $100,000+ Janitor: $25,000+ Conflict Perspective: Karl Marx: Competition

over scarce resources causes social inequality. In equality will lead to “friction” between classes

Both have good points: Neither FULLY Explains

Efforts at “Synthesis” Both conflict and functionalist perspective have

valid points, but they ignore other important details.

Ralf Dahrendorf: They explain specific problems, but do not speak to the entire system.

Gerhard Lenski: Usefulness depends on society being studied

Eg: Functionalist: Better at explaining “small-group” structure

Conflict: Better at explaining “Large” group structure

Sociology: Chapter 8 Sec 2

“The American Class System”

Standards: 3.1-3.5, 4.1-4.3

The American Class System

-Social Inequality exists in all class systems -U.S. has a “fairly” open system Determining Social Class -Some Sociologists see three classes 1. Upper 2. Middle 3. Lower

Determining Social Class

Other Sociologists 1. Upper-Upper 2. Lower-Upper 3. Upper-Middle 4. Lower-Middle 5. Upper-Lower 6. Lower-Lower

Determining Social Class

Most Sociologists agree on a six category system: P 194

1. Upper Class- 1% 2. Upper Middle Class-14% 3. Lower Middle Class- 30% 4. Working Class-30% 5. Working Poor-22% 6. Underclass- 3%

Techniques for Ranking People

1. Reputational Method: Individuals in community rank others in community based on characteristics and life styles

2. Subjective Method: Individuals asked to determine own rank (Shy away from lower and upper)

3. Objective Method: Class defined by income, occupation, and education

*Most Scientific

Social Classes 1. Upper Class: Own a sizable portion of the nation’s wealth -Prestigious Universities -Upper-Upper: “Old” Money Kennedy, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt Born into -Lower-Upper: New Money Acquired wealth through own work Thorstein Veblen: Conspicuous Consumption: -Rich buy goods for status -Control Gov’t -Help Needy - Tend to be Politically Conservative

Social Classes 2. Upper Middle Class: High income professionals -College or University (4-10YR) -Career oriented -Power on the local levels 3. Lower-Middle Class: Lower income “White

Collar” (no manual labor) -High School -Some College (2-4 YR) Live Comfortable life, but must work hard to

maintain (Nurses, Teachers…etc)

Social Classes 4. Working Class: Largest segment of population -High School/Trade School -Work “blue-collar” jobs (manual labor) -trades people * “pink-collar” (lower level clerical, sales, service jobs) *Few

financial reserves 5. Working Poor: -Some High School -Laborers -Service workers 6. Underclass: -Some/No High School -Undesirable/low paying jobs

Social Mobility Social Mobility: Movement between classes -Vertical Mobility: Upward or downward

movement BETWEEN classes Ex: Job promotion/ Demotion -Horizontal Mobility: Person moves to s different

job within the same class Ex: Teacher who switches school -Intergenerational Mobility: status differences

between members of the same family Ex: Son of a mechanic becomes a doctor -Intragenerational Mobility: status change during a

person’s life

Social Mobility: Causes Upward Mobility -Technology -Change in merchandising patterns

– 1940: 31% White Collar 2009: 77% White Collar -Increase in Education-Society

– 1940: 75% No Diploma 2009: 15% No Diploma• 26% of people over 25 have at least a Bachelor’s Degree

Downward Mobility -Illness -Divorce (Temporary) -Widowhood (“ “) -Retirement -Economic changes: Ex LTV Steel

Sociology Chapter 8 Sec 3

“Poverty”

Standards: 5.3, 7.1, 7.2, 7.3, 7.4, 7.6, 7.7, 7.8

Poverty: Page 198

Poverty: A standard of living that is below the minimum level considered “Descent and Reasonable” by Society

Poverty Level: Minimum income to survive “relative term” -Calculate cost of diet and multiply by three

since 1/3 of income spent on food U.S. 12.6% Live BELOW poverty line

Variations in American Poverty

-Factors of Poverty -Age: Largest % of people living below the

poverty line = children -Two times higher in black/latino vs. white

families -Women: make up 57% of poor over age 18

– 40% homes headed by minority women in poverty

– 25% homes headed by white women in poverty

Effects of Poverty

Life Chances: Opportunities to succeed -greatly reduced in the lower classes Life Expectancy: -Infant mortality: Twice as high with poor -Behavior: -Low income: High divorce rates and high

crime rates

Government Responses to Poverty: P. 201 1960’s: LBJ “War on Poverty” -% of elderly poor went down 1. Transfer Payments: Gov’t redistributes money

over various social classes -Social Security -Welfare -Aid to families w/ dependent children (tax breaks) 2. Subsidies: Transfer of goods and services; NOT

MONEY (Directly) Ex: Food stamps, Head Start, Meals on Wheels