Social Stratification, Social Class, and Ethnicity Social Stratification, Social Class, and Ethnicity

Social StratificationSocial Stratification

A system by which a society ranks categories of people in a hierarchy based on their access to scarce resources.Looking Up

Four Basic Principles of Social Stratification:Four Basic Principles of Social Stratification:

It is a characteristic of society, not simply a reflection of individual differences.

It persists over generations. It is universal but variable. It involves not just inequality

but beliefs. Constitutional Peasant

Cultural beliefs serve to justify social stratification.

Cultural beliefs serve to justify social stratification.

That is part of the reason why it persists.

Types of Stratification SystemsTypes of Stratification Systems

Caste System- social stratification based on ascribed status.

India and South Africa

Class System- social stratification based on achieved status.

Caste System ClassesCaste System Classes Brahmin- scholars and priests Kshatriya- political leaders and

warriors Vaishaya- merchants Shudras- menial workers,

artisans Untouchables Caste System

Status: Position in societyStatus: Position in society

Ascribedborn into or comes without efforte.g., kinship, race, gender

Achievedmust work to get

Interpretations of StratificationInterpretations of Stratification Functionalist

Meritocracy Social Conflict (Marx) Max Weber

Wealth, Prestige, PowerSocioeconomic status- An individual’s comparative status in a society based on factors (education, income and occupation).

People in the US are stratified based on the following:

People in the US are stratified based on the following:

IncomePrestigeWealth

EducationPower

IncomeIncome Wages or salaries from work and earnings from

investments. Distribution of Income in the US

–Top 5th 47%–Next 5th 24%–Third 5th 16%–Fourth 5th 10%–Bottom 5th 4%

WealthWealth Total value of money and other assets, minus

outstanding debts.Distribution of Wealth in the US

–Top 5th 80%–Next 5th 15%–Third 5th 5%–Fourth 5th less than 1%–Bottom 5th less than 1%

Social mobility—moving across ‘class’ linesSocial mobility—moving across ‘class’ lines

Intergenerational mobility—change in social position of children relative to their parents

Intragenerational mobility—change in social position of a person within their life

What factors encourage or discourage each form of social mobility?

Social Construction of Race and EthnicitySocial Construction of Race and Ethnicity

A process by which people come to define a group as a race based in part on physical characteristics, but also on historical, cultural (religious) and economic factors

Often an ideology constructed by the dominant or majority group which has the power to define itself legally but also to shape a society’s values

Social Construction of GenderSocial Construction of Gender A process by which people come to

define a gender based on social distinctions between males and females that do not inevitably result from biological differences between the sexes.

Gender-role socialization begins at birth and continues throughout life

An ideology constructed by the dominant or majority group which has the power to define itself legally but also to shape a society’s values

Institutional Discrimination Institutional Discrimination Affects gender, racial and ethnic groups, and

possibly other minorities Denial of opportunities and equal rights to

individuals or groups that result from the normal operations of a society

Bank loan policy that single women (or African Americans) are poor lending risksZoning policies that require large lotsOther examples?