Sociology

Sociology Study Guide

Chapter 4: Social Stratification Objectives 1. To comprehend what social stratification involves. 2. To understand the sociological implications of class analysis. 3. To identify gender roles. 4. To properly define classes in American society. 5. To grasp the difference between prejudice and discrimination. 6. To recognize aging and the issues that are involved in the process. Every society is stratified, or arranged by levels. Those levels often revolve around income, status, and power, but other factors can be used. Max Weber called these stratifications the economic dimension, social prestige dimension, and political dimension respectively. Each level represents one class, or portion of people who share common relationships and means of production or sources of wealth. Social status is a socially defined position, or ranking, in a society’s stratification system. In modern urban societies, it is harder to determine the status of individuals. Certain status symbols, objects or speech that is associated with a certain status, can help determine such, but are notalways accurate indicators. Occupations have historically been the most reliable means of measuringstatus. Status consistency refers to the tendency of people who rank high in one area, ranking high in another area (education andwealth, for example). Status inconsistency occurs when individualsrank high in one status area and low in another (like ministry and lowincome). 4.1 Power and Social Inequality Social inequality exists because of those dimensions. The very idea of stratification means some factor is unequal to all others. Different levels of stratification have inherent expectations or differential treatments expected of others toward those in that category. For example, the young and the old are treated differently in most cultures. Male and female differences usually result in some kind of differing cultural expectations and experiences. The rich and the poor are also treated differently in most cultures. The most basic definition of social inequality, then, is treatment that differs according to age, sex, race, religion, sexual orientation, or education and social rewards are unequally shared. This cantake the form of unfair distribution of wealth, status, or power. Stratification is the structured inequality that classifies groups of people according to their access to a society’s reward. Their access to society’s rewards is closely determined to their position in the social hierarchy. People within the same stratum, or level of stratification, usually experience the samenumber of opportunities.

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