Sociology Exam ReviewTest #2 Core Concepts- Social inequality-describes the condition in which members of society have different amounts of wealth, prestige, and power.- Stratification: Shapes individual opportunities based on the layer/stratum that one occupies in that system.o Sociologist focus on four main systems of stratification: slavery, caste, estate, class Social inequality that is built into the structure of society (in other words, it is enduring/difficult to change); one type of stratification system is the class systemo Open stratification system- implies that a person achieved status influences his/her social positiono Closed stratification system - Allows little/no possibility of individual social mobility. Ex: caste systems- Class system: a stratification system based primarily on economic position; heavily dependent on ascribed characteristics such as family background; class is a major stratification system in the U.S. (along with race and gender)o Ascribed Status - social position assigned to a person by society without regard for his/her unique talents/characteristics. Influenced wealth and individual social positiono Achieved Status -is a social position that a person attains largely through his/herown efforts1. Slavery- most extreme form of legalized social inequality for individuals/groups. Slaves faced racial and legal barriers to freedom.2. Caste- are hereditarily ranks usually dictated by religion, tend to be fixed and immobile. Generally associated with Hinduism in India. 3. Estates- or feudalism, nobles owned the land, which they leased, to peasants who worked on it lived it. Basis for system, Nobles/ownership of inheritance of ones land,position, and largely defined the estate system.4. Social Class- A class system is a social ranking based on economics position, in which achieved characteristics can influence social mobility. Has ascribed characteristics’: family background, race, and ethnicity. - Mainstream model of class: 5 classes; assumes higher social mobilityo Upper (1-2 % of population): capitalist or elite class; own much of the country’swealth; leaders of major organizations and governmento Upper-middle (15-20%): affluent professionals; usually have advanced degrees;participate extensively in politicso Lower-middle (30-35%): less affluent professionals, often college-educated o Working (30-35%): usually manual laborers; usually not college-educatedo Lower (15-20%): poor; politically weak; disproportionately minoritieso Social Mobility- degree to which one can change the social stratum into which one is born.- Weber’s model of class: “functionalist model;” multidimensional; many classes based on different combinations of material, social, and organizational resources; assumes higher social mobility Referred term class to group of people who have a similar level of economic resources.o Class (material/economic resources)o Status (social resources)o Party (organizational resources)- Marx’s model of class: “productionist model;” 2 classes based on ownership (or not) ofthe means of production; assumes lower social mobility He believed that the group that owns the material means of production possesses most significant source of power in societyo Bourgeoisie: capitalists/owners of the means of production/major employerso Proletariat: workers, lacks ownershipo Model fails to categorize self-employed and minor employers- Perrucci and Wysong’s model of class: “distributional model;” 2 classes based on influence over major organizations and government; shaped like a “double diamond” with not much room to move between the two classes—there is no middle class; assumes lower social mobility o Privileged class : comparable to upper and upper-middle classo New working class : comparable to lower-middle, working, and lower class- Corporate welfare- Means of production: land, factories, machinery/computers, financial capital- Profit in capitalist system can be earned by reducing costs of labor through:o Mechanization- inventing new machines capable taking over more work laboro De-skilling- simplifying work process by breaking it down into stepso Offshoring - finding labor in other parts of the world- Class consciousness- False consciousness- Resources/capitals that contribute to our position in the stratification system:o Income (in Perucci & Wysong’s terms, “consumption capital”) Referred to wages and salaries measured over period of time Inequality is based on characteristics of a class system.o Wealth (in P & W’s terms, “investment capital”): top 1% of Americans own about one-third of the country’s wealth Much more unevenly distributed than income o Education (in P & W’s terms, “skill capital”)o Cultural capital (in P & W’s terms, “social capital”): Bourdieu theorized that elite cultural capital is tied to control over economic and social resourceso Status and prestige: occupational prestige is one type Prestige means- refers the respect /administration that an occupation holds in society. Esteem- reputation that a specific person has earned with in the occupation- Social mobility: degree to which one can change position in a stratification system; most data show that social mobility in the U.S. is at a low point today compared with past decadeso Intergenerational: between two generations; can be upward or downwardo Intragenerational: within one generation; can be upward or downward- Poverty: Live above/below the hold of society 13.2% of population in 2008o Absolute- to a minimum level of subsistence that no family should be expected to live below Lacks sufficient resources to surviveo Relative poverty- floating standard of deprivation by which people @ bottom of society are jugged to be disadvantaged in comparison with the nation as a whole Sufficient food, clothing, shelter, might nonetheless be considered poor ifthey live in the U.S.o Underclass: another term for the lower class/ lack training and skills.o Greater number of Whites in poverty, but a disproportionate percentage of minorities- Life chances-opportunities to provide themselves with material, goods, positive living conditions, favorable life experiences. o Reflected in measures such as housing, education, and healtho Class positions effect people vulnerability to natural disasters- How do we understand inequality from the conflict perspective? From the functionalist perspective?