Sociology Chapter 7: Stratification

Achieved and Ascribed Status

• Achieved status results from individual efforts and accomplishments, reflecting personal success.
• Ascribed status is determined by factors beyond individual control, such as race, gender, or age, assigning social value from birth.

Caste and Class Systems

• Caste system enforces strict social inequality, dictating status at birth without possibility of mobility.
• Class structure, as proposed by Karl Marx, describes society divided into groups with unequal resources, determined by property ownership and production roles.

Stratum Mobility

• Closed stratification systems create barriers for upward mobility, restricting individuals to their birth class.
• Open stratification systems enable social mobility based on merit and individual achievement, allowing movement between classes.

Social Classes

• Corporate class consists of individuals with significant authority in corporations, typically without ownership.
• Lower class includes those with little or no property, often unemployed and lacking authority or prestige.
• Middle class comprises individuals with moderate property and middle to high income, divided into upper and lower middle classes.
• Upper class consists of families owning substantial property and wielding considerable authority.

Economic Factors

• Income refers to earnings within a specific timeframe, derived from jobs or investments.
• Wealth denotes ownership of assets that can provide financial support and be inherited by descendants.

Mobility and Life Chances

• Social mobility indicates movement between social positions, either upward or downward.
• Structural mobility involves changes in occupational availability, impacting the workforce's employment status.
• Life chances represent the opportunities for achieving long life and happiness within a social structure.

Social Dynamics

• Prestige is the social esteem awarded for admirable qualities, influencing status in society.
• Opportunity structure allows individuals, through ascribed status, to improve their social standing and life outcomes.
• Horizontal mobility describes the transition between social positions without any significant change in status.

Dimensions of Stratification

• Key dimensions of social stratification include wealth, income, power, and prestige, shaping individual positions within society.