lesson 8

• social stratification is the division of large social groups into smaller groups based on categories determined by economics.
• social stratification gives rise to inequality
• sociologists relate social stratification to social standing
• social exclusion is the process by which individuals are cut off from full involvement in the wider circles of society
• example of people that are affected by social exclusion are the indigents or the homeless
• closed systems impose rigid boundaries and limit interactions among members who belong to different social groups
• closed system is resistant to change, particularly in the social roles of its members
• open system is based on achievement and allows more flexibility in social roles, has increased social mobility, and has better interaction among social groups and classes
• caste systems are closed systems and promotes the will of a higher spiritual power rather than the promotion of individual freedom
• people in caste systems qre born in their social standing and will permanently remain in it
• bhramin - highest; priests/academics
• untouchable - dalit
• South Africa - caste system was based on race (white South africans >>> black South Africans)
• South African (1948) - instituted apartheid (racial segregation) which lasted until 1994
• class system is based on the ownership of resources and the individual's occupation/profession
• Class systems base social status on achievement, making it more open in terms of social mobility
• exogamous marriages - marriages between people who come from different social classes
• endogamous marriages - marriages between people from the same social class
• meritocracy provides equal opportunity because it is determined by personal effort and merit
• functionalism - how the different aspects of society contribute to ensuring its stability and function
• functionalism - each part of society serves an important purpose
• functionalists believe that social stratification is based on the intrinsic value of social roles
• davis-moore hypothesis (kingsley and wilbert, 1945) -social role with greater functional purpose will result in greater reward
• melvin tumin (1953) - criticized davis-moore hypothesis and said that it was unable to consider some situations where individuals with no talent are able to access better opportunities (examples are nepo babies)
• karl marx - social stratification is influenced by economic forces and relationships in the society are defined by the factors of production
• symbolic interactionism examines stratification from a microlevel perspective
• social stratification (symbolic interactionists) - leads people to interact within their social class, therefore it is a system that groups people together
• theory of conspicuous consumption - buying certain products to make a social statement about status (clout chasing)
• theory of conspicuous consumption - buying certain products to make a social statement about status (clout chasing)
• social mobility is the ability of individuals or groups to change their positions within a system
• social mobility also refers to how individuals progress from a lower to higher social class
• upward mobility - upward movement in social class
• downward mobility - lowering of an individual's social class
• intragenerational mobility - experience of people who belong to the same generation
• intergenerational mobility - sang una pigado, manggaranon na subong; changes in social standing experienced by individuals belonging to different generations
• structural mobility - improvement or decline of status of a large group of people
• social class and stratification are important concepts derived from inequalities
• class (marx) - essential characteristic based on the economic structure
• stratification (weber) - refers to the ranking of groups according to their relative power and prestige
• market position - ability to engage in economic activities