sociology paper 2

• Absolute poverty


  Poverty where the minimum requirements to maintain human health and life is lacking
• Affluent workers


  Highly paid manual workers
• Ageism


  Stereotyping, prejudice and discrimination against individuals on account of their age
• Authority


  Power which is accepted and obeyed because it is seen as legitimate by those without power
• Bourgeoise


  Class owners of the means of production
• Caste system


  Stratification system based on Hindu religious beliefs in which a person's position is fixed at birth
• Charismatic authority


  Power seen as fair and just because it is based on a power-holder's exceptional personal charm and magnetism
• Class consciousness


  An awareness in members of a social class of their real interests
• Class struggle


  Conflict and struggle between the two major social classes (the bourgeoise and the proletariat)
• Closed society


  A stratification system where social movement is not possible
• Coercion


  Power obeyed because of the threat of violence
• Communism


  An equal society without social classes and conflict in which the means of production are common to all
• Culture of poverty


  A set of beliefs and values thought to exist among the poor that prevent them from escaping poverty
• Death rate


  The number of deaths per thousand of the population per year
• Democracy


  A form of government where people enjoy rights and freedoms and participate in political decision making by electing representatives
• Dependency culture


  A set of values and beliefs centred upon dependency on others, normally in the context of those who depend on welfare-state benefits
• Deskilling


  The removal of skills from work by the application of new machinery that simplifies tasks
• Dictatorship


  A form of government in which power is concentrated in the hands of one individual or an elite
• Disability


  A physical or mental impairment which has a substantial effect on a person's abilities to carry out normal day-to-day activities
• Economic inequality


  Differences in wealth, income and hours spent working
• Embourgeoisement


  The idea that differences between the middle-class and the working-class are disappearing as well-paid manual workers merge into the middle class
• Endogamy


  Where marriage to a partner must be to someone who is in the same kinship or social group
• Ethnic group


  A group of people sharing the same cultural identity
• Ethnicity


  Shared culture, includes language, religion, cultural traditions and characteristics
• False class consciousness


  A failure by members of a social class to recognise their real interests
• Feudalism


  A closed system of stratification based on land-ownership and legal inequalities
• Gender pay gap


  The difference between the hourly earnings of men and women
• Generation


  Those born in the same 15 to 30 year period
• Glass ceiling


  An invisible barrier of discrimination which blocks women from making the same progress as men at work
• Globalisation


  The growing interconnectedness of societies across the world, with the spread of the same culture, consumer goods and economic interests
• Hate crime


  A crime that is perceived by the victim to be motivated by hostility or prejudice towards someone based on a personal characteristic, such as ethnicity
• Theories of social stratification

  • Functionalist
  • Marxist
  • Feminist
• Functionalist: Social stratification is positive for society. Society is based on meritocracy and status is 'achieved' through hard work and effort. 'Role allocation' - top roles are filled by those who are able, ambitious and competitive - allows society to run smoothly.
• Marxist: Social stratification is negative for society. Society is based on conflict and status is 'ascribed' is fixed at birth by class and cannot be changed. Top roles are filed by the bourgeoisie and creates inequality.
• Feminist: Social stratification is negative for society. Society is based on conflict and patriarchy with the top roles being filled by men and women being lower in the hierarchy.
• Social stratification and class

  • Working class, skilled/manual work, lack of formal education
  • Middle class, Professional jobs, formal education e.g. University
  • Upper, Aristocracy, elite education, 'titles' given
• NS-SEC


  Measures class by occupation BUT Ignores wealth/status as a measure of class
• Marxists view on class and life chances

  Status is ascribed, working classes have poorer opportunities in education, employment, health, housing
• Functionalist view on class and life chances

  Status is achieved, society is based on meritocracy-equal chances to succeed
• Feminist view on class and life chances

  Gender has more of an influence on life chances than class