Social Stratification Ranking of individuals or categories of individuals on the basis of unequal access to scarce resources & social rewards

Social Inequality The unequal sharing of social rewards & resources

Why haven’t large ‘unstratified’ societies existed?

What criteria would you use to stratify a society if it were up to you? How would you distribute scarce resources & social rewards?

Caste Distribute resources & rewards on ascribed characteristics

Class Distribute resources & rewards on achieved characteristics

U.S. Class system US law forbids discrimination based on ascribed characteristics (race, sex, ethnicity, religion, etc.) Therefore, all Americans have equal access to resources needed for social advancement. Does everyone have equal access?

Social Class Grouping people with similar levels of wealth, power, and prestige Upper, middle, lower

Wealth Made up of his or her assets (value of belongings) and income (money earned through salary, returns, and gains) In the US… Wealth is concentrated in the hands of a small percent of the population. -Richest 1% of population controls 1/3 of wealth -Top 1/5th of income earners receive 50% of the national income -Average executive makes 419x the average worker

Power The ability to control the behaviors of others with or without their consent Based on: FORCE POSSESSION OF A SPECIAL SKILL SOCIAL STATUS SPECIAL KNOWLEDGE CUSTOMS PERSONAL CHARACTERISTICS

Prestige Respect, honor, recognition, or courtesy an individual receives from the other members of society Income Occupation Education Family Background Area of Residence Possessions Club Memberships

SOCIOECONOMIC STATUS Combines social factors such as educational level, occupational prestige, place of residence, and income

Prestige Ratings On the next page in your packet, there are 20 occupations. By yourself, please rank the occupations based on Prestige. There are no right or wrong answers, just opinions.

Explaining Stratification Functionalist Theory Social Stratification is a necessary feature of Social Structure Certain roles must be performed in order to maintain society Opposition to the Functionalist Theory -Not everyone has equal access to education -Unrecognized talent in lower classes -Some rewards don’t reflect social values of the role

Explaining Stratification Conflict Theory Competition over resources as the cause of social inequality Stratification comes from class exploitation

6 Classes Upper-upper- UPPER CLASS Lower-upper- UPPER MIDDLE CLASS Upper-middle- LOWER MIDDLE CLASS Lower-middle- WORKING CLASS Upper-lower- WORKING POOR Lower-lower- UNDERCLASS

UPPER CLASS 1% of population Old money vs. New Money -wealthy for gen. - Newly rich -Family name - Not as respected -Upper class holds power and influence -Usually associated with Charity work and philanthropy -Pay their dues to society

UPPER MIDDLE CLASS High income businesspeople and professionals Status based on income rather than assets Have more influence in community

LOWER MIDDLE CLASS White collar jobs (Do not require manual labor) Require less education and receive less income Have comfortable life, but must work hard to maintain traditional values

WORKING CLASS Jobs require more manual labor Blue collar Factory workers, trades-people Don’t carry much prestige Few financial reserves If emergencies happen…

WORKING POOR Lowest paying jobs Barely make a living wage Often temporary or seasonal Housecleaning, migrant farmers, day laborers Barely make a living wage Depend on government assistance

UNDERCLASS Families have been poor or unemployed for generations Chief source of income is public assistance 50% of children make it to a higher class Life is a day to day struggle

3 ways to rank individuals Reputational Indiv. In the community rank others Subjective Indiv. rank themselves (middle) Objective Sociologists define class based on occupation, income & education

SOCIAL MOBILITY Movement between or within social classes Horizontal Vertical Intergenerational

Horizontal Mobility Movement within a class Moving from one job to another in the same field

Vertical Mobility Moving from one position to another Movement between social classed Can be or Moving from one position to another

Intergenerational Mobility Status differences between generations in the same family Going from class of origin to a new, higher class

Causes of Upward Mobility Advances in technology Jobs available change Bad for 1st generation, good for 2nd

Causes of Upward Mobility Changes in merchandizing patterns Explosion of Credit and insurance needs over the years… need for more white collar jobs 1940- 31% of pop held white collar jobs Today- 73%

Causes of Upward Mobility Increase in general level of education High School College 1940- 75% did NOT graduate Today- 9% do not graduate 1940- 5% have college degree Today- 26%

Causes of Downward Mobility Personal Factors Changes in Economy No need for certain jobs Job market Divorce, illness, widowhood, retirement Getting laid off, cutbacks New technologies College grads in some field have difficulty finding a job

Section 3: Poverty 31 Million people live below the poverty line in America (11%) Poverty- Standard of living that is below the minimum that is considered adqequate by society Varies by society

Cost of an adequate diet Poverty in America Poverty Level- Minimum annual income needed by a family to survive How is it calculated? Cost of an adequate diet Changes each year to account for rise in overall cost of living (inflation) Now includes: Food, housing, personal expenses

Poverty in America Age Sex Race and Ethnicity Children have the highest % in poverty 37% of the poor are under 18 Sex 57% of women are poor Head of ½ of poor families Race and Ethnicity What does the chart tell us?

Effects of Poverty Life Chances Life Expectancy Likelihood that individuals have in sharing in opportunities and benefits of society Ex. Healthe, length of life, housing, education Life Expectancy Average number of years a person born into a particular class can expect to live The Poor have lower life expectancy rates Poor children are 60% more likely to die before 1 year old than a family not in poverty Why????

Effects of Poverty Education Divorce rates Deviance Less property tax, less funding, fewer supplies Divorce rates Higher among the poor Deviance More likely to commit crimes