How are people differentiated in society?
Characteristics such as sex, race, physical size, strength, age, etc
Social roles such as occupation, parental status, etc.
What is inequality structured by?
Inequality is structured by processes of valuation, distribution, and mobility
The rewards we value most is known as?
Valuation
-Not much debate in USA
How and to what degree rewards are distributed across various social groups/positions is known as?
Distribution
-Some debate in USA
Who are individuals linked to social positions is known as?
Mobility
-Greater debate in USA
Define Ascription
These are unchanging characteristics you are born with
-Age
-Sex
-Family of origin
Characteristics that can be attained is?
Achievement. These can be obtained
-Education
-Reputation
-Experience
-Social Networks
Is inequality random?
Inequality is NOT random
Inequality is predictable we can guess the groups/positions that are high/low year after year
True or False. Inequality is stable
True
-Change occurs slowly in systems of inequality as dominant ideologies are slow to change
What does the sociological concept of Meritocracy refer to?
-It focuses on individualism. The person themself
-Merit or achievement
"You get what you deserve"
-Everyone has equal opportunity
What are Coercion?
Individuals are forced by the state or other powerful actors to accept ideology
When individuals voluntarily subscribe to the ideology they are displaying?
Consensus
When are hegemonic ideologies alternatives considered?
They are considered only when there is a substantial intervention
-Economic Crisis
-Courts
-Social Movements
Who said that Inequality is institutionalized through two main processes?
Massey
Inequality is institutionalized through two main processes, what are these main processes?
1. Exploitation
2. Opportunity Hoarding
When "one social group expropriates a resource produced by another social group and prevents them realizing the full value of their effort in producing the resource"
They are using what form of inequality?
Exploitation
-They are taking something away from someone
When "one social group restricts access to a scarce resource through outright denial or by exercising monopoly control" --Socially defined process of exclusion
They are using what form of inequality?
Opportunity Hoarding
-They are excluding someone and not allowing them to succeed
What are the two major dominant classes under Capitalism?
1. Bourgeoisie
2. Proletariats
*It is a RIGID class structure. Little mobility between the major classes
What are Bourgeoisie?
The Capitalist. They own the means of production or buy labor.
What are Proletariats?
The workers in capitalism. They sell labor power in order to survive.
True or False. Regardless of income or occupation, even if a person makes over a Million dollars. If a person sells his/her labor power they are part of the Proletariat?
True.
-They are still selling their labor to someone and that person is BUYING their labor.
If a person is buying labor power for the goal of a profit they are?
Capitalist
What are the processes of Capital Accumulation?
*Technology
*Finding Cheaper Labor
What does Technology do when it comes to Capital Accumulation?
-Assembly lines(division of labor into small parts; Taylorism)
-Robotics
*"Bourgeoisie cannot exist without constantly revolutionizing the instruments of production
What does the process "Finding cheap labor" do when it comes to Capital Accumulation?
Reduces labor costs, increases profits
-Estimated labor costs in China to manufacture an iPhone is the equivalent of $8.If produced in the U.S., the estimated cost of labor is closer to $80.
-Difference between $8 & $80 means profit for company
Who claims that Capitalist controls the state?
Karl Marx
What new forms unequal class structure were not talked about by Marx, but were talked about by neoMarxists
Corporate Organizations
This is known as allowing corporations to share information, develop strategy and act together to achieve collective ends
Interlocking Directorates
-Individuals who sit on two or more boards increase their likelihood of serving on government policy or advisory committees
Who argues that ideologies favorable to capitalism prevail in societies with capitalist economies?
Karl Marx
Who favored a multidimensional understanding of the factors that contribute to life chances
Max Weber
True or False
Class, status, and party all contribute to inequality and ultimately to ones life chances?
True
The typical chances for a supply of goods, external living conditions, and personal life experiences are known as
Life Chances
How do you define Class?
Groups with common market situation as determined by: source of income, amount of income, & mobility patterns
How is class understood by Weber and how does he structure class?
A. Owners of Income-Producing Property
-Rentiers (those who live off of investments)
-Entrepreneurs (those who own firms)
B. Non-owners (sell different types of labor power)
-Middle class (specialized skills and/or knowledge)
Ex: engineers, doctors, plumb
What is Status?
Groups with shared social prestige & honor; based on reputational rankings
Why are Status groups known as being "conscious" groups?
-People are active in making prestige judgments of others
-We are aware of or accept the status judgment others make of us
-We understand where we belong in status hierarchies
What is Party?
Social power, or the ability to influence communal action; represented in voluntary associations
-Members and resources can be mobilized to attain common goals
-Membership gives individuals access to contacts, resources, and collective organization
What are some party groups?
Political parties, unions, social clubs, sports clubs
The erection of social boundaries to restrict access to valued networks, resources or opportunitie.
-A group closes off opportunities or resources to another group it deems as inferior or unworthy
Social Closure
What is Habitus
System of durable and transposable dispositions through which we perceive, judge, and act in the world.
How do Self-Interested groups gain competitive advantage?
Social Closure
How do unequal distributions of life chances occur?
By Class, status, and party
The saying "A rising tide lifts all boats" refers to what?
Belief that everyone benefits from strong, sustained economic growth
What was the median family income in
1950
2000
2010
1950: 26K
2000: 64K
2010: 60K
What is the Middle Class Squeeze?
A smaller share of income going to the middle class; may be more difficult to sustain middle class lifestyle
How has the middle class responded to the class squeeze over the last 30 years?
*People work more
*Wives now work
What is evidence of the end to egalitarian capitalism?
*Shares of family income
*Quintiles of income distribution
Define Deindustrialization
Consistent decline in manufacturing during the last 50 years
-Loss of unionized jobs with higher wages and stable employment.
-Loss of "good" jobs for those with only a high school degree
What is Outsourcing
Outsourcing is having tasks or jobs from internal production to an external entity (such as a subcontractor). Most recently, it has come to mean the elimination of native staff to staff overseas, where salaries are markedly lower.
Why is Unionization important?
-Higher pay: Unionized workers earn significantly more than those not in unions. Now a smaller share of workers have access to these higher wage structures in firms.
-All workers benefit: All workers in a labor market have, on average, higher wages when a
Describe the change in the level of wages by education level
From 1963 - 1997
-The average earnings of high school educated men DECLINED 12%
-The average earnings of college educated men INCREASED 22%
From 1980 - 1997
-The average earnings of high school educated men DECLINED 19%
-The average earnings of college ed
Explain the Immigration that occurred from 1950-1970 and after 1970
There was a decline in Immigration from 1950 to 1970 and has been a rise in immigration since 1970.
-Immigrant mix has changed from European to Latin American and Asian descent.
-New immigrants are on average less educated than in the past and they tend t
What was is so significant with International Trade in the U.S. compared to how it was prior to 1980?
Before 1980, the US exported more goods than imported. Now the US imports more goods than we export.
What is the result of the U.S. importing more goods than exporting them
*Less demand for U.S. goods
*Less demand for U.S. workers
*Used to leverage lower pay out of existing workers through wage concessions
What is the difference between absolute and relative mobility?
-Relative (Fluid) Mobility: Change of position within a fixed "class" distribution; for one person to move up another must move down
-Absolute (Structural) Mobility: Anyone who moves across a fixed threshold from one year to the next (e.g. $50,000/year) i
What is some evidence of "stickiness"?
-Greater class reproduction in the bottom income group today than in the
1970s
-Greater class reproduction in the top of the income group today than in the
1970s
-Lower chances of rags to riches today than in the past
What is Spatial Mismatch?
Employment opportunities for low-income people are located far away from the areas where they live.
-Residents may be UNABLE to travel to jobs outside the neighborhood or immediate metro area
-Residents may be UNWILLING to travel to jobs outside the neigh
How is Spatial Mismatch related to urban underclass?
Housing policies and racial bias of the 1960-70s concentrated blacks in a limited range of neighborhoods - result is segregation of blacks and whites in urban-suburban areas
Name some consequences of Concentrated Poverty
*Address discrimination
*Decline in the pool of "marriageable" men due to loss of secure male employment
*Rise of female headed families
*High rates of welfare use
*High rates of formerly incarcerated persons
Enacting the culture of a class through dress, language, behaviors, tastes is known as?
Class Performance
Explain the "shadow of race" between whites and blacks
For whites, the shadow of race includes a presumption of being MIDDLE CLASS until performed otherwise
For blacks, the shadow of race includes a presumption of being POOR OR LOWER CLASS until performed otherwise
What happened during the 1965 Immigration Act?
*Abolished national quotas
*Changed the immigrant stream into the US from European countries to Latin America, Asia, and Africa
What happened during the 1986 Immigration Reform & Control Act?
Provided amnesty to illegal immigrants
-This Increased Latin American (esp Mexican) immigration because of family reunification. Enabled rest of family to come to country.
What are the four types of Immigrants?
*Human capital migrants
-High educational levels; high skills; tend to work and live outside "ethnic enclave"
*Labor migrants
-Lower educational levels; less skilled; tend to work and live in "ethnic enclaves"
*Family reunification
-Come to join family al
Name the type of Immigrant Assimilation
*Immigrants should and do give up their cultural traditions (especially language) in order to integrate into dominant American culture
*Second and future generations are fully "American"
*Upward mobility depends on
Melting Pot
Name the type of Immigrant Assimilation
*Immigrants maintain cultural practices which co-exist within dominant American culture;
*Immigrants do not and should not fully culturally assimilate into American culture; heritage is important
*Cultural differenc
Pluralism or "salad bowl
What type of assimilation do natives want to see in America?
Natives believe the U.S. should be a melting pot but instead they see the U.S. as a pluralist society
In the "Job Competition: Do Immigrants Take Jobs No One Else Wants?" what did they find?
Immigrants generally take jobs no one else wants
Natives (both whites & blacks) see the jobs immigrants take as beneath them; once immigrants are in the jobs, the jobs become stigmatized as only a job an immigrant would do
Employers prefer immigrants over
What was the role of land and labor in the racialization process?
White people use racialization to get the land from Native American and get the free labor force from African American.
Some scientists at that time try to prove African American and Native American are different species from white who is a superior speci
How did early science and gov./judiciary play a role in the racialization process?
Some scientists at that time try to prove African American and Native American are different species from white who is a superior specie.
What is the Great U-Turn?
Change from Egalitarian capitalism to non-Egalitarian capitalism starting in the 1970's. Growing amount of social inequality between social classes
-"Rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer". The gap is widening
Define Ideology
An overarching set of beliefs that informs/impacts/shapes
-World views
-Personal actions
-Organizational actors
-Public policies