Social Stratification
The division of society into groups arranged in a social hierarchy.
Stratification
The structural inequality of entire categories of people who have different access to social rewards based upon their status in the social hierarchy.
-When the inequality becomes patterned or organized, the society is said to be stratified.
Stratification
The division of large numbers of people into layers - according to their relative power, wealth and prestige.
Socioeconomic Status (SES)
The measure of an individual's place within a social class system; often used interchangeably with "class.
Occupational Prestige
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Prestige
The social honor people are given because of their membership in well-regarded social groups.
Status
A position in a social hierarchy that carries a particular set of expectation.
Status Inconsistency
A situation in which there are serious differences between the different elements of an individual's socioeconomic status.
Caste System
A form of social stratification in which status is determined by one's family history and background and cannot be changed.
Ascribed Status
An inborn status; usually difficult or impossible to change.
Endogamy
Marriage to someone within one's social group.
Achieved Status
A status earned through individual effort or imposed by others.
Social Class
A system of stratification based on access to such resources as wealth, property, power, and prestige.
Apartheid
The system of segregation of racial and ethnic groups that was legal in South Africa between 1948 and 1991.
Social Inequality
The unequal distribution of wealth, power, or prestige among members of a society
Upper Class
A largely self-sustaining group of the wealthiest people in a class system; in the United States, they constitute about 1 percent of the population and possess most of the wealth of the country
Upper-middle Class
Mostly professionals and managers who enjoy considerable financial stability, they constitute about 14 percent of the U.S. population
Middle Class
Composed primarily of "white collar" workers with a broad range of incomes; they constitute about 30 percent of the U.S. population.
White Collar
A description characterizing workers and skilled laborers in technical and lower-management jobs.
Working Class or Lower-middle Class
Mostly "blue collar" or service industry workers who are less likely to have a college degree; they constitute about 30% of the U.S. population.
Blue Collar
A description characterizing workers who perform manual labor
Working poor
Poorly educated workers who work full-time but remain below the poverty line; they constitute about 20% of the U.S. population
Underclass
The poorest Americans who are chronically unemployed and may depend on public or private assistance; they constitute about 5% of the U.S. population.
Feudal System
A system of social stratification based on a hereditary nobility who were responsible for and served by a lower stratum of forced laborers called serfs
Wealth
A measure of net worth that includes income, property, and other assets.
Polite Racism
As different ethnic groups in Brazil intermarried and had children, new racial categories emerged. Many have argued that this has led to a new "racial democracy"; however, critics say that stratification still exists. They refer to it as _______.
Social Reproduction
The tendency of social classes to remain relatively stable as social class status is passed down from one generation to the next.
Culture Capital
The tastes, habits, expectations, skills, knowledge, and other cultural dispositions that help us gain advantages in society
Everyday class consciousness
Awareness of one's own social status and that of others.
Social Mobility
The movement if individuals or groups within the hierarchical
system of social classes
Structural Mobility
Changes in social status of large numbers of people due to structural changes in society.