1

Social StratificationSocial Stratification

Social Science ISecond Semester, SY 2010-2011

UP Visayas

Social Stratification

- a system by which a society ranks categories of people in a hierarchy

- structured inequality of entire categories of people, who have different access to social rewards as a result of their status in the social hierarchy

2

Social Stratification

- a characteristic of society, not simply a reflection of individual differences

- persists over generations

- universal but variable

- involves not just inequality but beliefs

Social Inequality

- exists when people’s access to social rewards (such as money, influence, or respect) is determined by their personal or group characteristics.

3

Why study Social Stratification?

- it can lead to conflict and change.

- almost every aspect of our lives is linked to our status in the social hierarchy: our scores on IQ tests, our educational achievements, the size of our families, etc.

Stratification Systems

- may be OPEN or CLOSED

- CLOSED – the boundaries between the strata are very clearly drawn; no way for people to change their statuses

- OPEN – boundaries between the strata are flexible

4

A. Caste Systems

- rigid social system in which a social hierarchy is maintained generation after generation and allows little mobility outside the position to which a person is born

-- endogamyendogamy – people may marry only within their own group

-- ascribed statusascribed status

A. Caste Systems- India, 3000 years ago

- Aryan-speaking Nomadic groups migrated from the north to India about 1500 BC

- Aryan priests divided society into a basic caste system

1. Brahmans –earthly gods

2. Kshatriyas – warriors

3. Vaisyas – farmers and merchants

4. Sudras – laborers

Untouchables , outcasts

- Caste system has been perpetuated by the Hindu ideas of samsara (reincarnation) and karma (quality of action)

5

B. Class Systems

- open system, blurred boundaries, no formal restrictions against marriages between people of different classes

-- status is partly achievedstatus is partly achieved

- found in almost all agricultural and industrial societies

- Land owners and peasants

- Elite upper class, fairly large middle class, large working class

Social Mobility

- movement from one social status to another

- the more social mobility, the more open its stratification system

6

Types of Social Mobility

a. Horizontal – involves a change in one status to another that is roughly equivalent

b. Vertical - involves a change in one status to another that is higher or lower

Types of Social Mobility

c. Intragenerational – involves a change (horizontal or vertical) in the status during an individual’s career

d. Intergenerational – involves a change (horizontal or vertical) in the status of family members from one generation to the next

7

Determinants of Mobility

a. Number of statuses that are available

� In feudal Europe – peasants and limited number of high status positions

b. Case with which people can move from one status to another

� Rate of mobility in industrial societies is great; however the rate of social mobility among racial minorities and women is much lower compared to whites and men, respectively

Maintaining Stratification

- legitimacy : valid and justified

- most stratification system survive without the use of force

- inequality is usually taken for granted and regarded as “natural” by all concerned

-- IdeologyIdeology – a set of beliefs that explains and justifies a given social system

8

Maintaining Stratification

- Karl Marx – first explored the role of ideology in legitimizing stratification

� The dominant ideology in any society is always the ideology of the ruling class, and it always justifies the class’ economic interests

Maintaining Stratification�� Feudal system Feudal system -- contractual system of political

and military relationships existing among members of the nobility in Western Europe

� Legitimated by the political and religious doctrine of the divine rights of the king; the monarch derives authority directly from God

� Feudal system was eventually overthrown when a class of urban capitalists emerged armed with the ideology of political democracy and economic freedom

9

Maintaining Stratification

� Ideology of European colonialism

� “white man’s burden” – the noble but demanding task of bringing Christian civilization to “inferior” peoples

Maintaining Stratification

�� False consciousnessFalse consciousness – a subjective understanding that does not fit with the objective facts of one’s situation

�� Class consciousness Class consciousness –– an objective awareness of a class’ common exploitation by the dominant stratum

�� Class conflict Class conflict

10

Criteria of Class Membership

� Weber’s Analysis

� “class” into three distinct but related elements

� Power – political status

� Wealth – economic status

� Prestige – social status

Theories of Stratification

�� The Functionalist ApproachThe Functionalist Approach

� Assumes that elements in culture and social structure have effects, or functions, that contribute to the stability and survival of society as a whole

� Some form of stratification is necessary (Kingsley Davis & Wilbert Moore, 1945)

� The unequal distribution of social rewards is functional for society because roles that demand scarce talents are played by the most able individuals

11

Theories of Stratification

�� The Functionalist ApproachThe Functionalist Approach

� American society : cultural values about individual achievement

� Criticism : it seems to lose touch with reality

� Inheritors of wealth

� Movie stars

Theories of Stratification

�� The Conflict ApproachThe Conflict Approach

� Conflict theories regard conflict over social values and group interests as intrinsic to any society

� Marx : history is essentially the story of class conflict between the exploiters and the exploited

� Stratification exists only because the rich and powerful are determined to preserve their advantages

12

Theories of Stratification

�� The Evolutionary ApproachThe Evolutionary Approach

� Gerhard Lenski (1966)

� Emphasizes both conflict and functionalist elements in the evolution of stratification systems

� The basic resources a society needs in order to survive are allocated in the way functionalists claim they are whereas surplus resources are distributed through conflict among competing groups

What is the purpose of your UP education?What is the purpose of your UP education?