Social Inequality Chapter 10

1
Social InequalityChapter 10
2
Social Stratification

• Definition of social stratification The layering
  of people according to access to societal
  resources.
• Key societal resources in the U.S. include access
  to education, stable jobs, and bank loans. In a
  capitalist society, it is all about money.
• While stratification is found in all societies,
  its form varies. For example, some societies
  stratify people according to their ethnicities,
  so that one particular ethnic group is favored
  over the others.
• The Southern Jim Crow system of separate but
  equal racial segregation favored white people
  over people of color, giving whites more access
  to key societal resources. This practice was
  finally ended in 1964.
• In the U.S. the most signification social
  stratification involves stratification by social
  class. Social class is usually measured by a
  combination of peoples income, education, and
  job status.

3
Two Basic Types of StratificationCaste Systems
Class Systems

• Emphasis on ascribed status
• Fixed, closed boundaries
• Less mobility
• More endogamy exogamy is not generally permitted
• Lots of status consistency

• Emphasis on achieved status
• Open boundaries
• More mobility
• Less endogamy, a bit more exogamous
• Less status consistency

In caste systems peoples ascribed
characteristics - their race, sex, or ethnicity
place them in fixed locations for the rest of
their lives. In class systems there is more
emphasis on achieved status, where a persons
individual achievements may bring them upward
mobility.
4
Historical Context

• Recall the Lenski typology discussed in Chapter
  Four.
• Hunting and gathering societies are relatively
  less stratified because there are so few social
  statuses and they have such a simple social
  structure.
• The emergence of agrarian societies led to huge
  stratification systems. Slavery became a common
  feature of agrarian societies. Agrarian society
  stratification is based mostly on the caste
  system.
• Industrial societies, while initially highly
  stratified, tend to see reduced stratification
  over time because of their emphasis on achieved
  status and the emerging values of freedom and
  equality. Plus their new technologies reduce the
  need for labor-intensive jobs. Industrial society
  stratification is based mostly on the class
  system.

5
Historical Context

• In the American 19th and 20th century, both caste
  and class stratification systems operated,
  depending on the category of people affected.
• For racial minorities and women, a caste system
  operated in many areas of the country. Racial
  minorities and women were essentially segregated
  and forced into low paying jobs that had little
  upward mobility. In effect, they experienced
  internal colonization.
• However, for white males a class system operated
  which permitted them to achieve upward mobility
  based on hard work and achievement.
• It would not be until the 1960s that the last
  vestiges of the caste system would be eradicated.
  Since the 1960s minority groups have achieved
  more upward mobility.

6
Four Basic Principles

• 1. Stratification is a characteristic of society
  and not just individual differences. In other
  words it results from the social structure and it
  affects everyone.
• 2. Stratification persists over generations. It
  is passed on via family ties, where the infant
  inherits the social location of their parents.
• 3. Stratification is universal, but extremely
  variable in form.
• 4. Stratification involves not just inequality,
  but the belief systems that legitimize this
  inequality.

7
Two key factors help maintain a stratification
system

• 1. Ideology, specifically the dominant ideology.
• 2. Elite control of key societal resources.
• Ideology refers to the set of assumptions people
  use to understand and advocate how people should
  be treated.
• Basically an ideology is a world view. Examples
  of ideologies include individualism, democracy,
  Christianity, communism, capitalism, racism,
  sexism, etc.
• There are many ideologies in complex societies
  such as ours, but they are not equally powerful.
  Some are more powerful than others.

8
Dominant Ideology

• The dominant ideology refers to the most powerful
  or mainstream ideology in a society. Examples of
  dominant ideologies in the U.S. include
• Christianity (the dominant religious ideology),
• individualism and freedom (the dominant social
  ideology),
• democracy (the dominant political ideology) and
• capitalism (the dominant economic ideology). This
  ideology is very significant to the American
  stratification system.
• Dominant ideologies tend to be taken-for-granted
  as common sense, or truth.
• Other competing ideologies tend to be dismissed
  or not even considered. For example, Americans
  rarely even consider the viability of democratic
  socialism an alternative to capitalism.
• Dominant ideologies do not stem from just anyone.
  They stem from elites, who have the power to have
  their world views spread throughout the society.
  Elites own the media, for example.

9
Dominant Ideology

• Because the dominant ideology stems from elites
  (the primary beneficiaries of the status quo),
  the dominant ideology of a society always
  legitimizes the status quo.
• It makes the current pecking orders of society
  appear natural and appropriate. (Notice that
  elites are at the top of this pecking order).
• Because the dominant ideology is found throughout
  the society, almost everyone learns it, and most
  people accept or internalize the dominant
  ideology into their own world views.
• For example, the dominant racial ideology of the
  19th century was racism. Consequently the vast
  majority of whites were racist, and white
  Americans took it as common sense that people of
  color were inferiors. It took a civil rights
  movement in the 1950s and 60s to challenge and
  finally end this dominant ideology.

10
Dominant Ideology

• People are socialized into the dominant
  ideologies of their culture at young ages, and
  most internalize these world views into their own
  belief system.
• Partly because we are a diverse society, the
  Americans have long had conflicting dominant
  ideologies. We learn to believe in equality, but
  we also learn to believe in sexism and
  homophobia. We learn to believe in cooperative,
  loving spiritualism (Christianity that emphasizes
  the New Testament), but we also learn to believe
  in competitive, self-interested materialism
  (capitalism).

11
Dominant Ideology in Caste Systems

• In the old monarchies, the King owned nearly all
  the land, and the peasant was permitted to farm
  this land for subsistence. The King was
  all-powerful. Why did most peasants accept this
  inequality?
• The dominant ideology that justified this unequal
  arrangement was divine nobility.
• Peasants were told by the King and the official
  Church that the King was divine. He was selected
  by God to be their leader and this was
  unchangeable. A king was a king for life, and a
  peasant was a peasant for live, and that was
  Gods will. Any peasant who disagreed would go to
  Hell. Those peasants who obeyed the King would go
  to Heaven. Most peasants were religious. They
  accepted divine nobility, and therefore accepted
  their lowly status.

12
Dominant Ideology in Class Systems

• While the American class system is less
  stratified than the old monarchies of Europe,
  nearly one in five Americans lives in or near
  poverty. The capitalist system has not served
  their interests, so why arent they organizing
  into a collective movement for change?
• One of the reasons is that the dominant ideology
  of capitalism promotes the notion that anyone can
  dare to be great if they try hard enough, so you
  just have to try harder.
• We are told that meritocracy determines our
  personal success, so again, we must try harder.
  Also, our economic system emphasizes the myth
  that we live in a land of equal opportunity, so
  those who fail must not be taking advantage of
  these equal opportunities.
• Finally, we are an individualistic society, so if
  we fail we learn to blame ourselves rather than
  the system.

13
Summary

• The dominant ideologies of capitalism,
  meritocracy, and individualism function to point
  the blame not at the system itself but at the
  individual for her own failure to succeed.
• Most poor people remain loyal to capitalism,
  despite its failure to serve their interests,
  just as most peasants remained loyal to their
  King, despite his failures. Capitalism is a
  dominant ideology and it justifies inequality by
  suggesting that the poor are lazy or have failed
  to take advantage of opportunities. They have
  only themselves to blame.
• Dominant ideologies are very powerful in
  maintaining the stratification system.

14
Elite control of key societal resources

• The second reason why stratification systems tend
  to last a long time is that they are maintained
  by the power of elites.
• Elites have disproportionate influence over the
  laws, the media, the education system, the
  religious system, the jobs system, bank loans,
  and other key institutions.
• These institutions have policies that favor
  elites over others.
• Those who are the daughters and sons of the
  powerful can expect easier access to the top
  schools and jobs, as the 43rd Presidents
  personal history reveals. Thus the system
  perpetuates itself across generations.
• During the feudal times in Europe, the King
  simply sent the Sheriff to any offender who did
  not obey his wishes, so for the few who did not
  accept the dominant ideology of divine nobility
  there was plenty of armed force to assure the
  survivability of the stratification system.

15
Explanations for Stratification

• The structural functional paradigm argues that
  stratification systems are functional for
  society.
• The Davis-Moore Thesis argues that industrial
  societies are most productive under a system of
  meritocracy. Under this type of inequality, the
  stratification system rewards good performers
  (with high wages) and punishes poor performers
  (with low wages).
• Davis-Moore argue that some jobs need to pay
  more than others they are important jobs so
  their high pay will attract the best performers.
  These top performers will be more innovative and
  this is functional for society.
• Functionalists also argue that stratification
  promotes in-group solidarity. Members of similar
  social classes tend to identify with each other.

16
Explanations for Stratification

• Conflict theorists disagree with the Davis-Moore
  thesis promoted by functionalists. They argue
  that people do not need more money to do good
  work, because what makes people do good work is
  pride and character, not money.
• The Davis-Moore argument presumes people are
  selfish and motivated only by money, while
  conflict theorists argue that people are
  fundamentally good.
• They ask, who is to say what jobs are more
  functionally important than others? Everyone
  needs a garbage hauler, yet they are paid
  relatively low wages.
• They also ask, is a sports athletes salary
  really reflective of meritocracy? Is a star
  football player really worth 20 times the salary
  of the President? Do executives really deserve to
  make their million dollar salaries? Are they
  really the best at their jobs?
• Finally they ask, what society has actually
  practiced a true meritocracy? About half of all
  wealth is inherited rather than earned
  meritocratically in the U.S..

17
Explanations for Stratification

• Karl Marx argued that stratification is harmful
  to society, not functional. It promotes social
  conflicts by giving some people advantages over
  others, creating an unfair system of rewards.
• To Marx, the capitalist owners exploited the
  workers with low wages and terrible working
  conditions. This created the conflicts between
  the haves and the have-nots.
• Marx argued that capitalism and its inequality
  had to be replaced by a system of democratic
  socialism that assured a more harmonious and just
  distribution of wealth. Only with equality would
  society be more harmonious. All capitalist
  systems bring inequality and poverty.

18
Explanations for Stratification

• Functionalists criticize Marxists by arguing that
  a non-stratified society is not feasible.
• Some level of stratification is a fact of life in
  all societies.
• They also criticize Marx for being wrong about
  predicting a workers revolution.
• However, Marxists respond that the strikes and
  union movements of earlier times were a form of
  workers revolution, and these strikes ultimately
  reformed the harshest aspects of capitalist
  exploitation.

19
Summary of the Conflict Theory Argument

• 1. Stratification promotes oppression and
  exploitation the haves gain at the expense of
  the have-nots.
• 2. Stratification promotes conflicts between the
  different social classes, and these conflicts are
  harmful to society.
• 3. Meritocracy is not necessary. We do not need a
  financial rewards system for good behavior
  because good behavior is a matter of personal
  character more than anything else.
• 4. Equality assures fairness, and with fairness
  society would be more harmonious.

20
Max Webers Insights

• Karl Marx emphasized economic matters as the
  basis of a stratification system. Max Weber
  argued that there are other dimensions to social
  stratification
• 1. Social class the economic dimensions that
  Marx wrote about. Having wealth means having
  power.
• 2. Status some jobs may be low paid, but they
  carry high prestige and thus convey power. An
  example would be the job of being a priest.
• 3. Power This could be political or
  bureaucratic power. Politicians have a special
  form of institutional power, as does any
  mid-level manager in a bureaucracy. The
  technocrat may not make much money, but they do
  have bureaucratic power.
• In the former Soviet Union, bureaucratic
  officials were not paid much money, but they had
  tremendous power to influence society.

21
Social Mobility

• Social mobility refers to movement up or down the
  stratification system, and this movement is
  caused by two forces.
• 1. Exchange mobility. This is mobility due to the
  individuals own behaviors.
• An example would be when someone works very hard
  on the job and their boss notices it and rewards
  them with a promotion.
• 2. Structural mobility. This is mobility due to
  social forces beyond the individuals immediate
  control.
• An example would be if a factory started up in a
  small town, then plenty of new jobs would open up
  and it would offer lots of structural
  opportunities for people. Similarly if the
  factory closed shop, then it would lead to mass
  layoffs, regardless of how well the workers
  perform on the job as individuals.

22
Social Mobility

• Americans are socialized to believe that most
  mobility in the U.S. is exchange mobility but
  this is not true.
• The vast bulk of mobility in this society is due
  to structural forces.
• This also explains why Americans have enjoyed
  more than a century of upward mobility. As long
  as the American economy has grown to offer more
  and better paying jobs, America has been a land
  of opportunity.

23
Industrial Society and Mobility

• The industrial revolution initially led to the
  polarization of social classes between the
  working/lower classes and the middle/upper
  classes.
• These were the conditions that Karl Marx studied
  when he wrote about the evils of capitalism. This
  system was so rigid it was close to a caste
  system.
• However, a large middle class gradually emerged
  over time, many jobs were upwardly mobile, and a
  distinct class system emerged.
• In the 1920s, the top 1 of the population owned
  36 of the nations wealth.
• By the 1980s, the top 1 owned 23 of the
  nations wealth.
• Today wealth is quickly becoming concentrated
  again. Business Week notes that the top 1 now
  own 40 of the nations wealth, which is more
  than the bottom 90 of all households combined.

24
Industrial Society and Mobility

• 1. Historically, most American mobility has been
  structural and upward.
• 2. Most American mobility has been
  inter-generational (across generations) more than
  intra-generational (within a generation).
• 3. Since the 1980s, there has been more
  structural downward mobility due to the forces of
  globalization.
• Some have written of a middle class slide,
  referring to a shrinking middle class since the
  1970s. The only Americans who are doing well are
  the top 20 of Americans. It appears that this
  generation may be the first American generation
  that is worse off than their parents. On the
  other hand, the economy is hard to predict and
  the American economy has often surprised people
  with its robustness.

25
Economic Problems Today

• Indeed, Americans work longer for less pay today
  than they did in 1970, but it depends on specific
  categories.
• For example, the civil rights movement aided
  racial minorities and women in their efforts to
  achieve upwardly mobile jobs. Women have had more
  opportunities recently than they have ever had,
  thanks to civil rights gains.
• The primary culprit is globalization, but there
  are many factors that are stressing the U.S.
  economy. Globalization has led to increased
  foreign competition and American corporations
  downsizing American jobs in favor of hiring cheap
  labor in other countries. Unions have been on the
  decline, automation has displaced many workers,
  executives have become too greedy, tax policies
  favor the rich, the economy has become a service
  sector economy with lower paying jobs, and the
  government is reluctant to offer national health
  care, national day care, and other family
  supports.

26
New Opportunities for Some

• On the other hand, American values are changing
  for the better and levels of racism, sexism and
  homophobia are declining.
• This means that we are becoming a more
  egalitarian society, as well as a more inclusive
  society. This is good news for most minority
  groups because it means they are finally getting
  opportunities denied to them in the past.

27
End