9
chapter
SOCIAL STRATIFICATION
CHAPTER OUTLINE
Sec 1: Systems of Stratification
Sec 2: The American Class System
Sec 3: Poverty
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Section 1
█ Systems of Stratification
– Slavery
• Slavery is the most extreme form of legalized social
inequality. Enslaved individuals are owned by other
people.
– Castes (Indian law until 1950)
• Castes are hereditary systems of rank, usually
religiously dictated, that tend to be immobile.
– Estates (Nobility, Clergy, Commoners)
• The estate system, or feudalism, required that peasants
work land leased to them by nobles in exchange for
military protection.
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Section 1
Rewards of Stratification
█Wealth = assets + income
█Power = control with or w/o consent
█Prestige = respect, honor, etc from others
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Section 1
█ Table 9.2: Prestige Rankings of Occupations
Occupation
Score
Physician
86
Lawyer
75
Dentist
74
College professor
74
Architect
73
Clergy
69
Pharmacist
68
Registered nurse
66
High school teacher
66
Accountant
65
Airline pilot
60
Police officer and detective
60
Prekindergarten teacher
55
Librarian
54
Firefighter
53
Social worker
52
Electrician
51
Funeral director
49
Mail carrier
47
Occupation
Secretary
Insurance agent
Bank teller
Nurse’s aide
Farmer
Correctional officer
Receptionist
Barber
Child care worker
Hotel clerk
Bus driver
Truck driver
Sales worker (shoes)
Garbage collector
Waiter and waitress
Bartender
Farm worker
Janitor
Newspaper vendor
Score
46
45
43
42
40
40
39
36
35
32
32
30
28
28
28
25
23
22
19
Source: J. Davis et al. 2003.
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Section 1
█Wealth
– Income and wealth in the United States are
“distributed” / earned unevenly.
– Usually described and graphed in quintiles
• Top 1/5 (20%)
• Bottom 1/5 (20%)
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Section 1
█ Figure 9.3: Comparison of Distribution of Income and Wealth in the United
States
Source: Income data (household) are from Bureau of the Census (DeNavas-Walt and Cleveland 2002:19). Data on wealth are from Wolff 1999.
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Section 1
█ Figure 9.1: Household Income in the United States, 2001
Source: DeNavas-Walt nad Cleveland 2002:15
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Section 1
Flaws/Myths in Wealth & Income reporting
1. “Household income has stagnated”
a. 1969-1996 - rose 6% BUT individual income
rose 51%! Less people living in homes.
b. 39 mill. live in Bottom 20% but 64 mill. Live
in Top 20% (+25!)
c. 6 times more full-time, year round workers in
top 20% than bottom 20%
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2. “Rich are getting richer and the poor are
getting poorer”
a. Overestimate income for the “rich”
b. Underestimate income for the “poor”
- average person in lowest fifth spends
more than double their “income.”
c. Middle-class salaries have shifted up
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Section 1
3. “Standard of living” rarely taken into
account
Bottom 20% now vs Everyone in 1971
75% have A/C
1/3 had A/C
97% have color TV
less than 50%
73% have microwave
less than 1%
98% have DVD/VCR
0% had them
“haves & have nots” or “haves & have lots”
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Section 1
█ Is Stratification Universal (all societies)?
– Functionalist View
• Yes. A differential system of rewards and
punishments is necessary for the efficient
operation of society.
– Conflict View
• Yes. Competition for scarce resources results in
political, economic, and social inequality.
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Section 1
Functionalism
*Basic assumption:
Social inequality is universal,
therefore inequality must help society
survive
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Aspects of Functionalism*
█Society must make certain that all roles
are filled.
█Some roles are more important than
others.
█Some roles must be filled by more
qualified people.
█To motivate more qualified people,
society must offer greater rewards.
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Flaws of functionalism*
█Society does not provide equal access to
education and jobs.
█Rewards do not always reflect the “social
values” of roles.
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Section 1
█Perspectives on Stratification
– Karl Marx on Class Differences
• Marx viewed class struggle as the result of the
conflict between owners (Bourgeoisie) and
workers (Proletariat).
• Marx believed that exploitation of the working
class will lead to the destruction of capitalist
society.
• Marx was wrong! Rise of middle class,
collective bargaining, laws, etc
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Conflict Theory
Basic assumption*:
Social inequality results from the
constant struggle for scare
resources.
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Aspects of Conflict Theory*
█From the struggle, winners (elite class)
and losers (lower class) emerge.
█By exploiting the lower class, the elite are
able to maintain their dominance in
society.
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Flaws in Conflict Theory*
█ Unequal rewards are based in part by
differences in talents and skills.
█ Desire to improve and motivation to
achieve play a role in mobility among the
classes.
█ Positive role of family / environment
█ The “Zero-Sum” fallacy.
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Section 2
█ Systems of Stratification
– Social Classes
• The United States class system is based on:
– an upper class
– an upper-middle class
– a lower-middle class
– a working class
– a working poor
– an “underclass”
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Section 2
█Upper Class
– Old Money
-Top schools
-Philanthropy
– New Money
- CEO’s
- Entrepreneurs
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Section 2
█Upper Middle
– College grads plus
– Executives / professionals
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Section 2
█Lower Middle
– HS – some college
– Managers, skilled craftworkers,
supervisors
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Section 2
█ Working Class
– High School
– Factory, clerical, low level sales
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Section 2
█ Working Poor
– Some high school
– Laborers, service workers- gardeners,
cleaners, etc
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Section 2
█ “Underclass”
– Some high school, if that
– Little/no skills
– Unemployed
– Welfare
– Generational
– “Issues”
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Section 2
█ Education & pay relationship
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Section 2
█Social mobility: Movement of
individuals or groups from one position
of a society’s stratification system to
another.
█Open vs Closed Systems
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Section 2
█Types of Social Mobility
– Horizontal Mobility: Horizontal mobility is
movement within the same range of
prestige/pay. (teacher → small bus. owner)
– Vertical Mobility: Vertical mobility is
movement from one position to another of a
different rank, and this movement can be
upward or downward. (landscaper→teacher)
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Section 2
█Types of Social Mobility
– Intergenerational Mobility:
• Intergenerational mobility refers to changes in
the social position of children relative to their
parents.
– Intragenerational Mobility:
• Intragenerational mobility refers to changes in
social position within a person’s adult life.
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Section 2
█Social Mobility in the United States
– The Impact of Education
• The impact of formal schooling is a significant
means of intergenerational mobility.
• Three-fourths (75%!) of the college-educated
achieved some upward mobility compared with
12% of those receiving no schooling.
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Section 2
█Social Mobility in the United States
– The Impact of Gender
• Women are more likely to have poorer salaries
than men, a greater showing in lower-level jobs,
limited prospects for advancement, and lack of
financing for self-employment ventures.
• Women make 76% of what a man makes.
– Discrimination? Sexism?
• Why? The single biggest reason is…
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Section 2
█ Childbirth
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The opposite impact of marriage
and kids.
█Wife: stay home more + less hours at
work = lower average salaries!
█Husband: work more hours = higher
pay!
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Section 2
█Social Mobility in the United States
– The Impact of Race/Ethnicity
• The class system is viewed by sociologists as
more rigid for African Americans than for
members of other racial / ethnic groups
• However…Why have certain ethnic groups
outperformed others (academic/income)
consistently in world history even in spite of
discrimination?
– Asians/Chinese, Jews, etc.
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Section 2
But…the average income for AfricanAmericans (full-time) is $32,000
Hispanics - $27,000
Whites - $41,000
That’s proof of discrimination!!
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Section 2
Not so fast.
Avg. income for Asians is $43,000 (?)
Also, look at “average ages”
Whites:
37.7 years old
Asians:
32.7 years old
Blacks:
30.2 years old
Hispanics:
25.8 years old
What impact might age have?
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Impact of age on pay
Whites:
37.7 yrs ($41,000)
Asians:
32.7 yrs ($43,000)
Blacks:
30.2 yrs ($32,000)
Hispanics: 25.8 yrs ($27,000)
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Section 2: Mobility stats
How much “mobility” is there?
University of Michigan study:
a. 75% of income earners in the bottom 20% in
1975 were in the top 40% at some point by
1991.
b. 29% of earners in the bottom 20% rose to the top
20% by 1991.
c. Only 5% of those in the bottom 20% in 1975 were
still there in 1991.
What factors effect mobility the most?
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Section 2
What factors effect mobility the most?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Education
Age
Marriage (if & when)
Children
Life choices
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Section 3
█Poverty
– Who are the poor in the United States?
• children
• women
• the elderly
– A majority of the poor live in rural areas.
– How do we define “poor?”
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Section 3 : Poverty
Persons
in Family or
Household
48 Contiguous
States and D.C.
Alaska
Hawaii
1
$10,400
$13,000
$11,960
2
$14,000
$17,500
$16,100
3
$17,600
$22,000
$20,240
4
$21,200
$26,500
$24,380
5
$24,800
$31,000
$28,520
6
$28,400
$35,500
$32,660
7
$32,000
$40,000
$36,800
8
$35,600
$44,500
$40,940
For each additional
add:
$3,600
$4,500
$4,140
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Section 3
█ Poverty in Selected Industrial Countries
Source: Smeeding et al. 2001:51.
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Section 3
█ Percent of Families Living Below the Poverty Level, by Family Structure
and Race/Ethnicity: 2000
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Section 3: Poverty numbers flaw
Look who sometimes shows up as “poor”
1. Spouses of very wealthy partners.
2. Wealthy investors / entrepreneurs who have
an off year or lose money.
3. June graduates earning 1/2 a salary.
4. Start up doctors, dentists, etc.
5. Young adults who are “finding themselves”
after graduation.
6. Retirees with no mortgage, little/no income
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Section 3
█ Duration of Poverty Spells: 1996-1999
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Source: United States Census Bureau, “Poverty in the United States: 2002, “Current Population Reports p.60-222, by
© 2005
The2003,
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Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
Bernadette D. Proctor and Joseph Dalaker, issued
Sept.
http://www.census.gov/prod/2003pubs/p60-222.pdf
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Section 3
█Rethinking Welfare
– The View of Most Sociologists
• Many sociologists view the debate over welfare
from a conflict perspective.
• Tax breaks and other “corporate welfare”
granted by the government for corporations
should also be examined closely.
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Section 3
█Rethinking Welfare
– Policy Initiatives
• “Workfare” and other welfare reforms.
• Medical coverage and child care remain issues
for the working poor.
• Government policies at the national level are
decreasing.*
– Europe vs United States
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Section 3
█ Rethinking welfare
– The New Right – government programs
since the Depression have created a
dependent class of people and encouraged
an “entitlement” attitude in America.
– What is the role of government?
(Democrats vs Republicans)
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