This document discusses social stratification and social classes. It defines social stratification as the ranking of people based on unequal access to resources like wealth, income, power and prestige. There are three main dimensions of stratification - economic, prestige, and power. Socially, people are divided into social classes based on similar resources and lifestyles. The document outlines several social classes in America from the upper class to the working poor and underclass. It also discusses poverty in America, social mobility between classes, and explanations for the origins and persistence of social stratification from different sociological perspectives.

1. Social Stratification

2. Dimensions of Stratification
• Social Stratification – ranking of people or groups
according to their unequal access to scarce resources
– Most important resources – wealth, income, power, and
prestige
– Weber emphasized the prestige and power aspects of
stratification
• Social class – a segment of a population whose
members hold similar amounts of scarce resources and
share values, norms, and an identifiable lifestyle
– Marx explained the importance of the economic
foundations of social classes

3. The Economic Dimension
• Marx originally identified multiple social classes –
laborers, servants, factory workers, craftspeople,
proprietors of small business, and moneyed capitalists
• However he believed it would eventually end up being
on 2 classes
• Bourgeoisie – class that owns the means of production
• Proletariat – class that labors w/o owning the means of
production
– He also believed that controlling the economy allowed you
to control the legal, educational, and government systems
• Income – amount of money received by an individual
or group over a specific time period
• Wealth – total economic resources held by a person or
group

4. • In 2000 the poverty level was set at $17,761
for a family of four
– In 1999 the richest 20 % of American families
received over 49% of the nation’s income
– The poorest 20% controlled under 4%
– The richest 20% of the population holds 84% of
the wealth, and top 1% alone has 39% of the total
wealth of the U.S.
The Economic Dimension

5. The Economic Dimension
• Power is based on:
- Money
- Knowledge
- Fame
- social positions
• A lack of wealth can be overcome with loyal
people or skillful resource management
– Ex. Hitler

6. The Prestige Dimension
• Prestige – recognition,
respect, and admiration
attached to social
positions
– Ex. A Mafia don
– Must be voluntarily given
– The more socially valuable
the position the more
prestige it has

7. Explanations of Stratification
• Functionalist Theory of Stratification
– Stratification assures that the most qualified people fill the
most important positions
– Recognizes that inequality exists b/c certain jobs are more
important than others
• Conflict theory of Stratification
– Inequality exists because some people are willing to
exploit others
– Stratification is based of force
– Marx’s false consciousness – working-class acceptance of
capitalist ideas and values
– Stratification occurs through the struggle for scarce
resources

8. Explanations of Stratification
• Symbolic Interactionism and Stratification
– People are socialized to accept the existing
stratification structure
• Ex. – American children are taught that social class is
the result of talent and effort
– People’s self-concepts help preserve the status
quo
– The is a link b/w social class and self-esteem

9. Social Classes in America
• Class Consciousness – identification with the
goals and interests of a social class
• The Upper Class
– Only top 1% of the population
– “aristocracy” – the old-money families of high society
• Ford, du Pont, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt
• Membership based on blood
– Lower-upper class more often is based on
achievement and earned income
• Could actually have more money that “aristocracy”, but is
often not accepted into the most exclusive social circles

10. Social Classes in America
• The Middle Classes
– About 40 to 50 % of Americans
– Upper Middle Class – about 14% of population
• Earn enough to live well and save money
• Typically college educated
– Middle-middle class – 30% of population
• Income is at about the national average ($21,181 in
1999)

11. Social Classes in America
• The Working Class – lower middle class
• 1/3 of population
• Below average income and unstable employment
• Generally lack hospital insurance and retirement benefits
– Working Poor – 13% of population
• Low-skill jobs with lowest pay
• Do not earn enough to rise above the Poverty line
• Tend not to participate in the political process
– The Underclass – 12% of population
• Usually unemployed
• Work part time or are on public assistance

12. Poverty in America
• Absolute poverty – the absence of enough money
to secure life’s necessities
• Relative poverty – a measure of poverty based on
the economic disparity b/w those at the bottom
of a society and the rest of society
– The definition of poverty in America is not the same
as that of India
• In the U.S. the government sets the poverty line
and anyone below is considered poor
– In the 2000 Census 11.8% of Americans, 32.2 million,
considered poor

13. Poverty in America
• Identifying the poor
– About 46% of the poor in America are white, poverty rate is about
7.7%
– African Americans and Latinos poverty rate is about 23%
• Combined they make up about ¼ of total population, but nearly ½ of poor
– Over ½ of poor households are female headed
• Feminization of poverty – a trend in U.S. society in which women and children
make up an increasing proportion of the poor
– About 9% of people 65 or older live in poverty
– 12% of America’s poor are disabled (blind, deaf, ect…)
• Responses to the Problem of Poverty
– 1964 LBJ marshaled the forces of federal government to begin a war
on poverty
• Philosophy was to help poor people help themselves
– Welfare Reform

14. Social Mobility
• Social Mobility – the movement of people b/w social
classes
• Horizontal mobility- changing form one occupation to
another at the same social class level
– Ex. When and army officer become a teacher, or a waiter
becomes a taxi driver
• Vertical mobility – person’s occupational status or
social class moves upwards or downward
– Intergenerational mobility – when the change takes place
over a generation
• A plumber’s daughter becoming a physician, or a lawyer’s son
becoming a carpenter

15. Social Mobility
• Caste and Open-Class Systems
– Caste system – there is no social mobility b/c social status is inherited and
cannot be changed
Statuses and occupation are ascribed
• Apartheid – was a caste system based on race
• India
- Brahmin
- Kshatriyas
- Vaisyas
- Sudra
- Untouchables
– Tradition keeps the caste system intact
• Open-class system – a system in which social class is based on merit and
individual effort, movement b/w classes is allowed
• Ex. - The U.S. for the most part

16. Social Mobility
• Upward and Downward Mobility
– In the U.S. great leaps in Upward Mobility are rare
• Bill Gates, Michael Dell, Steve Jobs, Rockefeller, Henry
Ford
– Compared to their parents, more U.S. workers are
experiencing downward mobility
– Downward mobility can have severe emotional
and psychological consequences