1. SOCIAL INEQUALITY

2. What do sociologists mean by the term social inequality?
Social class, gender, ethnicity and age are all sources of inequality in the UK. In other words, resources and opportunities are distributed unequally between individuals and groups based on their class, gender, ethnicity and age.

3. How is society stratified by social class?
Stratification refers to the way society is structured. Society is made up of a set of layers that are unequally ranked one above the other. Each layer is smaller but more powerful than the one below it. The higher the group on the pyramid the more money, status and power they have.
Upper class
Middle class
Working class
Underclass

4. How is society stratified by gender?
Feminists highlight that although there is now far less stratification by gender, gender inequality does still exist for example:
Women have to perform the triple shift in the home
There is still sex discrimination in the work place
Women are stereotyped negatively in the media far more than men

5. How is society stratified by age?
Child Labour is now illegal in Britain, it was the norm among working- class families in the 19th Century and exists in some parts of the world today.
The status of older people can also vary between cultures. In some cultures, getting old is seen as something to be avoided. In other cultures, older people are seen as having a high status in society as their experience is valued and appreciated.
The term ageism describes a situation where someone is treated differently because of their age. In Britain, there are now regulations against age discrimination in employment and training.

6. How is society stratified by ethnicity?
Over the last 40 years, reforms and policies have addressed inequality based on ethnicity in areas such as education, employment and criminal justice
Employers have equal opportunity policies to support equality and diversity.
As a result of such changes, sociologists believe that ethnic inequality is less significant now, although others argue that there has been little change in the fields of employment, education and criminal justice.
Unemployment rates in England and Wales are higher among people of Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Black Caribbean heritage than among White British or White Irish people.
Research has also found that men and women of Pakistani and Bangladeshi heritage have much worse chances of getting professional and managerial jobs than their white peers of the same age and educational level.

7. How does stratification affect people’s life chances?
Life chances are the chances that a person has of achieving something good in society. Some people get better life chances than others. The middle and upper class get far better life chances than the working class. For example, a middle class child has a better chance at succeeding in education because their parents have material capital so can buy them educational resources and can pay for tutors.

8. Explain Karl Marx’s views on stratification?
Marx said there are two classes in society
The bourgeoisie
The proletariat
If you own factories, businesses etc then you are bourgeoisie. If you work for the bourgeoisie then you are proletariat.
The gap between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat only ever gets bigger and bigger as the proletariat need wages to survive so the bourgeoisie can make them work harder and harder which increases their profits.

9. Explain Max Weber’s views on social class?
Weber claims that having money is not as important as what Marx says it is. For example:
Members of the aristocracy may have no money/savings but there title gives them status in society
Nurses may lack wealth but have a high status for the job they do
Lottery winners may be very wealthy but don’t have the status to be taken seriously

10. How do functionalists explain social class?
According to functionalists a system of inequality is necessary to make people work hard.
People will only work hard if they know that there are jobs available that pay good salaries. These jobs need to be fulfilled for society to run smoothly e.g. without doctors society would fall apart
Not everyone is prepared to work hard to get a good job like becoming a doctor but this isn’t a problem as society also needs people to do the lesser jobs in society e.g. being a road sweeper.
The system is fair and based on meritocracy.

11. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the Registrar Generals’ scale?
Social class
Explanation I
Professional jobs e.g. solicitors II
Managerial jobs e.g. teachers
III non manual
Skilled non manual jobs e.g. secretary
III manual
Skilled manual jobs e.g. bus driver IV
Partly skilled jobs e.g. bar tender V
Unskilled jobs e.g. cleaners
Advantages
Disadvantages
Gives a clear breakdown so people can see what social class they belong to.
Doesn’t consider that some jobs lower in the scale such as secretaries may now earn more than teachers

12. What are the strengths and weaknesses of the NS-SEC scale?
Advantages
Disadvantages
Includes a category for those who are unemployed
Doesn’t consider that some jobs lower in the scale such as plumbers may now pay more than jobs higher in the scale such as teachers

13. What is gender?
Gender describes the different social practices, expectations and ideas that are associated with masculinity and femininity.

14. What inequalities are based on gender?
Feminists highlight that although there is now far less stratification by gender, gender inequality does still exist for example:
Women have to perform the triple shift in the home
There is still sex discrimination in the work place. Women end up hitting the glass ceiling.
Women are stereotyped negatively in the media far more than men

15. What is ethnicity?
An ethnic group is a social group whose members share an identity based on their cultural traditions, religion or language. The term “ethnic minority” describes a group of people who are from a different ethnic group from the general population of a country e.g. those of Indian heritage are an ethnic minority in England.

16. What inequalities are based on ethnicity?
Ethnic minority groups in Britain are likely to suffer from:
Racism in the workplace
Racism in the education system
Racism in the criminal justice system

17. What is life course?
The chances of experiencing poverty are linked to age – children and pensioners are more at risk of poverty than other age groups. This is expressed in the idea of the life cycle of poverty.
At different courses throughout your life you are particularly likely to experience poverty e.g. when you are child and when you are an old age pensioner

18. What inequalities do people face in youth and in old age?
Parents control children, for example:
Young people aren’t given freedom in where they go
Young people aren’t given freedom in how they spend their time
Young people are restricted in the activities they can take part in e.g. age restrictions stop them watching certain films at the cinema
Older people are seen as incapable and therefore have restrictions put on them, for example:
Once people get to a certain age it is suggested that they don’t drive anymore
Old people are seen as incapable of working

19. Is wealth distributed fairly through the UK population?
NO! IN THE UK: THE MOST WEALTHY 1% OF PEOPLE OWN 33% OF ALL THE MONEY IN SOCIETY THE POOREST 50% OWN 2% OF ALL THE MONEY IN SOCIETY

20. What is social mobility?
Social mobility is when you are able to move from one social class to another. Social mobility can be upwards e.g. going from working class to middle class or downwards e.g. going from middle class to working class

21. What is poverty?
Absolute poverty means not having the basic necessities to live e.g.
Relative poverty is when someone is poor compared to others in society. They don’t have the things needed to take part in ordinary activities e.g. a child not having football boots so he can’t join his local team

22. How do we measure poverty?
The main ways of measuring poverty are: Income: if you earn below 60% of the average national wage then you are in poverty The items/activities you have: if you don’t have items such as a television or access to the internet then you are seen as being in poverty

23. Which social groups are most likely to experience poverty?
Lone parent households
Households with no paid workers
Families with a child under 11
Adults living in one-person households, including single pensioners
Children and young people
Those who left school aged 16 or under
Women

24. What is the culture of poverty?
People who live in poor areas develop a way of life and a set of values that cause them to stay in poverty. For example, they live for the moment and see no point in planning ahead. These values prevent them from taking up educational opportunities or saving for the future
This is linked to the poverty trap

25. What is the cycle of poverty?
Children born into poor families
The children have a deprived childhood . Lacking material items due to financial problems
As a result of the financial deprivation the children are less likely to get good qualifications.
As young adults their futures are limited, they tend to take low paid, unskilled jobs or experience unemployment.
As adults they live in poverty
Many will become parents despite the fact that they face poverty

26. What is welfare dependency?
The idea that some groups remain in poverty because the welfare state encourages them to because it is so generous.

27. What is the Marxist explanation of poverty?
Poverty exists because the bourgeoisie exploit the proletariat. The proletariat need to work to survive. The proletariat are in competition with each other to get jobs so therefore have to agree to work for low wages knowing that they if they ask for too much money they will just be replaced. The bourgeoisie pay the proletariat just enough to survive but never enough to escape poverty.

28. How does unemployment and the inadequacies of the welfare state explain poverty?
Some sociologists argue that benefits are too low. It is argued that the solution to ending poverty is to provide people in poverty with more money by increasing the value of pensions and welfare benefits.

29. How much social mobility is there in Britain?
Points to show there is social mobility
Points to show there is not social mobility
The middle and upper class benefit from NEPOTISM. This is when those with power favour relatives or friends, especially by giving them jobs. It’s not what you know, its who you know- THE OLD BOYS NETWORK
“Aim higher” refers to the initiatives aimed at widening participation in UK universities, particularly among students from poor backgrounds, minority ethnic groups and disabled persons”

30. Are other divisions in society more important the social class?
It is up to you decide if any of these divisions are more important than social class:
AGE
GENDER
ETHNICITY

31. Has Britain got too high a level of welfare dependency?
In the 1980s and ‘90s, New Right approaches identified the emergence in Britain of an underclass. The underclass are a group of people who are willing to live off benefits. Although this may cause them to be in relative poverty they do not mind as they have enough to get by without having to work. Some sociologists believe that the welfare state is getting more and more generous and rewards negative behavior e.g. having unprotected sex with someone you don’t know and falling pregnant leads to the reward of a free home and child benefits.

32. Can you give 3 recent examples from the news that relate to anything above?
You have to watch/read the news to be able to do this