Sociology Chapter 8 Social Stratification Mr. Loeffler

Rank in order of prestige 1 being the most prestigious Astronaut Priest Custodian Engineer Prison Guard Barber Radio DJ Nurse Actor Lawyer Police Officer Journalist Veterinarian Taxicab Driver Teacher Housewife

Stratification = Layers

Definition of Social Stratification Division of society (groups) based on wealth, power, and prestige Ranking of people or groups according to their unequal access to scarce resources (money) Social class: segment of society whose members hold similar amounts of resources and share values, norms, and an identifiable lifestyle

Karl Marx Bourgeoisie: class that owns the means of production (have the money, factories, etc. the employers) Proletariat: class that labors without owning the means of production (employees, workers)

Income vs. wealth Income: amount of money received by an individual or group over a specific time period (your paycheck) Wealth: total economic resources held by a person or group (stocks, savings account, house, car, investments) How unequally are resources distributed in the United States

Power v. Prestige Power: the ability to control the behavior of others, even against their will Jesse Jackson, Obama Prestige: recognition, respect, and admiration attached to social positions MLK jr., Oprah

Who has power? Who has prestige? At school At your house In our country

Sociological Theories of Stratification Conflict Theory—inequalities exist because people are willing to exploit (use) others False consciousness: adoption of the ideas of the dominant class by the less powerful class Symbolic Interactionism—socialized to accept the existing stratification structure (we are taught social class) Functionalist theory—most qualified people fill the most important positions (everyone has a function in society) P. 252 assessment

Stratification Cartoons Use 3 “panes” to construct a cartoon that illustrates each sociological theories view on social stratification. It can include your opinion If you need to use more than one “pane” per theory to illustrate your point, you may Does NOT have to be in color (but you can if you want)

Stratification Cartoon Conflict Theory Symbolic Interactionism Functionalilsm DEFINE according to chap 8 – key words Draw a picture that describes this theory as it pertains to social class

Color each social class a different color (6) Pie Chart On the back of your stratification cartoon, Create a pie chart depicting social classes in American (according to p.254 In your book) Color each social class a different color (6) Social class: segment of society whose members hold similar amounts of resources and share values, norms, and an identifiable lifestyle You will turn this in on Monday at end of class

Social Class Pie Chart

Social Classes in America Class consciousness—identification with the goals and interests of a social class Upper Class (1%) Investors, heirs, CEO Upper Middle Class (14%) Middle Class (30%) Working Class (30%) Roofers, truck drivers, clerical workers Below average income, lack insurance/retirement benefits, unstable jobs Working Poor (13%) Low skilled jobs at lowest pay Poverty for a family of 4 in 2000 $17,603 Underclass (12%) Unemployed, public assistance, lack of education or skills, physical or mental disabilities

Pie chart from page 254

Poverty in America Absolute poverty: the absence of enough money to secure life’s necessities Absolutely nothing Relative poverty: measure of poverty based on the economic disparity between those at the bottom of society and the rest of society Compared to others…

Identifying the poor Minorities are disproportionately represented Poverty rate for whites 7.5% Poverty rate for African Americans and Hispanics is 23%

Feminization of Poverty Trend in the United States where women and children are making up an increasing proportion of the poor Wage gap Can’t keep regular work if they are the only ones caring for children Lack of child-care and its expensive

http://www. indexmundi http://www.indexmundi.com/facts/united-states/quick-facts/nebraska/percent-of-people-of-all-ages-in-poverty#map http://www.nccp.org/profiles/NE_profile_7.html

Social Mobility Social mobility is the movement of people between social classes Vertical mobility is moving upward or downward in occupational status or social class Example: I invented something awesome and went from my teacher’s salary to a millionaire over night! Horizontal mobility is a change in occupation within the same social class Example: I decided I no longer wanted to be a teacher and became a fireman (fireWOMAN)