1. Chapter 8 Social Class: The Structure of Inequality

2. 2 Overview Social Stratification  Components of Social Class Theories of Social Class  Video Presentation: “People Like Us” SES and Life Chances Social Mobility  “The American Dream” Poverty and the Poor

3. 3 SOCIAL STRATIFICATION Macro-level analysis Society is grouped into strata  Hierarchy, levels, layers A system for ranking and dividing large groups of people  Every society stratifies members  Almost every aspect of life is linked to position in social hierarchy  Persistent over generations Results in social inequality  Unequal division and sharing of social resources/rewards Systems of stratification  Slavery, caste, social class Stratification in the U.S.  Social class; race and ethnicity; sex and gender

4. 4 SOCIAL CLASS Defining Social Class  Based on access to social resources/rewards  A large group who rank closely to one another in: wealth, power, prestige  Socioeconomic Status (SES) A measure of one’s place within class system

5. Components of Social Class: WEALTH Wealth consists of property and income  Wealth and income are not the same  Some have wealth but little income “Old” and “New” Money Unequal distribution of wealth in the U.S.  Top 1% owns 35%  Top 20% owns 50%  Bottom 80% owns 15%

6. 6 Components of Social Class: POWER  The ability to carry out one’s will despite resistance  The “Power Elite” C. Wright Mills Those who make the big decisions in U.S. society  Power is concentrated in the hands of the few PRESTIGE  Social honor Membership in well- regarded group  Occupational prestige How a person is perceived by others Can affect wealth and power

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8. Components of Social Class: STATUS Social ranking  Similar in wealth, power, prestige: Status consistency  A mix of high and low rankings: Status inconsistency

10. 10 Theories of Social Class: Postmodernism Social Reproduction  Pierre Bourdieu Classes remain relatively stable  Status passed down through generations Each generation acquires cultural capital  Tastes, habits, expectations, skills, etc.  Can help or hinder us from gaining advantages

11. 11 Theories of Social Class: Symbolic Interactionism Class Consciousness Erving Goffman How we use status “cues” to categorize ourselves and others  Speech, gestures, clothing, possessions, friends, activities, etc.

12. 12 Video Presentation

13. 13 Socioeconomic Status and Life Chances  Inequality shapes life course Privileges, hardships, differences  Family Homogamy, age of marriage, child rearing  Education Access, attitudes and expectations; attainment and status  Work White- vs. blue-collar occupations, income gap, un- and under- employment  Criminal Justice Who gets caught, prosecuted and sentenced; victimhood  Health Feeling good, health practices, life expectancy

14. 14 SOCIAL MOBILITY Movement of individuals or groups within class hierarchy  U.S. has “open” system Change is possible What are your chances?  Vertical (upward and downward)  Horizontal Types:  Intergenerational mobility Movement from one generation to the next  Intragenerational mobility Movement during one’s own lifetime  Structural mobility Movement of large groups of people

15. 15 The American Dream Ideology  A belief system that legitimizes stratification Everyone has the same chance Success or failure depends on individual  The U.S. meritocracy Rewards are based on merit  Upward mobility may be limited Factors such as nationality, race and gender

16. The “American Dream” The belief that: 1.Everyone can participate equally and can always start over 2. It is reasonable to anticipate success 3. Success is a result of individual characteristics and actions under one’s control 4. Success is associated with virtue and merit

17. IN-CLASS EXERCISE: THE AMERICAN DREAM Interview a classmate: 17

18. 18 The American Dream Questioning the American Dream  The “good life” and consumption Americans are less secure and satisfied –More in debt Less free time and more rushed  The Simplicity Movement Alternative, non-materialist values Encourages downsizing

19. 19 POVERTY AND THE POOR Definitions:  Relative deprivation Inability to maintain customary standard of living  Absolute deprivation Inability to meet minimal standards Poverty in U.S.—2009  43.6 million people  or 1 in 7 citizens  or 14.3% of the population

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22. 22 Who are the Poor? People living below the “poverty line”  Based on government household budget figures The poor are a very diverse group  Clustered by: Race and Ethnicity Age Gender Educational Level Geographic Region Country of Origin

24. Social Welfare Programs The “New Deal” and social safety nets  FDR 1933-1937 Social insurance programs: Social Security, disability, minimum wage The “Great Society” and the war on poverty  LBJ 1963-1969 Public assistance programs: Medicare and Medicaid, food stamps, Head Start Welfare Reform  Clinton 1996-2000 “Welfare to work”, limit of 5 years The “New New Deal”  Obama 2009-

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26. 26 The Working Poor Many adults below the poverty line do work for a living  Often low-paying (minimum wage = $7.25/hr.), seasonal or part-time jobs

27. 27 Poverty in the U.S. “The Culture of Poverty”  Focus on attitudes among poor Resignation and fatalism –Rather than trying to improve circumstances Poverty is self-perpetuating  Critics call this “blaming the victim” Must see structural conditions that lead to poverty The “Just-World Hypothesis”  The deep need to see the world as orderly, predictable and fair Tendency to view victims of injustice as deserving of their fate Invisibility of Poverty  Large part of U.S. population remains hidden Few images of poverty in America Residential Segregation  Separation or isolation of poor from rest of the population Often occurs along racial lines Political Disenfranchisement  Removal of rights through economic or political means Poor participate in politics less Lack power and visibility of their issues

28. 28 Global Poverty Global Rich List (globalrichlist.com)  The 225 richest people in the world have a combined wealth of $1,000,000,000,000 (trillion)  Equal to the combined income of the world’s 2.5 billion poorest people Wonder what it would be like to have that kind of money?  Where would you be on a list of the richest people in the world? If you have an annual income of $50,000  You are in the top 0.98% richest people in the world  You are the 59,029,289 richest person in the world How do you feel about being so rich?  The lives of many of the poorest in the world could be improved dramatically if you donated just one hour's salary (approx $26.70) The One Campaign (one.org)  Campaign to make poverty history  Increase federal budget aid to world poverty one percent

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