Chapter 7

upper class (1%)

1% US population $250,000 + per year an elite and largely self-sustaining group who possess most of the country's wealth (ex: investors, heirs, executives, media/sports personalities)

upper-middle class (14%)

14 % US population $89,000 - $150,000 per year mostly highly-educated professionals and managers who have considerable financial stability

working poor

20% US population $10,500 - $22,000 educated manual and service workers who may work full-time

lower-middle class (30%) aka working class

30% US population $23,000 - $54,000 mostly "blue collar" or service industry workers who are less likely to have a college degree

middle class (30%)

30% US population $55,000 - $88,000 composed primarily of "white collar" workers with a broad range of education and incomes

underclass

5% US population $7,500 - the poorest group includes the homeless and chronically unemployed who may depend on public or private assistance

simplicity movement

a loosely knit movement that opposes consumerism and encourages people to work less, earn less, and spend less, in accordance with nonmaterialistic values

closed system

a social system with very little opportunity to move from one class to another

meritocracy

a system in which rewards are distributed based on merit

absolute deprivation

an objective measure of poverty, defined by the inability to meet minimal standards of food, shelter, clothing, or healthcare

just-world hypothesis

argues that people have a deep need to see the world as orderly, predictable, and fair, which creates a tendency to view victims of social injustice as deserving of their fates

structural mobility

changes in the social status of large numbers of people as a result of structural changes in society

culture of poverty

entrenched attitudes that can develop among poor communities and lead the poor to accept their fate rather than attempt to improve their lot

hypogamy

marrying "down" in the social class hierarchy

hypergamy

marrying "up" in the social class hierarchy

intergenerational mobility

movement between social classes that occurs from one generation to the next

digital divide

the unequal access to computer and internet technology both globally and within the US

Weberian (approach to social inequality)

wealth, power, and prestige are interrelated, but one can also be converted into another

feudal system

a system of social stratification based on a hereditary nobility who were responsible for and served by a lower stratum of forced laborers called serfs

social class

a system of stratification based on access to such resources as wealth, property, power, and prestige

social inequality

the unequal distribution of wealth, power, or prestige among members of a society

socioeconomic status (SES)

a measure of an individual's place within a social class system; often used interchangeably with "class"

everyday consciousness

awareness of one's own social status and that of others

intersectionality

a concept that identifies how different categories of inequality (ex: race, class, gender) intersect to shape the lives of individuals and groups

white collar

a description characterizing lower-level professional and management workers and some highly skilled laborers in technical jobs

blue collar

a description characterizing skilled and semi-skilled workers who perform manual labor or work in service or clerical jobs

caste system

a form of social stratification in which status is determined by one's family history and background and cannot be changed

wealth

a measure of net worth that includes income, property, and other assets

relative deprivation

a relative measure of poverty based on the standard of living in a particular society

status inconsistency

a situation in which an individual has differing levels of status in terms of the individual's wealth, power, prestige or other elements of socioeconomic status

open system

a social system with ample opportunities to move from one class to another

heterogamy

chasing romantic partners who are dissimilar to us in terms of class, race, education, religion, and other social group membership

homogamy

choosing romantic partners who are similar to us in terms of class, race, education, religion, and other social group membership

"Socioeconomic Status and Mate Selection"

class groups interact with one another; social relations are based on propinquity (proximity); "cinderella stories" are very rare, and more often involve women marrying up

Postmodernism (approach to inequality)

social class is passed down from one generation to the next through cultural capital

Conflict Theory (approach to social inequality)

social inequality creates intergroup conflict - poor and rich groups have different interests and my find themselves at odds as they attempt to secure and protect these interests

Structural Functionalism (approach to social inequality)

social inequality is a necessary part of society; different reward structures are necessary as an incentive for the best qualified people to occupy the most important positions; even poverty has functions that help maintain social order

Symbolic Interactionism (approach to social inequality)

social inequality is part of our presentation of self; we develop everyday class consciousness as a way to distinguish the status of others

social stratification

the division of society into groups arranged in a social hierarchy

residential segregation

the geographical separation of the poor from the rest of an area's population

slavery

the most extreme form of social stratification, based on the legal ownership of people

vertical social mobility

the movement between different class statuses, often called either upward mobility or downward mobility

intragenerational mobility

the movement between social classes that occurs during the course of an individual's lifetime

horizontal social mobility

the movement of individuals or groups within a particular social class, most often as a result of changing occupations

social mobility

the movement of individuals or groups within the hierarchical systems of social classes

disenfranchisement

the removal of the rights of citizenship through economic, political, or legal means

prestige

the social honor people are given because of their membership in well-regarded social groups

apartheid

the system of segregation of radical and ethnic groups that was legal in South Africa between 1949 and 1991

cultural capital

the tastes, habits, expectations, skills, knowledge, and other cultural assets that help us gain advantages in society

social reproduction

the tendency of social classes to remain relatively stable as class status is passed down from one generation to the next