7. Social Mobility in the United States Flashcards
social stratification
társadalmi rétegződés
(upper, middle, lower classes) society’s categorization of people into socioeconomic strata, based upon their occupation and income, wealth, social status or derived power (social or political). Social stratification refers to a system by which a society ranks categories of people in a hierarchy. In the United States, it is perfectly clear that some groups have greater status, power, and wealth than other groups.
What is the IRS?
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the federal agency responsible for collecting taxes and administering the tax laws in the United States. It operates under the Department of the Treasury and is tasked with ensuring that taxpayers comply with the tax code, providing assistance to taxpayers, and overseeing various benefits programs.
The IRS was established in 1862 during the Civil War to collect income taxes to fund the war effort. Over the years, it has undergone numerous changes and reforms. Today, the IRS’s mission is to provide top-quality service to taxpayers, helping them understand and meet their tax responsibilities while enforcing the law with integrity and fairness.
Social Mobility
Social mobility refers to the ability of individuals, families, or groups to move within or between social strata in society. This process can signify shifts in social class, economic status, or general position within the social hierarchy. This “movement” is a complex interplay of individual actions and systemic structures that either promote or inhibit upward (or downward) shifts in class.
Types of Mobility
- upward mobility
- downward mobility
- intragenerational mobility
- intergenerational mobility
Upward Mobility:
Moving to a higher social class, typically through increased wealth, education, or occupation.
Example: Think of someone who grows up in a working-class family, snags a scholarship, and becomes a high-paid lawyer. From rags to rich(ish), basically.
Data: Pew Research shows that only 9% of kids born in the lowest income quintile make it to the top quintile as adults. So, yeah, upward mobility is kinda rare when inequality’s all around.
Key Factor: Education is the game-changer. Studies show that 45% of people with a bachelor’s degree experience upward mobility, compared to just 18% of those with only a high school diploma. Sorry, no shortcuts.
Downward Mobility
Falling to a lower social class due to job loss, economic downturns, or health issues.
Example: Losing a cushy job due to layoffs or facing illness that stops you from working. Watch your social status drop faster than a stock market crash.
Data: The 2008 financial crisis saw unemployment skyrocket to 10%, pushing many into downward mobility. And let’s be real, recovery for most of them? Slow and painful.
Intragenerational Mobility
Social mobility occurring within a person’s lifetime, e.g., someone who grew up poor and becomes wealthy (yes, like a real-life version of a rags-to-riches narrative).
Example: From minimum-wage jobs to CEO status after years of grind and grit. Some people really turn that hustle into gold.
Data: Brookings found that 40% of kids born into poverty stay there, while 30% experience upward mobility within their own lifetime. Not impossible, but definitely not guaranteed.
Case Study: Howard Schultz, former CEO of Starbucks, went from public housing to global business mogul. Proof that intragenerational mobility isn’t just for the movies.
Intergenerational Mobility
Definition: Intergenerational mobility is how much a child’s social or economic status changes compared to their parents. It shows if kids are doing better or worse than their parents.
Example:
Upward Mobility: Kids born to working-class families moving to higher-income levels.
Downward Mobility: Kids doing worse than their parents, falling into a lower social class.
Key Data:
The U.S. has low intergenerational mobility. It’s harder for kids in the U.S. to surpass their parents’ income compared to countries like Denmark.
The Great Gatsby Curve shows that more income inequality = less mobility.
Study Highlight:
Kids born into the bottom 20% of income in the U.S. only have a 7.5% chance of reaching the top 20%.
So, breaking out of poverty? Not as easy as it sounds.
Social Stratification
Social stratification refers to the hierarchical arrangement of individuals into social categories, often based on factors like wealth, income, occupation, education, and social status. In essence, it’s society’s way of keeping people in their “place”—an economic and social ladder that everyone is supposedly climbing, but some people are stuck at the bottom while others are at the top.
The Great Gatsby Curve
- Definition: A graph showing the relationship between income inequality and intergenerational economic mobility.
Essentially, if the rich keep getting richer and the poor stay poor, it’s way harder for people to move up the social ladder. - Concept: High inequality → low mobility (harder for kids to move up the social ladder); low inequality → high mobility (easier for kids to rise above their parents’ status).
Income Inequality
Definition: The uneven distribution of wealth in society.
Example:
In a society with high income inequality, the wealthiest 1% have most of the money, while the rest of the population is left with less. Think about how some people have billion-dollar companies, while others are struggling to pay rent.
Why it matters:
High income inequality makes it harder for people to move up the social ladder. More inequality = less chance to climb out of poverty.
Intergenerational Earnings Elasticity
Definition: A measure of how strongly a child’s earnings are linked to their parents’ earnings. Higher elasticity means less mobility.
Example:
High Elasticity: In a country where children’s income is very closely tied to their parents’ (like the U.S.), kids born to rich parents tend to stay rich, and kids born to poor parents stay poor.
Low Elasticity: In a country where children can break free from their parents’ income level (like Denmark), kids have a better chance of making more money than their parents.
Why it matters:
High elasticity means that economic status is mostly passed down, creating a cycle. Low elasticity means people can break that cycle and improve their lives.
How is the U.S. mobility?
Definition: The U.S. has a lot of wealth concentrated in the hands of a few people, while the rest of the population struggles.
Example:
Kids born into the lowest 20% of earners in the U.S. have only a 7.5% chance of making it into the top 20%. Yeah, those odds suck.
High income inequality = less opportunity to rise above your parents’ economic status.
Intergenerational Elasticity: Children’s earnings are strongly tied to their parents’ earnings, so kids of rich parents (like billionaires Elon Musk or Jeff Bezos) have a better chance of staying wealthy.
Why it matters:
The U.S. is like a class elevator that’s stuck on the ground floor for most people, especially if you’re born into poverty. The rich are basically building their own towers to keep getting richer, while everyone else is stuck in the basement.
why does Scandinavia have better social mobility?
Policies like free education, universal healthcare, and strong social safety nets help kids move beyond their parents’ economic status.
Lower income inequality.
High social mobility with support systems like free education, paid parental leave, and healthcare.
Strong focus on equality of opportunity for everyone.
There’s a better shot at upward mobility because the system is designed to give everyone an equal starting point.
Why it matters:
Kids born in Scandinavia have a much higher chance of rising above their parents’ income level. The system is set up to break the cycle of poverty and promote opportunities for everyone, not just the lucky few.
Think of it as a functional elevator that doesn’t stop at the basement. Everyone can rise.
Why the Curve (gap) Exists
- Education Barriers: Quality education is expensive, and the rich can afford it, perpetuating inequality.
- Social Networks: Wealthy families have access to powerful social connections that help their children secure jobs, internships, etc.
- Access to Resources: Wealthier families have easier access to healthcare, housing, and opportunities, which solidifies their economic status.
