Social class Flashcards
Social class
-System of stratification which places people in different positions in society
-the rich and favourited put at the top and the working and unfavourited put at the bottom
(U.P.) Workplace- Mackintosh and Mooney
-Occupation linked to identity through social class
-Judgement about your own and other’s jobs usually involves the classifying of ourselves and others into social classes
-Social classes provide us with a sense of belonging
(U.P.) Peer groups- Scott
-Upper class socialises with other upper class conatcts that they have met at school or elite universities
-This creates an Old boy network, they gain social capital by being seen or invited at the right events and having these contacts advantages them in securing business deals
(U.P.) Family- Scott
- Wealthy families operate in social closure andclosed off to outsiders
-they do this in 2 means:
1.Encouraging intra-marriages
2.Immersing children into a culture privilige through their names, socialisation into high culture and participation in blood sports
(M.C.) Family- King and Raynor
-Socialise middle class identity by reinforcing attitudes and values about the importance of educational success through the use of role models, positive and negative sanctions and imitation
-Child centerdeness
(M.C.) - Goodwin
-Middle class mothers define their identities by peer approval
-The new breed of Yummy are no longer passive or traditional, but now they are defined by peer approval on maternal capabilities, glamour and the style of their children
(M.C.) Workplace- Savage
-Occupation may be the dominant sorce of identity
-Professions of the middle class effect their lifestyle and workplace is the key source of identity
-This can also lead to conspicous consumption and social comparability
(W.C.) Workplace- Willis
-Type of jobs lads go into related to their father’s occupation
-Many of them did manual jobs and both them and their father’s jobs were the key to their identity
-Defined themselves as manual workers and membership to this occupation made them working class
(W.C) Education- Marxist
-Education’s function is to maintain and reproduce class inequalities in wealth and power by transmitting capitalistic values
-Suggest that education is designed by the ruling class to encourage children from the working class to be obedient and passive workers
-Education is teaching the next generation of workers to accept exploitation and alienation by making them conform to the ruling class ideology
(W.C) Media- Mertens and D’Haenens
-Studied digital divide in Brussel and found a clear link between class and internet usage
-Those from the lower social class used internet less than the middle class
-Lower classes used tech as a form of entertainment instead middle classes used them to boost their knowledge and to research different information
-Social class is the biggest factor affecting digital inequality as opposed to issues based on gender and ethnicity
Underclass- Murray
-The underclass are lazy, workshy, immoral, criminal, and dependant on benefits
-Suggests that it is their own fault that they are in this position
Underclass- Jordan
-He disagrees with Murray and says that the underclass have the same values and attitudes as everyone else and most of them would love to work if they had the chance, they feel a sense of shame that they cant provide for their family
Postmodernism- Pakulski and Waters
-Shift from production to consumption in the defining of identities
-We are now defined by what we buy, not what we do with regards to occupation
New working class- Skeggs
-Working class people see capitalism as effective in rising their living standards, no sense of injustice or political loyalty
-Meritocratic, believe all individuals have an equal chance at success
-Social mobility and individualism
-Develop identities based around pop culture, consumption and consumer culture
New middle class- Social mobility
-Middle class fragmented, made up of people from a range of occupations
-Manual occupations have become middle class due to earnings and owning businesses based on trade
The Super rich- Giddens
-Traditional upper class = the landowning aristocracy that practice social closure
-Pop aristocracy = earned money through sports, media and entertainment
-Entrepreneurial rich = earned money through business enterprise
