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SOCIAL CLASS INEQUALITY Flashcards

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Sociology 101 flashcards
1
Q

What are the 4 explanations + sociologists for social class inequalities

functionalist theory

A
  1. Social class inequality is inevitable and necessary (parsons)
  2. Social class inequalities creates social orders. (Durkheim)
  3. Social class inequalities are functional for society. (Davis and Moore)
  4. Social class inequalities are a reflection of anomic conditions. (Durkheims concept applied to explanation)
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2
Q

who supports the explaination: social class inequality is inevitable and necessary + their ideas

functionalist theory

A

PARSONS
Suggested that social inequality is an inevitable feature of social system that requires order and ranking. Ranking society is based on a value consensus about what society values and who deserves the highest rewards.
The values…
* Kinship (family)
* Achievement
* Possessions
* Personal qualities
* Authorities
In society we are fine with this system because we agree these qualities are of high value.

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3
Q

who supports the explaination: social class inequalities create social orders. + their ideas

functionalist theory

A

DURKHEIM
* Class stratification exists exists because it is functional or beneficial to social order.
* Modern society is characterised by a specialised division of labour.
* This value consensus also means members accept the legitimacy of stratification.

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4
Q

who supports the explaination: social class inequalities are functional for society. + their ideas

functionalist theory

A

DAVIS AND MOORE
Argued that stratification is functionally necessary. The main role is to ensure effective role allocation & performance:
* Allocates the right people to the most important roles.
* Ensures people in these roles perform to the highest standard.

Argues that we can tell which positions are the most important by… if only a small number of people can carry out the role, those who arent dependent on anyone else and peoples class position is a reflection of their talents.

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5
Q

who supports the explaination that: Social class inequalities are a reflection of anomic conditions. + their ideas

functionalist theory

A

DURKHEIM’S CONCEPT APPLIED TO EXPLANATION
Durkheim’s concept of anomie to explain social class inequality
* Class inequalities are not functional, but rather a reflection of dysfunction.
* In order for society to remain stable, there needs to be a healthy level of inequality.
* At times- these class-based inequalities may tilt into instability.
* Individuals in society lose sense of aspiration or desire to contribute to society.

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6
Q

what are the 4 points for marxist theory of class inequality + sociologist

marxist

A
  1. society has historically faced divisions of power- Marx
  2. the ruling class uses idiological control to maintain their superior position- Marx
  3. class inequality is justified through hegamony- gramsci
  4. power is becomingmore concentrated in society- westergard
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7
Q

who supports the explaination: society has historically faced divisions of power. + their ideas

marxist

A

MARX
- idea of historical materialisms and all material goods being earnt through labour (forces of production)
- a capitalist society exploit wage laberours and sell the proletariats labour to the bourgeousie for profits
- suggested 4 modes of production: primitive communism, ancient mode of production, feudalism and the 2 class system

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8
Q

who supports the explaination: the ruling class uses idealogical control to maintain their superior position + their ideas

marxist theory

A

MARX
* all other institutions in society make up the superstructure
* this reinforces and supports the base (economy)
* the institutions of the superstructure support & reflect rulingclass ideology
* capitalism will be seen as reasonable and justifable rather than exploitative
* these beliefs and values disguise the true nature of society and class inequality will continue.

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9
Q

who supports the explaination: class inequality is justified through hegemony + their ideas

marxist theory

A

GRAMSCI
* rejected economic determinism and idiological domination of marx’s work and took on a neomarxist approach
* suggested that in order to create change, individuals need more than just economic reason to improverishement
* the working class must generate ideas amongst themselfs to counter the ruling class
* the ruling class dominate through persuasion and hegemony
* using systems to control peoples minds
* so many of the working class have dual consciousness- work in capitalism but are aware of the inequalities it creates.

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10
Q

who supports the explaination: power is becoming more concentrated in society + their ideas

marxist theory

A

WESTERGAARD
* suggests that the bourgeousie will become more concentrated over time
* there is little evidence of class divisions dissapearing but widening
* this is due to the way the capitalist system operates
* so the rich will get richer and the poor poorer
* unequal distribution of wealth within the capitalist system

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11
Q

what are the 3 pieces of evidence for working class disadvantages in the workplace

A
  1. the equality trust / the inequality briefing
  2. Mac an Ghaill
  3. Willis
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12
Q

1- the equality trust

inequality in workplace

A
  • 90% of earners average income= £12,969
  • top 0.1% average income= £1,000,970
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13
Q

Mac an Ghaill

inequality in workplace

A

states that deindustrialisation has led to a ‘crisis of masculinity’amongst working class males- they face unemployment

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14
Q

Willis

inequality in workplace

A
  • working class males see their futures as working as basic manual labour jobs like their fathers therefore they do not aspire for more.
  • this prevents social mobility
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15
Q

what are the 3 pieces of evidence for working class disadvantage in education?

A
  1. bourdieu
  2. jackson
  3. the department for education
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16
Q
  1. Bourdieu

working class disadvantage- in education

A
  • education system is biased towards the culture of the dominant classes
  • main function of education is social reproduction (continuing class divisions)
  • education discriminates the working class due to the lack of cultural capital to succeed
  • hidden curriculum
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17
Q

Jackson

working class disadvantage- in education

A
  • working class ladettes adopt anti-school attitudes
  • they adopt assertive femininity around smoking and arguing with teachers
  • as a result- they are negatively labelled by teachers.
18
Q

The Department For Education

working class disadvantage- in education

A
  • those who can get free school meals- avg GCSE grade above a 5= 34.4%
  • those not eligable= 48.3%
19
Q

what are the 3 pieces of evidence for working class disadvantage in the media?

A
  1. price
  2. jones
  3. milliband (marxist)
20
Q

1- Price

working class disadvantage- in the media

A
  • developed the concept of ‘poverty porn’ to describe programmes being exploited by the media for shock and entertainment purposes.
  • encourages underclass to be condemned by the hard working middle and upper classes.
21
Q

2- Jones

working class disadvantage- in the media

A
  • discusses the use of the word ‘chav’- become a way of describing
  • developed the concept of ‘chavtainment’ to portray under class in a negative light
  • changed views of the working class from being described as ‘salt of the earth’ to ‘scum of the earth’
  • e.g. little britain, skins, fresh meat.
22
Q
A
23
Q

3- Milliband (marxist)

working class disadvantage- in the media

A
  • states that media is the new ‘opium of the people’
  • distracts us from the working class masses and struggles in the capitalist society
  • media is a short form of content which is endless.
24
Q

what are the 3 pieces of evidence for working class disadvantage in in relation to crime?

A
  1. Walmsley et al
  2. coles
  3. harding
25
Q

1- walmsley et al

working class disadvantage- in the media

A

41% of prisoners are from the lowest social classes. but only 19% of the overall population

26
Q

2- coles

working class disadvantage- in relation to crume

A

found that if you are poor, you are more likely to commit a crime

27
Q

3- Harding

working class disadvantage- in relation to crime

A
  • metaphor of ‘the street casinos’ about working class playing a game that is addictive and like gambling
  • study in lambeth london on gangs
28
Q

what are the 4 explainations for class inequality + sociologist

weberianism

A
  1. a persons societal position is based on a combination of their class, status and party- social class is more fragmented (weber)
  2. social class and inequality complex- there are a range of social class categories based on occupation (the hope-goldthorpe scale)
  3. a persons experience of inequality is influenced by the level or respect they recieve from others (weber and parkin)
  4. a persons “power” or “party” can influence how much influence they have within society (weber and beck)
29
Q

who supports the explaination “a persons societal position is based on a combination of their class, status and party- class is more fragmented” + their ideas

weberianism

A

WEBER
* recognised economic factors as a source of conflict
* moved away from marx’s two class model and defined class in terms of position in the economic marketplace
* defined social class as clusters of occupations with similar patterns of mobility and similar life chances
* 4 distinct classes: the propertied upper class, property less white collar workers, petty bourgeousie, manual workers.

30
Q

who supports the explainiation ‘social class and inequality complex- there are a range of social categories based on occupations’ + their ideas

A

THE HOPE-GOLDTHORPE SCALE
* illustrates a multi-class model critiquing the work of marx
* aimed to construct a scale of a measure of ‘general derirability’ of occupations- had 36 subgroups
* showed the system is fluid and fragmented

31
Q

who supports the explaination “a persons experience of inequality is influenced by the level of respect they recieve from others” + their ideas

weberianism

A

WEBER AND PARKIN
* defined status as the most important cause of stratification
* those with a high-socioeconomic position holds more status
* status can bring those in a similar position together
* discusses negatively privilaged groups and how they are discriminated against by the bourgeousie
* to keep them from accessing the ‘privilages’ accessable to the bourgeousie

32
Q

who supports the explaination ‘a persons power or party can influence how much influence they have within society’ + their ideas

webarianism

A

WEBER AND BECK

  • ‘party’ is the level of power/influence someone has over decision making in relation to working conditions
  • e.g. trade unions, pressure groups. campaigns
  • if a person is affiliated with a political party, they are likely to hold more prestige and power than others
33
Q

what are the 4 feminist explainations for social class inequality

feminism

A
  1. women reproduce the next generation of women and socialise them- feeley
  2. working class womens domestic work is unpaid and this keeps working class men at work- benston
  3. women soothe the stresses and frustrations of the proletariat- Ansley
  4. working class womens roles also support the capitalist infrastructure when needed- Bruegel
34
Q

who supports the explaination “women reproduce the next generation of women and socialise them” + their ideas

feminist

A

FEELEY
* women are socialised into accepting their subordinate position
* the family is ‘designed to teach passivity not rebellion’
* children are trained to be obedient and docile workers
* ideology of family in capitalist society supports patriarchy

35
Q

who supports the explaination “working class womens domestic work is unpaid and this keeps working class men exploited at work” + their ideas

feminism

A

BENSTON
* the source of inequality is a combo of both patriarchy and capitalism
* a man HAS to provide for his family so is less likely to challence capitalism
* unpaid domestic labour of women helps support capitalist systm- bc there would be huge distributions of wealth
* criticises the nuclear family

36
Q

who supports the explainiation** “women soothe the stresses and frustrations of the proltariet”**+ their ideas

feminism

A

ANSLEY
* states that husbands return home from work after being exploited and take out their frustrations on their wives, not bosses
* women are the ‘takers of shit’
* aids the false class consciousness and discourage a revolution

37
Q

who supports the explaination “working class womens roles also support the capitalist infrastructure when needed” + their ideas

feminism

A

BRUEGEL
* women act as a cheap disposable part of the workforce
* used in economic booms and disposed of to be housewives when not required
* highlights how family is central to womens oppression
* reserve army of labour
* prepared to work for less money, secondary income

38
Q

what are the 4 new right explainations for social class inequality + sociologists

new right

A
    • inequality must occur to encourage competition- saunders
    • if work is done to try and equalise society, individuals become more complacent- murray
    • there is no incentive ti work hard without inequality in society due to the welfare state- marsland
    • those from a higher social class group are part of the cognative elite so do better than those from lower social classes- hernstein and murray
39
Q

who supports the explaination “inequality must occur to incourage competition” + their ideas

new right

A

SAUNDERS
* supports the principle of equality of oppurtunity
* a degree of inequality is desirable and functional because it will motivate people to compete
* critical of attempts of left wing governments to try and equalise society. e.g. taxing rich to pay for disadvantaged but just interferes with the market force

40
Q

who supports the explaination ‘if work is done to try and equalise society, individuals become more complacent’ + their ideas

new right

A

MURRAY
* us gov policies of providing welfare benifits for low income groups creates a dependency culture- no motivation to better themself
* created an underclass- drain taxpayers
* they need to be encouraged to stand on their own feet rather than relying on support from the state

41
Q

who supported the explaination “there is no incentive to work hard without inequality in society due to welfare state” + their ideas

new right

A

MARSLAND
* dependency culture
* undermines personal responsibility
* stops people from being self sufficient
* not fostering personal responsibility, work ethic and initative
* traps people in poverty and prevent social mobility
* erodes traditional values of ambition

42
Q

who supports the explaination “those from a higher social class group are part of the cognative elite so do better than those from lower classes” + their ideas

new right

A

HERRINSTEIN & MURRAY
* the ‘bell curve’
* intelligence plays a big role in determining peoples education, income and overall social status
* creates a group of people of higher classes that have access to more resources and opportunities
* divide makes it harder for people in lower classes to better their situation
* intelligence influences education/job opportunities- leading to better socioeconomic status

sociology paper 2 (5 decks)

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