social inequality Flashcards
what is inequality?
where a group of people are regarded higher than others so have better life chances and outcomes
what are life chances?
the opportunities of enjoying the good and avoiding the bad
what is status?
how important your position in society is
what is prejudice?
prejudging someone by their appearance/beliefs
what is discrimination?
when you act upon prejudice
what are stereotypes?
a fixed, exaggerated idea about a group of people
what is social inequality?
the unequal distribution of resources and opportunities
what is social stratification?
the idea that societies are divided into hierarchies
what are strata?
layers in society
what is stratification based upon?
economic factors like income and occupation
what are the two types of status?
ascribed and achieved
what is achieved status?
social positions are earned based on personal talents
what is ascribed status?
social positions are fixed at birth (eg the queen)
what is an open system of stratification?
movement is possible between stratas
what is a closed system of stratification?
movement between starts isn’t possible
what is social mobility?
movement between stratas
what is the caste system?
places you into starts depending on occupation
where did the caste system exist?
traditional India
characteristics of movement between starts in caste system
you were born into a specific caste
if you were good in this life, you were born into a better caste in the next
what was the Apartheid system?
it was a government’s policy of racial segregation
where was the Apartheid system implemented?
South Africa
what were stratas in the Apartheid system based on?
ethnicity
characteristics of movement between stratas in Apartheid system
it was fixed at birth because of your race
closed system
what is wealth?
the money of a person held in assets or shares
what is income?
the money a person receives over a certain amount of time
what is ascribed status?
social positions that are fixed at birth and can’t change
what is achieved status?
social positions that are earn based on th person’s traits
what did Marx believe about social inequality?
there were two classes
they benefit from eachother
what are the two classes that Karl Marx invented?
the bourgeoisie (the rich) the proletariat ( the poor)
how do the poor benefit from the rich according to Marx?
they get paid and go up in class
how do the rich benefit from the poor according to Marx?
they get cheap labour
what did Weber believe about social inequality?
4 classes
decided at market place
nothing to do with wealth
what were the four categories that Weber invented?
professionals
property owners
shop owners
labourers
functionalist view on social inequality?
they believed inequality was good
why did functionalists believe inequality was good?
the best jobs require the most talented and dedicated people so inequality means everyone gets the jobs they deserve
what is the registrar general’s scale?
allocates people to starts based on occupation
problems with the registrar general’s scale (2)
hard to classify the unemployed
married women’s status was based on husband
what does the national statistics socioeconomic classification do?
it uses occupation, rewards, status and authority to classify people
feminist views on social inequality
they believe society is biased towards men and giving them the best chance
what is patriarchy?
power held by men
what is patriarchal ideology?
a set of ideas that benefit men and keep women oppressed
why aren’t women competing with men at the high end jobs? (3)
intimidation
not enough support
children
example of what has happened to stop sexism
Equal Pay Act means that people doing the same job with the same skills must get paid the same regardless of gender
examples of what has happened to stop racism in work
Race Relations Act meant that there was to be no discrimination based on ethnicity
what is racism in the workplace?
when people are discriminated because of their race, for example they get paid less or aren’t picked for promotions
what is ageism
prejudice/discrimination based on age
what is ethnicity
cultural norms and values distinguish one group from another
what is being done to reduce ageism at work?
there are regulations in place to stop employers discriminating against someone due to their age
how do wealth and income influence life chances?
those with more money get the better opportunities, like better healthcare and education
what is the ‘glass ceiling’?
the idea that there is an invisible barrier between women and high paying positions
what is absolute poverty?
when people don’t have the basics they need to survive
what is relative poverty?
when people are poor compared to the others in their society
what are the three main ways of measuring low incomes? (3)
low incomes
lack of necessities
subjective measures (when people accept they are living in poverty)
groups at highest risk of poverty (6)
single parent household single pensioners families with a child under 11 households without paid owners people who left school before 16 children and young people
what is poverty linked to?
age, ethnicity, gender
why is ethnicity linked to poverty?
discrimination in the workplace
less likely to take benefits
more likely to be unemployed
why do women face a greater chance of poverty than men?
earn less money
more likely work part time
live longer
more likely to have single parent families
why are children and pensioners facing a greater chance of poverty?
live on a low income (e.g. part time job or pension)
not claiming benefits
what is the cycle of poverty and what does it show?
shows that people move in and out of poverty through out their lifetime. for example, when they are young they may live in poverty, grow out of it as an adult but move back into it as an oap
what is the poverty line?
a government approved line that separates those on a low income from those on a high one
what is the culture of poverty
the idea that the people in the poorest ares of society are socialised to accept poverty as part of their life so they stay there
what is the cycle of deprivation?
deprivation depends from generation t generation, locking them in poverty
what is the welfare dependency and the underclass?
the idea that a group remains in poverty because welfare enables them to
what is social exclusion?
isolating certain people from society
marxist view on poverty
it is inevitable because of the inequality between the classes that are in a capitalist society
what is meritocracy?
the idea that status is achieved depending on individual ability
what does high rates of social mobility indicate
society is meritocratic
opportunities are available to everyone
name one route to mobility
education qualifications
name three barriers to social mobility
gender discrimination
lack of skills
lack of qualifications
what is happening to social mobility in britain and why?
it is declining because there have been changes in occupational structure, such as the decline of higher jobs so there is less room at the top
how is sex discrimination changing?
girls starting to go for higher jobs like medicine and many achieve better results than boys
what have class divisions become less significant than?
divisions base on gender, age and race
what is a classless society
a society that doesn’t have different social classes
what is inter-generational social mobility?
movement around strata in families
what is intra-generational social mobility?
movement around strata by an individual
what is long-range mobility?
social mobility that involves significant movement
what is short-range mobility?
social mobility involving limited movement
