Social Inequality Flashcards
Content Category 10A: spatial inequality, social class, health disparities, and healthcare disparities
residential segregation
where people reside has a substantial impact on how they interact, cooperate, and advance. urban areas are more conducive to improvement of SES, but these effects don’t always extend across urban environments - neighborhood is also a large factor
suburbanization
migration pattern of the middle class to suburban communities
urban decay
previously functional portion of the city deteriorates and becomes decrepit over time
urban renewal
city land is reclaimed and renovated for public and private use
gentrification
often fuels urban renewal; when upper- and middle-class populations begin to purchase and renovate neighborhoods, displacing low-SES populations
environmental justice
poor living conditions and dangerous environmental conditions can lead to an increase in illness and disease, and low-income residents often do not have the political and social capital to prevent or halt these problems in their communities.
social stratification
focuses on social inequalities and studies the basic question of who gets what and why
social class
typically separated into upper, middle, lower. UPPER: those who have great wealth, reputations, and lifestyles, and have larger influences on larger political systems. MIDDLE: can be further subdivided into upper/middle/lower. consists of successful businesspeople, those who have been unable to achieve those business pursuits due to educational or economic shortcomings, and those who are semiskilled with fewer luxuries. LOWER: poorer end of economic spectrum, with greatly reduced political power
socioeconomic status (SES)
can depend on ascribed or achieved status.
ascribed status
derives from clearly identifiable characteristics like age, gender, and skin color (involuntary)
achieved status
acquired via direct, individual efforts (obtained through hard work and merit)
class consciousness
organization of the working class around shared goals and recognition of a need for collective political action (Marx)
false consciousness
misperception of one’s actual position within society (Marx)
social capital
investments people make in their society in return for economic or collective rewards
cultural capital
benefits one receives from knowledge, ability, and skills
social reproduction
the idea that social inequality (especially poverty), can be passed from one generation to the next
power
the ability to affect others’ behavior through real or perceived rewards and punishments; based on unequal distributions of valued resources
prestige
amount of positive regard society has for a given person or idea
privilege
inequality in opportunity
intersectionality
compounding of disadvantage seen in individuals who belong to more than one oppressed group
social mobility
the ability to move up and down from one class to another, exemplified by the idea of the American Dream
intragenerational mobility
status changes that happen within a person’s lifetime
intergenerational mobility
status changes that happen from parents to children
vertical mobility
upward and downward mobility
