understanding social inequality

Question 1

what are the 8 classes in the ns sec scale

Answer 1

the national statistics socio-economic classification (NS-SEC) scale replaced the registrar general’s (GN) scale in 2001.
1 higher managerial and professional occupations
1.2 higher professionals
2 lower managerial and professional occupations
3 intermediate occupations
4 small employers and own account workers
5 lower supervisory, craft and related occupations
6 semi routine occupations
7 routine occupations

Question 2

give two criticisms of the ns sec scale

Answer 2

criticisms: those wealthy enough to not work are not included, class 2 includes teachers ranging from newly qualified to heads

Question 3

give evidence for inequality between classes in terms of income

Answer 3

lansley argues that due to the decline of blue collar jobs and the rise of service sector jobs there has been a growth in the number of ‘bad jobs offering poor conditions of work, minimal rights and little security.’ this polarising of the labour market is often referred to as the ‘hour glass labour market’ (JRF.) this means that many people earn below the living wage, in 2012 20% of employees were paid below living wage (JRF), an issue which has been exacerbated by the pandemic and cost of living crisis. in contrast the high pay centre reported that in 2012 the average pay of a chief executive of a FSTE 100 company was 162 times the average british wage and the hills report found income inequality is at its highest since just after WW2.

Question 4

give evidence for class inequality in terms of poverty

Answer 4

many low paid workers are caught in a poverty trap where after tax and ni their wages fall below the poverty line. treasury figures estimate that 25% of children never escape poverty.

Question 5

give evidence for class inequality in terms of work situation

Answer 5

upper and middle class workers experience a superior work situation with higher status, security and working conditions etc (weber.) JRF points out that people in low paid jobs are more likely to experience insecure work moving between finding and losing work, a low pay no pay cycle, this makes up 5% of the UK workforce. ONS shows 2.3% of the were employed on zero-hour contracts for their main job in 2014.

Question 6

give evidence for class inequality in terms of social mobility

Answer 6

goldthorpe described the 1:2:4 rule of relative hope where whatever chance a working class boy had of reaching the service class, an intermediate class boy had twice the chance and a boy starting in the service class had four times the chance (using the hope-goldthorpe scale.) wilkinson and picketts report ‘the spirit level’ shows countries with the highest levels of income inequality have the lowest levels of social mobility. the hills report found absolute intergenerational upward social mobility has changed little since the 1970s.

Question 7

give evidence for class inequality in terms of wealth

Answer 7

ONS shows that the richest 10% of households own 45% of all wealth while the poorest 50% own 8% of all wealth (2012-2014.) the sunday times rich list found in 2015 the collective wealth of britain’s 1,000 richest people had more than doubled in the last 10 years. clark and cummins there is a significant correlation between the wealth of families 5 generations apart.

Question 8

give evidence for class inequality in terms of education

Answer 8

the social mobility and child poverty commission report ‘the state of the nation’ shows that:

38% of those eligible for fsm gain 5 or more a*-c grades at gcse compared to 65% of other children

the most advantaged are twice as likely to enter university compared to disadvantaged students

the working class and state school pupils are underrepresented at russell group universities even when they have the same a level grades, those not eligible for fsm are 4 times more likely to go to one

disadvantaged students generally outperform better educated pupils if they get a university place eg 70% of state school students with 3 Bs at a level gained a top degree compared with 61% of privately educated young people

graduates from disadvantaged backgrounds are less likely to enter graduate jobs and are paid less on average

Question 9

give evidence for class inequality in terms of family

Answer 9

ONS shows that 66% of people in class 1 being married compared to 44% of people in class 7. corse et al argues the working class are now less likely to get and stay marries and have children within marriage due to the rise in unstable casual employment. kiernan and mueller argue the higher rates of divorce among the working class are often die to financial problems.

bourdieu argues there are socialisation differences between classes since the middle class try to develop their childrens cultural capital. crompton also points to the inheritance of economic capital being a large part of class reproduction, wealthier parents are also more able to afford to invest in their childrens education.

while some argue that socialisation into the underclass is another socialisation difference, jordon found that the poor and long term unemployed share the same norms and values of everyone else, suggesting that there isnt class diversity in terms of socialisation into different cultures.

Question 10

what is the functionalist explanation for class inequality

Answer 10

durkheim - the specialised division of labour (the wide range of jobs and specialists) requires stratification. there is a value consensus that different skills deserve different rewards depending on how beneficial they are to society. everyone has an equal chance to gain skills and qualifications and so stratification is fair

parsons - stratification produces an unequal distribution of rewards. people who start and are in charge of businesses create jobs and wealth meaning that they contribute more to society and therefore deserve higher rewards.

davis and moore - stratification ensures effective role allocation and performance. higher rewards are offered for more functionally important jobs to ensure that the most able take them and perform to the highest standard. stratification motivates people at the top to keep their position and those at the bottom to improve their position. a role is functionally important if other positions depend on it and if they could not be performed well by another occupation. the education system plays a large role in this as it sifts, sorts and grades people into appropriate jobs.

Question 11

what is the new right explanation for class inequality

Answer 11

saunders - agrees with davis and moore and says capitalism spreads wealth so society as a whole becomes more affluent, he explains the differences in educational achievement between social classes by saying there is a genetic component as seen in iq tests.

murray - differences in social class can also be explained by the welfare dependant culture they are socialised into, this is encouraged by the state through giving benefits to people who are in a position of their own making.

Question 12

what is the marxist explanation for class inequality

Answer 12

there are two classes and the upper class own the means of production while the lower class can only sell their labour. this creates a surplus value because the proletariat are paid less than the value of their labour therefore the social relation of production is exploitative.

marx argued that this system is unstable because the lower class could gain class consciousness and start a proletarian revolution. the superstructure is an ideological system which presents the organisation of capitalist societies as normal, natural and fair which maintains false class consciousness.

he said that eventually the classes would polarise even more and work would become so alienating that the lower class gains class consciousness and starts a proletarian revolution. capitalism would be replaced with communism where everyone owns the means of production and contributes according to ability and receives the food, housing etc according to need instead of wage

neo marxists such as wright say the middle class occupies a contradictory class position as they have things in common with both classes as they own bits of the means of production eg shares and are in the position to exploit the labour of others however they are still exploited themselves and may lose their livelihoods at the will of the ruling class.

althusser - education teaches positive messages about capitalism through the formal curriculum and encourages conformity through the hidden curriculum making it an ideological state apparatus.

Question 13

what is the weberian explanation for class inequality

Answer 13

weber argued that there are many classes that have different market and work situations, he defined class as a group of people sharing a similar work and market situation. people in the same social class therefore have similar life chances and patterns of social mobility. this has influenced the NS-SEC scale that is used today.

status refers to the unequal distribution of social honour and prestige attached to social groups in society.

party refers to organised groups concerned with exercising power or influencing decision making eg trade unions, pressure groups, stonewall.

neo weberian parkin said social closure is used by groups to protect their privileges. scott argued that the upper class is maintained through inheritance and intermarriage. however a group with lower status may attempt to usurp power using their party eg workers going on strike.

Question 14

what do feminists say about class inequality

Answer 14

roberts argues that it can no longer can be assumed that women share a class position with their male partners (if they have one.) women remain single, form partnerships later in life and divorce is more common. abbott criticised goldthorpe’s study of social mobility for completely ignoring women especially since women have lower rates of absolute mobility due to having less chance of reaching the top jobs.

marxist feminist benston argues domestic labour performed by women means husbands can return to work healthy and efficient workers, they are also used as a reserve army of labour. walby argues that in some industries trade unions have put womens needs in second place and industries dominated by women such as textiles are devalued and so they are paid less.

Question 15

what do postmodernists say about class inequality

Answer 15

pakulski and walters argue that class is dead and people are now stratified by culture and consumption patterns, therefore dunleavey argues researchers should now study consumption cleavages. beck argues that science and technology have created new problems that impact everyone, meaning that the collective sense of class has reduced and society is more individualistic.

Question 16

give evidence from work and employment for gender inequality

Answer 16

the women and work commission found out of 77 occupational groups women are disproportionately clustered in the 5c’s - cleaning, caring, cashiering, catering and clerical work. these areas have significant numbers of low paid, low status and part time jobs. EOC found 90% of employees in the construction industry are male.

in 2008 women made up only 11% of directors of the top 100 companies in britain. the equality and human rights commission argued women lack access to the most powerful jobs in society and at the current rate of progress it will take 73yrs for women to achieve equal status with men in top management jobs in the top 100 companies

the equal opportunities commission shows women are more likely to work part time than men and mothers are more likely to work part time 60% than women without children 32% whereas fathers are less likely to work part time 4% than men without children 9%. the EOC found many employers still see family friendly policies as something for women, they are less likely to be offered in traditionally male dominated workplaces and fathers often feel discouraged by workplace norms and culture from taking time off work for family.

mac an ghaill argues the decline in manufacturing and the feminisation of the labour market has led to a crisis of masculinity since young men have no clear identity or role in society which has led to them displaying their masculinity in anti social ways. one impact of this is the underachievement of working class boys in education.

Question 17

give evidence from income poverty and wealth for gender inequality

Answer 17

the annual survey of hours and earnings (ASHE) uses a 1% sample of jobs to work out the median hourly earnings of men and women. this shows women are paid less per hour than men with a pay gap in 2015 of 19.4%. the full time gender pay gap is 9.4%. ONS shows men make up the majority of workers in the top 10% of earners for all employees.

the trussell trust argues food poverty affects women more as they are more likely to go hungry in order to feed their children. the JRF found women often sacrifice food, clothing, warmth and other basic needs to put their families first.

ONS showed the average value of men’s total pension wealth was twice as high as women’s in 2010/2. the united nations shows while women make up more than 50% of the world’s population they only earn 1% of the world’s wealth.

Question 18

give evidence from education for gender inequality

Answer 18

the organisation for economic co-operation and development (OECD) showed boys lag a year behind girls at reading in every industrialised country. the department for education (DFE) shows in 2011 girls did better than boys in reading and writing and equal in maths in their SATs.

the joint council for qualifications (JCQ) found there are only 3 subjects where there is more than a 1% gap between girls and boys overall achievement at a level. however there are gendered subject choices eg 72% of english entrants were girls and 79% of physics students were boys.

UCAS shows women are now a third more likely to enter higher education than men. the higher education statistics agency shows in relation to the numbers achieving first class and second class degrees women outperform men by about 5%.

Mcdonald et al argue the generalisation that girls outperform boys applies most strongly to working class children since among middle class children there is very little difference. it is also wider in some ethnic groups eg african caribbean children.

Question 19

give evidence from family for gender inequality

Answer 19

oakley argues women experience a dual burden where they have paid work and domestic work. duncombe and marsen argued women have a triple shift since they also have to perform most of the emotion work. the british social attitudes survey found men spend an average of 8hrs/week on domestic labour compared to 13hrs for women. edgell found husbands dominated the less frequent but more important decisions while wives dominated the more frequent but less important decisions.

ONS shows around 50% of female homicide victims in the uk are killed by a partner or ex compared to 5% of male victims. 2 women are killed every week in england and wales by a current of former partner.

the EOC found fathers work the longest hours in europe with an average of 46.9hrs/week. benatar points out custody rights cases are stacked against men even when the man is the primary care giver. the fact that 90% of lone parents are headed by women may support this claim.

Question 20

how do functionalists explain gender inequality

Answer 20

functionalists argue society is structured by value consensus which creates functional linkage between institutions so they work together.

murdock found a sexual division of labour in 224 societies he studied. he used this as evidence that it is universal, beneficial to society and biological in nature. parsons argued that women have an expressive role while men have in instrumental role these roles are different but not unequal.

human capital theory argues that the wage gap is due to the amount of human capital a person develops through education and training. women home orientated and so are more likely to choose part time work, take career breaks and are less likely to do training/non compulsory education.

Question 21

how does the new right explain gender inequality

Answer 21

they say that any deviation from the nuclear family can lead to social breakdown. murray said that the fact that lone parents form a significant part of the welfare dependant underclass is proof of this. without a father, children dont learn discipline and are more likely to turn to crime etc and without a mother they suffer from maternal deprivation which leads to juvenile delinquency.

schlafly argues that women’s primary priority should be home and men’s superior analytical and aggressive justifies their dominance of the public sphere. she says that equal pay would eliminate the role of motherhood.

Question 22

how do marxists explain gender inequality

Answer 22

marxists argue gender inequality (secondary form of stratification) suits capitalism and therefore is really to do with class conflict (primary form of stratification.)

engels argued the monogamous nuclear family controls women’s sexuality which allows the capitalist to ensure his property is passed to his legitimate heirs. men have greater power than women because they own the means of production or because they earn a wage outside the home. braverman argues women provided an important source of unskilled labour that enabled employers to draw them in to replace skilled men and deskill jobs in routine white collar work.

Question 23

how does weberianism explain gender inequality

Answer 23

weber argued stratification results from a struggle for scarce resources in society. and that privileged groups in society try to maintain their privileged position but stratification is changeable through the actions of individuals.

status is the different degrees of status given on the basis of gender and gender discrimination is a form of status discrimination. men use exclusion strategies against women eg male workers resist female entry into their skilled trades. women try to usurp male privileges by pushing for legislative reform. womens domestic role as housewives and mothers is not held in high esteem in society and carries little status or power.

class is defined by the market and work situation of the various occupations that exist and those who share a class position share similar life chances. barron and norris argue women are more likely to have jobs in the secondary labour market and men dominate the primary labout market. employers tend to see women as suited to these types of jobs due to stereotypes. women are seen as easy to replace and less concerned with earning money.

parties are group specifically concerned with influencing policies and making decisions in the interests of their members. barron and norris argue the legal and political framework supporting women is weak. the equal pay act and the sex discrimination act are ineffective and fail to protect women’s employment rights. as well as the electoral commission found women are significantly less likely that men to participate in political campaign orientated activities.

Question 24

how does liberal feminism explain gender inequality

Answer 24

they argue traditional forms of gender role socialisation found in the family, education and the media are responsible for reproducing a sexual division of labour in which masculinity is largely seen as dominant and femininity as subordinate. the role of the family in gender role socialisation mean gender inequality takes root from a young age. they do not blame anyone in particular for gender inequality and argue discrimination just went unchallenged for a long time. sharpes research into the changing priorities of girls that amounts to a genderquake (wilkinson) shows that gender inequality will eventually be eliminated through changes to legislation and social attitudes.

Question 25

how does marxist feminism explain gender inequality

Answer 25

benston argues women provide free domestic and emotional labour which makes male workers more effective. they also reproduce and socialise the workforce to ensure children hold the norms and values that benefit capitalism at no extra cost to the capitalist class, this is referred to as the ‘reproduction of labour power.’ benston argues if women did not do these roles for free men would demand higher wages, therefore it suits capitalism to promote the ideology of women as naturally suited to this role. ansley argues women act as a safety valve or sponge and she said ‘when wives play their traditional role as takers of shit they often absorb their husband’s legitimate anger and frustration at their own powerlessness and oppression. with every worker provided with a sponge to soak up his possibly revolutionary anger, the bosses rest more secure.’ benston also argues women are used as a reserve army of labour and that sexist ideology splits the working class, making them easier to control ie divide and rule.

dual systems feminists use dual systems theory to argue capitalism and patriarchy are as important as each other as forms of inequality. barett argues working class men benefit from the domestic labour of their wives as well as capitalists.

Question 26

give evidence from work and employment for ethnic inequality

Answer 26

the DWP shows the unemployment rates for white ethnic groups remained at 7% from 2012 to 2013 but for ethnic minority groups it rose from 13 to 14%. the rate of unemployment is particularly high for black ethnic minorities at 17% and pakistanis and bangladeshis at 19%. demos shows men from chinese and indian backgrounds are twice as likely than the white british group to be in higher managerial jobs (class 1). however, more than a third of bangladeshis and black caribbean’s work in the lowest skilled jobs.

only 5% of the police force and 6% of teachers are non-white ethnic minorities. heath and cheung found uk born ethnic minorities experience an ethnic penalty (disadvantage compared to white british of the same age and educational qualifications.) hales et al found racism in the recruitment via a bias against employing people who dont have obviously white names. they sent nearly 3,000 applications of equal quality for advertised job opportunities and each was given a name associated with specific ethnic groups. a positive response from the application was much more likely for applications with a typically ‘white’ name. they concluded that ethnic minority candidates would have to send 74% more applications to achieve the same levels of success as a white candidate. jenkins found organisations often recruit internally or by word of mouth so ethnic minorities are less likely to have the social capital to get jobs with white employers. job applicants were assessed on the basis of relevant qualifications but also their acceptability in terms of manner, appearance and attitude which was largely based on racial stereotypes.`

Question 27

give evidence of inequality from wealth and income for ethnic inequality

Answer 27

the national equality panel showed the group with the greatest level of wealth on average is white british followed by indian. other ethnic groups were much further behind and the group with the least wealth was bangladeshis. the hills report shows the quintile distribution of income for individuals by ethnicity for 2010: white bottom quintile 18% and top quintile 21%, indian bottom quintile 27% and top quintile 21%, pakistani and bangladeshi bottom quintile 54% and top quintile 4%.

Question 28

give evidence from poverty for ethnic inequality

Answer 28

JRF shows 40% of ethnic minorities in the uk live in poverty, double the rate of white british people. about 68% of bangladeshis, 57% of pakistanis and 48% of black africans live in households below average income compared to 20% white british. the 2011 census showed 1 in 3 bangladeshis and pakistanis were living in deprived neighbourhoods compared to 1 in 12 of the white british group. JRF say living in a deprived area reduces employment chances and the effect of this is larger for ethnic minorities. flaherty et al suggest a number of reasons for the reasons for the high rates of poverty among ethnic minority groups; higher rates of unemployment, higher numbers in low skilled, low paid work, educational disadvantage, tendency to live in deprived areas where there is a lack of job opportunities and unsatisfactory schools, tendency to live in poor quality, overcrowded and damp housing which can have a negative impact on health and difficulties with the benefit system eg first generation immigrants are unlikely to be entitled to full benefits and the compexity of applying for benefits means there are low take up rates among some ethnic minorities.

Question 29

give evidence from education for ethnic inequality

Answer 29

the centre forum report shows in the early years of education white british children are among the highest achievers. the DfE shows the percentage of pupils achieving 5 or more GCSEs at A* to C grade by ethnic group: 78% chinese, 60% white british and 54% black caribbean. white british students have the lowest achievement by age 19. the race for opportunity report showed in 2007/8 16% of students from the UK studying for degrees were from a black, asian or ethnic minority backgroud compared to 14% of the 18 to 24 year old age group as a whole. while ethnic minorities are over represented in universities overall they are underrepresented at the russell group universities eg only 1 in 10 student accepted by oxbridge universities are from minority ethnic groups. in 2010/11 about 83% of black caribbean girls achieved 5 or more GCSEs at A* to C compared to 72% of black caribbean boys. this is compared to 95% of chinese girls and 91% of chinese boys. social class also makes a difference so ethnic minority groups with a higher proportion of middle class people, such as indians, also perform better in education. however social class may make a bigger difference to achievement of white pupils than for some ethnic minorities.

Question 30

what do functionalists say about ethnic inequality

Answer 30

patterson created the host immigration model in which she theorised immigrant groups temporarily disrupt the consensus of the host society until they adapt to the consensus and become assimilated. she studied first generation caribbean immigrants in the 1950s and argued that the culture clash stemmed from the british culture of being quiet and caribbean culture of being loud. she argued that they didnt fully integrate due to living in separate communities but they would eventually.

Question 31

what does the new right say about ethnic inequality

Answer 31

they put forward many cultural explanations such as failure to assimilate like functionalists or assimilating into the culture of the underclass which has a disproportionate number of people from ethnic minorities which could be explained by the high number of long parent families especially in african american communities (murray) which leads to welfare dependency and ultimately poverty. herrnstein and murray also argue the average iq scores of black groups was less than the average scores of white groups showing they inherit less genetic intelligence.

Question 32

what do marxists say about ethnic inequality

Answer 32

castles and kosack argue racism benefits capitalism because: ethnic minorities act as scapegoats for the failures of capitalism eg recession and unemployment, ethnic minorities act as a reserve army of labour since racism helps to justify their low pay and poor working conditions and to further divide the working class.

neo marxist miles argues the weberian concept of status should be used since even when white people and people from ethnic minorities are in the same class, the people from ethnic minorities experience a lower status, creating ‘racialised class fractions.’

Question 33

what does weberianism say about ethnic inequality

Answer 33

ethnic minorities are more likely to be in the secondary labour market as described by barron and norris

neo weberian parkin argues ethnic minority groups are a negatively privileged status group subject to discrimination meaning that ethnic status can divide class groups or cut across class differences. parkin also argues ethnic origin, language and religion may be used as exclusions criteria to keep ethnic minorities out of positions of authority.

ethnic minorities are politically marginalised; no major political party in britain represents the interest of ethnic minorities directly. trade union tend to be dominated by white british members, which can mean ethnic minorities voices are not heard. barron and norris argue the legal and political framework supporting ethnic minorities is weak eg the race relations act 1976 is rarely used in practise and is generally ineffective.

rex and tomlinson argue the combination of class, status and party inequalities for ethnic minorities puts them in an underclass. status inequality means white and minority groups do not recognise the common economic situation they experience which can lead to racial conflict.

Question 34

what do black feminists say about ethnic inequality

Answer 34

abbot et al argue previous strands of feminism have been ethnocentric and perpetuating a victim ideology. mirza argues images of the dutiful wife and daughter, the sexually available exotic other have undermined the fact that many black women are ‘brave, proud and strong.’ mirza studied black girls in shool and foudn the experienced both racism and sexism however they reacted to this negative labelling by adopting anti school behaviour while retaining a pro education attitude. the labelling and anti school reaction placed them at a disadvantage compared to white british girls but they were not passive victims and the fact that they still had a pro education attitude may be why black girls perform so much better than black boys.

Question 35

what evidence from work and employment is there for age inequality

Answer 35

the living wage introduced in 2016 is only for workers aged over 25. young people tend to be concentrated in jobs with the worst pay, conditions, status and are often required to be the most flexible. this is because they often have limited travel options, training and dont push for better contracts. more then two thirds of maccies staff are under 20. the unemployment rate for young people is 14.4% compared to 5.7% of the total working population (ONS.)

the employers forum on age (EFA) points out that those aged 35 to 44 are the group most likely to be managing, promoting and recruiting employees ns the employment rate for those aged 25 to 49 was 82% compared to 72% for 50 to 65 and 57% for 16 to 24.

bradley argues old people may be seen as less suitable for employment because they are assumed to be physically slow and not adaptable to change. vincent found employers often give old people dead end jobs assuming they will be less ambitious than younger workers. the state pension age is gradually changing, currently at 66 and there is a plan to increase it to 67 in 2026. jones et al carried out research with 20 people who had chosen early reirement from executive and higher management posts and found they saw the fact that they had this choice to retire early as an indication of their higher status. this shows higher social classes may have more choice about when to retire than lower social classes and will not grow old in the same way as those who have no choice but to continue working.

Question 36

what evidence from wealth income and poverty is there for age inequality

Answer 36

the child poverty action group (CPAG) points out child poverty has many effects on life chances. treasury figures estimate up to 25% of children never escape from poverty.

the trussell trust said there has been an increase in young people turning to their food banks since the recessions and also found that 44% of 18 to 24 year olds said they had suffered food povery in the lsat year and had to skip meals or rely on others for food.

age uk clams 1 in 6 pensioners live in poverty. scase and scase argue the elderly can be divided into 2 economic groups, affluent middle class ex professionals and those who are on or close to the brealine. oppenheim and harker found 73% of male employees receive a company pensions compared with only 68% of female full time employees and 31% of female part time workers. ginn and arber note pakistani and bangladeshi women in particular are at high risk of food poverty in old age due to low paid jobs and unemployment.

Question 37

what evidence from the digital generation divide is there for age inequality

Answer 37

berry found 79% of households below state pension age have internet access while only 37% of households above state pension age do. ofcom found the number of 65 to 74 yr olds using tables to go online has trebled between 2012 and 2013.

Question 38

what evidence from mass media is there for age inequality

Answer 38

wernick points out that birthday cards indicate the distaste widely held about the ageing process. a survey by ray et al found most people agreed the elderly should be valued and cherished but also saw them as incompetent leading to them being infantilised and treated in a patronising way. sontag suggest there is a double standard for ageing where women are required to be youthful throughout their media careers but men are not.

wayne et al analysed news items that specifically focused on young people across all major tv channels and found 82% focused on young people as the victims of perpetrators of violent crime. fawbert found hoodie became a stigmatising label after bluewater shopping centre in kent banned customers from wearing them in 2005, this led to a moral panic and people believed youth crime was increasing when it wasnt. the former police commissioner john stevens suggested ‘thugs wearing hoods’ should get longer prison sentences.

Question 39

what is the functionalist explanation for age inequality

Answer 39

parsons argues certain age groups have norms and values that could potentially harm society’s stability eg rebellious youth or dependent elderly. society manages these issues to maintain social stability and a consequence of this is inequality. cummings and henry use disengagement theory to argue a person’s abilities are likely to deteriorate and as this happens there is an individual and societal need for the individual to be relieved of some of their roles and responsibilities. a process of disengagement eg having a retirement age allows a managed disengagement. this frees up space for the new generation allowing others to take on the role the elderly can no longer fulfil society is continually refreshed.

Question 40

what is the marxist explanation for age inequality

Answer 40

marx stated young and elderly are used as a reserve army of labour which can be seen in the rise of zero hour contract. unemployed young people and elderly people who need to continue to bring in some income post retirement are more likely to take up such contracts. therefore age inequality is a social construction that benefits the bourgeoisie.

welfare provision is part of the ideological status apparatus as it provides small concessions which create a form of dependency, legitimising the need for powers of authority and ensure the elderly and young do not question their exploitation creating a false class consciousness. phillipson argues capitalism needs to continually renew it workforce to ensure greater profit by using younger workers who may be more productive. this is achieved my institutionally marginalising the elderly. vincent argues that by establishing a retirement age and state pension the elderly can be denied access to jobs without this being challenged, if they continued to work, they would have to be paid extra in line with the increasing experience and skill.

Question 41

what is the weberian explanation for age inequality

Answer 41

evidence suggests young and old people are more likely to be in the secondary labour market as described by barron and norris.

age discrimination is a form of status discrimination and parkin’s concept of negatively privileged status groups could be applied to the young and old. as well as this, the middle aged may operate social closure by excluding older workers from jobs or promotion regardless of qualifications, skills and experience.

bradley argues age is low on the political agenda and the most disadvantaged are the young and old but they share little in common with each other to unite over a common cause. however, older age groups are better represented in the political system than younger age groups and they are more likely to understand how to use the political system than younger age groups to meet their needs. groups such as age uk do have power in parliament because they are well known and well connected

Question 42

what is the postmodern explanation for age inequality

Answer 42

blaikie argues that collective identities such as age have declined and that social experiences are based on personal identity, shaped by a consumerist culture.

featherstone and hepworth view the ‘mask of ageing’ as evidence that there is no longer a typical young or old person and so age differences are blurring. polemus argues youth are non homogenous group who experiment with new styles and fashion and have the ability to pick and mix their identities from the supermarket of style. lee et al found there were some media representations which were challenging stereotypes and representing people as golden agers who are active, alert and healthy eg helen mirren and bruce forsythe