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Absolute level poverty

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-People don't have enough money to afford basic necessities of living (shelter, food, clothing, water)

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Class consciousness vs. false consciousness

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-Class consciousness: a social condition in which members of a social class, and in particular the working class, are actively aware of themselves as a class EX: workers see themselves as a unit sharing common vested interests -False consciousness: an attitude held by members of a class that does not accurately reflect their objective position. Basically, workers would see themselves as 'I,' as in 'I am being exploited by my boss,' rather than 'we:' 'We are being exploited by our boss.' --> point is for people to see past false consciousness and to become class conscious in order to bring about change in their social group

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Cultural capital vs. Social capital

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- Cultural Capital: social assets that promote social mobility beyond economic means (education, intellect, style of speech, dress, or physical appearance -- all can be used to help you obtain a higher status in society) - Social Capital: investments people make in their society in return for economic and collective rewards (increased investment = increased social inclusion and integration) includes social networks and communities, has to be actively acquired

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Culture-of-poverty

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- Explanation for social inequality - Belief that poor people resigned to their position in society, develop a unique value structure to deal with their lack of success Social Reproduction: social inequality passed down from one generation to the next

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Environmental Justice

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Location and exposure to health risk - Cheaper housing usually located closer to sites of environmental pollution (factories, powerplants, etc) - Exposure --> health problems - Low-income areas lack social and political power to prevent this

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Example of residential segregation

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1. People in a rural environment are more likely to fall into occupations and social positions bc of family ties EX: "My granddad was a farmer, so was my dad, so I'll be a farmer too" 2. Neighborhood stratification --> rich vs. poor

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Examples of intersectionality

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EX: 5 ethnicities model in the US - doesn't recognize diversity and obstructs social mobility EX: black feminism, which argues that the experience of being a black woman cannot be understood in terms of being black, and of being a woman, considered independently, but must include the interactions, which frequently reinforce each other

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Global Inequality

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- Refers to the unequal distribution of resources among individuals and groups based on their position in the social hierarchy - Resources = wealth, income, or other valued resources across countries or within each country

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Healthcare disparities

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- Related to class, gender, and race - differences in how healthcare is delivered to different groups - Disadvantaged groups affected in terms of access and quality

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Health disparities

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Based on class, gender, and race - Refer to differences between groups of people. These differences can affect how frequently a disease affects a group, how many people get sick, or how often the disease causes death Many different populations are affected by disparities. These include Racial and ethnic minorities Residents of rural areas Women, children, the elderly Persons with disabilities

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Horizontal mobility

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The movement of an individual from one social position to another of the same rank - No change in position in social hierarchy***

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How does money and status exert its effect on health?

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1.Differential access to health care 2. The poor live amidst health risks (the poor are more likely to be alcoholics, obese, or smokers. Housing is more often located on gang war turf, near toxic dumps or smoke-belching factories) 3. Education leads to better health. The better educated of society tend to be healthier 4. The stress of poverty makes people sick

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Intergenerational mobility vs. intragenerational mobility

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Intergenerational mobility: change in a social status occurs from parents --> children Intragenerational mobility: change in social status within a persons lifetime doesn't always occur in (+) direction

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Intersectionality

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A theory which seeks to examine the ways in which various socially and culturally constructed categories interact on multiple levels to manifest themselves as inequality in society - Creates greater social inequality among disadvantaged people

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Meritocracy

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A system in which the talented are chosen and moved ahead on the basis of their achievement - merit-based system of social mobility - education NOT correlated with social mobility -- this is just a system doesn't always guarantee (+) social mobility

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Poverty and types

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Low socioeconomic status and lack of possessions/financial resources - Sometimes defined as powerlessness, condition of hopelessness, indifference and distrust - passed down through generations OR defined in reference to the rest of the population: absolute and relative levels of poverty

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Power

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Power: ability to affect others' behavior through real or perceived rewards and punishments; based on unequal distribution of valued resources - Functions to maintain order, organize economic systems, conduct warfare, rule over & exploit people - Creates worldwide social inequalities between the "haves" and "have-nots"

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Prestige

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A measure of how good the reputation of something or someone is, or how favorably something or someone is regarded

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Privilege

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some groups of people have advantages relative to other groups - May be financial or material such as access to housing, education, and jobs, as well as others that are emotional or psychological, such as a sense of personal self-confidence and comfortableness, or having a sense of belonging or worth in society

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Relative level poverty

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-Social inequality in which people are relatively poor compared to other members of the society in which they live. EX: Teacher in Upper East Side Manhattan

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Residential Segregation

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Concept that where one resides and in which neighborhood has a profound effect on how people interact, cooperate and advance

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Social class

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- Category of people who share similar socioeconomic status positions in society - Based on jobs, lifestyles, attitudes, and behaviors

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Social exclusion

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The outcome of multiple deprivations that prevent individuals or groups from full participation in economic, social, and political life (homeless people or poor education) - Arises from sense of powerlessness when individuals feel alienated from society - Can create obstacles to achieving self-help, independence and self-respect

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Social Reproduction

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- Process of transferring social and cultural ideologies from generation to generation - Leads to structural continuity over time, social classes remain relatively stable from one generation to the next

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Socioeconomic gradient

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Created when the incidence of disease is correlated to wealth or status (rich outlive the poor vastly)

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Socioeconomic Status (SES)

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- A person's position in society as determined by income, wealth, occupation, education, place of residence, and other factors - Depends on ascribed status and achieved status EX: Caste System (India) operates on ascribed SES EX: Class system (US) operates on achieved SES

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Stratification vs. Inequality

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-Stratification refers to the range of social classes that result from variations in socioeconomic status. For example, despite earning equal salaries, two persons may have differences in power, property, and prestige. These three indicators can indicate someone's social position; however, they are not always consistent -Inequality occurs when a person's position in the social hierarchy is tied to different access to resources, and it largely depends on differences in wealth For example, a wealthy person may receive higher quality medical care than a poor person, have greater access to nutritional foods, and be able to attend higher caliber schools. Material resources are not distributed equally to people of all economic statuses.

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Upward vs. downward mobility

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Upward= positive changes --> higher position Downward = negative changes --> lower position - social mobility is NOT correlated with education EX: Upward mobility for professional athletes and musicians

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Vertical mobility

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-a change upward or downward in occupational status or social class - or a Movement up or down in a stratification system/change in social hierarchy (good or bad) EX: moving from lower to middle class

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What is the poverty line and what is its main flaw?

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- The governments defined calculation of the minimum income requirements for families to acquire minimum necessities for life - MAIN ISSUE- Poverty is highly related to geography - poverty line doesn't take geographic location into account

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Feminization of poverty

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The increasing concentration of poverty among women, especially unmarried women and their children

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Underclass

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A group in society prevented from participating in the material benefits of a more developed society because of a variety of social and economic characteristics.

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Horatio Alger Myth

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The belief that, due to limitless possibilities, anyone can get ahead if he or she tries hard enough.

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Intergenerational Mobility

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Changes in social status between different generations within the same family.

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Feminism

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A female movement for gender equality.

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Gender socialization

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The aspect of socialization that contains specific messages and practices concerning the nature of being female or male in a specific group or society

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Matriarchy

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Society governed by women

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Patriarchy

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A form of social organization in which the father is the supreme authority in the family, clan, or tribe and descent is reckoned in the male line, with the children belonging to the father's clan or tribe.

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De Facto Segregation

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Racial segregation that occurs in schools, not as a result of the law, but as a result of patterns of residential settlement

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Institutional discrimination

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Social institutions that employ policies that differentiate between people based on social grouping

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De Jure Segregation

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Segregation by law

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Pluralism

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A theory of government that holds that open, multiple, and competing groups can check the asserted power by any one group.

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Assimilation

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Adopting the traits of another culture. Often happens over time when one immigrates into a new country.

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Scapegoat

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A person or thing carrying the blame for others

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Multiculturalism

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A perspective recognizing the cultural diversity of the United States and promoting equal standing for all cultural traditions

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GLAAD

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Advocates for homosexual rights and encourage governments and citizens to recognize the presence of sexual discrimination and work to prevent it

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Glass Ceiling

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A metaphor alluding to the invisible barriers that prevent minorities and women from being promoted to top corporate positions.

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Cohort effect

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Evident when attitudes and behaviors are a result of the shared experiences and perceptions of a particular generation.

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Gender Tracking

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Men and women are steered onto different career paths during schooling

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National Poverty Line

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Level of income within a specific country below which people are considered to be poor. For example, in the USA, the level of $12.00 per day is used

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Quality of Life

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The general well-being of a society in terms of political freedom, a clean natural environment, education, health care, safety, free time, and everything else that leads to satisfaction and joy.

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Culture of Poverty

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The assumption that the values and behaviors of the poor make them fundamentally different from other people, that these factors are largely responsible for their poverty, and that parents perpetuate poverty across generations by passing these characteristics to their children

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Human Rights

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The basic rights to which all people are entitled as human beings

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Ethnic work

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Activities designed to discover, enhance, maintain or transmit an ethnic or racial identity.

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Minority Group

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A subordinate group whose members have significantly less control or power over their own lives than do the members of a dominant or majority group.

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Ethnicity

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Identity with a group of people that share distinct physical and mental traits as a product of common heredity and cultural traditions.

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Melting Pot

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The mixing of cultures, ideas, and peoples that has changed the American nation. The United States, with its history of immigration, has often been called a melting pot.

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Jim Crow Laws

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Laws designed to enforce segregation of blacks from whites

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Apartheid

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A South African policy of complete legal separation of the races, including the banning of all social contacts between blacks and whites.

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Refugee

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A person who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster

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Affirmative Action

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A policy in educational admissions or job hiring that gives special attention or compensatory treatment to traditionally disadvantaged groups in an effort to overcome present effects of past discrimination.

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Pan-Indianism

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An attempt to develop an identity that goes beyond the tribe by emphasizing the common elements that run through Native American cultures

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Amalgamation

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Blending of majority group and minority group combine to form a new group

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Caste system

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Systems in which there is very very little social mobility. Your role in life is determined by your biological parents and your spouse. Regardless of aptitude and achievements. Provides a lot of social stability (same social position with same social network). Ex: Hindu caste system

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Class system

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Upper, middle and lower class. A combo of a person's background alongside their own ability, allowing them to go up or down the social ladder. Less social stability: can change often via education

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Cultural capital

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Trips abroad, learning languages, exposure to theatre and classical music, sports and experiences that many middle and upper class children have and do. This capital yields reward and turbocharges social reproduction. Our educational system really values the social capital of more wealthy people over poorer or less advantaged people.

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Discrimination magnet

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Based upon race, gender, sexual orientation, culture, citizenship, politics, etc

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Environmental benefits

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Green spaces, parks, recreational areas. Wealthy parts of society have much greater access to environmental benefits. They control laws and regulations to benefit them more than oth populations, and influence politicians and lobbying groups. Poorer and racial minority parts of society get less benefits

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Environmental burden

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Waste facilities, factories, energy production, transportation facilities. High poverty and racial minorities live in areas with high environmental burden. High poverty and disadvantaged areas have fewer alternatives of where they work and live. They have little awareness of the chemical and other risks surrounding them. Leads to asthma and obesity due to particles, pollutants, ozones, lack of access to safe recreational facilities and affordable grocery and shopping facilities.

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Environmental justice

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Looks at there being a fair distribution of the benefits and burdens of the environmental benefits and burdens within society across all social groups and areas of society. Much action currently needs to be taken to resolve this.

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Horizontal movement in social class

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Movement within the same class: staying within the same level while switching jobs. Staying within his social class.

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How do we attempt to address social inequality?

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Government schemes (allowing financial or social support like food stamps for individuals facing considerable hardship), increasing access to education and health, and developing ways of allowing integration to society

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Ill health magnet

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People who are physically or mentally I'll have a difficult time engaging and interacting from society. They can also be dragged into the fringes of society.

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Other social exclusion magnets

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Poverty, ill health, discrimination, lack of education, unemployment, lack of housing

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Poverty Magnet

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Can drag people away from the core parts of society to the fringes. As they move away from the center, these people experience more social exclusion. People become derailed from actively participating in society. They become increasingly denied access to resources

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Segregation

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Separating out groups of people and giving the access to a separate set of resources within the same society. Often these people have substandard services. Maintained by laws or public institutions, or by informal processes or hidden discrimination. Often affects schools and housing

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Social capital

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Building up reliable, useful social connections and networks where you can obtain useful and reliable things in society This capital yields reward and turbocharges social reproduction. Our educational system really values the social capital of more wealthy people over poorer or less advantaged people.

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Social Inequality

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Uneven distribution of resources exists, where the top 20% of the country's most wealthy control 72% of the wealth, and the bottom 20% control 3% of the wealth. We think of society as containing classes: There is an upper, middle, and lower class (based upon jobs/incomes), with decreasing availability to education, healthcare and services respectively. Being a racial minority, an ethnic minority, being very poor, sometimes gender (pay gap, glass cieling) are disproportionally affected by social inequality. Reduced availability to education, to healthcare, and to other services. This inequality often leads to social exclusion

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Social isolation

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A community separates itself out from the mainstream on a voluntary basis. Perhaps to preserve identity based upon cultural or religious identity. Different from social exclusion, where social exclusion involves a lot of external factors that push individuals to the fringes of society

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Social reproduction

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We produce the social inequality across generations. Wealthy families have a lot of financial capital. They can invest and obtain social and cultural capital for their children. Our education system may reinforce social reproduction.

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Vertical movement in social class

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Moving either up or down in social position. Being promoted or demoted causes movement in pay and therefore upward or downward social mobility

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Class Distinctions

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-Based on jobs and incomes -Going up the ladder leads to better education, health care, services (nutriton)

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Minorities

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-Ethnic or ratial puts you at a disadvantage -Lower incomes, lower educational opportunities, reduced access to health care that's substandard -Poverty have higher inequality

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Gender

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-Females have gender pay gap or maybe more poorly represented

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Consequences of Social Inequality

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-Socially excluded -Live in segregated neighbourhoods -Feel politically disempowered -Lead to civil unrest or temp criminal acts

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How to reduce social inequality

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-Government schemes (financial support or social support) -Identify and remove barriers to health care and education -Carry out further research to vulnerable groups to help understand needs and figure out suitable interventions to integrate better into society.

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Social mobility

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-Horizontal movement, in the same class or level -Vertical movement, upward or downward between classes

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Culture Bias

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-The phenomenon of interpreting and judging phenomena by standards inherent to one's own culture.

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Symbolic interactionism

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-Is a sociological perspective that is influential in many areas of the sociological discipline. It is particularly important in microsociology and social psychology. Symbolic interactionism is derived from American pragmatism and particularly from the work of George Herbert Mead.

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Social constructionism

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-Means that our realities are shaped through our experiences and our interactions with others.

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