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SOCIAL INEQUALITY
What do sociologists mean by the term social
inequality?
Social class, gender, ethnicity and age are all sources of inequality in
the UK. In other words, resources and opportunities are distributed
unequally between individuals and groups based on their class, gender,
ethnicity and age.
How is society stratified by social class?
• Stratification refers to the way society is structured. Society is made
up of a set of layers that are unequally ranked one above the other.
Each layer is smaller but more powerful than the one below it. The
higher the group on the pyramid the more money, status and power
they have.
Upper class
Middle class
Working class
Underclass
How is society stratified by gender?
Feminists highlight that although there is now far less stratification by
gender, gender inequality does still exist for example:
• Women have to perform the triple shift in the home
• There is still sex discrimination in the work place
• Women are stereotyped negatively in the media far more than men
How is society stratified by age?
• Child Labour is now illegal in Britain, it was the norm among workingclass families in the 19th Century and exists in some parts of the
world today.
• The status of older people can also vary between cultures. In some
cultures, getting old is seen as something to be avoided. In other
cultures, older people are seen as having a high status in society as
their experience is valued and appreciated.
• The term ageism describes a situation where someone is treated
differently because of their age. In Britain, there are now regulations
against age discrimination in employment and training.
How is society stratified by ethnicity?
• Over the last 40 years, reforms and policies have addressed inequality based on ethnicity in areas
such as education, employment and criminal justice
• Employers have equal opportunity policies to support equality and diversity.
• As a result of such changes, sociologists believe that ethnic inequality is less significant now, although
others argue that there has been little change in the fields of employment, education and criminal
justice.
• Unemployment rates in England and Wales are higher among people of Pakistani, Bangladeshi and
Black Caribbean heritage than among White British or White Irish people.
• Research has also found that men and women of Pakistani and Bangladeshi heritage have much
worse chances of getting professional and managerial jobs than their white peers of the same age
and educational level.
How does stratification affect people’s life
chances?
Life chances are the chances that a person has of achieving something
good in society. Some people get better life chances than others.
The middle and upper class get far better life chances than the
working class. For example, a middle class child has a better chance
at succeeding in education because their parents have material
capital so can buy them educational resources and can pay for tutors.
Explain Karl Marx’s views on stratification?
Marx said there are two classes in society
1) The bourgeoisie
2) The proletariat
If you own factories, businesses etc then you are bourgeoisie. If you work for
the bourgeoisie then you are proletariat.
The gap between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat only ever gets bigger
and bigger as the proletariat need wages to survive so the bourgeoisie can
make them work harder and harder which increases their profits.
Explain Max Weber’s views on social class?
Weber claims that having money is not as important as what Marx says
it is. For example:
• Members of the aristocracy may have no money/savings but there
title gives them status in society
• Nurses may lack wealth but have a high status for the job they do
• Lottery winners may be very wealthy but don’t have the status to be
taken seriously
How do functionalists explain social class?
• According to functionalists a system of inequality is necessary to make
people work hard.
• People will only work hard if they know that there are jobs available that
pay good salaries. These jobs need to be fulfilled for society to run
smoothly e.g. without doctors society would fall apart
• Not everyone is prepared to work hard to get a good job like becoming a
doctor but this isn’t a problem as society also needs people to do the lesser
jobs in society e.g. being a road sweeper.
• The system is fair and based on meritocracy.
What are the strengths and weaknesses of
the Registrar Generals’ scale?
Social
class
Explanation
I
Professional jobs e.g. solicitors
II
Managerial jobs e.g. teachers
III non
manual
Skilled non manual jobs e.g. secretary
III
manual
Skilled manual jobs e.g. bus driver
IV
Partly skilled jobs e.g. bar tender
V
Unskilled jobs e.g. cleaners
Advantages
Disadvantages
Doesn’t have a
social class for those
who are
unemployed
Doesn’t consider
that some jobs
lower in the scale
such as
secretaries may
now earn more
than teachers
What are the strengths and weaknesses of the NS-SEC
scale?
Advantages
Disadvantages
Includes a
category for those
who are
unemployed
Doesn’t
consider that
some jobs lower
in the scale such
as plumbers
may now pay
more than jobs
higher in the
scale such as
teachers
What is gender?
Gender describes the different social practices,
expectations and ideas that are associated with
masculinity and femininity.
What inequalities are based on gender?
Feminists highlight that although there is now far less stratification by
gender, gender inequality does still exist for example:
• Women have to perform the triple shift in the home
• There is still sex discrimination in the work place. Women end up
hitting the glass ceiling.
• Women are stereotyped negatively in the media far more than men
What is ethnicity?
An ethnic group is a social group whose members share an identity
based on their cultural traditions, religion or language. The term
“ethnic minority” describes a group of people who are from a different
ethnic group from the general population of a country e.g. those of
Indian heritage are an ethnic minority in England.
What inequalities are based on ethnicity?
Ethnic minority groups in Britain are likely to suffer from:
• Racism in the workplace
• Racism in the education system
• Racism in the criminal justice system
What is life course?
The chances of experiencing poverty are linked to age – children and
pensioners are more at risk of poverty than other age groups. This is
expressed in the idea of life cycle of poverty.
At different courses throughout your life you are particularly likely to
experience poverty e.g. when you are child and when you are an old
age pensioner
What inequalities do people face in youth and
in old age?
Youth
Old age
Parents control children, for example:
Older people are seen as incapable and
therefore have restrictions put on them,
for example:
• Young people aren’t given freedom in
where they go
• Young people aren’t given freedom in • Once people get to a certain age it is
how they spend their time
suggested that they don’t drive
• Young people are restricted in the
anymore
activities they can take part in e.g. age • Old people are seen as incapable of
restrictions stop them watching
working
certain films at the cinema
Is wealth distributed fairly through the UK
population?
NO!
IN THE UK:
THE MOST WEALTHY 1% OF PEOPLE OWN 33% OF ALL THE MONEY IN
SOCIETY
THE POOREST 50% OWN 2% OF ALL THE MONEY IN SOCIETY
What is social mobility?
Social mobility is when you are able to move from one social class to
another.
Social mobility can be upwards e.g. going from working class to middle
class or downwards e.g. going from middle class to working class
What is poverty?
• Absolute poverty means not having the basic necessities to live e.g.
• Relative poverty is when someone is poor compared to others in society. They don’t have the things
needed to take part in ordinary activities e.g. a child not having football boots so he can’t join his local team
How do we measure poverty?
The main ways of measuring poverty are:
Income: if you earn below 60% of the average national wage then you
are in poverty
The items/activities you have: if you don’t have items such as a
television or access to the internet then you are seen as being in
poverty
Which social groups are most likely to
experience poverty?
• Lone parent households
• Households with no paid workers
• Families with a child under 11
• Adults living in one-person households, including single pensioners
• Children and young people
• Those who left school aged 16 or under
• Women
What is the culture of poverty?
People who live in poor areas develop a way of life and a set of values that cause
them to stay in poverty. For example, they live for the moment and see no point in
planning ahead. These values prevent them from taking up educational
opportunities or saving for the future
This is linked to the poverty trap
What is the cycle of poverty?
Children born into poor
families
Many will become parents
despite the fact that they
face poverty
As adults they live
in poverty
The children have a deprived
childhood . Lacking material
items due to financial problems
As a result of the financial
deprivation the children are less
likely to get good qualifications.
As young adults their futures are
limited, they tend to take low
paid, unskilled jobs or
experience unemployment.
What is welfare dependency?
The idea that some groups remain in poverty
because the welfare state encourages them to
because it is so generous.
What is the Marxist explanation of poverty?
Poverty exists because the bourgeoisie exploit the proletariat.
The proletariat need to work to survive. The proletariat are in
competition with each other to get jobs so therefore have to agree to
work for low wages knowing that they if they ask for too much money
they will just be replaced.
The bourgeoisie pay the proletariat just enough to survive but never
enough to escape poverty.
How does unemployment and the inadequacies of
the welfare state explain poverty?
Some sociologists argue that benefits are too low. It is argued that the
solution to ending poverty is to provide people in poverty with more
money by increasing the value of pensions and welfare benefits.
How much social mobility is there in Britain?
Points to show there is social mobility
The middle and upper class benefit from
NEPOTISM. This is when those with power favour
relatives or friends, especially by giving them jobs.
It’s not what you know, its who you know- THE OLD
BOYS NETWORK
Points to show there is not social mobility
Aim higher” refers to the initiatives
aimed at widening participation in
UK universities, particularly among
students from poor backgrounds,
minority ethnic groups and disabled
persons”
Are other divisions in society more important
the social class?
It is up to you decide if any of these divisions are more important than
social class:
• AGE
• GENDER
• ETHNICITY
Has Britain got too high a level of welfare
dependency?
In the 1980s and ‘90s, New Right approaches identified the emergence in Britain of
an underclass. The underclass are a group of people who are willing to live off
benefits. Although this may cause them to be in relative poverty they do not mind
as they have enough to get by without having to work.
Some sociologists believe that the welfare state is getting more and more generous
and rewards negative behavior e.g. having unprotected sex with someone you
don’t know and falling pregnant leads to the reward of a free home and child
benefits.
Can you give 3 recent examples from the
news that relate to anything above?
You have to watch/read the news to be able to do this