Social Class
High-Yield Summary
- Social stratification = study of social inequality (who gets what, why), tied to socioeconomic status (SES). Ascribed status = unchosen traits (age, gender, race); achieved status = earned through effort.
- Marxist theory: proletariat overthrows bourgeoisie via class consciousness (shared-interest organizing); false consciousness (misperceiving own position) blocks it. Anomie (Durkheim) = breakdown of social norms/bonds; strain theory (Merton) = anomic conditions produce deviance via strain between goals and legitimate means.
- Social capital (Putnam) = investments in society via networks/trust → situational inequality (SES-based) or positional inequality (network-connectedness-based). Cultural capital (Bourdieu) = benefits from own knowledge/skill. Weak ties (Granovetter) = large numbers of superficial-but-wide-reaching connections; strong ties = few but powerful kinship/peer contacts.
- Intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1989) compounds disadvantage across race/gender/age. Social mobility: intragenerational (within one lifetime) vs. intergenerational (parent → child); vertical (class change) vs. horizontal (same-class change). Meritocracy risk: becoming a plutocracy (rule by the wealthy).
- Poverty: social reproduction passes poverty down generations — culture-of-poverty theory (Oscar Lewis) vs. structural poverty theory (societal 'holes,' not fixed individuals). Absolute poverty = lacking basic necessities; relative poverty = poor compared to surrounding population. Poverty line (Mollie Orshansky) doesn't adjust for geography.
- Spatial inequality: residential segregation, suburbanization (middle class → suburbs), urban decay → urban renewal (often via gentrification, displaces low-SES residents), environmental justice (poor/minority areas near pollution sources). World System Theory (Wallerstein): core nations (high-skill, exploit) vs. peripheral nations (low-skill, exploited) vs. semi-peripheral (transitioning).
Key Terms
- Ascribed vs. achieved status
- Ascribed = assigned by unchosen traits (age, gender, race); achieved = earned through effort.
- Class consciousness vs. false consciousness
- Class consciousness = working class organizes around shared interests; false consciousness = misperceiving one's own position, blocking that organizing.
- Anomie / strain theory
- Anomie (Durkheim) = breakdown of social norms/bonds; strain theory (Merton) = anomic conditions produce deviance.
- Social capital vs. cultural capital
- Social capital (Putnam) = relational, from networks/trust; cultural capital (Bourdieu) = individual, from knowledge/skill.
- Vertical vs. horizontal mobility
- Vertical = movement between social classes (up/down); horizontal = occupation/lifestyle change within the same class.
- Absolute vs. relative poverty
- Absolute = lacking resources for basic necessities; relative = poor only compared to the surrounding population.
- Gentrification
- Upper/middle-class populations buy and renovate deteriorated neighborhoods, displacing low-SES residents.
- World System Theory
- Wallerstein: core nations (high-skill, exploit) vs. peripheral (low-skill, exploited) vs. semi-peripheral (transitioning) nations.
Social Mobility Types
| Type | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Intragenerational | Status change within one person's own lifetime |
| Intergenerational | Status change from parents to children |
| Vertical | Movement between social classes (up or down) |
| Horizontal | Occupation/lifestyle change within the same class |
Common MCAT Trap
- Class consciousness = workers recognizing shared exploitation and organizing; false consciousness = the opposite outcome from the same structure — workers failing to see it.
- Social capital is relational (networks/connections between people); cultural capital is individual (knowledge/skill held by one person) — don't conflate them.
- Someone can be relatively poor (vs. neighbors) without being absolutely poor (basic needs still met) — the classic 'teacher in an expensive neighborhood' scenario.
- A nation exploiting others' labor/resources = core nation; one supplying raw materials/cheap labor to wealthier nations = peripheral nation — semi-peripheral sits in between, transitioning toward core.
Quick Recall
Workers in a factory recognize their shared exploitation and organize to demand better conditions. What concept?
A person leverages their extensive professional network (not their own expertise) to get ahead. Social or cultural capital?
A teacher living in an expensive Manhattan neighborhood is considered poor compared to their neighbors but can still afford necessities. Absolute or relative poverty?
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