We don't get to choose who we are born as. We are simply born into this world, with no say in the matter! Additionally, we do not get to choose where we are born, our gender at birth, our sexuality, our ethnicity, or our family. Unfortunately, though, some of these pre-decided traits impact our position in society later on in life. By looking at social stratification theories, we can see how these aspects may impact us!
Stratification and differentiation focus on the ranking of individuals in society based on aspects such as race, gender, class, or ethnicity.
Let's explore social stratification theories to see how sociologists view them.
- We'll start by reminding ourselves of what stratification and differentiation are.
- Then, we'll take a look at the various main theories which explain the prevalence of hierarchies in society:
- Functionalist theory of social stratification
- Conflict theory of social stratification by Karl Marx
- Weberian theory of social stratification
- Feminist theory of social stratification
- And finally, the postmodernist theory of social stratification.
What are social stratification and differentiation?
The following section will remind you of what social stratification and differentiation are.
Social stratification
Social stratification, also simply known as stratification, is a process that's deeply ingrained in most societies. It refers to the ranking of various social groups on a scale, most commonly along the lines of gender, class, age, or ethnicity.
There are many different types of stratification systems, including slave systems and class systems, the latter of which is much more common in contemporary Western societies like Britain.
Stratification by class tends to be the primary system of classification nowadays, with other forms of stratification taking secondary positions. This means that people's economic rankings have the most impact on their lives and social statuses compared with other forms of inequality, like those related to gender, ethnicity, or age.
Differentiation
Differentiation is, simply put, the acknowledgment that different social roles have different worth and status within a particular society.
While it's clear that there are numerous differences within and between different social groups, what differentiation highlights is that the meaning of those differences is important to understand.
A common example looks at the relationship between a teacher and a student. Here, the differences in the role of each person are rooted in the power relations and inequalities that are normative of teacher-student relationships, where a teacher can direct a student's behaviour but not vice versa.
Fig. 1 - The existence of hierarchy indicates that society is characterised by inequality.
The difference between stratification and differentiation
In some ways, social differentiation is a stepping stone on the path to social stratification. While differentiation considers the difference in status between social groups, stratification looks at these same differences in relative terms, positioning them into a hierarchical system where some groups are higher or lower than others.
In other words, differentiation is the basis of stratification.
Various theories of social stratification
Theories of stratification and differentiation seek to understand why these phenomena exist in society and whether they are inevitable.
Below, we will look in depth at the different sociological perspectives and their views on social stratification.
Functionalist theory of social stratification
Functionalist theories of social stratification are based on Émile Durkheim's assertion that society is a system of interconnected institutions. These institutions have unique purposes, and they all depend on one another to perform their core functions.
The institution of education depends on the family for successful primary socialisation before their children enter school. In turn, the workplace depends on education to equip its workers with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed at their jobs.
So, functionalists argue that stratification exists because there are important roles to be played within the institutions whose core functions keep society running smoothly. Stratification, in this sense, is necessary.
Parsons (1959) gives the example of role allocation in the traditional nuclear family, wherein he argues that:
- Men play the instrumental role of the breadwinner.
- Women play the expressive role of the caregiver.
- These roles are biology-based, and they persist because it's the most efficient way of organising functions and relationships.
Different views of the functionalist theory of social stratification
Davis & Moore (1945) pioneered one of the most influential (but controversial) structural-functionalist perspectives on social stratification. They argued that stratification is inevitable across all societies.
This is because of a 'motivational problem' inherent in societies; they always give the most important and highly-rewarded roles to the most qualified people.
For example, high incomes and job satisfaction are necessary motivations that incentivise people to work hard and take up important functions. This ultimately leads to the creation of hierarchies, meaning that society is meritocratic.
Merriam-Webster defines a meritocracy as:
a system... in which people are chosen and moved into positions of success, power, and influence on the basis of their demonstrated abilities and merit'.
Conflict theory of social stratification by Karl Marx
Marxism is a conflict theory of social stratification based on the writings of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. Marxism is critical of social hierarchies because they privilege certain groups and subordinate others.
At its core, Karl Marx's theory posits that economic relationships are the most important in any society (compared to, say, cultural and political relationships) and that work is the key to affording the means of survival.
While different systems of classification have different ways of organising economic hierarchies, all are based on one's relationship to the means of production. One can be either:
A member of the bourgeoisie (ruling class) with ownership over the means of production, or
A member of the proletariat (working class) with only their labour to offer in exchange for the means of survival.
However, neo-Marxists like Wright & Perrone (1974) say that there's a third class, the petit bourgeoisie (middle class). In the petit bourgeoisie, managers and intellectual professionals are positioned at the higher end, while self-employed workers are positioned at the lower end.
This slightly alters the perspective of social stratification that's held by traditional Marxists, since it includes those who don't own the means of production but also aren't just waged workers.
Weberian theory of social stratification
Max Weber (1922) expanded on the Marxist theory of social stratification. He suggested that there are actually three interconnected aspects of stratification that we need to consider:
Class
According to Weber, class is not as dichotomised as Marx proposed. Weber saw class as more of a continuum related to economic positions, which results in different life chances.
Life chances is a concept that refers to the opportunities people have to improve their quality of life, based on their socioeconomic status.
Status
Status refers to a person's relative social position based on the honour or prestige that's attached to their occupation. For example, a Supreme Court judge is said to have a much higher status than a rubbish collector.
Power
Weber sees the power to influence other people, even if they don't want to be influenced, as the third key dimension of social stratification. Also sometimes known as 'party', this dimension relates to political influence and connections.
The Weberian theory of stratification is based on two key ideas: the distribution of social resources, and the social inequality that's caused by the unequal distribution of those resources. For inequalities to translate into a system of stratification, there need to be:
Multiple, unequal groups,
Systematic inequalities operating between those groups, and
A collective ideology that justifies the existence of the hierarchy.
Feminist theory of social stratification
Like Marxism, feminism is also a conflict theory of stratification. It proposes the existence of a hierarchy where some groups are privileged, and others are oppressed.
Feminists argue that society is characterised by a system of patriarchy. In this society, gender stratification is organised so that men typically have higher statuses than women. This hierarchical stratification is based on concepts like social roles, interests, experiences, and careers.
According to the Oxford Languages dictionary, patriarchy is a societal or governmental system in which men hold power.
A major consideration in the feminist theory of stratification is whether:
class stratification operates along gender lines (where men take up the top position within each class, but an upper-class woman has a higher status than a lower-class man), or
gender is a standalone form of stratification.
Millett (1970) argues for the latter, stating that the patriarchal system makes it so that men and women make up distinct, gendered classes in society (this is called the sex class).
Oakley (1972) suggests that genders form unequal strata in society because they're socialised into 'gendered' norms, values, and interests. For example, girls are given kitchen sets and dolls as children, while boys are encouraged to play sports and help their fathers with handy work. These values are ingrained in children through the language, rewards, and punishments that figures of authority use in response to certain behaviours.
Ultimately, this leads to the differentiation of gender roles, where women take up more nurturing responsibilities (like teaching) and men take up more instrumental responsibilities (this translates into them not being as involved with child-rearing as mothers).
Feminism takes on several forms within and outside of sociology. The three main branches are:
- Traditional feminism
- Marxist feminism
- Radical feminism
Walby (1989) identifies six key structures as the root of a gender stratification system characterised by inequality (i.e. male dominance):
The patriarchal mode of production.
Patriarchal relations in paid work.
Patriarchal state.
Male violence.
Patriarchal relations in sexuality.
Patriarchal culture.
These structures restrict women's life chances and freedom. However, she points out that there are intersectional differences - women with different class, ethnic, and sexual backgrounds will experience these structures differently.
Mirza (1992) studied the experiences of Black female students in school. While some teachers were overtly racist, even those who were genuinely helpful in trying to identify the needs of the students were unable to do so. Although the girls rejected a negative label and strived for academic success, this was not always possible. This is because they often felt uncomfortable seeking help from teachers when they needed it. Black girls were more frequently subjected to negative labels than White girls or Black boys.
Firestone (1970) was a radical feminist who argued that gender stratification is the result of biology. She claimed that women are inherently disadvantaged because they have to give birth and raise their children - this weakens women and makes them dependent on men. As opposed to Marxism, she suggested that the class hierarchy emerges from the gender classification system, not the other way around. Women are financially dependent on men because they can't work during late pregnancy, or their children's period of infancy. The solution, according to Firestone, is 'an artificial womb', so that women are no longer restricted by the biological processes of childbirth.
Fig. 2 - Postmodernists believe that consumption is an important part of identity construction.
Postmodernist theory of social stratification
Generally, postmodernists say that systems of social stratification are much more fluid than modernist sociologists realise. Pakulski & Waters (1996) argue that class no longer has any impact upon livelihoods and behaviours - 'class is dead'. There are two slightly differing perspectives on this:
Class has no relevance to sociological analysis, because other political ideologies have failed to challenge the current democratic landscape.
Class may still have some relevance in sociological analysis, but only to the extent that it forms another part of a person's identity, like age or gender.
Postmodernists who still believe in the significance of class reject its traditional definitions. They say that class is more tied in with a person's identity, and because of this, it's much more fluid and individualised than previously thought. Class needs to be considered a 'de-centred' concept; both one's class, and its importance relative to one's identity, are subjectively perceived by different people in different contexts.
Because identity construction is so closely related to consumption, consumerism is seen as the main cause of differentiation in postmodern society. People can emulate whatever identity they want by purchasing it, which makes the lived experience more individualised and less define-able in group terms. Postmodernism moves away from explaining differentiation and stratification solely in economic terms, framing their occurrence as a result of life choices instead of life chances.
Social Stratification Theories - Key takeaways
- Stratification is a process whereby different groups are ranked differently in a given society. Differentiation is the process of distinguishing between different identities and their associated roles.
- Functionalists see social stratification as inevitable and necessary, as it provides people with the motivation to work hard and achieve well in a meritocratic society. This keeps society running smoothly by providing structure.
- Marxists see stratification as privileging the bourgeoisie and oppressing the proletariat. People are stratified relative to their relationship to the means of production.
- Weber believed stratification to be multi-dimensional, with aspects related to class, status, and power impacting people's life chances.
- Feminists believe that society is stratified by gender, wherein men are dominant and women are subjected to inferior life chances.
References
- Merriam-Webster (2022). Meritocracy. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/meritocracy
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