copyright © allyn & bacon 2008 social groups and social stratification (miller chapter 7)
TRANSCRIPT
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social Groups and Social Stratification
(Miller Chapter 7)
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
The BIG Questions
What is the range of cross-cultural variation of social groups?
What is social stratification, and what are its effects on people?
What is civil society?
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
What is a social group? A social group is a
cluster of people beyond the domestic unit who are usually related on grounds other than kinship, although kinship relationships may exist between people in the group
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social group and responsibilities Members of all social groups have
a sense of rights and responsibilities in relation to the group which, if not maintained, could mean loss of membership
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Categories of social groups Primary group – consisting of people
who interact with each other and know each other personally
Secondary group – consisting of people who identify with each other on some common ground but who may never meet with one another or interact with each other personally
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Types of Social Groups
Friendship Clubs and fraternities Countercultural groups Work groups Cooperatives Self-help groups
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Friendship Friendship refers to close social ties
between at least two people that are informal, are voluntary, and (usually) involve personal, face-to-face interaction
Friends are mutually supportive of each other, psychologically and sometimes materially
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Friendship Vary cross culturally
e.g. Racial segregation, gender segregation may limit possibilities for friendships
Influenced by technology Cell phones, internet
May play important roles in economic survival In low income communities Sharing, swapping goods (food and clothing),
baby sitting, lending money between individuals Often refer to each other by kin terms to signify
the importance and significance of these relationships
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Friendship
Usually between social equals
Related to microcultural factors such as gender, age, class, ethnicity, and institutions
Maintained through balanced exchange
May contribute to economic security among the poor
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Clubs and Fraternities Clubs and fraternities are social groups that
define membership in terms of a sense of shared identity and objectives
May comprise of people of the same… Ethnic heritage Occupation or business Religion Gender
Often some sort of initiation to be accepted Anything from paying monetary dues to gang rape
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Clubs and Fraternities Have a variety of functions
Sociability Psychological support Economic and political roles
Sponsoring special events Responding to emergencies Collecting food or money to distribute to those
less fortunate Volunteering in the community in other ways etc.
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Clubs and Fraternities
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Clubs and Fraternities
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Countercultural Groups People who resist conforming to the
dominant cultural pattern – are outside the “mainstream” of society Hippies Youth gangs Body modification groups
Importance of bonding through shared initiation and other rituals
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Youth gangs Youth gang refers to a group of young
people, found mainly in urban areas, who are often considered a social problem by adults and law enforcement officials
Are not always violent May be very formally organized or
informally organized
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Street gangs Street gangs are a formal variety of a
youth gang, often involved in unlawful activities Have leaders and a hierarchy of
membership roles and responsibilities There are a variety of theories for why
individuals join street gangs
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Body Modification Groups Include people who have a sense of
community strengthened through forms of body alteration
Doing something that sets apart from others, to identify with a certain body modification group
Often not accepted by the “mainstream”
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Work Groups Work groups are groups organized to
perform specific tasks Prominent in horticultural and agricultural
communities Building homes, roads, land preparation,
harvesting, or repair of irrigation canals require large inputs of labor that exceed the capability of a single household unit
May provide labor for chiefs Often made up of youths Can be informally or formally organized
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Work Groups
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Cooperatives Cooperatives are a form of
economic group with three key features Co-ops are owned and controlled
by their primary users Surpluses are shared among the
members Decision making follows the
democratic principle of one vote per person
May be beneficial economically and may provide a source of mutual strength and support
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Self-Help Groups
Self-help groups are groups formed to achieve specific personal goals Coping with illness or bereavement Lifestyle change Trying to exercise more or lose weight
Numbers have proliferated in recent years
Can occur in person or online http://dailystrength.org/support-groups
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Self-Help
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social Stratification Social stratification consists of
hierarchical relationships between different groups – as though they were arranged in layers or strata
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social Stratification A person’s position
or standing in society is referred to that person’s status
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social Stratification All social stratification systems have several
commonalities1. People in groups in higher positions have
privileges not experienced in lower-echelon groups
2. Those with greater entitlements are dominant those with lesser entitlements
3. Members of the dominant groups tend – consciously or unconsciously – to seek to maintain their position
4. In spite of efforts to maintain systems of dominance, instances of subversion and rebellion do occur, indicating the potential for agency among the oppressed
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social Stratification
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social Stratification Status in society may be…
Ascribed Based on qualities of a person gained through
birth More “closed” in terms of mobility within the
system “Race” Ethnicity Gender Age Physical ability
Achieved Based on qualities of a person gained through
action More “open” in terms of mobility within the
system Class
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social Stratification
Achieved Status Ascribed Status
Class “Race”
Ethnicity
Caste
Hierarchical relationships among different groups including outright discrimination.
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social Class Social class refers to a person’s or
group’s position in society defined primarily in economic terms
In many cultures, class is a key factor in determining a person’s status, whereas in others, it is less important than, for example, birth into a certain family
Is a secondary group
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Social Class Prevailing ideology in U.S. is that of
meritocratic individualism The belief that rewards go to those who deserve
them Individual has the option of moving up in class if
they work hard Structurists point to the power of economic
class position in shaping a person’s lifestyle and his/her ability to choose a different one Lack of money and other economic resources
Leads to inability to easily afford higher education Leads to inability to easily overcome poverty
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
“Race”, Ethnicity, Gender, and Caste Are secondary groups Highly determined at birth (ascribed),
but there is a slight degree of maneuverability within the system Degree of maneuverability often depends
on the cultural-context Degree of discrimination against these
groups differs depending on the cultural context
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
“Race”
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Problem with the Traditional Concept of “Race” Racial categories have no basis in
biology Biologically, race is not a valid concept,
especially from a genetic perspective Impossible to tell biologically where one
race ends and another begins Genetic variation within racial groups is
much greater than the genetic variation between racial groups
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Modern Day Understanding of Race in Everyday Life Race has been traditionally used as a
biological term, but it has enormous social significance. Influence social identity (along with age
and gender) Plays a huge role in how someone is
initially perceived and judged by others Still a widespread perception that
certain physical characteristics are associated with various cultural attributes
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Modern Day Understanding of Race in Everyday Life Racial classifications based on skin
color, depth of skin tone, skin texture, hair color, facial features, other physical features
Levels of income, levels of education, amount of money may influence racial categorizations “Money whitens” in many areas
People with the same physical features may be considered to be in different “races” depending upon how much money they have
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Racism Based on false belief that intellect and
cultural factors are inherited with physical characteristics.
Uses culturally defined variables to typify all members of particular populations.
Assumes that one's own group is superior.
Racism is a cultural phenomenon (not a biological one) that is found worldwide.
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Racism Pretending that racism doesn’t exist
may allow it continue 1994 – end of apartheid in South Africa
Official end of laws supporting segregation Existence of racism is denied Led to lack of public discussions about racism Allows racial discrimination to continue in subtle
but often just as harmful ways http://www.imdiversity.com/villages/global/civil_
human_equal_rights/SouthAfricaUFS.asp
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Racism
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Example: post-apartheid recovery in South Africa
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Racism Racism exists not only between
different “races” Racism exists even within “races”
There has been a debate within the last few years on whether Obama is black enough… http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VyDNug2W
EI
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Ethnicity Ethnicity is a sense of group membership
based on a shared sense of identity Often self-defined versus categorizing people
in a particular “race” which is defined by others
May be based on the perception of shared history, territory, language, religion, or a combination of these
May experience discrimination based on ethnicity In extreme cases may experience ethnocide =
the annihilation of the culture of an ethnic group by a dominant group
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Gender and Sexism Gender inequalities are based on
perceived differences between people born male or female or somewhere in between
Varies cross culturally Patriarchy – male dominance in
economic, political, social, and ideological domains Common but not universal cross culturally Varies in severity and results
Honor killings are an extreme case Killing a woman whose behavior dishonors her
family
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Gender and Sexism Matriarchy – female dominance in
economic, political, social, and ideological domains Much more rare
Found among the pre-colonial Iroquois Minangkabau
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Caste System The caste system is a social stratification
system linked with Hinduism and based on a person’s birth into a particular group Is an ascribed system Most associated with India Divided into four varnas (their term for their
major social categories) Brahmans - priests Kshatriya - warriors Vaishya - merchants Shudras – laborers
Within each of these varnas are hundreds of locally named social categories called castes
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Caste System There is a fifth group of people called the
dalits, or untouchables. There are about 150 million dalits living in India
today Are the lowest grouping Sometimes placed outside the varnas system
because they are seen as not even being human
Discrimination based on caste is illegal in the Indian constitution, but in practice discrimination persists
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
India’s Varna System: Basic of the Caste/Jati System
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Brahmin priests of India
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Civil Society Civil society consists of diverse interest
groups that function outside the government to organize economic, political, and other aspects of life Can either support or oppose the state
Activist groups Are formed with the goal of protesting certain conditions
such as political repression or human rights violations
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Interaction between Civil Society, Government, and Business
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
New Social Movements New social movements refers to activist
groups of the late 20th and early 21st century Often formed by oppressed minorities
Indigenous peoples Ethnic groups Women Poor
Many use cybertechnology to involve networks wider than their immediate social group Use cybernetworking to…
Broaden their membership Exchange ideas Raise funds
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2008
The BIG Questions Revisited
What is the range of cross-cultural variation of social groups?
What is social stratification, and what are its effects on people?
What is civil society?