Crash Course: Social Stratification
What is social stratification? - ANSA system by which society categorizes people, and ranks
them in a hierarchy.
How is stratification universal, but variable? - ANSIt shows up in every society on the planet, but
what exactly it looks like -- how it divides and categorizes people, and the advantages or
disadvantages that come with that division -- vary from society to society.
Why is stratification a characteristic of society, and not a matter of individual differences? -
ANSWe see the effects of social stratification on people, independent of their personal choices
or traits: For example, children of wealthy families are more likely to live longer and be healthier,
to attend college, and to excel in school than children born into poverty.
What is a key principle of stratification? - ANSIt persists across generations.
What is social mobility? - ANSChanges in position within the social hierarchy.
What is horizontal mobility? - ANSChanging positions without changing your standing in the
social hierarchy. This is common in the US.
What is structural mobility? - ANSWhen a large number of people move around the hierarchy
because of larger societal changes. When a recession hits, and thousands of people lose their
jobs and are suddenly downwardly mobile, that's structural mobility.
What does a society's cultural beliefs tell us? - ANSHow to categorize people, and they also
define the inequalities of a stratification system as being normal, even fair. Put simply: if people
didn't believe that the system was right, it wouldn't last.
What is a closed system of stratification? - ANSThey tend to be extremely rigid and allow for
little social mobility. In these systems, social position is based on ascribed status, or the social
position you inherit at birth.
What is a open system of stratification? - ANSThey allow for much more social mobility, both
upward and downward. Social position tends to be achieved, not ascribed.
What is an example of a closed system of stratification? - ANSIndia's caste system. This whole
system was based on a set of strong cultural and religious beliefs, establishing caste as a right
of birth and living within the strictures of your caste as a moral and spiritual duty.
What is an example of an open system of stratification? - ANSThe US class system. They
combine ascribed status and personal achievement in a way that allows for some social
What is social stratification? - ANSA system by which society categorizes people, and ranks
them in a hierarchy.
How is stratification universal, but variable? - ANSIt shows up in every society on the planet, but
what exactly it looks like -- how it divides and categorizes people, and the advantages or
disadvantages that come with that division -- vary from society to society.
Why is stratification a characteristic of society, and not a matter of individual differences? -
ANSWe see the effects of social stratification on people, independent of their personal choices
or traits: For example, children of wealthy families are more likely to live longer and be healthier,
to attend college, and to excel in school than children born into poverty.
What is a key principle of stratification? - ANSIt persists across generations.
What is social mobility? - ANSChanges in position within the social hierarchy.
What is horizontal mobility? - ANSChanging positions without changing your standing in the
social hierarchy. This is common in the US.
What is structural mobility? - ANSWhen a large number of people move around the hierarchy
because of larger societal changes. When a recession hits, and thousands of people lose their
jobs and are suddenly downwardly mobile, that's structural mobility.
What does a society's cultural beliefs tell us? - ANSHow to categorize people, and they also
define the inequalities of a stratification system as being normal, even fair. Put simply: if people
didn't believe that the system was right, it wouldn't last.
What is a closed system of stratification? - ANSThey tend to be extremely rigid and allow for
little social mobility. In these systems, social position is based on ascribed status, or the social
position you inherit at birth.
What is a open system of stratification? - ANSThey allow for much more social mobility, both
upward and downward. Social position tends to be achieved, not ascribed.
What is an example of a closed system of stratification? - ANSIndia's caste system. This whole
system was based on a set of strong cultural and religious beliefs, establishing caste as a right
of birth and living within the strictures of your caste as a moral and spiritual duty.
What is an example of an open system of stratification? - ANSThe US class system. They
combine ascribed status and personal achievement in a way that allows for some social
