SA 150 Lecture Notes - Structural Functionalism, Achieved Status, Meritocracy

• School: Simon Fraser University
• Department: Sociology and Anthropology
• Course: SA 150
• Professor: Amie Mc Lean

Document Summary

Thinking critically about how we feel social stratification(ss) How social structures can limit access to resources and opportunities. Important about ss: they look at issues of ss as a product of social processes. Social stratification: persistent patterns of social inequality a. b. People in top strata get to enjoy greater prestige than those in lower. Strata and ineqaulity are built into the system strata. It is a trait of society, not simply a reflection of individual differences. For e. g. children born into wealthy family vs. Emphasis in individual determinism but tends to ignore social barriers. Social research proves that social success is not primarily based on child born into poor fam that are faced (ie barriers based on race, gender and class etc) hard work. Family is what affects social standings. ---inequality in canada is significantly affected by gender and race. : ability to change position in social hierarchy --> more. Research tells us that education is key to social mobility.