Criteria of social stratification

Social stratification is the main theme of sociology. It describes how social strata are divided according to their way of life, income level, whether they have some privileges or not. Sociologists "lent" this term to geologists. There it denotes how the strata of the Earth are arranged in a vertical section. Sociologists, too, like the structure of the Earth, have placed strata - social strata - vertically. Criteria of social stratification in a simplified version are limited to one scale - the level of income. On the lower step is the poor population, on the middle one - the wealthy, and on the upper - the richest. Each stratum includes people, incomes, prestige, power and education of which are approximately the same.

There are the following criteria for social stratification, according to which the population is divided into strata: power, education, income and prestige. They are located on the axis of coordinates vertically and inextricably linked with each other. Also, all the listed criteria of social stratification have their own distinctive dimension.

Revenue is the amount of money that a family or individual receives in a specific time period. This sum of money can be received in the form of a pension, salary, allowance, honorarium, alimony, interest on profit. The income is measured in national currency or in dollars.

When incomes exceed spending on life, they gradually accumulate and become wealth. As a rule, it remains heirs. The difference between income from inheritance lies in the fact that it is received only by working people, whereas inheritance can also be obtained by nonworkers. Accumulated movable or immovable property is the main attribute of the highest class. The rich can not work, whereas the lower and middle classes, on the contrary, can not live without wages. Uneven distribution of income and wealth and causes economic inequality in society.

The next criterion of social stratification is education. It is measured for years, given to school and university.

The third criterion is power. About whether a person has it, you can judge by the number of people that is affected by the decision he made. The essence of power lies in the ability to impose their will on the rest, without taking into account their desire. And whether this will be done is the second question. For example, the president's decision extends to several million people, and the decision of the director of a small school is several hundred. In modern society, power is protected by tradition and law. Many social benefits and privileges are available to it.

People who have power (economic, political, religious), constitute the elite of society. It determines the policy within the state, its relations with other countries so that it is profitable for it. Other classes are deprived of this possibility.

These criteria of social stratification have quite tangible units of measure: people, years, dollars. But prestige is subjective. It depends on which profession or occupation is respected in society. If the country does not conduct research on this topic using special methods, the prestige of the position is determined approximately.

Criteria of social stratification in a complex determine the socio-economic status of a person, that is, his social position. And the status, in turn, determines belonging to a closed society or to an open one. In the first case, the transition from stratum to stratum is impossible. This includes castes and estates. In an open society it is not forbidden to move along the social ladder (anyway, up or down). Classes belong to this system. Such are the historically formed forms of social stratification.