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    The division of society to strata is carried out on the basis of the inequality of social distances between them - the main property of stratification. Social strata are built up vertically and in a strict sequence of indicators of well-being, power, education, leisure, consumption.

    In social stratification, a certain social distance is established between people (social positions) and a hierarchy of social layers is formed. Thus, the unequal access of members of society to one or another socially significant scarce resources by establishing on the borders that share social strata, social filters.

    For example, the allocation of social layers can be carried out on the levels of income, knowledge, power, consumption, the nature of labor, the conduct of free time. Social layers allocated in society are estimated in it according to the criterion of social prestige, expressing the social attractiveness of certain positions.

    The simplest stratification model is dichotomous - division of society on elite and mass. In the earliest archaic social systems, the structuring of society on the clans is carried out simultaneously with the establishment of social inequality between them and inside them. So "dedicated" appear, that is, those who are dedicated to certain social practices (priests, elders, leaders) and the uninitudinal - profans. Inside, such a society may further, if necessary, as it is developed to stratum. So the castes, estates, classes, etc. appear.

    Modern ideas about the stratification model established in the society are quite complex - multi-layered (polychotomic), multidimensional (carried out in several axes) and variations (forbidden the many stratification models): centers, quotas, certification, status definition, ranks, benefits, privileges, etc. Preferences.

    Social mobility is the most important dynamic characteristics of society. According to the definition of P. A. Sorokina, "there is any transition of an individual, or a social object, or value created or modified thanks to another social mobility, from one social position to another. However, social agents are not always moved from one position to another, it is possible to move the social positions themselves in the social hierarchy, such a move is called "positional mobility" (vertical mobility) or within the same social layer (horizontal mobility). Along with social filters establishing barriers to social displacement, there are also "social elevators", significantly accelerating this process (in crisis society - revolution, war, conquest, etc.; In normal, stable society - family, marriage, education , property, etc.). The degree of freedom of social movements from one social layer in another largely determines how society is closed or open.

    Warner's theory of 6 layers in American society.

    U. L. Warner put forward the theory of prestige of various layers of society based on the statements of people in each other.

    According to Warner's theory, the population of modern Western society is divided into six layers:

    1. Rich aristocrats.
    2. Millionaires in the first generation.
    3. Highly educated intellectuals (doctors, lawyers), business people (capital owners).
    4. Stationery employees, secretaries, ordinary doctors, school teachers and other "white collars".
    5. Qualified workers ("blue collars"). Electricians, locksmiths, welders, turns, drivers, etc.
    6. Homeless tramps, beggars, criminals and unemployed.

    The difference between historical forms of social stratification

    The historical forms of social stratification differ in the degree of severity of "filters" on the floors of social stratification.

    Caste - These are groups of people in a social hierarchy, where social elevators are completely turned off, so people have no opportunity to build a career.

    Class - These are groups of people in a social hierarchy, where the strict "filters" strongly limit social mobility and slow down the "elevators" movement.

    Layers - These are groups of people in a social hierarchy, where the main "filter" for those who want to make a career is the availability of funds.

    Slavery - It is a social, economic and legal type of man's deprivation of any rights, accompanied by an extreme degree of inequality. There was an antiquity and de jure existed in some countries until the end of the 20th century, de facto in a number of countries exists so far.

    Professional stratification - separation of society on the layers based on the success of the execution of roles, the availability of knowledge, skills, education, etc.

    Manifest in two forms:

    • Hierarchy of the main professional groups (interprofessional stratification);
    • Stratification within each professional group (intraprofessional stratification).

    Interprofessional stratification

    The indicators of interprofessional stratification are:

    • The importance of the profession for the survival and functioning of the group, the social status of the profession;
    • The level of intelligence required for the successful performance of professional activities.

    First of all, the professions associated with the organization and the control of the professional groups themselves are socially significant. For example, the unknown behavior of the soldier or the unscrupiance of the employee of the company will not have a significant impact on the others, but the overall negative status of the group to which they belong is significantly affected by the entire army or firm.

    For the successful performance of the organization and control function, a higher level of intelligence is required than for physical work. Such work is better paid. In any society, more professional is the activities of the implementation of organization and control and intellectual activity. These groups in interprofessional stratification have a higher rank.

    However, there are exceptions:

    1. The ability to impose higher levels of the lowest professional layer to the lower levels of the next, but higher professional layer. For example, the leader of the builders becomes a brigadier, and the brigadiers can overlap on the lowest link of engineers.
    2. A sharp violation of the current ratio of the layers. These are periods of the coup if the layer after will not disappear at all, the previous ratio is rapidly restored.

    Intrapresional stratification

    Representatives of each professional layer are divided into three groups, in turn, each group is divided into many subgroups:

    Intrapressed layers may have different names, but they exist in all societies.

    Social stratification

    Social role

    Social role - Model behavior focused on given status. It can be determined otherwise - as a template type of behavior aimed at fulfilling the rights and obligations prescribed by a specific status.

    The banker surrounding is expecting one type of behavior, and from the unemployed Sov-Own. Social norms - prescribed rules of behavior - characterize exactly the role, and not status. The role is called back dynamic status side. The words''Dinamic'''''m ",''Norma''''''''''''''i point that we are not dealing with social relations, but with social interaction. ᴀᴋᴎᴍᴀᴋᴎᴍ ᴏϭᴩᴀᴈᴏᴍ, we must learn:

    · Social roles and social norms relate to social interaction;

    · Social statuses, rights and obligations, the functional relationship of statuses relate to social relations;

    · Social interaction describes the dynamics of society, social relations - its statics.

    Submitted expected from the king prescribed by custom or document behavior. Τᴀᴋᴎᴍ ᴏϭᴩᴀᴈᴏᴍ, between status and role there is an intermediate link - expectations people (expectation).

    Expectations can somehow fix it, and then they become social norms. In case, of course, they are considered as mandatory requirements (prescriptions). And may not be recorded, but they do not cease to be expectations

    Social stratification - Central theme of sociology. It describes social inequality in society, the business of social layers in terms of income and lifestyle, by the presence or absence of privileges. In primitive society, the inequality was insignificant, in connection with this, the stratification there was almost absent. In complex societies, inequality is very strong, it divided people to income, the level of education, power. There were castes, then class, and later - classes. In some societies, the transition from one social layer (strata) to another is prohibited; There are society where such a transition is limited, and there are society where it is fully resolved. Freedom of social displacements (mobility) determines how society is closed or open.

    The term''Statism'''' came from geology, where he denotes the location of the Earth's layers vertically. Sociology has liked the structure of society for the structure of the Earth and placed social layers (strata) also vertically. The base is the ladder of income: the poor occupy a lower step, the prosperous groups of the population are average, and the rich - upper.

    Each stratum includes only those people who have approximately the same income, power, education and prestige. Inequality distances between statuses is the main property of stratification. She has four measuring linases, or axis coordinates. All of them are vertically and next to each other:

    · Power;

    · Education;

    · Prestige.

    Income - The number of monetary proceeds of an individual or family for a certain period of time (month, year). The income is called the amount of money obtained in the form of salaries, pensions, benefits, alimony, fees, contributions from profits. Income measured in rubles or dollars that receive a separate individual (individual income) or family (family revenue) During a certain period of time, let's say one month or year.

    On the axis of the coordinates, we postpone equal gaps, for example, up to $ 5,000, from 5001 to $ 10,000, from $ 10001 to $ 15000 and soard to $ 75,000 and higher.

    Revenues are often spent on maintaining life, but if they are very high, they accumulate and turn into wealth.

    Wealth - Accumulated income, i.e., the amount of cash or emitted deneᴦ. In the second case, they are called movable (car, yacht, securities, etc.) and real estate (house, works of art, treasure) property. Usually wealth is inherited. The inheritance can receive both working, and non-working, and the income is all working. In addition to them, income has pensioners and unemployed, but it is not in beggars. Rich can work and do not work. In the same case, they are owners, because they have wealth. The main property of the highest class is not income, but accumulated property. The share of salary is small. In the middle and low classes, the main source of existence is income, since the first if there is wealth, it is insignificant, and the second is not at all. Wealth allows you to do not work, and its absence forces to work for salaries.

    Wealth and income are distributed unevenly and mean economic inequality. Sociologists interpret it as an indicator that different groups of the population have unequal life chances. ʜᴎʜᴎ buy different quantities and different quality food, clothing, housing, etc. People who have more money feed on, live in more comfortable homes, prefer a personal car with public transport, can afford an expensive rest, etc. In addition to explicit economic advantages, the wealthy layers have hidden privileges. The poor is shorter than life (even if they enjoy all the benefits of medicine), less educated children (even if they go to the same public schools), etc.)

    Education It is measured by the number of years of study in public or private school or university. Let's say, the elementary school means 4 years, incomplete average - 9 years, full of average -11, college - 4 years, University - 5 years, graduate school - 3 years, doctoral studies - 3 years. ᴀᴋᴎᴍᴀᴋᴎᴍ ᴏϭᴩᴀᴈᴏᴍ, the professor has behind the back of more than 20 years of formal education, and the plumber may not have eight.

    Power It is measured by the number of people on which the decision you are applied. (power - The ability to impose your will or solutions to other people regardless of their desire). Decisions of the President of Russia apply to 148 million people (whether they are being carried out - another question, although it concerns the issue of power), and the brigadier decisions are 7-10 people.

    Essence authorities - In the ability to impose their will contrary to the desire of other people. In a complex society power institutionalized, i.e. is guarded by laws and tradition, surrounded by privileges and wide access to social benefits, allows to take vital solutions for society, incl. Laws are usually advantageous to the highest class. In Societies, people who have one or another type of power - political, economic or religious, are institutionalized elita. It defines the domestic and foreign policy of the state, directing it into a favorable direction for itself, which other classes are deprived of.

    Three stratification scales - income, education and power - have quite objective units of measurement: dollars, years, people. Prestige stands out of this series, as it is a subjective indicator.

    Prestige - Respect that this or that profession is enjoyed in public opinion, the position of occupation. The profession of a lawyer is prestigious to the profession of the steelmaker or plumbing. Position of the President of the Commercial Bank prestigious the position of the cashier. All professions, classes and positions that exist in this society can be located on top of the professional prestige stairs. As a rule, professional prestige is determined by us intuitive, approximately. But in some countries, before in the US, sociologists measure it using special methods. ʜᴎʜᴎ studies public opinion, compare various professions, analyze the statistics and eventually get a precise scale of prestige.

    Historical stratification types

    Income, power, prestige and education determine the cumulative socio-economic status, i.e. the position and place of a person in society. In this case status Speakers a summary of stratification. Previously, we noted his key role in the social structure. Now it turned out that he performs a crucial role in sociology as a whole.

    Ascribed status characterizes a rigidly fixed stratification system, i.e. closed society In which the transition from one stratch to another is practically prohibited. Such systems include slavery, custom and estate system. The status achieved characterizes the moving system of stratification, or open Society, Where free transitions of people down and up the social staircase are allowed. Such a system includes classes (capitalist society). Such historical stratification types.

    the closed society is such a society where the movement of individuals or information from one country to another is excluded or significantly limited. Slavery - Historically, the first social stratification system. Slavery arose in ancient times in Egypt, Babylon, China, Greece, Rome and remained in a number of regions almost to the present. Like slavery, custom system characterizes the closed society and strict stratification Paste They call the social group (stratum), whose membership is obliged exclusively by birth. He cannot move from one caste to another during life. For this, he needs to be born again. Estate - Social group possessing fixed custom or legal law and inherited rights and duties. It is important to notice that for the estate system, which includes several strata, is characterized by a hierarchy, expressed in the inequality of their position and privileges Class Society The situation is different: no legal instruments regulate the place of the individual in the social structure. Each person is free to move, if there are abilities, education or income, from one class to another.

    Social stratification is the concept and types. Classification and features of the category "Social stratification" 2017, 2018.

    Introduction

    For human society at all stages of its development, inequality was characterized. Structured inequalities between different groups of people sociologists are called stratification.

    Social stratification is a differentiation of a certain totality of people (population) into classes in a hierarchical rank. Its basis and essence - in the uneven distribution of rights and privileges, responsibility and obligations, the presence and absence of social values, power and influence among the members of a particular community. Specific forms of social stratification are diverse and numerous. However, all their diversity can be reduced to three main forms: economic, political and professional stratification. As a rule, they are all closely intertwined. Social stratification is the constant characteristics of any organized society.

    In real life, the inequality of people plays a huge role. Inequality is a specific form of social differentiation, in which individual individuals, layers, classes are located on different steps of a vertical social hierarchy, have unequal life chances and opportunities to meet needs. Inequality is a criterion, with which we can place some groups above or below others. Social structure arises over the public division of labor, and social stratification - about the public distribution of labor results, i.e. social benefits.

    Stratification is closely related to the dominant system of valuables in society. It forms a regulatory scale of estimating various types of human activity, based on the ranking of people in the degree of social prestige.

    Social stratification performs a double function: acts as a method for identifying the layers of this society and at the same time representing his social portrait. Social stratification is characterized by a certain stability within a particular historical stage.

    1. The term stratification

    Social stratification is the central theme of sociology. It describes social inequality in society, dividing social layers in terms of income and lifestyle, for the presence or absence of privileges. In primitive society, the inequality was insignificant, so the stratification there was almost absent. In complex societies, inequality is very strong, it divided people to income, the level of education, power. There were castes, then class, and later - classes. In some societies, the transition from one social layer (strata) to another is prohibited; There are society where such a transition is limited, and there are society where it is fully resolved. Freedom of social displacements (mobility) determines how society is closed or open.

    The term "stratification" came from geology, where it denotes the location of the Earth's layers by vertical. Sociology has liked the structure of society for the structure of the Earth and placed social layers (strata) also vertically. The base is the ladder of income: the poor occupy a lower step, wealthy groups of the population are middle, and the rich - upper.

    Each stratum includes only those people who have approximately the same income, power, education and prestige. Inequality distances between statuses is the main property of stratification. Social stratification of any society includes four scales - income, education, power, prestige.

    Income - the number of monetary proceeds of an individual or family for a certain period of time (month, year). The income is called the amount of money obtained in the form of wages, pensions, benefits, alimony, fees, deductions from profits. The income is measured in rubles or dollars, which receive a separate individual (individual income) or family (family income) during a certain period of time, say one month or year.

    Revenues are most often spent on maintaining life, but if they are very high, they accumulate and turn into wealth.

    Wealth - accumulated income, i.e. Number of cash or empty money. In the second case, they are called movable (car, yacht, securities, etc.) and real estate (house, works of art, treasure) property. Usually wealth is inherited. Inheritance can receive both working, and non-working, and income - only working. In addition to them, income has pensioners and unemployed, but it is not in beggars. Rich can work and do not work. In the same case, they are owners, because they have wealth. The main property of the highest class is not income, but accumulated property. The share of salary is small. At the middle and low classes, the main source of existence is income, since the first if there is wealth, it is insignificant, and its second is not at all. Wealth allows you to do not work, and its absence forces to work for salaries.

    Wealth and revenues are distributed unevenly and mean economic inequality. Sociology interpret it as an indicator that different groups of the population have unequal life chances. They buy different quantities and different quality food, clothing, housing, etc. People who have more money feed on, live in more comfortable homes, prefer a personal car with public transport, can afford dear vacation, etc. But besides explicit economic advantages, the wealthy layers have hidden privileges. The poor is shorter life (even if they enjoy all the benefits of medicine), less educated children (even if they go to the same public schools), etc.

    Education is measured by the number of years of study in public or private school or university. Let's say, the elementary school means 4 years, incomplete average - 9 years old, full of average - 11, college - 4 years, university - 5 years, graduate school - 3 years, Doctoral degree - 3 years. Thus, the professor has over the back for more than 20 years of formal education, and the plumber may not have eight.

    Power is measured by the number of people on whom the decision taken by you is applied (power - the ability to impose your will or solving other people regardless of their desire).

    The essence of power is in the ability to impose His will contrary to the desire of other people. In a complex society, the authorities are institutionalized, i.e. It is protected by laws and tradition, surrounded by privileges and wide access to social benefits, makes it possible to take vital solutions for society, including laws, as a rule, favorable to the highest class. In all societies, people who have one or another type of power - political, economic or religious, are the institutionalized elite. It represents the domestic and foreign policy of the state, directing it into a favorable direction for itself, which other classes are deprived of.

    Three stratification scales - income, education and power - have quite objective units of measurement: dollars. Years, people. Prestige stands out of this series, as it is a subjective indicator.

    Prestige - respect, what a public opinion is used by the profession, the position of occupation. The profession of a lawyer is prestigious to the profession of the steelmaker or plumbing. Position of the President of the Commercial Bank prestigious the position of the cashier. All professions, classes and positions that exist in this society can be located on top of the professional prestige stairs. As a rule, professional prestige is determined by us intuitive, approximately.

    2. Social stratification systems

    Regardless of the forms that the social stratification takes place, its existence is universally. Four basic social stratification systems are known: slavery, caste, clans and classes.

    Slavery is an economic, social and legal form of consolidating people, bordering the full of the powerlessness and extreme degree of inequality. An integral line of slavery is the ownership of some people others.

    Usually indicate three reasons for slavery. First, a debt obligation, when a person who was not able to pay debts, went into slavery to his lender. Secondly, violation of laws when the execution of the killer or robber was replaced by slavery, i.e. The culprit was transferred to the injured family as compensation for the caused by the grief or damage. Third, war, raids, conquering, when one group of people won the other and the winners used part of the prisoners as slaves.

    Terms of slavery. Terms of slavery and slavement differed significantly in different regions of the world. In some countries, slavery was a temporary state of a person: she worked on his owner, the slave became free and had the right to return to his homeland.

    General characteristics of slavery. Although the slave-ownership practice was different in different regions and in different epochs, but regardless of whether the result was a consequence of non-declared debt, punishment, military captivity or racial prejudice; Whether it was lifelong or temporary; Inheritance or not, the slave was still the property of another person, and the system of laws secured the status of a slave. Slavery served as a major delimitation between people, clearly indicating which person is free (and the law receives certain privileges), and what a slave (not having privileges).

    Slavery has historically evolved. There are two forms:

    Patriarchal slavery - the slave had all the rights of the younger family member: lived in one house with the owners, participated in public life, marriage with free; He was forbidden to kill;

    Classical slavery - the slave lived in a separate room, did not participate in anything, did not enter into marriage and the family did not have, he was considered the property of the owner.

    Slavement is the only form of social relations in history, when one person acts as another, and when the lowest layer is deprived of all rights and freedoms.

    Pascal - call the social group (stratum), membership in which a person is obliged solely by his birth.

    The achieved status is not able to change the place of the individual in this system. People who belong to a group with a low status will always have this status regardless of what they personally managed to achieve in life.

    Societies for whom such a form of stratification is characterized, seek to clearly preserve the boundaries between the castes, therefore endogania is practiced here in the framework of its own group - and there is a ban on intergroup marriages. To prevent contacts between the Caste, such societies produce complex rules relating to ritual purity, according to which it is believed that communication with representatives of the lower castes defile the highest Cast.

    Clan - genus or related group associated with economic and public bonds.

    Clan system is typical for agrarian societies. In such a system, each individual is associated with an extensive social network of relatives - clan. The clan is something like a very branched family and has similar features: if the clan has a high status, the same status has an individual belonging to this clan; All means belonging to the clan, scarce or rich, equally belong to each member of the clan; The allegiance of the clan is a lifelong responsibility of each of his member.

    Clans resemble castes: belonging to the clan is determined by birth and is lifelong. However, unlike caste, marriages are fully allowed between different clans; They can even be used to create and strengthen alliances between clans, since the obligations imposed by marriage to the relatives of the spouses are able to unite members of two clans. The processes of industrialization and urbanization turn the clans into more changeable groups, in the end, replacing the clans with social classes.

    Clans are especially paid during the risk, as can be seen from the following example.

    The class is a large social group of people who do not speak the means of production, which occupies a certain place in the system of public division of labor and characterized by a specific way to obtain income.

    Stratification systems based on slavery, caustics and clans are closed. The borders separating people are so clear and firm that they do not leave people the opportunity to move from one group to another, with the exception of marriages between members of various clans. The class system is much more open, since it is based primarily on money or material property. Belonging to the class is also determined at birth - the individual receives the status of his parents, however, the social class of the individual during his life may change depending on what he managed (or failed) to achieve in life. In addition, there are no laws that determine the occupation or profession of an individual depending on the birth or prohibiting marriage with representatives of other social classes.

    Consequently, the main characteristic of this social stratification system is the relative flexibility of its boundaries. Class system leaves opportunities for social mobility, i.e. For movement up or down the social staircase. The presence of potential to increase its social status, or class, is one of the main driving forces that encourage people to learn well and work hard. Of course, a marital status inherited by a person since birth can be able to identify and exclusively disadvantageous conditions that will not leave him the chances to rise in life too high, and provide such privileges in life, and to provide such privileges that it will be almost impossible to "roll down" for it.

    What only the typology of classes came up with scientists and thinkers. The first model was offered antique philosophers Plato and Aristotle.

    Today in sociology offers different typology of classes.

    Since Lloyd Warner has developed its classes concept, has passed more than half a century. Today, it has been replenished with another layer and in final form represents a sevenipunction scale.

    Upper - the highest class includes "blood aristocrats", which emigrated to America 200 years ago and, for many generations, irreparable riches were copied. They are distinguished by a special way of life, greatness manners, impeccable taste and behavior.

    The Nizhny - the highest class consists mainly of "new rich" who have not yet managed to create powerful generic clans who seized the highest posts in industry, business, politics. Typical representatives are a professional basketball player or a pop star receiving tens of millions, but in the genus who have no "blood aristocrats".

    Upper - the middle class consists of small bourgeoisie and highly paid professionals, somehow large lawyers, famous doctors, actors or telecommattors. The lifestyle is approaching the greatness, but to afford a fashionable villa on the most expensive resorts of the world or a rare collection of artistic rarities they cannot yet.

    Medium - the middle class represents the most massive layer of developed industrial society. It includes all well-paid employees, medium paid professionals, in one word, people of intellectual professions, including teachers, teachers, middle managers. This is the backbone of the information society and the service sector.

    Nizhny - the middle class was lower employees and qualified workers, which, according to the nature and content of their work, are rather not to physical, but to mental work. A distinctive feature is a priority lifestyle.

    Upper - the lowest class includes medium and unqualified workers engaged in mass production, in local factories living in relative delivery, but manner of behavior significantly different from the highest and middle class. Distinctive features: low education (usually complete and incomplete average, secondary special), passive leisure (watching TV, game card or domino), primitive entertainment, often excessive use of alcohol and non-veterinary vocabulary.

    The lower class is the inhabitants of cellars, attics, slums and others are little suitable for living. They do not have any primary education, most often interrupt with random earnings or begging, constantly feel the complex of inferiority due to hopeless poverty and constant humiliation. They are customary to be called "social bottom", or underclass. Most often, their row are recruited from chronic alcoholics, former prisoners, homeless people, etc.

    The term "upper - the highest class" means the top layer of the highest class. In all twisted words, the first word denotes a stratum or layer, and the second is the class to which the data layer refers. "The upper - the lowest class" is sometimes called as it is, and sometimes designate the working class.

    In sociology, the criterion for assigning a person to a particular layer is not only income, but also the volume of power, the level of education and the prestige of classes, which suggest a specific lifestyle and behavior style. You can get a lot, but all the money to spend or drink. Not only the arrival of money is important, but their consumption, and this is already a lifestyle.

    The working class in a modern post-industrial society includes two layers: the bottom - the middle and the top is the lowest one. All employees of mental labor, no matter how little they receive, are never credited to the lower class.

    The middle class is always distinguished from the working class. But the working class is distinguished from the lowest, where non-working, unemployed, homeless, beggars, etc. can be included. As a rule, highly qualified workers are incorporated not in the working class, but in the medium, but in its lowest stratum, which is mainly fill in the mainly qualified workers of mental labor - employees.

    Another option is possible: the workers do not include in the middle class, but constitute two layers in the overall working class. Experts are included in the next layer of the middle class, because the very concept of "specialist" suggests at least an education in college. Upper middle class stratum fill mainly "professionals."

    3. Stratification profile

    and stratification profile.

    Thanks to the four scattering scales, the sociologist is able to create such analytical models and tools, with which it is possible to explain not only the individual status portrait, but also a collective, i.e. the dynamics and structure of society as a whole. For this, two concepts that are similar in their appearance are offered. But differ in internal content, namely the stratification profile and the stratification profile.

    Thanks to the stratification profile, it is possible to more deeply consider the problem of status incompatibility. Status incompatibility is a contradiction in the status set of one person, or a contradiction in the status characteristics of one status set of one person. Now, to explain this phenomenon, we have the right to connect the category stratification and express the status incompatibility in stratification characteristics. If some concepts showed a specific status, for example, professors and a policeman, go beyond the boundaries of their (average) class, the status incompatibility can also be interpreted as stratification incompatibility.

    Stratification incompatibility causes a sense of social discomfort, which can move into frustration, frustration - to unsatisfactory by its place in society.

    The smaller the status and stratification incompatibility in the society, the more stable.

    So, the stratification profile is a graphical expression of the position of individual status on four stratification scales.

    From the stratification profile it is necessary to distinguish another concept - the stratification profile. Otherwise, it is called the profile of economic inequality.

    The stratification profile is a graphic expression of the percentage of higher, middle and low classes in the country's population.

    Conclusion

    According to the evolutionary theory of stratification, as the situation and the development of the culture, this situation comes, in which no individuals can master all aspects of social activities, work is separated and specialized activities. Some activities turn out to be more important requiring long-term preparation and relevant remuneration, others are less important and therefore more massive, easily replaceable.

    The concept of stratification, in contrast to the Marxist idea of \u200b\u200bclasses and the construction of classotional society, do not postulate social equality, on the contrary, they consider inequality as a natural state of society, therefore strata not only differ in their criteria, but also placed in a strict system of subordination of one layers to others, privileged The provisions of the highest and subordinate position of the lower. In the dosage form, even the idea of \u200b\u200bsome social contradictions, which are neutralized by the possibilities of social mobility of vertical type, i.e. It is assumed that individual talented people can move from the lower layers to the highest, as equally and vice versa, when low-effective people occupying places in the highest sections of society due to the social situation of their parents can open and be in the lowest layers of the social structure.

    Thus, the concepts of the social layer, stratification and social mobility, complementing the concept of class and class structure of society, specify the overall understanding of the structure of society and help detail the analysis of social processes under certain economic and socio-political formations.

    That is why the study of stratification is one of the most important areas of social anthropology. According to the Oxford Dictionary of Sociology, three main tasks of such studies can be distinguished: "The first goal is to establish to what extent class or status systems dominate the company's level, claiming ways of social action. The second task is to analyze class and status structures and Factors defining the process of formation of classes and statuses. And the last, social stratification documented the inequality of conditions, opportunities and income, as well as methods with which groups support class or status borders. In other words, it puts the question of social closure (CLOUSURE) and Learns strategies through which some groups support their privileges, and others seek to access them. "

    List of used literature

      Avdokushin E.F. International Economic Relations: Textbook - M.: Economist, 2004 - 366 p.

      Bulatova A.S. World Economy: Textbook - M.: Economist, 2004 - 366 p.

      Lomakin V.K. World Economy: Textbook for universities. - 2nd ed., Pererab. and add. - M.: Uniti-Dana, 2001. - 735 p.

      Moiseev S.R. International monetary and credit relations: a training manual. - M.: Publishing House "Business and Service", 2003. - 576 p.

      Rajabova ZK World Economy: Textbook.2-E Ed., Pererab. and add. - M.: Infra-M, 2002. - 320c.

    1. Social stratification (12)

      Abstract \u003e\u003e Sociology

      In sociology is widely used conceptsocial stratification". When considering the problem social inequalities are quite acquitted to come ... principle, then they are social layers. IN social stratification Trends inheritance of positions. ...

    2. Social stratification (11)

      Abstract \u003e\u003e Sociology

      Groups of people in sociology are widely used concept « social stratification ". Social stratification - (from lat. Stratum - ... three fundamental concepts sociology - social structures social composition I. social stratification. In domestic ...

    3. Social stratification as a tool social Analysis

      Coursework \u003e\u003e Sociology

      Between concepts « social stratification" and " social structrore ", as well as V. Ilyin holds a parallel between concepts « social stratification" and " social inequality". Social

    Describing and analyzing inequality, uses a more subtle concept of "social stratification". Stratification is associated with methods by which inequality is transmitted from one generation to another; At the same time, various layers of society and class are formed. Inequality associated with stratification, exists in all societies, even in the most primitive and vested in a community.

    Rich, as a rule, occupy the most privileged posts and professions. Leaders, kings, kings, presidents, political leaders, major businessmen, scientists and artists make up the so-called Elite of society.TO middle layers Doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, qualified employees, teachers, highly skilled workers. Lower layers Societies cover non-qualified, unemployed, beggars, people without certain classes.

    Signs of strata

    An important structural feature of the strata is not only its function, but also income is the amount of monetary revenues of an individual or family for a certain period of time (month, year) in the form of wages, pensions, benefits, alimony, fees, dividends. If the incomes are very high, they can accumulate and turn into wealth, which is expressed in cash or empty-real estate (house, enterprise, land) and movable (car, yacht, securities). Wealth is inherited, its owners may not work. In secondary and low classes, the main source of existence is income, and wealth is missing or it is insignificant.

    In a closed society (in particular, the slave-owned and feudal), the transition from one stratum into another is strictly limited. In modern (open) society, relatively free transitions of people down and up the social staircase are allowed.

    Changing the position of the individual in the stratification system Sociology describes using the concept of individual mobility - vertical or horizontal.

    More P.A. Sorokin called vertical or horizontal mobility a change in the social position of an individual, which is accompanied by an increase or decrease in its position in society. The human transition to a higher stratum is called ascending vertically social mobility. Downward social mobility This means that a person descended on the social staircase down. Horizontal mobility - This is a change in the social status of an individual, which does not lead to an increase or decrease in its position: a person simply changed the work, for example, the taxi driver became a bus driver.

    The reorganization of the social structure of society creates new opportunities for mobility development. Thus, in developed countries, there are currently an increase in the number of employees in the field of service and a decrease in the number of physical labor workers at factories and agriculture. The salary in the field of service is higher, so those who in the past engaged in physical labor, and now switched to the service area, raised not only income, but also their position.

    The system may vary. As a result of the October Revolution of 1917, the aristocracy was completely eliminated - she lost their power and privileges, many of her representatives were destroyed or emigrated. However, as experience shows, change the stratification system is not only a revolutionary way. Some countries of Europe were transformed into a modern industrial society in peaceful way - as a result of evolutionary transformations.

    In Russia, before the revolution of 1917, the official division of the country's population is considered official, and not class. It was subdivided into two main estates - applied (peasants, breasts) and non-ferret (nobility, clergy). Inside each class were smaller units. According to the census of 1897, the entire population of the country (125 million people) was distributed according to the following estates: nobles (1.5% of the population), clergy (0.5%), merchants (0.3%), gentlemen (10.6% ), peasants (77.1%), Cossacks (2.3%).

    In Russian cities, 14% of the population lived (for comparison: in England - 78%, in the USA - 42%), the material level of the population was low. Objective conditions for the emergence of the middle class, which acts as a stabilizer of social relations, was not in Russia.

    After the revolution of 1917, the social structure of society has changed significantly. The nationalization of land and enterprises meant the domination of state ownership and, consequently, the formation of a new class - party-state bureaucracy, which "on behalf of the people" has been appointed to key posts in industry, culture and science. The new stratus managed by the means of production and carried out control over all society. Employees (employees, workers, peasants, intelligentsia) possessed property nominally, their lifestyle was forced to ascetic: low incomes, limited consumption structure, recurrence, low level of medical care.

    The social interlayer between the highest and lower stratas formed social groups serving the nomenclature: mid-level managers, ideological workers, journalists, successful artists, lawyers, writers, diplomats, military and fleet commanders. The "serving" stratist occupied a place that usually belonging to the average class, but it was different from the middle class in the West: the base of the middle class in the West was privately owned, which more provided its political and social independence. Thus, Soviet society was not socially homogeneous and was a hierarchically ordered inequality (but it was not as polarized as in the current Russian conditions).

    Since the beginning of the 1990s. Russia chose a course for market relations and class society by the type of Western. He began to gradually form the highest class of owners, which makes up a few percent of the population, the social bases were formed, the standard of living of which is located below the poverty line.

    Submitted by some sociological studies, the stratification model of the Russian society is as follows:

    • elite - the ruling political and economic layer;
    • upper layer - large and medium-sized entrepreneurs, director of large and medium-sized privatized enterprises, other sub-elements;
    • medium layer - representatives of small businesses, qualified professionals, secondary management link, officers;
    • basic layer - Private specialists, assistants of specialists, workers, peasants, employees of trade and service;
    • lower layer - poorly qualified and unskilled workers temporarily unemployed;
    • social bottom.

    The specific percentage of the layers in this model can be significantly changed, taking into account the change in the family status, a significant share of non-working pensioners and people with disabilities, which are low-increhensible layers of society. Due to the economic crisis of the late 2000s. The middle layer has decreased, while the lowest - increased.

    According to Z.T. Golenkova (Institute of Sociology of the Russian Academy of Sciences), the main changes in the social structure in the post-Soviet period are associated with three trends, the basis of which was the basic changes in the forms of ownership:

    • the emergence of new social communities on the basis of pluralization of ownership forms - layers of hired workers and engineering and technical workers employed in the public and private sectors of the economy for labor agreements or constantly under employment contracts; employees of mixed enterprises and organizations with the participation of foreign capital, etc.;
    • transformation of the state-owned property and a change on this basis, the position of traditional class-group communities - their boundaries, quantitative and qualitative characteristics, the occurrence of border and marginal layers, etc.;
    • the appearance of the strata layer based on the interaction of various forms of ownership: managers - a new management layer, new elite, medium layers, unemployed, etc.

    These strata are at various levels of their "maturation". For example, elite due to the sustained traditions of the former being legalized pretty quickly, retaining privileges and power. Managers although they relate to middle layers, but largely autonomous. Therefore, it is advisable to draw differences between them and other groups that make up these layers - engineers, representatives of various detachments of specialists, highly qualified workers. The latter are still far from becoming an integrated group of medium-sized layers; Time and social reforms are needed that can change the structure of employment to a significant part of the population.

    In Russia, the transformation process is accompanied by the deepening of social inequality and marginalization of a significant part of the population (this process in the literature was called "Brazilization"). The formation of a bipolar sociostratic structure is manifested in the disposal of the population on the property, in socio-territorial stratification on the signs of both inequalities in well-being and the development of social infrastructure and other conditions of life. In addition, the polarization of the entrepreneurial circles themselves is significant. Small business is experiencing serious difficulties due to corruption, criminalization of the environment, investment deficiencies. As a result, the share of permanent workers in small business is reduced, conflicts arise between the new estate of owners and bureaucracy.

    Social transformation in Russia determines not only the emergence of previously not existing strata - large owners, medium and minor entrepreneurs, managers, exchange players, "new poor", marginalov, andersclass, but also their adaptation to the changed statutory functions, reorienting group and individual identity.

    Thus, in sociology strati Call groups of people who have similar characteristics in the social space. This is the most universal and widespread concept, which makes it possible to allocate any fractional elements in the structure of society for a totality of a variety of socially significant criteria. Specific varieties of strata can be considered classes, estates and castes. Social stratification Reflects the presence of inequality in society. It shows that strata exist in different conditions and people have unequal capabilities to meet their needs.

    Social stratification is the central theme of sociology. It describes social inequality in society, dividing social layers in terms of income and lifestyle, for the presence or absence of privileges. In primitive society, the inequality was insignificant, so the stratification there was almost absent. In complex societies, inequality is very strong, it divided people to income, the level of education, power. There were castes, then class, and later - classes. In some societies, the transition from one social layer (strata) to another is prohibited; There are society where such a transition is limited, and there are society where it is fully resolved. Freedom of social displacements (mobility) determines how society is closed or open.

    The term "stratification" came from geology, where he denotes the location of the layers of the Earth vertically. Sociology has liked the structure of society for the structure of the Earth and placed social layers (strata) also vertically. The base is the ladder of income: the poor occupy a lower step, wealthy groups of the population are middle, and the rich - upper.

    Rich occupy the most privileged posts and have the most prestigious professions. As a rule, they are better paid and are associated with mental labor, execution of management functions. Leaders, kings, kings, presidents, political leaders, major businessmen, scientists and artists make up the elite of society. The middle class in modern society includes doctors, lawyers, teachers, qualified employees, middle and small bourgeoisie. To the lower layers - unqualified workers, unemployed, beggars. The working class, according to modern ideas, is an independent group that occupies an intermediate position between the middle and lower classes.

    Income - the number of monetary proceeds of an individual or family for a certain period of time (month, year). The income is called the amount of money obtained in the form of salaries, pensions, benefits, alimony, fees, contributions from profits. Revenues are most often spent on maintaining life, but if they are very high, they accumulate and turn into wealth.

    Wealth - accumulated income, i.e., the number of cash or extractable money. In the second case, they are called movable (car, yacht, securities, etc.) and real estate (house, works of art, treasure) property. Usually wealth is inherited. Inheritance can receive both working, and non-working, and income - only working. In addition to them, income has pensioners and unemployed, but it is not in beggars. Rich can work and do not work. In the same case, they are owners, because they have wealth. The main property of the highest class is not income, but accumulated property. The share of salary is small. At the middle and low classes, the main source of existence is income, since the first if there is wealth, it is insignificant, and its second is not at all. Wealth allows you to do not work, and its absence forces to work for salaries.

    The essence of power is in the ability to impose His will contrary to the desire of other people. In a complex society, the authorities are institutionalized, i.e. It is protected by laws and tradition, surrounded by privileges and wide access to social benefits, makes it possible to take vital solutions for society, including laws, as a rule, favorable to the highest class.

    In all societies, people who have one or another type of power - political, economic or religious, are an institutionalized elite. It defines the domestic and foreign policy of the state, directing it into a favorable direction for itself, which other classes are deprived of.

    Prestige - respect for which one or another profession is used in public opinion, the position of occupation. The profession of a lawyer is prestigious to the profession of the steelmaker or plumbing. Position of the President of the Commercial Bank prestigious the position of the cashier. All professions, classes and positions that exist in this society can be located on top of the professional prestige stairs. We define professional prestige intuitive, approximately. But in some countries, primarily in the United States, sociologists measure it using special methods. They study public opinion, compare various professions, analyze statistics and ultimately get an accurate scale of prestige. The first such study, American sociologists spent in 1947 since they regularly measure this phenomenon and follow how the prestige of the main professions in society changes over time. In other words, they build a dynamic picture.

    Income, power, prestige and education determine the cumulative socio-economic status, i.e. the position and place of a person in society. In this case, status acts as a generalized stratification. Previously, they marked his key role in the social structure. Now it turned out that he performs a crucial role in sociology as a whole. The attributed status characterizes the rigidly fixed stratification system, i.e. the closed society in which the transition from one strata to another is practically prohibited. Such systems include slavery and custom system. The achieved status characterizes the moving system of stratification, or an open society, where free transitions of people down and up the social staircase are allowed. Such a system includes classes (capitalist society). Finally, the feudal society with the class inherent in it should be counted for the intermediate type, i.e., to a relatively closed system. Here the transitions are legally prohibited, but in practice they are not excluded. These are historical stratification types.

    Social stratification of society

    Social stratification (from lat. Stratum - layer + Facere - to do) refer to the differentiation of people in society, depending on access to power, profession, income and some other socially significant signs. The concept of "stratification" proposed a sociologist Pitirim Alexandrovich Sorokin (1889-1968), which borrowed it from natural sciences, where it, in particular, denotes the distribution of geological reservoirs.

    The distribution of social groups and people in the strata (layers) makes it possible to allocate relatively sustainable elements of the structure of society from the point of view of access to power (politics), performed by professional functions and the income received (economy). The history presents three main types of stratification - castes, estates and classes. Castes (from Portug. Casta - genus, generation, origin) - closed public groups associated with general origin and legal status. Caste membership is determined exclusively by birth, and marriages between representatives of different castes are prohibited. The most famous Casta System of India (Table), originally based on the division of the population into four Varna (on Sanskrit, this word means "view, genus, color"). According to legend, Varna was formed from different parts of the body of the pristine man sacrificed.

    Custom system in ancient India:

    Representatives

    Associated part of the body

    Brahmans

    Scientists and priests

    Warriors and rulers

    Peasants and merchants

    "Non-subsided", dependent persons

    Socialists - social groups, whose rights and obligations, enshrined in the right and traditions are transmitted inheritance.

    Below are the basic estates characteristic of Europe XVIII-XIX centuries:

    The nobility is a preferred estate of large landowners and driving officials. The indicator of the nobility is usually the title: Prince, Duke, Graph, Marquis, Viscount, Baron, etc.;
    The clergy is servants of the cult and church with the exception of priests. In Orthodoxy allocate black clergy (monastic) and white (non-rotating);
    merchants - a trade estate that included owners of private enterprises;
    The peasantry is the estate of farmers engaged in agricultural labor as the main profession;
    Mesh "is an urban class consisting of artisans, small merchants and lower employees.

    In some countries, a military estate (for example, knighthood) was released. In the Russian Empire, the Cossacks sometimes attributed to a special estate. Unlike the caste system of marriages between representatives of different estates is permissible. It is possible (albeit) the transition from one class to another (for example, the purchase of a merice nobility).

    Classes (from lat. Classis - discharge) - large groups of people who differ in their attitude towards property. German philosopher Karl Marx (1818-1883), who proposed the historical classification of classes, indicated that the provision of their members is an important criterion for the selection of classes - oppressed or oppressed:

    In the slave-owned society, there were slaves and slave owners;
    in feudal society - feudal and dependent peasants;
    in capitalist society - capitalists (bourgeoisie) and workers (proletariat);
    There will be no classes in the communist society.

    In modern sociology, they often talk about classes in the most general sense - both about the aggregates of people who have similar life chances, indirect income, prestige and power:

    Higher Class: It is divided into the top highest (rich people from "old families") and the lower senior (recently rich people);
    Middle class: divided into upper middle (professionals);
    lower medium (qualified workers and employees); The lowest class is divided into the upper low (unqualified workers) and lower lower (lumpen and marginal).

    The lower lower class is groups of the population, which, for various reasons, do not fit into the structure of society. In fact, their representatives are excluded from the socio-class structure, so they are also called declassified elements.

    The declassified elements include lumens - tramps, beggars, beggars, as well as marginalies - those who lost their social characteristics and did not acquire the new system of norms and values, for example, former work factories, lost work due to the economic crisis, or peasants, coinned From the ground during the industrialization.

    Strats are groups of people who have similar characteristics in social space. This is the most universal and widespread concept, which makes it possible to allocate any fractional elements in the structure of society for a totality of a variety of socially significant criteria. For example, strata such as elite specialists, professional entrepreneurs, government officials, office employees, qualified workers, unqualified workers, etc. Classes, estates and castes can be considered varieties of strata.

    Social stratification reflects the presence of inequality in society. It shows that strata exist in different conditions and people have unequal capabilities to meet their needs. Inequality is a source of bundle in society. Thus, inequality reflects the differences in the access of representatives of each layer to social benefits, and stratification is the sociological characteristics of the structure of society as a set of layers.

    Criteria of social stratification

    Economic (on income and wealth criteria);
    political (on the criteria of influence and power);
    Professional (according to the criteria of skill, professional skills, successful performance of social roles).

    The qualitative characteristics of the people they possess from birth (ethnicity, related links, age-age features, personal qualities and abilities);
    role characteristics determined by a set of roles performed by an individual in society (education, position, various types of professional work);
    Characteristics caused by possession of material and spiritual values \u200b\u200b(wealth, property, privileges, the ability to influence and manage other people, etc.).

    Income - the number of cash revenues for a certain period (month, year);
    Wealth - accumulated income, i.e. the number of cash or empty money (in the second case, they act as movable or real estate);
    Power - the ability and opportunity to carry out their will, to provide a decisive effect on the activities of other people with various funds (authority, rights, violence, etc.). Power is measured by the number of people on which it applies;
    Education is a set of knowledge, skills and skills acquired in the learning process. The level of education is measured by the number of years of study;
    Prestige is a public assessment of the attractiveness, the significance of a profession, position, a certain kind of classes.

    Higher-higher class (representatives of influential and rich dynasties with significant resources of power, wealth and prestige);
    lower-higher class ("new rich" - bankers, politicians who have no noble origin and did not have time to create powerful role clans);
    Higher middle class (successful businessmen, lawyers, entrepreneurs, scientists, managers, doctors, engineers, journalists, cultural and art figures);
    lower-middle class (employees - engineers, clerks, secretaries, employees and other categories that are called "white collars");
    Higher-lower class (workers engaged in predominantly physical labor);
    Low-lower class (beggars, unemployed, homeless, foreign workers, declassed elements).

    Social stratification and mobility

    Social (stratification) structure, social differentiation - bundle and hierarchical organization of various sectors of society, as well as a totality of institutions and relations between them.

    The basis of the stratification structure of society is the natural and social inequality of people.

    Social inequality - unequal access to social benefits.

    A modern society is committed to minimizing social inequality, at the same time, natural inequality is unreasonable.

    In sociology, four main types of social stratification are known:

    Slavery,
    caste
    class
    Classes.

    The first three systems are considered closed, i.e. The transition from one strata to another is almost impossible or difficult. Class System - Open, Social Mobility has been established.

    There are two approaches to the study of society:

    1. Stratification: divides society to strata, based on the lifestyle, the level of income, social prestige, inclusiveness into power structures.
    2. Class: divides society into classes, based on the place in the production system, attitudes towards the property of production, roles in the public division of labor.

    Since any social structure is a combination of all functioning social communities taken in their interaction, the following elements can be allocated in it:

    A) ethnic structure (genus, tribe, nationality, nation);
    b) the demographic structure (the allocation of groups is produced by age and sex);
    c) settlement structure (city inhabitants, rural residents, etc.);
    d) class structure (bourgeoisie, proletariat, peasants, etc.);
    e) vocational education structure.

    In the general form, three stratification levels can be distinguished in modern society:

    Higher (large owners, officials, scientific and cultural elite);
    medium (entrepreneurs, highly qualified specialists);
    Lower (low-skilled workers, unemployed).

    The basis of modern society is the middle class.

    A marginal is an individual who has lost its former social status, devoid of opportunities to engage in the usual business and is not adapted to a new strategy, in which it exists.

    Positive influence of marginals on society:

    Marginals are prone to innovations and change;
    Marginals enrich cultures in which the elements of their former culture will bring;
    Marginals at the junction of two cultures create a new culture.

    Bad influence:

    Confusion and inability to effectively act in new circumstances;
    destabilization of society;
    inability to be born into new roles;
    The loss of previous values \u200b\u200band the inability to adopt new values, which leads to a certain "spiritual vacuum".

    Status is a certain position in the social structure of a group or society associated with other positions through the system of rights and obligations.

    Social status may be prescribed and purchased.

    The prescribed (congenital) status person receives at birth (related ties, gender, age).

    Acquired (achievable) status is obtained throughout life (profession).

    Mixed combines the features of the prescribed and acquired status: the fact that the person did not depend on the person (unemployed, face with disabilities) or the maximum achievements in their field (Professor, Doctor of Science, Olympic champion).

    Status symbols - attributes for which you can find out the status of a person. One of the most important status symbols is clothes.

    Clothing features as a status symbol:

    Compliance with the rules of etiquette (rigorous costume top manager);
    Demonstration of belonging to one or another status (shape of a policeman).

    Social mobility is the movement of individual individuals or social groups from one position in the hierarchy of social stratification to another, the change of status.

    Mobility types:

    1) voluntary and forced;
    2) inter-flow (moving children to a higher or low step in comparison with parents) and intra-oxolene (one and the same individual throughout life changes its social position several times);
    3) individual (displacements inside the society occur in one person, regardless of other) and group (movement takes place collectively, the position of the entire group changes);
    4) Vertical and horizontal. Vertical mobility is a change in status with a change in the position in the social hierarchy. Vertical mobility is divided into descending and ascending. Horizontal mobility is a change in status without a noticeable change in the position in the social hierarchy.

    Moving between the strata is carried out on special channels ("elevators"), the most important of which are social institutions such as army, family, school, church, property.

    Theory of social stratification

    Most modern sociologists adhere to the theory of social stratification, which is based on the division of society to layers - strata. The concept of "stratum" fell into sociology from geology, where layers are understood under it, the layers of heterogeneous formations in the geological structure of the Earth.

    In the sociology of the stratum means a sufficiently large number of people united by certain social connections (economic, political, cultural, social, demographic, etc.).

    All people entering a specific stratum occupy the same social status (status), which is characterized by a certain level of material benefits, prestige, rights and privileges.

    In the development of social stratification theory, such sociologists made such sociologists as M. Weber, R. Domarendorf, T. Parsons, P. Sorokin.

    In contrast to the definition of a class in which the main criteria are considered to be related to the means of production and the method of obtaining the share of public wealth, the criteria of strata themselves are neutral.

    For example, P. Sorokin considers the following criteria for strata:

    Labor nature (profession);
    - qualification;
    - education;
    - role in production management;
    - income.

    The theory of stratification has the advantage that allows people to divide people to a variety of strata: for more accurate analysis requiring the differentiation of society into thin layers, you can enter several dozen stratification criteria (for example, not only money, but also at home, car, pool, radiotelephone etc.); For coarse analysis, you can restrict ourselves to several criteria.

    The modern Russian sociologist A. Zinoviev believes that the stratification of the Soviet society, the features of which still carrying modern Russia, was carried out in the following criteria:

    Position on the stairs of social positions;
    - prestige profession;
    - salary size;
    - the presence (absence) of privileges;
    - nature of privileges;
    - opportunities to use official position;
    - education;
    - Cultural level;
    - living conditions;
    - access to life benefits;
    - sphere of communication;
    - prospects for improving the situation;
    - Prospects for children.

    As you can see, this approach significantly explains the position of a particular person who drives them the strength of the social structure of society than the theory of "two and a half classes". This does not mean that a conflict approach to the analysis of the society, which is based on Marxism, is incorrect. Sociologists upgraded the class theory. M. Weber, R. Dawarendorf, L. Kozern believes that class, group contradictions and make up the basis of social dynamics.

    The theory of social stratification allows not only to determine the social structure of society and find the place of each person in this structure (status), but also to compare, analyze various societies, draw conclusions about the levels and trends of their development.

    The main difference between the American society from the Russian is that there is not everything is determined by the position of the person in relation to power, the state. In the higher strata of society there are people of free professions - managers, entrepreneurs, lawyers, doctors, university professors. In Russian society, almost always a state official stands above a person of civil society. Obviously, with a successful outcome of reforms, the stratification of Russian society in this regard will be approached by American.

    Sociologists of V. Pareto, Moska, R. Mikhels, who created the theory of elite, contributed to the development of views on the social structure of society.

    The term "elite" means "best", "selected", "Favorites".

    In sociology, under the elite, the highest preferred layer, carrying out the management of society and the development of its culture.

    V. Pareto divides all society on the elite, psychologically predisposed to management, and not the elite - a manageable majority.

    G. Mosca believes that the manager of the class (elite) requires a support in society, or a more numerous class, which is the footage, the foundation of the elite, i.e. the average class.

    Thus, the theory of elites in terms of stratification of society does not contradict the theory of the middle class, in accordance with which most of the modern post-industrial society make up people who are identified and self-identified as the middle class belong to the strata occupying an intermediate position between the elite (the highest class) and the lowest layers of society. Sociological studies show that the elite of industrial societies is 1-3%, the middle layers 70-75, the lower layers of 20-25%.

    In the 20s XX century The American sociologist R. Park introduced the concept of marginalov (from Lat. Margo - Edge), i.e., people who do not recognize the values \u200b\u200band norms of their layer, society and, thus, "falling on the side of the road", becoming sores. Marginal is not necessary, homeless. This is a fighter for its values \u200b\u200band norms. A marginal can be a professor fighting against the dominant scientific school; Dissident (dissenting), non-conformist who do not recognize dominant social values \u200b\u200band norms, tramp, etc. Marginala make up a minor part of society.

    The social structure of post-industrial society is a rhombus or a truncated rhombus, in contrast to the triangle, the pyramids of the social structure of an industrial society. Changes in the social structure occurs due to a sharp increase in the middle class and its greater differentiation and a significant decrease in the number of lower layers in the process of reducing manual labor.

    Social stratification Sorokina

    Social stratification is a differentiation of some combination of people into classes in a hierarchical rank. It finds an expression in the existence of higher and lower layers. Its basis and essence - in the uneven distribution of rights and privileges, responsibility and obligations, the presence or absence of social values, power and influence among the members of a particular community. Specific forms of social stratification are very diverse.

    If the economic status of members of some unexpected society, if among them there are both immutors and the poor, then such a society is characterized by the presence of economic stratification, regardless of whether it is organized on the communist or capitalist principles, whether it is constitutionally defined as "society of equal" or not .

    No labels, signs, oral statements are not able to change or climb the reality of the fact of economic inequality, which is expressed in the difference in income, living standards, in the existence of rich and poor segments of the population. If within a group there are hierarchically different ranks in the sense of prestige and prestige, and honors, if there are managers and managed, then regardless of terms (monarchs, bureaucrats, hosts, bosses) this means that such a group is politically differentiated that It proclaimed in his constitution or declaration.

    If the members of some society are divided into various groups by the nature of their activities, occupation, and some professions are considered more prestigious in comparison with others and if members of a particular professional group are divided into managers of various ranks and on subordinates, then such a group It is professionally differentiated regardless of whether the chiefs are elected or are appointed whether their leadership positions are inherited or thanks to their personal qualities.

    Specific and social stratification are numerous. However, all their diversity can be reduced to three main forms: economic, political and professional stratification. As a rule, they are all closely intertwined. People belonging to the highest layer in some kind of one respect, usually belong to the same layer and for other parameters; and vice versa.

    Representatives of the highest economic layers at the same time relate to the highest poly-tichetic and professional layers. The poor, as a rule, is devoid of civil rights and are in the lower layers of a professional hierarchy. This is the general rule, although there is a lot of exceptions.

    So, for example, the richest far from always at the top of the political or professional pyramid, also not in all cases the poor occupy the lowest places in the political and professional hierarchy. This means that the interdependence of the three forms of social stratification is far from perfection, for the various layers of each form do not completely coincide with each other. Rather, they coincide with each other, but only partially, that is, to a certain extent. This fact does not allow us to analyze all three basic forms of social stratification together. For greater pedantry, it is necessary to analyze each of the forms separately. The real picture of social stratification of any society is very complex and the raput.

    To facilitate the analysis process, only the main, most important properties should be taken into account, in order to simplify, lowering parts that are not distorting the common picture.

    Types of social stratification

    Social stratification is a certain order of society. At the stages of human existence, three main types are traced: Caste, class and class. For primitive state, natural structuring by age and sex is characterized.

    The first type of social stratification is the division of society to the caste. Castovaya system - a closed type of society, i.e. Status is given from birth, and mobility is almost impossible. The caste was the hereditary association of people associated with traditional classes and limited in communicating with each other. The caste took place in ancient Egypt, Peru, Iran, Japan, in the southern states of the United States. Its classic sample was India, where the caste organization has become a comprehensive social system.

    The hierarchical staircase of access to wealth and prestige in India had the following steps:

    1) Brahmins - priests;
    2) Kshatriya - military aristocracy;
    3) Vaisia \u200b\u200b- farmers, artisans, merchants, free communities;
    4) Studras - non-free communities, servants, slaves;
    5) "Non-acceptable" whose contacts with other castes were excluded. This system in India was prohibited in the 50s of the twentieth century, but caste prejudices and inequality and today are allowed to know about themselves.

    The second type of social stratification is the estate - also characterizes the closed society, where mobility is strictly limited, although it is allowed. The estate, like the caste, was associated with the transfer of rights and obligations enshrined in the custom and law. But in contrast to the caste, the principle of inheritance in the estates is not so absolute, and membership can be bought, granted, recruited. The estate stratification is characteristic of European feudalism, but also had in other traditional civilizations.

    Its sample is medieval France, where society was divided into four estates:

    1) clergy;
    2) nobility;
    3) craftsmen, merchants, servants (residents of cities);
    4) peasants. In Russia, from Ivan the Terrible (mid-Hyi century) to Catherine II, the formation of the hierarchy of the estates, officially approved by its decrees (1762 - 1785) in such a form: nobility, clergy, merchants, meshness, peasantry. Delated in the decrees of the semi-boring estate (subethnos), Cossacks and allocations.

    Class stratification is characteristic of open societies. It differs significantly from custom and estate stratification.

    These differences are manifested in the following:

    Classes are not created on the basis of legal and religious norms, membership in them is not based on a hereditary situation;
    - Class systems are more mobile, and the boundaries between classes are not tightly outlined;
    - classes depend on the economic differences between groups of people associated with inequality in possession and control over material resources;
    - Class systems are carried out mainly by an extravaluity. The main basis of class differences is the inequality between the terms and wages - is valid for all professional groups as a result of economic circumstances owned by the economy as a whole;
    - Social mobility is much easier than in other stratification systems, formal restrictions for it does not exist, although mobility really restrains human starting capabilities and the level of its claims.

    Classes can be identified as large groups of people who differ in their overall economic opportunities that significantly affect the types of their lifestyle.

    The most influential theoretical approaches in the definition of classes and class stratification belong to K. Marx and M. Weber.

    According to Marx, the class is the community of people who are directly related to the means of production. He highlighted in society at different stages operating and operated classes. The stratification of the Company in Marx is one-dimensional, is associated only with classes, since its main foundation is the economic situation, and all other (rights, privileges, power, influence) fit into the "Procrusteo bed" of the economic situation, are combined with it.

    M. Deber defined classes as groups of people who have a similar position in a market economy that receive a similar economic remuneration and with similar life chances. Class divisions result not only from control over the means of production, but also from economic differences that are not related to property. Such sources include professional skills, rare specialty, high qualifications, intellectual property and so on. Weber gave not only class stratification, considering it only part of the structuring required for the complex on the device of the capitalist society. He suggested a three-dimensional division: if economic differences (for wealth) give rise to class stratification, then the spiritual (on prestigious) is the status, and political (on access to power) - party. In the first case, we are talking about the life chances of the social layers, in the second - about the image and style of their life, in the third - about the ownership of power and influence on it. Most of the sociologists consider a Weber scheme more flexible and relevant to modern society.

    Stratification of social groups

    Various social groups occupy a different position in society. This provision is determined by unequal rights and privileges, responsibility and obligations, property and incomes, attitude to power and influence among members of its community.

    Social differentiation (from Lat. Differentia - Difference) is a division of society to various social groups that occupy a different position in it.

    Inequality is the uneven distribution of the scarce resources of society - money, power, education and prestige - between different strata and population layers.

    Social inequality is an internal characteristic of any social group, and society as a whole, otherwise their existence as a system would be impossible. The factor of inequality determines the development and dynamics of the social group.

    In the early stages of social development, such individual characteristics as the floor, age, relatives are socially significant. The objective inequality actually existing here is interpreted as a natural order of things, i.e. as the lack of social inequality.

    In a traditional society, based on the division of labor, a class structure is born: peasants, artisans, know. However, in this society, objective inequality is recognized as a manifestation of divine order, and not as social inequality.

    In modern society, objective inequality is already realized as a manifestation of social inequality, i.e., interpreted in terms of equality.

    The difference in groups on the principle of inequality is expressed in the formation of social strata.

    Under the stratum (from Lat. Stratum - layer, flooring) in sociology is understood as a real, empirically fixed community, social layer, a group of people united by any common social sign (property, professional, level of education, power, prestige, etc.). The cause of inequality is the inhomogeneity of labor, as a result of which the authorities are assigned to one people and property, uneven distribution of rewards and promotions. The concentration of power, property and other resources in the elite contributes to the emergence of social conflicts.

    Inequality can be represented as a scale, on one pole which will be those who own the greatest (rich), and on the other - the smallest (poor) amount of benefits. The universal meter of inequality in modern society is money. To describe the inequality of various social groups, there is the concept of "social stratification".

    Social stratification (from lat. Stratum - layer, flooring and found - to do) is a system that includes many social entities, whose representatives differ in the unequal volume of power and material wealth, rights and obligations, privileges and prestige.

    The term "stratification" came to sociology from geology, where he denotes the location of the Earth's layers vertically.

    According to the theory of stratification, modern society is a layered, multi-level, externally resembling geological layers. The following stratification criteria are allocated: income; power; education; prestige.

    Stratification has two essential characteristics that distinguish it from a simple bundle:

    1. The upper layers are in a more privileged position (with respect to the possession of resources or reward capabilities) relative to the lower layers.
    2. The upper layers are significantly less than the lower on the number of members of the Company included in them.

    Social stratification in various theoretical systems is understood in different ways. There are three classical directions of stratification theories:

    1. Marxism is the main type of stratification - class (from lat. Classis - group, discharge) stratification, which is based on economic factors, primarily property relationship. The situation in society and the place on the stratification scale depends on the relationship of man to the property.
    2. Functionalism is social stratification associated with professional division of labor. Unequal remuneration is the necessary mechanism with which society guarantees that the most important people will occupy the most important places for society. This concept introduced a Russian-American sociologist and cultural scientist P. A. Sorokin to scientific turnover (1889-1968).
    3. The theory based on M. Weber's views is the basis of any stratification lies the distribution of power and authority, which are not directly determined by property relations. The most important relatively independent hierarchical structures are economic, socio-cultural, political. Accordingly, social groups that allocate in these structures are class, status, batch.

    Types of stratification systems:

    1) physico-genetic - the basis is based on the ranking of people in natural signs: sex, age, the presence of certain physical qualities - forces, dexterity, beauty, etc.
    2) etcency (from FR. ETAT - state) - differentiation between groups is carried out according to their position in the powerful and state hierarchies (political, military, administrative and economic), in terms of the possibilities of mobilization and distribution of resources, as well as by those privileges that these groups They have depending on their rank in power structures.
    3) the socio-professional - groups are divided into maintenance and working conditions; Ranking here is carried out using certificates (diplomas, discharges, licenses, patents, etc.), which record the level of qualifications and the ability to perform certain types of activities (the discharge grid in the public sector of industry, the system of certificates and diplomas about the received education, the system of assignment of scientific degrees and ranks, etc.).
    4) Cultural and symbolic - arises from differences in access to socially significant information, unequal opportunities to select, preserve and interpret it for pre-industrial societies is characterized by theocratic (from theos. Theos - God and Kratos - power) manipulating information, for industrial - part-time (from Lat . Pars (Partis) - part, group and gr. Kratos - power), for post-industrial - technocratic (from tchno - skill, craft and kratos - power).
    5) Cultural and regulatory - differentiation is built on differences in respect and prestige arising from the comparison of existing standards and styles of life inherent in one or another social groups (attitude to physical and mental work, consumer standards, tastes, communication methods, professional terminology, Local dialect, etc.).
    6) Socially-territorial - is formed due to an unequal distribution of resources between regions, differences in access to working places, housing, high-quality goods and services, educational and cultural institutions, etc.

    In reality, these stratification systems are intertwined, complement each other. For example, a socio-professional hierarchy in the form of an officially fixed division of labor not only performs important independent functions to maintain the life of society, but also has a significant impact on the structure of any stratification system.

    In modern sociology, two main approaches to the analysis of the social structure of society are the most common: stratification and class, which are based on the concept of "stratum" and "class".

    The stratum varies by:

    Income level;
    the main way of lifestyle;
    Including in power structures;
    property relations;
    social prestigious;
    self-esteem of its position in society.

    The class varies by:

    Place in the social production system;
    relation to the means of production;
    roles in the public organization of labor;
    methods and sizes of obtained wealth.

    The main difference in the stratification and class approaches is that, within the framework of the latter, economic factors have, all other criteria are their derivatives.

    The stratification approach comes from accounting not only by economic, but also political, actually social, as well as socio-psychological factors. At the same time it is understood that a rigid connection does not always occur between them: the high position on one position can be combined with low on the other.

    Stratification approach:

    1) Accounting First of all, the magnitude of a sign (income, education, access to power).
    2) The basis of the allocation of strata is a set of signs, among which access to wealth plays an important role.
    3) Accounting not only for conflicting factor, but also solidarity, complementarity of various social layers.

    Class approach in Marxist understanding:

    1) Building groups on the scale of inequality depending on the presence or absence of a leading feature.
    2) the basis of the selection of classes is the possession of private property, which gives the ability to assign profits.
    3) the division of society to conflict groups.

    Social stratification performs two functions - is the method of identifying the social sections of this society and gives the presentation of a social portrait of this society.

    Social stratification is characterized by a certain stability within a particular historical stage.

    Classes of social stratification

    Inequality is a characteristic feature of any society, when some individuals, groups or layers have greater possibilities, or resources (financial, powerful, etc.) than others.

    To describe the system of inequality in sociology, the concept of "social stratification" is applied. The word "stratification" itself is borrowed from geology, where "strata" means a geological formation. This concept accurately conveys the content of social differentiation, when social groups are built in the social space into a hierarchically organized, vertically serial row along a measurement criterion.

    In Western sociology, there are several stratification concepts. The West German Sociologist R. Darendorf suggested the basis of social stratification to put the political concept of "authority", which, in his opinion, most accurately characterizes the relationship of power and the struggle between social groups for power. Based on this approach, R. Dawarendorf represented the structure of a society consisting of managers and managed. He, in turn, divided the first to manage owners and managers, or bureaucrats managers. He also subdivided into two subgroups: the highest, or working aristocracy, and lower - low-skilled workers. Between these two main groups, he placed the so-called "new middle class".

    American sociologist L. Warner, four parameters allocated as defining signs of stratification:

    Income;
    - prestige profession;
    - education;
    - Ethnicity.

    Thus, he defined six basic classes:

    The highest class included rich people. But the main criterion for their allocation was "noble origin";
    - The Nizhny Higher Class also included people of high intact, but they were not leaving aristocratic families. Many of them only recently got rich, sought this and sought to put off their luxurious clothes, jewels and chic cars;
    - The highest layer of the middle class consisted of highly educated persons engaged in intellectual labor, and business people, lawyers, capital owners;
    - the lowest middle class represented mainly stationery employees and other "white collars" (secretaries, banking cashiers, clerk producers);
    - the highest layer of the lower class was "blue collars" - factory workers and other physical labor workers;
    - Finally, the lowest low-class layer included the poorest and rejected members of society.

    Another American sociologist B. Barber conducted stratification for six indicators:

    Prestige, profession, power and power;
    - income level;
    - the level of education;
    - degree of religiosity;
    - the position of relatives;
    - ethnicity.

    The French sociologist A. Tournament believed that all these criteria were already outdated, and suggested identifying groups on access to information. The dominant position, in his opinion, is occupied by those people who have access to the largest number of information.

    P. Sorokin allocated three stratification criteria:

    Income level (rich and poor);
    - political status (having power and not having it);
    - Professional roles (teachers, engineers, doctors, etc.).

    T. Parsonsdulked these signs with new criteria:

    Qualitative characteristics inherent in birthday (national affiliation, gender, relatives);
    - role characteristics (position, level of knowledge; vocational training, etc.);
    - "Characteristics of the possession" (the presence of property, material and spiritual values, privileges, etc.).

    In modern post-industrial society, it is customary to allocate four main stratification variables:

    Income level;
    - attitude to power;
    - prestige profession;
    - the level of education.

    Income - the number of monetary proceeds of an individual or family for a certain period of time (month, year). The income is called the amount of money obtained in the form of salaries, pensions, benefits, alimony, fees, contributions from profits. The income is measured in rubles or dollars, which receive a separate individual (individual income) or family (family income). Revenues are most often spent on maintaining life, but if they are very high, they accumulate and turn into wealth.

    Wealth - accumulated income, that is, the number of cash or extractable money. In the second case, they are called movable (car, yacht, securities, etc.) and real estate (house, works of art, treasure) property. Usually wealth is inherited, which can receive both working and non-working heirs, and income - only working. The main property of the highest class is not income, but accumulated property. The share of salary is small. In the middle and low classes, the main source of existence is income, since in the first case, if there is wealth, it is insignificant, and in the second it is not at all. Wealth allows you to do not work, and its absence forces to work for salaries.

    Wealth and revenues are distributed unevenly and mean economic inequality. Sociologists interpret it as an indicator that different groups of the population have unequal life chances. They buy different quantities and different quality food, clothing, housing, etc. But besides explicit economic advantages, the wealthy layers have hidden privileges. The poor is shorter life (even if they enjoy all the benefits of medicine), less educated children (even if they go to the same public schools), etc.

    Education is measured by the number of years of study in public or private school or university.

    Power is measured by the number of people on which the decision is applied. The essence of power is in the ability to impose His will contrary to the desire of other people. In a complex society, power is institutionalized, that is, protected by laws and tradition, surrounded by privileges and wide access to social benefits, makes it possible to take vital solutions for society, including laws, as a rule, advantageous to the highest class. In all societies, people who have one or another type of power - political, economic or religious, are an institutionalized elite. It defines the domestic and foreign policy of the state, directing it into a favorable direction for itself, which other classes are deprived of.

    Three stratification scales - income, education and power - have quite objective units of measurement: dollars, years, people. Prestige stands out of this series, as it is a subjective indicator. Prestige - respect, what a public opinion is used by the profession, the position, the occupation of classes.

    The generalization of these criteria allows to represent the process of social stratification as a multifaceted bundle of people and groups in society on signs of ownership (or not possession) by property, power, certain levels of education and training, ethnic signs, age-age, socio-cultural criteria, political positions, social statuses and roles.

    Nine types of historical stratification systems can be distinguished, which can be used to describe any social organism, namely:

    Physico-genetic
    - slave-owned,
    - custom,
    - Cost,
    - etharatic,
    - socio-professional,
    - class,
    - cultural and symbolic,
    - Cultural and regulatory.

    All nine types of stratification systems are no more than "ideal types." Any real society is their complex mixing, a combination. In reality, stratification types are intertwined, complement each other.

    The basis of the first type - the physico-genetic stratification system is the differentiation of social groups on "natural", socio-demographic signs. Here, the attitude towards a person or group is determined by the floor, age and the presence of certain physical qualities - forces, beauty, dexterity. Accordingly, weaker who have physical disabilities are considered flawed and occupy a printed social situation. Inequality is approved in this case by the existence of the threat of physical violence or its actual use, and then fixed in customs and rituals. This "natural" stratification system dominated the primitive community, but continues to be reproduced to this day. It is especially strongly manifested in communities fighting for physical survival or expanding their living space.

    The second stratification system is slave-owned - also based on a direct violence. But inequality here is determined not by physical, but by military legal coercion. Social groups differ in the presence or absence of civil rights and property rights. Certain social groups of these rights are deprived of perfectly and, moreover, on a par with things, transformed into an object of private property. Moreover, the position is most often transmitted by inheritance and thus fixed in generations. Examples of slave-owned systems are very diverse. This is an antique slavery, where the number of slaves sometimes exceeded the number of free citizens, and the Savoptya of Russia's times of "Russian truth", and plantation slavery in the south of the North American United States to the Civil War 1861-1865, this is finally the work of prisoners of war and deported persons On German private farms during the Second World War.

    The third type of stratification system is custom. It is based on ethnic differences, which, in turn, are fixed by religious order and religious rituals. Each caste is closed, as far as possible, an endogamous group, which is given a strictly defined place in the public hierarchy. This place appears as a result of the separation of the functions of each caste in the labor separation system. There is a clear list of classes with which the members of this or that caste can do: priests, military, agricultural. Since the position in the custom system is transmitted by inheritance, the possibilities of social mobility are extremely limited here. And the stronger the caste is expressed, the more closed this society turns out. India is considered to be a classic example of society with the domination of the caste system (legally, this system has been canceled here only in 1950). In India, there were 4 main castes: Brahmans (priests), Kshatriya (warriors), Vaishi (merchants), shudra (workers and peasants) and about 5 thousand non-core and podcast. Particularly untouchables who were not included in the caste and occupied the lowest social position. Today, although in a more smoothed form, the caste system is reproduced not only in India, but, for example, in a clan, strictly of the Central Asian states.

    The fourth type is represented by the estate stratification system. In this system, the Group differ in legal rights, which, in turn, are rigidly related to their responsibilities and are directly dependent on these duties. Moreover, the latter imply commitments to the state, enshrined in the legislative order. Some class are obliged to carry a rather or official service, others - "crayon" in the form of filters or labor duties. Examples of developed data systems are feudal Western European societies or feudal Russia. So, the estate division is, first of all, legal, not ethnic religious or economic division. It is also important that belonging to the estate is inherited, contributing to the relative closure of this system.

    Some similarities with the estate system are observed in the five-type stactic system representing the fifth type (from French and Greek - "state power"). In it, differentiation between groups occurs, first of all, according to their position in the powerful and state hierarchies (political, military, economic), on the possibilities of mobilization and distribution of resources, as well as the privileges that these groups are able to extract from their power positions. The degree of material well-being, the lifestyle of social groups, as well as those who experience the prestige, are connected here with formal ranks that these groups occupy in the relevant power hierarchies. All other differences are demographic and religious-ethnic, economic and cultural - play a derivative role. The scale and nature of differentiation (the volume of powerful powers) in the ethacratic system are under the control of the state bureaucracy. At the same time, the hierarchy can be consolidated formally legally - through the officials of the ranks, military charters, assigning categories to state institutions, - and may remain outside the sphere of state legislation (a visual example is the system of Soviet partner, the principles of which are not prescribed in any laws) . Formal freedom of members of society (except for dependence on the state), the lack of automatic inheritance of the powerful positions also distinguishes the etharatic system from the class system. The statuctic system is detected with the greatest force than the more authoritarian nature takes the state rule.

    In accordance with the socio-professional stratification system of the Group, they are divided by the content and conditions of their labor. A special role is fulfilled by qualification requirements for a particular professional role - possessing relevant experience, skills and skills. Approval and maintenance of hierarchical orders in this system is carried out with the help of certificates (diplomas, discharges, licenses, patents), fixing the level of qualifications and the ability to perform certain types of activities. The effectiveness of qualifying certificates is supported by the power of the state or some other enough powerful corporation (professional workshop). Moreover, certificates are not transmitted by inheritance by inheritance, although exceptions in history are found. Socio-professional division is one of the basic stratification systems, a variety of examples of which can be found in every society with an indefinite division of labor. This is a system of handicraft workshops of a medieval city and a discharge grid in the modern state industry, a system of certificates and diplomas about the education obtained, a system of scientific degrees and titles that open the way to more prestigious workplaces.

    The seventh type is represented by the most popular class system. A class approach is often opposed to stratification. But the class division is only a particular case of social stratification. In the socio-economic interpretation classes are social groups of citizens free in political and legal relationships. The differences between these groups are concluded in the nature and sizes of ownership of the means of production and the product produced, as well as in the level of revenues and personal material well-being. Unlike many previous types, belonging to classes - bourgeois, proletaris, independent farmers, etc. - Not regulated by the highest authorities, it is not established legislatively and is not inherited (property and capital are transmitted, but not the status itself). In its pure form, the class system does not contain any internal formal partitions (economic success automatically translates you into a higher group).

    Another stratification system can be called culturally symbolic. Differentiation arises here from differences in access to socially significant information, unequal opportunities to filter and interpret this information, the ability to be a carrier of sacred knowledge (mystical or scientific). In ancient times, this role was assigned to the priests, magicians and shamans, in the Middle Ages - the ministers of the Church, the interpreters of the sacred texts, which make up the bulk of the literate population, in a new time - scientists, technocrats and party ideologists. Claims for communicating with the Divine Forces, on the possession of the truth, there were always on the expression of state interest and everywhere. And a higher position in this respect is occupied by those who have the best opportunities to manipulate the consciousness and actions of other members of society, who better than others can prove their rights to true understanding, owns the best symbolic capital.

    Finally, the last, ninth type of stratification system should be called cultural and regulatory. Here, differentiation is built on the differences of respect and prestige arising from the comparison of the lifestyle and the norms of behavior that this person or the group follows. Attitude towards physical and mental work, consumer tastes and habits, manners of communication and etiquette, a special language (professional terminology, a local dialect, criminal jargon) - all this falls into the basis of social division. Moreover, not only the distinction of "their" and "strangers", but also ranking groups ("noble - non-financial", "decent - dishonest", "Elite - ordinary people - bottom").

    The concept of stratification (from the lat. Stratum - layer, reservoir) denotes the separation of society, differences in the social status of its members. Social stratification is a system of social inequality consisting of hierarchically located social layers (strata). All people entering a specific stratum occupy approximately the same position and possess common status signs.

    Various sociologists explain differently the causes of social inequality, and, consequently, social stratification. So, according to the Marxist School of Sociology, the inequality is based on property relations, the nature, degree and form of ownership by means of production. According to the functionalists (K. Davis, W. Moore), the distribution of individuals on social crates depends on the importance of their professional activities and the contribution, which they contribute to their work to achieving the goals of society. Supporters of the theory of exchange (J. Homans) believe that inequality in society arises due to the non-equivalent exchange of human activity.

    A number of sociology classics have more widely considered the stratification problem. For example, M. Weber, except for the economic (attitude to property and level of income), proposed in addition to such criteria as social prestige (inherited and acquired status) and belonging to certain political circles, from here - power, authority and influence.

    One of the creators of the theory of stratification P. Sorokin allocated three types of stratification structures:

    Economic (on income and wealth criteria);
    - political (on the criteria of influence and power);
    - Professional (according to the criteria of skill, professional skills, successful performance of social roles).

    The founder of structural functionalism T. Parsons proposed three groups of differentiating features:

    The qualitative characteristics of the people they possess from birth (ethnicity, related links, age-age features, personal qualities and abilities);
    - role characteristics determined by the set of roles performed by the Individual in society (education, position, various types of professional work);
    - Characteristics due to ownership of material and spiritual values \u200b\u200b(wealth, property, privileges, the ability to influence and manage other people, etc.).

    In modern sociology, it is customary to allocate the following basic criteria for social stratification:

    Income - the number of cash revenues for a certain period (month, year);
    - Wealth - accumulated income, i.e. the number of cash or empty money (in the second case, they act as movable or real estate);
    - Power - the ability and opportunity to carry out their will, to provide a decisive influence on the activities of other people with the help of various means (authority, law, violence, etc.). Power is measured by the number of people on which it applies;
    - Education is a set of knowledge, skills and skills acquired in the learning process. The level of education is measured by the number of years of study;
    - Prestige - public assessment of the attractiveness, significance of a profession, position, a certain kind of classes.

    Despite the diversity of various models of social stratification currently existing in sociology, most scientists allocate three main classes: the highest, medium and lowest. At the same time, the share of the highest class in industrialized societies is approximately 5-7%; Average - 60-80% and lower - 13-35%.

    In some cases, sociologists conduct a specific division within each class.

    So, american sociologist U.L. Warner (1898-1970) in his well-known study "Yankee City" allocated six classes:

    Higher-higher class (representatives of influential and rich dynasties with significant resources of power, wealth and prestige);
    - the lowest higher class ("new rich" - bankers, politicians who do not have no significant origin and have not had time to create powerful role clans);
    - Higher middle class (successful businessmen, lawyers, entrepreneurs, scientists, managers, doctors, engineers, journalists, cultural and art figures);
    - lower-middle class (employees - engineers, clerks, secretaries, employees and other categories that are called "White Collar");
    - the highest lower class (workers engaged in predominantly physical labor);
    - lower-lower class (beggars, unemployed, homeless, foreign workers, declassified elements).

    There are other social stratification schemes. But they all are reduced to the following: non-mining classes arise through the addition of strata and layers inside one of the main classes - rich, wealthy and poor.

    Thus, the basis of social stratification is the natural and social inequality between people, which manifests itself in their social life and has a hierarchical character. It is steadily supported and regulated by various social institutions is constantly being reproduced and modified, which is an important condition for the functioning and development of any society.

    Types of social stratification

    Modern social stratification theories consider society in the form of a hierarchical structure, at the top of which are preferred strata (segments of the population), and the base has strata with a less favorable position. Society has always been socially inhomogeneous. People differ in physical strength, health, the presence of knowledge and skills, as well as social status and income size.

    Stratification of society more often linked with such concepts as "slavery", "caste", "classes", "classes".

    Accordingly, the types of social stratification are distinguished:

    The slave-owned stratification was based on the direct physical violence of slave owners in relation to slaves dependent on them. Slavery is the most obvious form of social inequality, when one individual is the property of another. As a result of the growing resistance of slaves, as well as due to their low interest in the results of its work, this form of social stratification failed.
    Casta stratification is associated with religious traditions that enshrine the differentiation of the population into groups by types of permitted and unlawful activities. Caste - the concept is quite blurry. Most often it is associated with Indian culture, although the division of society on the caste existed in other regions of the world. (For example, warriors, priests, commoner in ancient Egypt). Existing racial differences in many countries also wear essentially pronounced custom.
    The estate stratification is determined by the legally fixed division of society into large social groups in accordance with the lifelong responsibilities entrusted to them. The estates were represented by privileged and aggressive groups of people. Aristocrats, nobles in Europe were the highest estate. The clergy stood on the step below. The third class was traders, artists, painters, free peasants (farmers), servants of noble people. At the lowest social stage were serfs peasants.
    Class stratification involves the economic inequality of citizens against the background of proclaimed legal equality. Classes were present in all types of society with the exception of the primitive-communal, which was classless. The fission of society into classes is usually put on the amount of income, attitudes towards the means of production or the level of production control

    In modern society, along with class differentiation, there are other forms of social stratification:

    Socio-demographic stratification - the differentiation of the population by sex, age, the presence of certain physical qualities: forces, dexterity, beauty;
    - social and professional stratification is related to the separation of labor requiring certain vocational skills and experience;
    - social and cultural stratification - determined by unequal access to cultural values \u200b\u200band therefore the characteristics of the lifestyle and style of behavior;
    - Socio-ethnic stratification - due to the ethnic characteristics of social groups.

    In the aggregate, all types and forms of social stratification create a structurally complex, controversial and unique in each historical stage the structure of each particular society. The most acute contradictions are found in the formation of the socio-class composition of society.

    Social Structure and Stratification

    Meeting people in society have differences of a social, biological, psychological nature. Social calls are called the differences that are generated by social factors, such as: division of labor, lifestyle, function performed, the level of wealth, etc. Modern society is characterized by animation (increasing) of social differences. The Company is not only extremely differentiated and consists of a variety of social groups, classes, communities, but also hierarchized: some layers have greater power, great wealth, have a number of obvious advantages and privileges compared to others. Therefore, it can be said that society has a social structure.

    Social structure is a steady set of elements, as well as connections and relations, in which groups and community of people are entering the conditions of their livelihoods.

    The initial element of the social structure of society is a person. Larger elements of social structure: social groups, social layers (strata), classes, social community, etc.

    Social structure, thus, reflects the "vertical section" of society, but all components of elements in society are located in a certain hierarchy, it reflects social stratification ("horizontal section").

    Social stratification (lat. Stratum - layer, FASIO - I do) - a set of social layers located in the vertical order. The concept of stratification is borrowed by sociology from geology, where indicates the position of the layers of various breeds vertically.

    Social stratus is a lot of people inside a large group possessing a certain type and level of prestige, obtained by their position, as well as the possibility of achieving a special kind of monopoly. Sometimes the concept of "social bundle" is used in the literature (i.e. division into layers). The term "stratification" records not only the process of polarization of the population on the poor and rich, but also the final result of the bundle when the middle class occurs. The phenomenon of stratification is also characteristic of modern and pre-industrial societies.

    The historical example of stratification can serve as a custom system of the Hindu Society. There were thousands of castes in India, but they were all grouped into four main: Brahmins - Casta Priesetsov (3% of the population), Kshatriys - descendants of warriors; Vaisya - merchants who together accounted for about 7% of Indians; Studra - peasants and artisans (70%); The rest are untouchables, which were traditionally cleaners, garbers, leathermen, pigs. Strict rules did not allow to communicate to representatives of higher and lower castes, as it was believed that it was defiled by the highest. Of course, the stratification of ancient societies is not similar to the stratification of modern society, they differ in many criteria, one of which is the criterion of openness. In the open stratification system, the members of the social structure can easily change their social status (characteristic of modern societies); In a closed stratification system, members of society with great difficulty can change their status (agricultural type society).

    The theory of social structure and stratification in sociology was developed by M. Weber, P. Sorokin, K. Marx, etc.

    P. Sorokin allocated 3 types of social stratification in 3rd criteria:

    1) income level
    2) political status,
    3) professional roles.

    P. Sorokin Social stratification represented as a division of society to strata (layers). He believed that layers (strata) do not remain data, unchanged, they are in constant change and development. The combination of such changes P. Sorokin called social mobility, i.e. Mobility of social layers and classes.

    Social stratus is a lot of people inside a large group that have a certain type and prestigious level obtained by position, as well as the possibility of achieving a monopoly.

    Social mobility is a change in the individual or a group of space in the social structure of society, movement from one social situation to another.

    Social mobility has various features, of which the spatial characteristic is significant, the speed and density of the flow of stratification changes.

    Moving (mobility) happens:

    - horizontal, vertical (up-down in another layer or within its own strata);
    - slow, fast (speed);
    - individual, group.

    T. Parsons improved the theory of social stratification proposed by P. Sokin.

    He completed the criteria of stratification with new features:

    1) high-quality characteristics with which people have from birth (ethnicity, sex features);
    2) role characteristics (position, level of knowledge);
    3) characteristics of possession (property, material values).

    K. Marx Social structure understood as a division of society to social classes. Tied the division of society to classes with the division of labor and the institution of private property. It believed that the cause of social bundle is the separation of society on those who own the means of production, and those who can sell only their work. According to K. Marx, these two groups and their uncompanying interests serve as the basis of the bundle. Thus, for Marx, social stratification existed only in one dimension - economic.

    M. Weber believed that K. Marx simply simplified the picture of the stratification, there are other section criteria in society. He proposed a multidimensional approach to stratification. M. Weber Sources of development Strata believed: various types of people (professions), inherited by some people "Harizm" and the assignment of political power.

    Scientist for the company's stratification proposed to use 3 criteria:

    - class (economic situation);
    - status (prestige);
    - Party (power).

    The economic position of stratification is determined by the wealth and income of the individual; Prestige is an authority, influence, respect, the degree of which corresponds to a certain social status; Power is the ability of individuals and social groups to impose their will to others and mobilize human resources to achieve the goal.

    These three dimensions are interrelated, but not necessarily occupying a high position according to one of the criteria, the individual will also occupy a high position on another criterion (for example, the prestige of the priest in society is high, but on the impact on politics, this population group occupies a low position).

    Social stratification system

    There are open and closed stratification systems.

    Social structure whose members can change their status relatively easily, referred to as an open stratification system. In open stratification systems, each member of society can change its status, rise or descend on the social staircase based on their own efforts and abilities. Modern societies, experiencing needs qualified and competent specialists who can manage complex social, political and economic processes provide a sufficiently free movement of individuals in the stratification system.

    Open society also refer to the society of equal opportunities, where everyone has chances to rise to the highest steps of a social hierarchy.

    The structure whose members can change their status with great difficulty, are called a closed stratification system. An example of a closed stratification system can serve as a custom organization of India. The closed society characterizes a rigid social structure that impedes people moving not only up the social staircase, but also down. In such a society, social movements from the lower strata to the highest or completely prohibited, or significantly limited. Everyone knows its place in society, and this knowledge is transmitted from generation to generation. Social statuses become inherited. Thanks to this centuries-old addiction to its social position, not only the special psychology of fatalism is formed, humility before its fate, but also a special kind of solidarity with class and estate. Corporate Spirit, estate, Code of honor - these concepts came from a closed society.

    In sociology, four main types of stratification are known - slavery, castes, estates and classes. The first three characterize closed societies, the last type is open.

    Slavery slavery is historically the first system of social stratification. Slavery arose in ancient times in Egypt, Babylon, China, Greece, Rome and remained in a number of regions almost to the present. It existed in the United States in the XIX century. The least typical slavery was for nomadic peoples, especially hunters and collectors, and it received the greatest distribution in agrarian societies.

    Slavery is an economic, social and legal form of custody of people, bordering the full of the powerlessness and extreme degree of inequality.

    Slavery has historically evolved. Primitive form, or patriarchal slavery, and developed form, or classical slavery, differ significantly. In the first case, the slave had all the rights of the younger family member: lived in one house with the owners, participated in public life, marriage with free, inherited the owner's property. He was forbidden to kill him. An example is the Halophry in Russia X-XII centuries. On the mature stage (with classical slavery), the slave was finally robbed: he lived in a separate room, did not participate in anything, did not inherit anything, the marriage did not enter and the family did not have. It was allowed to kill. He did not own his property, but he himself was considered the property of the owner ("the" talking tool "). Ancient slavery in ancient Greece and plantation slavery can be attributed to this form.

    Usually indicate the following causes of slavery:

    First, a debt obligation, when a person who was not able to pay debts, went into slavery to his lender.
    Secondly, violation of laws when the execution of the killer or robber was replaced by slavery, i.e. The culprit was transferred to the injured family as compensation for the caused by the grief or damage.
    Third, war, raid, conquering, when one group of people won the other, and the winners used part of the prisoners as slaves. Herd Herda Lerner notes that there were more women among slaves captured in hostilities; They were used as concubines, in order to reproduce offspring and as an additional workforce.

    Thus, slavery was a consequence of military defeat, crime or unpaid debt, and not a sign of some kind of natural quality inherent in some kind of people.

    Although the slave-ownership practice was different in different regions and in different epochs, but regardless of whether the result was a consequence of non-declared debt, punishment, military captivity or racial prejudice; Whether it was lifelong or temporary; Inheritance or not, the slave was still the property of another person, and the system of laws secured the status of a slave. Slavery served as a major delimitation between people, clearly indicating which person is free (and the law receives certain privileges), and what a slave (not having privileges).

    Castes like slavery, custom system characterizes closed society and rigid stratification. He is not as an ancient, as a slave-ownership system, and less common. If almost all countries passed through slavery, of course, to varying degrees, the caste was found only in India and partly in Africa. India is a classic example of a caste society. It originated on the ruins of the slave-building in the first centuries of the new era. Casky is called the social group (stratum), membership in which a person is obliged exclusively by birth. He cannot move from one caste to another during life. For this, he needs to be born again. The caste position of the person is enshrined by the Hindu religion (it is clear now why the caste is not common). According to her canons, people live more than one life. The preceding person's life determines the nature of his new birth and Casta, in which it falls - a low or vice versa.

    Since the status in the custom system is determined by birth and is a lifelong, the caste system base is the prescribed status. The achieved status is not able to change the place of the individual in this system. People who belong to a group with a low status will always have this status regardless of what they personally managed to achieve in life.

    Societies for whom such a form of stratification is characterized, seek to clearly preserve the boundaries between the castes, therefore endogania is practiced here in the framework of its own group - and there is a ban on intergroup marriages. To prevent contacts between the Caste, such societies produce complex rules relating to ritual purity, according to which it is believed that communication with representatives of the lower castes defile the highest Cast.

    The shaft of the form of stratification preceding classes are class. In feudal societies that existed in Europe from IV in the XIV century, people were divided into estates. The estate is a social group that has fixed custom or legal law and inherited rights and duties.

    For a textual system, including several strata, a hierarchy is characterized, expressed in the inequality of their position and privileges. A classic model of a classic organization was the feudal Europe, where at the turn of the XIV - XV centuries, society was divided into higher estates (nobility and clergy) and an unprivileged third estate (artisans, merchants, peasants). And in the X - XIII centuries, the main estates were three: clergy, nobility and peasantry. In Russia since the second half of the XVIII century, the classified division on the nobility, clergy, merchants, peasantry and burghers (Middle Urban Layers) was established.

    Clauses were based on land ownership. The rights and obligations of each class were enshrined by legal law and sanctified the religious doctrine. The membership in the estate was determined by inheritance. Social barriers between the estates were strong enough, so social mobility existed not so much between how much inside the estates. Each class included many layers, ranks, levels, professions, ranks. So, the civil service could only be engaged in nobles. The aristocracy was considered a military estate (chivalry).

    The higher in the public hierarchy stood the estate, the higher his status was. In contrast to the caustam, individual mobility was allowed, individual mobility was allowed. A simple person could become a knight, having bought a special permit from the ruler. The merchants for money acquired noble titles. As a remnant, this practice is partially preserved in modern England.

    Characteristic line of class - availability of social symbols and signs: titles, uniforms, orders, ranks. Classes and castes did not have government distinguishing signs, although they were allocated by clothing, decorations, norms and rules of behavior, ritual of treatment. In the feudal society at the highest class - the nobility - there were their characters and signs given to him by the state.

    Titles - the verbal designations of the service and thesis and generic position of their owners, which briefly determined the legal status. In Russia in the XIX century, there were such titles as "General", "Stat Counselor", "Camger", "Count", "Flygel-Adjutant", "Statis Secretary", "Excellency" and "Lightness". The rank of the title system was the rank of each civil servant (military, civil or court). To Peter I, the concept of "Chin" marked any position, honorary title, the public situation of man. In 1722, Peter I established a new rank system, known as the "Range Tabel". Each genus of public service - military, civilian and courtiers - shared on 14 ranks. The class indicated the rank of office, which was called the name of the class rank. Behind his owner, the name "Officer" was entrenched.

    Only nobility was allowed to the public service - the local and served one. That and the other was hereditary: the noble title was transmitted to his wife, children and far descendants on the men's line. The noble status was usually drawn up in the form of a genealogy, the generic coat of arms, portraits of ancestors, legends, titles and orders. So consciousness gradually formed a sense of continuity of generations, pride for their own family and the desire to preserve his good name. In the aggregate, they constituted the concept of "noble honor", which was the important component of which was respect and the trust of those surrounding the unpeacted name. The noble origin of the hereditary nobleman was determined by the merits of his genus before the Fatherland.

    Stratification system classes based on slave, caustics and estates are closed. The borders separating people are so clear and firm that they do not leave people the opportunity to move from one group to another, with the exception of marriages between members of various clans. The class system is much more open, since it is based primarily on money or material property.

    Belonging to the class is also determined at birth - the individual receives the status of his parents, however, the social class of the individual during his life may change depending on what he managed (or failed) to achieve in life.

    Belonging to the social layer in the slave-owned, caste and estate and feudal societies was recorded by officially legal or religious standards. In a class society, it is different: no legal documents regulate the place of the individual in the social structure. Each person is free to move, if there are abilities, education or income, from one class to another.

    Thus, there are no laws that determine the occupation or profession of an individual depending on the birth or prohibiting marriage with representatives of other social classes.

    In sociology, class is understood in two aspects - wide and narrow.

    In a broad value, under the class, a large social group of people owning either non-producing production facilities, which occupies a certain place in the system of public division of labor and characterized by a specific method of obtaining income.

    Since private property arises in the period of the birth of the state, it is believed that already in the ancient East and in ancient Greece there were two opposing classes - slaves and slave owners. Feudalism and capitalism are no exception - and there were antagonistic classes here: exploiters and exploited. Such is the point of view of K. Marx, which adhere to today not only domestic, but also many foreign sociologists.

    In a narrow meaning class - any social stratus in modern society, differing from other income, education, power and prestige. This point of view prevails in foreign sociology, and now acquires citizenship rights in domestic.

    So, you can make a very important conclusion: in the historical sense classes - the youngest and most open type of stratification.

    Indeed, the ownership of the social layer in the slave-owned, caste and estate and feudal societies was recorded by legal or religious standards. In pre-revolutionary Russia, each person knew what class it consists. People, as they say, were attributed to a social strategy. In the class society it is different. No one is attributed to anyone. The state does not deal with the social consolidation of its citizens. The only controller is public opinion of people who are focused on customs that has established practices, income, lifestyle and behaviors. Therefore, accurately and unambiguously determine the number of classes in a particular country, the number of strata or layers to which they are broken, the affiliation of people to the strata is very difficult.

    From top to bottom in society there are strata of rich, wealthy (middle class) and poor people. Large public strata is called even classes within which we can detect smaller units, actually called layers, or strata.

    Rich occupy the most privileged posts and have the most prestigious professions. As a rule, they are better paid and are associated with mental labor, execution of management functions. Leaders, kings, kings, presidents, political leaders, major businessmen, scientists and artists are the elite of society.

    The wealthy layers (middle class) in modern society include doctors, lawyers, teachers, qualified employees, middle and small bourgeoisie.

    To the lower layers - unqualified workers, unemployed, beggars. The working class, according to modern ideas, is an independent group that occupies an intermediate between the middle and lower classes.

    Rich of the highest class have a higher level of education and more power. Poor from the lower class possess minor power, income and level of education. Thus, the prestige of the profession (classes), the volume of power and the level of education is added to the income as the main criterion of stratification.

    In general, the main characteristic of the class system of social stratification is the relative flexibility of its boundaries. Class system leaves opportunities for social mobility, i.e. For movement up or down the social staircase. The presence of potential to increase its social status, or class, is one of the main driving forces that encourage people to learn well and work hard. Of course, a marital status inherited by a person from birth can also be able to identify exclusively disadvantageous conditions that will not be able to rise in life too high, and provide such privileges in life, and to provide such privileges that it will be almost impossible to "ride down" for him by the class staircase.

    In addition to the presented stratification systems, physico-genetic, ethaxy, socio-professional; Cultural and symbolic and cultural and regulatory.

    The physico-genetic stratification system is based on the differentiation of social groups on "natural", socio-demographic signs. Here, the attitude towards a person or group is determined by the floor, age and the presence of certain physical qualities - forces, beauty, dexterity. Accordingly, weaker who have physical disabilities are considered flawed and occupy a printed social situation. Inequality is approved in this case by the existence of the threat of physical violence or its actual use, and then fixed in customs and rituals. This "natural" stratification system dominated the primitive community, but continues to be reproduced to this day. It is especially strongly manifested in communities fighting for physical survival or expanding their living space. The greatest prestige here has the one who is able to carry out violence against nature and people or to resist such violence: a healthy young male-feeder in the peasant community, living fruits of primitive manual labor; courageous warrior of the Spartan state; True Arian National Socialist Hardship, capable of producing healthy offspring.

    The system ranking people by the ability to physically violence is a large product of the militarism of ancient and modern societies. Currently, although deprived of the former value, it is still supported by military, sports and sexually erotic propaganda.

    The etharatic system (from French and Greek - "state power") has some similarity with the estate system. In it, differentiation between groups occurs, first of all, according to their position in the powerful and state hierarchies (political, military, economic), on the possibilities of mobilization and distribution of resources, as well as the privileges that these groups are able to extract from their power positions. The degree of material well-being, the lifestyle of social groups, as well as those who experience the prestige are connected here with formal ranks that these groups occupy in the relevant power hierarchies. All other differences are demographic and religious-ethnic, economic and cultural - play a derivative role.

    The scale and nature of differentiation (the volume of powerful powers) in the ethacratic system are under the control of the state bureaucracy. At the same time, the hierarchy can be consolidated formally legally - through the officials of the ranks, military charters, assigning categories to state institutions, - and may remain outside the sphere of state legislation (a visual example is the system of Soviet partner, the principles of which are not prescribed in any laws) . Formal freedom of members of society (except for dependence on the state), the lack of automatic inheritance of the powerful positions also distinguishes the etharatic system from the class system.

    The statuctic system is detected with the greatest force than the more authoritarian nature takes the state rule. In ancient times, bright samples of the statuctic system were observed in the Societies of Asian despotism (China, India, Cambodia), arranged, however, not only in Asia (and, for example, in Peru, Egypt). In the twentieth century, it is actively asserted in the so-called "socialist societies" and, perhaps, even plays them a decisive role.

    In the socio-professional stratification system of the Group divided by the content and conditions of their labor. A special role is fulfilled by qualification requirements for a particular professional role - possessing relevant experience, skills and skills. Approval and maintenance of hierarchical orders in this system is carried out with the help of certificates (diplomas, discharges, licenses, patents), fixing the level of qualifications and the ability to perform certain types of activities. The effectiveness of qualifying certificates is supported by the power of the state or some other enough powerful corporation (professional workshop). Moreover, certificates are not transmitted by inheritance, although exceptions in history are found.

    Social and professional division is one of the basic stratification systems, a variety of examples of which can be found in every society with an indefolded division of labor. This is a system of handicraft workshops of a medieval city and a discharge grid in the modern state industry, a system of certificates and diplomas about the education obtained, a system of scientific degrees and titles that open the way to more prestigious workplaces.

    In the cultural and symbolic stratification system, differentiation arises from differences in access to socially significant information, unequal opportunities to filter and interpret this information, the ability to be a carrier of sacred knowledge (mystical or scientific). In ancient times, this role was assigned to the priests, magicians and shamans, in the Middle Ages - the ministers of the Church, the interpreters of the sacred texts, which make up the bulk of the literate population, in a new time - scientists, technocrats and party ideologists. Claims for communication with the Divine Forces, on the possession of the scientific truth, there were always on the expression of state interest and everywhere. And a higher position in this respect is occupied by those who have the best opportunities to manipulate the consciousness and actions of other members of society, who better than others can prove their rights to true understanding, owns the best symbolic capital.

    For pre-industrial societies, theocratic manipulation is more characteristic; for industrial - part-time; And for post-industrial - technocratic manipulation.

    For the cultural and regulatory type of the stratification system, differentiation, built on differences of respect and prestige, arising from the comparison of lifestyle and behavior standards, which should be given a person or group. Attitude towards physical and mental work, consumer tastes and habits, manners of communication and etiquette, a special language (professional terminology, a local dialect, criminal jargon) - all this falls into the basis of social division. Moreover, not only the distinction of "their" and "strangers", but also ranking groups ("noble - not noble", "decent - not decent", "Elite - ordinary people - bottom").

    Social stratification of modern society

    The Stalin-Brezhnevskaya stratification model was reduced only to the forms of ownership and on this basis - to two classes (working and collective farm peasant) and layers (intelligentsia). We had social inequality, alienation of classes from property and from power in Soviet science were not exposed to open structuring until the mid-1980s. However, foreign researchers were engaged in the stratification of the social inequality of the Soviet society. One of them - A. Inkels - was analyzing the 1940-1950s. And gave a conical model of hierarchical division of society in the USSR.

    Using the material level, privileges and power as the bases, he marked nine social layers: the ruling elite, the highest intelligentsia, working aristocracy, the main intelligentsia, the average workers, wealthy peasants, "white collar", medium-sized peasants, non-adopted workers and a group of forced labor ( prisoners). Inertia closed to study the company was so great that at present the domestic stratification analysis only unfolds.

    Researchers also treat the Soviet past, and to the current Russian society. Various variations of three layers (business layer, middle layer, lumpen-layer) and a model from eleven hierarchical steps (apparatus, "compraDor", "National Bourgeoisie", Directorate, "merchants", farmers, collective farmers, members of new agricultural enterprises, lumpen Intelligentsia, working class, unemployed). The most developed model belongs to Academician T. Zaslavskaya, which revealed 78 social layers in modern Russia.

    Western sociologists in the twentieth century. Use different approaches to social stratification:

    1) Subjective - self-esteem, when the respondents themselves determine their social affiliation;
    2) subjective reputational when the respondents determine each other's social affiliation;
    3) Objective (most common) - as a rule, with a status criterion. Most Western sociologists, structuring the society of developed countries, share them to the highest, middle and working classes, in some countries the peasantry (for example, France, Japan, the third world countries).

    The highest class stands out in its wealth, corporate and power. It is about 2% of modern societies, but controls up to 85-90% of capital. It makes up bankers, owners, presidents, leaders of parties, movie stars, outstanding athletes.

    The middle class includes persons of nonreight labor and is divided into three groups: the highest middle class (professionals - doctors, scientists, lawyers, engineers, etc.); intermediate middle class (teachers, nurses, actors, journalists, technology); Lowest Middle Class (cashiers, sellers, photographers, police, etc.). The middle class is 30-35% in the structure of Western societies.

    The working class is a class of physical labor workers, which makes up about 50-65% in different countries, is also divided into three layers:

    1) working qualified manual labor (mechanic, turner, cooks, hairdressers, etc.);
    2) working manual semi-unqualified labor (seamstations, agricultural, telephonists, bartenders, sanitary panels, etc.);
    3) workers of unqualified labor (movers, cleaners, kitchen workers, servants, etc.). An important feature of modern society is that it, in the mass consciousness of the idea of \u200b\u200bthe need and feasibility of a social hierarchy, gives the chances to everyone to experience his strength in the harder rise in the stratification stairs.

    Thereby, conditions are created for the direction of energy generated by discontent with its position in the hierarchical structure, not to destroy the structure itself and protecting its institutions, but to achieve personal success. The mass consciousness creates a sustainable idea of \u200b\u200bpersonal responsibility for its fate, for its place in the pyramid of power, prestige and privileges.

    Social inequality and social stratification

    Social inequality - conditions under which people have unequal access to such social benefits as money, power and prestige; These are some types of people's relationships: personal inequality, the inequality of opportunities to achieve the desired goals (chance inequality). Inequality of living conditions (welfare, education, etc.), inequality of results; This is a system of priorities and social advantages, regulating social survival factors, which may be associated with a favorable position in social disposition, ease of movement to preferred layers, social layers and a whole set of characteristics that demonstrate an increase in social freedom and security.

    Social inequality - a relationship-based system in society, which characterizes the uneven distribution of society's scarce resources (money, government, education and prestige) between different strata, or layers, the population, social inequality is the cause and consequence of social stratification. The main meter of inequality is the number of liquid values, in modern society this function usually make money. If the inequality is in the form of a scale, then on one pole will be those who own the largest amount of benefits (rich), and on the other - the smallest (poor). Wealth is expressed in the sum of money equivalent to what the person owns. Wealth and poverty set a multidimensional stratification hierarchy. The amount of money determines the place of an individual or family in social stratification.

    Social inequality in power is manifested in the possibility of a certain social subject (social layer, or strata) to determine the goals and focus of the activities of other social actors (whatever their interests), dispose of the material, information and status resources of the Company, to form and impose rules and code of conduct. The key importance in the measurement of social inequality with power relations belongs to the resource disposal, which allows the ownership of the subject to subjugate other people. Social inequality in the level of education and the prestige of social status, profession, posts, the nature of the classes is determined by the inequality of starting conditions or the unequalness of the conditions for the development of various social layers and strata (real injustice, infringement of natural human rights, creating artificial social barriers, monopolizing conditions and social production rules) .

    Social stratification is a constant ranking of social statuses and roles in the social system (from a small group to society); This is the distribution of public groups in a hierarchically ordered rank (ascending or decreasing any sign); This is a concept denoting, firstly, the structure of society, secondly, the system of signs of social bundle, inequality. Social stratification - structuring inequality between various social communities, traffic or groups of people or the existing hierarchical organized structure of social inequality in society. The term "stratification" is borrowed from geology, where he denotes the social layers located in the vertical order.

    Social stratification is a rank stratification, when the highest, or upper, layers, which are significantly less in terms of the number of members of the Company are in a more privileged position (in relation to the possession of resources or the possibility of obtaining remuneration) than the lower layers. All complex societies have several stratification systems, according to which the ranking of individuals on the layers is ranked. The main types of social stratification are: economic, political and professional.

    In accordance with the data, the types of social stratification of society, it is customary to allocate income criteria (and wealth, i.e. accumulation) criteria for the impact on the behavior of members of society and the criteria related to the successful performance of social roles, the presence of knowledge, skills, skills and intuitions that are evaluated And rewarded by society. Social stratification, fixing the natural and social inequality between people, is steadily supported and regulated by various institutional mechanisms, is constantly reproduced and modified, which is a condition for the streamlined existence of any society and the source of its development.

    Historical social stratification

    There are 4 main historical types of social stratification:

    1. Slavery is the extreme form of inequality, when some individuals are the property of others.
    2. Caste is a group whose members are associated with origin or legal status, which belongs to which is hereditary, the transition from one caste to another is practically impossible. In India there were 4 castes separated by ritual purity standards. Big castes shared on podcasts. The characteristic feature of the caste system was Endogamia (prohibiting unequal marriages).
    3. The estate is a group that has fixed custom or law and inheritance transmitted rights and responsibilities. Clauses were based on land ownership. The characteristic feature of the class is the availability of social symbols and signs: titles, uniforms, orders, ranks. His perfection is the estate system reached in medieval Western Europe. As a rule, two privileged estates are distinguished - the clergy and the nobility - and the third, which included all other layers of society.
    4. Classes have a number of features that distinguish from three other stratification systems:
    1) Classes do not rely on law and religious traditions, the class affiliation is not related to the inheritance of privileges enshrined by law or custom.
    2) An individual can become a class member due to its efforts, and not just "get" it at birth.
    3) Classes arise depending on the difference in the economic situation of groups of individuals, inequalities in possession and control of economic resources.
    4) In other stratification systems, inequality is expressed primarily through the personal relationships of debt and responsibilities - between a slave and Mr., landlord and serf. Class systems, on the contrary, function through large-scale impersonal bonds.

    The concept of class was introduced into the turnover of French historians of Thieri and Gizo in 18 tbsp. In modern sociology there are many class concepts. Consider two main approaches to the analysis of classes - Marxist and gradation.

    Marxist approach. The most active concept of "class" is used by Marxists, but there is no definition of this category in the works of K. Marx. The main class-forming sign on Marx is the property for the means of production.

    The most important manifestation of class relationship was the operation of one class to another. At each stage of the development of the society, K.Marks highlighted the main classes corresponding to this method of production (slaves and slave owners, feudal and peasants, capitalists and workers), and non-core - remnants of old or embryos of new formations (landowners during capitalism). The division of society into classes is the result of a public division of labor and the formation of particular equity relations.

    According to Marx, the class in its development takes place two stages - from the "class in itself" to the "class for yourself." "Class in yourself" is a forming class, not aware of his class interests. The second is the already formed class.

    The gradation approach takes into account not one, but several classification criteria (occupation, source and income size, education level, lifestyle).

    Among the stratification models adopted in Western sociology, the Lloyd Warner model received the greatest distribution. He allocated three classes and two strata in each class.

    The highest top - dynasty (rich families of noble origin).

    The lowest higher is the people of high intake, recently rich (nouveau).

    The highest average - highly qualified persons engaged in mental labor, having high income (lawyers, doctors, scientific elite, managers), mid-business representatives.

    The lowest average is unqualified "White Collars" (stationery employees, secretaries, cashiers, waiters), as well as small owners.

    The highest lower - working physical labor.

    The lowest lowest, unemployed, homeless, foreign workers.

    Forms of social stratification

    Specific and social stratification are numerous. However, all their diversity can be reduced to three main forms: 1) Economic, 2) political and 3) professional stratification. As a rule, they are all closely intertwined. People belonging to the highest layer in some kind of one respect, usually belong to the same layer and by other parameters, and vice versa. Representatives of the highest economic layers at the same time relate to the highest political and professional layers. The poor, as a rule, is devoid of civil rights and are in the lower layers of a professional hierarchy.

    This is the general rule, although there is a lot of exceptions. So, for example, the richest far away is not always at the top of the political or professional pyramid, as well as not in all cases, the poor occupy the lowest places in political and professional hierarchies. This means that the relationship of the three forms of social stratification is far from perfection, for the various layers of each form do not completely coincide with each other ... they coincide with each other, but only partially, i.e. to a certain extent.

    Lumens and marginals

    These two groups of the population are like falling out of the sustainable social structure of society.

    Lumpen - proletariat (from him. LUMPEN - "rags") - the term introduced by Karl Marx to indicate the lower layers of the proletariat. Later, "lumpen" began to be called all the declacial segments of the population (tramp, beggars, criminal elements and others). In most cases, Lumen is a person who does not have any property and living random earnings.

    Lumpen - declassified elements, people without social roots, moral code, ready to unanimously obey strongly, that is, in the present moment real power.

    The lubunition of society means an increase in the share of these layers in the population and the spread of the psychology of lumpenses in the conditions of the social crisis.

    Marginal (from French Marginal, Latin Margo - Edge, border) - 1) on the border of two media; 2) a person who turned out to be outside the specific social layer, the group (marginal person, marginal).

    It is often used as a negative assessment in relation to lumpen and outcasts, as well as in a positive sense - in relation to people, creatively overcoming stereotypes, established principles of activity.

    Positive and negative sides of marginalness.

    Marginality is usually associated with painful psychological experiences. It can be considered as a negative phenomenon. And indeed, being outside the society - this is not the most pleasant thing from what is in life. This position is dangerous, because a person can start feeling superfluous, unnecessary.

    On the other hand, this provision can be an impetus that will force a person to make efforts and either adapt to society, restore its position in it, or change the social structure. Marginals play an extremely important role in the formation of new social communities (religious, professional, etc.). There is a close relationship between the emergence of large masses of people, for some reason, and the emergence of new social entities there is a close relationship, which has repeatedly noted by sociologists.

    Changes in the degree of social inequality in the process of history.

    Pareto believed that the degree of economic inequality, the share of rich people in the population is a constant thing. Karl Marx believed that the process of economic differentiation occurs in the modern world - the rich are more and more richer, and the poor are increasingly poorly, the middle class disappears. Pitirim Sorokin denied these hypotheses with facts in their hands and proved that the level of economic inequality fluctuates about one permanent value over time.

    A comparison of the stages of the development of society in terms of inequality shows:

    1) In the societies of hunters and collectors of plants, for example, in Papuans of the island of Kiwa, inequality takes place in the smallen degree.
    2) In horticultural societies, the political leader, merchant and priest use the greatest influence. The degree of social inequality is low.
    3) The inequality is most pronounced in agrarian societies, where hereditary monarchy and slavement arose.
    4) In industrial societies, inequality and concentration of power are less than in agricultural.

    Figures of inequality (stratification profile):

    1) pyramid;
    2) rhombus.

    The width of the horizontal figure means the number of people with this income size. At the top of the figure is the elite. Over the past hundred years, Western society has done the evolution from the pyramidal structure to rhombid. In the pyramid structure there is a huge majority of the poor and a small hand of oligarchs. In the diamond structure, the share of the middle class is large. The diamond structure is more preferable compared to the pyramidal, because In the first case, the numerous middle class will not allow a pile of poor to arrange a civil war. And in the second case, the huge majority, consisting of the poor, can easily overturn the social system, arrange a civil war and a senseless slaughter. The task of Russia is to move from the triangular figure of inequality, which exists in Russia today, to the rhombid.

    The middle class is a set of social segments of the population in the stratification system of society an intermediate position between the lower class (poor) and the highest class (rich). In developed countries, the middle class is the most numerous population group.

    The functions of the middle class are traditionally considered to be stabilization of society and reproduction of qualified labor.

    Social stratification concept

    The basics of a modern approach to the study of social stratification were laid by M. Weber, considered the social structure of society as a multidimensional system in which, along with classes and their attributes of property, the status and power occupies an important place.

    The most developed the functionalist concept of social stratification (T. Parsons, E. Shils, etc.), according to which the stratification system of the Company is the differentiation of social roles and positions and is an objective need for any developed society. On the one hand, it is due to the division of labor and the social differentiation of various groups, and on the other, it is the result of the action of the dominant system of values \u200b\u200band cultural standards dominant in society, which determine the importance of this or that activity and weakens the developing social inequality.

    In the theory of social action, T. Parsons is attempting to develop universal criteria for the concept of social stratification:

    "Quality", i.e., prescribed by the individual of a certain characteristic, position (for example, responsibility, competence, etc.);
    "Execution", i.e. evaluation of the activities of the individual in comparison with the activities of other people;
    "possession" material values, talent, skill, cultural resources.

    In empirical sociology, the following approaches are distinguished to the study of the concept of social stratification: "self-assessing", or the method of "class identification", when sociologist provides the respondent to attribute himself to a certain conditional scale of the class composition of the population; The method of "reputation assessment", in which the respondents are proposed to speak by experts, i.e., assess the social status of each other or well-known social groups; "Objective approach" when the researcher operates with some objective criterion of social differentiation; Most often is based on a socio-class scale associated with the concept of "socio-economic status", covering usually three variables - the prestige of the profession, the level of education and the level of income.

    When studying social stratification and mobility by the "objective approach" method, a seventhlass vertical scale is often used:

    1 - the highest class of professionals, administrators;
    2 - Middle Technical Specialists;
    3 - commercial class;
    4 - small bourgeoisie;
    5 - techniques and workers carrying out guidelines;
    6 - qualified workers;
    7 - Unqualified workers.

    The generalization of multidimensional stratification is its geometric model, conventionally representing a social space consisting of a series of interrelated axes formed by various measured signs (profession, income, education, dwelling, etc.), along which an individual or group is moved along.

    The theories under consideration are the component of the concept of social stratification, in which the concept of "status" is being developed (from the lat. Status - state, position). Social status is the position of personality in society in accordance with age, flooring, origin, profession, marital status.

    List the status of the inborn (prescribed) (social origin, nationality) and achievable (achievable) (education, qualification, etc.). At the same time, each person, possessing a certain social status (according to which he occupies a certain place in the public hierarchy), combines several status in his face, being, for example, at the same time, his father, husband, governor, a member of the political party, the captain of the sports team and T . D. Sometimes these statuses come into contradiction with each other. In this case, the individual is forced to prefer one status to another.

    The concept of "social status" is closely related to the concept of "social role". In this sense, the latter turns out to be a dynamic side of social status, its function, anticipated behavior, depending on a certain position of a person in society.

    With the help of social status theories, some sociologists interpret the concept of "class struggle" as the struggle of individuals for the best social role in conditions when higher roles and statuses are numerically limited and the demand for them exceeds the proposal.

    Features of social stratification

    The nomenclature clans in the state apparatus, trying to put on their service the reforms, are faced with the protest of broad social layers seeking to approve the principles of social justice and freedom in society. The struggle of forces and layers associated with the criminalized and "honest" economy acquires the most acute forms, up to acts of political terror, etc.

    At the same time, the formation of modern social stratification in Russia has certain specifics and history. The country was latent processes of the origin of quasi-accompanied property (for example, in the form of the individual corporate ownership of the highest management bureaucracy, the accumulation of resources in the shadow economy), which subsequently contributed to the formation of the Protocol of large owners (nomenclature, major representatives of the trade sector). Started open nomenclature privatization led to the concentration of the ruling class in his hands of the state ownership, which they formally managed in Soviet times. The establishment by the class of managing numerous funds, joint ventures and structures at the site of government agencies and organizations is the mechanism that contributed to the redistribution of public resources to the individual property of the managers. So, retaining power, the nomenclature acquired and property. In her face in the country, a group of very rich and influential people was legally formed.

    In the country, competitive capitalism began to develop (in the form of direct school and check privatization, enriching officials by licensing and quotation when regulating export-import operations, the emergence of a layer of small and medium-sized entrepreneurs). The corporate nature of the relationship of power and business led to the formation of favorable conditions for the growth of large capital. For example, if in the United States, an average of 47 years to earn a fortune of 10 million dollars, and in South Korea - 13 years, then in Russia in those years it was possible in just 3-4 years. In the future, the growing influence of large capital led to its close convergence with the authorities and entry into power (oligarchization). At the same time, support for medium and small business remained on the periphery of the attention of the authorities.

    The predominant orientation of the state to support large capital and protectionist policies against representatives of the ruling class led to a rapid social bundle and mass downward social mobility. A significant group of poor people formed in the country, according to various data, which covers today from 40 to 80% of the population. If, for example, the minimum salary in the United States today is approximately 115-120% of the subsistence minimum, then in the Russian Federation - only 17.5%. Such a significant decrease in the standard of living of the population shows that at present, stratification has a tendency of "coagulation of differences" to its one politically significant measurement - economic.

    According to a number of Russian scientists, there are currently such stratification in the country: elite (large entrepreneurs and owners, politics, higher bureaucracy, general library) - 0.5%; top layer (major officials, businessmen, highly paid specialists) - 6-7%; Middle layer (small private entrepreneurs working on hiring specialists) - 21%; base layer (semi-attilegence, workers of mass professions of trade and service, qualified workers and peasants) - 65%; Lower layer (technical employees, workers without qualifications, lumpen) - 7%.

    Social stratification of Russian society revealed new prestigious groups to which financiers, bankers, tax authorities, lawyers began to include. At the same time, in a number of youth layers gained widespread, I acquired a special authority of criminal ethics. And this is not by chance, considering that at present in the shadow economy (directly and in parallel) is occupied by most of the labor force. Of these, 9 million Russians participated in the criminal business (covering more than 40 thousand business objects). Corruption has become the attribute of the state device.

    In recent years, despite the presence of low consumer standards and experienced by the country of complexity, there is a gradual folding of the middle class. This process is primarily associated with a certain restructuring of the intellectual sphere, bringing into compliance with the number of employees of science, education and culture with the possibilities and needs of society in these activities, as well as the gradual formation of a layer of small and medium-sized entrepreneurs.

    A significant role in the evolution of social relations, ambiguously affecting the political stability of society and the diversity of political life in the country, is played: Migration from the CIS countries, strengthening regional characteristics, complication of the cultural appearance of groups. Experience shows that the mitigation of political tensions in Russia, as in other countries with a transitional social structure, is generally due to the strengthening of the social orientation of the government's activities (especially in relation to the least protected segments of the population), with the struggle against crime and the privileges of the state budget, the expansion of opportunities Professional retraining of citizens and a number of other measures.

    Class social stratification

    Class stratification is characteristic of an open type of societies. It is significantly different from both the caste system and from the estate.

    The differences of class stratification are manifested in the following:

    1) classes are not created on the basis of a religious doctrine or based on legal norms;
    2) class membership is not inherited;
    3) the boundaries between classes are rather blurred than rigidly outlined; Classes are mobile;
    4) the division into classes depends on economic differences (due to inequality in possession or control of material resources);
    5) The level of social mobility is higher in the class society (formal restrictions do not exist, but mobility is constrained by the starting capabilities and claims).

    Class is a social group of people who own or do not speak the means of production that occupy a certain place in the system of public division of labor and characterized by a specific method of obtaining income.

    The most influential theoretical approaches in the definition of class stratification belong to K. Marx and M. Weber. According to Marx, the class is a community of people who are directly related to the means of production. He highlighted in society at various stages of its existence of exploited and operating.

    The stratification of society in K. Marx is one-dimensional and is associated only with classes, since its main base is the economic situation, and all other grounds (rights, privileges, power, influence) fit into the space of economic situation, are combined with it.

    M. Weber identified classes as groups of people who have a similar position in a market economy that receive a similar economic remuneration and with similar life chances. Class divisions arise from economic differences that are not related to property. Such sources include professional skills, rare specialty, high qualifications, intellectual property, etc.

    M. Weber gave not only class stratification, considering it only part of the structuring required for a complex of capitalist society. Weber proposed a three-dimensional division: if economic differences (by wealth) give rise to class stratification, then the spiritual (according to the prestige) is the status, and political (on access to power) - party. In the first case, we are talking about the life chances of the social layers, in the second - about the image and style of their life, in the third - about the ownership of power and influence on it. Most of the sociologists consider the Weber scheme more flexible corresponding to the modern society.

    Weber's presentation formed the basis of modern stratification. Currently, the generally accepted sociological model of the stratification structure of society in some countries (for example, in the UK) is the division of the population into three classes - a working, intermediate, higher.

    Employees of physical labor refer to the working class, low-level non-physical labor workers refer to the intermediate class, managers and professionals to the highest class.

    In such a developed from a sociological point of view, a country as the United States, various sociologists offer different typology of classes. In one seven, to another six, in the third five, etc. Social strata.

    The first typology of the US classes proposed in the 40s. XX century American sociologist Lloyd Warner:

    - The upper-top class included the so-called "old families". They consisted of the most prosperous businessmen and those called professionals. They lived in the preferred parts of the city;
    - the lower-upper class in terms of material well-being did not inferior to the upper-top class, but did not include old generic families;
    - Upper middle class consisted of owners and professionals who have a smaller material supply in comparison with people from two top classes, but they actively participated in the public life of the city and lived in rather well-maintained areas;
    - the lower middle class was lower employees and qualified workers;
    - Upper-lower class included unqualified workers engaged in local factories and living in relative delight;
    - The lower-lower class was those who were called "social bottom" are the inhabitants of basements, attics, slums and other places that are affordable. They constantly felt the incompleteness complex due to hopeless poverty and constant humiliation. In all twisted words, the first - denotes a stratum or layer, and the second is the class to which this layer refers.

    The middle class (with the layers inherent) is always distinguished from the working class. The working class may include non-working, unemployed, homeless, poor layers of the population, etc. As a rule, highly qualified workers are incorporated not in the working class, but in the middle, but in its lowest stratum, which is fill in mainly unqualified mental workers - employees .

    It is possible for a different option: the workers do not include in the middle class, but leave two layers in the overall working class. Experts are included in the next middle class layer (the concept of "specialist" suggests at least the formation of college).

    The upper centers of the middle class fill in the main "professionals" - specialists who, as a rule, university education and great practical experience, distinguished by high mastery in their field, occupied by creative labor and related to the so-called category of self-nailed, i.e. , your business (lawyers, doctors, scientists, teachers, etc.).

    The middle class is a unique phenomenon in the world history of the company's stratification system. He appeared in the XX century. The middle class acts as a stabilizer of society, and its specific function has been concluded. The more he, the more stable a favorable political and economic atmosphere in society.

    Representatives of the middle class are always interested in preserving the structure that gives them similar opportunities to implement and well-being. The thinner and weaker the middle class, the closer to each other, the polar stratification points (lower and higher classes), the most likely their collision. As a rule, the middle class includes those who have economic independence, i.e., own an enterprise, a company, office, private practice, their own business, as well as scientists, priests, doctors, lawyers, middle managers, petty bourgeoisie, in other words, Social base of society.

    Essence of social stratification

    There are many groups in society, but they are not equal, as they are not equal to people who make up these groups. Those. There is always social inequality. However, levels and forms of social inequality may be different.

    The central concept in analyzing social inequality is the concept of social stratification.

    Social stratification (from Lat. Stratum - layer, reservoir) - layering, approaching groups with different access to social benefits due to their position in the public hierarchy. The stratus includes many people similar to some sign that feel connected with each other. As a trait, economic, political, socio-demographic, cultural characteristics can act, but they must be status, i.e. Have a rank character.

    In sociology, there are various methodological approaches to the analysis of the essence, sources and prospects for the development of social stratification.

    Functional approach

    Conflict approach

    Evolutionary approach

    1. Stratification is natural, it is necessary, inevitable, because it is related to the diversity of needs, functions and social roles.

    1. Stratification is not necessary, but not inevitable. It arises from the conflict of groups.

    1. Stratification is not always necessary and useful. It appears not only by virtue of natural needs, but also on the basis of a conflict resulting from the distribution of the surplus product.

    2. Remuneration is carried out in accordance with the role and therefore fairly.

    2. Stratification is not valid. It is determined by the interests of the power of the property.

    2. Remuneration can be fair and unfair.

    3. Stratification ensures the optimal functioning of society.

    3. Stratification makes it difficult for the normal functioning of society.

    3. Stratification can contribute, and maybe it makes it difficult to develop.

    M. Weber allocated three social resources generating social stratification:

    1. Property.
    2. Power.
    3. Prestige.

    In other words, the social group at a higher level of social hierarchy has large volumes of power, property and prestige.

    P. Sorokin offered the idea of \u200b\u200bmultidimensional stratification, that is, in his opinion, there is no uniform stratification pyramid, but three:

    Economic stratification.
    - Political stratification.
    - Professional stratification.

    High social status in one stratification is not always associated with high status in another stratification (for example, the US President has the highest status in political stratification, and its status in economic stratification is much lower).

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