Social status

Social status is the standing one holds in society based off of prestige and honor. Social Status is effected by a number of extraneous factors such as occupation, wealth, education, and family.

Historical Overview

Historically, social status has had varying degrees of importance. Non-stratified and stratified societies have different ideas of social status. For example, in a stratified society, wealth and power divide the people. Those with more power, or those with the ability to influence others, are thought of with a higher social status. Social mobility is also an important part of a stratified society. People have the ability to move up and down in most stratified socities, but the degree of fluidity varies. Moving up in social class usually entails gaining more wealth, income, or power. Moving down in social class usually means the loss of these services. In a non-stratified society, the divisions are more dependent upon skills, talents, and intelligence. For instance, a person can have a higher social status if they are a hard working member of their culture who renders indispensable services.

The Indian caste system presents social status as a static standing. One is born into their social status and remains there, neither moving up or down in standing, until death. In other cases, status is of relatively little importance or may not exist at all, as is true with some Hunter-Gatherer societies such as the Khoisan, some Indigenous Australian societies, and other non-stratified societies. In these cases, status is limited to specific personal relationships. For example, a !Kung man is expected to take his mother-in-law (his wife's mother) quite seriously; but the mother-in-law has no "status" over anyone but her son-in-law—and only then in certain contexts.

Different types of government lead to different interpretations of social status. The Medici Family governed Florence and much of Italy for three centuries, resulting in a type of oligarchy. In this oligarchy, the Medici family ran the government through religious, political, and even artistic leadership. The Medici family were the highest members of this society, with people who work close with the Medici family considered those with high social status.

In a government such as a monarchy, especially an absolute monarchy, one person rules the province. This person has the highest social status in society, and this position is usually static. For example, in the United Arab Emirates, the President of all seven states has total control over the governments of the states. When the President, Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, died in 2004, his son, Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan took over his position. The monarch allows people to prosper, but ultimately the development of the governed society is dependent upon the whim of the monarch. His or her choices decide what the country will do. Social status is contingent on the monarch's choice. If the monarch wants the economy to focus more on a specific industry, those people in that industry will have a higher social status.

In the British Monarchy, power is distributed differently. The British Royal Family has less power than the elected government in the British Pariliament. The monarch has the powers guaranteed to them by the crown, the royal perogative, which includes making treaties, sending amabassadors, and maintaining peace. The royal perogative is only used, however, at the advice and discretion of the ministers in the British Parliament. The royal perogative also has no jurisdiction over taxes of the country, limiting what the current monarch can impose. Social status in this situation is misleading. The British Royal Family is at the top of the social stratum, but their powers are limited by the elected government officials, and their accumulated wealth is less than that of the British Parliament.

Globalization has impacted the way people view their own social status, as well as their peers. Social Status is not as static as it once was. Through mediums such as the internet, people discover business opportunities and investments that they would have passed over otherwise. Corporations invest business into other countries, providing locals different jobs than they have had access to in the past. This increases the income and wealth of populations that may have not had success before, which changes social status. For instance, in the caste system of India, a person in the lower divisions can accumulate more wealth, but they are still looked upon with the same social status. This can result in political dissatisfcation and changing definitions of social status in these particular closed societies.

Concepts of Social Status

Status is a key idea in social stratification. Max Weber distinguishes status from social class, but some contemporary empirical sociologists fuse the two ideas into "Socio-Economic Status," usually operationalised as a simple index of income, education and occupational prestige. Weber's idea's were part of his three component theory of stratification, which stated that social class, social status, and political parties were three seperate components that contributed to stratification. Social status, according to Weber, is based on honor, prestige, religion, and other non-economical qualities. Social class is based on a persons relationship to the business market, so it takes a more economic approach.

Social status is conceptualized in many different ways. For instance, ascribed status is the status a person is born into, while achieved status is gained through ones own effort.

Achieved status is a sociological term denoting a social position that a person assumes voluntarily which reflects personal skills, abilities, and efforts. Examples of achieved status are being an Olympic athlete, being a criminal, or being a teacher.

Ascribed status is a social status a person is given from birth or assumes involuntarily later in life. For example, a person born into a wealthy family has a high ascribed status.

Social status also consists of role-taking. A person has many roles along different social strata and usually occupies several at once. For example, a person can be a parent, a teacher, a friend, and a spouse. Some roles are more important than other roles which can be important in determining social status.

Social position involves the ranking of roles of an individual in a given society and culture. A given position (for example, the occupation of priest) may belong to many individuals. The idea of priest is an example of the social position of occupation. A person can have many social positions involving their profession, family, or hobbies. For instance, the priest can be a son of his parents, an active member in volunteering at community centers, and an expert at putting together jig-saw puzzles. Each of these are different social positions for the same individual, the priest. The social positions depends on the rank of importance to the individual. If this individual ranks occupation as most important, the other roles (such as brother, son, volunteer) may take a back seat to being a priest. These social positions influence the perceived social status of the individual.

Status inconsistency is a situation when an individual's social positions have both positive and negative influences on his social status. For example, the social position of teacher has a positive societal image (respect, prestige) which increases his or her status, but the position may earn little money, which simultaneously decreases his or her status. The social position of criminal, on the other hand, could ensure a low social status but high income, which is usually only seen with those of higher social status.

Cultural bonds, family ties, religion, race, gender, and occupation are all factors when examining social status. For example, many societies place higher esteem on some cultures and races, but not others. Different occupations bring different forms of respect, but occupation is not an indicator of social status. A doctor will have higher status than a factory worker, but in some societies a white Anglo-Saxon Protestant doctor will have higher status than an immigrant doctor of minority religion. Stigma can decrease social status. Stigma is usually attached to a person who is labeled as criminal or deviant. If a person violates a universal social norm, then their identity is stigmatized, which in turn can decrease their social status.

Conclusion

If education and wealth are considered main predictors for social status, then education will become more valued, and more expensive. American society is already witnessing an inflation in the costs of higher education, the desire for more degrees by many businesses, and the emphasis on educational success. If this trend continues, education will become more of an investment to people, rather than a way to further their education. Globalization, however, can also show people that their social status is not forever fixed. Witnessing the ability in other cultures for people to move up and down in social standing may inspire them to question how their own society works. Finally, social status is an important motivator for many to develop innovative new businesses and inventions. Bill Gates may not have been inspired to be wealthy and famous, but many people see his example and his high social status and wish to follow the same path. Social Status, in a way, is a catalyst for the maturation of cultures.

Bibliography

Michael Marmot (2004), The Status Syndrome: How Social Standing Affects Our Health and Longevity, Times Books
Botton, Alain De (2004), Status Anxiety, Hamish Hamilton

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