Chapter 8 Vocabulary

The existence of structured inequalities between groups in society in terms of their access to material or symbolic rewards.

Social inequalities that result from patterns in the social structure.

A form of social stratification in which some people are owned by others as their property.

A social system in which one's social status is held for life.

A system of social hierarchy that allows individuals to move among classes: four bases wealth, occupation, income, and education.

Socioeconomic variations among groups of individuals that create variations in their material prosperity and power.

Money received from paid wages and salaries or earned from investments.

Money and material possessions held by and individual or group.

The means whereby the production of material goods is carried on in a society, including not just technology but also the social relations between producers.

People who own companies, land, or stocks shares and use these to generate economic returns.

In Marxist theory, the value of a worker's labor power left over when an employer has repaid the cost of hiring the worker.

The social honor or prestige a particular group is accorded by other members of a society.

Groups who suffer from negative status discrimination-they are looked down on by most other members of society.

Positions in the class structure, particularly routine white-collar and lower managerial jobs, that share characteristics with the class positions both above and below them.

A social class broadly composed of the more affluent members of society, especially those who have inherited wealth, own businesses, or hold large numbers of stocks.