Social Class Identities

Question 1

Mackintosh and Mooney

Answer 1

They suggest that people’s occupation affects how we see ourselves and others based on the judgements we make about jobs associated with social class

Question 2

Scott

Answer 2

‘Old boy network’ = give each other contacts which secure business deals and gain promotions, uses social closure

Question 3

How does Scott operate social closure

Answer 3

-encourage inter-marriages
-immerse children into culture of privilege

Question 4

What does Giddens say

Answer 4

He agrees with Scott that there is a traditional upper class ‘landowning aristocracy’ which practices social closure, 2 other groups = jet set pop aristocracy, entrepreneurial rich

Question 5

King and Raynor

Answer 5

Middle class, reinforced attitudes about educational success through the use of role models, positive and negative sanctions, imitation
-child centeredness
-deferred gratification

Question 6

Bourdieu

Answer 6

Education system helps socialise people into different class identities through role models, imitation, rewards, sanctions
-cultural capital
-leisure interests, levels of language and skills similar to school= advantage for children in education system
-hidden curriculum

Question 7

Cultural capital

Answer 7

Having skills, knowledge (etc) to get ahead in education and life= high status in society

Question 8

Social capital

Answer 8

Resources based on group membership, relationships, networks of influence and support

Question 9

Economic capital

Answer 9

Economic resources, material wealth owned by individuals or families

Question 10

Goodwin

Answer 10

-middle class
-yummy mummies

Question 11

Saunders

Answer 11

-middle class
-conspicuous consumption

Question 12

Consumer culture

Answer 12

Culture where status, sense of worth, identity are centred on the purchase and consumption of goods and services

Question 13

Wright

Answer 13

-middle class occupy a contradictory class position

Question 14

Structured interview

Answer 14

Researcher reads out a list of closed questions from an interview schedule and writes respondents answers according to pre-set fixed categories

Quantitative

Question 15

Semi-structured interview

Answer 15

Mix of structured and unstructured interviews. Close and open questions.

Qualitative

Question 16

Unstructured interview

Answer 16

Informal interview which is guided conversation

Qualitative

Question 17

Focus groups of facts

Answer 17

People get together to discuss an issue rather than direct questions

Qualitative

Question 18

Capital

Answer 18

any aspects that can improve your life chances

Question 19

Deferred gratification

Answer 19

Resisting the temptation of immediate pleasure in the hope of finding a valuable and long-lasting reward in the long term

Question 20

Social mobility

Answer 20

Moving up and down the social scale

Question 21

Child centredness

Answer 21

When decisions within a family are based around how impacted the child would be

Question 22

Yummy mummy

Answer 22

Middle class mother who cares about appearance and how she is viewed within society

Question 23

Conspicuous consumption

Answer 23

The purchase of goods or services for the specific purpose of displaying wealth

Question 24

Social closure

Answer 24

When the upper class are self selective and exclude others (invited to events)

Question 25

Old boy network

Answer 25

Upper class boys use this to give each other business deals and gain promotions = exercise social closure

Question 26

High culture

Answer 26

Activities which appeal to upper class = ballet, opera, classical music

Question 27

Ascribed /achieved status

Answer 27

Ascribed = status you are born with Achieved = the one you work for

Question 28

Traditional working class

Answer 28

Dominant for most of the 20th century and still influential in some parts of the uk today

Question 29

New working class

Answer 29

Seen to be replacing the traditional working class as new types of jobs replace manual old ones, mainly found in south south east

Question 30

Middle class

Answer 30

Majority of population who have professional or managerial careers. University educated and their own homes

Question 31

Traditional upper class

Answer 31

Those who have inherited wealth, often within form of land. They operate social closure

Question 32

Jet set pop aristocracy

Answer 32

Individuals who have earned their status through sport, media and entertainment

Question 33

Entrepreneurial rich

Answer 33

Earned money through business enterprise

Question 34

Indicators of social class

Answer 34

-food -family/peer groups -job -type of car they drive -housing -education -speech and dialect -clothing -activities + sports

Question 35

Subjective approach

Answer 35

Ask people to rate themselves

Question 36

Objective appproach

Answer 36

Uses a measurement of class by asking respondents questions based on indicators such as income and occupation

Question 37

Under class

Answer 37

Group of people unemployed, live off benefits and come from a deprived area

Question 38

The NS SEC

Answer 38

National statistics socio-economic classification, descriptive approach based on occupations according to their similarity of qualification, training, skills and experience used from 1990s

Question 39

Objective Definitions of Class

Answer 39

People placed in a social class by using a scale or measuring device (e.g NS SEC) classification

Question 40

Subjective Definitions of class

Answer 40

Where people place themselves and now they define themselves

Question 41

Scott

Answer 41

-upper class -old boy network -social closure

Question 42

Macintosh and Mooney

Answer 42

-upper class -people’s occupation affects how we see ourselves and others based on judgements we make about jobs associated with social class

Question 43

Kenway

Answer 43

-upper class -found that private school girls maintained their high levels of self-esteem by devaluing the status and achievements of state-educated young people

Question 44

King and Raynor

Answer 44

-middle class -child centredness -parents socialise middle class identities by reinforcing attitudes and values on the importance of education

Question 45

Bourdieu

Answer 45

-middle class -school helps to socialise people though role models, imitation (etc) -cultural capital -hidden curriculum

Question 46

Goodwin

Answer 46

-middle class -yummy mummies defined by peer approval on maternal capabilities, glamour and styles and experiences of their children

Question 47

Saunders

Answer 47

-middle class -conspicuous consumption

Question 48

Wright

Answer 48

-middle class -occupy a contradictory class position = taken advantage of by upper class and working class -hold managerial or supervisory roles -resources should be controlled = investment, means of production and labour power

Question 49

Willis

Answer 49

-working class -‘lads’ formed a distinctive ‘counter-school sub-cultural grouping’ -little interest in academic work and would identify with the adult by smoking, drinking and expressing sexist, racist attitudes -influenced by home backgrounds

Question 50

Mac an Ghail

Answer 50

-working class -ethnographic study= studied a range of subcultures within a school and noted if boys followed their fathers with manual labour job roles. -heavy, manual work became a way to shape them into working class identity -boys had no academic qualifications

Question 51

Bowles and Gintis

Answer 51

-working class -education’s purpose = maintain and reproduce class inequalities in wealth and power. -hidden curriculum -suggest education is designed for the ruling class and encourages children from working class backgrounds to be obedient workers

Question 52

Bourdieu 2

Answer 52

-working class -don’t have social, economic or cultural capital -hidden curriculum = not effective to working class

Question 53

Mertens and D’haenens

Answer 53

-working class -digital divide = link between class and internet usage -lower social class = use internet less and technology for entertainment -middle class use it to boost their knowledge -social class = buffers factor affecting digital inequality

Question 54

Murray

Answer 54

-underclass -people who are lazy, workshy, immoral, criminal and dependent on benefits -own fault they are in this position -believe in a culture based on idleness, failure and criminality

Question 55

Jordan

Answer 55

-underclass -Jordan disagrees with Murray -these people would love to work and feel shame and guilt, low self-esteem, poor mental and physical health

Question 56

Pakulski and Waters

Answer 56

-postmodernism -shift from production to consumption -defined by what we buy not what we do

Question 57

Offe

Answer 57

-postmodernism -today’s society = fewer individuals share a common unifying experience of full time work -we all create our own identities regardless of social class of families or jobs

Question 58

Skeggs

Answer 58

-postmodernism -working class women have instrumental attitudes to work -new working class saw capitalism as effective in raising living standards = no sense of class injustice or political loyalty. -see society as meritocratic and believe in individualism -develop identities based on popular culture, conspicuous consumption and consumer culture