Understanding Social Stratification

What is the primary focus when discussing social stratification?

• Economic disparities

• Inequality and societal hierarchy

• Political systems

• Technological advancements

Which principle states that social stratification affects life chances across generations?

• Persistence across generations

• Social mobility

• Universal variability

• Structural mobility

What type of mobility is most common in the United States?

• Downward mobility

• Horizontal mobility

• Upward mobility

• Structural mobility

What role do societal beliefs play in maintaining a stratification system?

• They are only relevant in open systems

• They justify and sustain the system

• They encourage rapid change in the system

• They have no significant impact

What is an example of structural social mobility?

• A promotion at work

• Graduating from college

• Job loss due to economic recession

• Starting a new business

Which system is characterized by rigid social positions based on birth?

• Class system

• Caste system

• Meritocratic system

• Egalitarian system

What is a key feature of a class system?

• Legal restrictions on mobility

• Achieved status

• Limited social mobility

• Ascribed status

How does the American dream relate to social stratification?

• It enforces strict social classes

• It discourages any form of social mobility

• It promotes meritocracy and upward mobility

• It supports the idea of a caste system

Which example illustrates a closed stratification system?

• None of the above

• Contemporary meritocratic systems

• Feudal Europe

• Modern American society

Which of the following is a characteristic of the Soviet Union's stratification post-1917?

• Classless and equal society

• Open mobility based on merit

• None, it was completely egalitarian

• Stratified based on economic roles