Social Stratification & Class (Years 7–11) — Sociology

How societies are layered into ranked groups, what social class means, and why people's life chances differ.

Social stratification is the way a society is divided into layers, or strata, where some groups have more wealth, power and status than others. Sociologists study these layers to understand why society is not equal for everyone.

Why this matters Understanding stratification helps us see why a child born in one family may have very different opportunities from a child born in another, even when both work hard.

What is stratification?

Just as rock is arranged in layers, societies arrange people into ranked groups: slavery (people owned as property, now illegal worldwide), caste (a fixed position given at birth, hard to change), and social class (based mainly on economic position, and possible to change).

Common exam mistake: confusing caste and class. A caste position is fixed at birth and (in principle) impossible to change; a class position is based on economic factors and can move up or down — that mobility is the key difference.

Social class

In modern societies, class is the most important form of stratification. Sociologists often group people as upper class (great wealth), middle class (professional and office work), and working class (manual and routine work), measured using occupation, income and education.

Each layer holds fewer people the higher up it sits — stratification pyramids always narrow toward the top.

Life chances

The sociologist Max Weber used the term life chances to mean a person's opportunities to gain good things in life, such as health, education, housing and a long life. People in higher strata usually have better life chances — wealthier families can afford tutoring, healthy food and safe housing, which improve a child's results and wellbeing.

Why do life chances differ?

Money buys better resources and reduces stress; education opens doors to well-paid careers; networks help with jobs; and place — some neighbourhoods have better schools and services.

Sociologists disagree about how fair this is. Functionalists argue some inequality is useful because it rewards important jobs. Conflict theorists, following Karl Marx, argue stratification benefits the powerful and traps the poor.

Exam technique: when asked to evaluate stratification, always name both the functionalist and conflict perspectives — examiners reward balanced answers over a single one-sided view.