The basis of the reason for the unequal position of people in society, some representatives of sociological thought, consider the social division of labor. However, scientists explain in different ways the ensuing consequences and, especially, the reasons for the reproduction of inequality.

Herbert Spencer believes that the source of inequality is conquest. Thus, the ruling class - the winners, and the lower class - the vanquished. Prisoners of war become slaves, free farmers become serfs. On the other hand, frequent or constant wars lead to the deliberate dominance of those who function in the state and military sphere. Thus, the law of natural selection operates: the stronger dominate and occupy a privileged position, while the weak obey them and are on the lower rungs of the social ladder.

The development of the sociology of inequality, the idea of ​​evolution and the law of natural selection had a significant impact. One of the directions of evolutionism is social Darwinism. Common to all representatives of this trend was the recognition that the same struggle is going on between human societies as between biological organisms.

Karl Marx believed that initially the division of labor does not lead to the subordination of some people to others, but, being a factor in the mastery of natural resources, causes professional specialization. But the complication of the production process contributes to the division of labor into physical and mental. This division historically preceded the formation of private property and classes. With their appearance, certain areas, types and functions of activity are assigned to the corresponding classes. Since then, each class has been engaged in the kind of activity intended for it, owns or does not own property, and is located on different rungs of the ladder of social positions. The causes of inequality lie in the system of production, in a different relationship to the means of production, which allows those who own property not only to exploit those who do not have it, but also to dominate them. To eliminate inequality, the expropriation of private property and its nationalization is necessary.

In contrast to Marx, Weber, in addition to the economic aspect of stratification, took into account such aspects as power and prestige. Weber viewed property, power, and prestige as three separate, interacting factors that underlie hierarchies in any society. Differences in ownership give rise to economic classes; differences of power give rise to political parties, and differences of prestige give rise to status groupings or strata. From here he formulated his idea of ​​"three autonomous dimensions of stratification." He emphasized that "classes", "status groups" and "parties" are phenomena related to the distribution of power within the community.
Weber's main contradiction with Marx is that, according to Weber, a class cannot be the subject of action, since it is not a community. In contrast to Marx, Weber associated the concept of class only with capitalist society, where the market is the most important regulator of relations. Through it, people satisfy their needs for material goods and services.

However, in the market people occupy different positions or are in different “class situations”. Here everyone sells and buys. Some sell goods, services; other - labor force. The difference here is that some people own property and others don't. Weber does not have a clear class structure of capitalist society, so different interpreters of his work give inconsistent lists of classes.

Taking into account his methodological principles and summarizing his historical, economic and sociological works, one can reconstruct Weber's typology of classes under capitalism as follows:

1. The dispossessed working class. It offers on the market
their services and differentiated by skill level.
2. Petty bourgeoisie - a class of small businessmen and merchants.
3. Dispossessed white-collar workers: technical specialists and intelligentsia.
4. Administrators and managers.
5. Owners who also strive through education for the advantages that intellectuals have.
5.1 The class of owners, i.e. those who receive rent from land ownership,
mines, etc.
5.2 “Commercial Grade”, i.e. entrepreneurs.

Inequality criteria

Max Weber identified three criteria for inequality:

Wealth.

The level of education.

The degree of religious or ritual purity under the caste system in India.

Ranking by related and ethnic groups.

The first criterion can be used to measure the degree of inequality in terms of income differences. With the help of the second criterion - by the difference in honor and respect. With the help of the third criterion - by the number of subordinates. Sometimes there is a contradiction between the criteria, for example, a professor and a priest today have a low income, but enjoy great prestige. The leader of the mafia is rich, but his prestige in society is minimal. Rich people statistically live longer and get sick less. A person's career is influenced by wealth, race, education, parental occupation, and personal ability to lead people. Higher education makes it easier to navigate career ladder in large companies than in small ones.

Social inequality - a form of differentiation in which individuals, social groups strata, classes are at different levels of the vertical social hierarchy and have unequal life chances and opportunities to meet needs.

In the very general view inequality means that people live in conditions in which they have unequal access to limited resources of material and spiritual consumption.

Fulfilling qualitatively unequal working conditions, in varying degrees satisfying social needs, people sometimes find themselves engaged in economically heterogeneous labor, because such types of labor have a different assessment of their social utility.

Main mechanisms social inequality are the relations of property, power (dominance and subordination), social (that is, socially fixed and hierarchized) division of labor, as well as uncontrolled, spontaneous social differentiation. These mechanisms are mainly associated with the features market economy, with inevitable competition (including in the labor market) and unemployment. Social inequality is perceived and experienced by many people (primarily the unemployed, economic migrants, those who are at or below the poverty line) as a manifestation of injustice. Social inequality, property stratification of society, as a rule, lead to an increase in social tension, especially in the transition period. This is what is characteristic of Russia today.

The main principles of social policy implementation are:

the establishment of socialist power with the subsequent transition to communism and the withering away of the state;

protecting the standard of living by introducing different forms compensation for price increases and indexation;

providing assistance to the poorest families;

the issuance of assistance in case of unemployment;

ensuring social insurance policy, establishing a minimum wages for employees;

development of education, protection of health, environment mainly at the expense of the state;

pursuing an active policy aimed at ensuring qualifications.

Social inequality is a consequence of the uneven access of members of society to spiritual and material resources, which leads to the stratification of this and the formation of a vertical hierarchy. People at different levels of the hierarchy have unequal life chances in realizing their aspirations and needs. Any society is structured in one way or another: according to national, geographical, gender, demographic or other characteristics. However, social inequality has a completely unique

nature. Its main source is the development of civilization itself, existing in the form of society.

Causes of social inequality

Every society in human history has been characterized by the specialization of its members. This fact alone gives rise to social inequality in the long term, since sooner or later specialization leads to a difference between more and less demanded forms of activity. Thus, in the most primitive societies, shaman healers and warriors had the highest status. Usually the best of them became the heads of the tribe or people. At the same time, such differentiation does not yet imply the obligatory accompaniment of material goods. In a primitive society, social inequality is not at all the result of material stratification, since trade relations themselves did not yet matter. However, the fundamental reason remains the same - specialization. AT modern society in a privileged position are, for example, people who

creating a cultural product - film actors, television presenters, professional athletes and others.

Inequality criteria

As we have already seen in the example of primitive societies, social inequality can be expressed not only in material conditions. And history knows many such examples. So, for medieval Europe, an extremely important factor social status was a pedigree. Only one noble origin determined a high status in society, regardless of wealth. At the same time, the countries of the East hardly knew such a class-hierarchical model. All subjects of the state - viziers and peasants - were the same slaves in the face of the sovereign, whose status came from the simple fact of power. Sociologist Max Weber identified three possible criteria for inequality:

Thus, the difference in income, social respect and honor, as well as the number of subordinates, depending on the value orientations of society, can affect the final social status of a person in different ways.

Social inequality coefficient

Over the past two hundred years, there have been disputes among economists and sociologists about the degree of stratification in a particular society. Thus, according to Vilfredo Pareto, the ratio of the poor to the rich is a constant value. In contrast, the teaching of Marxism testifies that there is a constant increase in social differentiation - the poor are getting poorer, the rich are getting richer. However practical experience The twentieth century demonstrated that if such increasing stratification does occur, it makes society unstable and ultimately leads to social upheaval.

INTRODUCTION

Among the most important theoretical problems of sociology is the problem of social inequality. Social inequality has existed throughout human history.

All developed societies are characterized by an unequal distribution of material and spiritual wealth, rewards and opportunities. Social inequality can be generated by people's belonging to certain social, professional and socio-demographic groups. Even natural genetic or physical differences between people can cause unequal relationships.

In all ages, many scientists have thought about the nature of relations between people, about the plight of most people, about the problem of the oppressed and the oppressors, about the justice or injustice of inequality. Even the ancient philosopher Plato reflected on the stratification of people into rich and poor. He believed that the state is, as it were, two states. One is the poor, the other is the rich, and they all live together, plotting each other all sorts of intrigues. In such a society, people are haunted by fear and uncertainty. A healthy society must be different.

1. Social inequality

Social inequality is a form of social differentiation in which individual individuals, social groups, strata, classes are at different levels of the vertical social hierarchy and have unequal life chances and opportunities to meet needs.

In its most general form, inequality means that people live in conditions in which they have unequal access to limited resources of material and spiritual consumption.

Fulfilling qualitatively unequal working conditions, satisfying social needs to varying degrees, people sometimes find themselves engaged in economically heterogeneous labor, because such types of labor have a different assessment of their social utility. Considering the dissatisfaction of members of society with the existing system of distribution of power, property and conditions for individual development, one must still keep in mind the universality of people's inequality.

The main mechanisms of social inequality are the relations of property, power (domination and subordination), social (i.e., socially fixed and hierarchized) division of labor, as well as uncontrolled, spontaneous social differentiation. These mechanisms are mainly associated with the characteristics of a market economy, with inevitable competition (including in the labor market) and unemployment. Social inequality is perceived and experienced by many people (primarily the unemployed, economic migrants, those who are at or below the poverty line) as a manifestation of injustice. Social inequality, property stratification of society, as a rule, lead to an increase in social tension, especially in the transition period. This is what is characteristic of Russia today.

2. Essence of social inequality

The essence of social inequality lies in the unequal access of different categories of the population to socially significant benefits, scarce resources, and liquid values. The essence of economic inequality is that a minority of the population always owns most of the national wealth. In other words, the smallest part of society receives the highest incomes, and the majority of the population receives the average and the smallest.

Inequality characterizes society as a whole, poverty characterizes only part of the population. Depending on the level of economic development of the country, poverty covers a significant or insignificant part of the population.

To measure the scale of poverty, sociologists identify specific gravity that portion of a country's population (usually expressed as a percentage) that lives near the official poverty line, or threshold. The terms “poverty rate”, “poverty line” and “poverty ratio” are also used to indicate the scale of poverty.

The poverty threshold is the amount of money (usually expressed, for example, in dollars or rubles) officially set as the minimum income that an individual or family needs only to buy food, clothing and housing. It is also called the "poverty level". In Russia, it received an additional name - the cost of living.

Sociology distinguishes between absolute and relative poverty.

Absolute poverty is understood as such a state in which an individual is not able to satisfy even the basic needs for food, housing, clothing, warmth, or is able to satisfy only the minimum needs that ensure biological survival on his income. The numerical criterion here is the poverty threshold (living wage).

Relative poverty is understood as the inability to maintain a decent standard of living, or some standard of living accepted in a given society. Typically, relative poverty is less than half the average household income in a given country. Relative poverty indicates how poor a particular individual or family is compared to other people. It is a comparative characteristic in two parameters. First, it shows that a person (family) is poor in relation to the abundance or prosperity that other members of society who are not considered poor have. The first meaning of relative poverty is the comparison of one stratum with other strata or strata. Secondly, it shows that a person (family) is poor in relation to some standard of living, for example, the standard of a decent, or befitting, life.

The lower limit of relative poverty is the subsistence minimum or the poverty threshold, and the upper limit is the so-called decent standard of living. A decent standard of living reflects the amount of material wealth that allows a person to satisfy all reasonable needs, lead a fairly comfortable lifestyle, and not feel disadvantaged.

A level of decent or “normal” life that is universal for all strata and social groups simply does not exist. For each class and category of the population, it has its own, and the range of values ​​is very significant.

3. Causes of social inequality

Functionalism explains inequality based on the differentiation of social functions performed by different strata, classes, and communities. The functioning and development of society is possible only thanks to the division of labor, when each social group carries out the solution of the corresponding vital tasks for the entire integrity: some are engaged in the production of material goods, others create spiritual values, others manage, etc. For the normal functioning of society, an optimal combination of all species human activity. Some of them are more important, others are less. So, on the basis of the hierarchy of social functions, a corresponding hierarchy of classes, layers that perform them is formed. Those who carry out the general leadership and administration of the country are invariably placed at the top of the social ladder, because only they can support and ensure the unity of society, create the necessary conditions for the successful performance of other functions.

Observations of the actions and behavior of specific individuals gave impetus to the development of a status explanation of social inequality. Each person, occupying a certain place in society, acquires his own status. Social inequality is an inequality of status arising both from the ability of individuals to perform a particular social role (for example, to be competent to manage, to have the appropriate knowledge and skills to be a doctor, lawyer, etc.), and from the opportunities allowing a person to achieve one or another position in society (ownership of property, capital, origin, belonging to influential political forces).

Consider an economic view of the problem. In accordance with this point of view, the root cause of social inequality lies in the unequal attitude to property, the distribution of material wealth. This approach manifested itself most clearly in Marxism. According to him, it was the emergence of private property that led to the social stratification of society, the formation of antagonistic classes. The exaggeration of the role of private property in the social stratification of society led Marx and his followers to the conclusion that it is possible to eliminate social inequality by establishing public ownership of the means of production.

The lack of a unified approach to explaining the origins of social inequality is due to the fact that it is always perceived at least at two levels. First, as a property of society. Written history knows no societies without social inequality. The struggle of people, parties, groups, classes is a struggle for the possession of greater social opportunities, advantages and privileges. If inequality is an inherent property of society, then it carries a positive functional load. Society reproduces inequality because it needs it as a source of life support and development.

Secondly, inequality is always perceived as unequal relations between people, groups. Therefore, it becomes natural to seek to find the origins of this unequal position in the peculiarities of a person's position in society: in the possession of property, power, in the personal qualities of individuals. This approach is now widely used.

Inequality has many faces and manifests itself in various parts of a single social organism: in the family, in an institution, at an enterprise, in small and large social groups. It is necessary condition organization of social life. Parents, having an advantage in experience, skills, and financial resources in comparison with their young children, have the opportunity to influence the latter, facilitating their socialization. The functioning of any enterprise is carried out on the basis of the division of labor into managerial and subordinate-executive. The appearance of a leader in the team helps to unite it, turn it into a stable formation, but at the same time it is accompanied by the granting of special rights to the leader.

4. Types of social inequality

We can distinguish inequality on a number of grounds:

I) Inequality based on physical characteristics, which can be divided into three types of inequalities: 1) Inequality based on physical differences; 2) Sexual inequality; 3) Age inequality;

The reasons for the first inequality include belonging to any race, nationality, a certain height, fullness or thinness of the body, hair color, and even blood type. Very often, the distribution of social benefits in a society depends on some physical characteristic. Inequality is especially pronounced if the carrier of the trait is included in the “minority group”. Very often a minority group is discriminated against. One type of this inequality is "racism". Some sociologists believe that the cause of ethnic inequality is economic competition. Proponents of this approach emphasize the role of competition between groups of workers for scarce jobs. People who have jobs (especially those in lower positions) feel threatened by those who seek them. When the latter are members of ethnic groups, hostility may arise or intensify. Also, one of the reasons for the inequality of ethnic inequality can be considered personal qualities individual, showing which he considers another race inferior.

It is mainly gender roles and sexual roles that lead to sexual inequality. Basically, gender differences lead to inequality in the economic environment. Women have much less chance in life to participate in the distribution of social benefits, from ancient India in which girls were simply killed to a modern society in which it is difficult for women to find work. This is connected, first of all, with sexual roles - a man's place at work, a woman's place at home.

The type of inequality associated with age is mainly manifested in different life chances of different age groups. Basically, it manifests itself in young and in retirement age. Age inequality always concerns all of us.

II) Inequality due to differences in prescribed statuses

Prescribed (ascriptive) status includes inherited factors: race, nationality, age, sex, place of birth, residence, marital status, some aspects of parents. Very often, the prescribed statuses of a person interfere with the vertical mobility of a person, due to discrimination in society. This type of inequality includes a large number of aspects, so it often leads to social inequality.

III) Inequality Based on Ownership of Wealth

IV) Inequality based on the tenure of power

V) Inequality of prestige

VI) Cultural-symbolic inequality.

3.1 Social classes

Despite the fact that social class is one of the central concepts in sociology, scientists still do not have a single point of view regarding the content of this concept. For the first time we find a detailed picture of class society in the works of K. Marx. It can be said that Marx's social classes are economically determined and genetically conflicting groups. The basis of division into groups is the presence or absence of property. The feudal lord and the serf in a feudal society, the bourgeois and the proletarian in a capitalist society are antagonistic classes that inevitably appear in any society that has a complex hierarchical structure based on inequality.

Despite the revision, from the point of view of modern society, of many provisions of the class theory of K. Max, some of his ideas remain relevant in relation to the currently existing social structures. This primarily applies to situations of interclass conflicts, clashes, and class struggle to change the conditions for the distribution of resources. In this regard, Marx's teaching on the class struggle currently has a large number of followers among sociologists and political scientists in many countries of the world.

Description of work

All developed societies are characterized by an unequal distribution of material and spiritual wealth, rewards and opportunities. Social inequality can be generated by people's belonging to certain social, professional and socio-demographic groups. Even natural genetic or physical differences between people can cause unequal relationships.

Social inequality seems to be a relic of the past and should go into oblivion, but the modern reality is such that in one form or another, stratification in society is present today, and this gives rise to a sense of injustice among those people who have been affected by social inequality.

Social inequality - what is it?

Social class inequality has existed since ancient times of human evolution. Story different countries serves as clear evidence of what the oppression and enslavement of people leads to - these are rebellions, food riots, wars and revolutions. But this experience, written in blood, teaches nothing. Yes, now it has taken on softer, more veiled forms. What is the expression of social inequality and what does it represent today?

Social inequality is the division or differentiation of people into classes, societies or groups, according to their position in society, which involves unequal use of opportunities, life's benefits and rights. If we imagine social inequality schematically in the form of a ladder, then on its lowest steps there will be the oppressed, the poor, and at the top the oppressors and those who have power and money in their hands. This is the main sign of the stratification of society into the poor and the rich. There are other indicators of social inequality.

Causes of social inequality

What are the causes of social inequality? Economists see the root cause in unequal treatment of property and the distribution of wealth in general. R. Michels (a German sociologist) saw the reason in giving great privileges and powers to the apparatus of power, which was chosen by the people themselves. The reasons for the emergence of social inequality, according to the French sociologist E. Durkheim:

1. Encouragement of people who bring the greatest benefit to society, the best in their field.
2. The unique personal qualities and talents of a person that distinguish him from the general society.

Types of social inequality

Forms of social inequality are different, so there are several classifications. Types of social inequality according to physiological characteristics:

• age - applies to all people in certain age intervals, this can be seen when applying for a job, young people are not hired due to lack of experience, older people with their vast experience are replaced by young people who are more promising from the point of view of their superiors;
• social sexual inequality - here you can consider such a phenomenon as, expressed in the fact that few women occupy responsible positions, participate in the economic life of the country, a woman is assigned the role of "behind her husband";
• social ethnic inequality - small ethnic groups, those that are not included in the concept of "white race" are largely oppressed because of such phenomena as xenophobia and racism.

Social inequality due to status in society:

• lack/presence of wealth;
• proximity to power.

Manifestation of social inequality

The main signs of social inequality are observed in such a phenomenon as the division of labor. Human activities are diverse and each person is endowed with some talents and skills, abilities to grow. In this case, social inequality manifests itself as the giving of privileges to those who are more talented and promising for society. The stratification of society or stratification (from the word "strata" - a geological layer) is the building of a hierarchical ladder, division into classes, and if earlier it was slaves and slave owners, feudal lords and servants, then present stage is a division into:

• top class;
• middle class;
• low-income (socially vulnerable);
• below the poverty line.

Consequences of social inequality

Social inequality and poverty, generated by the fact that only the elite can use the main resources of the planet, gives rise to conflicts and wars among the population. The consequences develop gradually and are expressed in the slow development of many countries, this leads to the fact that progress in the economy is also slowing down, democracy as a system is losing its positions, tension and discontent are growing in society, psychological pressure social disharmony. According to the UN, half of the world's resources are owned by 1% of the so-called top elite (world domination).

Pros of social inequality

Social inequality in society as a phenomenon does not carry only negative properties, if we consider social inequality from the positive side, then we can note important things, looking at which the thought arises that everything “has a place to be under the Sun”. The advantages of social inequality for a person:

• an incentive to become the best in your field, to show your abilities and talents to the maximum;
• motivation for those who want ;
• ordering in the economic sphere, those who have capital produce resources, in contrast to those who do not have capital and are only able to feed themselves and their families.

Examples of social inequality in history

Examples of social inequality or stratification systems:

1. Slavery- an extreme degree of enslavement, the original form of social inequality known since antiquity.
2. castes. A type of social stratification that has developed since antiquity, when social inequality was determined by caste, a child, being born from birth, belonged to a certain caste. In India, it was believed that the birth of a person in one or another caste depends on his deeds in a past life. There are 4 castes in total: the highest - Brahmins, Kshatriyas - warriors, Vaishyas - merchants, merchants, Shudras - peasants (the lowest caste).
3. Estates. The upper classes - the nobility and the clergy had the legal right to transfer property by inheritance. Unprivileged class - artisans, peasants.

Modern forms of social inequality

Social inequality in modern society is an inherent property, therefore social theory functionalism views bundles in a positive way. American sociologist B. Barber divided modern views social stratification based on 6 criteria:

1. prestige of the profession.
2. The presence of power.
3. Wealth and income.
4. Religious affiliation.
5. Education, knowledge.
6. Belonging to one or another ethnic group, nation.

Social inequality in the world

The problem of social inequality is that racism, xenophobia, and discrimination are generated. The most revealing criterion of social inequality throughout the world is the different income of the population. The factors influencing the stratification in society around the world remain the same as many years ago:

• way of life- urban or rural, a well-known fact that in the villages wages are lower than in the city, and conditions are often worse, and there is more work;
• social roles(mother, father, teacher, official) - determine the status, prestige, the presence of power, property;
• division of labor- physical and intellectual work are paid differently.

Even a superficial look at the people around us gives reason to talk about their dissimilarity. People are different by gender, age, temperament, height, hair color, intelligence level and many other features. Nature endowed one with musical abilities, the other with strength, the third with beauty, and prepared the fate of a weak invalid for someone. Differences between people, due to their physiological and mental characteristics, are called natural.

All societies famous stories, were organized in such a way that some social groups always had a privileged position over others, which was expressed in an unequal distribution of social benefits and powers. In other words, social inequality is inherent in all societies without exception. Even the ancient philosopher Plato argued that any city, no matter how small it may be, is actually divided into two halves - one for the poor, the other for the rich, and they are at enmity with each other.

Natural differences are far from harmless, they can become the basis for the emergence of unequal relationships between individuals. The strong force the weak, the cunning triumph over the simpletons. Inequality resulting from natural differences is the first form of inequality, in one form or another manifested in some species of animals. However, in in human society, the main thing is social inequality, inextricably linked with social differences, social differentiation.

Inequality between people exists in every society. This is quite natural and logical, given that people differ in their abilities, interests, life preferences, value orientations, etc. In every society there are poor and rich, educated and uneducated, enterprising and unenterprising, those with power and those without it. In this regard, the problem of the origin of social inequality, attitudes towards it and ways to eliminate it has always aroused increased interest among researchers, politicians and society, which consider social inequality as an injustice.

In the absence of social inequality, individuals would lose the incentive to engage in complex and laborious, dangerous or uninteresting activities, to improve their skills. With the help of inequality in income and prestige, society encourages individuals to engage in necessary, but difficult and unpleasant professions, encourages more educated and talented people, and so on.

Social inequality- a form of differentiation in which individual individuals, social groups, strata, classes are at different levels of the vertical social hierarchy and have unequal life chances and opportunities to meet needs.

In its most general form, inequality means that people live in conditions in which they have unequal access to limited resources of material and spiritual consumption.

Social inequality is perceived and experienced by many people (primarily the unemployed, economic migrants, those who are at or below the poverty line) as a manifestation of injustice. Social inequality, property stratification of society, as a rule, lead to an increase in social tension in society.

The main principles of social policy implementation are:

1. protection of living standards by introducing various forms of compensation for price increases and indexation;

2. providing assistance to the poorest families;

3. issuance of assistance in case of unemployment;

4. ensuring social insurance policy, establishing a minimum wage for employees;

5. development of education, protection of health, the environment, mainly at the expense of the state;

6. conducting an active policy aimed at ensuring qualifications.

Social those are called differences, which generated by social factors: way of life (urban and rural population), division of labor (mental and manual workers), social roles(father, doctor, politician), etc., which leads to differences in the degree of ownership of property, income received, power, achievement of social status, prestige, education.

Various levels social development are basis for social inequality, the emergence of rich and poor, the stratification of society, its stratification (a stratum is a layer that includes people with the same income, power, education, prestige).

Income- the amount of cash receipts received by a person per unit of time. It may be labor, or it may be the possession of property that “works”.

Education– a set of knowledge gained in educational institutions. Its level is measured by the number of years of study. Say incomplete. high school- 9 years. The professor has more than 20 years of education behind him.