Meaning and definition of social differentiation and stratification

Meaning and the definition of the social differentiation, social stratification.

Social Differentiation

Everywhere individuals and the societies differ. In no society, people are absolutely equal in all respects. Differentiation is the keynote of the human society. Differences are inherent in the nature of the society. Men and the women, teenagers and the adult children's, masters and the servant managers and the attendants and so on are not always equal. There are no equalitarian societies in the world. Societies are marked by the differentiation. Societies may only differ in the degree of the differentiation and the nature of the stratification.

Some type of the differentiation or the specialization of the role is found in the practically every society. It is clear related to the rise and the operation of the social classes. In the economic order, the differentiation is found in the different roles of the entrepreneurship, manager, skilled and the unskilled manpower. It is evident in the profession, in the political order as witnessed in the varying roles of the public administrator, legislators, and the judges; in the education as between the teacher and administrator and in the religion as in the distinct roles of the prophet, seer and the priest.

Causes of the social differentiation

Talcott parsons mentions three causal factors of the social differentiation

1. Possession: It refers to mainly material possession, such as money, wealth, property and all the other valuable, utilitarian material objects. People do not have the equal access to these possession has contributed inequality and the differentiation.
2. Qualities: It refers to the intrinsic capacities or the abilities of the people to undertake or to do task, these qualities are also not equally distributed. For example, physical strength, intelligence, beauty, courage, loyalty to cause, moral courage and the other internal factors are not equally distributed. People are ranked differently depending upon the degree of the possession of these qualities.
3. Performance: It refers to the execution of the task in given time under the given situation. Performances are always judged first according to their products or result. Secondly, they are judged according to the manner and the style of the performance. Performances are always subject to regularity norms according to the manner and the style of the performing. When the norms are re-violated, performances are often disvalued, regardless of their result.

Possessions, qualities and the performances are closely related to each other. Possession of the wealth helps the man to develop the qualities which may better his performance. Similarly, the quality helps the man to make the possession or to acquire the material possession. We should note that the person's qualities, possessions, and the performances are judged by the relation to his age and with reference to the particular social role. Not only the person but also the group are ranked according to their imputed qualities and the performances.

Social stratification

The term stratification denotes the condition in which the layers of the person or the group are ranked differently. Anyone stratum contains many people or the groups of roughly the same ranks , standard of the evaluation vary from the one social system to the another within the same social system.

Social stratification is the segmentation of the society into the different hierarchical arrangement or strata. It refers to the differences or the inequalities in the socio-economic lives of the people in a given society. It represents the ranking of the individuals or the social positions and the status in terms of certain attributes. The three major components of the social stratification are the wealth, prestige and the political power. Usually, the person's ranking on the society coincides with the positions of the others.

Thus, the social stratification is the process by which the societies are divided into the different categories. It is the pattern of social inequalities. It is also the unequal distribution of the sources of the society. There is the social differentiation of the society by the age, sex, occupation, and personal characteristics because of which the men and women, teenagers and the adults, children poor, rich are not always equal.

The four fundamental principles of the societies are as follow;

1.Social stratification is the characteristics of the society not including the individual differences.

2.Social stratification persists over the generation.

3.Social stratification is universal but variable as it changes.

4.Social stratification includes both the inequality and the belief.

A society without the social stratification implies that there are no inferior or the superior positions and all the human beings are equal and have the same prerequisites when they are born.

Characteristics of the social differentiation

1. It is social.
2. It is ancient.
3. It is universal.
4. It is diverse form.
5. it is consequential.

 Social stratification is mainly influenced by the class. Social stratification is relatively fixed, hierarchical arrangement in the society by which groups have different access to the resources power and perceived social worth. Social stratification is the structured system of the social inequality.

References

Bhandari, Laxman p.Fundamental of sociology. kathmandu: budddha publication, 2015.

Sabin , E (1987)’ Hidden jobs:Good News for sociologists,The american sociologists.

Pinker,R The idea of the welfare. London :heinemann Educational Books, 1979

Social Class,values and behaviour in schools in craft ,1970