Table of Contents

Theories of Social Stratification

Relevant for Sociology Paper-1 (Unit-5)

The Structural-Functionalist perspective aims to elucidate social stratification based on its role in maintaining social order and stability within society.
According to Talcott Parsons, social order and stability are contingent upon a shared value consensus in society. Individuals who adhere to these values are ranked higher than others. For instance, in a society that values individual achievement, a successful business executive would be ranked above others, whereas in a society that values bravery and gallantry, individuals engaged in battles and wars would hold a higher rank.
Functionalists assert that social groups in society have cooperative and interdependent relationships. In a highly specialized industrial society, some people specialize in organization and planning, while others follow their directives. Certain positions carry greater functional importance in society than others, leading to higher ranks in the social hierarchy and greater rewards for those occupying such positions. Consequently, this results in an unequal distribution of power and prestige.

Kinsley Davis and Wilbert Moor

They extensively discussed the functional necessity of social stratification, the factors influencing positional rank, the societal functions of stratification, and the variations in stratified systems.
They argued that the unequal distribution of rights and privileges leading to social inequality serves as a motivation for individuals to fulfill the responsibilities associated with a particular position and strive for positions that offer more prestige and esteem. Social inequality, therefore, ensures that the most crucial positions are occupied by the most qualified individuals. Consequently, every society, regardless of its complexity, must differentiate people based on both prestige and esteem, thereby possessing a certain level of institutionalized inequality (Davis and Moore).
The positions that offer the greatest rewards and highest ranks are those considered vital for society and require extensive training or exceptional talent. They emphasized that a society must provide sufficient rewards only for positions of high rank to ensure they are competently filled. Additionally, the importance of a position may vary between societies, and what holds significant value in one society might not hold the same significance in another.

Kinsley Davis and Wilbert Moor summarizes their central argument in the following words :

In every society, specific positions hold greater functional importance and require specialized skills for their proper execution. Only a limited number of individuals possess the natural talents that can be cultivated into the necessary skills for these positions.
The process of transforming talents into skills involves a period of training, during which individuals undergoing the training must make certain sacrifices. To incentivize these talented individuals to undergo such sacrifices and acquire the required training, their future positions must come with an inducement value in the form of differential rewards. These rewards refer to privileged and disproportionate access to the scarce and highly desirable benefits offered by the society.
These desirable benefits include rights, privileges, and perquisites that contribute to various aspects of life, such as sustenance and comfort, humor or diversion, self-respect, and personal growth. The unequal access to these basic rewards in society leads to the differentiation of prestige and esteem among the various strata.
As a result, social inequality among different strata in terms of the allocation of scarce and desirable benefits, along with the distribution of prestige and esteem, is both functionally necessary and an inevitable aspect of any society.

Melvin Tumin Critisises the functional proposition of Davis and Moore.

Tumin presents arguments against the proposition that certain positions in society are functionally more important than others. For instance, he disagrees with the notion that engineers are inherently more crucial than unskilled workers in a factory, emphasizing that both categories of labor are essential for the factory’s functioning. Tumin highlights that the perceived importance and respectability of specific skills are influenced by the bargaining power of those who possess them and the prevailing rating system. Motivation, according to Tumin, is influenced by various factors, with rewards and inducements being just one aspect.
Another point of contention raised by Tumin is regarding the assumption that there is a limited number of individuals with talents in society. He argues that determining the amount of talent in a society is challenging, especially in rigidly stratified societies that may struggle to identify new talents due to socially inherited rewards and opportunities. Unequal motivation in a generation, Tumin explains, can be attributed to unequal distribution of rewards in the preceding generation, as access to privileged positions is restricted by the societal elites, similar to the Indian Caste System.
Regarding the concept of sacrifice introduced by Davis and Moore, Tumin disputes the idea that talented individuals undergoing training necessarily involve personal sacrifices. He points out that the costs of training may be borne by society at large, making the need for differential rewards to compensate for sacrifice questionable.
Furthermore, Tumin challenges the assumption that differential access to desired rewards is the most efficient way to attract appropriate talent for top positions. He believes that other aspects, such as the joy in work and work satisfaction, as well as institutionalized social importance, should be considered. According to Davis and Moore, rewards can be categorized into three types contributing to sustenance and comfort, humor and diversion, and self-respect and ego-expansion. Tumin argues that it is difficult to determine which type of reward induces motivation, as societies emphasize different types of rewards to strike a balance between responsibility and recognition.
In conclusion, Tumin questions the necessity of social inequality based on the allocation of scarce and desired goods and the amount of prestige and esteem they bring. He suggests that if differential power and property are perceived as commensurate with differential responsibilities and culturally defined as resources rather than rewards, there may be no need for distinct differentials in prestige and esteem.

Davis and Moore’s Argument:

Davis responds by asserting that Tumin aims to dismantle the idea of institutionalized inequality but fails to explain the universality of stratified inequality. While Davis and Moore seek to understand why stratification exists in society, Tumin argues that it is not necessary. They are evidently addressing different aspects of the issue. Davis accuses Tumin’s critique of being confused between abstract or theoretical reasoning and raw, empirical generalizations. Davis defends his position by clarifying that his primary concern was with stratified inequality as a general property of social systems, involving a high degree of abstraction.
Tumin’s critical assessment of the theory proposed by Davis and Moore is solely based on one article, conveniently disregarding other publications that address several questions raised by him. Tumin’s own understanding and presentation of Davis and Moore’s theory are inadequate, leading to inconsistencies in his concept of stratification. Moore also explicitly points out that Tumin has not clearly defined social stratification, causing him to mistakenly assume that differential rewards and inequality of opportunity are the same thing.

Critique to Structural-Functional Theory of Stratification

Social stratification systems serve to restrict the discovery of the full range of talent available in a society. This limitation arises due to unequal access to motivation, recruitment channels, and training centers. By narrowing the available talent pool, social stratification systems hinder the expansion of a society’s productive resources, especially when compared to conditions with greater equality of opportunity.
Furthermore, social stratification systems grant the elite political power, enabling them to promote and dominate an ideology that justifies the existing status quo as “logical,” “natural,” and “morally right.” Consequently, these systems act as conservative forces within societies where they are present.
Another function of social stratification systems is to unevenly distribute favorable self-images among the population. This unequal distribution can hinder the development of creative potential inherent in individuals, as favorable self-images are crucial for nurturing this potential.
Additionally, when inequalities in social rewards remain unacceptable to the less privileged, social stratification systems may encourage hostility, suspicion, and distrust among different segments of society. This, in turn, limits the possibilities of achieving extensive social integration.

Social Stratification, Structural-Functionalist Perspective, Kinsley Davis, Wilbert Moor, Melvin Tumin, Stratification Critiques, Functional Importance, Prestige, Esteem, Institutionalized Inequality, Talent, Training, Rewards, Differential Access, Social Order, Best Sociology Optional Teacher, Best Sociology Optional Coaching, Sociology Optional Syllabus.

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Syllabus of Sociology Optional

Paper-1

FUNDAMENTALS OF SOCIOLOGY

Sociology – The Discipline
Sociology as Science:
Research Methods and Analysis:
Sociological Thinkers:
Stratification and Mobility:
Works andEconomic Life:
1. Social organization of work in different types of society- slave society, feudal society, industrial /capitalist society
2. Formal and informal organization of work.
3. Labour and society.
Politics and Society:
1. Sociological theories of power.
2. Power elite, bureaucracy, pressure groups, and political parties.
3. Nation, state, citizenship, democracy, civil society, ideology.
4. Protest, agitation, social movements, collective action, revolution.
Religion and Society:
1. Sociological theories of religion.
2. Types of religious practices: animism, monism, pluralism, sects, cults.
3. Religion in modern society: religion and science, secularization, religious revivalism, fundamentalism.
Systems of Kinship:
1. Family, household, marriage.
2. Types and forms of family.
3. Lineage and descent.
4. Patriarchy and sexual division of labour.
5. Contemporary trends.
Social Change in Modern Society:
1. Sociological theories of social change.
2. Development and dependency.
3. Agents of social change.
4. Education and social change.
5. Science, technology and social change.

Paper-2

INDIAN SOCIETY: STRUCTURE AND CHANGE

INTRODUCING INDIAN SOCIETY

Perspectives on the study of Indian society:
1. Indology (GS. Ghurye).
2. Structural functionalism (M N Srinivas).
3. Marxist sociology (A R Desai).
Impact of colonial rule on Indian society :
1. Social background of Indian nationalism.
2. Modernization of Indian tradition.
3. Protests and movements during the colonial period.
4. Social reforms.

SOCIAL STRUCTURE

Perspectives on the study of Indian society:
1. The idea of Indian village and village studies.
2. Agrarian social structure – evolution of land tenure system, land reforms.
Caste System:
1. Perspectives on the study of caste systems: GS Ghurye, M N Srinivas, Louis Dumont, Andre Beteille.
2. Features of caste system.
3. Untouchability – forms and perspectives.
Tribal communities in India
1. Definitional problems.
2. Geographical spread.
3. Colonial policies and tribes.
4. Issues of integration and autonomy.
Social Classes in India:

1. Agrarian class structure.

- - Industrial class structure.
  - Middle classes in India.
Systems of Kinship in India:
1. Lineage and descent in India.
2. Types of kinship systems.
3. Family and marriage in India.
4. Household dimensions of the family.
5. Patriarchy, entitlements and sexual division of labour
Religion and Society:
1. Religious communities in India.
2. Problems of religious minorities.
3. Patriarchy, entitlements and sexual division of labour

SOCIAL CHANGES IN INDIA

Visions of Social Change in India:
- Idea of development planning and mixed economy
- Constitution, law and social change.
- Education and social change.
Rural and Agrarian transformation in India:
- Programmes of rural development, Community Development Programme, cooperatives,poverty alleviation schemes
- Green revolution and social change.
- Changing modes of production in Indian agriculture.
- Problems of rural labour, bondage, migration.

3. Industrialization and Urbanisation in India:

- Evolution of modern industry in India.
- Growth of urban settlements in India.
- Working class: structure, growth, class mobilization.
- Informal sector, child labour
- Slums and deprivation in urban areas.

4. Politics and Society:

- Nation, democracy and citizenship.
- Political parties, pressure groups , social and political elite
- Regionalism and decentralization of power.
- Secularization

5. Social Movements in Modern India:

- Peasants and farmers movements.
- Women’s movement.
- Backward classes & Dalit movement.
- Environmental movements.
- Ethnicity and Identity movements.

6. Population Dynamics:

- Population size, growth, composition and distribution
- Components of population growth: birth, death, migration.
- Population policy and family planning.
- Emerging issues: ageing, sex ratios, child and infant mortality, reproductive health.

7. Challenges of Social Transformation:

- Crisis of development: displacement, environmental problems and sustainability
- Poverty, deprivation and inequalities.
- Violence against women.
- Caste conflicts.
- Ethnic conflicts, communalism, religious revivalism.
- Illiteracy and disparities in education.

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