Skip to ContentGo to accessibility page
OpenStax Logo
Introduction to Sociology 2e

Key Terms

Introduction to Sociology 2eKey Terms

Key Terms

caste system
a system in which people are born into a social standing that they will retain their entire lives
class
a group who shares a common social status based on factors like wealth, income, education, and occupation
class system
social standing based on social factors and individual accomplishments
class traits
the typical behaviors, customs, and norms that define each class (also called class markers)
conspicuous consumption
the act of buying and using products to make a statement about social standing
Davis-Moore thesis
a thesis that argues some social stratification is a social necessity
downward mobility
a lowering of one’s social class
endogamous marriages
unions of people within the same social category
exogamous unions
unions of spouses from different social categories
global stratification
a comparison of the wealth, economic stability, status, and power of countries as a whole
income
the money a person earns from work or investments
intergenerational mobility
a difference in social class between different generations of a family
intragenerational mobility
a difference in social class between different members of the same generation
meritocracy
an ideal system in which personal effort—or merit—determines social standing
primogeniture
a law stating that all property passes to the firstborn son
social mobility
the ability to change positions within a social stratification system
social stratification
a socioeconomic system that divides society’s members into categories ranking from high to low, based on things like wealth, power, and prestige
standard of living
the level of wealth available to acquire material goods and comforts to maintain a particular socioeconomic lifestyle
status consistency
the consistency, or lack thereof, of an individual’s rank across social categories like income, education, and occupation
structural mobility
a societal change that enables a whole group of people to move up or down the class ladder
upward mobility
an increase—or upward shift—in social class
wealth
the value of money and assets a person has from, for example, inheritance
PreviousNext
Order a print copy
Citation/Attribution
Reuse and redistribution of this content in digital or print format:
  • This book may not be used in the training of large language models or otherwise be ingested into large language models or generative AI offerings without OpenStax's prior written permission.
  • This book uses the Creative Commons Attribution License, which means that you can reuse and modify the material only for noncommercial purposes, must attribute OpenStax, and must distribute any derivative works under the same license.
  • Any commercial printing of this textbook, including using a local or custom printer, must be approved by OpenStax, and proper citation provided.
  • OpenStax-copyrighted images, activities, assessments, and similar components of this book are subject to the same licensing – CC-BY-NC-SA. They can be used for noncommercial purposes with attribution. Commercial use requires permission.
  • Permission requests: Anyone who intends to incorporate this content (including text, images, and other components) into large language models, use it in AI offerings, use it commercially (including in print), and/or has questions about another use case is welcome to complete our reuse request form.
Attribution information
  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a noncommercial print format, then you must include on every physical page the following attribution:

    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/introduction-sociology-2e/pages/1-introduction-to-sociology

  • If you are redistributing all or part of this book in a noncommercial digital format, then for every page that includes OpenStax content, you must license the derivative work under the same CC-BY-NC-SA license as the original, and include on every digital page view the following attribution:

    Access for free at https://openstax.org/books/introduction-sociology-2e/pages/1-introduction-to-sociology

Citation information

The information below includes the information needed to generate citations in most major styles (APA, MLA, etc.); you must reformat and organize the information as needed to fit the requirements of the style. Use the information below to generate a citation. We recommend using a citation tool such as this one.

© Feb 9, 2022 OpenStax. Textbook content produced by OpenStax is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License. The OpenStax name, OpenStax logo, OpenStax book covers, OpenStax CNX name, and OpenStax CNX logo, and Rice University name, and Rice University logo trademarks, or wordmarks are not subject to the Creative Commons license and may not be reproduced without the prior and express written consent of Rice University.