- "Social inequality occurs when resources in a given society are distributed unevenly, typically through norms of allocation, that engender specific patterns along lines of socially defined categories of persons." - "The differentiation preference of access to social goods in the society is brought about by power, religion, kinship, prestige, race, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, and class."
The examination of how political processes and institutions shape and are shaped by social inequalities, including economic and social inequality.
Power and domination: This topic explores the idea of who has power in society and who does not, and how this shapes social inequality.
Class and class conflict: This topic examines the different social classes in society and how they experience social inequality.
Race and racism: This topic explores how race functions as a system of social inequality, and the impact of racism on individuals and communities.
Gender and sexism: This topic looks at the ways in which gender functions as a system of social inequality, and the impact of sexism on individuals and communities.
Sexual orientation and heterosexism: This topic explores the ways in which sexual orientation functions as a system of social inequality, and the impact of heterosexism on individuals and communities.
Disability and ableism: This topic examines the ways in which disability functions as a system of social inequality, and the impact of ableism on individuals and communities.
Global inequalities: This topic examines social inequality at a global level, including questions of economic, political, and cultural power.
Intersectionality: This topic explores how different systems of social inequality interact with one another to produce particular forms of social disadvantage.
Social mobility: This topic examines the degree to which individuals and groups are able to move up (or down) the ladder of social status.
Social welfare policies: This topic examines the ways in which social welfare policies can either perpetuate or reduce social inequality.
Political economy: This topic explores the relationship between economic power and political power, and how this impacts social inequality.
Social movement theory: This topic explores the ways in which social movements have attempted to challenge social inequality, and the factors that make some movements more successful than others.
Economic Inequality: Refers to unequal distribution of wealth or income among individuals or groups in society, often leading to poverty or social stratification.
Racial and Ethnic Inequality: Refers to unequal treatment of individuals based on their race or ethnicity leading to disparities in education, employment, housing, and social status.
Gender Inequality: Refers to unequal treatment of individuals based on their gender, often leading to disparities in education, employment, pay, and access to resources.
Sexual Orientation Inequality: Refers to unequal treatment of individuals based on their sexual orientation, leading to discrimination, violence, and marginalization.
Age Inequality: Refers to unequal treatment of individuals based on their age, often leading to discrimination in employment, healthcare, and social participation.
Disability Inequality: Refers to unequal treatment of individuals based on their physical or mental abilities, leading to discrimination in employment, education, healthcare and social participation.
Religious Inequality: Refers to unequal treatment of individuals based on their religious beliefs, leading to discrimination, intolerance, and conflict.
Political Inequality: Refers to unequal political representation, access to political rights and freedoms, and participation in decision-making processes.
Cultural Inequality: Refers to unequal treatment of individuals based on their cultural identity, values, or traditions, leading to marginalization, stigmatization, and discrimination.
Geographic Inequality: Refers to unequal distribution of resources and opportunities based on geographic location, often leading to disparities in education, healthcare, and employment.
- "It poses and creates a gender gap between individuals that limits the accessibility that women have within society."
- "Power, religion, kinship, prestige, race, ethnicity, gender, age, sexual orientation, and class."
- "Social inequality is linked to economic inequality, usually described on the basis of the unequal distribution of income or wealth."
- "The social rights include labor market, the source of income, health care, and freedom of speech, education, political representation, and participation."
- "Although merit matters to some degree in many societies, research shows that the distribution of resources in societies often follows hierarchical social categorizations of persons to a degree too significant to warrant calling these societies 'meritocratic'."
- "Young was concerned that the Tripartite System of education being practised in the United Kingdom at the time he wrote the essay considered merit to be 'intelligence-plus-effort' and that it would create an educated middle-class elite at the expense of the education of the working class, inevitably resulting in injustice and eventually revolution."
- "In many cases, social inequality is linked to racial and ethnic inequality, gender inequality, and other forms of social status."
- "The most common metric for comparing social inequality in different nations is the Gini coefficient, which measures the concentration of wealth and income in a nation from 0 (evenly distributed wealth and income) to 1 (one person has all wealth and income)."
- "Two nations may have identical Gini coefficients but dramatically different economic (output) and/or quality of life, so the Gini coefficient must be contextualized for meaningful comparisons to be made."