Page 235 - DSOC202_SOCIAL_STRATIFICATION_ENGLISH

Social Stratification Sukanya Das, Lovely Professional University

Notes Unit 11: Social Mobility

CONTENTS
Objectives
Introduction
11.1 Social Mobility
11.2 Determinants of Social Mobility
11.3 Patterns of Mobility in Caste and Class
11.4 Summary
11.5 Key-Words
11.6 Review Questions
11.7 Further Readings

Objectives

After studying this unit students will be able to:
• Explain the Social Mobility and Determinants of Social Mobility.
• Discuss the Patterns of Mobility in Caste and Class.

Introduction

In every society, people are placed in ordered unequal social places. Differential distribution of
skills, knowledge, access to opportunities and resources creates bindings for the people to remain
in high and low positions. They see to it that what is enjoyed by them in terms of high positions
and privileges remain with them and not shared by the aspiring climbers. In some cases, it takes
several generations for people to change their social statuses. A closed or ascriptive system of
stratification would create barriers in social mobility of the people of low status, whereas an open
system would have a high incidence of social mobility. Three grounds could be mentioned with
regard to social mobility : merit, egalitarianism, and historicity. Those who have requisite abilities
would change their status and move upwardly. All people should have equal access and no
hinderances may be in their way to higher status. The human history shows that over a period of
time economic and demographic factors would force a rearrangement of individuals, families and
society in general.
A more pronounced and widespread mobility is geographic, in which the individual may move
from rural to urban or vice versa, from one part of a city to another, from one part of a country to
another and from country to country. Such movements have great sociological implications,
particularly in case of movement from rural to urban. Also, the other forms are : movement from
one job to another in the same firm, movement to the same or a different position in another firm
and movement to another industry or labour market in the same or different position. There are
also cases of mobility though not with change in one’s economic or social position. As such,
mobility involves a significant movement in an individual’s or stratum’s economic, social and
political position.
The following points are noteworthy regarding the study of social mobility :
1. A concern with a description of a society to know its rigidity and/or fluidity.
2. A concern to know the opportunities open to individuals to utilize their talents.

230 LOVELY PROFESSIONAL UNIVERSITY