Page 240 - DSOC202_SOCIAL_STRATIFICATION_ENGLISH

Unit 11: Social Mobility

According to the functionalist theorists like Davis and Moore, different positions in society are Notes
filled by efficient human resource. They hold the view that stratification is a device by which
social placement and motivation takes place. But this is not true in present situation. Inequality of
opportunity means that even able individuals from the less privileged groups will not be able to
rise. Various studies suggests that the class of origin is still very important in placement of individual
on different positions. The top most positions and the lowest positions experiences a very little
change. Therefore talent and ability as a factor in social mobility plays limited role.
Elite theories : Vilfredo Pareto, one of the important exponent of elite theorists argued that talent
and ability are very important factors of social mobility. Over generations people may lost elitist
talent and that talent may be exhibited by persons from lower strata. Thus mobility will be there.
The old elites will be replaced by the people those who would have talent. This theory is popularly
known as ‘circulation of elites’ Max Gluckman has referred to this as ‘repetitive change’ , in the
context of changes in African chiefdoms. Maurice Duverger has referred to this as the difference
between conflict ‘within the regime’ and conflict ‘over the regime’.
Change in the Social Environment

This is a very important factor which can influence all other factors of social mobility. A major
factor for mobility is social change. One of the important economic changes that believed to have
major impact on social mobility is industrialization.
Industrialization : Lipset and Bendix argued that industrialization leads to increase in rate of
mobility and that once all societies have reached a certain level of industrialization, there is a
similarity in their rates of social mobility. According to Kerr, propounder of the convergence
thesis, all industrial societies converge towards a common pattern of mobility. On the basis of
their study, Bendix and Lipset pointed five main factors of social mobility in industrial societies.
• Changes in the number of available vacancies,
• Different rates of fertility,
• Changes in the rank accorded to occupations,
• Changes in the number of inheritable status positions, and
• Changes in the legal restrictions pertaining to potential opportunities.
Because of industrialization, the occupational structure of the society changed. Vacancies were
created in the industrial sector. Service sector started growing. Industrialization followed by
urbanization lead to migration of people from rural areas. New white- collar jobs were created.
All this led to expansion in the number of available vacancies. Thus social mobility was there to
fill up these vacancies.
Industrial societies are characterized by democratic system of governance. The democratization of
political systems, with all its noble values removed the barriers to social mobility. With the
introduction of universal adult franchise, panchayti raj system, constitutional, political and social
rights etc., social mobility was further facilitated in India. Traditional occupational specialization
got replaced by industrialization. Education came to play vital role in changing the stratification
system. Ascriptive position became irrelevant. Due to re-ranking of some occupation there happened
shift in nature and esteem of some jobs. Some occupations came to occupy less importance which
had more value earlier.
The Convergence Hypothesis : The convergence hypothesis is one view point regarding the
relationship of industrialization and stratification. The hypothesis states that all industrial societies
converge towards a common pattern of mobility. Kerr, an exponent of this hypothesis, stated that
in today’s world, industrialization was a common denominator which would impact all
industrialized societies towards a common future society which he called a pluralistic industrialist
society. Here, the mobility pattern would be same. The rate of mobility would be high. The

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