Social class refers to phenomenon in the community characterized by the tendency of the population to be grouped in a hierarchical manner. In most instances, the divisions observed in society are premised on the economic and social status of the individual in relation to others. Although there are different models of defining the social stratification, the bottom line is that social class is an inherent part of society and has a significant influence on the beliefs, education and the individuals ‘social network. People in the same social class exhibit similarities when it comes to their behavior that differentiates them members of another social group. For instance, individuals who consider themselves to be in the middle-class elicit disparities with those of the lower class because of the inequality linked to the access to resources such as education, careers and healthcare (Gamoran, 2018). Social class is a controversial issue in many countries more so because the connections between people of the same group are influential to the choices personal choice made by individual to remain affiliated to a particular class.
The outcome of social stratification is the emergence of the concept of class culture that describes to a situation whereby people strive to maintain meaningful relationships with other members of their group. Following this, acculturation occurs where group members are expected to conform to certain beliefs, behavior and other values that differentiate one class from the next. Class culture refers to as system of beliefs that distinguish the carious social classes. As individuals identify themselves with a particular social group they adopt behaviors affiliated o their class such that the affected party has to dress in a particular manner.
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Furthermore, members have to embrace lifestyle practices associated with the group they belong to or they may be subjected to social exclusion. Studies done on the America populace posited that each social class has its unique cultural trait (Beeghley, 2015). It was observed that the affiliation to a particular group had an impact the mundane lives of the people such that parents raised their kids in a certain manner. There is the never-ending pressure to acculturate as individuals struggle to go out of their way to uphold to the values of those of equal standing.
Social groups can also be informal or formal depending on the nature of the relationship among the members. A formal group is one that is created when different people come together to achieve specific goals or a certain mission, In such a setting the roles and responsibilities of all the members are defined and strict rules are put in place to ensure achievement of the set objectives. One of the pressures linked to formal groups is the need to live up to the guidelines already established. In most instances, the failure to comply with the set rules can have serious repercussion to the individual.
As mentioned earlier, class cultural is characterized by specific beliefs and values that to some extent resemble rules expected of all members of the social group. The so-called rules perpetuate the existence of social stratification (Grusky, 2019). On the other hand, the informal pressure will arise from the interaction of the individual with other group members. They occur at a personal level and are attributed to personal liking, communication and social contact with other members of society. In such a scenario, the bond between the individual and the group members creates a sense of belongingness that fosters once commitment.
References
Beeghley, L. (2015). The Structure of Social Stratification in the United States, The, CourseSmart eTextbook . Routledge.
Gamoran, A. (2018). Educational stratification and individual careers. In Generating Social Stratification (pp. 59-74). Routledge.
Grusky, D. (2019). Social Stratification, Class, Race, and Gender in Sociological Perspective . Routledge.
