Bridging Social Divides: Toward an Equitable and Inclusive Society

Abstract

Instructor’s Name Introduction We cannot ignore that society is divided into subgroups of people based on their wealth, authority, and political influence. Social class defines the chasm that exists between the poor and the rich. The social class categories include; the lower class, middle class, and upper class. The variations between these people create stratification in society. It is difficult to achieve an ideal society because of the gaps, inequalities, and socioeconomic capacities entrenched in society. The signs of social class are experienced by economic inequality, well-being, and poor health status in everyday life (Kraus et al., 2017). The barriers that push away an ideal society arise from the class signaling process creating class boundaries and social class status quo. Key Components In a sociological context, social class is defined based on views on social stratification and social mobility. Social stratification is a form of society that categorizes people based on their wealth, income, family, background, power, and authority. In geology, stratification is used to distinguish the various rock layers. Social stratification is based on socioeconomic status, and the wealthy appear in the upper layer of society. Social mobility is the movement of social units in a stratified society based on socioeconomic advantage. In most cases, people achieve more significant opportunities and move to various social classes based on the parent’s status quo, education qualifications, and earlier achievements. Social classes exist in society and are classified based on power and status. High social class is associated with esteem and dominion over others; social class is associated with physical, mental, social, and environmental factors affecting the quality of life (Wingen et al., 2021). The position of social hierarchy is a powerful tool that influences all aspects of humanity. Shavitt et al. classify consumer behavior based on social segmentation of various cases, such as the lower, middle, and upper classes (2016). Other sociologists differ, alluding that the three social classes lump people of different categories together. Various sociologists build their definition of social class on Max and Weber. According to (Henslin et al., 2015), the United States population is divided into five equal groups: the capitalist, upper middle, lower middle, working class, working poor, and Underclass. Societal stratification is today linked to these five distinct groups. Society entails closed and open systems. Closed systems do not accommodate changes in social positions, while open systems allow interactions between the various layers of social stratification. Maintaining these stratification systems is challenging since people work hard to better their lives. The closed systems will open due to the attainment of education, job opportunities, and improvement in social class. The systems are vertical if one strives to exploit their potential. Despite the patterns and background influence of a person’s social class, meritocracy defines people today. It is difficult to confine individuals based on systems of social stratification. Poverty is defined into two categories; Primary poverty and secondary poverty. Primary poverty is living below the poverty line, where one cannot afford necessities, while secondary poverty is when people earn money only to afford necessities. Theory: The Models of Wright and Kahl in the [Author] Dennis Gilbert and Joseph Kahl are prolific sociologists in developing the social class model based on six categories; the capitalist class, the upper middle class, the lower middle class, the working class, the working poor, and the underclass. The two sociologists align social classes with consequences on physical health, education, mental health, family life, crime, the criminal justice system, religion, politics, and technology (Henslin et al., 2015). An ideal society is a perfect society where no social gaps exist, and people compete effectively; Gilbert and Karls' model-depict social stratification in society. The two sociologists believe that an ideal society can be achieved by maintaining ideal social values and upholding...