👪 Between generations
Amara's mother was a market trader. Amara trains as an engineer. Amara has moved up compared with her mother. This is intergenerational upward mobility.
What Is Social Stratification? » Social Mobility, Meritocracy, Caste and Modern Slavery
What you'll learn this session
Study time: 30 minutes
Cambridge spec: 3.1.1
- What social mobility is, and the difference between upward, downward, intergenerational and intragenerational mobility
- What a meritocracy is and why it is an ideal
- The caste system as an example of a closed system
- Modern slavery, including forced labour and debt bondage
🔒 Unlock Full Course Content
Sign up to access the complete lesson and track your progress!
Unlock This CourseSocial mobility
A first-generation graduate with a parent who works in a factory - moving up from your parents' class is intergenerational mobility
Remember, in an open society people can move between the layers, and in a closed society they cannot. This lesson looks at that movement, and at the systems that allow it or block it.
Key terms:
- Social mobility: the movement of individuals or groups up or down the layers of society.
- Upward mobility: moving up to a higher layer, for example from a low-paid job to a well-paid professional career.
- Downward mobility: moving down to a lower layer, for example losing a business and having to take a lower-paid job.
- Intergenerational mobility: a change of layer between generations, such as a child who ends up in a higher or lower layer than their parents.
- Intragenerational mobility: a change of layer within one person's own lifetime, such as someone who starts as a shop assistant and becomes the manager of a chain of shops.
💼 Within one life
Luis starts work as a delivery driver and, over twenty years, becomes the owner of a transport firm. He has moved up in his own lifetime. This is intragenerational upward mobility.
Notice that mobility can be upward or downward, and it can be measured between generations or within one lifetime. In a closed society there is very little mobility of any kind. In an open society there is much more.
Meritocracy
In a true meritocracy the job goes to the best candidate's skills and effort - not to whoever has the right surname
A meritocracy is a society where people get their place in the layers because of their merit, which means their own ability and effort, not because of who their family is. Jobs and rewards go to the people with the best skills and qualifications.
- It is the ideal of an open society, built on achieved status.
- Supporters say it is fair, because anyone who works hard can succeed.
- Critics say no society is fully a meritocracy. Children start from different places. A child from a wealthy family may have more books, better tutors and useful contacts. So the race does not begin from the same starting line.
So a meritocracy is best seen as something societies aim for, not something any society has fully reached.
The caste system
The caste system is a well-known example of a closed system of stratification. It has been found mainly in South Asia, where it has been linked with Hindu society.
- A person is born into a caste and traditionally stays in it for life. This is ascribed status.
- Caste has traditionally decided a person's occupation, who they could marry and who they could eat with.
- The castes are ranked. Some groups have traditionally been treated as having higher status than others.
- Moving to a different caste has not been possible, so there has been almost no social mobility.
Caste today
Caste discrimination is outlawed in India. The Constitution of India bans discrimination on the grounds of caste. Even so, in some places caste can still affect people's lives, for example in marriage choices and the kinds of work people do. Many people and organisations work to end it. In your answers, describe caste calmly and accurately, as a system and not as a judgement on any group of people.
Modern slavery
Modern slavery is when a person is controlled by someone else and forced to work, with no real freedom to leave. It is illegal in almost every country, but it still happens, and it is often hidden from view. It is an extreme form of inequality, because the person has no choice and no power.
- Forced labour: being made to work through threats, violence or other pressure, usually for little or no pay.
- Debt bondage: being made to work to pay off a debt that can never be paid off, for example when charges for food, travel or housing are added so that the debt keeps growing.
Modern slavery shows what a fully closed position looks like. The victim has the lowest possible status, almost no wealth and no power, and cannot move out of their position.
How they fit together
🔓 Open
High social mobility. Meritocracy is the aim. Achieved status matters most.
🔒 Closed
Very little mobility. Ascribed status decides position, as in the caste system.
⛓️ Slavery
No freedom at all. Forced labour and debt bondage trap a person in the lowest position.
Common mistakes
1. Mixing up intergenerational (between generations) and intragenerational (within one lifetime).
2. Saying mobility only means moving up. It can be downward too.
3. Saying a meritocracy already exists everywhere. It is an ideal, and critics point to unequal starting points.
4. Saying slavery ended long ago. Modern slavery still exists, as forced labour and debt bondage.
5. Writing about caste as if it is legal or as if it is the same everywhere. It is outlawed in India, and its effects vary.
Exam-style question
(a) Define the term:
(i) intergenerational mobility [2]
(ii) meritocracy [2]
(b) Give two examples of modern slavery. [2]
(c) Explain three ways in which the caste system is a closed system. [6]
Model answer
(a)(i) Intergenerational mobility is a change of social layer (1) between generations, for example a child in a higher layer than their parents (1).
(a)(ii) A meritocracy is a society where people's positions are decided by their ability and effort (1), not by their family background (1).
(b) Forced labour (1). Debt bondage (1).
(c) First, a person is born into a caste and stays in it for life, so status is ascribed and cannot be earned (1). Second, caste has traditionally decided a person's occupation and who they can marry, so they cannot choose their own path (1). Third, it has been almost impossible to change caste, so there is very little social mobility between the layers (1). Each point is explained with a reason, which earns the further marks (1)(1)(1).
Exam tip
In (c), start each point with 'First', 'Second', 'Third' and finish each with a phrase that links it back to 'closed', such as 'fixed at birth' or 'cannot change'.