Sociology · May / June 2024 · Paper 12 · Question 3
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Many sociologists, including Marxists, try to explain social inequality. Some sociologists focus their explanations on the importance of status and the possibility for social mobility. Some sociologists argue that inequality continues to exist in many areas such as the workplace and domestic labour. 3
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3(a)[2]
What is meant by the term ‘domestic labour’? One mark for a partial definition e.g. washing dishes. Two marks for a clear definition e.g. the work that has to be done in the home, such as housework.
3(b)[4]
Describe two examples of how a person’s status may be ascribed. Possible answers:
the status that comes from your sex or gender e.g. being born a woman in a patriarchal society may confer a lower status than being born male;the status that comes from the position your family may have in society and that you inherit, e.g. the British Royal family;the status that comes from your race or ethnic group e.g. in many societies ethnic minorities have a lower status than the ethnic majority;the status that comes from the position you were born into within the family, e.g. elder sibling or your status as a child rather than an adult;the status that comes from the age you are e.g. children have fewer rights than adults due to their dependent status in society;the status that comes from your religion e.g. in some societies members of a religion may be persecuted and socially excluded due to their beliefs and traditions;in India people may be assigned a social status based on the caste they are born into e.g. the Dalit caste have low status compared to those born as Brahmins;individuals have ascribed status as siblings e.g. as an older brother or sister and this may bring added expectations within the family;the status that comes with being born into a certain social class e.g. being born into a rich, as opposed to a poor, family will impact the status you have;any other reasonable response. One mark for each example correctly identified (up to a maximum of two). One mark for each example correctly developed (up to a maximum of two).3(c)[6]
Explain how individuals can achieve social mobility. Possible responses:
gaining educational qualifications to give access to jobs and careers that will allow a person to rise from the class in which they were born;getting promotion and/or career advancement e.g. someone could start in a working class job and move up into a managerial position, thus effectively moving up a class within their own lifetime;marriage to someone of a higher social class would mean achieving social mobility within the lifetime of a single individual;winning a considerable sum of money e.g. the lottery would automatically raise your level of status and your class position;inheriting wealth from a relative in a higher social class would allow someone to then live the lifestyle of that class;New Right theorists argue that having values such as deferred gratification or adopting a positive mindset (instead of fatalism) allow an individual to achieve and work their way up the social ladder;any other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1 - 3 marks] Answers in this band will show only a limited awareness of the question. Responses may be short and un/underdeveloped. At the bottom of the band (1 mark), expect one weak point. Higher in the band (2–3 marks), candidates may offer more than one weak point, but there may be a tendency towards simplistic answers, engaging with sociological ideas without using sociological language. Band 2 [4 - 6 marks] Answers in this band will have clear and accurate explanation, showing good sociological knowledge and understanding. Sociological terms and concepts should be expected and explained. At the bottom of the band, the range of points covered may be narrow or lack detail. Higher in the band, answers will cover more than one point in a well-developed way or cover several points in less detail.3(d)[8]
Explain why women experience inequalities in the workplace. Possible responses:
there are prejudices against women that prevent them from succeeding or even participating in the workplace e.g. that men are more capable or that women should be taking care of the family rather than working;there is vertical segregation in the workplace which means that women tend to be concentrated at the lower occupational levels in a particular company or industry;horizontal segregation exists – women and men cluster in different occupations with women being disproportionately clustered in lower paid and lower status occupations e.g. caring roles, secretarial and nursing jobs;functionalists argue there is a gendered division of labour due to the fact that society expects women to be primarily responsible for certain jobs and roles e.g. childcare, whilst men are seen more as breadwinners – assumptions about women as secondary earners often justifies discrimination against women in the workplace;there is a glass ceiling in operation – an unseen barrier that prevents women from achieving high status positions in the workplace;some researchers argue that there is a glass cliff – even when women break through the glass ceiling and take charge of big companies or organisations it is often the case that the company is failing an/or they are not given adequate resources to do the job – both of which are likely to result in failure thereby justifying misogynist stereotypes;there is a gender pay gap – women are often paid less than men for doing the same/comparable job role;women are often subjected to sexual harassment in the workplace and this can be extremely hard to prove or challenge;any other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–3 marks] Answers in this band will show only a limited awareness of the question. A tendency to description is likely. Responses may be short and undeveloped and points stated without explanation. Sociological terms and concepts are unlikely to be used. At the bottom of the band (1 mark), expect one weak point. Higher in the band (2–3 marks), candidates may offer more than one weak point. Band 2 [4–6 marks] Answers in this band will show basic sociological knowledge and understanding. Responses may be underdeveloped and lacking in range. At the bottom of the band, candidates are unlikely to use sociological terms and concepts accurately. Higher in the band, candidates may be beginning to use sociological terms and concepts with greater accuracy. However, some aspects of the answer may only be partially developed/explained. Band 3 [7–8 marks] Answers in this band will show good sociological knowledge and understanding and will be well developed and explained. Sociological terms and concepts will be used accurately overall. Answers will be well-focused on the question and there will be a range of points presented. At the top of the band explanations will be clear throughout.3(e)[15]
To what extent is Marxism the best explanation for social inequality? Possible arguments for:
Marxism offers a clear distinction of the conflict between two classes in society – the bourgeoisie exploit the labour of the proletariat to increase their profits;neo-Marxists ideas about social, cultural and economic capital of the elite (Bourdieu) are useful in showing how the upper class maintain their power and privilege and keep out the proletariat;Marxist explanations of the relationship between the proletariat who own nothing but their labour which they sell to the bourgeoisie for wages is true for many individuals in society;Marxists offer useful explanations of the barriers to resistance faced by the proletariat who are oppressed in that they cannot exercise their dissatisfaction with their bosses for fear of being sacked;Althusser’s theories of ideology help explain why the working class fail to gain equality, this is useful as it explains how the key institutions in society (ISAs) work together to prevent the working classes from rising up;e.g. the education system brainwashes working class children into accepting subordination and socialises rich children to be leaders etc.;
Marxist theories of education help explain the inequalities faced by the working class in terms of educational outcomes and class differences in educational attainment are clearly evident today;Marxists refer to ‘the old boy’s network’ which see privileged elites helping people of their own class thus denying meritocratic opportunity, this theory is rooted in reality as examples of nepotism can be seen in most societies;Marxist theories of material deprivation are useful for explaining the formation of working class sub-cultures, differential crime rates and differences in educational attainment;Marxists show that a key function of the media is to distract people’s attention from the realities of oppression and inequality towards a preoccupation with superficiality and trivia e.g. celebrity role models and commodity fetishism which maintains inequality between the classes;Marxists show that whilst the middle and upper classes commit the highest value crimes (white collar) it is the lower classes who are criminalised and punished most severely for crime;any other reasonable response. Possible arguments against:traditional Marxism is outdated - there are now no longer just two main classes but many and there is social mobility between the different classes in a way that Marx never envisaged;traditional Marxism is one dimensional in its view of class relationships – it tries to explain all inequality in terms of economic differences but cultural and social factors are important too;the interactionist critique of Marxism shows that its view of social class is too deterministic, people are not just puppets but actors in their own lives;who can achieve social mobility and rise above their original class status;
functionalists argue society is meritocratic and that inequality is not a bad thing as it incentivises hard work and the cultivation of talents;functionalists use the organic analogy to describe society and this can be easily evidenced, e.g. if there is an increase in crime then governments might target policies aimed at reducing poverty in the family or getting schools to deliver more effective socialisation into conformity with norms, values and the law;capitalism has undeniably raised living standards for many and so this challenges Marxist’s class-based critique of capitalism as inhumane and socially destructive;Marxist predictions of the class structure being so rigid that revolution is inevitable has not materialised and so the theory is flawed;feminists are likely to argue that gender is a more important explanation of inequality than class as gender prejudice and discrimination cuts across all classes;other sociologists argue ethnicity is a more important explanation of inequality than class e.g. racism is not confined to the lower class and ethnic minorities form the lowest status groups within each social class;some may argue that age is a more important consideration than social class in explaining social inequalities like ageism and prejudice against youth and the elderly;any other reasonable response. Band 0 [0 marks] No creditworthy response. Band 1 [1–4 marks] Answers in this band may be vague and largely based on common sense showing limited knowledge of the debate. Use of sociological terms or concepts is very unlikely. Responses may be short, undeveloped and one- sided. Lower in the band (1–2 marks), expect one or two weak points. Higher in the band (3–4 marks) candidates may offer more than two points and provide a weak definition of key terms in the question. Band 2 [5–8 marks] In this band candidates will show some basic knowledge of the debate. Alternatively, they may offer an answer which is list-like in nature, but there will be no real attempt to assess the issues raised by the question. There may be limited/some use of sociological terms or concepts. Responses may be underdeveloped and lack range. Answers may be simplistic and two-sided or only cover one side of the debate. Lower in the band, the response may be rather narrow in the points covered and there may be some development. Higher in the band, more points are likely to be covered with some development. Alternatively, a list-like answer with some development covering both sides of the argument may score up to 8 marks. A one-sided answer cannot score higher than 8 marks. Band 3 [9–12 marks] Answers in this band will show good sociological knowledge and understanding of the debate. Sociological terms and concepts will be used with greater accuracy and/or frequency. For the most part, answers will be well- developed, focused on the questions and there will be a range of points presented. There will be a two-sided response, but it may lack range on one side. At the bottom of the band, candidates may provide a narrower range of developed points. At the top of the band, expect a wider range of developed points and clear focus on the question. Band 4 [13–15 marks] Answers in this band will show excellent knowledge and understanding of the debate. There will be a strong grasp of the arguments as well as accurate and frequent use of sociological terms and concepts. Answers will be well- developed, clearly focused on the question and discuss a wide range of points. Responses will be two-sided and have a range of points on each side. At the bottom of the band (13 marks), the answer may lack a specific conclusion. Higher in the band, there will be a clear attempt to offer an assessment of the ‘To what extent?’ part of the question through a focused conclusion.
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