Inequality in American Communities

1st Edition - January 28, 1977
Authors: Richard F. Curtis, Elton F. Jackson
Editor: Peter H. Rossi
Language: English
eBook ISBN:
9 7 8 - 1 - 4 8 3 2 - 6 4 4 9 - 3

Inequality in American Communities is an empirical study of inequality in U.S. communities and its impact on individual Americans. The data for this study come from sample surveys… Read more

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Inequality in American Communities is an empirical study of inequality in U.S. communities and its impact on individual Americans. The data for this study come from sample surveys in six American cities differing in size and region. In each survey, male heads of households were asked about attributes that ranked them in the system of inequality and about a variety of attitudes and behaviors that might be affected by their ranks. The analyses seek to determine how social rank affects various attitudes and behaviors and compare these effects from community to community. Comprised of 12 chapters, this book begins with an overview of theoretical assumptions about community stratification, with particular reference to how a person's life is shaped by his position in a local structure of inequality. The discussion then turns to patterns of social stratification in six cities: Columbus (Ohio), Linton and Indianapolis (Indiana), and Yuma, Safford, and Phoenix (Arizona). The distributions of various rank variables, such as income and education, in these cities are described, along with the ways in which they are related to form systems of inequality. A basic model of the processes of stratification is also presented. The remaining chapters explore the consequences of social rank and cover topics ranging from social participation and political ideology to anomia and intolerance. This monograph will be of interest to sociologists.

Preface

1 Inequality in the Community

Theoretical Orientations on Community Stratification

Objectives of the Study

Data and Methods

A Description of the Communities

Part I Inequality in Six Communities

2 Patterns of Inequality

The Interrelatedness of Ranks

Rigidity in Community Stratification Systems

Summary and Conclusions

3 Processes of Inequality

A Basic Model of the Stratification Process

The Role of Racial-Ethnic Rank

Summary and Conclusions

4 Perceptions of Inequality

Do Americans Perceive a Class Structure in Their Communities?

Class Placement by Self and Others

Perceptions of Class Dissensus on Public Issues

Perceptions of Legitimate Success

Summary and Conclusions

Part II Consequences of Social Rank

5 Models of Rank Effects

Are Rank Effects Additive?

Are Rank Effects Linear?

Is a Unidimensional Model Adequate?

An Exploration of Multidimensional Models

Summary and Conclusions

6 Satisfaction: Balancing Aspirations and Success

The Measurement of General Satisfaction

Social Rank and General Satisfaction

Effects Due to City and to Control Variables

Summary and Conclusions

7 Informal Social Participation: Visiting and Friendship

Social Participation and Community Social Structure

Social Participation and Hierarchy

Rates of Visiting and Values about Visiting

Differential Association: A Basis for Class Cultures?

Summary and Conclusions

8 Formal Social Participation

Associations, the Communication Network, and Community Influence

Types of Formal Participation

Effects of Rank on Formal Social Participation

Rank, Formal Participation, and Political Activity

Summary and Conclusions

9 Political Ideology and Party Identification

Conservatism and Class Interests

Domestic Liberalism and Party Identification

Rank Effects on Political Orientations

Mediating Factors: Why Does Rank Affect Political Orientations?

Summary and Conclusions

10 Anomia

Anomia, Social Rank, and Community Integration

Measuring Anomia

Which Social Ranks Affect Anomia?

Why Are Men of Low Rank More Anomic?

Frustration and Perceptions of Opportunity and Legitimacy as Intervening Variables

Summary and Conclusions

Interpretations

11 Intolerance

Expectations from Theory

Four Varieties of Intolerance

Effects of Rank on Four Forms of Intolerance

Summary and Conclusions

12 Conclusions and Implications

The Effects of Social Rank

Do Systems of Inequality Differ across Communities?

References

Index