Social status refers to the positions that an individual occupies, and their relative level of prestige.
Status set refers to all the statuses or positions that an individual occupies. A person's status set changes as individual statuses evolve over time.
Ascribed statuses are positions an individual either inherits at birth or receives involuntarily later in life. Achieved statuses are positions that are earned, accomplished, or involve at least some effort or activity on the individual's part.
Status symbols are signs that identify a status.
A master status, such as being male or female, cuts across the other statuses that an individual occupies. Status inconsistency (or discrepancy) is a contradiction or mismatch between statuses.
Social Groups and Societies Groups are the essence of life in society; the groups to which we belong help to determine our goals and values, how we feel about ourselves, and even how we feel about life itself.
An essential element of a social group is that its members have something in common and that they believe what they have in common is significant. In addition, by participating in a group the individual gives up at least some control or autonomy, in being expected to conform to group values and goals.
Typically, individuals are part of either involuntary associations or memberships (such as familial, sexual, racial and ethnic groupings), as well as voluntary associations such as professional associations, trade unions and recreational clubs.
Society, which consists of people who share a culture and a territory, is the largest and most complex group that sociologists study.
Socialization is the process by which we learn the ways of our society. In essence, it is society and social interaction that truly 'makes us human.' Socialization is a complex process, involving and impacting on a variety of social identities, including: gender, sexual orientation, social class, 'race', (dis)ability and age.
Agents of Socialization
In the family have a life-long impact on people, laying down a basic sense of self, motivation, values, and beliefs.
Religion plays a major role in the socialization of many countries, even if they are not raised in a religious family. Religion especially influences morality, but also ideas about the dress, speech, and manners that are appropriate.
Schools serve many manifest (intended) functions for society, including teaching skills and values thought to be appropriate. Schools also have several latent (unintended) functions.
At school children are placed outside the direct control of friends/relatives and exposed to new values and ways of looking at the world. They learn the idea of universality, or that the same rules apply to everyone.
Schools also have a hidden curriculum: values not explicitly taught but inherent in school activities.