Social Inequality is all around us, and its impact on our lives and the social structure of the United States is unmistakable. Changes brought about by technology and globalization have affected international inequality and the socioeconomic position of the Unites States in the world. It is unavoidable that these world-wide changes now occurring will affect all of us.

The sixth edition of Social Inequality: Forms, Causes, and Consequences is intended as a user-friendly introduction to the study of social inequality. My goal is to convey as simply, but as compellingly as I can, a sense of the pervasiveness and extensiveness of social inequality in the United States within a comparative context, to show how inequality can be explained, how it affects all of us, and what is being done about it.

                                                                        Charles E. Hurst'

1.         AN INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF SOCIAL INEQUALITY

            Some Controversial Issues of Substance

            Issues of Methodology

            Organization of the Book

PART ONE:  EXTENT AND FORMS OF SOCIAL INEQUALITY

2.         ECONOMIC INEQUALITY

            The Everyday Reality of Class

            Two Views of U.S. Class Structure

            Technology and the Shaping of U.S. Class Structure

            Income Inequality

            Is the Middle Class Shrinking?

            Wealth Inequality in the United States

            The Global Context and the Impact of Globalization

3.         STATUS INEQUALITY

            The Theory of Social Status

            Spheres of Status in the United States

            Inequality in Appalachia

            Globalization and Axes of Social Status

4.         POLITICAL INEQUALITY

            Portraits of National Power Structure

            Distribution of Political Power

            Interlinkage of Economic and Political Power

            Ruling-Class Unity

            Power Inequality in the Work Experience

            Power Inequality in a Global and Globalizing Context

5.         SEX AND GENDER INEQUALITY

            The Status of Women in the Early United States

            Present Occupational and Economic Conditions for Women

            Microinequities in the Treatment of Women

            Theories of Sex and Gender Inequality

            The Global Context and the Impact of Globalization

6.         SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND INEQUALITY

            The Complexity of Sexuality and Gender

            Public Opinions on Homosexuality

            Homosexuals as a Status Group

            Discrimination, Legal Confusion, and Sexual Orientation

            A Socioeconomic Profile of Homosexuals

            Negative Consequences of Stigmatization

            Globalization and Sexuality

7.         RACIAL AND ETHNIC INEQUALITY

            The Meaning and Creation of Race

            U.S. Racial and Ethnic Relations:  An Historical Sketch

            Racial and Ethnic Inequality Today

            Microinequities in the Treatment of Racial and Ethnic Minorities

            The Intersection of Class, Race, Sex, and Gender

            Theories of Racial and Ethnic Inequality

            The Global Context, Immigration, and Globalization

PART TWO:  GENERAL EXPLANATIONS OF INEQUALITY

8.         CLASSICAL EXPLANATIONS OF INEQUALITY

            Karl Marx (1818-1883)

            Max Weber (1864-1920)

            Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)

            Herbert Spencer (1820-1903)

9.         CONTEMPORARY EXPLANATIONS OF INEQUALITY

            Functionalist Theory of Stratification

            Theories of Social Construction and Reproduction

            Labor-Market Theories of Income and Earnings Distribution

            The Recent Focus on Process Identification

PART THREE:  CONSEQUENCES OF SOCIAL INEQUALITY

10.        THE IMPACT OF INEQUALITY ON PERSONAL LIFE CHANCES

            Basic Life Chances:  Physical Health

            Basic Life Chances:  Psychological Health

            Basic Life Chances:  Food and Shelter

11.        DEVIANCE, PROTEST, AND INEQUALITY

            Violence in the Family

            Inequality and the Measurement of Crime

            Street Crime and Inequality

            White-Collar Crime, Corporate Crime, and Punishment

            Hate Crimes and Inequality

            Structured Inequality and Collective Protests

            Social Inequality and Environmental Equity

12.        SOCIAL INEQUALITY AND SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

            The Labor Movement

            The Civil Rights Movement

            The Women's Movement

            Inequality, Context, and Social Movements:  A Synthesis

PART FOUR:  STABILITY AND CHANGE IN THE SYSTEM OF SOCIAL  INEQUALITY

13.        SOCIAL MOBILITY AND STATUS ATTAINMENT

            Questions Concerning Openness

            U.S. Mobility over Time

            Comparative Studies of Mobility

            Status Attainment:  What Determines How Far One Goes?

            Mobility and Attainment Process Among African Americans

            Patterns of Mobility and Attainment Among Women

14.        JUSTICE AND LEGITIMACY:  ASSESSMENTS OF THE STRUCTURE OF            INEQUALITY

            U.S. Attitudes about the Distribution of Income and Wealth

            What is a Just Distribution?

            Bases for the Legitimation of Structured Inequality

15.        ADDRESSING INEQUALITY AND POVERTY:  PROGRAMS AND REFORMS

            Addressing Inequality

            The Conundrum of Defining Poverty

            Levels of and Trends in Poverty

            Perceptions of the Poor and Theories of Poverty

            Poverty Programs

            Flaws in pre-1996 Assistance Programs

            Welfare Reform

            Suggestions for Reducing Inequality

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