Ascribed Status - Minorities and Status Inconsistency

Minorities and Status Inconsistency

Ascribed statuses are determined by the dominant groups in society and as a result, minorities are often assigned lower statuses. Minority groups are forced to attempt to reconcile the conflicts that arise from the social expectations that are linked with their assigned statuses in society and their perceived view of themselves. In the face of the knowledge that individuals occupy more than one ascribed role at a time, it becomes evident that there may be some statuses in society’s multi-dimensional structure that do not comfortably coexist.

Status consistency is defined as the degree to which an individual’s social rank positions that exist within important status hierarchies are at a comparable level. The greater mobility of class systems produces less status consistency. In Canada, for example, most university professors with advanced academic degrees enjoy high social prestige but earn only average salaries. Low status consistency means that classes are much harder to define than castes.

At the root of the problem of status inconsistency is the inability of individuals to reconcile the conflicting expectations. A woman from a racial minority group may not experience status inconsistency because as a woman and as a member of a minority group she may be considered to be of a lower ascribed status. But, if this woman rejects the assigned roles that are associated with her status she is then experiencing status inconsistency.

To offer another example, a woman born into a wealthy family occupies both a high and a low ascribed status within the social structure because her inherited resources and social networks are advantageous while her role as a woman may be considered inferior. When a person holds a high rank on one status dimension and low rank on another, the expectations of the two are often at odds with one another.

The two general consequences that arise from the tension that exists between the differing expectations are frustration and uncertainty about how one should act given how others believe they should behave and their own perceived notions of their abilities and the course of action that they should take to achieve their goals.