Status Symbols

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Status Symbols

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To make sense of various forms of inequality in society, sociologists consider people’s economic position, their power, and the prestige or honour they hold in the eyes of others. Inequalities can be manifest in both material and symbolic ways, including what a person owns, their health and body, relationships, style of dress, speech and behaviour, and credentials. Sociological research considers how something as seemingly personal as one’s taste in music or food can reflect broader dimensions of power and social stratification.

Research by Sociologists

Bourdieu, P. (1987). Distinction: A social critique of the judgement of taste. Routledge. https://www.routledge.com/Distinction-A-Social-Critique-of-the-Judgement-of-Taste/Bourdieu/p/book/9780415567886

DiMaggio, P. (2019). Social structure, institutions, and cultural goods: The case of the United States. In Social theory for a changing society (pp. 133-166). Routledge. https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780429306440-5/social-structure-institutions-cultural-goods-case-united-states-paul-dimaggio

Johnston, J., & Baumann, S. (2014). Foodies: Democracy and distinction in the gourmet foodscape. Routledge. https://www.routledge.com/Foodies-Democracy-and-Distinction-in-the-Gourmet-Foodscape/Johnston-Baumann/p/book/9781138015128

Marx, K. (2004). Capital: Volume I. Penguin. https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/351/35192/capital/9780140445688.html

Meszaros, J. (2017). American men and romance tourism: Searching for traditional trophy wives as status symbols of masculinity. Women’s Studies Quarterly, 225-242. https://www.jstor.org/stable/44474129

Siebert, S. (2020). Symbolic demarcation: the role of status symbols in preserving interprofessional boundaries. Journal of Professions and Organization, 7(1), 47-69. https://doi.org/10.1093/jpo/joaa004

Wallace, D. (2017). Reading ‘race’ in Bourdieu? Examining black cultural capital among black Caribbean youth in south London. Sociology, 51(5), 907-923. https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038516643478

Wright, E. O. (2015). Understanding class. Verso Books. https://www.versobooks.com/books/1903-understanding-class

Sociology Courses at UVic

If you would like to explore status systems and social inequality in more depth, the Department offers a number of courses you might be interested in:

SOCI100A – Introduction to Sociology: Understanding Social Life
SOCI100B – Introduction to Sociology: Understanding Contemporary Society
SOCI202 – Constructing Social Problems
SOCI204 – Self, Identity and Society
SOCI215 – Class and Social Inequality
SOCI220 – Media and Contemporary Society
SOCI235 – Racialization and Ethnicity
SOCI383 – Feminisms in Theory and Practice
SOCI385 – Sociology of Aging
SOCI436 – Issues in Sociology and Social Justice
SOCI438 – Issues in Contemporary Sociology
SOCI439A – Community Engaged Sociology I
SOCI439B – Community Engaged Sociology II