prestige

(noun)

A measure of how good the reputation of something or someone is, or how favorably something or someone is regarded.

Related Terms

Examples of prestige in the following topics:

  • Prestige

    • Funeral directors have low occupational prestige, despite high incomes.
    • Their prestige is fairly low, but most have higher incomes than college professors, who are among the most educated people in America and have high prestige.
    • Prestige is a strong element in social mobility.
    • On the other hand, certain elements of prestige are fixed; family name, place of birth, parents' occupations, etc., are unchangeable parts of prestige that cause social stratification.
    • Compare the two types of prestige - achieved and ascribed, and how prestige is related to power, property and social mobility

  • Socioeconomic Status

    • These measures reflect three characteristics of individuals: power, property, and prestige.
    • Prestige refers to the reputation or esteem associated with one's position in society.
    • Prestige used to be associated with one's family name, but for most people in developed countries, prestige is now generally tied to one's occupation.
    • An individual's prestige is closely tied to their social class – the higher the prestige of an individual (through their occupation or maybe family name), the higher the social class.
    • Their prestige is fairly low, but most have higher incomes than college professors, who are among the most educated people in America and have high prestige.

  • Occupation

    • In the United States, occupation and occupational prestige are primary indicators of social class, along with income, wealth, and education.
    • Sociologists often talk about the status associated with various occupations in terms of occupational prestige.
    • Occupational prestige refers to the esteem in which society holds a particular occupation.
    • Occupational prestige is one way in which occupation may affect a person's social class independent of income and educational attainment.
    • In large part because of high occupational prestige, university professors are generally considered members of the upper-middle class.

  • Social Class

    • Prestige refers to the reputation or esteem associated with one's position in society.
    • Prestige used to be associated with family name, but now more frequently is yoked to occupation.
    • Occupations like physicians or lawyers tend to hold more prestige than bartenders or janitors.
    • Power, prestige, and property tend to go hand in hand.
    • For example, a professor may have little property, but has high prestige.

  • Status Inconsistency

    • Staus consistency occurs when somebody has similar levels of property, prestige, and class -- for example, a Supreme Court justice is held in high esteem, is able to enact their will, and is likely to have accumulated wealth.
    • For example, a teacher may have a positive societal image (respect, prestige, etc.), which increases her status but she may earn little money, which simultaneously decreases her status.

  • Class

    • The British aristocracy is an instance where wealth, power, and prestige do not necessarily align--the aristocracy is upper class and generally has significant political influence, but members are not necessarily wealthy.
    • The British aristocracy is an instance where wealth, power, and prestige do not necessarily align — the aristocracy is upper class and generally has significant political influence, but members are not necessarily wealthy.
    • In common parlance, the term "social class" is usually synonymous with socioeconomic status, which is one's social position as determined by income, wealth, occupational prestige, and educational attainment.
    • Many wealthy families lacked prestige and power, for example, because they were Jewish.
    • Weber introduced three independent factors that form his theory of stratification hierarchy: class, status, and power: class is person's economic position in a society; status is a person's prestige, social honor, or popularity in a society; power is a person's ability to get his way despite the resistance of others.

  • Weber's View of Stratification

    • Many wealthy families lacked prestige and power, for example, because they were Jewish.
    • Status refers to a person's prestige, social honor, or popularity in a society.

  • Social Status

    • Social status refers to the honor or prestige attached to one's position in society.
    • Weber proposes that there are three primary components to social stratification: property, prestige, and power.
    • Prestige refers to the reputation or esteem associated with one's social position.

  • Global Stratification and Inequality

    • A person's SES is usually determined by their income, occupational prestige, wealth, and educational attainment, though other variables are sometimes considered.
    • For example, despite earning equal salaries, two persons may have differences in power, property, and prestige.
    • Micro-level analysis focuses on how prestige and personal influence create inequality through face-to-face and small group interactions.

  • Points of View: Micro-Meso-Macro

    • Throughout our lives, wealth, power, and prestige are given to individuals who have knowledge and access to important information and influential people in society.
    • The cycle of wealth, power, and prestige continues.