Table of Contents
Definitions of Hierarchy
(noun) A system of ranking and uneven power distribution in which an individual or group resides within a culture, organization, or society.
Examples of Hierarchy
Hierarchy Pronunciation
Syllabification: hi·er·ar·chy
Audio Pronunciation
Phonetic Spelling
- American English – /hIE-uhr-rahr-kee/
- British English – /hIE-uh-rah-kee/
International Phonetic Alphabet
- American English – /ˈhaɪˌrɑrki/
- British English – /ˈhʌɪərɑːki/
Usage Notes
- Plural: hierarchies
- As societies became more complex, increasingly multi-layered hierarchies develop to control people and resources.
- Also called:
- class structure
- echelon
- power structure
- ranking
- social hierarchy
- social ladder
- social pyramid
- status hierarchy
- Informally called pecking order.
- Sociologists study stratification to understand (adjective) hierarchic or (adjective) hierarchical power structures.
Related Videos
Additional Information
- Word origin of “hierarchy” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
- Dahrendorf, Ralf. 1988. The Modern Social Conflict: An Essay on the Politics of Liberty. London: Weidenfeld and Nicolson.
- Giddens, Anthony. 1973. The Class Structure of the Advanced Societies. London: Hutchinson.
- Grusky, David B., ed. 2014. Social Stratification: Class, Race, and Gender in Sociological Perspective. 4th ed. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
- Kerbo, Harold Ray. 2012. Social Stratification and Inequality: Class Conflict in Historical, Comparative, and Global Perspective. 8th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.
- Marx, Karl, and Friedrich Engels. 1848. The Communist Manifesto.
- Massey, Douglas S. 2007. Categorically Unequal: The American Stratification System. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.
- Mills, C. Wright. 1956. The Power Elite. New York: Oxford University Press.
- Riesman, David. 1950. The Lonely Crowd: A Study of the Changing American Character. New York: Doubleday.
Related Terms
- authority
- bureaucracy
- clear division of labor
- explicit rules
- impersonality
- McDonaldization
- organization
- total institution
- Weber, Max
Cite the Definition of Hierarchy
ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “hierarchy.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved December 14, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/hierarchy/).
APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)
hierarchy. (2013). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/hierarchy/
Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)
Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “hierarchy.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed December 14, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/hierarchy/.
MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)
“hierarchy.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2013. Web. 14 Dec. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/hierarchy/>.