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status (social status)

Definition of Status

(noun) An individual’s position, often relative to others, in a group or society as characterized by certain benefits and responsibilities as determined by an individual’s rank and role.

Examples of Status

Types of Status

Status Pronunciation

Pronunciation Usage Guide

Syllabification: stat·us

Audio Pronunciation

– American English
– British English

Phonetic Spelling

  • American English – /stAY-tuhs/
  • British English – /stAY-tuhs/

International Phonetic Alphabet

  • American English – /ˈstædəs/
  • British English – /ˈsteɪtəs/

Usage Notes

  • Plural: statuses
  • The terms “status” and “social status” are used interchangeably in a sociological context.
  • An individual often simultaneously occupies multiple statuses, combined these are called a status set.
  • Statuses are complementary, dynamic, and relational.
  • The distinction between status and role is a status is what you “are” and a role is what you “do.” Being a parent is a status, being a provider for your children is a role.
  • Also called social status.

Related Quotations

  • “[As] you experience your social statuses; you live through them. They are the filters through which you see and make sense of the world, and in large measure they account for how you are treated and what you notice” (Rosenblum and Travis 2012:194).
  • “There is an ordering of versions of femininity and masculinity at the level of the whole society, in some ways analogous to the patterns of face-to-face relations with institution. the possibilities of variation, of course, are vastly greater. The sheer complexity of relationships involving millions of people guarantees that ethnic differences and generational differences as well as class patterns come into play. But in key aspects the organization of gender on the very large scale must be more skeletal and simplified than the human relationships in face-to-face milieux. The forms of femininity and masculinity constituted at this level are stylized and impoverished. Their interrelation is centred on the single structural fact, the global dominance of men over women” (Connell 1987:183).

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Additional Information

Related Terms


References

Connell, R. W. 1987. Gender and Power: Society, the Person, and Sexual Politics. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.

Rosenblum, Karen Elaine, and Toni-Michelle Travis. 2012. The Meaning of Difference: American Constructions of Race, Sex and Gender, Social Class, Sexual Orientation, and Disability. 6th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill.

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Cite the Definition of Status

ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “status.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved March 19, 2024 (https://sociologydictionary.org/status/).

APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)

status. (2013). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/status/

Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2013. “status.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed March 19, 2024. https://sociologydictionary.org/status/.

MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)

“status.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2013. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://sociologydictionary.org/status/>.