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Status inconsistency is a situation where an individual's social positions have both positive and negative influences on his or her social status. For example, a teacher may have a positive societal image (respect, prestige) which increases his or her status but may earn little money, which simultaneously decreases his or her status. Status Inconsistency is a situation in which a person occupies two or more statuses of different rank.

General Description

Status Inconsistency is an older theory, but it has never seemed to go away. This is a theory that has been around for years and expected to stay around for many more. It has almost become traditional because so many have just excepted it and lived with it for years. This theory mainly deals with social rank in society and how it is determined. It shows how even thought you may be highly recognized in what you do or who you are but may not get the power, property, or money that is deserved. Teachers are one of the main examples of this. Status Inconsistency goes on everyday and no matter where you look you can almost find a case of this anywhere.

Theory and its Development

Status Inconsistency theories predict that people whose status is inconsistent, or higher on one dimension than one another, will be more frustrated and dissatisfied than people with consistent statuses. Gerhard Lenski was a major component in developing this theory. He explains that if people are ranked higher in one dimension than another, then they are going to emphasize their high rank on that other person. They are not going to bring much attention to their lower rank. This gives off that people think they should be judged according to their highest rank. But others who are trying to grow and expand their rank they are going to emphasize on the other persons lower rank. With this type of situation it is common that conflict will arise. People who are denied the social rank that they think they deserve, are more likely to move towards political actions, such as, liberals and radicals.

Three Main Components in Status Inconsistency

• Property

Weber's thought was groups of people with similar "life chances" as determined by their economic position in society-their material possessions and their opportunities for income. This is what modern social scientists refer to as property. This is one of the main components of how they determine class, which is also a key in Status Inconsistency as well. Although ownership is not stressed when talking about property. So just by having some type of property is all that matters, not whether you are the actual owner or not.

• Power

The ability to get one's way despite the resistance of others. People may still be very powerful and not have any property. Wealth is more stressed while talking about power. But some have been known to say that power can only be bought.

• Prestige

This is known as social honor. This is used to get economic power. People are known to have prestige but little or no property. This are people who are highly looked upon and are known throughout but still may have little to show for it.

Models of Status inconsistency and Social mobility effects

• Lenski's Theory

The Status Inconsistency theory states that people whose status is inconsistent, or lower, than their believed status rank will become frustrated and dissatisfied more easily than individuals whose status rank is consistent. Those affected by Status Inconsistency, and unhappy with their current status rank, blame society’s rules for determining that status rank. As a result, they often turn their backs on their own social class interests and support the claims of the less privileged Gerhard Lenski supported this main theory of Status Inconsistency which predicted that people suffering from Status Inconsistency will favor political actions and parties directed against higher status groups. Lenski continues by stating that Status Inconsistency can be used to further explain the phenomenon of why status groups made up of wealthy minorities will tend to be liberal instead of the presumed conservative.

Status Inconsistency in Task Situations: A Test of Four Status Processing

• Balancing

Lenski says that people tend to focus on those characteristics on which they rank high and discount those on which they rank low. This is mainly explaining how people with high rank tend to go towards others who are ranked close to them.

• Majority Balancing

This leads people to form a comparable definitions of the situations around them, which this is presumably conductive to create an effective interaction with those of the same rank.

• Canceling

This is where they take the negative information away from the positive information. This is what they base their expectations off of the person in question.

• Positive and Negative

This is where they actually take the negative and positive information into consideration. They take this information and sort it into very distinct and equal subsets. Then they base their expectations off of this information.

Examples of Status inconsistency

Status inconsistency is often represented by many different everyday occupations, like Teachers for example, who have high prestige in their society. However, Teachers do not earn a very high income considering their value and extreme importance. Other examples would include Police Officers and Fire Fighters who put their lives on the line each day to help others. As greatly respected as these men and women may be in their communities, they do not receive a large amount of pay. Status inconsistency also includes those whose social rank and class are lower than their prestige or income. An example would be a drug dealer. Drug dealers are looked down upon in society. Their status is low due to people living nearby with clean lifestyles that want nothing to do with them because they themselves do not wish to lose respect or status. Besides having a low social rank, a drug dealer makes a large amount of money and therefore should have equally high prestige; this is where Status inconsistency comes into play. From these examples Status inconsistency can be represented by someone with a great deal of respect but is recieving a low rate of pay; or by someone with little or no respect but receiving a large income.

Sociology Book

• Status inconsistency Theories
  • Status and Class
• Marx, Weber, and Lenski
  • Arguments and Theories

Current research and debates in status inconsistency theory

Some of the recent journal publications on status inconsistency were critical of earlier findings in the research.

References

• Berger, B., Norman, R.Z., Blackwell, J.W., Smith, R.F. (1992). Status Inconsistency in Task Situations: A Test of Four Status Processing. American Sociological Review, pg....
• Hope, K. (1975). Models of Status Inconsistency and Social Mobility Effects. American Sociological Review, 40, pg.322-343.
• Stryker, S., Macke, A.S. (1978). Status Inconsistency and Role Conflict. Annual Review Sociology,

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