Ideologies

Abstract

This chapter covers uses of the concept of “ideology” in social psychological studies of social inequalities. I begin by exploring some ways that ideology has (and has not) been incorporated into research by sociological social psychologists and stratification scholars via an examination of several key sourcebooks published in these subfields over the past several decades. Subsequently, I provide some theoretical background on the relationship between ideology and social stratification (e.g., legitimation), as well as on relevant theoretical perspectives from sociological social psychology (e.g., social structure and personality) highlighting the importance of specifying relationships between social structure, culture, and the person. Building on this foundation, I turn to discussion of (1) the nature of ideologies as organized belief-systems, (2) implications of such for the intrapersonal organization of thought, and (3) selected antecedents of and consequences of individual-level patterns of ideological belief-adherence. I conclude with some suggestions for future research, including ways that sociological and psychological approaches complement one another and represent potentially fruitful sites of collaboration in advancing our understanding of the relationship between inequality, ideology, and the person.