Status

Abstract

Questions about the causes and consequences of inequality are fundamental to the discipline of sociology. Most sociological analyses contribute in some way to our understanding of what inequality is, how it is produced and reproduced, and how it affects individuals, groups, and societies. Sociologists study inequality in many and diverse contexts—between nations, between groups within nations, between individuals within groups, and so on. We draw from a wide variety of theoretical and methodological perspectives, each of which offers unique insights into the complex processes through which social hierarchies are created and maintained.