P1: Explain the concept of an unequal society
P2: Describe social inequalities that exist in society
M1: Discuss the impact of social inequalities on groups in society
D1: Evaluate the impact of social inequalities in society
In this assignment, I will define and explain six concepts which make society unequal and describe three
social inequalities that exist today. I will then discuss and evaluate the impact of these social inequalities.
Unequal society: An unequal society is one with social inequalities. These are characteristics of almost all
societies and social groups because some people or groups of people are seen to have higher social class and
more prestige than others. Disadvantaged people and groups become the subject of prejudice, stereotyping,
labelling, discrimination, marginalisation and social exclusion.
(P1) The first concept of an unequal society is prejudice. This is a term which can be difficult to explain, it is a
settled way of thinking about a specific social or ethnic group. People are usually not interested in trying to
change this way of thinking, or they are unable to even if they wanted to. For example, a prejudice view
would be that people who are on benefits are lazy and don’t want to work. This may not always be the case,
people on benefits may have unsuccessfully applied for many jobs. It would be hard to change the mind of a
person who is prejudice, even if they are presented with evidence that what they believe is not true.
Prejudicial attitudes are almost always negative and based on an oversimplified view of social groups. This
makes society unequal because the individuals who are victims of prejudice will be looked at differently by
other members of society which will make them feel like outcasts. This may lower their self-esteem so they
would isolate themselves even more and not take part in activities that other people are taking part in,
which will mean they have less opportunities than others. Using the previous example, a person on benefits
may stop looking for a job because they may feel like employers see them as lazy and won’t give them a job.
(P1) Another concept of an unequal society is stereotyping. This is closely linked to prejudice, it is when
society defines a group of people as if they share the same attributes and ignore their individual differences.
An example of a stereotype would be that men are smarter than women. This would have a negative effect
on women because their self-worth would be low if they start believing that they are not as smart as men.
As a result of this, they would not compete with men and would become more submissive to them.
Especially in a job situation, a woman might see that a man is earning more even though he does the same
job as her and wouldn’t do anything about it because she believes that he is smarter than her. This can result
in mental health issues such as depression for women, due to earning a low wage. Even women who do not
believe this and have high self-esteem would still get stereotyped by other members of society. Stereotypes
are just a mindset, people usually do not act on them. This makes society unequal because they are beliefs
which are not always true, which means that certain groups in society will be seen differently by other
members of society based on something that doesn’t apply to them.
(P2) The first social inequality that exists in society is social class. Social class is hard to define but it has been
explained as a division of society through social hierarchies, which are based on economic and social factors.
The classes are; working class, middle class and upper class. The definition has changed over time, there
have been disagreements on how many social classes there are which makes it difficult to compare the term.
For example, there are at least 8 classes according to NS-SEC. Such as, class one which includes lawyers and
doctors and class eight which includes people who never worked or have been unemployed for a long period
Unit 19 1
P2: Describe social inequalities that exist in society
M1: Discuss the impact of social inequalities on groups in society
D1: Evaluate the impact of social inequalities in society
In this assignment, I will define and explain six concepts which make society unequal and describe three
social inequalities that exist today. I will then discuss and evaluate the impact of these social inequalities.
Unequal society: An unequal society is one with social inequalities. These are characteristics of almost all
societies and social groups because some people or groups of people are seen to have higher social class and
more prestige than others. Disadvantaged people and groups become the subject of prejudice, stereotyping,
labelling, discrimination, marginalisation and social exclusion.
(P1) The first concept of an unequal society is prejudice. This is a term which can be difficult to explain, it is a
settled way of thinking about a specific social or ethnic group. People are usually not interested in trying to
change this way of thinking, or they are unable to even if they wanted to. For example, a prejudice view
would be that people who are on benefits are lazy and don’t want to work. This may not always be the case,
people on benefits may have unsuccessfully applied for many jobs. It would be hard to change the mind of a
person who is prejudice, even if they are presented with evidence that what they believe is not true.
Prejudicial attitudes are almost always negative and based on an oversimplified view of social groups. This
makes society unequal because the individuals who are victims of prejudice will be looked at differently by
other members of society which will make them feel like outcasts. This may lower their self-esteem so they
would isolate themselves even more and not take part in activities that other people are taking part in,
which will mean they have less opportunities than others. Using the previous example, a person on benefits
may stop looking for a job because they may feel like employers see them as lazy and won’t give them a job.
(P1) Another concept of an unequal society is stereotyping. This is closely linked to prejudice, it is when
society defines a group of people as if they share the same attributes and ignore their individual differences.
An example of a stereotype would be that men are smarter than women. This would have a negative effect
on women because their self-worth would be low if they start believing that they are not as smart as men.
As a result of this, they would not compete with men and would become more submissive to them.
Especially in a job situation, a woman might see that a man is earning more even though he does the same
job as her and wouldn’t do anything about it because she believes that he is smarter than her. This can result
in mental health issues such as depression for women, due to earning a low wage. Even women who do not
believe this and have high self-esteem would still get stereotyped by other members of society. Stereotypes
are just a mindset, people usually do not act on them. This makes society unequal because they are beliefs
which are not always true, which means that certain groups in society will be seen differently by other
members of society based on something that doesn’t apply to them.
(P2) The first social inequality that exists in society is social class. Social class is hard to define but it has been
explained as a division of society through social hierarchies, which are based on economic and social factors.
The classes are; working class, middle class and upper class. The definition has changed over time, there
have been disagreements on how many social classes there are which makes it difficult to compare the term.
For example, there are at least 8 classes according to NS-SEC. Such as, class one which includes lawyers and
doctors and class eight which includes people who never worked or have been unemployed for a long period
Unit 19 1
