STATUS
Meaning of Status
Status, originally a Latin word, means state of affairs, condition of a person as defined by law and in social sciences; it denotes standing in society. In sociology, the notion of status or social status designates location and position of collectivises communities, groups, or strata in the social hierarchy of honour and prestige. Positions are distinguished from one another in terms of differentiated duties and rights, immunities and privileges, and usually are associated with a lifestyle or a consumption pattern. These distinguishing traits are attributed to a hierarchical value that generally represents society's social worth scale. The anthropologist Ralph Linton developed ascribed status and achieved status. Status is ascribed on the basis of characteristics that seem given, such as a person’s age, ethnicity, or gender. Status is achieved on the basis of personal effort, which is represented in educational titles and income earnings.
Definition of Status
1. Ralph Linton says, “Status is the place in a particular system, which a certain individual occupies at a particular time.”
2. For Morris Ginsberg, “A status is a position in a social group or grouping, a relation to other positions held by other individuals in the group or grouping.”
3. According to Kingsley Davis, “status is a position in the general institutional system, recognized and supported by the entire society.”
4. For Horton and Hunt, “status is the rank or position of an individual in a group.”
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