What term describes age as a form of stratification?

• A. Status
• B. Age
• C. Power
• D. Minority group

Answer: (B)

Age serves as a social category used to divide people into layers with different rights, responsibilities, and access to resources. This shaping of inequality over the life course is known as age stratification. The term that names this basis for inequality is age, since it’s age that determines one’s social position and opportunities in this context. For example, age determines schooling, legal rights, and retirement expectations. Other terms like status, power, or minority group describe different concepts and don’t name the axis by which this particular form of stratification operates.