Social Class

QUESTION : social class plays an important role in marketing. Social class is a status hierarchy in which individuals and groups are classified on the basis of esteem and prestige acquired through economic success and accumulation of wealth. The social class in today's society is divided into lower class, working class, lower middle class, middle class, upper middle class and capitalist class. The classes are categorized based on income and wealth. The social class in Malaysia is somewhat similar to the one in the United States. There are still people in the lower class category.
In Malaysia and everywhere in the world, social class identification has been translated to the product and services that we consume. Have you ever compare : Bungalows versus setinggan . Ferrari versus kancil, and a lot more examples that we can see surround us. Believe it or not the social class strastification had created a "gap" among rich and poor.
Based on the above facts, compile a relevant material from various sources (preferable academic journal,books,business magazines and newspapers) and prepare a report on "social class stratification in Malaysia". Your paper should include (but not necessarily in the following order:
- Introduction of social class
-Bases for social class stratification
-Malaysian scenario (A study on social class in Malaysia)
-The effects of social stratification on consumer selection of products/service

http://www.slideshare.net/carencrasta/social-class-6915801 http://home.earthlink.net/~clevy/Social_Stratification__Chapter_8_.pdf Chapter 11 Social Class and Consumer Behavior Consumer Behavior, Eighth Edition SCHIFFMAN & KANUK http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Class_stratification Social Class in consumer behavior is the division of members of a society into a hierarchy of distinct status classes, so that members of each class have either higher or lower status than members of other classes. Social Class and Social Status is frequently thought of as the relative rankings of members of each social class such as wealth, power and prestige. Social Comparison Theory states that individuals compare their own possessions against those of others to determine their relative social standing. Status Consumption is the process by which consumers actively increase their social standing through conspicuous consumption or possessions.
Social stratification refers to the division of a society into layers (or strata) whose occupants have unequal access to social opportunities and rewards. People in the top strata enjoy power, prosperity, and prestige that are not available to other members of society; people in the bottom strata endure penalties that other members of society escape. In a stratified society, inequality is part of the social structure and passes from one generation to the next. An economic and cultural rift usually exists between different classes. People are usually born into their class, though social mobility allows for some individuals to attain a higher-level class or fall to a lower-level one. Stratification is usually based on three major premises:
a. Power : the ability to impose one’s will on others
b. Prestige : the respect given by others
c. Property : forms of wealth if we know whether a person or group possesses or does not possess certain traits, then we will be able to predict with reasonable accuracy how this person or group is likely to fare in the social hierarchy