What Does "life Chances" Mean?
Quick Answer
German sociologist Max Weber coined the term "life chances" to describe the opportunities each individual has to improve her quality of life. According to this theory, the available resources in a person's life dictate whether her life remains the same or improves both socially and economically. Max Weber lists property ownership, education, health care, food, clothing and shelter, as the main factors that define an individual's life chances.
Continue ReadingFull Answer
The life chances theory is a probabilistic concept that is used to predict how an individual's life will turn out. For example, if an individual is born to a lower-class family that has little access to the main life chance factors, the probability of her growing up and remaining part of the lower class is high. However, if that individual gains access to higher education and much-needed health care, the probability of her achieving upward social mobility escalates.
By the same token, the life chances theory assumes that an individual who is born into a wealthy family has all the resources she needs to remain a member of the upper class. However, if those resources are lost, she falls into a lower social class and must have access to those vital resources before she regains her upper class status.
Learn more about Social SciencesRelated Questions
-
Q:
What Are Some of the Traits of the Ideal Model of Bureacracy Noted by Max Weber?
A: The German sociologist Max Weber (1864-1920) believed the ideal type of bureaucratic authority structure would be bound by formalized rules, allow only tho... Full Answer >Filed Under: -
Q:
Why Is Illiteracy a Problem?
A: Illiteracy is a problem because it negatively affects a person's education level, job, quality of life and health. First Book, an organization dedicated to... Full Answer >Filed Under: -
Q:
How Can You Improve the Quality of Your Life?
A: According to PsychCentral, there are several ways to improve your quality of life and your sense of well-being. These include getting to bed earlier, parti... Full Answer >Filed Under: -
Q:
What Is Meant by Weber's Iron Cage of Rationality?
A: Max Weber used the term "iron cage of rationality" to describe what he viewed as a trend in society to move towards a form of bureaucratic rationality that... Full Answer >Filed Under:
