Life chances (''Lebenschancen'' in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

) is a theory in sociology which refers to the opportunities each individual has to improve their quality of life. The concept was introduced by German sociologist

Max Weber Maximilian Karl Emil Weber (; ; 21 April 186414 June 1920) was a German sociologist, historian, jurist and political economist, who is regarded as among the most important theorists of the development of modern Western society. His ideas p ...

in the 1920s. It is a

probabilistic Probability is the branch of mathematics concerning numerical descriptions of how likely an event is to occur, or how likely it is that a proposition is true. The probability of an event is a number between 0 and 1, where, roughly speaking, ...

concept, describing how likely it is, given certain factors, that an individual's life will turn out a certain way. According to this theory, life chances are positively

correlated In statistics, correlation or dependence is any statistical relationship, whether causal or not, between two random variables or bivariate data. Although in the broadest sense, "correlation" may indicate any type of association, in statistic ...

with one's

socioeconomic status Socioeconomic status (SES) is an economic and sociological combined total measure of a person's work experience and of an individual's or family's economic access to resources and social position in relation to others. When analyzing a family's ...

.Blackwell, 2005 Opportunities in this sense refer to the extent to which one has access to resources, both tangible ones such as food, clothing and shelter, and intangible ones such as education and health care. Life chances comprise the individual's ability to procure

goods In economics, goods are items that satisfy human wants and provide utility, for example, to a consumer making a purchase of a satisfying product. A common distinction is made between goods which are transferable, and services, which are not ...

, have a

career The career is an individual's metaphorical "journey" through learning, work and other aspects of life. There are a number of ways to define career and the term is used in a variety of ways. Definitions The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' defi ...

and obtain inner satisfaction; in other words, the ability to satisfy one's

needs A need is dissatisfaction at a point of time and in a given context. Needs are distinguished from wants. In the case of a need, a deficiency causes a clear adverse outcome: a dysfunction or death. In other words, a need is something required for ...

Theory

Weberian life chances can be seen as an expansion on some of

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

's ideas. Both Weber and Marx agreed that economic factors were important in determining one's future, but Weber's concepts of life chances are more complex; inspired by, but different from Marx's views on

social stratification Social stratification refers to a society's categorization of its people into groups based on socioeconomic factors like wealth, income, race, education, ethnicity, gender, occupation, social status, or derived power (social and politi ...

and

social class A social class is a grouping of people into a set of hierarchical social categories, the most common being the upper, middle and lower classes. Membership in a social class can for example be dependent on education, wealth, occupation, inc ...

. Where for Marx the

class status Class or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differently ...

was the most important factor, and he correlated life chances with material wealth, Weber introduced such additional factors as

social mobility Social mobility is the movement of individuals, families, households or other categories of people within or between social strata in a society. It is a change in social status relative to one's current social location within a given society ...

and

social equality Social equality is a state of affairs in which all individuals within a specific society have equal rights, liberties, and status, possibly including civil rights, freedom of expression, autonomy, and equal access to certain public goods and ...

. Other factors include those related to one's socioeconomic status, such as

gender Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most culture ...

, race, and

ethnicity An ethnic group or an ethnicity is a grouping of people who identify with each other on the basis of shared attributes that distinguish them from other groups. Those attributes can include common sets of traditions, ancestry, language, history, ...

.Kevin Fitzpatrick, Mark La Gory, ''Unhealthy places: the ecology of risk in the urban landscape'', Psychology Press, 2000,
Google Print, p.90-91
/ref> While some of those factors, like age, race or

, are random, Weber stressed the link between life chances and the non-random elements of the three-component theory of stratification – how

social status Social status is the level of social value a person is considered to possess. More specifically, it refers to the relative level of respect, honour, assumed competence, and deference accorded to people, groups, and organizations in a society. St ...

and

political affiliation A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular country's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or pol ...

affect each individual's life. In other words, individuals in certain

groups A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Groups of people * Cultural group, a group whose members share the same cultural identity * Ethnic group, a group whose members share the same ethnic ide ...

have in common a specific

causal Causality (also referred to as causation, or cause and effect) is influence by which one event, process, state, or object (''a'' ''cause'') contributes to the production of another event, process, state, or object (an ''effect'') where the ca ...

component of their life chances: they are in similar situation, which tends to imply a similar outcome to their actions. Weber notes the importance of

economic An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with th ...

factors:Multiple Sources of Power – Class, Status, and Party
/ref> how the power of those with

property Property is a system of rights that gives people legal control of valuable things, and also refers to the valuable things themselves. Depending on the nature of the property, an owner of property may have the right to consume, alter, share, r ...

, compared to those without property, gives the former great advantages over the latter. Weber also noted that life chances are to certain extent subjective: one's assessment of one's life chances will affect one's actions; therefore, if one believes that one is or can become a respected and valued member of

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Soc ...

, that outcome and associated positive results are more likely to become a reality for such a person than they are for one without this conviction.Weber and Class
Persons without such a belief, especially those who consciously espouse or have unconsciously internalized a belief to the contrary, are vulnerable to

learned helplessness Learned helplessness is the behavior exhibited by a subject after enduring repeated aversive stimuli beyond their control. It was initially thought to be caused by the subject's acceptance of their powerlessness, by way of their discontinuing att ...

and its long-term effects. In terms of

agency and structure In the social sciences there is a standing debate over the primacy of structure or agency in shaping human behaviour. ''Structure'' is the recurrent patterned arrangements which influence or limit the choices and opportunities available. '' Agency ...

, life chances represent the structure, the factors that one has no control over; whereas one's

life conduct Life is a quality that distinguishes matter that has biological processes, such as signaling and self-sustaining processes, from that which does not, and is defined by the capacity for growth, reaction to stimuli, metabolism, energy transf ...

- values and beliefs, attitude to risk taking, social skills, or more generally,

free will Free will is the capacity of agents to choose between different possible courses of action unimpeded. Free will is closely linked to the concepts of moral responsibility, praise, culpability, sin, and other judgements which apply only to ac ...

ed choices about one's

behavior Behavior (American English) or behaviour (British English) is the range of actions and mannerisms made by individuals, organisms, systems or artificial entities in some environment. These systems can include other systems or organisms as we ...

- represent the factors one has control over. According to Weber theories, together with life conduct, life chances are responsible for one's lifestyle. In social engineering, life chances may have to be balanced against other goals, such as eliminating

poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse

, ensuring

personal freedom Civil liberties are guarantees and freedoms that governments commit not to abridge, either by constitution, legislation, or judicial interpretation, without due process. Though the scope of the term differs between countries, civil liberties m ...

or ensuring equality at birth.

Ascriptive qualities

The life chances approach suggests that status is not entirely

achieved Achieved (13 May 1979 – 1993) was an Irish Thoroughbred racehorse and sire. He won four of his nine races in a track career which lasted from July 1981 to September 1982. As a two-year-old he was undefeated in three starts including the ...

, but is, to some extent, ascribed. The idea of life chances is that socioeconomic status and social locations positively correlate to the opportunities and quality of those opportunities that one has. It presents the probability of a person’s life to follow a particular path, generally one similar to their parents’. Overall, in societies emphasizing

ascription Ascription, in sociology, is a way to acquire status, along with achievement or chance."The Sociology of Gender: Theoretical Perspectives and Feminist Frameworks" in Lindsey, L. ''Gender Roles: a Sociological Perspective'', Pearson Prentice-Hall, 20 ...

, opportunity is relatively low and status (in the sense of prestige in the community) is often inherited. This means that people are, effectively, given their status as a result of the group into which they are born, rather than earning it entirely on merit.Yeates, Nicola. "Sociology Factsheet – Life Chances."www.curriculum-press.co.uk. Bank House, n.d. Web. 14 November 2013. Ascriptive qualities such as race/

, and

class Class or The Class may refer to: Common uses not otherwise categorized * Class (biology), a taxonomic rank * Class (knowledge representation), a collection of individuals or objects * Class (philosophy), an analytical concept used differently ...

of origin can all affect one's life chances. In all societies parents pass on whatever advantages and disadvantages they have to their children.Beeghley, Leonard. "Sociology and Stratification." The Structure of Social Stratification in the United States. 5th ed. N.p.: Pearson Education, 2008. N. pag. Print. A persons’ class of origin determines one's neighborhood they live in, which in turn will affect educational attainment, the people they socialize with, and ultimately their class identification. A very important factor affecting life chances is housing and the general inequalities in the real-estate market. Poorer housing will affect health, available facilities, the likelihood of being a victim of crime, and many other aspects of life. Leisure facilities are often located in middle class areas or near non manual work places. Gym membership is expensive and subsidies are rarely available for lower grade staff. Therefore, in general, the middle and upper classes have far greater life chances available than the less advantaged groups. If born into a wealthy family a person will have access to far more desirable resources that can assist them in further enhancing their life chances to a far greater extent than someone who is born into a

working class The working class (or labouring class) comprises those engaged in manual-labour occupations or industrial work, who are remunerated via waged or salaried contracts. Working-class occupations (see also " Designation of workers by collar colou ...

poor family. One of these resources includes a family's social ties and the ability for a person with well connected parents to benefit greatly in the status attainment process. Status attainment refers to how each individual enters an occupation. This encompasses how both ascribed and achieved factors combine, because each individual enters an occupation based on the way their parents’ status produces advantages and disadvantages, their own efforts and abilities, and a degree of luck. An additional dimension is the effect of family dynamics on life chances, such as the presence of biological parents, the quality of family relationships, and sibling configuration. For example, it has been demonstrated that children of divorced parents exhibit lower levels of psychological well-being, more problems in their own relationship, a greater risk of experiencing divorce, and also tend to be less educated.

Overcoming bad life chances

discussed the effects of

on life chances. He argued that life chances are opportunities and possibilities that make up one's lifestyle. Life chances are affected by a number of factors. Some of which include:

income Income is the consumption and saving opportunity gained by an entity within a specified timeframe, which is generally expressed in monetary terms. Income is difficult to define conceptually and the definition may be different across fields. Fo ...

, and

occupational prestige Sociologists use the concept of occupational prestige (also known as job prestige) to measure the relative social-class positions people may achieve by practicing a given occupation. Occupational prestige results from the consensual rating of a ...

. These factors all affect the availability of resources to an individual. For example, when one has low income, they have low life chances. Their education may not be as great and they may not have a high enough income to attain an advanced level of education. According to Wout Ultee, education is a major aspect of overcoming life chances.Ultee, Wout. "Life Chances and Resources." Blackwell Encyclopedia of Sociology. Ritzer, George (ed). Blackwell Publishing, 2007. Blackwell Reference Online. 15 November 201

/ref> Without an education, it is harder to obtain a job that provides a substantial income to provide for a family of four. “Higher education is the way to stay ahead." The higher the education, the higher income and

one will have, which results in more resources for an individual and his family. Early Health intervention, intervention is also necessary in improving life chances. Save the Children is a non-governmental group that works in the best interest of children. They promote children's rights and the aid children in

underdeveloped Underdevelopment, in the context of international development, reflects a broad condition or phenomena defined and critiqued by theorists in fields such as economics, development studies, and postcolonial studies. Used primarily to distinguish s ...

countries that need relief. The UK has started an early intervention program that aids in improving life chances early on a child's life. They believe that "No child should endure poverty and no child's life chances should be shaped by the accident of birth.""Early Intervention Review." Save the Children. Save the Children, Nov. 2010. Web. 17 Nov. 2013. This program was made to ensure that

inequalities Inequality may refer to: Economics * Attention inequality, unequal distribution of attention across users, groups of people, issues in etc. in attention economy * Economic inequality, difference in economic well-being between population groups * ...

in children's learning are tackled before problems can occur and separate them from peers. In order to do so, this program gives parents in lower classes the expertise they need to effectively help their children's learning in a home environment so that they are well prepared when they enter school. An example would be improving the parents' reading level so that they are able to teach their children how to read and write before kindergarten. This allows children in lower classes to be near the same level as children who are in higher classes with higher educated parents. Early intervention will allow for children to start out their education on the right foot, with skills they will need to succeed and achieve a high level of education, thus improving life chances.

Class identification and lifestyle effects

Weber noted that life chances are partially determined by subjective factors, such as by how one perceives their life chances. How one perceives their life chances is in large part determined by what one perceives their

to be since life chances and social class go hand in hand and both

reinforce In behavioral psychology, reinforcement is a consequence applied that will strengthen an organism's future behavior whenever that behavior is preceded by a specific antecedent stimulus. This strengthening effect may be measured as a higher freq ...

each other. According to Weber this is because life chances are largely determined by economic factors such as social class. The phenomenon of how you perceive things actually affecting the

tangible Tangibility is the property of being able to be perceived by touch. A commonplace understanding of "tangibility" renders it as an attribute allowing something to be perceptible to the senses. In criminal law, one of the elements of an offense ...

outcomes of life chances is explained by

Robert K. Merton Robert King Merton (born Meyer Robert Schkolnick; July 4, 1910 – February 23, 2003) was an American sociologist who is considered a founding father of modern sociology, and a major contributor to the subfield of criminology. He served as th ...

's theory of "self fulfilling prophecy" which he discusses in his book Social Theory and Social Structure. Essentially what it means is that individuals can tell themselves something like, "I'm lower class, my family has always been lower class, there's no chance I'm ever going to be well off" and although this statement had the potential to not end up being true, it became true simply because the individual believed it would be so and through his attitude and lack of self-esteem, made it his reality. If you identify as low social class and believe you are most likely never going to be anything else, this will affect your life conduct in a myriad of ways. which in turn will affect your life chances. For one, the company you keep can lead to you networking with people that will not help you get out of a low socioeconomic environment. It can also affect your life conduct by making you think you are not qualified enough for anything but

jobs. It can also affect your life conduct by making you think that pursuing higher education is not for someone of your social standing, further ensuring that you never get above working class work. The relationship between social class, life conduct, and life chances is a strong one that often decides what a person's fate in life will be like.

Theory

Ascriptive qualities

Overcoming bad life chances

Class identification and lifestyle effects

See also

References

Further reading