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From a sociological perspective, which of the following statements is the best reason to view women as a minority in the United States?

In our society, there is an economic disadvantage for being a woman. Women see themselves as a minority. Men outnumber women in U.S. society. All of the above are correct.

User Rikard
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Final answer:

Women are viewed as a sociological minority in the U.S. due to economic disadvantages, such as wage disparities and a disproportionate amount of unpaid work, in addition to being historically subordinate in terms of power and privilege in society.

Step-by-step explanation:

From a sociological perspective, the statement that provides the best reason to view women as a minority in the United States is that in our society, there is an economic disadvantage for being a woman. Sociologist Louis Wirth defined a minority group as any group singled out for differential and unequal treatment who therefore see themselves as objects of collective discrimination. Women in the U.S. experience gender stratification, often reflected in economic realms, such as wage disparities and the disproportionate amount of unpaid domestic work they perform.

Furthermore, the concept of women being a minority group is supported by the conflict theory which posits that societal conflicts arise when dominant groups, in this case men, exploit or oppress subordinate groups, such as women. Despite women being numerically majority in the population, they experience subordinate group status when it comes to power and privileges in society. The feminization of poverty and the historical lack of representation in dominant roles provide evidence for the economic disadvantages faced by women, making them a minority in a sociological sense.

User Abhimanyu Daspan
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