Final answer:
Social mobility is the capacity for individuals to move within a social stratification system, which is typically open and allows for intergenerational and intragenerational mobility based on personal effort and achievement.
Step-by-step explanation:
Social mobility refers to the ability of individuals to change positions within a social stratification system. A society that permits such movement, typically not based on heredity but on factors such as personal effort, education, and economic fluctuations, is considered to have an open system of stratification. In this system, individuals may experience upward mobility or downward mobility, often influenced by their personal choices, opportunities, or setbacks.
Two significant forms of mobility within this system are intergenerational mobility and intragenerational mobility. Intergenerational mobility is the difference in social class between different generations of a family, whereas intragenerational mobility refers to changes in a person's social mobility over their lifetime. A society with high levels of social mobility is often described as a meritocracy, where merit and individual achievements can determine social standing, unlike in societies with rigid systems like primogeniture.
In a class system, the stratification is based on both social factors and individual achievement. Economic status plays a significant role—affecting one's social class—via one's wealth, income, and assets. Structural and societal changes can also precipitate group movements up or down the social hierarchy, known as structural mobility.