stratifikasyon

Stratifikasyon refers to the arrangement of items, groups, or materials into distinct layers or grades. In social contexts, it also denotes the hierarchical organization of society into ordered levels that differ in access to resources, prestige, and power.

Social stratification describes how a society ranks people into strata based on factors such as income, education, occupation, race or ethnicity, and political influence. These layers are persistent over time, with mechanisms such as social institutions, cultural norms, and economic systems that can reproduce inequality. Mobility between strata varies by society and over time, and scholars use indicators like income distribution, wealth, occupational status, and education to measure it. The main theoretical approaches understand stratification as either a system that serves order and efficiency (functionalism) or as a source of conflict and injustice (conflict theory).

Geological stratification refers to the layering of rocks and sediments into strata with distinct composition and properties. Strata form through deposition over time, and their order records historical environments. Geologists use the law of superposition and stratigraphic principles to determine relative ages, correlate layers across regions, and interpret past climates and events. Stratigraphy informs fields such as petroleum geology, paleontology, and archaeology.

Stratifikasyon is also used in statistics and research design as stratified sampling, in which a population is divided into homogeneous subgroups (strata) prior to sampling. Samples drawn from each stratum improve precision and ensure representation of key subgroups, especially when variation within strata differs from variation between strata.