Which theory emphasizes capital, power, and status as driving forces in society and differences in material resources among groups?

• A. Cultural Relativism
• B. Anomie
• C. Conflict Theory
• D. Social Reproduction

Answer: (C)

Conflict theory holds that society is organized around competition for scarce resources, with capital, power, and status shaping social hierarchies. The differences in material resources among groups are central to how these hierarchies are formed and maintained, and institutions tend to reproduce inequality to protect those in power. Social change arises through conflicts between groups with opposing interests as those at the top seek to preserve their advantages and less powerful groups push for redistribution.

Cultural Relativism looks at beliefs within their own culture rather than at power-driven resource competition; Anomie describes a breakdown of norms during rapid change; Social Reproduction explains how inequality is passed down across generations but doesn’t center on the ongoing resource-based struggle that conflict theory emphasizes.