The policy of reservation of seats in Higher Education and in Government employment is an example of

Correct option is A

In sociology, the policy of reservation (affirmative action) is a mechanism used by the state to facilitate the upward movement of specific marginalized groups, which is classified as Sponsored Mobility.
Information Booster
The concepts of Contest and Sponsored mobility were introduced by the sociologist Ralph Turner in 1960 to describe two different systems of social ascent:
· Sponsored Mobility (a): In this system, individuals do not "win" status through an open competition alone. Instead, they are selected by the existing elite or the state based on certain criteria and "sponsored" into higher positions. Reservation is a classic example because the state identifies specific groups (SC/ST/OBC) and provides them with a "reserved" or protected path to education and employment to ensure their representation in the social hierarchy.
· Contest Mobility (b): This is compared to a sporting race where the prize is open to all. Everyone competes on equal footing, and the "winners" achieve status through their own efforts and "merit" in an open market. This is the opposite of the reservation system.
Additional Knowledge
The other options refer to different dimensions of movement within a society that do not describe the legal framework of reservations:
· Cultural Mobility (c): This refers to an individual's ability to move between different cultural strata. It is closely linked to Pierre Bourdieu's concept of "Cultural Capital," where gaining knowledge of high art, language, or elite social cues allows one to move upward.
· Geographical Mobility (d): This is the simplest form of mobility, referring to the physical movement of people from one location to another (e.g., rural-to-urban migration) for better prospects. It has nothing to do with quotas or legal seats.
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