concepts of self-fulfilling prophecy and stereotyping and is a theory that states a person becomes what they are labeled. For example, when members in society can begin to treat individuals on the basis of their ascribed statuses, they "label" them, and the individuals begin to accept the labels themselves. In other words, an individual engages in a behavior that is deemed by others as inappropriate, others label that person to be deviant, and eventually the individual internalizes and accepts this label. Juxtaposition of their own value systems against the larger society's view often leaves individuals of a lower status with low self-esteem without regard to the individual’s actual capabilities. A negative self-image may stifle an individual's efforts to acquire a certain achieved status; this illustrates how a low ascribed status can result in a low achieved status. Minorities and status inconsistency Ascribed statuses are determined by the dominant groups in society and as a result, minorities are often assigned lower statuses. Minority groups are forced to attempt to reconcile the conflicts that arise from the social expectations that are linked with their assigned statuses in society and their perceived view of themselves. In the face of the knowledge that individuals occupy more than one ascribed role at a time, it becomes evident that there may be some statuses in society’s multi-dimensional structure that do not comfortably coexist. Consistency is defined as the degree to which an individual’s social rank positions that exist within important status hierarchies are at a comparable level. The greater mobility of class systems produces less status consistency. In Canada, for example, most university professors with advanced academic degrees enjoy high social prestige but earn only average salaries. Low status consistency means that classes are much harder to define than castes. At the root of the problem of status inconsistency is the inability of individuals to reconcile the conflicting expectations. A woman from a racial minority group may not experience status inconsistency because as a woman and as a member of a minority group, she may be considered to be of a lower ascribed status. But, if this woman rejects the assigned roles that are associated with her status, she experiences status inconsistency. To offer another example, a woman born into a wealthy family occupies both a high and a low ascribed status within the social structure: her inherited resources and social networks are advantageous but her