Exam CSP

Chapter 1 and 2

Structural Functionalism

Focuses on special systems and the way in which their interdependent parts maintain order

Conflict Theory

Focuses on contradictory interest groups, inequalities in society and the resulting conflict and changes

Symbolic Interaction

focuses on the interaction between individuals, the importance of knowing individuals’ perspectives to understand their behavior and the ways in which social life is constructed through interactions

personal problem

a problem that can be explained in terms of the qualities of the individual

social problem

a condition or pattern of behavior that contradicts some other condition or pattern of behavior; is defined as incompatible with the desired quality of life; is caused, facilitated, or prolonged by social factors; involves intergroup conflict; and requires social action for resolution

Instituation

a collective pattern of dealing with a basic social function; typical institutions identified by sociologists are the government, economy, education, family and marriage, religion, and the media

norms

shared expectations about behavior

proverty

a state in which income is insufficient to provide the basic necessities of food, shelter, clothing, and medical care

role

the behavior associated with a particular position in the social structure

role conflict

a person’s perception that two or more of his or her roles are contradictory, or that the same role has contradictory expectations, or that the expectations of the role are unacceptable or excessive

stratification system

arrangement of society into groups that are unequal with regard to such valued resources as wealth, power, and prestige

poverty level

the minimum income level that Americans should have to live on, based on the Department of Agriculture’s calculations of the cost of a basic diet called “the economy food plan”

participant observation

a method of research in which one directly participates and observes the social reality being studied

median

the score below which are half of the scores and above which are the other half

mean

average

interest group

a group that attempts to influence public opinion and political decisions in accord with the particular interests of its members

ideology

a set of ideas that explain or justify some aspect of social reality

fallacy of retrospective determinism

the argument that things could not have worked out any other way than they did

fallacy of personal attack

argument by attacking the opponent personally rather than dealing with the issue

fallacy of appeal prejudice

argument by appealing to popular prejudices or passions

fallacy of authority

argument by an illegitimate appeal to authority

fallacy of circular reasoning

use of conclusions to support the assumptions that were necessary to make the conclusions

fallacy of composition

the assertion that what is true of the part is necessarily true of the whole

fallacy of dramatic instance

overgeneralizing

fallacy of misplaced concreteness

making something abstract into something concrete

fallacy of non sequitur

something that does not follow logically from what has preceded it

binge drinking

having five or more drinks on the same occasion

addiction

repeated use of a drug or alcohol to the point of periodic or chronic intoxication that is detrimental to the user or society

abuse

improper use of drugs or alcohol to the degree that the consequences are defined as detrimental to the user or society

survey

a method of research in which a sample of people are interviewed or given questionnaires in order to get data on some phenomenon

socioeconomic status

position in the social system based on economic resources, power, education, prestige, and lifestyle

variable

any trait or characteristic that varies in value or magnitude

independent variable

the variable in an experiment that is manipulated to see how it affects changes in the dependent variable

dependent variable

the variable in an experiment that is influenced by an independent variable

frequency distribution

the organization of data to show the number of times each item occurs

test of significance

a statistical method for determining the probability that research findings occurred by chanc

detoxication

supervised withdrawal from dependence on a drug

placebo

any substance having no physiological effect that is given to a subject who believes it to be a drug that does have an effect