sociology midterm 1

ch 1-4, 8, 12 + context pieces and lectures 8/27-9/19

social facts

aspects of social life that shape our actions as individuals (emily d - can be studied scientifically)

organic solidarity

social cohesion that results from various parts of society interacting as a whole (emily d)

social constraint

conditioning influence on our behavior of groups/societies we are a part of (emily d - part of social facts theory)

division of labor

The specialization of work tasks by means of which different occupations are combined within a production system

anomie

situation in which social norms lose their hold over individual behavior (emily d)

materialist conception of history

Karl Marx - material, or economic, factors have a prime role in determining historical change

capitalism

An economic system based on the private ownership of wealth, which is invested and reinvested in order to produce profit.

bureaucracy

A type of organization marked by a clear hierarchy of authority and the existence of written rules of procedure and staffed by full-time, salaried officials.

rationalization

Max Weber - precise calculation and organization, involving abstract rules and procedures, increasingly come to dominate the social world.

symbolic interactionism

George Mead - role of symbols and language as core elements of all human interaction.

symbol

One item used to stand for or represent another

functionalism

social events can best be explained in terms of the functions they perform

manifest functions

The functions of a type of social activity that are known to and intended by the individuals involved in the activity.

latent functions

Functional consequences that are not intended or recognized by the members of a social system in which they occur.

conflict theory

the argument that deviance is deliberately chosen and often political in nature.

Marxism

A body of thought deriving its main elements from the ideas of Karl Marx.

power

The ability of individuals or the members of a group to achieve aims or further the interests they hold

ideologies

Shared ideas or beliefs that serve to justify the interests of dominant groups

feminist theory

A sociological perspective that emphasizes the centrality of gender in analyzing the social world and particularly the uniqueness of the experience of women

feminism

Advocacy of the rights of women to be equal with men in all spheres of life. Feminism dates from the late eighteenth century in Europe, and feminist movements exist in most countries today.

rational choice approach

More broadly, the theory that an individual’s behavior is purposive

postmodernism

society is no longer governed by history or progress - pluralistic and diverse, with no “grand narrative” guiding its development.

microsociology

The study of human behavior in the context of face-to-face interaction.

macrosociology

The study of large-scale groups, organizations, or social systems.

globalization

The development of social and economic relationships stretching worldwide

sociological imagination

the application of imaginative thought to the asking and answering of sociological questions

social structure

the underlying regularities or patterns in how people behave in their relationships with one another.

social construction

an idea or practice that a group of people agree exists - maintained over time by people taking its existence for granted.

socialization

The social processes through which children develop an awareness of social norms and values and achieve a distinct sense of self.

quantitative methods

Approaches to sociological research that draw on objective and statistical data and often focus on documenting trends, comparing subgroups, or exploring correlations.

qualitative methods

Approaches to sociological research that often rely on personal and/or collective interviews, accounts, or observations of a person or situation.

research methods

The diverse methods of investigation used to gather empirical (factual) material

ethnography

The firsthand study of people using observation, in-depth interviewing, or both. Also called fieldwork.

participant observation

A method of research widely used in sociology and anthropology in which the researcher takes part in the activities of the group or community being studied.

survey

A method of sociological research in which questionnaires are administered to the population being studied

population

The people who are the focus of social research - who you wanna talk about

pilot study

A trial run in survey research.

sample

A small proportion of a larger population - who you actually study

representative sample

A sample from a larger population that is statistically typical of that population.

sampling

Studying a proportion of individuals or cases from a larger population as representative of that population as a whole.

random sampling

A sampling method in which a sample is chosen so that every member of the population has the same probability of being included.

experiment

A research method by which variables can be analyzed in a controlled and systematic way, either in an artificial situation constructed by the researcher or in a naturally occurring setting.

measures of central tendency

Ways of calculating averages.

correlation coefficients

Measures of the degree of correlation between variables.

mean

A statistical measure of central tendency, or average, based on dividing a total by the number of individual cases.

mode

The number that appears most often in a given set of data. This can sometimes be a helpful way of portraying central tendency.

median

The number that falls halfway in a range of numbers; a way of calculating central tendency that is sometimes more useful than calculating a mean.

standard deviation

A way of calculating the spread of a group of numbers.

degree of dispersal

The range or distribution of a set of figures.

comparative research

Research that compares one set of findings on one society with the same type of findings on other societies.

hypotheses

Ideas or educated guesses about a given state of affairs, put forward as bases for empirical testing.

community-based participatory research (CBPR)

A collaborative approach to research that equitably involves community members, researchers, and others in all aspects of the research process.

empirical investigation

Factual inquiries carried out in any area of sociological study.

culture

The values, norms, and material goods characteristic of a given group

society

A group of people who live in a particular territory, are subject to a common system of political authority, and are aware of having a distinct identity from other groups

cultural universals

Values or modes of behavior shared by all human cultures

marriage

A socially approved sexual relationship between two individuals — Marriage normally forms the basis of a family of procreation—that is, it is expected that the married couple will produce and bring up children.

nonmaterial culture

Cultural ideas that are not themselves physical objects.

material culture

The physical objects that a society creates that influence the ways in which people live.

values

Ideas held by individuals or groups about what is desirable, proper, good, and bad.

norms

Rules of conduct that specify appropriate behavior in a given range of social situations

signifier

Any vehicle of meaning and communication.

semiotics

The study of the ways in which nonlinguistic phenomena can generate meaning, as in the example of a traffic light.

language

The primary vehicle for meaning and communication in a society - system of symbols that represent objects and abstract thoughts.

linguistic relativity hypothesis

Edward Sapir and Benjamin Lee Whorf - perceptions are relative to language.

colonialism

The process whereby Western nations established their rule in parts of the world away from their home territories.

cultural capital

The accumulated cultural knowledge within a society that confers power and status.

emerging economies

Countries located primarily in the Global South, such as India and Singapore, that over the past three to four decades have begun to develop a strong industrial base.

cultural appropriation

The adoption of one cultural group’s elements by another cultural group.

subcultures

Values and norms held by a group within a wider society that are distinct from those of the majority.

countercultures

Cultural groups within a wider society that largely reject the values and norms of the majority.

assimilation

The process by which different cultures are absorbed into a mainstream culture.

multiculturalism

A condition in which ethnic groups exist separately and share equally in economic and political life.

ethnocentrism

The tendency to look at other cultures through the eyes of one’s own culture, and thereby misrepresent them.

cultural relativism

The practice of judging a society by its own standards.

sociobiology

An approach that attempts to explain the behavior of both animals and human beings in terms of biological principles

instincts

Fixed patterns of behavior that have genetic origins and that appear in all normal animals within a given species.

nationalism

A set of beliefs and symbols expressing identification with a national community

cultural lag

William Ogburn - changes in cultural values and norms take time to catch up with technological developments (china)

cultural turn

Sociology’s recent emphasis on the importance of understanding the role of culture in daily life.

life course

The various transitions and stages people experience during their lives.

social reproduction

The process of perpetuating values, norms, and social practices through socialization, which leads to structural continuity over time.

agents of socialization

Groups or social contexts within which processes of socialization take place.

resocialization

The process whereby people learn new rules and norms upon entering a new social world.

desocialization

The process whereby people unlearn rules and norms upon exiting a particular social world.

anticipatory socialization

The process whereby we learn about a social role in advance of enacting the role.

hidden curriculum

Traits of behavior or attitudes that are learned at school but not included in the formal curriculum—for example, gender differences.

peer group

A group composed of individuals of similar age and social status.

age-grade

The system found in small traditional cultures by which people belonging to a similar age group are categorized together and hold similar rights and obligations.

mass media

Forms of communication, such as newspapers, magazines, radio, and television, designed to reach mass audiences.

social roles

Socially defined expectations of an individual in a given status or social position.

identity

distinctive characteristics of a person’s (or a group’s) character that relate to who they are and what is meaningful to them.

social identity

The characteristics that are attributed to an individual by others.

master status

A single identity or status that overpowers all the other identities one holds.

self-identity

ongoing process of self-development and definition of our personal identity through which we formulate a unique sense of ourselves and our relationship to the world around us.

cognition

Human thought processes involving perception, reasoning, and remembering.

social self

basis of self-consciousness in human individuals -  G. H. Mead - the identity conferred upon an individual by the reactions of others

self-consciousness

Awareness of one’s distinct social identity as a person separate from others

generalized other

A G. H. Mead - individual comes to understand the general values of a given group or society during the socialization process.

looking-glass self

Charles Horton Cooley - the reactions we get in social situations create a mirror in which we see ourselves.