SOC100 Lecture 1: Intro to Sociology

Sociology

To search for social and structural explanations for the topics we study instead of relying on biological or individual explanations 

Disciplines associated with sociology

Economics, political science, medicine, psychology, criminology, anthropology, history, natural sciences, etc

Cognitive Dissonance

When someone is confronted by a situation or realization that conflicts with their values/beliefs

Sociological imagination

The ability to connect personal challenges to larger social issues 

See the general in the particular

Principle in sociological imagination; to look at seemingly individual issues as social/societal issues (i.e. university student anxiety)

See the strange in the familiar

Principle in sociological imagination; to challenge the rationale behind social conditions (i.e. shaking hands)

Decline Bias

Believing that change leads to worsening conditions compared to the past

Bias

Unconscious and unavoidable; people don’t understand others’ experiences because they hold their belief that their own experience is the truth

Objectiveness

Basing conclusions on empirically verifiable facts collected with scientific principles rather than personal opinions, feelings, preferences, or experiences

Social Location Bias

The combination of factors including gender, race, social class, age, religion, sexual orientation, and geographic location affects all individuals’ decisions and perceptions; it is never the same for everyone

Anecdotal Evidence

Evidence in the form of stories that people tell about what happened to them

Confirmation Bias

The tendency to process information by looking for evidence that agrees/confirms what we already believe

Fundamental Attribution Error

To attribute the observed failings of others to internal factors like their disposition, personality, intelligence, etc

Self-serving Bias

To attribute one’s success to personal factors, and failures to external, situational factors

Optimism Bias

Viewing things positively because you’re in a good mood

Pessimism Bias

Viewing things negatively because you're in a bad mood 

Cultural Bias

Perceiving one’s own culture as being normal and seeing other cultures as abnormal