Unit 2: Keywords

culture

the way of life of a society

beliefs

statements that people hold to be true

values

standards shared by members of a culture and used to judge whether behaviour is right or wrong

norms

the behaviour expected of members in a society

social interaction

any situation in which two or more people have social contact with each other

customs

norms in a particular society that are widely accepted and carry on over time

laws

rules that are given force by being formalised by governments

status

a position that someone has in a society - ascribed or achieved

role

patterns of behaviour expected of someone because of their status in society

social institutions

parts of society that have their own sets of norms and values

social identity

individuals’ perception of themselves

gender

the roles and expectations associated with being male or female

stereotypes

the attributes that people think (often wrongly) characterise a group

social control

ways in which members of society are made to conform to norms and values

rewards

a positive sanction

sanctions

waysofrewarding or punishing acceptable or unacceptable behaviour

sub-culture

a group within a larger culture that has its own distinctive norms and values

youth sub-culture

sub-culture of adolescents or young adults

value consensus

general agreement across a society on a set of values

social conformity

in accordance with norms and social expectations

informal social control

ways of controlling behaviour imposed by people without a formal role

peer group

people of the same status

ostracism

excluding someone from the community or group

formal social control

social control imposed by a person or organisation with the authority to implement rules or laws

agencies of socialisation

institutions in which people are socialised

primary socialisation

first and most important period of socialisation in which the individual learns the basic norms of behaviour

hidden curriculum

what pupils learn in schools apart from the content of lessons

peer pressure

influence that a peer group has to force or persuade its members to conform

coercion

use or threat of force or violence

social order

the ways in which societies and their institutions remain stable over time

childhood

the period before adulthood

adulthood

when an individual is accepted by their culture as a full member

masculinity

the expected behaviour associated with being male

ethnic minority

a relatively small ethnic group compared with the majority in a society and seen is a different

globalisation

complex process by which different cultures around the world are increasingly aware of, interact with and influence each other

global culture

idea that as a result of globalisation there will be a single shared culture around the world

diversity

wide differences between human cultures

lifestyle

typical way of life

cultural relativism

considering all cultures on their own terms rather than from a western point of view

multicultural society

society in which many different cultured exist alongside each other

ethnicity

cultural differences such as language and religion as well as place of origin

race

supposed biological differences between different groups

social construction

the idea that social situations and events are constructed by societies

age groups

ways in which people of the same/similar ages share a status

elderly

belonging to the age group of those advanced in years

child-centred

a society in which children are highly valued and time is devoted to their wellbeing

secondary socialisation

later socialisation involving the learning of more specific norms and values for roles

imitation

young children learning by copying the behaviour of others

role modelling

acting as an example

sex

being male or female

manipulation

how parents and others encourage and discourage behaviour

canalisation

chanelling children towards activities considered appropriate for them

social class

a form of social stratification grouping people based on social hierarchy

inadequate socialisation

incomplete or ineffective socialisation

feral children

‘wild’ children who haven’t been socialised

nature

influence of biological factors on human behaviour

nurture

influence of society and culture on human behaviour

role conflict

when someone finds that the demands of 2 or more of their roles clash with each other

femininity

expected behaviour associated with being female