sociology flashcards

sociology final

sociology

scientific study of social interaction and social structure

society

aggregate of ppl living together in an ordered community

4 factors that led to birth of sociology

american rev., french rev., industrial rev., enlightenment

Harriet Martineau

translated Auguste Comte’s work from French to English

define social drawinism

evolutionary social change (survival of the fittest)

what was durkheim studying when he introduced the use of statistical techniques

suicide

what did Karl Marx believe was the root of all evil

capitalism

define verstehen. who came up with it?

putting yourself into other’s shoes (empathy) ; Max Weber

what was hull house and who co-founded it?

a place for people who needed refuge; Jane Addams

what was the Pan-African movement; which sociologist was very active in it?

rights of ALL African descendants; WEB DuBois

social statics vs. social dynamics

statics - study of social stability

dynamics - study of how a society changes

functionalism

ALL aspects of society serve a purpose for survival of a society

what is the conflict perspective

conflict, competition, and change

content analysis

counting the amount of times a particular idea, word, phrase, symbol, or event appear in a given context

define historical analysis

examines materials from the past that contain sociological interest

how do overt(participant) and covert observations differ

overt - when participants are AWARE of being observed

covert- UNAWARE

what does the hypothesis of linguistic relativity state

language determines thought

which type of norm has a moral significance

mores

which type of norms are similar to customs

folkways

which type of norms sees its violation as a danger to the culture

taboo

sanctions

punishments for disobeying orders

how do formal sanctions differ from informal sanctions?

formal - enforced by law and people of authority ; informal - enforced by whomever or crows of people

how to positive sanctions differ from negative sanctions?

positive - promised rewards ; negative - threatened punishments

what are values

shared beliefs about what is good or bad; communicate values through language or symbols

discovery

finding something new that already exists

invention

creating something totally new

diffusion

the process through which elements of culture spread from one society or cultural group to another

counterculture

a subculture that deliberately/consciously opposes beliefs of the dominant culture

subculture

part of the dominant culture that differs in some aspects

what is enthrocentricism? is it positive, negative, or both?

judging others in terms of one’s own cultural standards; both positive and negative

cultural relativism

the idea that a person’s beliefs, values, or practices should be understood through that person’s own culture and not judged against the criteria of another

6 reasons why cultures change

ideology, technology, diffusion, population, physical environment, and wars

4 factors that shape a person’s personality

heredity, birth order, cultural environment, and paraents’ characteristics

a characteristic of the oldest, middle, and youngest child

oldest - leader

middle - independent

youngest - childish

role vs. status

role - behavior

status - describes a role

ascribed status

status that you are born with

ex; daughter

achieved status

earned status

ex; teacher

oldest type of society

huntering-gathering

what society are we in now

post-industrial

a characteristic of the post-industrial society

white-collar jobs

what is the difference between an aggregate and a group?

aggregate - people in the same area joined by group proximity

group - a mass of people working together to achieve goals

what type of group includes family and close friends?

primary group

what type of group is exclusive and requires extreme loyalty from its members?

in-groups

social exchange vs. cooperation

SE - do something for someone because you wish for something in return

cooperation - 2 or more individuals working together to achieve a common goal

who did the famous conformity line study? what were his findings?

Soloman Asch; 37/50 conformed to wrong answers

who coined the term “group-think” and what does it mean?

Irving Janis; practice of making decisions as a group that discourages creativity (more negative)

bystander effect

ppl. are less likely to help when others are present

diffusion of responsibilty

ppl. are less likely to act when someone needs help when others are present (but more likely to help in smaller groups)

6 degrees of seperation

all people are connected by 6 people or less

deviance

behavior that departs from social norms

how can deviance be positive

increases unity within a society and promotes needed social change

who developed the strain theory of deviance? what does it state?

Robert Merton; deviance is a result of tensions or strains experienced by people because of their position in the social structure

which theory states that deviance is learned

differential association theory

how does the conflict theory explain deviance

deviant behaviors are actions that do not go along with social institutions

difference between primary and secondary deviance

primary - commit deviant acts without knowing

secondary - internalizing the label society has given you (ex; you are labeled as a thief so you continue stealing)

purpose of the UCR

to generate a reliable set of criminal date for use in law-based operations

who does the UCR report its crimes to?

the FBI

victimless crime

prostitution

murder vs. manslaughter

murder - intentional

manslaughter - unintentional

an example of white-collar crimes

embezzlement

what is the term for a large crime syndicate that uses legitimate businesses for illegal activity

the mafia

4 methods of controlling crime

1. retribution - punishment for purposes of revenge or repaying for a wrongdoing)

2. incarceration - imprisonment

3. rehabilitation

4. deterrence -discouraging an action through fear of consequence

what form of execution is used in Texas?

lethal injection

5 methods of execution permissible in the United States

electrocution, lethal injection, gas chamber, firing squad, and hanging

what is the recidivism rate?

the amount of ppl. who have relapsed to criminal or negative behavior after already being punished or incarcerated for it