Introduction to Sociology: Foundation, Theory, and Research Methods

A comprehensive vocabulary set covering the fundamental sociological theories, major practitioners, research methodologies, and concepts of culture and socialization from the lecture notes.

Sociological imagination

The ability to connect the most basic, intimate aspects of an individual's life to seemingly impersonal and remote historical forces.

Social institution

A complex group of interdependent positions that, together, perform a social role and reproduce themselves over time; also defined as any institution in a society that works to shape the behavior of the groups or people within it.

Auguste Comte

The French scholar who coined the term sociology and developed "social physics" (later called positivism) to uncover the secular, scientific laws governing human behavior.

Harriet Martineau

The English social theorist who was the first to translate Comte into English and introduced the concept of sociological sympathy.

Sociological sympathy

A methodological baseline introduced by Harriet Martineau meaning empathy for the subjects being studied.

Karl Marx

Foundational conflict theorist who argued that class conflict drives history, specifically the struggle between the Bourgeoisie and the Proletariat.

Bourgeoisie

Capitalists or owners who own the means of production under capitalism.

Proletariat

The working class who must sell their labor power to survive under capitalism.

Max Weber

The theorist who established interpretive sociology and pioneered the concept of Verstehen.

Verstehen

German for "understanding"; the concept that researchers must imagine themselves in the shoes of their subjects to truly interpret their behavior.

Émile Durkheim

A founding father of positivist sociology who defined Anomie and believed the social world could be predicted by observable relationships.

Anomie

A sense of aimlessness or despair that arises when life is no longer predictable; a profound state of normlessness.

Positivism

The strain of sociology that believes the social world can be described and predicted by observable relationships, similar to social physics.

W. E. B. DuBois

The scholar who developed the concept of double consciousness to describe the unique identity construction of African Americans.

Double consciousness

A mechanism where individuals maintain two behavioral scripts: one for moving through the world normally and one that incorporates the prejudiced, external gaze of a racist society.

Structural Functionalism

A theoretical framework stating social institutions exist to serve important or necessary functions to keep society running as a whole.

Organicism

A sub-theory comparing society to a biological organism, where every institution acts as an essential organ keeping the body alive.

Conflict Theory

The idea that conflict between competing interests is the basic, animating force of social change and society in general.

Symbolic Interactionism

A micro-level theory in which shared meanings, orientations, and assumptions form the basic motivations behind people's actions.

Postmodernism

A condition characterized by questioning progress/history, replacing narrative with pastiche, and arguing that objective facts are merely social constructs.

Microsociology

A branch of sociology seeking to understand local interactional contexts, typically using ethnographic methods like participant observation.

Macrosociology

A branch of sociology concerned with social dynamics at a higher level of analysis across the breadth of a society.

Ethnography

A qualitative, immersive research method focused on firsthand observation and participation within a community over an extended period.

Scientific method

A systematic procedure for gathering empirical data, testing hypotheses, and constructing verified, objective theories.

Theory

An abstract, systematic statement of how and why specific social facts or phenomena are related.

Research methods

Standardized, structured approaches that sociologists use to investigate answers to questions about the social world.

Quantitative methods

Methods that seek to obtain information about the social world that is already in, or can be readily converted to, numeric form.

Qualitative methods

Methods that attempt to collect information about the social world that cannot be readily put into numbers.

Causal relationship

A directional mechanism where a change in one factor (IV) results in a direct, corresponding change in another factor (DV).

Deductive approach

A research approach that starts with a theory, forms a hypothesis, and analyzes data to confirm, reject, or modify the theory.

Inductive approach

A research approach that starts with empirical observations and then works backward to form a theory.

Correlation or association

Simultaneous variation in two variables where they change together, though one does not necessarily cause the other.

Natural experiment

A study environment where real-world changes (like policy shifts) mimic an experimental setup outside researcher manipulation.

Reverse causality

An error where a researcher believes variable A causes B, while in reality, B is causing the change in A.

Dependent variable

The outcome factor that the researcher is trying to explain (the effect).

Independent variable

A measured factor that the researcher believes has a causal impact on the dependent variable (the cause).

Hypothesis

A proposed, testable relationship between two specific variables, usually state-driven with a direction of change.

Operationalization

The process of assigning a precise, concrete method for measuring an abstract term or variable within a study.

Reliability

The likelihood of obtaining the exact same result if the study or measure is repeated (consistency).

Validity

The extent to which an instrument or study accurately measures what it intends to measure (accuracy).

Generalizability

The extent to which findings can be confidently claimed to apply to a larger population than the small sample group studied.

Participant Observation

A qualitative method seeking to uncover meanings people give their social actions by observing and participating in behaviors firsthand.

Case study

An intensive, in-depth investigation of one particular unit of analysis to uncover wider structural concepts.

Feminist methodology

Research approaches treating women's experiences as legitimate resources and accounting for the researcher's structural power position.

Culture

The sum of social categories, concepts, beliefs, behaviors, and practices; everything except the natural environment.

Ethnocentrism

The belief that one's own culture is superior to others and the tendency to view other cultures from one's own perspective.

Cultural relativism

Taking into account differences across cultures without passing judgment or assigning value.

Nonmaterial culture

Values, beliefs, behaviors, and social norms.

Material culture

Everything that is part of our constructed, physical environment, including technology.

Culture lag

The time gap between the appearance of new technology and the words and practices that give it meaning.

Culture shock

Doubt, confusion, or anxiety felt when moving from a familiar culture to an unfamiliar one.

Code switch

To flip fluidly between two or more languages or sets of cultural norms to fit different cultural contexts.

Values

Moral beliefs.

Norms

How values tell us to behave.

Ideology

A system of concepts and relationships; an understanding of cause and effect.

Hegemony

A condition by which a dominant group uses power to elicit the voluntary "consent" of the masses.

Subculture

Distinct cultural values and behavioral patterns of a particular group distinctive enough to distinguish it from others in society.

Counterculture

A group whose values, beliefs, and behaviors place it in opposition to the dominant culture.

Reflection theory

The idea that culture is a projection of social structures and relationships into the public sphere.

Socialization

The process by which individuals internalize values, beliefs, and norms of a society and learn to function as members.

Consumerism

The steady acquisition of material possessions, often with the belief that happiness and fulfillment can be achieved.

Culture jamming

The act of turning media against themselves.

Face

The esteem in which an individual is held by others.

Social Construction of Reality

The process by which people creatively shape reality through interaction, establishing things that look natural but are built by agreement.

Ethnomethodology

An approach focused on the ways we make sense of our world, convey understanding to others, and produce shared social order.

White coat effect

The impact a researcher's presence has on subjects, causing them to alter behavior because they know they are being observed.

Reflexivity

Analyzing and critically considering our own role in, and effect on, our research and the subjects studied.

The Self

The individual identity of a person as perceived by that same person.

I

One's sense of agency, action, or power.

Me

The self as perceived as an object by the "I"; how one imagines others perceive them.

Looking Glass Self

A concept coined by Charles Horton Cooley stating the self-concept develops by mirroring our interactions with others.

Generalized other

An internalized sense of the total expectations of others in a variety of settings.

Significant Other

Specific individuals who impact a person's life and play a major role in their socialization process.

Total Institutions

An institution where one is totally immersed, controlling all basics of day-to-day life under a single authority.

Resocialization

The process by which social values, beliefs, and norms are engineered through an intense social process.

Status

A recognizable social position that an individual occupies.

Role

The duties and behaviors expected of someone who holds a particular status.

Role strain

The incompatibility among roles corresponding to a single status.

Role conflict

Tension caused by competing demands between two or more roles pertaining to different statuses.

Ascribed status

A status into which one is born; involuntary status.

Achieved status

A status into which one enters; voluntary status.

Master status

One status within a set that stands out or overrides all others.

Dramaturgical Theory

Erving Goffman's view of social life as a theatrical performance where we are actors with roles, scripts, and costumes.

Dyad

A group of two.

Triad

A group of three.

Mediator

The member of a triad who attempts to resolve conflict between the two other actors.

Tertius gaudens

The member of a triad who benefits from conflict between the other two members.

Divide et impera

The role of a member of a triad who intentionally drives a wedge between the other two actors.

Primary groups

Social groups like family or friends with enduring, intimate face-to-face relationships that strongly influence ideals.

Secondary groups

Groups marked by impersonal, instrumental relationships existing as a means to an end.

Social Capital

Information, knowledge of people or things, and connections that help individuals leverage social networks.

Isomorphism

A constraining process forcing one unit in a population to resemble other units facing similar environmental conditions.