Invitation to Sociology: A Humanistic Perspective Practice Flashcards

These flashcards cover the core themes, major theorists, and specialized terminology from Peter L. Berger's 'Invitation to Sociology', focusing on the nature of sociological consciousness and the relationship between the individual and society.

How does Peter L. Berger characterize the intended purpose of his book in the preface?

It is not a textbook or a theoretical system-building attempt, but an invitation to an exciting intellectual world from a "humanistic perspective."

What is the 'value-free' concept advocated by Max Weber in sociology?

It means that while the sociologist has personal values as a citizen, within their scientific activities, their fundamental value is scientific integrity, striving to see 'what is there' regardless of hopes or fears.

What analogy does Berger use to describe the sociologist's role in reporting on a social terrain?

The sociologist is compared to a 'spy' whose job is to report as accurately as possible about a terrain, leaving others to decide what moves should be made.

According to Berger, what was the key outcome of the Supreme Court decision of 1954 on racial segregation in schools?

It was an application of sociological studies that served to improve the lot of human beings by uncovering morally shocking conditions.

How is 'society' technically defined in the sociological perspective?

A large complex of human relationships or a 'system of interaction' where people orient their actions toward one another.

What is the 'debunking motif' inherent in sociological consciousness?

A methodological imperative to 'see through' the facades of social structures and 'look behind' the official or commonly accepted goals of human actions.

How did Robert Merton distinguish between 'manifest' and 'latent' functions?

Manifest functions are conscious and deliberate purposes of social processes, while latent functions are unconscious and unintended consequences.

What is the 'unrespectable motif' in American sociology?

A fascination with the 'other America'—the worlds of the marginalized, such as hipsters, hoboes, or the working class—that provides a perspective outside middle-class propriety.

What term does Berger use to describe the phenomenon where an individual can jump from world to world in their social existence?

Alternation.

According to the 'biography' excursus, how does memory function in relation to the past?

Memory is a reiterated act of interpretation where we reconstruct the past to fit current ideas of importance, effectively 'rewriting' our own history.

What are the three main rewards of social position described in stratification theory?

Power, privilege, and prestige.

How does Arnold Gehlen conceive of a social 'institution'?

As a regulatory agency that channels human actions in much the same way that instincts channel animal behavior.

According to George Herbert Mead, how does a child discover their identity?

By 'taking the role of the other,' first through 'significant others' (parents) and eventually through the 'generalized other' (society at large).

What is the 'sociology of knowledge' primarily concerned with?

The social location of ideas—how thought is grounded in and shaped by the social context of the thinker.

What is 'internalization' in the context of socialization?

The process by which society is built into the individual’s own consciousness, so that its structures become the structures of the self.

What is 'bad faith' according to Jean-Paul Sartre?

To pretend that something which is actually voluntary or a matter of choice is a result of iron necessity.

How does Martin Heidegger define 'das Man'?

A vague, anonymous generality of human beings (the 'one' in 'one does not…') that serves as a defense against the metaphysical terrors of existence.

What does the term 'ekstasis' (ecstasy) mean in Berger's dramatic model of society?

The literal act of 'stepping outside' the taken-for-granted routines of society to perceive the machinery move around us.

What is 'role distance' as defined by Erving Goffman?

Playing a role 'tongue-in-cheek' or with inner reservations, establishing a distance between one's consciousness and the role-playing.

What is the 'first wisdom' of sociology according to Berger?

The wisdom that 'things are not what they seem.'