SOC 140 Midterm 1 - UW Madison

social fact

an obligation or duty, system of beliefs or practices, external to the individual

social imagination

seeing the link between individual experience and society

double consciousness

a concept conceived by W.E.B. DuBois to describe the inward "twoness" experienced by African Americans or other subordinate groups because of their racialized oppression and disvaluation in a white-dominated society

objectivity doctrines

the claims, methods and results of science are not, or should not be, influenced by scientists' perspectives, values, commitments, or personal interests.

standpoint theory (epistemology)

knowledge claims are shaped (and limited) by personal experiences and perspectives. we are immersed in the world while producing accounts of it

situated knowledge

Knowledge and ways of knowing that are specific to a particular historical and cultural context and life experiences.

Emile Durkheim

created the idea of a social fact

C. Wright Mills

created the idea of sociological imagination

W.E.B. DuBois

Created the idea of double consciousness

Individualism

a "calm and considered feeling which disposes each citizen to isolate himself from his fellows and withdraw into the circle of family and friends..." This term first appeared in Tocqueville's Democracy in America

community

community can be a place, social system, and shared identity

pendulum between individualism and community

clash of individualism and community in different time periods; pendulum now swings towards individualism since 1970s

inegalitarian exclusion

when you make the transition from individual to community, but it doesn't include everybody (New Deal)

Tocqueville's "self-interest rightly understood"

the personal advantage of each member of the community consists in working for the good of all

gilded age and 1970s to present as two high points of individual-mindedness

- gilded age: industrial giants soared above everyone else, inequality (rags to riches)

- 1970s: M. Thatcher, R. Reagan, Prop 13

New Deal as expansion of community-mindedness

In the 1930s, New Deal social programs shifted the focus from individual to community, as government responded to the Great Depression by providing a safety net for individuals

Origins of racial classification in colonialism/slavery

Spanish conquistadors, atrocities observed by Bartolome de las Casas

race as a master category

shared by, and continues to shape, the history, polity, economic structure, and culture in the US

racial formation

synthesis, a constantly reiterated outcome, of the interaction of racial projects at a society wide level

racialization

the extension of racial meaning to a previously racially unclassified relationship, social practice, or group

racial projects

simultaneously an interpretation, representation, or explanation of racial dynamics, and an effort to reorganize and redistribute resources along particular racial lines

racism

creating or reproducing "structures of domination based on racial significations and identities"

racial structure/institutional racism

totality of social, economic, political, and ideological practices that reproduce and reinforce white privilege

colorblind racism

emerged in 1960s, explains contemporary racial inequality as the outcome of nonracial dynamics

citizenship vs. dependency

as the industry became a more important role in US economy and more people worked for wages, they began to struggle for recognition and rights

contrast work

citizens defined their standing by distinguishing themselves from the enslaved, women, paupers, and native peoples (developing deficit models that explained the exclusion of these groups from citizenship)

deficit models

perspective that members from marginalized groups are different because their culture is deficient in important ways from the dominant group

societal division of labor

division between civil society, market, and state

state

government at all levels

market

the exchange of goods and services for profit

civil society

formal and informal groups that come together around common interests and values

neoclassical economics/neoclassical paradigm (and how it appears throughout US history)

argues for expanding the role of the market and shrinking of the state

invisible hand

Adam Smith: individuals acting in their individual interest can bring good for society; the free market uses an invisible hand to make everyone better off

keynesian economics/keynesian paradigm (and how it appears throughout US history)

argues for a strong state that guides the market and expands in times of economic downturn

new deal

A series of reforms enacted by the Franklin Roosevelt administration between 1933 and 1942 with the goal of ending the Great Depression. example of keynesian economics

legacies of colonialism

1. Colonialism destroyed pre-colonial communities and their industries, agricultures, knowledge, and systems of governance

2. Colonial ideas about progress and race continue to structure global relationships

3. The "colonial division of labor" established trade relations that set the stage for continuing relations of unequal exchange in later periods

colonial division of labor

replaced the Triangular Trade, by 1893 this set up trade patterns that persisted into the 20th century (unequal exchange)

Bretton Woods (Why was it important? What institutions did it establish?)

conference in July 1944, established rules for commercial and financial relations among the world's major industrial states. also established International Monetary Fund and World Bank

Theory of comparative advantage

the economic doctrine that goods should be produced where it is most efficient (cheapest) to produce them

Global assembly line/international division of labor

a production system organized by multinational firms, with geographically dispersed steps - an "assembly line" that crosses national boundaries

"race to the bottom"

competition that is structured around cost-cutting, rather than technology or labor process improvements

cosmopolitan localism

a condition characterized by the balance between being localized (rooted in a place) AND open to global flows of ideas, info, people, things, and money

deglobalization

virtues: community/community-mindedness, equitable income redistribution and land distribution, reducing environmental disequilibrium, civil society must constantly monitor and supervise the private sector and state, "one size fits all" model does not work

Growth and progress becoming "common sense" in Enlightenment

the Enlightenment brought a new faith that empirical science, technology, and experimentation would lead to constant improvements in the human condition

"Headwinds" for future growth

demographics, education, debt, inequality (headwind = wind blowing directly ahead of us that opposes forward motion)

Growth vs. well-being

economic growth is no longer meeting immediate human needs, economic growth is inequitably distributed, and causes environmental problems

Extensive vs. intensive growth

- extensive growth: relies on pulling new resources into the market, market icing new activities, creating new needs, expanding into new parts of the world, drawing in new non-renewable assets; this growth creates serious negative externalities

- intensive growth: using a fixed set of resources with greater efficiency and getting more human well-being per unit of consumption of valuable resources

materiality paradox

the logic of the fashion model is that social and cultural considerations, rather than functionality, drive purchases

the happiness plateau (easterlin paradox)

happiness increases up to a level of income where basic needs are met and then levels off

Schor's 4 principles

1. A new allocation of time

2. Self-provisioning

3. True Materialism (conscious materialism)

4. Investing in our communities

Market Value

the value of an object or service is seen as the price it brings in an open and competitive market, as determined by the demand for the object relative to supply

Externalities

costs (negative) or benefits (positive) that are not counter in free market prices - are considered outside the market system; sometimes called by-products

Social Reproduction

the unpaid labor necessary to keep individuals, households, and communities functioning and allow them to be productive in society

GDP

designed by government economist Simon Kuznets in 1930s to measure a country's entire economic output

High GDP vs. Low GDP person

Low GDP person self-provisions more, and doesn't contribute much to the economy

United Nations Human Development Index (HDI)

combines 3 dimensions:

1. Life expectancy at birth, as an index of population health and longevity

2. knowledge and education, as measured by the adult literacy rate and the combined primary, secondary, and tertiary school enrollment

3. Standard of living, as measured by GDP per capita

OECD Better Life Index

An index to compare well-being across countries, based on 11 topics that the OECD has identified as essential, in the areas of material living conditions and quality of life.

Carbon Footprint

the total carbon dioxide emissions produced by an individual, group, or location

Gross National Happiness Index

new measures to capture aspects of well-being not captured by GDP

Fast fashion and FMCGs

a production paradigm characterized by speed, geographical distance, predominance of large named brands, outsourced production, an important role for marketing and advertising, and competition to lower prices

FMCGs: fast moving consumer goods, like toothpaste and detergent

Changes in work-time (know the trends)

work time has more than doubled since the mid 20th century

The productivity dividend

we could now produce our 1948 standard of living in less than half the time it took in that year

self-provisioning (relationship to economic crisis, significance of diversified income base)

substituting home production for waged work and market purchases; frequently relied on in times of economic crisis

Transition towns

An ongoing social experiment, in which communities learn from each other and are part of a global push towards less reliance on fossil fuels and on over-exploitation of other resources, much reduced carbon emissions, improved well-being for all and stronger local economies