Sociology Midterm 1 Study Guide

6 degrees of separation

everyone is connected to someone who knows someone within ~6 people

Strength of weak ties

lots of friends of friends... people with more weak ties have greater job mobility and opportunity

Social ties

connections between individuals in a social network

Culture

the sum of total social categories, concepts, and practices that are not the natural environment

Non-Material culture

values, beliefs, practices, and social norms

Material culture

every part of our constructed physical environment (ex: clothes, iPhone, hairstyle, etc)

Ethnocentrism

the tendency, either conscious or unconscious, to view one's culture and group as superior when evaluating other societies and cultures

Socialization

process by which individuals internalize the values, beliefs, and norms of a given society

Values: abstract ideas held by individuals and groups as to what is desirable and good

Norms

principles or rules people are expected to observe in a given range of social institutions

Social institution

the established pattern of beliefs, behaviors, and relationships that organize social life

Social structure

the interweaving of people's interactions and relationships in more or less recurrent and stable patterns

Status

a recognizable social position that an individual occupies

Status sets

all the statuses that one holds simultaneously (ex: I am a daughter, girlfriend, student, etc)

Roles

expected behaviors for each status

Ascribed status

involuntary status... a status into which you were born (ex: being born black)

Achieved status

voluntary status... a status into which one enters (ex: becoming president)

Sociological Imagionation

the ability to understand the social world in relationship to the larger social scene .... Helps individuals understand their own experience amd fate by locating themselves in time

Biography

the individual(s) position within society

History

the point in time of the society

Personal trouble

when cherished values of the individuals are feltto the threatened

Public issue

when some value cherished by the public is felt to be threatened

Individualism

a belief system that privileges the individual over the group... a world view that values autonomy, independence and self reliance... privileges private life over public life, privileges personal expression over social expression

Myth of individualism

embracing the notion of free choices to the point og hyper-individualism that may harm others

Culture of individualism

the combined narratives presented throughout a culture/society that promotes the notions of autonomy, independence, and self reliance

Economic Individualism

a component of capitalist economies that benefit the private property of capitalist theory... the notion that it is 'natural' and that success stems from hard work and taking care of yourself ... each should look out for their own and not take from others

The Age of Enlightenment

the rise of science > mysticism.. Emphasizes rights of men, challenges monarchy, led to political and social chaos

Social Physics

'laws' of society

Division of Labor

a complex society requires specialiszation (like an organism)... individuals rely on the functions of others

Mechaical Solidiary

less complex societies, social cohesion based on sameness, interchangabiltu of parts

Organic Solidarity

more complex societies, social cohesion based on difference and interdependence of the parts

Positivist Sociology

the social world can be described and predicted by certain identifiable relationships

Verstehen

understanding... social behavior must be viewed from the perspective of those experiencing it

'Protetsant Ethic"

a temperate life, frugality, focus on one's calling

Macrosociology

focused upon large scale social dynamics, social barriers, institutions, structures

Microsociology

a focus upon small scale, local, interactional contexts

Functionalism

the theory that social institutions and processes in society exist to serve some ncesscary function for society to continue, individuals do NOT decide what the functions are, they operate on their own... Tenets: all social institutions and structures have a function, social order is maintained through the rules of society

Conflict Theory

'social rules' are contested both on their construction and implementation ... tenets: focus on power (who has it and how does it manifest in society?), conflict is a normal state of society, social change is motivated through conflict

Symbolic Interactionalism

a mircro-lvel theory that social actions are motivated through shared meanings, orientations, and assumptions... tenets: social interaction is grounded in shared meanings of social objects (material and non-matierial culture), society is shaped by how we think, discuss, and act, society is constantly changing

Impression Management

the preparing for, and monitoring of, preparation of one's social role

Dramaturgy

the conception that social interaction is comparable to stage performance

Scripts

'guidelines' we use for particular social settings... individuals know the rules of society and they work hard to follow those rules, individuals engage in performance within social settings so to maintain the situation for observers

"Front Stage"

defines the situation... the impression, or image, that the individual presents to the audience ... performance can be conscious but is often unconscious

Structure

patterned social relationships... the stable arrangement of social institutions

Agency

the ability of individuals to actively and independently choose and affect change... having self determination

Indexes

material entities which motivate abductive inferences, cognitive interpretations, etc

Artists

those ascribed by abduction, casual responsibility for the existence and characteristic of the index

Recipients

those in relation to whom, by abduction, indexes are considered to exert agency, or who excerpt agency via the index

Prototypes

entities held, by abduction, to be represented in the index, often by virtue of visual resemblance, but not necessary

Abduction of Agency

the affect that objects (indexes) have on others that promote social actions and social relations

Intentional Psychology

the attribution that the dead body holds some "thought", domr spirit or soul that can understand

Symbolic Interaction

social action is directed and motivated by shared meanings... humans act on ideas, concepts, and values based on meanings, meaning is the product of human interaction, meanings are modified and filtered through interpretation

Social constructionism

reality is a social process... a human construction (ex: pluto used to be planet, now is not)

The Black Box

the social science often overlooks the importance of small groups... small group processes then become a mystery

Small Group

group of individuals, in an interaction scene, that has a meaningful purpose, with participants placed in different roles

Historical Materialism

social activityu and social relationships are determined by the economic system of society (Pre-Class Society → Ancient Society → Fuedfal Society, Capitalist Economy) ... capitalist societies are marked by private property and a division of social class

Division of Labor

alienated from the products that we produce, workers are no longer artisans because they're alienated from the production of process... workers are merely cogs in the machine, they become deskilled in their craft ... alienation from other people and from ourself

Eugenics

controlling fertility to influence inherited traits

Social constructionism

reality is a social process... a human constriction

Sign

provide clues giving us hints for actions and learned responses

Symbols

material and immaterial cultural items that have meanings... symbols can be changed over time

Thought communities

variations in thinking/understanding between cultures, ethnicities, social classes, etc.

Public sphere

social space that allows for differing views, problems, and general issues to be discussed

Alger

wrote about individualism and self reliance within the American Capitalist System... "everyone can make it if they try"

Auguste Comte

credited with introducing the term sociology, believed that positivism could bring moral order to society... if the natural world has 'laws' (biology, chemistry, physics, etc), then society must too have rules to be followed, coined social physics, 1798-1857 France

Emile Durkheim

Positivist sociologist, coined division of labor, mechanical solidarity, and organic solidarity, 1858-1917 France

Max Weber

Argued that capitalism took root in Europe due to the view of the Protestant Religion, introduced historical comparative sociology... why do some societies follow one fath while other societies follow another? ... 1864-1920 Germany

John Calvin

believed in predestination, uncertainty of salvation, follow one's calling, signs of grace

Karl Marx

socialist, anti-capitalism, coined historical materialism and division of labor, 1818-1888 Germany)

Peter Callero

identity and inclusion is a social process.. Those with power in society often have influence on how others are viewed