OpenStax Sociology Ch. 1

antipositivism

the view that social researchers should strive for subjectivity as they worked to represent social processes, cultural norms, and societal values

conflict theory

a theory that looks at society as a competition for limited resources

constructivism

an extension of symbolic interaction theory which proposes that reality is what humans cognitively construct it to be

culture

a group's shared practices, values, and beliefs

dramaturgical analysis

a technique sociologists use in which they view society through the metaphor of theatrical performance

dynamic equilibrium

a stable state in which all parts of a healthy society are working together properly

dysfunctions

social patterns that have undesirable consequences for the operation of society

figuration

the process of simultaneously analyzing the behavior of an individual and the society that shapes that behavior

functionalism

a theoretical approach that sees society as a structure with interrelated parts designed to meet the biological and social needs of individuals that make up that society

function

the part a recurrent activity plays in the social life as a whole and the contribution it makes to structural continuity

grand theories

attempts to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental questions such as why societies form and why they change

generalized others

the organized and generalized attitude of a social group

latent functions

the unrecognized or unintended consequences of a social process

macro-level

a wide-scale view of the role of social structures within a society

manifest functions

sought consequences of a social process

micro-level theories

the study of specific relationships between individuals or small groups

paradigms

philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them

positivism

the scientific study of social patterns

qualitative sociology

in-depth interviews, focus groups, and/or analysis of content sources as the source of its data

quantitative sociology

statistical methods such as s urveys with large numbers of participants

reification

an error of treating and abstract concept as though it has a real, material existence

significant others

specific individuals that impact a person's life

social facts

the laws, morals, values, religious beliefs, customs, fashions, rituals, and all of the cultural rules that govern social life

social institutions

patterns of beliefs and behaviors focused on meeting social needs

social solidarity

the social ties that bind a group of people together such as kinship, shared location, and religion

society

a group of people who live in a defined geographical area who interact with one another and who share a common culture

sociological imagination

the ability to understand how your own past relates to that of other people, as well as to history in general and societal structures in particular

sociology

is the systematic study of society and social interaction

symbolic interactionism

a theoretical perspective through which scholars examine the relationship of individuals within their society by studying their communication (language and symbols)

theory

a proposed explanation about social interactions or society

verstehen

a German word that means to understand in a deep way

What best describes sociology as a subject?

the study of society and social interaction

C. Wright Mills once said that sociologists need to develop a sociological __________________ to study how society affects individuals

imagination

A sociologist defines society as a group of people who reside in a defined area, share a culture, and who:

interact

Seeing patterns means that a sociologist needs to be able to:

identify similarities in how social groups respond to social pressure

What was a topic of study in early sociology?

Economics

Which founder of sociology believed societies changed due to class struggle?

Karl Marx

What would a quantitative sociologist use to gather data?

a large survey

Weber believed humans could not be studied purely objectively because they were influenced by:

their culture

What theory is most likely to look at the social world on a micro level?

symbolic interactionism

Who believed that the history of society was one of class struggle?

Karl Marx

Who coined the phrase symbolic interactionism?

Herbert Blumer

A symbolic interactionist may compare social interactions to:

theatrical roles

Which research technique would most likely be used by a symbolic interactionist?

participant observation

Kenneth and Mamie Clark used sociological research to show that segregation was:

harmful

Studying sociology helps people analyze data because they learn:

interview techniques, to apply statistics, and to generate theories

Berger describes sociologists as concerned with:

monumental moments in peoples' lives and common everyday life events