Sociology Chapter 10 Vocab

Social Institutions

Systems and structures within society that shape the activities of groups and individuals in specific areas of social life.

Politics

Methods and tactics intended to influence government policy, policy-related attitudes, and activities.

Government

The formal, organized agency that exercises power and control in modern society, especially through the creation and enforcement of laws.

Power

The ability to control the actions of others.

Authority

The legitimate right to wield power.

Authoritarianism

A system of government by and for a small number of elites that does not include representation of ordinary citizens.

Monarchy

A government ruled by a king or queen, with succession of rulers kept within the family.

Democracy

A political system in which all citizens have the right to participate.

Disenfranchised

Stripped of voting rights, either temporarily or permanently.

Gerrymandering

Redrawing the boundary lines of state voting districts in order to advantage one political party over another.

Power Elite

A relatively small group of people in the top ranks of economic, political, and military institutions who make many of the important decisions in American society.

Pluralist Model

A system of political power in which a wide variety of individuals and groups have equal access to resources and the mechanisms of power.

Special Interest Groups

Organizations that raise and spend money to influence elected officials and public opinion.

Opinion Leaders

High-profile individuals whose interpretation of events influences the public.

Simulacrum

An image or media representation that does not reflect reality in any meaningful way but is treated as real.

Political Action Committees (PACs)

Organizations that raise money to support the interests of a select group or organization.

Education

The process by which a society transmits its academic knowledge, cultural values, and societal expectations to its members so they can function effectively.

Tracking

The placement of students in educational “tracks,” or programs of study (e.g., college prep, remedial), that determine the types of classes they take.

Hidden Curriculum

Values or behaviors that students learn indirectly over the course of their schooling.

Credential Society

A society that emphasizes the attainment of degrees and certificates as necessary requirements for the job market and social mobility.

Charter Schools

Public schools run by private entities to give parents greater control over their children’s education.

School Vouchers

Payments from the government to parents whose children attend failing public schools; the money helps parents pay private school tuition.

Homeschooling

The education of children by their parents, at home.

Unschooling

A homeschooling alternative that rejects the standard curriculum in favor of student-driven types of learning.

Early College High Schools

Institutions in which students earn a high school diploma and two years of credit toward a bachelor’s degree.

Dual Enrollment

Programs that allow high school students to simultaneously enroll in college classes, earning credit for both high school and college degrees.

Community College

Two-year institution that provides students with general education and facilitates transfer to a four-year university.

Religion

Any institutionalized system of shared beliefs and rituals that acknowledge a relationship between the sacred and the profane.

Sacred

The holy, divine, or supernatural.

Profane

The ordinary, mundane, or everyday.

Monotheistic

A term describing religions that worship a single divine figure.

Liberation Theology

A movement within the Catholic Church to understand Christianity from the perspective of the poor and oppressed, with a focus on fighting injustice.

Religiosity

The regular practice or religious beliefs, often measured in terms of frequency of attendance at worship services and the importance of religious beliefs to an individual.

Extrinsic Religiosity

A person’s public display of commitment to a religious faith.

Intrinsic Religiosity

A person’s inner religious life or personal relationship to the divine.

Fundamentalism

The practice of emphasizing literal interpretation of texts and a “return” to a time of greater religious purity; represented by the most conservative group within any religion.

Evangelical

A term describing those who consider themselves spiritual but not religious and who often adopt aspects of various religious traditions.

Unchurched

A term describing those who consider themselves spiritual but not religious and who often adopt aspects of various religious traditions.

Secular

Non-religious; a secular society separates church and state and does not endorse any religion.