aice sociology vocab 6

Negative sanctions

Punishments aimed at deterring deviance.

Control by consent

Persuading a social group that they should obey rules because they will benefit from them in the long term.

Ideological

Based on untrue information, propagated by a powerful group, aimed at justifying and legitimating some type of inequality.

Informal social controls

The negative reaction of friends, relatives and peers to deviance that encourages conformity to the informal rules employed by such groups.

Conformity

Abiding by or complying with social norms, rules and laws.

Positive sanctions

Rewards which encourage conformity.

Subculture

A distinct group that exists within a wider society. A subculture has a very distinct and separate identity, for example, in terms of the way they dress or behave – that stands out from mainstream culture.

Spectacular youth subculture

Highly visible groups of young people who commit themselves to a certain ‘shocking’ look in terms of hairstyle, dress codes and so on, and whose behaviour is often interpreted by the older generation and the media as ‘threatening’ the moral order or stability of society.

Symbolisation

A process found in some news reporting of social groups in which journalists identify key features of particular groups, especially young people, so that they can be avoided by others or be easily identified and targeted by the police.

Demonisation

The social practice of treating some groups as if they were ‘social problems’ or a threat to those who belong to mainstream law-abiding society.

Social pressure

Influence exerted on an individual or group by a more or equally powerful person or group. The influence might take the form of rational argument, persuasion or coercion (threats, violence and so on). For example, a peer group may exert social pressure on an adolescent to behave in an anti-social manner.

Sanctions

A negative sanction is a threatened penalty for disobeying a law or rule. A positive sanction may take the form of approval or a reward.

Consensual policing

The power of the police to fulfil their functions and duties is dependent on public approval of their existence, actions and behaviour and on their ability to secure and maintain public respect.

Cost-benefit analysis

A process that involves members of society rationally weighing up the benefit of, say, obeying the law against the costs of not doing so or of rejecting the need for law altogether.

Anarchy

A state of disorder due to absence or non-recognition of authority or agencies of social control.

Social exchange

Interaction and negotiation between individuals that involves maximum benefit and minimum cost for mutual or reciprocal benefit.

Bonding social capital

The sharing of information or resources that may create opportunities for jobs or mutual help.

Bridging social capital

Social and political alliances or networks that increase the potential for social change.

Mechanical solidarity

The sense of togetherness in a society that arises when people perform similar work and share similar experiences, customs, values and beliefs. Such societies view society as more important than the individual.

Organic solidarity

A type of system in which community ties are loose because people are exposed to a greater range of ideas, which encourages individualism and less moral certainty.

Anomie

According to Durkheim – a state of normlessness or moral uncertainty in which the social rules of behaviour are not clearly drawn, therefore making people more prone to deviance.

Structuration

A theory of society invented by Giddens which argues that human behaviour is caused by a combination of structure and agency.

Sampling frame

A list of people who might take part in a sociological study.

Social class

A socio-economic status and identity which is hierarchically organised on the basis of occupation, wealth, income and life chances.

Social stratification

A system of social ranking, usually based on wealth, income, race, education and power.