Ch. 1 Sociology

Sociology

The science of studying people in a group and their behaviors in that group

Sociological imagination

To get into someone’s shoes (figuratively) to try and understand their perspective

Sociological perspective

To look at something specifically in the lens of trying to understand them in a group and how their being a group affects their behavior

Theoretical perspective

Assumptions of something that creates our own perspective on certain situations/people

Rationalization

To explain the reason of doing a thing logically

Positivism

The thought that all science should be from knowledge that we are sure or ‘positive’ about

Social statics

When the dynamics of a society stay the same.

Social dynamics

When the dynamics of a society get changed.

Functionalism

Every mental state is from what it can serve the person.

Manifest functions

The consequences that are expected and that are usually wanted in the society.

Latent functions

Consequences that aren’t expected or usually unwanted in society.

Dysfunction

When something doesn’t positively contribute to the society and creates conflict.

Conflict perspective

When someone’s perspective life is everyone is in competition with them and focuses on power and inequality.

Symbolic interactionism

How people extract meaning from their interactions from objects and/or people

Verstehen

To understand how this meaning shapes the interactions that are made with them.