Key Concepts in Sociology: Socialization, Deviance, and Inequality

Socialization

Learning through social interaction, how to follow the social norms and expectations of your society.

Social reproduction

Where a society's norms and values are passed on from generation to generation.

Mead's theory of development

We are shaped by others through our social interactions.

Self-consciousness

An individual's awareness of how others see them. The individual develops a sense of self through the reactions and attitudes of others.

Taking the role of the other

Imitating those around them.

Generalized other

Represents the larger rules, norms, and values of the society in which individuals live.

Self

A person's ability to see themselves from the perspective of others which is learned from social interactions.

Me

The side of our self that follows the norms and expectations of society and works to control our behavior accordingly.

I

Represents the self's unsocialized impulses and attitudes that respond to the reactions and attitudes of others.

Agents of socialization

People, groups, institutions, and social contexts that contribute to our socialization.

Family

First and most influential agent of socialization. Teaches us foundational skills like language and how to feed and dress ourselves, values, beliefs, and social norms, including those related to gender roles and expectations, and can be influenced by external factors such as social class.

School

Learn rules and norms relevant to the school context (e.g., being quiet, raising hands, following instructions) that can extend to other settings, and transmits cultural values.

Peers

Can reinforce or challenge what children have learned from their families. Peer pressure can lead to conformity with social norms related to appearance, behavior, and language. Exposes individuals to new cultures, norms, values, and beliefs, potentially increasing acceptance and understanding of others.

Media

Teach individuals about social and cultural norms, values, and beliefs. Can influence mental health, behavior, and self-perception.

Social identity

The identity that others ascribe to us based on the social categories we belong to.

Self identity

Our own understanding of who we are that is shaped by our interactions with others.

Master status

The primary social identity that defines a person and influences their societal roles and behaviors.

Role strain

Experiencing competing demands within a particular social role and status.

Role conflict

When our different social roles conflict with one another.

Ethnomethodology

The study of the 'ethno' (meaning ordinary or everyday) methods people use to make sense of their social interactions.

Deviance

Behaviors, actions, or conditions that violate societal norms.

Statistical approach

Defines deviance as an act, behavior, or condition that is statistically unusual or has a low probability.

Legalistic approach

Defines deviance as any violation of the law; illegal activities equal deviance.

Normative approach

Defines deviance as a violation of norms or agreed upon social expectations.

Intersection of deviance and crime

Deviance and crime overlap but are distinct. Some acts are deviant but not illegal, some are illegal but not necessarily considered deviant by everyone, and some are both deviant and illegal.

Sociological theory and deviance

Explores whether deviance is an individual phenomenon or undergirded by structural factors. Different theories offer unique lenses for understanding deviance.

Functionalism

A perspective that argues deviance serves functions such as setting/clarifying moral boundaries and promoting social cohesion. Crime and deviance are considered normal and necessary.

Durkheim's sociological theory of suicide

Argues that the structure of society affects suicide rates, with higher rates in low-integration and low-regulation societies.

Anomie

A state where societal norms fail to regulate behavior.

Conflict theory

Emphasizes the role of power and inequality in understanding deviance, reflecting power and privilege, with sanctions unequally applied.

Symbolic interaction

Focuses on how interactions construct meaning, asserting that deviance is defined through these interactions.

Labeling theory

Highlights how labels applied to individuals can influence their behavior and self-identity, including stages like primary deviance, secondary deviance, stigmatization, and self-fulfilling prophecy.

Deviance and social control

Refers to mechanisms used to encourage conformity to norms and to discourage deviant behavior, which can be formal (e.g., laws) or informal (e.g., peer pressure).

Moral entrepreneurs

Individuals or groups who campaign to change societal norms and values, aiming to manufacture public morality.

Moral panic

An exaggerated, widespread fear regarding the collapse of public morality, often involving the blaming of folk devils.

Stigma

A powerful social label that discredits an individual or group, leading to social disapproval and exclusion.

Stigma management

Strategies used by individuals to reduce the stigma they receive due to a deviant condition and maintain a positive identity.

Stratification

The hierarchical arrangement of individuals and groups in a society, with uneven distribution of income, social status, occupation, and power.

Social inequality

The unequal distribution of resources (e.g., income and wealth), opportunities, and status among individuals and groups.

Social mobility

The upward or downward movement of individuals and groups between different class positions, which can be intergenerational or intragenerational.

Upward mobility

Climbing up the economic ladder.

Downward mobility

When an individual's class position falls.

Intergenerational mobility

A change in social class from one generation to the next.

Intragenerational mobility

Mobility within a generation.

Structural mobility

Mobility resulting from changes in the number and kinds of jobs available in a society.

Role of education

Higher education is a crucial avenue to upward intergenerational mobility, influenced by family income.

Achievement gap

The disparity in academic performance between wealthy students and those at the bottom of the economic pyramid.

Systems of stratification

Various systems exist, from the most confining to those that allow some movement across divisions.

Four systems of stratification

Slavery, Estate System, Caste System, and Class System, each with varying degrees of inequality and mobility.

Functionalism

Argues that stratification contributes to social stability.

Meritocracy

A system where rewards are based on qualifications and societal importance.

Conflict theory

Argues that socioeconomic inequality is an outcome of capitalism.

Marx

Believed capitalism divides people into classes based on their position in the economy: owners (bourgeoisie) and workers (proletariat).

Weber

Expanded on Marx's ideas, suggesting that socioeconomic status is determined by class (income), status (prestige), and party (political power).

Income

Money received from work (wages or salaries), investments, and/or government programs (e.g., social security).

Wealth

Income + Assets; the worth of your assets minus your debts.

Status

Prestige associated with occupations and social classes.

Trends of stratification and economic inequality in the US

The rich are becoming richer, the middle class is becoming poorer, and the bottom has stagnated.

Upper Class

Top 20% of households; includes professional, corporate leaders, and generational wealth.

Middle Classes

Diverse group divided into upper and lower.

Upper Middle Class

Second quintile; includes highly educated professionals, mid-level corporate managers, and small business owners.

Lower Middle Class

Third quintile; most varied in terms of occupations.

Working Class

Fourth quintile; primarily blue- and pink-collar workers.

Lower Class

Fifth quintile; includes full-time, low-wage workers and those who work part-time or not at all.

Social class reproduction

The process through which members of the upper class ensure that their children maintain their status.

Equality of opportunity

Focuses on providing everyone with similar opportunities and a level playing field, regardless of background.

Equality of outcome

Looks to ensure people who are disadvantaged are making gains, often involving policies to redistribute resources.

Absolute poverty

A state of poverty in which one lacks the minimal requirements necessary to sustain a healthy existence.

Relative poverty

Poverty defined according to the living standards of the majority in any given society.

Culture of poverty

The theory that poverty is perpetuated by a set of values and behaviors passed down from one generation to the next.

Structural explanation

Focuses on social, economic, and political systems that contribute to and perpetuate poverty.

Sex

Biological construct based on external genitalia, chromosomes, and reproductive organs.

Intersex

A biological construct referring to individuals who are biologically neither clearly male nor female.

Gender

Social characteristics attached to the biological differences that distinguish

Gender binary

Notion that there are two genders: masculine and feminine

Gender nonconforming

Identifying as a gender that differs from their sex, or not identifying with a particular gender at all

Cisgender

Individuals whose gender identity matches their biological sex

Transgender

Identifying as or expressing a gender identity that differs from a person's sex at birth

Functionalism

Equate sex and gender; men and women are essentially different and complementary-complete each other

Instrumental role

Role typically associated with men in functionalism

Expressive roles

Role typically associated with women in functionalism

Critical feminist

The focus is on gender inequality in societies/institutions

Patriarchy

A system of society in which men have power over women

Sexism

Prejudice or discrimination based on a person's sex or gender

Symbolic interactionist

The social construction of gender

Gender socialization

The process by which we learn our gender and sexual identities and respective roles

Doing gender

Gender as a performance adhering to culturally defined scripts that reproduce inequality

Undoing gender

Deviates from the script to challenge inequality and demonstrates that gender identities are more complex

Occupational segregation

When specific jobs are predominantly held by one gender

Gender wage gap

The difference between the wages of men and women-82 cents to the $

Sexual harassment

Unwanted sexual advances by one individual towards another

Glass ceiling

An invisible barrier preventing women's upward mobility within an organization

Mommy tax

Professional and financial penalties that working mothers often face

Race

A group of people perceived to be distinct because of physical appearance (not genetic makeup)

Ethnicity

Members of an ethnic group share the same cultural heritage (e.g., language, nation of origin, and religion)

One-Drop Rule

A rule that historically determined race, meaning that if you had any trace of Black racial heritage, you were considered Black

Ferguson

An 1896 Supreme Court decision that upheld the constitutionality of racially segregated facilities under the doctrine of 'separate but equal'.

The U.S.

Now people base race on physical attributes, fluid and changing racial categories.

Social construction of race

Ultimately, the social construction of race has served to create and maintain racial hierarchies and inequalities based on power and privilege.

Brazil

Highly based on skin color and other physical attributes, with a high racial diversity and multiracial population.