Chapters 6 to 9: Friendship, Love, Sexuality, Dating, and Marriage

A complete set of vocabulary flashcards covering the key sociological concepts, theories, and terms from Chapters 6, 7, 8, and 9.

Friendship

A voluntary relationship involving companionship, trust, support, and shared experiences.

Biological perspective of love

Explains love through hormones, brain activity, genetics, and evolutionary processes.

Sociological perspective of love

Explains how culture, social norms, and society influence love and relationships.

Attachment theory

The theory that early relationships with caregivers influence how people form emotional bonds.

Secure attachment

Feeling comfortable with closeness, trust, and emotional connection.

Anxious attachment

Worrying about rejection or whether others care about you.

Avoidant attachment

Feeling uncomfortable with emotional closeness or depending on others.

Disorganized attachment

A pattern of conflicting or inconsistent responses to closeness.

Reiss' wheel of love theory

A theory that describes love as developing through rapport, self-revelation, mutual dependency, and personality need fulfillment.

Rapport

Developing a connection or understanding with another person.

Self-revelation

Sharing personal information and feelings with someone.

Mutual dependency

Two people increasingly relying on one another.

Personality need fulfillment

A relationship meeting important emotional and interpersonal needs.

Sternberg's triangular theory of love

A theory that identifies intimacy, passion, and commitment as the three components of love.

Intimacy

Emotional closeness, trust, and sharing.

Passion

Physical attraction, romantic excitement, and desire.

Commitment

Deciding to maintain a relationship over time.

Liking

Love involving intimacy without passion or commitment.

Infatuation

Love involving passion without intimacy or commitment.

Empty love

Love involving commitment without intimacy or passion.

Romantic love (Sternberg's triangular theory)

Love involving intimacy and passion.

Companionate love

Love involving intimacy and commitment.

Fatuous love

Love involving passion and commitment without intimacy.

Consummate love

Love involving intimacy, passion, and commitment.

Lee's six love styles

Eros, Ludus, Storge, Pragma, Mania, and Agape.

Eros

Passionate, romantic love.

Ludus

Playful love that treats romance like a game.

Storge

Love that develops gradually from friendship.

Pragma

Practical love based on compatibility and life goals.

Mania

Intense, possessive, or anxious love.

Agape

Selfless love focused on giving and caring for another person.

Micro-level factors

Individual characteristics and direct interactions that influence relationships.

Macro-level factors

Larger social influences, such as culture, religion, laws, and economic conditions.

Narcissism

Excessive self-focus and a strong need for admiration.

Jealousy

A response to a perceived threat to a valued relationship.

Stalking

Repeated unwanted attention or contact that causes fear or concern for safety.

Romantic love

Love often characterized by passion, attraction, and excitement.

Long-term love

Love that often emphasizes commitment, trust, companionship, and emotional closeness.

Sexual identity

How a person understands and identifies their sexuality.

Sexual orientation

A person's pattern of romantic, emotional, or sexual attraction.

Heterosexual

A person attracted to a different gender.

Homosexual

A person attracted to the same gender.

Bisexual

A person attracted to more than one gender.

Asexual

A person who experiences little or no sexual attraction.

Intersex

Having sex characteristics that do not fit typical definitions of male or female bodies.

Transgender

Having a gender identity that differs from the sex assigned at birth.

Transsexual

A historical term used by some people who identify with medical transition; individual preferences for the term vary.

Heterosexism

Beliefs or practices that treat heterosexuality as the default or superior orientation.

Homophobia

Negative attitudes, prejudice, or hostility toward gay people or homosexuality.

Sexual scripts

Socially learned expectations about how sexual or romantic situations should happen.

Gender norms

Social expectations about how people should behave based on gender.

Biological theories of sexual orientation

Explanations that examine genetics, hormones, prenatal development, and other biological influences.

Social constructionist theories

Explanations that examine how society shapes the meanings, categories, and expectations associated with sexuality.

LGBT population estimates

Estimates of LGBT people that vary because of differences in identity, attraction, behavior, survey methods, and willingness to disclose.

Social exchange theory

A theory that examines relationships in terms of perceived rewards, costs, and alternatives.

Sexual frequency

How often sexual activity occurs.

Marital sex

Sexual activity within marriage.

Manifest functions of dating

The intended purposes of dating, such as companionship and finding a partner.

Latent functions of dating

Unintended or less obvious outcomes of dating, such as developing social skills.

Hanging out

Informal socializing that may or may not be romantic.

Getting together

Meeting socially, with romantic intentions depending on the situation.

Hooking up

An informal term for casual sexual or romantic activity; the exact meaning varies.

Friends with benefits

Friends who engage in sexual activity without necessarily having a committed romantic relationship.

Personal classified advertisements

Advertisements in which people describe themselves and the partners they hope to meet.

Professional matchmaking

A service that helps people find potential partners based on preferences or compatibility.

Speed dating

An organized event where people have brief conversations with multiple potential partners.

Online dating

Using websites or apps to meet potential romantic partners.

Filter theory

A theory that describes how people narrow their pool of potential partners using criteria such as proximity, attraction, and compatibility.

Halo effect

When one positive characteristic influences a person's overall impression of someone.

Heterogamy

Choosing a partner with different characteristics.

Homogamy

Choosing a partner with similar characteristics.

Hypergamy

Partnering with someone of higher social status.

Hypogamy

Partnering with someone of lower social status.

Principle of least interest

The idea that the person who is less invested in a relationship may have more bargaining power.

Dating violence

Abuse or controlling behavior within a dating relationship.

Physical abuse

Using physical force to harm or intimidate someone.

Emotional abuse

Using threats, humiliation, intimidation, or manipulation to harm or control someone.

Digital abuse

Using technology to monitor, harass, threaten, or control a partner.

Date rape

Sexual assault occurring in the context of a date or dating relationship.

Acquaintance rape

Sexual assault committed by someone the victim knows.

Singlehood

The state of being unmarried.

Postponement of marriage

Delaying marriage for reasons such as education, career development, finances, or finding a compatible partner.

Voluntary temporary singles

People who choose to remain single for now but may want a partner later.

Voluntary stable singles

People who prefer to remain single.

Involuntary temporary singles

People who want a partner but have not found a suitable one yet.

Involuntary stable singles

People who want a partner but expect finding one to remain difficult.

Living alone

Living in a household by oneself rather than with other household members.

Sex ratio

The number of males per $100$ females in a population.

Female infanticide

The killing of a female infant, sometimes associated with son preference and gender inequality.

Marriage squeeze

An imbalance in the number of potential partners that makes finding a partner more difficult for some groups.

Social capital

Resources and support available through relationships and social networks.

Financial capital

Money and financial assets available to a person or household.

Cohabitation

Living together in an intimate relationship without being legally married.

Marriage

A socially and legally recognized union between partners.

Companionship

Enjoying spending time with and supporting another person.

Compatibility

The extent to which people have matching values, interests, goals, or lifestyles.

The eight qualities of friendship

Affection, trust, loyalty, honesty, reciprocity, shared interests, emotional support, companionship