Principles of Economics 3e Chapter Three

Sociological Imagination

The application of imaginative thought to the asking and answering of sociological questions.

Social Structure

The underlying regularities or patterns in how people behave in their relationships with others.

Social Construction

An idea or practice that a group of people agrees exists. It is maintained overtime by people taking its existence for granted.

Socialisation

The social processes in which children develop an awareness of social norms and values and achieve a distinct sense of self.

Social Facts

The aspects of social life that shape our actions as individuals. It was believed that social facts could be studied scientifically

Organic Solidarity

The social cohesion that results from the various parts of a society functioning as an integrated whole

Social Constraint

The conditioning influence on our behavior of the groups and societies of which we are members. Social constraint was regarded by Émile Durkheim as one of the distinctive properties of social facts

Division of Labor

The specialization of work tasks by means of which different occupations are combined with a production system

Anomie

Referring to a situation in which social norms lose their hold over individual behavior

Materialistic Conception of History

Developed by Marx according to which material or economic factors have a prime role in determining historical change

Capitalism

An economic system based on the private ownership of wealth which is invested then reinvested in order to produce profit

Bureaucracy

A type of organization marked by a clear hierarchy of authority and the existence of written rules of procedure and staffed by full-time, salaried officers

Symbolic Interactionism

A theoretical approach in sociology developed by George Herbert Mead that emphasizes the role of symbols and language as core elements in all human interaction

Symbol

One item used to stand for or represent another

Functionalism

A theoretical perspective based on the notion that social events can best be explained in terms of functions they perform. (the contributions they make to society)

Manifest Functions

The functions of a type of social activity that are known and intended by the individuals involved in that activity

Latent Functions

Functional consequences that are not intended or recognized by the members of a social system in which they occur

Marxism

A body of thought deriving its main elements from the ideas of Karl Marx

Power

The ability of individuals or the members of a group to achieve aims or further interests they hold. It's a persuasive element in all of human relationships

Ideologies

Shared ideas or beliefs that serve to justify the interests of dominant groups

Feminist Theory

A sociological perspective that emphasizes the centrality of gender in analyzing the social world and particularly the uniqueness of the experience of women

Rational Choice Approach

More broadly, the theory that an individual's behavior is purposive. Deviant behavior is a rational response to a specific social situation

Postmodernism

The belief that society is no longer governed by history or progress. It's highly pluralistic and diverse with no "grand narrative" guiding its development

Micro sociology

The study of human behavior in contexts if face-to-face interactions

Macro sociology

The study of large-scale groups, organizations, or social systems