SOCI 2651 Exam 1

sociological imagination

C. Wright Mills

The vivid awareness of the relationship between personal experience (private troubles) and wider society (public issues)

example: infertility; when one couple can’t have a baby it’s a private issue, but when increasing numbers of couples never have a baby it’s a public issue called the declining fertility rate

genealogy

the study of ancestry and family history

families

groups of people bound by connections that are biological, legal or emotional

personal, legal and institutional

personal family

people to whom we feel related and who we expect to define us as members of their family as well

legal family

group of individuals related by birth, marriage or adoption

sociologists rely on this definition

can be enforced nationally

defense of marriage act

federal government did not recognize same-sex married couples as married even if their marriages were legally recognized by home states

refuted by US v. Windsor

institutional arena

social space in which relations between people in common positions are governed by accepted rules of interaction

family is included in this

when a social position is accompanied by accepted patterns of behavior, it becomes a role

family arena

institutional arena where people practice intimacy, childbearing, socialization and caring work

state

institutional arena where, through political means, behavior is legally regulated, violence is controlled and resources are redistributed

example: marriage license, divorce

market

institutional arena where labor for pay, economic exchange and wealth accumulation take place

Family Medical Leave Act

government requires large companies to give most workers time off if a family member is sick

interaction of state and market

household

used to be defined by the name of the head of the household and then the group of people who share a common dining table

now we just use the legal definition of family, but they must live in one household

fictive kin

someone who isn’t related by birth, adoption or marriage, but is still considered part of the family emotionally

Scarborough 11

3 couples, their children and two adults wanted to live together and identified as a family

however, Hartford’s zoning law forbid it

they were personally considered a family, but not legally

counted out: same sex relations

analyzed series of close-ended and open-ended questions between 2003-2006 to see who participants defined as a family

presented 11 different living arrangements to participants

consensus perspective

projects an image of society as the collective expression of shared norms and values

an ancient view that sees order as the core of life

structural functionalism, breadwinner family

structural functionalism

Durkheim; asked what the function of patterns of behaviors are, assumes that there is good reasons that things are the way they are

parts work together to promote stability, equilibrium and balance

each part fulfills different functions of the social system

manifest and latent functions

consensus perspective

breadwinner-homemaker family

employed father, nonemployed mother and their children

consensus perspective

conflict perspective

opposition and conflict define a given society and are necessary for social evolution

developed out of reaction to structural functionalism

focused on competing interests of family members to understand family problems

feminist theory

seeks to understand and ultimately reduce inequality between men and women

conflict perspective

gender inequality is central to family life

men are socialized to be dominant, family structure is a social structure

race, ethnicity and class affect family life dynamics

exchange theory

sociological theory of love

individuals or groups have different resources, strengths and weaknesses and enter mutual relationships to maximize their gains

Becker - husbands and wives make joint decisions to maximize benefits that all family members share

we keep a mental tally of what we give and receive, we want it to be equal

under benefitting and over benefitting is bad

symbolic interactionism

people transmit and receive symbolic communication when they interact, we think about ourselves and others based on these interactions

social roles are symbols whose meaning exists only when they are acted out in relation to other people

each person’s reality is variable and changing

we need to observe family behavior to see how family roles are defined and what they mean

modernity theory

emergence of the individual as an actor in society and how individuality changed personal and institutional relations

family wage

wage that was paid to male workers with stay-at-home wives

demographic perspective

study family behavior and household structures that contribute to larger population processes

interested in childbirth

life course perspective

study family trajectories of individuals and groups as they progress through their lives

demographic perspective

cohort

a group of people who experience an event together at the same point in time

were 1049 marriage rights denied to gay people?

no. the 1049 comes from laws that involve marriage and those that penalize married couples.

exclusionists

see marriage as fundamental to being a family

over 64, high school education or less, more religious more likely

moderates

having kids is fundamental to being a family

not necessarily married, but couples need to have a common interest (like cohabitating)

inclusionist

see relationship quality as what matters for family

women, minorities, under 30, with college degree more likely

prototypical family

husband, wife and children

social construct

a social mechanism, phenomenon or category created and developed by society; a perception of an individual, group or idea that is constructed through cultural or social practice

if it varies across time or space

theory

a statement of how and why specific facts are related

example: high stress in parents leads to poorly adjusted children

spurious relationship

two relationships are related, but not causally

theoretical perspective

a basic image of society that guides thinking and research

manifest function

structural functionism; apparent and intended functions of institutions in society

example: we sleep in same bed because more likely to be intimate

latent function

structural functionalism; serves role of society, but not necessarily intended

example: we feel more loved when we sleep in same bed, keeps people together longer

teleological

can’t test something empirically

structural functionalism

questions that structural functionalists ask

what contribution did the addition of master-planned communities make to family life?

how do parents and step-parents work together to ensure children of divorce get what they need to succeed?

how do children adapt to the loss of a parent?

questions a symbolic interactionist would ask

how do media representations of mothers impact public perceptions of appropriate and inappropriate behavior of women?

how do grandparents define themselves and how does this definition impact their involvement with grandchildren?

how do children understand their parents expectations and train in response to these expectations?

bias

the tendency to impose previously held views on the collection and interpretation of facts

sample survey

identical questions are asked of many different people and their answers are gathered into one large data file

random selection helps ensure that we are not misled by results

longitudinal surveys

interview the same people over time

essential for understanding the sequence of events

time consuming and expensive

example: current population survey (CPS) conducted every month and includes questions on family structure

Annette Lareau

inserted herself into the lives of 12 families for a month each

learned things about people that they would not reveal if asked

revealed contrasts in parenting style

time use studies

collect data on how family members spend their time

big data

data large enough to require special computing resources and complex enough to require customized computer apps

allows us to see people’s actual behavior

ethnographic research

method of gathering data about individuals’ thoughts, behaviors and experiences in the context of their everyday lives

typically uncover hidden data

offers check that participants aren’t exaggerating

Three city study

ethnographic research that showed that domestic violence and sexual abuse were far more central to understanding low-income women’s experience

three patterns: disclosure 71%, crisis or recent event disclosure 20%, prompted disclosure 10%

ideal type

formed from characteristics and elements of a given phenomena, but not meant to correspond to all of the characteristics of any one particular cause

meant to stress certain elements common to most cases

theoretical perspectives are ___

example: ___ of a college student (18-22, tuition, laptops, etc)

temporal order

the cause must come earlier in time than the effect

difficult to establish with cross-sectional data because of reverse causality

empirical association

the co-occurrence of two events, characteristics or factors so that when one happens or is present, the other is likely to happen or be present as well

causal mechanism

the part of the causal explanation that specifies the process by which the primary IV influences the primary DV

experiments

the only method that can establish causality

secondary data analysis

when someone analyzes readily available data

content analysis

combination of qualitative and quantitative methods

Prehistoric family

Stone age - buried family arrangements (not just nuclear) together

most families were monogamous, but some were polygamous

colonial American family

Indians - family as social structure (respect for elders, reliance on extended family, nonbiological relation, matrilineal descent, monogamy, gendered division of labor, relations more equal among men and women)

Colonial Americans - marriage as practical, husband authority, supported by Church, woman’s property was her husband’s, patrilineal descent, large families, children worked, did not live with extended family, nuclear

African Americans - separated families, most lived in families at some point in their life

coverture

a wife’s legal existence disappeared when she got married and she was incorporated into her husband’s citizenship

stem family

household formed by one grown child with their parents (colonial americans)

emerging modern family

democracy and industrialism

men as breadwinners and women as homemakers

individual choice in marriage, companionship and love valued more

courtship

drop in number of children

individuality of children

most adults did not live with parents

separate spheres (home vs work) created by industrial revolution

household more private

POC families separated by slavery, chinese exclusion act, and travelling for work

conjugal family

families connected by marriage

consanguineal families

connected by bloodline

Indian Welfare Act of 1975

put in place as a high percentage of Native children were involuntarily removed from their homes and placed in non-relative, non-Native homes

allowed Native families to have jurisdiction over where their children were being placed

only intended to protect “real Natives”

companionship family

men and women as friends and romantic partners

a 1950s ideal, not reality

dating

replaced courtship, young adults spent time with a variety of partners before making long-term commitments

baby boom

period of high birth rates (after declining rates as Americans married younger) between 1946-1964

result of economic depression from the 20s and prosperity after war

biological view of love

love is grounded in evolution, biology, and neurochemistry

the formation of a long-term relationships is necessary to continue a species

Helen fisher’s 3 stages of love (lust, attraction, attachment)

Lust (Fisher)

First stage, animal attraction, desire to have sex

driven by testosterone and estrogen

attraction (Fisher)

stage 2; commonly thought of as love

driven by adrenaline, cortisol, dopamine and serotonin

activates stress response (adrenaline and cortisol), increases focus and delight (dopamine)

serotonin levels of new lovers = that of OCD patients

makes us want to stay together long enough to enter attachment

attachment (Fisher)

deep love and sense of security

keeps couples together long enough to have and raise children

driven by oxytocin and vasopressin

attachment theory

depending on our parent’s behaviors, we developed a style of attachment that affects our behavior in close relationships

adaptive

come from life experiences, not just parents

not very predictive

social script

a commonly understood pattern of interaction that serves as a model of behavior in familiar situations

love

a deep affection and concern for another with whom one feels a strong emotional bond

romantic love

passionate devotion and attraction one person feels for another

ideal

love is unique and permanent

utilitarian love

practical, rational dedication of one person to another based on shared understanding and emotional commitment

reflects modern culture

romantic relationship

a general term that refers to mutually acknowledged, ongoing interactions featuring heightened affection and intensity

covid-19 effect on relationships

accelerated trajectory (advanced or break-up)

prompted sexual introspecion

having a partner tied to health safety

digital intimacy played a larger role

assortative mating

nonrandom mating pattern in which individuals with similar characteristics mate with one another more frequently than would be expected under a random mating pattern

homogamy

dating or marrying someone with similar traits and backgrounds to our own

matching hypothesis

homogamy; like attracts like, people who are similar end up getting married because we like others who are like us

favored by evidence

varies by trait

competition hypothesis

homogamy; everyone wants the best, but since love has to be reciprocated, we end up matching with someone similar

varies by trait

Becker’s economic model of marriage

positive and negative assortative mating

positive assortative mating

becker; like will marry like when traits are complements (lifestyle, attractiveness, religion)

matching hyp

negative assortative mating

Becker; traits are substitutes when there are gains to specialization

competition hyp

heterogamy

dating or marrying someone with different traits and backgrounds to our own

hookup culture

a space in which hooking up is seen as the only or best way in which people should be having sexual relations; has been institutionalized by colleges

most involve drinking and a high level of masculinity

orgasm cap

women report fewer orgasms (1 in 3) than men in heterosexual encounters

mate selection

how and why people choose each other or end up together

homophily

principle by which similar people have more given kind of contact than dissimilar people

endogamy

marriage and reproduction within a specific group

enforced by utilitarian love

wedding industrial complex

conjunction of an immense culture of judgment and social expectations and a large professionalized wedding industry

weddings are expensive, wedding dresses are a symbol of status

engagement rings are a symbol of love

symbolic value of marriage

Cherlin; means that someone has a good life and that people made it as a couple

a symbol of having a first-class personal life

price discrimination

couples are charged up to 4x more for services simply because they’re having a wedding

little price transparency

venues often won’t disclose their prices right away - they want your personal info first so they can estimate how much to charge you

price obfuscation

prices of wedding services never are the “full price”

consumers are uninformed

most people getting married are first-time shoppers, they don’t know what a fair price is

appeal to consumers’ sentimentality

couples are urged not to cheap out on the most important day of their lives

strong consumer preferences

wedding consumers have strong preferences and will not let them go for a “sale” of something else

masters (Gottman)

still happily together after 6 years

showed low physiological arousal

felt calm and connected together, which translated into warm and affectionate behavior, even when they fought