Intro to Sociology- Midterm

sociological imagination

Wright Mills - the ability to connect personal troubles to public issues

personal troubles vs public issues

Wright Mills - individual problems vs societal problems

historical context

Wright Mills - understanding how history shapes individual experiences

genetically internalized universal social axioms

Christakis - basic social behaviors that are evolutionary

blueprint for society

Christakis - how evolution shapes social cooperation

social networks

Christakis - how human connects form naturally

class conflict

Marx - bourgeoisie vs proletariat

historical materialism

Marx - economic base determines social superstructure (how society organizes its economy determines all other aspects of its society)

Theses on Feuerbach

Marx - “philosphers have only interpreted the world; the point is to change it”

class, status, party

Weber - three dimensions of stratification

class

Weber - economic position

status

Weber - social honor/prestige

party

Weber - political power

authority type: charismatic

Weber - based on personality; ex. MLK Jr.

authority type: traditional

Weber - based on customs; ex. Dalai Lama

authority type: legal-rational

Weber - based on rules/laws; ex. Presidents

protestant ethic

Weber - work ethic driven by religious beliefs; critique of Marx’s materialism

social solidarity

Durkheim - what holds society together; commonalities

mechanical solidarity

Durkheim - traditional societies bound by similarity; solidarity in likeness

organic solidarity

Durkheim - modern societies bound by interdependence; solidarity in difference

division of labor

Durkheim - specialization creates social bonds; ways of increasing functionality within society

conspicuous consumption

Veblen - displaying wealth through expensive goods

status symbols

Veblen - items that signal social position

embodiment

Rahman Khan - how elite students naturally perform privilege

cultural capital

Rahman Khan - knowledge, skills, and tastes that signal class position

gender and privilege

Rahman Khan - how elite males and females perform status differently

types of people: all-weather liberal

Merton - unprejudiced non-discriminator

types of people: fair weather liberal

Merton - unprejudiced discriminator; peer pressured

types of people: fair weather illiberal

Merton - prejudiced non-discriminator; fear of consequence

types of people: all weather illiberal

Merton - prejudiced discriminator

optional ethnicity

Waters - whites can choose to emphasize or ignore ethnic background because of race privilege

racial stereotyping

Waters - how stereotypes affect identity choices and definitions of self

census construction

Waters - how government categories shape identity (ex. race boxes to choose from)

deficit frame/structuralist approach

Urban Black America - emphasizes structural barriers and disadvantages; systemic racism

cultural explanations

Urban Black America - focus on cultural factors in urban poverty

three overtly racist regimes

Frederickson - Nazi Germany, Apartheid South Africa, Jim Crow South

features of overtly racist regimes

Frederickson - official ideology, no interracial marriage, state-led segregation, exclusion from politics, impoverishment

Nazi Germany uniqueness

Frederickson - genocide as the ultimate goal

Jim Crow System

Frederickson - legal segregation and disenfranchisement

shift from dating to hooking up

Bogle - changes in college romantic culture; stigmas for different genders

generalizability

Bogle - whether college studies can apply to non-college populations; what is different about the college environment

work life balance

Motherhood and Work - challenges of combining motherhood and career; disproportionate responsibilities placed on mothers

anticipatory socialization

Motherhood and Work - preparing for future role conflicts

decolonizing gender studies

Global South - moving beyond Western-centric approaches; how has decolonization and colonization impacted gender

intersectionality

Global South - how gender intersects with race, class, nationality

sexual violence in guerrilla camps

Viterna - factors that limited violence in FMLN camps (scarcity, respect, fear of consequence)

gender dynamics in conflict

Viterna - how war affects gender relations

concerted cultivation

Lareau - middle-class parenting style; active intervention

natural growth

Lareau - working class parenting style; less structure and more independence

cultural capital transmission

Lareau - how parents pass advantages to children

world society

Meyer - global cultural frameworks that shape nation-states

isomorphism

Meyer - how new nations adopt similar institutions

global cultural scripts

Meyer - universal models for organizing society

protestant work ethic

Weber - religious motivation for economic activity

calling

Weber - religious concept that sanctifies wordly work

critique of Marx materialism

Weber - “to speak here of a reflection of material conditions in the ideal superstructure would be patent nonsense”

iron cage

Weber - how rational capitalism becomes a trap