Final Exam

Sociological Competence

ability to form relations with others

Sociology

the study of everything happening around you

Sociological Imagination

(Mills) thinking to understand the connections between the forces of society and the personal lives of individuals

Emile Durkheim

father of sociology; invented sui generis

Sui Generis

society isn’t just a sum of its individuals; society can’t be reduced to just the individuals that compose it

C Wright Mills

believed that our lives are strongly shaped by where, when, and to whom we were born

False Consciousness

(Marx) tendency for people to be unable to see things especially exploitation and oppression

Karl Marx

asked why oppressed people aren’t able to see their condition

Social Mobility

movement between different social statuses

Agency

the capacity of individuals to act independently and to make their own free choices

Structure

the recurrent patterned arrangements which influence or limit the choices and opportunities available

Pierre Bourdieu

he asked how are societies reproduced from one generation to the next such that social stability is preserved

Habitus

refers to the deeply ingrained habits, skills, and dispositions we possess due to our life experiences

Cultural Capital

refers to nonmaterial goods such as educational credentials, types of knowledge and expertise, verbal skills, and aesthetic preferences that can be converted into economic capital

Individuals First

concept that believes that societies are composed of individuals who choose to act in concert rather than experience chaos

Society First

larger institutions teach individuals the rules and this influences what they do

Socialization

the process by which individuals learn the rules of functioning in society

Alienation

(Marx) the dehumanizing sense that one’s society is opposed to individual human interest

Pat Sharkey

said that violence can be absorbed and transmitted through neighborhood context

Double Consciousness

(DuBois) the sense that you always need to look at yourself through the eyes of another - measuring your worth by the contempt and pity that others within the world view you with

Critical Thinking

actively seeking to understand, analyze, and evaluate information to solve problems

Objectivity

efforts researchers make to minimize distortions in observations or interpretations due to personal or social values

Ideal Types

(Weber) analytical constructs against which real like cases can be compared

Value Laden Research

when the terminology used can reflect value-based assumptions (taking an objective perspective)

Descriptive Study

goal is merely to explain a concept

Explanatory Study

goal is to find out why things happen in a certain way

Hypothesis

a tentative statement, based on research, theory or prior evidence, that asserts a relationship between two factors

Induction

reasoning from the particular to the general

Deduction

reasoning from the general to the specific

Operationalization

definition of a concept into a term that varies & can be measured

Ethnographic Research

qualitative research method where researchers observe and/or interact with study participants in their real-life environment

Bourgeoisie

(Marx) class who own most of society's wealth and means of production

Proletariat

(Marx) workers or working-class people

Mechanical Solidarity

(Durkheim) connection, cohesion, and integration born from similar work

Organic Solidarity

(Durkheim) social cohesion based upon the dependence individuals have on each other for services

Anomie

(Durkheim) the breakdown and blurring of societal norms which regulate individual conduct

Verstehen

(Weber) the ability to understand individuals or groups from the perspective of the observed

Protestant Ethic

view that a person's duty is to achieve success through hard work

Social Location

where you are situated in relation to others around you

Just World Hypothesis

theory that states all actions have predictable and just consequences

Transgender

a person who identifies psychologically as a gender/sex other than the one to which they were assigned at birth

Cisgender

a person whose gender identity and biological sex assigned at birth align

Homosexual

a person attracted to members of the same sex/gender

Asexual

having a lack of sexual attraction to others and a lack of interest or desire for sex or sexual partners

Pansexual

a person who experiences sexual attraction for members of all gender identities

Intersex

someone whose combination of chromosomes and genitals differs from the two expected patters of male or female

Social Construction

a social phenomenon that was invented by human beings and is shaped by the social forces present in the time and place of its creation

Minority

category of people distinguished by physical or cultural traits, who are socially disadvantaged

Social Stratification

how a society is sorted into different groups

Davis Moore Thesis

the theory that argues that social inequality and stratification are inevitable in every society, as they perform a beneficial function for society

Meritocracy

a system that rewards and punishes based on your merit, talent, and achievement

Economic, Political, and Military Order

what are the 3 institutions that The Power Elite focused on controlling; this was created by C Wright Mills

Social Economic Status

multidimensional measure of social class which includes income, education, and occupation

Social Reproduction

theory focuses on how class-based inequality is transmitted from one generation to the next

Gender Essentialism

the idea that women and men are intrinsically different

Biological Determinism

asserts that our social behavior is determined by our biological characteristics

Emasculated

to have your masculinity taken away, to be seen as weak, and to be shamed

Patriarchy

the idea that men and masculinity are valued above women and femininity

Hegemony

the idea that those in power use it to convince those without power that it is in their best interest to do what is actually in the interest of the powerful

Feminism

the idea that men and women are equal and deserving of equal opportunity and respect

Intersectionality

the idea that the status of each individual varies across all of the components of their social location; there is no “woman’s experience“

Glass Ceiling

idea that women and minorities are underrepresented in the leadership positions of corporations

Glass Escalator

idea that men who enter predominantly female occupations are disproportionately likely to be promoted to leadership positions

Social Institutions

a set of organized beliefs and rules that establishes how society will attempt to meet its basic social needs

Family Institution

a socially recognized group that forms an emotional connection and serves as an economic unit of society

Endogamy

marriage within the tribe, caste, or social group

Exogamy

marriage outside the tribe, caste, or social group

Monogamy

having only one spouse at a time

Polygyny

when a man has more than one wife

Polyandry

when a woman has more than one husband

Social Placement

idea that parents pass on their own social identity to their children at birth

Religion

a system of beliefs, rituals, and ceremonies that focus on sacred matters

Monotheism

belief in a single god

Polytheism

belief in multiple gods

Establishing social cohesion, promoting social control, and providing meaning and purpose

What are Durkheim’s three major functions of religion that contribute to the operation of society?

Conflict Theory

this theory by Karl Marx states that people focus on otherworldly concerns and not on each other

Symbolic Interaction Theory

(Blumer) theory that seeks to understand humans' relationship with their society by focusing on the symbols that help us give meaning to the experiences in our life

Protestant Work Ethic

the discplined commitment to worldly labor by desire to bring glory to God

Functionalist Perspective

focuses on religion as a source of social integration and unification

Conflict Perspective

focuses on religion as a potential obstacle to structural social change

Feminist Perspective

focuses on religion as an instrument of women’s subordination, except for their role in religious socialization

Interactionist Perspective

focuses on individual religious expression through belief, ritual, and experience

Capitalism

when the means of production are privately owned

Socialism

collective ownership of the means of production

Communism

communal ownership of all property

Political System

institution that regulates the use of and access to the power

Monachary

headed by a single member of a royal usually a king, queen, or some other hereditary ruler

Oligarchy

a form of government in which a few individuals rule

Dictatorship

a government in which one person has nearly all the power to make and enforce law

Totalitarianism

complete government control over all aspects of a society’s social and political life

Democracy

government by the people

Medical Sociology

the study of health care as it is institutionalized in a society, and of health, or illness, and its relationship to social factors

Life Expectancy

the average number of years a person born in a given year can expect to live

Maternal Mortality Rate

number of women who dies in the process of giving birth for every 1,000 live births

Morbidity

the amount of disease, impairment, and accidents in a population

Incidence

number of new cases added to the population in a given periodP

Prevalence

total number of cases at a given time

Etiology

identification of the causes of disease patterns

Proximate Risk Factors

health-related individual behaviors that lead to disease

Fundamental Causes

underlying social conditions that lead to disease