Sociology Exam 1, John Carl, Think Sociology, Think Sociology (John Carl) Ch. 1, 2, 3

Random Sample

is a group of subjects arbitrarily chosen from a defined population

Generalization

is the extent that what is learned from a sample can be applied to the population from which the sample is taken

Causal Relationship

is one in which a condition or variable leads to a certain consequence

Causation

the relationship between cause and effect

Correlation

is an indication that one factor might be a cause for another factor

Positive Correlation

involves two variables moving in parallel direction

Negative Correlation

occurs when the variables move in opposite direction

Spurious Correlation

occurs when two variables appear to be related, but actually have a different name

Milgram Study

points out that subjects would shock others to unconsciousness on the command of a stranger who represented authority - most people follow orders even if it is against their better judgment (conducted at Yale)

Hawthorne Effect

coined for occurrences in which people behave differently because they know they are a part of an experiement

Postman

"assuming ourselves to death"

Tearoom trade

impersonal sex in public places

Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis

suggested that language and thinking patterns are directly connected

1.differences in the structure of language parallel differences in the thinking of the people who speak languages

2.the structure of a language strongly influences the speaker's worldview

Xenophobia

refers to fear and hostility toward people who are from other countries or cultures

Xenocentrism

perceiving other groups or societies as superior to your own

Ethnocentrism

occurs when a person uses his or her own culture to judge another culture

Cultural Relativism

consists on a deliberate effort to appreciate a group's way of life within it's own context

Assimilation

process by which minority groups adopt the patterns of the dominant culture

Culture Lag

happens when social and cultural changes occur at a slower pace than technological changes

Communitarian

society functions properly - must have communal values (connection between the individual and the community)

Culture

language, beliefs, values, norms, behaviors, and material objects that are important enough to pass on to future generations of a society

Material Culture

Consists of items within a culture that you can taste, touch, and feel

Non-material Culture

consists of the non-physical products of society including symbols, values, rules, and sanctions

Culture Shock

personal disorientation a person may feel when experiencing an unfamiliar way of life due to immigration or a visit to a new country, a move between social environments, or simply travel to another type of life

Sanctions

prize or punishment you receive when you either abide by a norm or violate it

Symbols

represent, suggest, or stand for something else

Values

are a part of society's non-material culture that represent cultural standards by which we determine what is good, bad, right, or wrong

Folkways

informal types or norms - framework for our behavior and are based on social expectations

Robin Williams list of 15 American Values

1. achievement and success

2. activity and work

3. moral orientation

4. humanitarianism

5. efficiency and practicality

6. progress

7. material comfort

8. equality

9. freedom

10. external conformity

11. science and secular rationality

12. nationalism and patriotism

13. democracy

14. individual personality

15. racism and related group superiority

Sociology

science guided by the basic understanding that the "social matters: our lives are affected not only by our individual characteristics but by our place in the social world"

Father of Sociology?

August Comte

Egoistic Suicide

Mentally ill, lonley -- depression

Altruistic Suicide

Suicide bombers, cult members -- obligation to group

Fatalistic Suicide

Elderly, inmates, terminally ill -- hopelessness

Anomic Suicide

anyone who can't deal with chaos -- insecurity (ex: stock market crash, 9/11)

Solidarity

refers to the level of connected-ness a person feels to others in the environment

Social Control

refers to the social mechanisms that regulate a person's actions

Paradigm

theoretical framework through which scientists study the world

Functionalism

a theoretical paradigm that defines society as a system of interrelated parts (August Comte, Herbert Spencer, Emile Durkheim, Talcott Parsons, Robert Merton)

Social Laws

Comte felt one should discover these -> statements of facts that are unchanging and can be used as ground rules for any society

Social Statics

existing structural elements of society

Social Dynamics

the change in those elements (social statics)

Mechanical Solidarity

refers to the state of community bonding in traditional societies in which people share beliefs and values and perform common activities

Organic Solidarity

occurs when people live in a society with a diverse division of labor (more complex societies)

Manifest Functions

functions that lead to an expected consequence or outcome

Latent Functions

functions that lead to unforeseen or unexpected consequences

Conflict Theory

theoretical framework that views society in a struggle for scarce resources ; parts of society are very unequal, those with power get their way, elite at the top determine the rules for those on the bottom (Karl Marx, Jane Addams, W.E.B. Du Bois, Harriet Martineau, John Bellamy Foster)

Karl Marx

analyzed the effects of capitalism: an economic system in which private individuals own businesses and control the economy

Bourgeosie

refers to members of the capitalist class

Proletariat

members of the poor working class

False Consciousness

lack of understanding of their position in society

Class Consciousness

understanding of one's position in the system

Critics of the Conflict Theory

say it was too radical "powerful people oppress the weak"

Symbolic Interactionism

focuses on how communication influences the way people's interactions with each others create the social world we live in (Erving Goffman, George Herbert Mead, Howard Becker, Herbert Blumer)

A theoretical

framework that focuses on how people

interact with others in their everyday lives

Labels are attached to certain individuals, this practice sets up the self-fulfilling prophecy as people try to match their behaviors to their labels

George Herbert Mead

(founded symbolic interactionism) after his death, his students combined his notes, lectures, etc. into a book "Mind, Self, and Society"; suggested that the root of society is the symbols that teach us to understand the world

Herbert Blumer

established 3 basic premises that define symbolic interactionism:

1. humans behave toward things on basis of the meanings they ascribe to those things

2. the meanings of such things is derived from the social interaction that one has with others and society

3. these meanings are handled in and modified through an interpretive process used by the person in dealing with the thing he or she encounters

Functionalism and Conflict theory overlap-

everything in the social world exists because it has both an intended outcome and an unintended outcome

-power differentials often indicate for whom things are functional and for whom they are not

Conflict theory and Symbolic Interactionism overlap-

Inequality exists in the social world because of differences between different group's wealth and power

-people in power create labels and assign them to others and these labels influence the outcomes of the individual

Verstehen

German term that means to understand, perceive, know, and comprehend the nature and significance of a phenomenon.

-empathetic understanding of human behavior-

Elliot Liebow

"In Tell Them Who I Am: The Lives of Homeless Women", a professor and sociologist who gives a voice to the homeless women he encounters. The homeless are no longer anonymous people on the street corner; then how have names and faces.

Wayne Baker Thesis

his survey research on values, where he documented Americans' core values. His data show Americans share more core values than news media and political campaigns will admit: including patriotism, belief in God, individualism, success, equal opportunities, freedom and liberty, respect and the free market

Multiculturalism

co-existence of diverse cultures, where culture includes racial, religious, or cultural groups and is manifested in customary behaviours, cultural assumptions and values, patterns of thinking, and communicative styles

Norms

social expectations that guide behavior

Informal Sanction

include shame, ridicule, sarcasm, criticism, and disapproval, which can cause an individual to stray towards the social norms of the society

McDonaldization

Sociologist George Ritzer explains that it becomes manifested when a culture adopts the characteristics of a fast-food restaurant

Sociology

A science guided by the

basic understanding that "the social

matters: our lives are affected not only by

our individual characteristics but by our

place in the social world"

Sociological Imagination

The ability to

look beyond the individual as the cause for

success and failure and see how one's

society influences the outcome

- Developing a this helps

you understand your place in a complex world

Types of Suicide

- Egoistic suicides are suicides that result

from a lack of solidarity

- Altruistic suicides are suicides that occur

when the level of solidarity is exceptionally

high

- Fatalistic suicides are suicides that result

from a lack of social control

- Anomic suicides are suicides that occur as a

result of social unrest

What are the Major

Sociological Paradigms?

A paradigm refers to a theoretical framework

through which scientists study the world

-Functionalism

-Conflict Theory

-Symbolic Interactionalism

Emerging Paradigms: Feminist Theory

- seeks to answer how the

social world is ordered around gender. How

do race, ethnicity, social class and age

interact with gender to determine the outcome

of individuals?

- Three types of theories

Gender inequality theory

Gender oppression

Structural oppression

Emerging Paradigms: Exchange Theory

- Social experiences consist of a series of

rewards and costs

- People seek to maximize rewards and

minimize costs, which leads to social action

- In calculating the value of this, one

must consider short-term rewards and longterm

consequences

Emerging Paradigms: Environmental Theory

- This theory seeks to blend social thought and

ecological principles to discover how

environmental policies and justice influence

society

- Theorists seek to understand

how societies adjust to ecological changes

- For environmental sociology human beings

are merely one of many organisms sharing

the ecological space

Auguste Compte

He coined the

word sociology and also started one

thinking about the functionalist paradigm

- Comte felt one should discover social laws or

statements of fact that are unchanging under

given conditions and can be used as ground

rules for any kind of society

- He proposed that one study social statics or

the existing structural elements of society and

social dynamics or the change in the

structural elements of society

The Functionalist Worldview

is a theoretical framework

that sees society as a system of

interrelated parts

- These parts work in concert with one another

to satisfy the needs of the society as a whole

- Social institutions are critical for society to

function properly

- Functionalism suggest that a society's values

and norms provide the foundation for the rules

and laws that it creates

Herbert Spencer

He was a

British intellectual who furthered the

development of functionalism

- applied the theory of Darwin to

sociology

- For him, some species were more fit than

others to thrive and survive. He used social

Darwinism - a notion that suggests strong

societies survive and weak ones become

extinct

Emile Durkheim

Viewed society as an organism

- used an analytical approach to

studying society

- He suggested that solidarity was a vital

component of society

Society as an Organism

• Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) viewed

society as an organism

- Mechanical solidarity refers to the state of

community bonding in traditional societies in

which people share beliefs and values and

perform common activities

- Organic solidarity occurs when people live

in a society with a large division of labor.

Complex societies have organic solidarity.

Functionalism in the U.S

as a sociological paradigm

also gained ground in the United States

- Albion Small created the first department of

sociology in 1892 at the University of Chicago

- Talcott Parsons, an important American

sociologist was influenced and expanded the

functionalist paradigm

Talcott Parsons

was interested in creating grand theories that

attempted to explain most aspects of

human experience and how social

systems interconnect

- He looked at society as independent but

interrelated parts

- If one part broke down it had repercussions

for the entire system

- Analyzed the inertia of the social

system

In society things at rest tend to stay a rest, unless

some force causes them to change.

- Thus, society finds a status-quo and is

unlikely to change from that without some

event causing it to move and change.

Robert Merton

sought to create a middle range theory that could

bridge the gap between grand theories

and the study of individual parts of society

- One of His greatest contributions to

functionalism was his understanding that

social realities have both intended and

unintended functions, which are social

factors that affect people in society

- Manifest functions are functions that lead to

an expected consequence

- Latent functions are functions that lead to

unforeseen or unexpected consequences

Criticisms of Functionalism

• In the mid-20th century functionalism was

the dominant theoretical approach in

sociology

- Critics claim that the paradigm does not take

into consideration how the use of wealth and

power influence society

- Functionalist emphasize the social structures

of society and are accused of supporting the

status quo

The Conflict Theorist's

Worldview

A theoretical framework

that views society in a struggle for scarce

resources

- The parts of society are very unequal

- Those with power tend to get their way.

- The elite at the top determine the rules for

those below

- Conflict theorists examine struggles between

different groups in society

- Because of inequality conflict between groups

is to be expected.

- Conflict theorists like functionalists tend to

focus on macro processes

Harriet Martineau

She focused on the inequalities of the sexes

- She analyzed the impact of slavery and

the position of women in U.S. society

- She observed that only white men could vote

despite democratic ideals

- Enslaved people and women did not have

equal rights

- She expanded the conflict paradigm

W.E.B. Du Bois

He was an

African American sociologist

- He initiated the study of race in America

- In his book the Philadelphia Negro, He

showed that poverty among blacks was

largely the result of prejudice and

discrimination

- Capitalism and problems of history, including

colonialism led to the inferior position of

blacks

- African Americans had to live in two worlds,

one white and one black which he termed

"double consciousness"

Jane Adams

participated in

and wrote about the life of the poor

- She helped initiate the Hull house movement

in Chicago. Her work was based on 3

principles

1.Workers would live in the slums to better

understand the problems there

2.Every person has dignity and worth regardless of

race/ethnicity, gender or social class

3.Dedication, education, and service can overcome

ignorance, disease and other problems often

associated with poverty

John Bellamy Foster

writes about the

negative effects of capitalism

- In free-market capitalism, businesses seek

short-term rewards by working to expand

markets

- Businesses pursuit of profit has created

environmental and global problems including

extreme global poverty and inequality

- The totally free market and capitalism will

reach a point where it will be impossible to

expand further reaching a stagnant point

- By keeping the poor of the world in poverty,

capitalism will fail to create the markets it

needs to maintain itself and expand.

- It is a flawed system.

The Symbolic Interactionist

Worldview

focus on how

communication influences the way

people's interactions with each other

create the social world in which we live

- Symbolic interactionists believe that the root

of society comes from its symbols which vary

from society to society

- Symbols include language, pictures, flags,

nonverbal communication, etc.

- Symbolic interactionists see society as fluid

- They employ a micro orientation to society

George Herbert Mead

founded symbolic interactionism

- He suggests the root of society is the

symbols that teach us to understand the world

- The building blocks of society start with our

minds, the place we interpret symbols

- We learn to interpret symbols in interaction

with others, in this way the self or a person's

identity and what makes the person different

from others develops

• He emphasized symbols as the key to

society

Erving Goffman

developed a

theory called dramaturgy

- Dramaturgy is a theory of interaction in which

all life is like acting

- His primary insight is that we are

constantly trying to manage the impressions

that others have of us

- Impression management is the action we use

to control what others think of us

Howard Becker

suggests that human

action is related to the labels attached to it

- He believes that a label is attached to a

certain behavior when a group with powerful

social status labels it deviant

- He suggests that deviance is rooted in the

reactions and responses of others to an

individual's act

- Labeling theory applies to all identity issues

including gender, sexual orientation and

personal identity

Criticism of Symbolic

Interactionism

Critics suggest that this perspective ignores the coercive

effects of social structure

- Symbolic interactionists focus too much on

the power of the individual to co-create his or

her world

- We are limited by our culture, status and time

and place we are born

Max Weber - Theorist who

Transcends Categorization

does not fall neatly into any of

the 3 paradigms

- He emphasized how values influence our

goals in the Protestant Ethic which appears

to lay the foundation for the symbolic

interactionists

- He wrote partly as a response to Marx

about the multidimensional aspects of social

class so one might see him as a conflict

theorist

- He also analyzed bureaucracies and how they

function in society