Soc Exam 3

Anomie

Durkheim's term for the loss of direction felt in a society when social control of individual behavior has become ineffectivw

Anomie theory of deviance

Robert Merton's theory of deviance as an adaptation of socially prescribed goals or of the means governing their attainment, or both

Conformity

Going along with peers

Control theory

A view of conformity and deviance that suggests that our connection to members of society elads us to systematically conform to society's norms

Crime

A violation of criminal law for which some governmental authority applies formal penalties

Cultural transmission

A school of criminology that argues that criminal behavior is learned through social interactions

Cybercrime

Illegal activity primarily conducted through computer hardware or software

Deviance

Behavior that violates the standards of conduct or expectations of a group or society

Differential association

A theory of deviance proposed by Edwin Sutherland that holds that violation of rules results from exposure to attitudes favorable to criminal acts

Diffential Justice

Differences in the way social control is exercised over different groups

Formal social control

Social control that is carried out by authorized agents such as police officers, judges, school admins, and employers

Hate crime

A criminal offense committed because of the offender's bias/bigotry. Also called a bias crime.

Index Crimes

The 8 crimes reported on by the FBI in the Uniform Crime Reports: Murder, rape, robbery, assault, burglary, theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson

Informal social control

Social control that is carried out casually by ordinary people, such as laughter, smiles, and ridicule

Labeling theory

An approach to deviance that attempts to explain why certain people are viewed as deviants while others engaged in the same behavior are notL

Law

Governmental social control

Obedience

Compliance with higher authorities in a hierarchical structure

Organized crime

The work of a group that regulates relations between criminal enterprises involved in illegal activies

Professional criminal

A person who uses crime as a day-to-day occupation, developing skilled techniques and enjoying a certain degree of status among other criminals

Racial profiling

Any arbitrary action initiated by an authority based on race, ethnicity, or national origin rather than on a person's behavior

Sanction

A penalty or reward for conduct concerning a social norm

Social constructionist perspective

An approach to deviance that emphasizes the role of culture in the creation of the deviant identity

Social Control

The techniques and strategies for preventing deviant human behavior in any society

Social disorganization theory

The theory that crime and deviance are caused by the absence or breakdown of communal relationships and social institutions

Societal-reaction approach

Another name for labeling theory

Stigma

A label used to devalue members of certain social groups

Transnational crime

Crime that occurs across multiple national borders

Victimless crime

A term used by sociologists to describe the willing exchange of adults of widely desired but illegal goods and services

Victimization survey

A questionnaire or interview given to a sample of the population to determine whether people have been victims of crime

White-collar crime

Illehal acts committed by affluent individuals in the course of business activities

Absolute poverty

A minimum level of subsitence that no family should be expected to live below

Achieved status

status attained through personal effortsA

Ascribed status

status assigned to a person

Bourgeoisie

Karl Marx's term for the capitalist class

Capitalism

An economic system in which the means of production are held largely in private hands and economic activity is for profit

Caste

A hereditary rank, usually religious dictated, that is fixed

Class

A group of people who have similar level of wealth and income

Class consciousness

Subjective awareness held by members of a class regarding their common vested interests

Class system

A social ranking based parimarily on economic position

Closed system

a social system in which there is little or no possibility of individual social mobility

Conspicuous consumption

Purchasing goods not to survive but to flaunt one's standing

Dominant ideology

Set of beliefs to maintain social, economic, and political interests

Estate system

A system of stratification under which peasants were required to work land leased to them by nobles. Also known as feudalism

Esteem

The reputation that a specific person has earned within an occupation

False consciousness

A term used by Marx to describe an attitude held by members of a class that does not accurately reflect their objective position

Feminization of poverty

A trend in which women constitute an increasing porportion of the poor people of both the US and the world

Horizontal mobility

Movement from one position to another of the same rank

Income

Salaries and wages, interest on savings, rental income, etc.

Intergenerational mobility

Changes relative to parents

Intragenerational mobility

Changes within a person's life

Life chances

Opportunities people have to provide themselves with material goods, positive living conditions, and favorable life experiencesO

Objective method

A technique for measuring social class that assigns individuals to classes on the basis of criteria such as occupation, education, income, and place of residence

Open system

A social system in which the position of each individual is based on achieved status

Power

The ability to exercise one's will over others

Precarious work

Employment that is poorly paid, and from the worker's perspective, insecure and unprotected

Prestige

The respect and admiration that an occupation holds in a society

Proletariat

Relative poverty

A floating standard of deprivation by which people at the bottom will be disadvantaged

Slavery

A system of enforced servitude in which people own other people

Social inequality

A condition in which members of society have differing amounts of wealth/prestige/power

Social mobility

Movement of individuals or groups from one position in stratification system to another

Socioeconomic status

A measure of social class that is based on income/education/occupation

Status group

A term used by Weber to refer to people who have the same prestiege or lifestyle, regardless of class position

Stratification

Structured ranking of entire groups of people that perpetuates unequal economic rewards and power in a society

Underlcass

Long-term poor who lack training and sills

Vertical mobility

Movement from one rank to another

Wealth

All of a person's assets, land, stocks, and property

Affirmative action

Positive efforts to recruit minority groups

Amalgamation

Process through which a majority group and minority group combine

Apartheid

A former policy of South African gov, designed to maintain the separation of POC from dominant whites

Assilimation

The process through which a person forsakes his culture to become part of a different culture

Asylees

Foreigners who have already entered a new country because of fear of persecution

Black power

A political philosophy, promoted in the 1960s, that supported black controlled political and economic forces

Color-blind racism

Race neutrality to defend racially unequal status quo

Contact hypothesis

Cooperation of different people reduces prejudice

Discrimination

Denial of opportunities or rights because of prejudice

Ethnic group

A group set apart from others because of national origin or culture patterns

Ethnocentrism

Tendency to assume one's culture is superior

Explotation theory

Racial subordination in the US is a manifestation of the class system

Genocide

Systematic killing of an entire people or nation

Glass ceiling

An invisible barrier that blocks the promotion of a qualitied individual because of their minority status

Institutional discrimination

denial of opportunities and rights to groups that results from normal operations of society

Minority groups

group that has less power or control

Model minority

minority that succeeds economically, socially, and educationally without resorting to political or violent confrontation

Pluralism

Mutual respect for one another's cultures among various groups

Prejudice

A negative attitude toward an entire category of people

Racial formation

Sociohistorical process in which racial groups are made and changed

Racial profiling

Any arbitary action initiated based on race

Redlining

Discrimination against people who try to buy homes in minority and racially changing neighborhoods

Refugees

People living outside their country of citizenship for fear of political or religious persecution

Remittances

Monies that immigrants return to their families

Sharing economy

Connecting owners of underused assets with others willing to pay to use them

Stereotype

An unreliable generalization about all members of a group that does not recognize individual differences within the group

Symbolic ethnicity

An ethnic identity that emphasizes concerns such as ethnic food or political issues rather than deeper ties to one's ethnic heritageW

White Privilege

Rights or immunities granted to people as a particular benefit or favor simply because they are white

Expressiveness

Concern for a maintenance of harmony and the internal emotional affairs of the family

Gender identity

How people see themselves as male/female/other

Gender role

Expectations regarding proper behavior of genders

Glass escalator

Advantages men experience in occupations dominated by women

Instrumentality

An emphasis on tasks, a focus on more distant goals, and a concern for the external reltaionship between one's family and other social institutions