Socy midterm prep

Positivism Vs Interpretativism

Positivism is based on facts, whereas interpretivism is based on opinions and experiences

Independent (X) vs Dependent (Y) variables

Independent (X) variables = Cause

Dependent (Y) variables = Effect

ex X=Time studying Y=Grade percentage

C. Wright Mills - The promise (Looking at macro vs micro)

Mills highlights that “neither the life of an individual nor the history of society can be understood without understanding both”

Micro vs Macro in sociology 

Micro- Small-scale structures (ex face face-to-face conversation)

Macro- Large-scale structures (ex capitalism)

C. Wright Mills- The promise (Sociological imagination)

• Awareness of the relationships between an individual and the wider society 

• As a contributing member in society, you in fact, are contributing every day to the ways in which society operates 

Who is Aldon Morris?

Aldon Morris is a key sociologist who critiques the history of sociology for erasing black contributions, highlights W.E.B du Bois’ central role in shaping the field and exposing systemic inequalities

What is symbolic interactionism?

• Society is made up of everyday social interactions, which shape identities and behaviour

• Micro sociology

What is conflict theory?

• When society is made up of unequal groups, where the privileged exploit the underprivileged

• The struggle for resources and power creates conflict

• Macro sociology 

What is funtionalism?

• Society is made up of several independent parts that work together exactly as they should to maintain social order

• Macro sociology 

The “trinity” on modernity

Emile Durkheim: Modernity is a result of specialized divisions of labour

Karl Marx: modernity results from class and conflict

Max Weber: Modernity results from the protestant ethic

Who was Max Weber?

• Seen as dabbling in different perspectives

• often seen using comparitive historical sociology

• reconized for his us of “interpretive” sociology

Who was Karl Marx

Karl Marx was a sociologist who studied conflict theory and economic power as factors that contribute to inequality and social change 

Who was Emile Durkhiem?

the man who made sociology a disipline and the “forefather” of funtionalism

Who is Auguste comte?

The founder of sociology

What is contemporary sociology?

Contemporary sociology focuses on analyzing, questioning, and challenging existing social structures, ideas and power relations rather than simply describing them. W

What is “consequences of differences” to sociology?

Consequences of differences is a key component of sociology because it examines how social categories like class, race and age create unequal access to resources, opportunities and power, shaping people’s life choices and experiences 

What is “society” to sociology?

Society is a key component of sociology because it refers to the organized groups, institutions, and relationships through which people live together, share culture, and shapes behaviour’s behaviours 

What is “the individual” to society?

The individual is a key component of society because society is made up of people whose actions, choices, and interactions shape social structures, norms and relationships

What is “systemic study” to sociology?

Systematic study is a key component of sociology because it uses organized, evidence-based and scientific methods to study social behaviour, patters and institutions

What is the definition of sociology?

the systemic study of social behaviour and phenomena in human societies 

what are the key components of sociology?

• Systemic study

• The individual 

• society 

• Consequences of differences 

What is the systematic organization of study in sociology?

• Defining the Problem – Identify a clear social issue or question to study.

• Reviewing the Literature – Examine existing research and theories to understand what’s already known.

• Forming a Hypothesis – Create a testable statement predicting a relationship between variables.
  These steps ensure research is systematic, evidence-based, and connected to broader sociological theory.

Causal logic

relationship between a condition or variable and a particular consequence, with one event leading to the other

Correlation

relationship between two variables in which a change in one coincides with a change in the other.

Marx- The German ideology? (3 topics)

Modes of production

• How people produce what they need to be alive

• shapes relationships, work and how society develops

New needs

• As people meet their needs, new ones arise, so we come up with new ways of doing so

Division of labour = class struggle 

• Based on different kinds of work, it creates classes, which leads to class struggle

The 3 P’s

Class=Paper: tied to money

Status groups= prestige; based on wealth within society 

Power= parties (your party in power)

*status can operate independently from class

Class, Satus group and parties

Class: A number of people who share economic intrests (ex working class)

Status group: A collective with varying degrees of social honour (ex, doctors)

Party: an organized group (ex democratic)

What is traditional authority?

Based on long standing traditions,, customs and beliefs (ex kings)

What is charismatic authority?

based on a leaders personal charm or exeptional qualities (ex martin luther king jr)

What is legal rational authority

based on rules, laws and formal systems (ex goverment)

What is interpretivivism?

Focuses on understanding the meanings behind peoples social actions

Class struggle= Moves history forward

History is driven by conflict between classes (upper/lower). This struggle leads ro socal change

Modes of production (forces of production+relations of production)

Forces of production: Physical aspects of the procution process

• eg raw materials, technology and labour power

Social relationships (relations of production)

• eg division of labour, ownership and trade

Idealism vs. Materialism (hegel and Marx)

hegel: Believed ideas shape history (idealism)

Marx: Argued that material conditions drive historical change (materialism)

German ideology

Marx’s work with Engels where materal conditions and economic factors shape society, not idea’s alone 

* root of conflict theory

The young hegelians

Influenced Marx’s early thinking by challenging traditional ideas and focusing on human freedom and social change 

What is the difference between Marx’s and Webers perepective on conflict theory?

Marx:

• rich exploit the poor

• The struggles for reasources create coonflict which leads to social change

Weber:

• most privileged exploit the underpriviveliged

• the struggle for resources, status and power creates conflict which leads to social change

Who is George Herbert Mead?

Came up with the therory that states we don’t know a sense of self when born we learn “I” and “me” though social interations

Herbert Blumer

coined symbolic interactionism

Erving Goffman

*Comparing social life to a stage 

Public behaviour (From stage)

Private self (back stage)

Charles cooly

*The idea that our self-image is shaped by how we think others see us

What is symbolic interactionism

*Emphasizes how individual experences and development affect social behaviour 

What is mechanical solidarity

Mechanical solidarity: based on shared values and simularitys

ex all have the same job (farmers) 

What is organic solidarity?

Organic solidarity: based on independence and specialized role

ex all have different jobs (doctors, theripists lawyers)

Durkheims view of function

Everthing in society (even crime) helps maintain social order and drive change 

What is the suicide study?

Durkheim proved that suicide isn’t just personal but is influenced by social factors, such as how integrated they are within society

What is causual logic

• looking for cause and effect

• Understanding why things happen in society and how oen factor leads to another 

What are social facts

Patterns, values, norms and structures outside the individual that shape and influence behaviour Ex laws and education

What are the types of masculinity?

Hegemonic masculinity

Assholes

complicit masculinity

somewhat assholes

marginalized masculinity

sweet men

subordinate men

gay

women

women

Who is Emily Martin

Critiqued how science reinforces gender stereotypes espeshilly in how reproductive biology is described

 Who is Michael Messner

Studied how sports reinforce gender roles amd shapes ideas of bothood and masculinity

“Doing gender” (west and zimmerman)

• Gender is not something we are but something we do (ex choose clothes

• Sex: Biology 

• Sex category: How society categorizes someone based on apperence or bahavior 

• Gneder: Socially learned performance of roles assosanted with sex

Gender vs sex

Sex: Biological differences 

Gender: social identifty based on roles behaviours and expectations scoiety assigns people 

Feminist methodology

Feminist reaserch prioritizes marginialized voices, questions objectivity and focuses on lived experiences to get information

sociological overlap with gender

sociology and feminism intersect by examining how gender norms and power dynamics shape social structures, insttitions and individual experiences

What was the first wave of feminism

The first wave of feminism was a movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries that focused primarily on legal issues and inequalities, particularly women's suffrage and the right to vote.

What was the second wave of feminism

The second wave of feminism emerged in the 1960s and lasted into the 1980s, focusing on issues such as reproductive rights, workplace equality, and social and cultural inequalities faced by women.

What is the third wave of feminism

The third wave of feminism began in the 1990s and emphasizes individuality, diversity, and the inclusion of a broad range of identities, including race, sexuality, and class, challenging the definitions of feminism itself.

What is the 4th wave of feminism

The fourth wave of feminism, which began in the 2010s, is characterized by a focus on technology, social media, and intersectionality, addressing issues such as sexual harassment, body positivity, and online activism.

What is feminist theory

Feminist theory studies how gender shapes social life and examines power relations, inequality and structures that uphold patriachy 

How does Agnes serve as a case study in West & Zimmerman’s “Doing Gender”?

Agnes’s efforts to be recognized as a “real woman” highlight West & Zimmerman’s thesis that gender is performed, regulated, and socially sustained, showing that to “do gender” is to align behavior with cultural expectations attached to one’s perceived sex.

How does “doing gender” connect to power and social change?

By performing gender, people reproduce power inequalities (e.g., sexism, heteronormativity). Recognizing that gender is done allows it to be undone—opening space for resistance, non-binary identities, and feminist transformation.

What does the film Fair Play explore?

It examines how domestic tasks, childcare, and emotional labour are divided in modern households, revealing gender inequality and the undervaluation of unpaid or invisible work.

What is meant by the “second shift”?

Coined by Arlie Hochschild, it refers to the unpaid household and caregiving work women perform after their paid employment—managing chores, schedules, and emotional needs.

Why might fathers appear distant in caregiving roles?

Cultural expectations define men as breadwinners, not caregivers. Workplace norms and socialization discourage emotional involvement or domestic responsibility.

What do same-sex couples reveal about the division of labour?

They often negotiate roles more flexibly, showing that unequal division isn’t inevitable—it’s socially constructed, not biologically determined.

How did COVID-19 affect household labour?

It magnified gender inequalities: women took on more homeschooling, care work, and emotional support, deepening the second shift and mental load.

What is black feminsit thought?

A body of knowledge created from black women’s perspective 

Whos is Kimberle crenshaw?

A legal scholar and civil rights activist known for her work on intersectionality and critical race theory.

What is intersectionality 

The concept that various social identities, such as race, gender, and class, intersect to create unique experience of discrimination and privilege.

What does anti-racist socology do?

it analyzes and challenges the structures of power, inequality, and racism within society.

What is Anti-racism?

Anti-racism is the active process of identifying, challenging and chnaging the values, structures and behaviours that perpetuate racism and discrimination in society.

what is systemic raciism?

Systemic racism refers to the policies and practices entrenched in established institutions that result in the exclusion or promotion of designated groups. It manifests in social, economic, and political inequalities among different racial groups.

What is Collins’ main argument about Black women’s position in sociology?

Collins argues that Black women’s status as “outsiders within” gives them a unique epistemological standpoint—a distinct way of knowing shaped by marginalization. This position allows them to produce Black Feminist Thought, a body of knowledge that challenges dominant white, male-centered sociology.

What are the three central themes in Black Feminist Thought?

1. Self-Definition & Self-Validation – Black women must define themselves instead of being defined by oppressive systems.

2. The Interlocking Nature of Oppression (Intersectionality) – Identities like race, class, and gender function together as an interconnected system of power.

3. The Importance of Afro-American Women’s Culture – Black women’s cultural systems (sisterhood, motherhood, creativity) provide strength, identity, and resistance to oppression.

What does McIntosh mean by “the invisible knapsack”?

McIntosh uses the metaphor of an invisible knapsack to describe the unearned assets and advantages that white people carry with them in everyday life—privileges they often don’t see but benefit from constantly.

How does McIntosh distinguish between earned and unearned advantages?

• Earned Strength: Abilities or achievements gained through effort.

• Unearned Power: Privileges and dominance granted through social systems, not personal merit.

What is Durkheim’s theory of social differentiation?

Durkheim explains how societies evolve from simple, uniform groups to complex, interdependent systems. As populations grow, social roles diversify, creating a more specialized division of labour.

What causes the shift from mechanical to organic solidarity?

Growth in population size and social density increases competition, pushing societies toward specialization and cooperation based on need rather than similarity.

How does Durkheim trace this transition historically?

• Horde → Clans → Segmented Societies (mechanical solidarity)

• Growth in Size & Complexity → Decline in Mechanical Solidarity

• Rise of Social Density & Specialized Divisions of Labour → Organic Solidarity