Intro to Soc Final

families vs households

families vs households

Groups of related people bound by connections that are biological, legal, or emotional vs A group of people that live together at one address and share living space

How does family differ from other groups of people?

• The formation of an economic unit

• An expectation of care

• A commitment to maintaining the group

what is mate selection

The process by which people choose each other for sexual or
romantic relationships

what are the two types of mate selection?

• Homogamy
• Propinquity

homogamy vs propinquity

• Homogamy is the tendency to choose mates who are similar to us
• Propinquity is the tendency to form relationships with people in close
proximity to us

how to remember homogamy vs propinquity

Propinquity Proximity

Cohabitation

refers to living together as a sexual or romantic couple without
being married

household trends

• # of unmarried households has doubled

• modal path to marriage => most marriages come from first cohabitating

why do couples cohabitate?

• Wanting to spend more time with each other

• Ability to share financial burdens

• Testing compatibility

Cohabitation trend with divorce

cohabitation may increase likelihood of divorce

limitations of cohabitation trend

Religiosity, political ideology, and economics are all confounding
variables

what happened to marriage trends post ww ii

initial baby boom because of stable situation followed by decline in marriage rates

(1/2 since 1970, 2/3 since 1950)

why are people spending less time married?

1. delaying marriage

2. higher rates of divorce

3. replacement fertility

delaying marriage trend

• bc rise in cohabitation

• Increase economic independence for women (less need for marriage)

• Notion that couples should reach economic stability before getting married

• Rise in price for houses and having kids discourage marriage

Higher rates of divorce trend

More unmarried time in between divorce and remarriage

Replacement fertility trend

• country with TFR more than 2.1 (average) pop will grow but US has 1.61 TFR => smaller families and lowest in history

Why do people have less kids?

• more work opportunities for women

• Continued gender inequality for mothers (like less likely to advance in career if they have a kid)

• High living costs and economic stress

• Increased access to contraception and family panning

• Ethical issues with population growth (resource consumption)

Implications of low TFR

• less young people drive economy and pay for older people programs (welfare programs)

• Less young people care for elderly

• More demand of services for older people

• Less demand for services for younger people (think school)

• Less stress on climate and env

Motherhood penalty

Women with children have more disadvantages in workplace than childless women

• less likely to be hired

• Likely to receive less pay per child

• Maternal status > gender in wage and hiring and pay discrimination

Fatherhood bonus

Men with kids tend to receive advantages in workplace (think George and Mary)

• more likely to be hired cuz expected to be head of fam

• Paid more than childless men

US v other countries on maternity leave

• US is the only industrialized country with no national law for paid maternity leave

• Other countries: paid maternity and paternity leave, partial care leave until kids stat school

• Businesses also have paid family leave policies but only 13% of workers get them here

Family Medical leave act

Provides employees with up to 12 weeks of unpaid, job-protected leave per year

Limitations of FMLA

• only applies to businesses with 50+ employees (exclude small business)

• Employee have to been employed for more than a year (excludes new hires, likely younger?)

• Must be recognized immediate family members

• More than 40% Americans don’’t meet req

• 66% of eligible workers do not use because can’t afford lost wages

What does FMLA stand for

Family medical leave act

Second shift

• unpaid labor inside home that is often expected of women after they get home from working at paid labor outside the home aka HOUSEWORK

Types of housework

Aka work to maintain household functions

• instrumental task

• Expressive task

• Mental load

Instrumental task

• physical tasks necessary to maintain family life

Expressive task

Emotional work necessary to support family

Mental load

Continuous planning an organizing domestic life

Brian and Jennifer story implications

• Perceived success depends more on income than other factors like gender and what free time is spent on

• No matter income and preference of free time activities, Jennifer expected to do more house chores

Gender differences in hetero relationships

• income has little effect on housework assignments except stay at home parenting

• Gender expression is strong predictor for same sex couples (more feminine do housework)

• Hetero women do female chores and men do discipline

• TIED TO ESSENTIALISM

Intensive parenting

Cultural pressure on parents, esp women, to devote more time, energy, and money to raising their kids aka being child centered, expert guided, labor intensive, and expensive

Intensive parenting trend

• cultural pressure increase as employment rates for women increased

• Mothers who work outside home spent JUST AS MUCH AS TIME tending to kids as stay at home mothers did in the 190s

• Amount of money spent on kids no highest when under 6 and over 18 (instead of peaking in high school)

• Intensive parenting is linked to better physical health, but higher levels of anxiety and depression and lower coping skills as college students

Types of intensive parenting

Helicopter and snowplow

Helicopter v snowplow

Helicopter: hyper-involvement in a child’s life, in pursuit of protection

Snowplow: preventing children from experiencing any hardships or obstacles.

What explains increase in intensive parenting?

• send that kids are both vulnerable and moldable

• Anxiety about economic future

• Industry geared at shaping parenting behavior (Promoted by media)

Term coined in “no harm in asking” reading

Doubly disadvantaged vs privileged poor

Doubly disadvantaged vs privileged poor

PP: attend boarding schools, prep because of financial situation so more likely to do fine with talking to authority (like going to office hours)

DA: no benefits, struggle being poor and lack resources compared to others (less comfortable talking to prof even when they know they should)

Education should be

The great equalizer by providing opportunity to every child but quality and access is a problem

Achievement gap

Disparity in academic performances btwn groups of students

• race, income, etc.

How is achievement gap measured

• standardized test scores

• Grades

• Dropout rates

• College admission rates

• College completion rates

• But can be observed even in pre-k

Reasons for achievement gap

1. District and school based factors

2. Teacher perception and biases

3. Family resources

4. Environmental exposure

District and school based factors

• higher income districts have more resources than lower income ones, impacting facilities, supplies, class size, enrichment programs, teacher quality, and ecs

• Funded by property taxes (stratify low and high income)

• Teachers influence short term measures of achievement like test scores, non test outcomes but also long term like college attendance and earning

• De facto segregation

De jure v de facto segregation

De jure: segregation by law, outlawed by Brown v Board

De Facto: subtle segregation resulting from school choice, property segregation, and class based segregation

Teacher perception of biases

School to prison pipeline and hidden curriculum

School to prison pipeline

collection of polices and practices that push students out of the classroom and into the criminal justice system through the implementation of:

•zero tolerance disciplinary polices.

•increased police and security officer presence in schools.

•Black students are more likely to be given harsher disciplinary actions than white students, even for the same behavior.

Hidden curriculum

unwritten and unspoken social and behavioral expectations within educational institutions.

•Adherence to these expectations shapes teacher perceptions of students

Family resources

• lower income= less school choice

• Less info about school options and app and can’t afford private schooL

• Less access to tutoring, enrichment, ecs

• Less parental involvement and help

Environmental exposure

Students from poorer families are more likely to come from families experiencing:

•Hunger.

•Unstable home environments.

•Home or community violence.

•Needing time to be devoted to work or caring for family members

Access to higher education trend

College for all: aka everyone should go to college sentiment on the rise (though rise is mostly in for profit community/public colleges)

Benefits of college

• Higher income => though becoming more expensive

• Development of social connections and networks

• Greater civic participation

• Better health

Limitations of access to highe education

• Tuition increase

• Half of first time underads take out loan = lots of debt = derail other transitions like marriage, parenthood, and home ownership

• Low income less likely to make connections while middle class more comfortable

The rationalization of society

shift in how social life is organized away from traditions, values, and emotions  towards means-end rationality (outcome >process)

What did rationalization of society occur along with

Secularization and disenchantment

Secularization vs disenchantment

Secularization: separation from religion

Disenchantment: retreat of magic and myth from social life

Examples of rationalization

Bureaucracy and the McDonaldization of society

Bureaucracy

Organization with formal procedures and standards developed to achieve goals efficiently

Who is associated with bureaucracies

Max Weber

Features of bureaucracy

• task specialization

• Hierarchy of authority

• Explicit rules

• Impersonality (lack concern or others)

• Career orientation

• Select people to subordinate

McDonaldization of Society

increasing presence of the fast-food business model in other institutions

Characteristics of fast food business model are

Efficiency

Alculability

Predictability (taste same)

Control (tech)

Effects of mcdonaldization

Increased availability but reduced variety of goods

Formal organizations

Groups that are organized to achieve goals efficiently

Types of formal organizations

Utilitarian

Normative

Coercive

Utilitarian organizations

Groups organized or individuals to achieve rewards to all members, for financial gain or benefit

Ex: college, work

Normative

Organizations joined voluntarily based on individual interests that are shared with the group, without the need for financial gain or benefit

Ex: just for experience

Coercive organizations

joined by individuals involuntarily and through force

Ex: prison, rehab

Deindustrialization

widespread, systematic disinvestment in manufacturing and production capacities

Deindustrialization rose along with

Service economy and automation

Service economy

activities than benefit others than producing good (manu elsewhere)

Automation

refers to the replacing of workers with technology (self checkout, ordering)

Globalization

cultural and economic changes resulting from dramatically increased global connectedness and exchange.

Outsourcing

company transfers to another country the labor that a company would have hired in-nation

Flexible work

allows employees to perform their work in a non-traditional structure, which can vary based on days of the week, hours, or location of the work

Outcomes of increase in flexible work

• employees prefer work at home or hybrid bc reduce stress and increase work life balance

• Unequal labor (women work at home = continue domestic chores)

Gig economies are also known as

Platform economy or sharing economy

Gig economy

app-based technologies that focus on the lending or renting of assets or service Like Uber

Trend with gig economy

Rise because of lack of options for economic stability

Gig economy v modern workers

• modern workers benefit from better pay, shorter hours, improved working conditions from labor movement

• Gig economy don’t get these same rights - not equal protection

Polarization of workforce

Gap of employment opportunities got bigger (lowest and highest levels only) aka fewer midskill and education jobs

Try Harder documentary

features Lowell HS with high achieving students dreaming of going to prestigious universities

Media

different technological processes that facilitate communication between the sender of the message and the receiver of that message

What do media sociologists study?

How is the media changing our lives and societies?

•What messages does the media convey?

Digital divide

gap separating individuals who have access to new forms of technology from those who do not.

•Access to the internet is now essential for job opportunities, educational advancement, many forms of communication, and community knowledge.

Media conglomeration

Single ownership over variety of unrelated businesses (90% owned by small number of business owners) like Disney owns ESPN and Hulu?

Impact of media conglomeration

Limits messages broadcasted

Public attitude trends on the media

Only 32% even somewhat trust news bc most people believe that news organizations are working for themselves instead of public = > where to get factual info?

New tech is often

Found to be threatening

• video games, radio, TV were all sources of moral panic

• Agents of socialization don’t know how to handle

Impact of internet and social media

•Americans devote more than 11 hours a day to screen time.

•Teens spend 9 hours a day on social media platforms.

•democratization of information

•avenues for social connection

•solutions for those who lack access to in-person services

•new careers and sectors of the economy (increase consumerism)

•venues for activism and social movements

Problems wth new media

1. Cyberrisks

2. Mental and physical health

3. Relationships

4. Attention

5. Political polarization

Cyberrisks

risks linked to the (over-)active (mis-)use of technology by teens and young adults. 

New media on health

•Higher social media use is related to poorer mental health, including depression, anxiety, lower self-esteem, and suicidality.

•Higher social media use contributes to addiction and engagement in risky health behaviors.

Media on relationships

higher social media use is linked with feelings of loneliness and isolation.

•Other research has reported that college students who like and use social media are less likely to report being lonely and less of a need for other kinds of social connection.

•The presence of a smartphone, even turned off, reduces the quality of in-person conversations.

Attention economy

made up of the things that are trying to capture our limited attention.

•Increased social media use is linked with decreased performance on short-term memory and problem-solving tasks bc develop persuasive techniques

Ex: see what friends like

Filter bubble

state of intellectual isolation which allows media users to only consume like-minded sources

Algorithms promote misinformation, conspiracies and fake news.

Media and socialization trends

• exposes people to future and experiences they otherwise would not BUT continues to leave out women, people of color, etc. and tend to bolster stereotypes

Examples of limitations of media socialization

• Women are not often the central focus of media plots

  •There is a common belief that shows about men are “gender neutral,” whereas shows about women are niche.

  •Media representations of women are frequently stereotypical and hyper-sexualized.

  •White individuals and experiences are presented as normative in much media.

  •Films and TV that focus on people of color tend to be considered niche films, whereas ones that focus on white individuals are seen as accessible to all.

Media Literacy

ability to sift through and analyze the messages that inform, entertain and sell to us.

Questions to engage in active consumer of media

•Who produced this media?

•What are the commercial motives behind this media?

•Who is the target audience for this media?

•What kinds of values and meanings does this media promote or imply?

•Who is missing from this media?

•What emotions does this media tap?

•What techniques is this media using to attract attention?

Sociology of sports

• relate to social and cultural context

• Criteria for sport: physical, competitive, institutionalized