Apologetics/Sociology Test 1

Sociology

the scientific study of human behavior, social groups, and society

Sociological imagination

the ability to understand how history and biography influence our lives

Sociological perspective

a conscious effort to question the obvious and to remove us from familiar experiences and examine them critically and objectively

Macrosociology

deals with large-scale structures and processes

Microsociology

concerned with small-scale units--how individuals behave in social situations

Social science

has human behavior, social organizations, or society as its subject matter

Economics

the study of how goods, services, and wealth are produced, consumed, and distributed within societies

Political science

the study of power, governments, and political processes

Anthropology

the study of the physical, biological, social, and cultural development of humans

Traditional indigenous

refers to ethnic groups who are native to a land or region

Psychology

the study of human mental processes and individual human behavior

Social psychology

the study of how individuals interact with other individuals or groups and how groups influence the individual

History

the study of the past

Geography

the study of the physical environment and the distribution of plants and animals, including humans

Social work

the field in which the principles of the social sciences are applied to actual social problems

Applied sciences

sciences that directly use the principles of the pure sciences

Pure sciences

sciences that seek knowledge for its own sake

Auguste Comte

The term sociology was coined by

Theory

a set of interrelated statements or propositions that explain a particular process or phenomenon

Structural functionalism

theory that societies contain certain interdependent structure, each of which performs certain functions for the maintenance of society; macro-level

Social system

a set of interrelated social statuses and the expectations that accompany them

Manifest functions

intended and recognized consequences of a social system

Latent functions

consequences of a social system that are neither intended nor recognized

Dysfunctions

factors that lead to the disruption or breakdown of the social system

Functional alternatives

other ways to achieve the intended goal

Conflict theory

social theory that views conflict as inevitable and natural and as a significant cause of social change; macro-level

Symbolic interaction theory

social theory that stresses interactions between people and the social processes that occur within the individual that are made possible by language and internalized meaning; most widely used and recognized interaction perspective; micro-level

Exchange theory

a theory of interaction that attempts to explain social behavior in terms of reciprocity of costs and rewards

Evolutionary theory

theory of social development that suggests that societies, like biological organisms, progress through stages of increasing complexity

Karl Marx

Who came up with the conflict theory?

George Herbert Mead

Who developed the symbolic interaction theory?

Culture

a system of ideas, values, beliefs, knowledge, norms, customs, and technology shared by almost everyone in a particular society

Society

a group of interacting persons who live in a specific geographical area, who are organized in a cooperative manner, and who share a common culture

Ethnocentrism

the attitude that our own culture is superior to others, that our own beliefs, values, and behaviors are more correct than others

Xenocentrism

the belief that what is foreign is best, that our own lifestyle, products, or ideas are inferior to those of others

Temprocentrism

the belief that our own time is more important than the past or future

Cultural relativism

the belief that cultures must be judged on their own terms and rather than by the standards of another culture

Norms

formal and informal rules of conduct and social expectations for behavior; standards, rules, guides, and expectations for actual behavior

Symbol

something that is used to represent something else

Language

systematized usage of speech and hearing to convey or express feelings and ideas

Sapir-Whorf hypothesis

the hypothesis that societies with different languages perceive the world differently because their members interpret the world through the grammatical forms, labels, and categories their language provides

Values

ideas shared by the people in a society regarding what is important and worthwhile

Beliefs

view that people share about what is true or what really exists

Folkways

type of norm; customs or conventions; violations bring only mid censure

Mores

type of norm; involve clear-cut distinctions between right and wrong; more closely associated with the moral values a society considers important; violations bring more severe punishment

Taboos

mores that prohibit something

Mos

the Latin singular of mores

Laws

formal, standardized expressions of norms enacted by legislative bodies to regulate particular types of behaviors

Pathology of normalcy

the concept that cultural norms are not always beneficial for a society, group, or individual

Technology

the material techniques and products a society uses to maintain its standard of living

Artifacts

physical products or objects created through human actions

Cultural lag

the tendency for material culture to outpace non-material culture

Institutions

a stable cluster of values, norms, statuses, and roles that develops around a basic social goal

Subcultures

groups who share some of the cultural elements of the larger society yet also have their own distinctive set of norms, values, symbols, and lifestyles

High culture

reflects the tastes of the wealthy, affluent, or upper classes

Folk culture

reflects the tastes of the working class or ethnic groups

Popular culture

reflects the tastes of the masses within a society

Counterculture

a subculture that adheres to a set of beliefs and values that are in opposition to the dominant culture of which it is part

Ideal culture

consists of the norms and values people profess to follow

Real culture

the norms and values people actually follow and practice

Cultural universals

aspects of culture that are shared by all people

Idioculture

a system of knowledge, beliefs, behaviors, and customs created through group interactions; unique to a given group

"taste cultures" identified by Herbert Gans

high culture, folk culture, and popular culture

the process of applying social sanctions

Social control is essentially what?

Socialization

the process of learning how to interact in society by learning the rules and expectations of society

Nature-nurture debate

debate over whether behavior results from predetermined biological characteristics or from socialization

Sociobiology

the study of biological and genetic determinants of social behavior

Instincts

patterns or reflexes that occur in animals; biological or hereditary impulses, drives, or behaviors that require not learning or reasoning

Self

the sense of one's own identity as a person

Role-taking

assuming the roles of others and seeing the world from their perspective

Play

a way of practicing role-taking

Significant others

important people in the lives of children, especially with regard to socialization

Generalized others

the organized community or social group that provides reference for a child's own conduct

I

the acting, unself-conscious person

Me

the part of the self that sees self as object, evaluates self, and is aware of society's expectations of self

Mind

the process of using a language and thinking

Looking-glass self

three components are: how we think our behavior appears to others, how we think others judge our behavior, and how we feel about their judgments

Self-fulfilling prophecy

a prediction that comes true because people believe it and act as though it were true

Presentation of self

the way we present ourselves to others and how our presentation influences others

Dramaturgical approach

interaction is compared to a drama on stage

Account of behavior

an effort at maintaining the self by explaining the reasons for or facts surrounding the behavior

Disclaimers

maintaining our presentation of self by denying behavior that contradicts how we wish to be viewed

Pre-conventional stage (of moral development)

children act according to what authoritative figures expect from them; morality is external, and children are simply trying to avoid punishment

Conventional stage (of moral development)

children have internalized what has been taught to them and begin to view right and wrong in terms of what is socially acceptable; they want to be a good person and do what is right

Post-conventional stage (of moral development)

individuals are more concerned with the rights of others than with the laws of society

Id

inborn drives for self-gratification

Ego

balancing principle; mediator between the id and the superego

Superego

our conscience

Peer group

an informal primary group of people who share a similar or equal status and who are usually of roughly the same age

Mass media

forms of communication, such as television, popular magazines, and radio, intended for a large audience

Instrumental role

a role that emphasizes accomplishment of tasks and is traditionally associated more with men than with women

Expressive role

a role that emphasizes warmth and understanding rather than action or leadership and is traditionally associated more with women than with men

Gender identity

the social construction of boys and girls, men and women, as opposed to their biological characteristics

Resocialization

socialization to a new role or position in life that requires a dramatic shift in the attitudes, values, behaviors, and expectations learned in the past

Mortification of self

stripping the self of all the characteristics of a past identity, including clothing, personal possessions, friends, roles and routines, and so on

have normal development

In Spitz's study, the children reared with their mothers in a detention center compared to those in foundling homes were found to _______.

Deviance

variation from a set of norms or shared social expectations

Absolutist view

the view that there is wide agreement about social norms and that certain behaviors are deviant regardless of the social context in which they occur

Moralist view

the view that some norm violations are deviant because they are morally wrong

Medical view

the view that deviance is essentially pathological evidence that a society is unhealthy