Term
|
Definition
The Scientific study of human social life, groups and society.
Enables people "to translate private troubles into public issues" |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Looking at ordinary things we take for granted from a new perspective.
Shows that many behaviors or feelings we view as private, actually reflect larger social issues |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Social contexts in which we live our lives are NOT a random combination of events and actions
Social context are systematically patterned in distinct ways |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
We are never fully determined by the social structure
People are not only influenced but also influence social structure, that is how social change is possible through individual actions
Power to change the course of individual lives
people do not simply take on roles but actively create them |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
1858-1917 French Scholar
Sociology is a science just like natural science |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Aspects of social life that shape our actions as individuals
Society is like an organism where all parts are interrelated |
|
|
Term
| Social Cohesion / Organic Solidarity |
|
Definition
| All parts of society must work in harmony and form an integral whole; otherwise the society will not persist and function as a whole. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
1818-1883 German
Historical development is driven by class struggle: conflict of rich vs poor
Ruling class ("capitalists") own capital, large sums of money, etc.
Working class: do not own the means of livelihood but must find employment
Ruling class exploits workers, workers resist exploitation |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
1864 - 1920 German
"Protestant Ethic" certain aspects of Christian beliefs influenced the rise of capitalism
Cultural ideas and values shape society and affect individual actions
Bureaucracy: Large organization divided into jobs ranked by hierarchy |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Harriet Martineau 1802-1876 English
W.E.B. Du Bois 1868-1963 African American |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
"Society in America" a firsthand systematic study of American society
Analysis of society must include an understanding of women's lives
Emphasized previously ignored sociological issues (marriage, children, domestic and religious life, race relations) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
1st African American to get a degree from Harvard
Focus on race relations in US
Traced the problems faced by African Americans to their social and economical roots |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Symbol is the key element in social interaction
All interactions between individuals involve a exchange of symbols
We constantly look for clues to what behavior is appropriate in a given situation, how to interpret what others do/say
Focus on interpersonal interaction, how this detail is used to make sense of other people's actions |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Focus on the contribution that each social activity and institution contributes to society
Analyzing which function each aspect of society plays in the continuing existence of society
Moral consensus
People should share the same values for society to run smoothly
Limitation - Stressed issues of social cohesion while overlooking issues producing division and conflict |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Development of gender issues are absent until the 1970s
Women's lives and experiences are central to the study of society
Gender relations and gender inequality are important determinants of social life
Focus on intersection of race, gender and class |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
The study of everyday behavior in the face-to-face interaction
Necessary to understand how face-to-face interaction unfolds in the context of major social institutes |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The analysis of large-scale social systems, like political or economic systems. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Understand how peoples' daily lives are shaped by society-wide processes |
|
|
Term
| Steps in Sociological Research Process |
|
Definition
Step 1: Define the research problem
Step 2: Review the evidence
Step 3: Hypothesis
Step 4: Data collection
Step 5: Analyze data
Step 6: Interpret the results
Step 7: Report findings |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
A system of shared meanings that affect all social relationships in a society
consists of values, norms, language/symbols, and material goods |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Abstract ideals
Can vary across cultures and over time |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Widely agreed-upon rules or principles that people are expected to observe
Do's and Don'ts of social life
Can vary across cultures and over time |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Physical objects created by people in society
These objects influence how we live
Material goods have very powerful social meanings |
|
|
Term
| Linguistic relativity hypothesis |
|
Definition
| Language we use influences our perceptions of the world because we are more likely to be aware of things if we have words for them |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Any vehicle of meaning (words, sounds, pictures, clothing, architecture, etc) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The analysis of verbal and nonverbal cultural meanings |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A system of interrelationships that connects individuals together |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Judging other cultures in terms of the standards of one's own |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Judging each culture by its own standards
Suspending your own deeply held cultural beliefs and examining the situation according to the standards of another culture. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Language
Marriage
Religion
Property Rights
Incest Prohibition |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
The process through which a child becomes a self-aware, knowledgeable person skilled in the ways of the culture in which they were born
Children learn norms, values, and social practices that will be carried on when they are grown up |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The process through which societies have structural continuity over time |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
|
|
Term
|
Definition
"Nuclear Families" consisting of a mother, father and 1-2 siblings
Now, there is a great variability of family contexts (single parents, step families)
In some cultures aunts, uncles, grandparents are members of the direct family and contribute to socialization of the child |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Students acquire knowledge about the world and society through formal curriculum
Also more subtle socialization: punctuality, self-control, cooperation, discipline |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
_____ Groups: individuals of a similar age
Children over 5 spend a great deal of time in the company of same-age friends
Relationships within this group have significant effects on an individual from early life to old age |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Socially defined expectations that a person in a given social position follows
EX: Parent, student
Some sociologists, especially old-school functionalists, view roles as fixed and unchanging (structure)
More realistic view: people do not simply take on roles but actively create them (agency) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Characteristics that other people attribute to us, shared by many people
EX: Student, Christian, Democrat, Latino, relationship status |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Sets us apart as distinct individuals
Self-identity: process of self-development through which we formulate a unique sense of ourselves and our relationships to the world around us
Shaped by social and cultural environment |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Childhood
Adolescence
Young Adulthood
Middle Age
Old Age |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Distinct stage between infancy and adolescence
Movement of children from being economic assets to being “economically useless but emotionally priceless” |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
The idea of a “teenager” didn’t exist until recently
In the US and Western societies, teenagers are in between childhood and adulthood
Pop culture promotes sexual clothing among teens but frowns upon teenage sexual activity
Teens may wish to work and earn money but are legally required to stay in school |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Stage of exploration before individuals settle on a permanent job, spouse and home
This stage of personal and sexual development is unique to modern societies
Especially among affluent groups, people in their 20s are taking time to travel, to explore different careers, and date and live with several romantic partners before getting married
The importance of this postponement of full adulthood will grow given the extended period of education many people now undergo |
|
|
Term
| Delayed Transition to Adulthood |
|
Definition
The growing cost of education and housing
Long time needed to secure a full time job that pays enough to support a family
Attaining a decent standard of living usually requires a college education and often a professional degree |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
The study of social interaction
Seemingly trivial aspects of everyday social behavior are important to sociologists |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Founder of microsociology
Compares social life to theater
People are actors who play their social roles on stage |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Strategies to compel others to react to us in the way we wish
We usually engage in impression management without conscious attention, although sometimes it is a calculated action
Every person possesses a self that is fragile and vulnerable to embarrassment
People are attuned to what others think of them and how they are being viewed
In social interaction, people collaborate with each other to make sure that the encounter ends without embarrassment for anyone
“Saving Face”: the rules of cooperation and politeness |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The study of how people make sense of what others say and do in everyday interaction |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The "folk" methods by which people sustain meaningful exchanges with each other |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Taken for granted rules that govern our ordinary conversations |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A collection of people who share a common identity and regularly interact with one another on the basis of shared expectations about behavior |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Simple collection of people who happen to be together in the same place but do not interact significantly with each other |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| People who share a similar characteristic (gender, occupation, religion) without interacting or identifying with each other |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Groups toward which one feels loyalty and respect, groups that ‘we’ belong to |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Groups toward which one feels angagonism and contempt, “those people” |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Pressure to conform to the group |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| A process by which members of a group ignore ideas and plans of action that goes against the group consensus |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Non-conformity to a given set of norms that are accepted by a large number of people in community or society |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Norms defined by governments that their citizens must follow |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Any type of behavior that breaks the law |
|
|
Term
| Functionalist Theories of Deviance |
|
Definition
Crime and deviance result from structural tensions and constraints
Tensions between socially endorsed values and the legitimate means of fulfilling them (Robert Merton) |
|
|
Term
| Reinforcement Theories of Deviance |
|
Definition
Deviance as a learned behavior
Balance of “rewards” and “punishments” is in favor of deviant behavior |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Part of Reinforcement Theory
We learn deviant behaviors from primary groups
Differential = ratio of deviant to conventional social ties |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Imbalance between criminal impulses and social control
People act rationally to minimize their costs and maximize their rewards
Given the opportunity, everyone would engage in deviant acts |
|
|
Term
| Labeling Theory of Deviance |
|
Definition
Symbolic interactionist approach
People become “deviant” because certain labels are attached to their behavior by powerful others
The rules of what is deviant are imposed by wealthy on poor, by men on women, by racial majorities on minorities, etc. |
|
|
