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S230 Midterm 1
S230
26
Sociology
Undergraduate 2
09/17/2012

Additional Sociology Flashcards

 


 

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Term
Definition of Social Psychology
Definition
The systematic study of the nature and causes of human behavior
Term
What is a Theory?
Definition
A supposition or a system of ideas intended to explain something, esp. one based on general principles independent of the thing to be
Term
4 components of a theory
Definition
Logical
-Statements in a theory should follow clearly from one another
Causal
-We want theories to explain the reasons for behavior, not just describing behaviors
General
•Predict tendencies in behavior
•Should apply to a broad range of people and situations
•Theories do not claim to predict specific cases
Testable
-Theories should result in a hypothesis which can be tested using experiments or observations
Term
Causation vs. Correlation
Definition
Causation talks about the reason 2 things are related, not simply the fact the 2 things are related
- Correlation occurs when 2 aspects often accompany one another
- Causation occurs when one aspect causes another thing to happen

- One thing may be causing both to happen, but causality must occur when one thing actually causes another
Term
Hypothesis definition
Definition
• A supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation
Term
Methods to test a hypothesis
Definition
- Laboratory experiments
- Field experiments
- Observation
- Surveys
Term
The concept of the person vs. the situation
Definition
Behavior is made up of 2 aspects
1. The Person
- Pre-existing beliefs
- Values
- Preferences
- Individual variation: can’t predict exactly what you will do
2. The environment
- Social roles
- Influence from others
- Situation factors
- General trends: Can predict what the average person is likely to do
Term
Diffusion of Responsibility
Definition
The concept that states the more people that are around a person in need, the less likely people will be to help
- The smaller group tended to create an atmosphere to help more often

-- Correlation relationship
Term
Experiment
Definition
- Participants are randomly assigned to conditions
- Conditions are identical…
- …except for experimentally manipulated independent variables
- Trying to create an environment in which all else is equal
Term
Variable
Definition
- Any characteristic or attribute that varies throughout an experiment
Term
3 types of variables
Definition
Independent
Dependent
Extraneous
Term
Independent Variable
Definition
- The hypothesized cause of variation in a dependent variable
Term
Dependent Variable
Definition
The outcome variable
- The hypothesized effect of variation in an independent variable
Term
Random Assignment
Definition
- Creating an equal chance for people in an experiment to be in each condition
- Randomly assign people to groups
- Meant to cancel out the extraneous variables in an experiment so they do not affect our results
Term
Extraneous Variable
Definition
- A variable that is not included in a hypothesis but has a causal impact on the DV
- Medical studies: a person’s health going into the experiment- can’t test someone is who already healthy
- Social Psychology: Personality variables, e.g., how generally helpful a person is
Term
Experimental Manipulation
Definition
- In experiments you must manipulate an Independent Variable (IV)
- This creates 2 (or more) levels of the IV
- Experimental conditions: only one thing changes
- Used to observed how different conditions affect people's behavior
Term
Systematic Replication
Definition
Repeating the general structure of an experiment while changing one more condition to see if it has an effect
Term
Direct Replication
Definition
Repeating an experiment and its conditions exactly to check to make sure the results repeat or are similar
Term
Disadvantages of experiments
Definition
- Laboratory is best for testing abstract concepts
- Not measurements of “real world”
Some settings are difficult to reproduce experimentally
Term
Three basic principles of experimental ethics
Definition
- Respect: for the autonomy of persons (they have the choice to be there and act how they want)
- Beneficence: maximize benefit, minimize harm
- Justice: fair distribution of costs and benefits
Term
Taking the role of the other: Who created it and what does it mean?
Definition
George Herbert Mead
- We can see ourselves reflected in how others respond to us
- As a result, the self develops through social interaction
- By taking the role of the other, we also understand what others expect from us
Term
The Play
Definition
Ones perception of social norms with only 1 other person
- Knowing what that 1 other person expects
Term
The Game
Definition
- Have to take into account expectations of many others
- Expectations and appropriate behavior may differ depending on role or situation
- Learning the rules for a specific situation
Term
The Generalized Other
Definition
- “Taking the role” (perspective) of society
- Understand what is generally expected in a group (society)
- The organized set of attitudes that are common to a group, and are taken on by the individual as a context for his/her own behavior
- Having some idea of how to behave in a brand new situation by society's standardsTh
Term
The I and the Me
Definition
- Developing the generalized other does not mean that life is always predictable
- The “me”; things we do by habit, because others expect us to do them
- The I; the impulsive side of our behavior
Term
Symbolic Interactionism
Definition
1. People act toward things based on the meaning those things have for them
2. Meanings are derived from social interaction
3. These meanings are subjectively interpreted
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