Sociology Course Review

perspective

a particular point of view

sociology

the scientific study of social structure (human social behavior)

sociological perspective

a view that looks at behavior of groups, not individuals

social structure

the patterned interaction of people in social relationships

sociological imagination

the ability to see the link between society and self

who is the father of sociology?

Auguste Comte

Who created Social Darwinism?

Herbert Spencer

Who predicted that all industrial societies would contain only two social classes: bourgeoisie and proletariat

Karl Marx

bourgeoisie

class owning the means for producing wealth

capitalist

person who owns or controls the means for producing wealth

proletariat

working class; those who labor for the bourgeoisie

class conflict

the ongoing struggle between the bourgeoisie (owners) and the proletariat (working) classes

verstehen

understanding social behavior by putting yourself in the place of others

rationalization

the mind-set emphasizing knowledge, reason, and planning

functionalism

approach that emphasizes the contributions made by each part of society

manifest functions

intended and recognized consequences of an aspect of society

dysfunction

negative consequence of an aspect of society

conflict perspective

approach emphasizing the role of conflict, competition, and constraint within a society

symbol

anything that stands for something else and has an agreed-upon meaning attached to it

symbolic interactionism

approach that focuses on the interactions among people based on mutually understood symbols

correlation

a measure of the relationship between two variables

culture

knowledge, values, customs, and physical objects that are shared by members of a society

society

a specific territory inhabited by people who share a common culture

instincts

innate (unlearned) patterns of behavior

reflex

automatic reaction to physical stimulus

drive

impulse to reduce discomfort

sociobiology

the study of the biological basis of human behavior

symbols

a thing that stands for or represents something else

hypothesis of linguistic relativity

theory stating that our idea of reality depends largely upon language

norms

rules defining appropriate and inappropriate behavior

folkways

Norms that lack moral significance

mores

norms that have moral dimensions and that should be followed by members of the society

taboo

a rule of behavior, the violation of which calls for strong punishment

law

a norm that is formally defined and enforced by officials

sanctions

rewards and punishments used to encourage people to follow norms

formal sanctions

sanctions imposed by persons given special authority

informal sanctions

rewards or punishments that can be applied by most members of a group

values

broad ideas about what is good or desirable shared by people in a society

nonmaterial culture

ideas, knowledge and beliefs that influence people's behavior

beliefs

Ideas about the nature of reality.

material culture

the concrete, tangible objects of a culture

ideal culture

cultural guidelines that group members claim to accept

real culture

actual behavior patterns of members of a group

social categories

groupings of persons who share a social characteristic

subculture

a group that is part of the dominant culture but that differs from it in some important respects

counterculture

a subculture deliberately and consciously opposed to certain central beliefs or attitudes of the dominant culture

ethnocentrism

judging others in terms of one's own cultural standards

cultural universals

general cultural traits that exist in all cultures

cultural particulars

the ways in which a culture expresses universal traits

Socialization

the process of learning to participate in a group

self-concept

an image of yourself as having an identity separate from other people

looking-glass self

an image of yourself based on what you believe others think of you

significant others

those people whose reactions are most important to your self-concept

role taking

assuming the viewpoint of another person and using that viewpoint to shape the self-concept

imitation stage

Mead's first stage in the development of role taking; children begin to imitate behaviors without understanding why

play stage

Mead's second stage in the development of role taking; children act in ways they imagine other people would

game stage

Mead's third stage in the development of role taking; children anticipate the actions of others based on social rules

generalized other

integrated conception of the norms, values, and beliefs of one's community or society

"me"

the part of the self formed through socialization

"I"

the part of the self that accounts for unlearned spontaneous acts

peer group

set of individuals of roughly the same age and interest

mass media

means of communication designed to reach the general population

total institutions

places in which people are separated from the rest of society and controlled by officials in charge

desocialization

the process of giving up old norms, values, attitudes, and behaviors

resocialization

the process of adopting new norms, values, attitudes, and behaviors

anticipatory socialization

the voluntary process of preparing to accept new norms, values, attitudes, and behaviors

reference group

group whose norms and values are used to guide behavior; group with whom you identify

social structure

the underlying patterns of relationships in a group

status

a position a person occupies with a social structure

ascribed status

a position that is neither earned nor chosen but assigned

achieved status

a position that is earned or chosen

master status

a position that strongly affects most other aspects of a person's life

role

an expected behavior associated with a particular status

role performance

the actual behavior of an individual in a role

social interaction

the process of influencing each other a people relate

role conflict

condition in which the performance of a role in one status interferes with the performance of a role in another status

role strain

condition in which the roles of a single status are inconsistent or conflicting

society

people living within a defined territorial boundaries and sharing a common culture

hunting and gathering society

a society that survives by hunting animals and gathering edible plants

horticultural society

a society that survives primarily through the growing of plants

pastoral society

a society in which food is obtained primarily by raising and taking care of animals

agricultural society

a society that uses plows and draft animals in growing food

industrial society

a society that depends on science and technology to produce its basic goods and services

mechanization

the process of replacing animal and human power with machine power