Ch. 1

Conventional REsearch Model

1. select and define research prob. 2. review previous research 3. formulate hypothesis 4. develop research design 5. collect and analyze the data 6. draw conclusions and report the finding

university of chicago

1st dep. of sociology

WEB Du Bois at Atlanta University

2nd dep. of sociology in US, Du Bois noted a dual heritage creates conflict for people of color, double consciousness

Auguste Comte

"founder of society" philosophy became known as positivism

commonsense knowledge

guides ordinary conduct in everyday life

social darwinism

human beings best adapted to their environment survive and prosper, where as those poorly adapted die out

double consciousness

identity conflict of being both black and an American

manifest functions

intended and or overtly recognized by the participants in social unit

Sociology

is the systematic study of human society and social interaction

society

large social grouping that shares the same geographical territory and is subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations

Symbolic Interactionist Perspectives

macrolevel analysis, microlevel analysis, symbolic interactionist perspectives, how people interpret the messages they receive and the situations they encounter becomes their subjective reality and may strongly influence their behavior

Merton

manifest functions and latent function

C. Wright Mills

most important decisions are made largely by the power elite

high-income countries

nations with highly industrialized economies; technologically advanced industrial, administrative, and service occupations; and relatively high levels of national and personal income

middle-income countries

nations with industrializing economies, particularly in urban areas, and moderate levels of national and personal income

Jane Addams

one of best known early women sociologists in US, founded Hull House

social facts

patterned ways of acting, thinking, and feeling that exist outside any one individual but exert social control over each person

myth

popular but false notion that may be used, either intentionally or unintentionally, to perpetuate certain beliefs or "theories" even in the light of conclusive evidence to the contrary

prestige

por. or neg. social estimation of honor

low-income countries

primarily agrarian nations with little industrialization and low levels of national and personal income

personal troubles

private problems that affect individuals and the networks of people with whom they associate regularly.

public issues

problems that affect large numbers of people and often require solutions at the societal level

urbanization

proces by which an increasing proportion of a population lives in cities rather than in rural areas

industrialization

process by which societies are transformed from dep. on agriculture and handmade products to an emphasis on manufacturing and related industries

gender

refers to meanings, beliefs, and practices associated with sex differences, referred to as femininity and masculinity

sex

refers to the biological and anatomical differences between females and males

ethnicity

refers to the cultural heritage or identity of a group and is based on factors such as language or country of origin.

global interdependence

relationship in which the lives of all people are intertwined closely and any one nation's problems are part of a larger global problem

class

relative location of a person or group within the larger society; based on wealth, power, prestige, or other valued resources

Max Weber

saw importance of economic conditions in producing inequality and conflict in society adding power and prestige

Theory

set of logically, interrelated statements that attempts to describe, explain, and occasionally predict social events, sociologists refer to this framework as a perspective-functionalist, conflict, and symbolic interactionist perspectives

Georg Simmel

society as a web of patterned interactions among people, interaction patterns differed betw a dyad and a triad, formal sociology, class conflict more pronounced

symbolic interactionist perspectives

society is the sum of interactions of individuals and groups

Max Weber

sociology should be value fee- research excluding researcher's personal values and economic interests, rational bureaucracy most sig. factor in determining social relations betw. people in industrial societies.

Parson

stressed all societies must provide for meeting social needs in order to survive, division of labor betw. husband and wife

Sociological Research Process

Research, relationship betw. theory and research has been referred to as continuous cycle, some researchers engage in quant. and qual. research

power

ability of person within social relationship to carry out will despite resistance from others

sociological imagination

ability to see the relationship between individual experiences and the larger society

formal sociology

approach that focuses attention on the universal recurring social forms that underlie the varying content of social interaction

Functionalist perspective

based on assumption that society is a stable, orderly system, characterized by societal consensus, society composed of interrelated parts, each serve fcnt. and contributes to stability of society, Talcott Parson and Robert Merton

positivism

belief that world can best be understood through scientific inquiry

Emile Durkheim

believed limits of human potential are socially based, one of his most important contributions was concept of social facts

Harriet Martineau

believed that a better society would emerge if women and men were treated equally, enlightened reform occurred, and cooperation existed among people in all social classes

Herbert Spencer

contributed an evolutionary perspective on social order and social change, Social darwinism

feminist approach

directs attention to women's experiences and importance of gender

macrolevel analysis

examines whole societies, large-scale social structures, and social systems

Postmodern Perspectives

existing theories have been unsuccessful in explaining social life in contemporary societies that are characterized by postindustrialization, consumerism, and global communication. rapid social change that occurs as societies move form modern to postmodern conditions has harmful effect. emphasize fragmented nature of contemporary society brought about by constant change

microlevel analysis

focuses on small groups rather than large-scale social structures

race

term used to specify groups of people distinguished by physical characteristics such as skin color

Conflict perspectives

today view social life as a continuous power struggle among competing social groups, Max Weber and C. Wright Mills, feminist approach

latent functions

unintended functions that are hidden and remain unacknowledged

Karl Marx

viewed history as clash betw. conflicting ideas and forces, class conflict