soc 101 dae
How do race and ethnicity differ?
A race is a category of people who have been singled out as inferior or superior, often on the basis of physical characteristics such as skin color, hair texture, or eye shape. An ethnic group is a collection of people distinguished primarily by cultural or national characteristics, including unique cultural traits, a sense of community, a feeling of ethnocentrism, ascribed membership, and territoriality.
How do functionalists and conflict theorists differ in their perspectives on gender inequality?
According to functionalist analysts, women's roles as caregivers in contemporary industrialized societies are crucial in ensuring that key societal tasks are fulfilled. While the husband performs the instrumental tasks of economic support and decision making, the wife assumes the expressive tasks of providing affection and emotional support for the family. According to conflict analysts, the gendered division of labor within families and the workplace—particularly in agrarian and industrial societies—results from male control and dominance over women and resources.
What is world systems theory, and what are the three major types of nations set forth in this theory?
According to world systems theory, the capitalist world economy is a global system divided into a hierarchy of three major types of nations: Core nations are dominant capitalist centers characterized by high levels of industrialization and urbanization, semiperipheral nations are more developed than peripheral nations but less developed than core nations, and peripheral nations are those countries that are dependent on core nations for capital, have little or no industrialization (other than what may be brought in by core nations), and have uneven patterns of urbanization.
What are the characteristics of the U.S. poor based on age, gender, and race/ethnicity?
Age, gender, and race tend to be factors in poverty. Children have a greater risk of being poor than do the elderly, and women have a higher rate of poverty than do men. Although whites account for approximately two-thirds of those below the poverty line, people of color account for a disproportionate share of the impoverished in the United States.
What are the key ideas of conflict explanations of deviance and crime that focus on power relations, capitalism, feminism, and the intersection of race, class, and gender?
Conflict theorists who focus on power relations in society suggest that the lifestyles considered deviant by political and economic elites are often defined as illegal. Marxist conflict theorists link deviance and crime to the capitalist society, which divides people into haves and have-nots, leaving crime as the only source of support for those at the bottom of the economic ladder. Feminist approaches to deviance focus on the relationship between gender and deviance. Multiracial feminist approaches have examined how the intersecting systems of race, class, and gender act as "structuring forces" that affect how people act, what opportunities they have available, and how their behavior is socially defined.
What is dependency theory, and why is this theory often applied to newly industrializing countries?
Dependency theory states that global poverty can at least partially be attributed to the fact that the low-income countries have been exploited by the high-income countries. Whereas modernization theory focuses on how societies can reduce inequality through industrialization and economic development, dependency theorists see the greed of the rich countries as a source of increasing impoverishment of the poorer nations and their people.
What is deviance, and when is deviant behavior considered a crime?
Deviance is any behavior, belief, or condition that violates significant social norms in the society or group in which it occurs. Some forms of deviant behavior violate the criminal law, which defines the behaviors that society labels as criminal.
What are some key symbolic interactionist perspectives on deviance, including differential association theory, social bond theory, and labeling theory?
Differential association theory states that individuals have a greater tendency to deviate from societal norms when they frequently associate with persons who tend toward deviance instead of conformity. Social control theories, everyone is capable of committing crimes, but social bonding (attachments to family and to other social institutions) keeps many from doing so. Labeling theory, deviant behavior is that which is labeled deviant by those in powerful positions.
What are the unique historical experiences of Native Americans and WASPs in the United States?
Experts estimate that approximately two million native inhabitants lived in North America in 1492; their numbers had been reduced to fewer than 240,000 by 1900. Native Americans have been the victims of genocide and forced migration. After the Revolutionary War, the federal government broke treaty after treaty as it engaged in a policy of wholesale removal of indigenous nations in order to clear the land for settlement by Anglo-Saxon "pioneers." Data continue to show that Native Americans are the most disadvantaged racial or ethnic group in the United States in terms of income, employment, housing, nutrition, and health. Whereas Native Americans have been among the most disadvantaged peoples, white Anglo-Saxon Protestants (WASPs) have been the most privileged group in this country. Although many English settlers initially came to North America as indentured servants or as prisoners, they quickly emerged as the dominant group, creating a core culture (including language, laws, and holidays) to which all other groups were expected to adapt.
What are the feminist perspectives on gender inequality?
Feminist perspectives provide insights into the structural aspects of gender inequality in society. In liberal feminism, gender equality is often thought of as equality of opportunity. Radical feminists often trace the roots of patriarchy to women's childbearing and child-rearing responsibilities, which make them dependent on men. Socialist feminists argue that the oppression of women results from their dual roles as paid and unpaid workers in a capitalist economy. Academics and activists have been rethinking the experiences of women of color from a feminist perspective. The experiences of African American women and Latinas/Chicanas have been of particular interest to some social analysts.
What are the key functionalist perspectives on deviance?
Functionalist perspectives on deviance include strain theory and opportunity theory. Strain theory focuses on the idea that when people are denied legitimate access to cultural goals. Opportunity theory suggests that for deviance to occur, people must have access to illegitimate means to acquire what they want but cannot obtain through legitimate means.
How do functionalist, conflict, and symbolic interactionist perspectives on social inequality compare?
Functionalist perspectives view classes as broad groupings of people who share similar levels of privilege on the basis of their roles in the occupational structure. Conflict perspectives on class are based on the assumption that social stratification is created and maintained by one group (typically the capitalist class) in order to enhance and protect its own economic interests. symbolic interactionist views focus on microlevel inequalities such as how class location may positively or negatively influence one's identity and everyday social interactions.
What are gender role, gender identity, body consciousness, and sexism?
Gender role encompasses the attitudes, behaviors, and activities that are socially assigned to each sex and that are learned through socialization. Gender identity is an individual's perception of self as either female or male. Body consciousness is how a person perceives and feels about his or her body. Sexism is the subordination of one sex, usually female, based on the assumed superiority of the other sex.
What is global stratification, and how does it contribute to economic inequality?
Global stratification refers to the unequal distribution of wealth, power, and prestige on a global basis, which results in people having vastly different lifestyles and life chances both within and among the nations of the world.
What kinds of prejudice and discrimination occur on the basis of sexual orientation?
Homophobia refers to extreme prejudice and sometimes discriminatory actions directed at gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and others who are perceived as not being heterosexual. Discrimination occurs in many forms, including marital and parenting rights, housing, health care, bank lending policies, and other rights and privileges taken for granted by heterosexual persons.
How does the division of labor between women and men differ in various kinds of societies?
In most hunting and gathering societies, fairly equitable relationships exist between women and men because neither sex has the ability to provide all of the food necessary for survival. In horticultural societies, a fair degree of gender equality exists because neither sex controls the food supply. In agrarian societies, male dominance is overt; agrarian tasks require more labor and physical strength, and females are often excluded from these tasks because they are viewed as too weak or too tied to child-rearing activities. In industrialized societies, a gap exists between nonpaid work performed by women at home and paid work performed by men and women. A wage gap also exists between women and men in the marketplace.
What is the difference between income inequality and wealth inequality?
Income is the economic gain derived from wages, salaries, income transfers (governmental aid), and ownership of property. Wealth includes property such as buildings, land, farms, houses, factories, and cars, as well as other assets such as bank accounts, corporate stocks, bonds, and insurance policies. Wealth is even more unevenly distributed than income.
How does the World Bank classify nations into four economic categories, and why do organizations such as this have problems measuring wealth and poverty on a global basis?
Low-income economies had a GNI per capita of less than $1,045 in 2015, lower-middle-income economies had a GNI per capita between $1,046 and $4,125, upper-middle-income economies had a GNI per capita between $4,126 and $12,735, and high-income economies had a GNI per capita of $12,736 or more. it also involves social judgments made by researchers. Absolute poverty is a condition in which people do not have the means to secure the most basic necessities of life. Relative poverty exists when people may be able to afford basic necessities but are still unable to maintain an average standard of living.
In what ways does the contemporary workplace reflect gender stratification?
Many women work in lower-paying, less prestigious jobs than men. This occupational segregation leads to a disparity, or pay gap, between women's and men's earnings. Even when women are employed in the same job as men, on average they do not receive the same, or comparable, pay.
How did Karl Marx view social class and stratification?
Marx viewed social class as a key determinant of social inequality and social change. For Marx, class position and the extent of our income and wealth are determined by our work situation, or our relationship to the means of production. Marx stated that capitalistic societies consist of two classes—the capitalists and the workers—and class relationships involve inequality and exploitation.
What have been the unique experiences of Latinos/as (Hispanics) and Middle Eastern Americans in the United States?
Mexican Americans—including both native-born and foreign-born people of Mexican origin—are the largest segment (approximately two-thirds) of the Latino/a population in the United States. Today, Puerto Rican Americans make up 9 percent of Hispanic-origin people in the United States. Although some Latinos/as have made substantial political, economic, and professional gains in U.S. society, as a group they are nevertheless subjected to anti-immigration sentiments. Since 1970, many immigrants have arrived in the United States from countries located in the "Middle East," which is the geographic region from Afghanistan to Libya that includes Arabia, Cyprus, and Asiatic Turkey. Middle Eastern immigrants to the United States speak a variety of languages and have diverse religious backgrounds. Because they generally come from middle-class backgrounds, they have made inroads into mainstream U.S. society. However, some Middle Eastern Americans experience discrimination based on their speech patterns, appearance, and clothing. The idea that Middle Easterners are somehow associated with terrorism has also been difficult to remove from media representations and some people's thinking, which produces ongoing hardship for many upstanding citizens of this nation.
What is modernization theory, and what are the four stages of economic development identified by Walt Rostow?
Modernization theory is a perspective that links global inequality to different levels of economic development and suggests that low-income economies can move to middle- and high-income economies by achieving self-sustained economic growth. Walt Rostow suggested that all countries go through four stages of economic development, with identical content, regardless of when these nations started the process of industrialization. The stages of economic development are as follows: the traditional stage, in which very little social change takes place and people do not think much about changing their current circumstances. The second stage is the take-off stage—a period of economic growth accompanied by a growing belief in individualism, competition, and achievement. In the third stage the country moves toward technological maturity. In the fourth and final stage the country reaches the phase of high mass consumption and a correspondingly high standard of living.
What is the levels of development approach for studying global inequality
Most definitions of inequality are based on comparisons of levels of income or economic development, whereby countries are identified in terms of the "three worlds" or upon their levels of economic development. Terminology based on levels of development includes concepts such as developed nations, developing nations, less-developed nations, and underdevelopment.
Why may official statistics not be a good indicator of how many crimes are committed, particularly in regard to factors such as age, race, gender, and class?
Official crime statistics are taken from the Uniform Crime Report, which lists crimes reported to the police, and the National Crime Victimization Survey, which interviews households to determine the incidence of crimes, including those not reported to police. Studies show that many more crimes are committed than are officially reported. Age is the key factor in crime statistics. Younger people are more likely to have the highest criminal victimization rates. The elderly tend to be fearful of crime but are the least likely to be victimized. Males are arrested for significantly more crimes than females. Persons from lower socioeconomic backgrounds are more likely to be arrested for violent and property crimes; white-collar crime is more likely to occur among the upper socioeconomic classes.
What are the primary agents of gender socialization, and what is their role in socializing people throughout life?
Parents, peers, teachers and schools, sports, and the media are agents of socialization that tend to reinforce stereotypes of appropriate gender behavior. From birth, parents act differently toward children on the basis of the child's sex. Peers help children learn gender-role stereotypes, as well as gender-appropriate and gender-inappropriate behavior. Schools operate as gendered institutions, and teachers provide messages about gender through the formal content of assignments and informal interactions. In terms of sports, boys are socialized to participate in highly competitive, rule-oriented games, whereas girls have traditionally been socialized to participate in activities that involve less competitiveness. Recently, however, more girls have started to participate in sports formerly regarded as "male" activities.
What is the relationship between global poverty and key human development issues such as life expectancy, health, education, and literacy?
People who live in countries in the highest-human-development categories are, on average, better educated, will live longer, and will earn more. The adult literacy rate in the low-income countries is significantly lower than that of high-income countries, and for women the rate is even lower.
How do postmodern perspectives on deviance differ from other theoretical approaches?
Postmodernist views on deviance focus on how the powerful control others through discipline and surveillance.
What are prejudice, stereotypes, racism, scapegoats, and discrimination?
Prejudice is a negative attitude often based on stereotypes, which are overgeneralizations about the appearance, behavior, or other characteristics of all members of a group. Stereotypes are overgeneralizations about the appearance, behavior, or other characteristics of members of particular categories. Racism is a set of attitudes, beliefs, and practices that is used to justify the superior treatment of one racial or ethnic group and the inferior treatment of another racial or ethnic group. A scapegoat is a person or group that is incapable of offering resistance to the hostility or aggression of others. Discrimination involves actions or practices of dominant-group members that have a harmful effect on members of a subordinate group.
How do racial and ethnic classifications continue to change in the United States?
Racial classifications in the United States have changed over the past century. If we look at U.S. Census Bureau classifications, for example, we can see how the meaning of race continues to change. First, race is defined by perceived skin color: white or nonwhite. Census 2000 made it possible—for the first time—for individuals to classify themselves as being of more than one race
How do sex and gender differ?
Sex refers to the biological categories and manifestations of femaleness and maleness; gender refers to the socially constructed differences between females and males. In short, sex is what we (generally) are born with; gender is what we acquire through socialization.
What is social stratification, and how do the three major systems of stratification compare?
Social stratification is the hierarchical arrangement of large social groups based on their control over basic resources. Stratification systems include slavery, caste, and class. Slavery, an extreme form of stratification in which people are owned or controlled by others, is a closed system. The caste system is also a closed one in which people's status is determined at birth based on their parents' position in society. The class system, which exists in the United States, is a type of stratification based on ownership of resources and on the type of work that people do.
What are the key characteristics of social classes in the United States?
Sociologists have developed two models of the class structure: One is based on a Weberian approach, the other on a Marxian approach. In the Weberian-based approach, social classes are based on three elements: (1) education, (2) occupation of family head, and (3) family income. This approach to class structure consists of the upper class, the upper-middle class, the middle class, the working class, the working poor, and the underclass. Contemporary Marxian models examine class in terms of people's relationship to others in the production process.
How do sociologists view racial and ethnic relations?
Symbolic interactionists claim that intergroup contact may either intensify or reduce racial and ethnic stereotyping and prejudice, depending on the context. In the contact hypothesis, symbolic interactionists point out that contact between people from divergent groups should lead to favorable attitudes and behavior when certain factors are present. Functionalists stress that members of subordinate groups become a part of the mainstream through assimilation, the process by which members of subordinate groups become absorbed into the dominant culture. Conflict theorists focus on economic stratification and access to power in race and ethnic relations. The caste perspective views inequality as a permanent feature of society, whereas class perspectives focus on the link between capitalism and racial exploitation. According to racial formation theory, the actions of the U.S. government substantially define racial and ethnic relations.
How have slavery, segregation, lynching, and persistent discrimination uniquely affected the African American experience in this country?
The African American (black) experience has been one uniquely marked by slavery, segregation, and persistent discrimination. Between 1619 and the 1860s, about 500,000 Africans were forcibly brought to North America, primarily to work on southern plantations, and these actions were justified by the devaluation and stereotyping of African Americans. Following the abolishment of slavery in 1863, African Americans were still subjected to segregation, discrimination, and lynchings. Despite civil rights legislation and economic and political gains by many African Americans, racial prejudice and discrimination continue to exist.
What are the components of the criminal justice system and the goals of punishment?
The criminal justice system refers to the local, state, and federal agencies that enforce laws, adjudicate crimes, and treat and rehabilitate criminals. punishment has had four major goals: retribution, general deterrence, incapacitation, and rehabilitation.
What is the new international division of labor theory, and how might it be useful in the twenty-first century?
The new international division of labor theory is based on the assumption that commodity production is split into fragments that can be assigned to whichever part of the world can provide the most profitable combination of capital and labor. This division of labor has changed the pattern of geographic specialization between countries, whereby high-income countries have become dependent on low-income countries for labor. The low-income countries provide transnational corporations with a situation in which they can pay lower wages and taxes and face fewer regulations regarding workplace conditions and environmental protection.
What are three important consequences of inequality in the United States?
The stratification of society into different social groups results in wide discrepancies in income and wealth and in variable access to available goods and services. People with high income or wealth have greater opportunity to control their own lives. People with less income have fewer life chances and must spend their limited resources to acquire basic necessities.
What are the major categories of Asian Americans, and what are their historical and contemporary experiences?
The term Asian Americans designates the many diverse groups with roots in Asia. Chinese and Japanese immigrants were among the earliest Asian Americans. Many Filipinos, Asian Indians, Koreans, Vietnamese, Cambodians, Pakistani, and Indonesians have arrived more recently. The subgroups are listed as Chinese Americans (the largest Asian American group), Japanese Americans, Korean Americans, Filipino Americans (the second-largest category of Asian Americans), and Indochinese Americans (which include people from Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos). Asian American immigrants as a group have enjoyed considerable upward mobility in U.S. society in recent decades, but many Asian Americans still struggle to survive by working at low-paying jobs and living in urban ethnic enclaves.
How do sociologists define the following types of crime: violent crime, property crime, public order crime, occupational and corporate crime, Internet crime, organized crime, and political crime?
Violent crime consists of actions involving force or the threat of force against others. Property crimes include burglary, motor vehicle theft, larceny-theft, and arson. Public order crimes involve an illegal action voluntarily engaged in by the participants, such as prostitution. Occupational crime comprises illegal activities committed by people in the course of their employment or financial affairs. Corporate crime consists of illegal acts committed by corporate employees on behalf of the corporation and with its support. Internet crime includes FBI-related scams, identity theft, advance fee fraud, nonauction/nondelivery of merchandise, and overpayment fraud. Organized crime is a business operation that supplies illegal goods and services for profit. Political crime refers to illegal or unethical acts involving the usurpation of power by government officials or illegal/unethical acts perpetrated against the government by outsiders seeking to make a political statement, undermine the government, or overthrow it.
What is Max Weber's multidimensional approach to social stratification?
Weber emphasized that no single factor (such as economic divisions between capitalists and workers) was sufficient for defining the location of categories of people within the class structure. Weber developed a multidimensional concept of stratification that focuses on the interplay of wealth, prestige, and power.
