Sociology Chapter 1 & 2

Seeing the Strange in the Familiar

Sociologist Peter Berger suggests that things are not always what they seem. Sociology pushes us to question the assumptions we are making about society, and reveals aspects of our social life that we typically would not claim to be obvious facts.-not totally in terms of what we decide Example: decision to have a certain amount of children is personal however it follows a strict social pattern

THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

Sociology is defined as the systematic study of human society. At the heart of sociology is a distinctive point of view called the sociological perspective.

Even though considerable variation exists, all cultures share components:

Symbols, language, values, and norms.

Applied Sociology

The benefits of sociology for various careers, particularly those involving social programs and social policy creation and implementation, are briefly discussed.

THE ORIGINS OF SOCIOLOGY

The discipline of sociology emerged as a product of particular social forces in Europe during the nineteenth century. French sociologist Auguste Comte coined the term sociology in 1838. -Industrial technology: Technological changes of the Middle Ages brought people to work in small-scale manufacturing. This change in the system of production weakened cultural traditions. - The Growth of Cities: Both pushes and pulls were involved in this process of urbanization. - Political Change: Traditional ways of thinking were being replaced by ideas of individual liberty and individual rights.

Post Industrial Information Technology:

The primary form of production centers on the creation, processing, storage, and application of information. This type of society is based on computers and skills related to their use.

The Structural-Functional Paradigm

The structural-functional paradigm is a framework for building theory that sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability.

social dysfunctions.

There may be undesirable effects on the operation of society, or social dysfunctions.

Symbols:

This component underlies the other four. - A symbol is anything that carries a particular meaning recognized by people who share culture - Symbols serve as the basis for everyday reality. Vary within cultures, cross culturally and change over time.

SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY

While the sociological perspective provides us with a unique vantage point from which to observe our social world, theory helps us to meaningfully organize and explain the linkages between specific observations we make

To conclude that a cause and effect relationship exists, at least three conditions must be established:

(1) A correlation exists between the variables (2) The independent variable precedes the dependent variable in time (3) No evidence exists that a third variable is responsible for a spurious correlation between the two variables.

Benefits of the Sociological Perspective

(1) Helping us assess the truth of commonly held assumptions "common sense" (2) Prompting us to assess both the opportunities and the constraints that characterize our lives (3) Empowering us to participate actively in our society -> better we understand society the more effective citizens we become (4) Helping us recognize human variety and confront the challenges of living in a diverse world.

The ideal experiment involves three steps leading to the acceptance or rejection of the hypothesis.

(1) Measurement of the dependent variable (2) Exposure of the dependent variable to the independent variable (3) Re-measurement of the dependent variable. One strategy for controlling outside influences is to divide subjects into an experimental group and a control group.

Reasons why global perspective is so important

(1) Societies the world over are increasingly interconnected (2) Many social problems that we face in the United States are far more serious elsewhere (3) Thinking globally is a good way to learn more about ourselves-> walking along foreign streets, give you a much better idea of what it means to live in Canada (4) Where we live makes a great deal of difference in shaping our lives

Folkways

are a society's customs for routine, casual interaction (acceptable greeting)

Sociology, instincts and culture?

**We are the only species whose survival depends on what we learn through culture, rather than by what we are naturally given through biology. For a few animal species, most notably chimpanzees, a limited cultural capacity exists.

Research ethics

-Technical competence -Awareness of bias -Safety and privacy -Discussion with subjects concerning risks involved -Accurate presentation of purpose of research -Full reporting of findings -Identification of any organizational affiliations. There are also global dimensions to research ethics.

A Measurement:

-is a process for determining the value of a variable in a specific case. -For example, the factors of family income and occupation can be used to determine the social class of a particular person or family. Variables can be measured in many different ways, mode, median and mean

Auguste Comte, 3 phases?

-pointed out the need for social integration during a time of rapid change, first coined the term sociology (1838). Saw psychology as the product of three phases 1) Theological phase - up to the end of the European Middle Ages people took a religious view that society expressed gods will 2) Metaphysical phase- people saw society as natural rather than a supernatural phenomenon 3) Scientific phase - (Copernicus, Galileo)applying the scientific approach to society (structural functional paradigm)

Asking Questions, Survey Research:

A Survey is a research method in which subjects respond to a series of items in a questionnaire or an interview. It is the most widely used of the research methods.

Social Marginality

being set apart as "outsiders"

Positivism, founder?

A scientific approach to knowledge based on "positive" facts as opposed to mere speculation. - Comte

Independent variable

causes a change or effect in another variable

Herbert Spencer:

compared society to the human body (structural functional paradigm)

Reliability:

concerns the consistency in measurement For example, does a person taking several math achievement tests score equivalently on each test?

Social function:

consequences of a social pattern for the operation of society (structural functional paradigm)

Manifest functions

consequences of social structure both recognized and intended

Gender and Research Values influence research in terms of gender.

Androcentricity (dominated by masculine interests), Gynocentricity, (dominated by female interests) overgeneralizing, gender blindness, double standards, and gender interference

secondary analysis

Any further analysis of an existing data-set which presents interpretations, conclusions, or knowledge additional to, or different from, those presented in the first report on the data collection and its results.

Values:

Are defined as culturally defined standards of desirability, goodness, and beauty, which serve as broad guidelines for social living beliefs are supported by values, or specific statements that people hold to be true -Sometimes in Conflict and change over time

Subculture (sociologists)

defined as cultural patterns that set apart some segment of a society's population. Subcultures can be based on age, ethnicity, residence, sexual preference, occupation, and many other factors. (Ex. People who ride motorcycles)

Cultural lag:

describes the fact that cultural elements change at different rates, which may disrupt a cultural system.

Popular culture

designates cultural patterns widespread among a society's people

Agriculture

emerged 5,000 years ago and is based on a number of technological advances. The technological change during this time period was so dramatic -- including the wheel, irrigation, writing, and the expanding use of metals -- that the Lenskis call this era the "dawn of civilization." -> The power of the elite greatly increased with the development of agriculture, supported by religious beliefs and the expanding political power structure

Max Weber

emphasized understanding a particular setting from the point of view of people in it. Symbolic-interaction paradigm

W.E.B. De Bois:

guided by the SCA to raise the standing of black people. The social-conflict paradigm.

Emile Durkheim:

helped establish sociology in French university's based his work on this (structural functional paradigm)

The Sapir-Worf thesis

holds that people perceive the world through the cultural lens of language.

A variable

is a concept whose value changes from case to case For example, social class varies, with some people being identified as middle class and others as working class.

The social-conflict paradigm

is a framework for building theory that sees society as an arena of inequality that generates conflict and social change. Social differences, rather than social integration, are the focus using this paradigm. Educational achievement is discussed to illustrate the unequal distribution of power and privilege.

Symbolic-interaction paradigm

is a framework for building theory that sees society as the product of the everyday interactions of individuals. People are seen as interacting in terms of shared symbols and meanings.

A Concept:

is a mental construct that represents some part of the world, inevitably in a simplified form. For example, terms like family and social class are concepts.

Theory

is a statement of how and why specific facts are related.

A research method:

is a systematic plan for conducting research.

Multiculturalism

is an educational program recognizing the cultural diversity of the United States and promoting equality of all cultural traditions. Suggest that their perspective will help us develop a more meaningful understanding of our own past. The ethnic diversity of our present, and strengthen the academic achievements of African-American children

The mean

is calculated by taking the arithmetic average of a series of numbers

Cultural Change:

is continuous, though its rate may vary greatly.

Counterculture:

is defined as a set of cultural patterns that strongly opposes conventional culture.

Culture:

is defined as the beliefs, values, behaviour, and material objects that together form a people's way of life.

The mode:

is defined as the value that occurs most often in a series of numbers

A Third Framework: Critical sociology

is discussed in which the focus is on moral and political questions and the need for social change.

A Second Framework: Interpretive sociology

is discussed with the focus on interpersonal interaction and the meanings that people attach to the social world. Society as an ongoing interaction, people construct reality as they attach meaning to their behavior.

Horticulture

is technology based on using hand tools to cultivate plants. (Settle) -This strategy first appeared in the Middle East, some societies, like the Yanomamo, combine hunting and gathering with horticulture.

Pastoralism

is the domestication of animals. (Remain nomadic) -Both of these strategies are capable of producing material surpluses. However, both also produced greater social inequality.

Cultural transmission:

is the process by which one generation passes on culture to the next. Oral cultural tradition has been critical throughout human history

Industry

is the production of goods using advanced sources of energy to drive machinery. - A major shift at this level of technological development involves production moving from the family household to the factory. Occupational specialization expands as well. Cultural values become more heterogeneous. As industrialism first emerges, social inequalities increase. As the process continues resources spread through society more widely. Great population increases occur as health conditions improve.

Global perspective

is the study of the larger world and our society's place in it.

Critically Evaluation of structural functional paradigm

it is a conservative approach to the study of society, which tends to ignore tension and conflict in social systems. Favored a lot in the mid-1900s.

Validity:

means measuring precisely what one intends to measure For example, are the math tests truly measuring what they purport to measure--skills and knowledge--or are they possibly measuring some other quality like ability to follow directions?

Level of study.Symbolic-interaction paradigm

micro-level orientation-> a focus on social interaction in specific situations

Social structure:

or a relatively stable pattern of social behavior (structural-functional paradigm)

Afrocentrism:

or dominance of African cultural patterns.

Cultural integration:

or the close relationship among various elements of a cultural system is a concept relating to the connections between dimensions of culture.

Theoretical paradigm:

provides a basic image of society that guides thinking and research. There are three principal theoretical paradigms used by sociologists. Each one focuses the 1) researcher's attention on particular types of questions about 2) how society is organized, and on 3) different explanations about why certain patterns are found in society.

Critical evaluation: social-conflict paradigm

raises concern that social unity is ignored, and that in focusing on change, objectivity may be lost.

Mores

refer to a society's standards of proper moral conduct (taboos, like incest).

Hunting and Gathering

refer to the use of simple tools to hunt animals and gather vegetation. Up until about 1800 years most humans were hunters and gatherers. Today only a small number of such societies are still in existence. This way of life is characterized by small bands of people, a nomadic lifestyle, stratification based only on age and sex, and few positions of leadership. Such societies usually recognize a shaman, or a spiritual leader. Social organization tends to be simple and equal, being organized around kinship.

Correlation:

refers to a relationship between two (or more) variables

Spurious correlation:

refers to an apparent, although false, relationship between two (or more) variables caused by a third variable.

High culture

refers to cultural patterns that distinguish a society's elite

Nonmaterserial culture:

refers to the nonphysical ideas that people have about their culture, including beliefs, values, rules, norms, morals, language, organizations, and institutions.

Material culture

refers to the physical objects, resources, and spaces that people use to define their culture. These include homes, neighborhoods, cities, schools,

The median:

refers to the value that occurs midway in a series of numbers or, simply, the middle case

agrarian culture

relies on agriculture for its primary needs

Eurocentrism:c

the dominance of European (particularly English) cultural patterns.

Culture shock:

the personal disorientation accompanying exposure to an unfamiliar way of life, inability to 'read' new surroundings

dependent variable

the variable which changes because of the independent

Critical evaluation: Symbolic-interaction paradigm

this view it must be stressed that the focus is on how individuals personally experience society. This approach does not allow us to generalize findings to establish broad general patterns.

Canadian Values

Equality and fairness in a democratic society, consultation and dialogue (settle our differences peacefully), Importance of accommodation and tolerance, support for diversity, compassion and generosity, attachment to Canada's natural beauty, commitment to freedom, peace

Global Perspective; The high-income countries, or industrial nations that are relatively rich, highest standards of living

Example: Canada, US, nations of western, Europe, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Japan and Australia

The middle-income countries, or nations characterized by limited industrialization, individuals in society most likely walk to school or bike, have limited years of schooling

Example: Eastern Europe, some of Africa, Latin America and Asia

The low-income countries, or nations with little industrialization and severe poverty

Example: almost half of the worlds population live in the 60 low income countries, Africa

Ways to test a hypothesis

Experiment, survey research, participant observation, existing sources -An Experiment is a research method for investigating cause and effect under highly controlled conditions. -This type of research is usually explanatory. -Experiments are typically designed to test a specific hypothesis, or an unverified statement of a relationship between variables.

Latent functions:

unrecognized and unintended consequences of social structure

Karl Marx:

wanted to start a new discipline of sociology not just to understand it but to fix it, championed the workers against those who owned the factories (social-conflict approach)

Marginal Voices

Historically, the important contributions made by women in the social sciences have been pushed to the margins or even ignored. The sociological work of Harriet Martineau who was the first female sociologist, documenting evils of slavery and arguing laws to protect factory workers and to advance the standing of women. Jane Addams did..

Culture and Human Intelligence:

Human intelligence is what sets us apart from other species. Human culture and biological evolution are linked. Over evolutionary time, instincts have been gradually replaced by culture and by our ability to fashion the natural environment.

Cultural change: is set into motion by three different causes

Invention: Discovery: Diffusion:

Language:

Is a system of symbols that allows people to communicate with one another? Language is very important in the transmission of culture

SCIENTIFIC SOCIOLOGY

Knowledge derived from sociological research is based on observation and empirical evidence and often challenges common sense assumptions about behavior.

Technology:

Knowledge that people use to make a way of life in their surroundings -> more complex a society's technology the easier it is for the society to shape the world for themselves

Level of study of structural functional paradigm

Macro level-> focus on broad social structures that shape society as a whole

Level of study: social-conflict paradigm

Macro level-> focus on broad social structures that shape society as a whole

Robert Merton

Manifest functions, latent functions, social dysfunctions

The Second Time Around, Existing Sources:

Many research studies are conducted using data that someone has already collected. Advantages- saves time and expense of data collection; makes historical research possible Limitations- Researcher has no control over possible biases in data; data may only partially fit current research

Norms:

Norms are rules and expectations by which a society guides the behaviour of its members. Norms can change over time, as illustrated by norms regarding sexual behaviour. -Mores and folklore are the two types of norms -'ideal' vs 'real' culture norms (most people agree affairs are bad, however such a large % have them)

In The Field, Participant Observation:

Participant observation is a method by which researchers systematically observe people while joining in their routine activities. -This method is very common among cultural anthropologists who use fieldwork to gather data for their ethnographies. -Sociologists typically refer to this type of research as case studies. -Such research is exploratory and descriptive. -Participant observation is based heavily on subjective interpretation, and is therefore criticized by some for lacking scientific rigor.

Seeing the General in the Particular

Peter Berger has suggested that sociologists look for general social patterns in the behavior of particular individuals. While not erasing our uniqueness as individuals, sociology studies the social forces that impinge on our lives in so many unseen, yet significant ways.

Artefacts:

Physical human creations, partly reflect underlying cultural values

Seeing Individuality in Social Context

Research by Emile Durkheim on suicide shows how impersonal forces affect personal behaviour. Durkheim showed that certain social categories in Western Europe during the latter part of the nineteenth century had higher suicide rates than others. The degree of social integration experienced by people was found to be a significant factor influencing patterns in suicide rates. (Men, Protestants, wealthy people and the unmarried had higher suicide rates) -figured it was because of social integration, male-dominated societies give males more freedom which leads to more social isolation as well