Sociology Exam 4

Subcontracting

An agreement in which a corporation contracts with other firms to provide specialized components, products, or services to the larger corporation

Holistic Medicine

An approach to health care that focuses on prevention of illness and disease and is aimed at treating the whole person rather than just the part in which symptoms occur

Democratic Socialism

An economic and political system that combines private ownership of some of the means of production, governmental distribution of some essential goods and services, and free elections

Capitalism

An economic system characterized by private ownership of the means of production, from which personal profits can be derived through market competition and without government intervention

Socialism

An economic system characterized by public ownership of the means of production, the pursuit of collective goals, and centralized decision making

Medicine

An institutionalized system for the scientific diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of illness

Political Party

An organization whose purpose is to gain and hold legitimate control of government

Health Care

Any activity intended to improve health

Managed Care

Any system of cost containment that closely monitors and controls health care providers' decisions about medical procedures, diagnostic tests, and other services that should be provided to patients

Pluralist Model

Assumes that people share a consensus and that the government serves important functions that no other institution can fulfill

Occupations

Categories of jobs that involve similar activities at different work sites

Conglomerates

Combinations of businesses in different commercial areas, all of which are owned by one holding company

Mixed Economy

Combines elements of a market economy with elements of a command economy

Primary Labor Market

Consists of high-paying jobs with good benefits that have some degree of security and the possibility of future advancement

Secondary Labor Market

Consists of low-paying jobs with few benefits and very little job security or possibility for future advancement

Marginal Jobs

Differ from the employment norms of the society in which they are located

Industrial Cities

Employment opportunities, increased size

Population Pyramid

A graphic representation of the distribution of a population by sex and age

Universal Health Care

A health care system in which all citizens receive medical services paid for by tax revenues

Socialized Medicine

A health care system in which the government owns the medical care facilities and employs the physicians

Authoritarianism

A political system controlled by rules who deny popular participation in government

Monarchy

A political system in which power resides in one person or family and is passed down from generation to generation through lines of inheritance

Democracy

A political system in which the people hold the ruling power either directly or through elected representatives

Totalitarianism

A political system in which the state seeks to regulate all aspects of people's public and private lives

Sick Role/Functionalist

A set of patterned explanations that defines the norms and values appropriate for individuals who are sick and for those who interact with them

Professions

High-status, knowledge-based occupations that have five major characteristics

Acute Diseases

Illness that strike suddenly and cause dramatic incapacitation and sometimes death

Chronic Diseases

Illnesses that are long term or lifelong and that develop gradually or are present from birth

Transnational Corporations

Large corporations that are headquartered in one country but sell and produce goods and services in many countries

Interlocking Corporate Directorates

Members of the board of directors of one corporation who also sit on the board(s) of other corporations

Political Action Committees

Organizations of special interest groups that solicit contributions from donors and fund campaigns to help elect candidates based on their stances on specific issues

Corporations

Organizations that have legal powers, such as the ability to enter into contracts and buy and sell property, separate from their individual owners

Marxist Perspective

Overpopulation occurs because capitalists desire to have a surplus of workers in order to suppress wages and force workers concerned about losing their livelihoods to be more productive

Contingent Work

Part-time work, temporary work, or subcontracted work that offers advantages to employers but that can be detrimental to the welfare of workers

Rational-Legal Authority

Power legitimized by law or written rules and regulations

Health Maintenance Organizations

Provide, for a set monthly fee, total care with an emphasis on prevention to avoid costly treatment later

Disability

Refers to a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major activities that a person would normally do at a given stage of life and that may result in stigmatization or discrimination against the person with the disability

Life Expectancy

Refers to an estimate of the average lifetime of people born in a specific year

Oligopoly

Refers to an industry dominated by just a few companies

Deinstitutionalization

Refers to the practice of rapidly discharged patients from mental hospitals into the community

Demedicalization/SI

Refers to the process whereby a problem ceases to be defined as an illness or a disorder

Medicalization/SI

Refers to the process whereby nonmedical problems become defined and treated as illnesses or disorders

Postindustrial Cities

Service/information sector, rapid expansion

Preindustrial Cities

Small, limited migration

Simmel/SI

Urban life shapes people's thoughts and actions

Wirth/SI

Urbanism is a way of life

Representative Democracy

When citizens elect representatives to serve as bridges between themselves and the government

Shared Monopoly

When four or fewer companies supply 50% or more of a particular market

Conflict Theorists

____ argue that cities do not grow or decline by chance, they are the product of specific decisions made by members of the capital class and political elites

Conflict Theorists

____ argue that uneven development reflects inequalities of wealth and power in society

Conflict Theorists

____ emphasize the political, economic, and social forces that affect health and the health care delivery system

Karl Marx

_____ described socialism as a temporary stage en route to an ideal communist society

Functionalists

_____ examine the interrelations among the parts that make up the whole, in studying the growth of cities, they emphasize the life cycle of urban growth

Symbolic Interactionalists

_____ focus on the importance of the symbolic presentation of a problem to both participants and the general public

Conflict Theorists

_____ see persons with a disability are members of a subordinate group in conflict with persons in positions of power in the government

Conflict Theorists

_____ see that governments exists for the benefit of wealthy or politically powerful elites who use the government to impose their will on the masses

Conflict Theorists

_____ think gentrification creates additional hardships for the poor by depleting the amount of affordable housing available and by "pushing" them out of the area

Conflict Theorists

_____ think the medical-industrial complex encompasses local physicians and hospitals as well as global health-related industries such as insurance companies and pharmaceutical and medical supply companies

Functionalists

______ suggest that divergent viewpoints lead to a system of political pluralism, in which the government functions as an arbiter between competing interests and viewpoints

Functionalists

_______ see some special interest groups and political action committees continue to represent the broader needs and interests of many individuals, groups, and organizations in society

Charismatic Authority

- Power legitimized on the basis of a leader's exception personal qualities or the demonstration of extraordinary insight and accomplishment that inspire loyalty and obedience from followers - Will not last must switch

Traditional Authority

- Power that is legitimized on the basis of long-standing custom - Ex= Women changing last name when married

Military Industrial Complex

- The mutual interdependence of the military establishment and private military contractors - Iron Triangle

Welfare State

A state in which there is extensive government action to provide support and services to the citizens

Health

A state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being

Demography

A subfield of sociology that examines population size, composition, and distribution

Postmodernists

According to ____, doctors gain power through observing patients to gather information, thus appearing to speak "wisely"

Symbolic Interactionalists

According to _____, people with a disability experience role ambiguity because many people equate disability with deviance

Conflict Theorists

According to _____, problems in the US health care delivery are rooted in the capitalist economy, which views medicine as a commodity that is produced and sold by the medical-industrial complex

Functionalists

According to ______, if society is to function as a stable system, it is important for people to be healthy and to contribute to their society

Symbolic Interactionalists

According to ______, medicalization is a two-way process, just as conditions can be medicalized, so can they be demedicalized

Conflict Theorists

According to ______, physicians who hold a legal monopoly over medicine benefit from the existing structure because they can charge inflated fees

Symbolic Interactionalists

According to ______, we socially construct "health" and "illness" and how both should be treated

Elite Model

According to the ______, power in political systems is concentrated in the hands of a small group of elites, and the masses are relatively powerless

Pluralist Model

According to the ______, power in political systems is widely dispersed throughout many competing interest groups

Power

The ability of persons or groups to achieve their goals despite opposition from others

Fertility

The actual level of childbearing for an individual or a population

Population Composition

The biological and social characteristics of a population, including age, sex, race, marital status, education, occupation, income, and size of household

Primary Sector Production

The extraction of raw materials and natural resources from the environment

Government

The formal organization that has the legal and political authority to regulate the relationships among members of a society and between the society and those outside its borders

Mortality

The incidence of death in a population

Migration

The movement of people from one geographic area to another for the purpose of changing residency

Infant Mortality Rate

The number of deaths of infants under 1 years of age per 1,000 live births in a given year

Crude Death Rate

The number of deaths per 1,000 people in a population in a given year

Crude Birth Rate

The number of live births per 1,000 people in a population in a given year

Sex Ratio

The number of males for every hundred females in a given population

Unemployment Rate

The percentage of unemployed persons in the labor force actively seeking jobs

Zero Population Growth

The point at which no population increase occurs from year to year

State

The political entity that possesses a legitimate monopoly over the use of force within its territory to achieve its goals

Malthusian Perspective

The power of population is infinitely greater than the power of the earth to produce subsistence for man

Invasion/Concentric

The process by which a new category of people or type of land use arrives in an area previously occupied by another group or type of land use

Succession/Concentric

The process by which a new category of people or type of land use gradually predominate in an area formerly dominated by another group or type of land use

Gentrification/Concentric

The process by which members of the middle and upper-middle classes move into a central-city area and renovate existing properties

Political Socialization

The process by which people learn political attitudes, values, and behavior

Demographic Transition

The process by which some societies have moved from high birth and death rates to relatively low birth and death rates as a result of technological development

Secondary Sector Production

The processing of raw materials into finished goods

Tertiary Sector Production

The provision of services rather than goods

Economy

The social institution that ensures the maintenance of society through the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services

Politics

The social institution through which power is acquired and exercised by some people and groups

Social Epidemiology

The study of the causes and distribution of health, disease, and impairment throughout a population