Sociology

"positivism" has come to mean, in any field, a methodology of dealing with all questions in empirical, quantitative terms

"social physics"

the sense of dissatisfaction the modern worker feels as a result of producing goods that are owned and controlled by someone else

ALIENATION

"normlessness"; term used to describe the alienation and loss of purpose that result from weaker social bonds and an increased pace of change

ANOMIE

was the first to provide a program for the scientific study of society, or a "social physics,"

AUGUSTE COMTE

Horace Miner's article "Body Ritual among the Nacirema" is about what group of people?

Americans

approaching the world without preconceptions in order to see things in a new way

BEGINNER'S MIND

owners; the class of modern capitalists who own the means of production and employ wage laborers

BOURGEOISIE (owner)

the recognition of social inequality on the part of the oppressed, leading to revolutionary action

CLASS CONSCIOUSNESS

the shared morals and beliefs that are common to a group and that foster social solidarity

COLLECTIVE CONSCIENCE

an intense energy in shared events where people feel swept up in something larger than themselves

COLLECTIVE EFFERVESCENCE (Live concert or sporting event)

sees social conflict as the basis of society and social change and that emphasizes a materialist view of society, a critical view of the status quo, and a dynamic model of historical change

CONFLICT THEORY (second major school of thought)

a group within society that openly rejects or actively opposes society's values and norms

COUNTERCULTURE

the dissemination (spreading) of material and symbolic culture from one group to another

CULTURAL DIFFUSION

the imposition of one culture's beliefs and practices on another culture through media and consumer products rather than by military force

CULTURAL IMPERIALISM (media as a invading force that enters a country and takes it over—much like an army—but with film, television, music, soft drinks, and running shoes instead of guns.)

the process by which cultures that were once unique and distinct become increasingly similar

CULTURAL LEVELING

the principle of understanding other cultures on their own terms, rather than judging or evaluating according to one's own culture

CULTURAL RELATIVISM

the entire way of life of a group of people (including both material and symbolic elements) that acts as a lens through which one views the world and that is passed from one generation to the next

CULTURE

a sense of disorientation that occurs when entering a radically new social or cultural environment

CULTURE SHOCK

clashes within mainstream society over the values and norms that should be upheld

CULTURE WARS

taking apart or disassembling old ways of thinking

DECONSTRUCTION

the values, norms, and practices of the group within society that is most powerful

DOMINANT CULTURE (others are seen as alternatives)

a disturbance to or undesirable consequence of some aspect of the social system

DYSFUNCTION (if families fail to discipline children, then schools)

the principle of using one's own culture as a means or standard by which to evaluate another group or individual, leading to the view that cultures other than one's own are abnormal or inferior

ETHNOCENTRISM

a denial of the truth on the part of the oppressed when they fail to recognize that the interests of the ruling class are embedded in the dominant ideology

FALSE CONSCIOUSNESS

a loosely enforced norm involving common customs, practices, or procedures that ensure smooth social interaction and acceptance

FOLKWAY (man walking around with shirt off is weird)

Three types of norms

Folkways / Mores / Taboos

the ways in which people use their bodies to communicate without words; actions that have symbolic meaning

GESTURES

the ideas of the dominant group are accepted by all

HEGEMONY

What other social thinkers advanced Comte's work?

Harriet Martineau, Herbert Spencer, Émile Durkheim

the norms, values, and patterns of behavior that members of a society believe should be observed in principle

IDEAL CULTURE (Vegetarian who doesn't eat meat)

Which of the following cultural concepts correctly classifies the idea of equality in the United States?

Ideal culture

What describes culture?

It includes symbolic and material elements It is learned It is handed down from generation to generation Its acts as a lens in which individuals view the world

a system of communication using vocal sounds, gestures, or written symbols; the basis of symbolic culture and the primary means through which we communicate with one another and perpetuate our culture

LANGUAGE

the less obvious, perhaps unintended functions of a social structure

LATENT FUNCTIONS (but school also keeps them busy and out of trouble)

the obvious, intended functions of a social structure for the social system

MANIFEST FUNCTIONS (school is to teach)

the objects associated with a cultural group, such as tools, machines, utensils, buildings, and artwork; any physical object to which we give social meaning

MATERIAL CULTURE

anything that can create wealth: money, property, factories, and other types of businesses, and the infrastructure necessary to run them

MEANS OF PRODUCTION

a paradigm that places trust in the power of science and technology to create progress, solve problems, and improve life

MODERNISM

a specified time period during which some norm violations are allowed

MORAL HOLIDAY (football game, Las Vegas, Mardi Gras)

norms that carry great moral significance, are closely related to the core values of a cultural group, and often involve severe repercussions for violators

MORES (woman walking around with shirt off is illegal)

a policy that values diverse racial, ethnic, national, and linguistic backgrounds and so encourages the retention of cultural differences within the larger society

MULTICULTURALISM

people in a simple agricultural society are bound together on the basis of shared traditions, beliefs, and experiences

Mechanical Solidarity

Which of the following provides an arena for playing out culture wars?

Media

rules or guidelines regarding what kinds of behavior are acceptable and appropriate within a particular culture; these typically emanate from the group's values

NORMS

People in industrial societies bond based on the tasks they performed, interdependence, and individual rights

Organic Solidarity

the theory that sense perceptions are the only valid source of knowledge (the five senses)

POSITIVISM

a paradigm that suggests that social reality is diverse, pluralistic, and constantly in flux

POSTMODERNISM

a perspective that assumes organisms (including humans) make practical adaptations to their environments; humans do this through cognition, interpretation, and interaction

PRAGMATISM

workers; those who have no means of production of their own and so are reduced to selling their labor power in order to live

PROLETARIAT (worker)

the norms, values, and patterns of behavior that actually exist within a society

REAL CULTURE (vegetarian who sometimes eats a burger)

positive or negative reactions to the ways that people follow or disobey norms, including rewards for conformity and punishments for violations

SANCTIONS

the idea that language structures thought and that ways of looking at the world

SAPIR-WHORF HYPOTHESIS (no word for time so no concept of it)

symbols that stand for or convey an idea

SIGNS

the application of the theory of evolution and the notion of "survival of the fittest" to the study of society

SOCIAL DARWINISM

the unequal distribution of wealth, power, or prestige among members of a society

SOCIAL INEQUALITY

a quality of the mind that allows us to understand the relationship between our individual circumstances and larger social forces. Who came up with this?

SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION / C. Wright Mills

the degree of integration or unity within a particular society; the extent to which individuals feel connected to other members of their group (example)

SOLIDARITY / religion is a powerful example

a paradigm based on the assumption that society is a unified whole that functions because of the contributions of its separate structures

STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONALISM

dominant theoretical perspective within sociology well into the mid-twentieth century

STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONALISM

a group within society that is differentiated by its distinctive values, norms, and lifestyle (culture within a culture)

SUBCULTURE

the ideas associated with a cultural group, including ways of thinking (beliefs, values, and assumptions) and ways of behaving (norms, interactions, and communication)

SYMBOLIC CULTURE (rules or driving on the right)

what are some shared and differing values of Americans

Shared: freedom & democracy Differing: individualism & humanitarianism

The Macro-Micro Continuum (Largest to Smallest)

Society Culture Social Institutions (economics, politics, education, religion) Social Inequality (race, gender, class) Groups Roles Socialization Interaction Self

a norm ingrained so deeply that even thinking about violating them evokes strong feelings of disgust, horror, or revulsion

TABOO (pedophilia, cannibalism, incest)

Which American sociologist's work closely embodies the functionalist concept of how best to analyze society?

Talcott Parsons

According to the textbook, which counterculture group does the FBI consider as one of the greatest threats to law enforcement in the United States?

The militia movement

Culture is the human equivalent of instinct in animals (T or F)

True

ideas about what is right or wrong, good or bad, desirable or worthy in a particular group; they express what the group cherishes and honors

VALUES

The increased use of Facebook, Twitter, and other types of social media during the Arab Spring, is an example of what cultural phenomenon?

cultural diffusion (Twitter and Facebook were originally products of the Western world that have been adopted by people in other countries.)

a wide-angle lens perspective on society

macrosociological perspectiv

a zoom lens perspective on society

microsociological perspective

Identify the means of enforcing norms that includes positive and negative versions.

sanctions

knowledge about the social world that is systematic, comprehensive, coherent, clear, and consistent

scientific knowledge

a group of people who shape their lives in aggregated and patterned ways that distinguish their group from others

society

Sociology is the _____________ or ______________ study of human ___________ and social _____________

systematic / scientific / society / behavior

Any physical object that has social meaning can be considered a part of material culture

true

("empathic understanding") to describe how a social scientist should study human action

verstehen