SOC 1: Midterm
Verstehen (Weber)
"empathetic understanding"; Weber's term to describe good social research, which tries to understand the meanings that individuals attach to various aspects of social reality
anomie
"normlessness"; sense of alienation and loss of purpose that result from weaker social bonds and an increased pace of change
Anomie
"normlessness"; term used to describe the alienation and loss of purpose that result from weaker social bonds and an increased pace of change
Which of the following is an example of McDonaldization, as George Ritzer used the term?
A worker says, "Sometimes I felt just like a robot. You push a button and you go this way. You become a mechanical nut."
What evidence shows that the number of women who commit crimes is related to social structure?
As women have gained greater power in the labor market, female arrest rates have increased.
Many colleges and universities require students to take classes on non-western cultures. Why do these requirements exist?
Colleges value multiculturalism.
Differential Association Theory
Edwin Sutherland's hypothesis that we learn to be deviant through our associations with deviant peers
Stigma
Erving Goffman's term for any physical or social attribute that devalues a person or group's identity and that may exclude those who are devalued from normal social interaction
Which of the following is NOT an advantage of using ethnography to study social life?
Ethnography allows the researcher to gather data on large populations
The anthropologist Ruth Behar traveled to San Luis Potosi to learn more about the everyday lives of Mexican women. Instead she ended up conducting one very long, very intensive interview with a woman named Esperanza, and wrote a book based upon more than a year of interview data. Which disadvantage of the interview methodology does this book highlight?
Face-to-face interviewing is time consuming, and interviews are rarely used with large numbers of people. Thus, their representativeness is sometimes questionable.
No harm can come to subjects as a result of completing a questionnaire.
False
Mcdonaldization
George Ritzer's term describing the spread of bureaucratic rationalization and the accompanying increases in efficiency and dehumanization
Labeling Theory
Howard Becker's idea that deviance is a consequence of external judgments, or labels, that modify the individual's self-concept and change the way others respond to the labeled person
Around the third week of a college class, a teacher decides that she's had enough, is tired of dealing with bureaucracies, and wants out. So one day, instead of coming to class, she flies to Tahiti and sells souvenirs on the beach. If this happened, the college would simply assign a substitute to finish the course. What does this tell you about the nature of the authority wielded by a professor?
It is a legal-rational authority.
dialectical model
Karl Marx's model of historical change, whereby two extreme positions come into conflict and create some new outcome
iron cage
Max Weber's pessimistic description of modern life, in which we are caught in bureaucratic structures that control our lives through rigid rules and rationalization
In 2005 a commercial research firm carried out a study of hand washing in public restrooms. The researchers observed 6,336 individuals wash their hands, or not, in the public restrooms of major attractions in Atlanta, Chicago, New York City, and San Francisco. Ninety percent of the women observed washed their hands, compared with only 75 percent of the men. Interestingly enough, when asked via a telephone survey 97 percent of women and 96 percent of men claimed they always washed their hands after using a public restroom. What disadvantage of survey research does this illustrate?
Not all respondents provide honest self-reports, so survey research has comparatively less validity.
Secondary groups are characterized by which of the following?
Secondary groups are larger and more anonymous than primary groups, Secondary groups are often formal or impersonal, Secondary groups tend to be based on specific roles or activities, Secondary groups sometimes break down into primary groups
How is the study of culture different for sociologists than for anthropologists?
Sociologists usually study a culture they belong to.
A study examined how teachers at community colleges handled retirement, finding that the unique culture of such institutions had a significant effect on how retirees coped with their new situations. Which of the following could be the title of a paper written about this study?
The Role-Exit Process of Community College Faculty: A Study of Faculty Retirement
According to Jack Katz in Seductions of Crime, why might teenagers shoplift?
They want the thrill of getting away with breaking the rules.
"Culture wars" is a term used to refer to the extreme clashes in values that occur when there are efforts to change core values in society.
True
We tend to think of ourselves as experts regarding life in our own society, but at best this is only true on a small scale.
True
When people move from one place, job, or life situation to another, they often have to undergo resocialization.
True
Which theorist argued that if people "define a situation as real, it is real in its consequences"?
W. I. Thomas
Deviance
a behavior, trait, belief, or other characteristic that violates a norm and causes a negative reaction
Sociobiology
a branch of science that uses biological and evolutionary explanations for social behavior
operational definition
a clear and precise definition of a variable that facilitates its measurement
Aggregate
a collection of people who share a physical location but do not have lasting social relations
Group
a collection of people who share some attribute, identify with one another, and interact with each other
Criminal Justice System
a collection of social institutions, such as legislatures, police, courts, and prisons, that create and enforce laws
law
a common type of formally defined norm providing an explicit statement about what is permissible and what is illegal in a given society
Critical Theory
a contemporary form of conflict theory that criticizes many different systems and ideologies of domination and oppression
false conscienceness
a denial of 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
Autoethonography
a form of participant observation where feeling and actions of the researcher become a focal point in the ethnographic study - ethnography focused on researchers own thoughts, feelings, and experiences as the focal point
institutional review board
a group of scholars within a university who meet regularly to review and approve the research proposals of their colleagues and make recommendations for how to protect human subjects
In-Group
a group that one identifies with and feels loyalty toward
Reference Group
a group that provides a standard of comparison against which we evaluate ourselves
subculture
a group within society that is differential by its distinctive values, norms, and lifestyle
counterculture
a group within society that openly rejects and/or actively opposes society's values and norms
stereotype promise
a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy in which positive stereotypes, such as the "model minority" label applied to Asian Americans, lead to positive performance outcomes for Asian Americans
stereotype threat
a kind of self-fulfilling prophecy in which the fear of performing poorly - and confirming stereotypes about their social groups - causes students to perform poorly
folkway
a loosely enforced norm involving common customs, practices, or procedures that ensure smooth social interaction and acceptance
When Max Weber declared that most often "men's commercial and social interests do determine their opinions and attitudes," what element of conformity was he indicating that he agreed with?
a materialist view of society
survey
a method based on questionnaires that are administered to a sample of respondents selected from a target population
content analysis
a method in which researchers identify and study specific variables-such as words-in a text, image, or media message
participant observation
a methodology associated whereby the researcher both observes and becomes a member in a social setting
ethnography
a naturalistic method based on studying people in their own environment in order to understand the meanings they attribute to their activities; also the written or that results from the study
taboo
a norm ingrained so deeply that even thinking about violating it evokes strong feelings of disgust, horror, or revulsion
mores
a norm that carries great moral significance, is closely related to the core values of a cultural group, and often involves severe repercussions for violators
Modernism
a paradigm that places trust in the power of science and technology to create progress, solve problems, and improve life
Symbolic Interactionism
a paradigm that sees interaction and meaning as central to society and assumes that meanings are not inherent but are created through interaction
conflict theory
a paradigm that sees social conflict as the basis of society and social change, and emphasizes a materialist view of society, a critical view of the status quo, and a dynamic model of historical change
Postmodernism
a paradigm that suggests that social reality is diverse, pluralistic, and constantly in flux
simple random sample
a particular type of probability sample in which every member of the population has an equal chance of being selected
Pragmatism
a perspective that assumes organisms (including humans) make practical adaptations to their environments; humans do this through cognition, interpretation, and interaction
multiculturalism
a policy that values diverse racial, ethnic, national, and linguistic backgrounds and so encourages the retention of cultural differences within society rather than assimilation
Status
a position in a social hierarchy that carries a particular set of expectations
rapport
a positive relationship often characterized by mutual trust or sympathy
Saturated Self
a postmodern idea that the self is now developed by multiple influences chosen from a wide range of media sources
scientific method
a procedure for acquiring knowledge that emphasizes collecting concrete date through observation and experiment - edited by sociologists to fit human behavior - 1. Identify problem/ask a question 2. Lit review - prevents duplication/provides background 3. Hypothesis + operational def 4. Choose research design/method 5. Collect data 6. Analyze data 7. Disseminate findings
focus group
a process for interviewing a number of participants together, it also allows for interaction among group members - may be done to increase sample size of the study
open-ended question
a question asked of a respondent that allows the answer to take whatever form the respondent chooses
closed-ended question
a question asked of a respondent that imposes a limit on the possible responses
causation
a relationship between variables in which in one directly produces a change in the other
correlation
a relationship between variables in which they change together; may or may not be casual
norm
a rule or guideline regarding what kinds of behavior are acceptable and appropriate within a culture
informed consent
a safeguard through which the researcher makes sure that respondents are freely participating and understand the nature of the research
representative sample
a sample taken so that findings from members of the sample group can be generalized to the whole population
pilot study
a small study carried out to test the feasibility go a larger one
structure
a social institution that is relatively stable over time and that meets the needs of society by performing functions necessary to maintain social order and stability
Functionalist theory is very concerned with the ways that structures contribute to the stability of society. What is a structure?
a social institution that is stable over time and helps meet the needs of society
conversation analysis
a sociological approach that looks at how we create meaning in naturally occurring conversation, often by taping conversations and examining them
hawthorne effect
a specific example of reactivity, in which the desired effect is the result not of the independent variable but the research itself - effect of being studied
moral holiday
a specified time period during which some norm violations are allowed
Achieved Status
a status earned through individual effort or imposed by others
Embodied Status
a status generated by physical characteristics
Master Status
a status that is always relevant and affects a,l other statuses we possess
sign
a symbol that stands for or conveys an idea
Ideology
a system of beliefs, attitudes, and values that directs a society and reproduces the status quo of the bourgeoisie
language
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
Crowd
a temporary gathering of people in a public place; members might interact but do not identify with each other and will not remain in contact
Feminist Theory
a theoretical approach that looks at gender inequities in society and the way that gender structures the social world
hypothesis
a theoretical statement explaining the relationship between two or more phenomena - predicts outcomes of relationship between 2 variables
Social Identity Theory
a theory of group formation and maintenance that stresses the need of individual members to feel a sense of belonging
intervening variable
a third variable, sometimes overlooked, that explains the relationship between two other variables
literature review
a thorough search through previously published studies relevant to a particular topic
Triad
a three-person social group
Dyad
a two-person social group
Deconstruction
a type of critical postmodern analysis that involves taking apart or disassembling old ways of thinking
action research
a type of research aimed at creating social change, in which the researcher works closely with members of a community who participate in the research process and collaborate toward the goal of social change
Bureaucracy
a type of secondary group designed to perform tasks efficiently, characterized by specialization, technical competence, hierarchy, rules and regulations, impersonality, and formal written communication
Chicago School
a type of sociology practiced at the University of Chicago in the 1920s and 1930s that centered on urban settings and field research methods
Crime
a violation of a norm that has been codified into law
Likert scale
a way of organizing categories on a survey question so that the respondent can choose an answer along a continuum
theories
abstract proposition that explain social world and make predictions about future
Id, Ego, and Superego
according to Freud, the three interrelated parts that make up the mind: the id consists of basic inborn drives that are the source of instinctive psychic energy; the ego is the realistic aspect of the mind that balances the forces of the id and the superego; the superego has two components (the conscience and the ego-ideal) and represents the internalized demands of society
Outsiders
according to Howard Becker, those labeled deviant and subsequently segregated from "normal" society
Although she made contributions to sociology, Jane Addams is perhaps best remembered for her embrace of praxis, meaning that she:
acted on her intellectual convictions in practical ways.
Positive Deviance
actions considered deviant within a given context but are later reinterpreted as appropriate or even heroic
If you were to hear someone singing a song with these lines: It is we who plowed the prairies; built the cities where they trade; Dug the mines and built the workshops, endless miles of railroad laid; Now we stand outcast and starving midst the wonders we have made. You might conclude, along with Karl Marx, that the people being described suffered from:
alienation
In-group Orientation
among stigmatized individuals, the rejection of prevailing judgments or prejudice and the development of new standards that value their group identity
Definition of the Situation
an agreement with others about "what is going on" in a given circumstance; this consensus allows to coordinate our actions with those of others and realize goals
Dramaturgy
an approach pioneered by Erving Goffman in which social life is analyzed in terms of its similarities to theatrical performance
midrange theory
an approach that integrates empiricism and grand theory
life history
an approach to interviewing that asks for a chronological account of the respondent's entire life, or some portion of it
Rehabilitation
an approach to punishment that attempts to reform criminals by imprisoning or executing them
Retribution
an approach to punishment that emphasizes retaliation or revenge for the crime as the appropriate goal
Deterrence
an approach to punishment that relies on the threat of harsh penalties to discourage people from committing crimes
Incapacitation
an approach to punishment that seeks to protect society from criminals by imprisoning or executing them
value-free sociology
an ideal whereby researchers identify facts without allowing their own personal beliefs or biases to interfere
Self-fulfilling Prophecy
an inaccurate statement or belief that, by altering the situation, becomes accurate; a prediction that causes itself to come true
Ascribed Status
an inborn status; usually difficult or impossible to change
grounded theory
an inductive method of generating theory from data by creating categories in which to place data and then looking for relationships between categories ex common vocabulary used by members/episodes of conflict
Total Institution
an institution in which individuals are cut off from the rest of society so that their lives can be controlled and regulated for the purpose of systematically stripping away previous roles and identities in order to create new ones
Uniform Crime Report (UCR)
an official measure of crime in the United States, produced by the FBI's official tabulation of every crime reported by more than 18,000 law enforcement agencies
bias
an opinion held by the researchers that might affect the research or analysis - can be found in ethnography
Out-Group
any group an individual feels opposition, rivalry, or hostility toward
probability sampling
any sampling scheme in which any given unit has the same probability of being chosen
means of production
anything that can create wealth: money, property, factories, and other types of businesses, and the infrastructure necessary to run them
beginner's mind
approaching the world without preconceptions in order to see things in a new way
Research on teen smoking and other deviant behaviors has found that the most important factor in statistically predicting if a teen will take up a particular deviant behavior is the presence or absence of peers who also engage in that behavior. This is probably because the other teens are acting:
as agents of socialization.
Traditional Authority
authority based in custom, birthright, or divine right
Legal-Rational Authority
authority based in laws, rules, and procedures, not in the heredity or personality of any individual leader
Charismatic Authority
authority based in the perception of remarkable personal qualities in a leader
empirical
based on scientific experimentation/observation
Cooling the Mark Out
behaviors that help others to save face or avoid embarrassment, often referred to as civility or tact
All left-handed people in the United States would be classified as a(n):
category
culture wars
clashes within mainstream society over the values and norms that should be upheld
Thomas Theorem
classic formulation of the way individuals define situations, whereby "if people define situations as real, they are real in heir consequences"
In recent years, sociologists who study deviance have learned that they can measure the quantities of narcotics consumed by a community by testing its sewage before treatment. What part of the research process would the sociologists be carrying out when they visit the sewage treatment plant?
collecting data
Because laws represent the interests of those in power, crimes committed by the upper classes are typically treated more leniently than crimes committed by the lower classes. This argument is consistent with:
conflict theory
Social Ties
connections between individuals
If a professor were to trip over his own feet and fall down while trying to write something on the blackboard, very few students would point and laugh. And if the professor then loudly insisted, "I meant to do that!" chances are that no one would contradict him, at least not verbally, but instead would assist their instructor in regaining his dignity. What would Goffman call this process?
cooling the mark out
White Collar Crime
crime committed by a high-status individual in the course of his occupation
Violent Crime
crimes in which violence is either the objective or the means to an end, including murder, rape, aggravated assault, and robbery
Property Crime
crimes that did not involve violence, including burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson
Today it is possible to travel all over the world, especially if you visit major metropolitan areas, without ever having to eat anything but McDonald's. This is an example of:
cultural leveling.
When Patti Sue took her world tour, she had lunch at McDonald's in Tokyo, ate dinner at Hard Rock Cafe in Hong Kong, purchased clothes at Macy's in London, and was entertained at a Disney show featuring Mickey Mouse and Pluto in Paris. This homogenization of cultures around the world is called:
cultural leveling.
mechanical solidarity
describes the type of social bonds in premodern, agrarian societies; in which shared traditions and beliefs created a sense of social cohesion
organic solidarity
describes the type of social bonds present in modern societies, based on difference, interdependence, and individual rights
fieldnotes
detailed notes taken by an ethnographer describing her activities and interactions, which later become the basis of the ethnographic analysis
social sciences
disciples that examine the human or social world; anthropology, political science, psychology, economics, communication studies, history
dysfunction
disturbance to some aspect of a social system; stability, order equilibrium
What sort of status would a physical disability be?
embodied status
What do sociologists call it when an individual's job requires her to manage her feelings as part of her official duties?
emotion work
Role-taking Emotions
emotions like sympathy, embarrassment, or shame that require that we assume the perspective of another person or many other people and respond from that person or group's point of view
code of ethics
ethical guidelines for researchers to consult as they design a project
In many cultures the "squat toilet," where one squats rather than sits, is still the most common type of bathroom facility. Americans are often shocked when they encounter these toilets, seeing them as hopelessly disgusting. This attitude is an example of:
ethnocentrism.
Autoethnography
ethnographic description that focuses on the feelings and reactions of the ethnographer
Social Influence
exerting group control over others' decisions
Role Conflict
experienced when we occupy two or more roles with contradictory expectations
Which research method most closely resembles the scientific method?
experimental research
Expressions Given
expressions that are intentional and usually verbal, such as utterances
Copresence
face-to-face interaction or being in the presence of others
interviews
face-to-face, information seeking conversation, sometimes defined as a conversation with a purpose - always conducted by researcher unlike surveys which may be taken independently by respondent
dependent variable
factor that is going to be changed (or not) by the independent variable
independent variable
factor that is predicted to cause change
According to Emile Durkheim, traditional religious beliefs are the only source of social stability.
false
Culture shock is almost never useful in helping sociologists to see that even what is most familiar to us can be bizarre.
false
If two people worked together to make the test that you are now taking, it would have been produced twice as fast than if it were written by one person
false
The "beginner's mind," a concept borrowed from the Zen Buddhist tradition, is the opposite of the sociological perspective.
false
There is only one correct theoretical explanation for any particular social phenomenon.
false
experiments
formal tests of specific variables and effects, performed in a controlled setting where all aspects of the situation can be controlled
Psychosexual Stages of Development
four distinct stages of the development of the self between birth and adulthood, according to Freud; personality quirks are a result of being fixated, or stuck, at any stage
In her ethnography, Number Our Days, Barbara Myerhoff investigated the daily lives of elderly Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe who lived in Los Angeles. Most of her work took place at a senior citizen center. Before she could even start this research, Meyerhoff had to convince the director of the center that it was a legitimate and worthwhile project, a process known as:
gaining access
society
group of people who shape their lives in aggregated and patterned ways that distinguish their group from other groups
What is the danger of too much group cohesion?
groupthink
social network analysis
how people are connected to each other and how those connections influence their behavior, disease, mental health etc... - Milgram and Travers said everyone has 5.5 to 6 degrees of separation
reflexivity
how the identity and activities of the researcher influence what is going on in the field setting
values
ideas about what is desirable or contemptible and right and wrong in a particular group. they articulate the essence of everything that a cultural group cherishes and honors
objectivity
impartially, the ability to allow the facts to speak for themselves
control
in an experiment, the process of regulating all factors except for the independent variable
Primary Deviance
in labeling theory, the initial act or attitude that causes one to be labeled deviant
Secondary Deviance
in labeling theory, the subsequent deviant identity or career that develops as a result of being labeled deviant
Feral Children
in myths and rare real-world cases, children who have had little human contact and may have lived in social isolation from a young age
Backstage
in the dramaturgical perspective, places in which we rehearse and prepare for our performances
Region
in the dramaturgical perspective, the context or setting in which the performance takes place
Frontstage
in the dramaturgical perspective, the region in which we deliver our public performances
Front
in the dramaturgical perspective, the setting or scene of performances that helps establish the definition of the situation
Groupthink
in very cohesive groups, the tendency to enforce a high degree of conformity among members, creating a demand for unanimous agreement
Innovators
individuals who accept society's approved goals but not society's approved means to achieve them
Ritualists
individuals who have given up hope of achieving society's approved goals but still operate according to society's approved means
Rebels
individuals who reject society's approved goals and means and instead create and work toward their own (sometimes revolutionary) goals using new means
Retreatists
individuals who renounce society's approved goals and means entirely and live outside conventional norms altogether
In Office Space, the character Peter Gibbons spends much of the movie trying to find unconventional and even illegal ways of making more money. According to Robert Merton's typology, what category does Peter fit into?
innovator
What are leaders called whose personal style makes them more task- or goal-oriented and less concerned with people's feelings?
instrumental leaders
collective effervescence
intense energy in shared events where people feel swept up in something larger than themselves
What is the strongest type of conformity that can occur as a result of social influence or peer pressure?
internalization
When someone joins the Green Party and then starts recycling old plastic bags because she believes that it can help save the environment, this is an example of what type of conformity?
internalization
Which of the following is true of socialization?
it never stops, it teaches the skills needed to stay alive, it changes over time and from place to place, and The process is reciprocal: society shapes the individual and the individual shapes society.
Stereotyping
judging others based on preconceived generalizations about groups or categories of people
Secondary Groups
larger and less intimate than primary groups; members' relationships are usually organized around a specific goal and are often temporary
What do sociologists call rules and guidelines for behavior that is considered acceptable within a group?
laws, mores, folkways, taboos
Expressive Leadership
leadership concerned with maintaining emotional and relational harmony within the group
Instrumental Leadership
leadership that is task or goal oriented
microsociology
level of analysis that studies face-to-face and small group interactions in order to understand how they affect the larger patterns and institute of society
macrosociology
level of analysis that studies large-scale social structures in order to determine how they affect lives of groups or individuals
technology
material artifacts and the knowledge and techniques required to use them
existing sources
materials that have ben produced for some other reason, but can be used as data for social research
In 2008 Polish film maker Andrzej Wadja released his film Katyn, about the massacre of 20,000 Polish officers by the Soviet Union during World War II. When asked why he had made this movie, Wadja said he wanted to make a film for "those moviegoers for whom it matters that we are a society and not just an accidental crowd." Wadja believed that it was still possible for people to be bound together on the basis of shared traditions and experiences. In his statement, Wadja was expressing a hope that Poland could still be united by:
mechanical solidarity
comparative and historical methods
methods that use existing sources to study relationships between elements of society in various regions and time periods
In 2003 the U.S. Army discovered Saddam Hussein hiding in a "spider hole" under a small building in his hometown, Tikrit. The Army had tracked him to that location not by looking for him directly, but rather by creating a large "map" that displayed all the members of his family and tribe, and showed their linkages to other people. Starting with just four names, the map allowed Army intelligence to zero in on a small number of people whose relationships with Hussein made it more likely that they would know where he was. The search for Saddam Hussein demonstrated the practical applications of:
network analysis
Expressions Given Off
observable expressions that can be either intended or unintended and are usually nonverbal
When writing questions for a survey, researchers must avoid all of the following EXCEPT:
open-ended questions.
Bourgeoisie
owners; the class of modern capitalists who own the means of production and employ wage laborers
structural functionalism
paradigm that begins with assumption that society is a unified whole that functions because of contributions of separate structures (Emile Durkheim)
If we cannot see the whole of society, what can we see?
people interacting
Category
people who share one or more attributes but who lack a sense of common identity or belonging
sanction
positive or negative reactions to the ways that people follow or disobey norms, including rewards for conformity and punishments for violations
Coercive Power
power that is backed by the threat of force
Influential Power
power that is supported by persuasion
Passing
presenting yourself as a member of a different group than the stigmatized group you belong to
scientific method
procedure for acquiring knowledge that emphasizes collecting concrete data through observations and experiments
Deviance Avowal
process by which an individual self-identifies as deviant and initiates her own labeling process
sociological imagination
quality of mind that allows us to understand the relationship between our individual connections and larger social forces
double-barreled questions
questions that attempt to get at multiple issues at once, and so tend to receive incomplete or confusing answers
leading questions
questions that predispose a respondent to answer in a certain way
Tertiary Deviance
redefining the stigma associated with a deviant label as a positive phenomenon
Which of the following is NOT a justification for punishment in the United States today?
reimbursement of the victim
applied research
research designed to gather knowledge that can be used or learned to create some sort of change
unobtrusive measures
research methods that rely on existing sources and where the researcher does not intrude upon or disturb the social setting or its subjects
replicability
research that can be repeated, and thus verified, by other researchers later - ethnography lacks this
comparative historical research
research that uses existing sources to study relationships among elements of society in various regions and time periods
qualitative research
research that works with nonnumerical data such as texts, field notes, interview transcripts, photographs, and tape recordings; this type of research more often tries to understand how people make sense of their world - find patterns in data with interpretive analysis
Bureaucracies
secondary groups designed to perform tasks efficiently, characterized by specialization, technical competence, hierarchy, written rules, impersonality, and formal written communication
culture shock
sense of disorientation when one enters a radically new social or cultural environment
paradigms
set of assumptions, theories, and perspectives that make up a way of understanding social reality that attempt to explain and predict social world
Expressions of Behavior
small actions such as an eye roll or head nod that serve as an interactional tool to help project our definition of the situation to others
When doing experimental research, why is it important to control for everything except the independent variable?
so that a clear conclusion can be drawn about what influences the dependent variable
Virtual Communities
social groups whose interactions are mediated through information technologies, particularly the internet
Agents of Socialization
social groups, institutions, and individuals (especially the family, schools, peers, and the mass media) that provide structured situations in which socialization takes place
queer theory
social theory about gender and sexual identity; emphasizes the importance of difference and rejects ideas of innate identities or restrictive categories
Feeling Rules
socially constructed norms regarding the expression and display of emotions; expectations about the acceptable or desirable feelings in a given situation
respondent
someone from whom a researcher solicits information
Pilfering
stealing minor items in small amounts, often again and again
negative questions
survey questions that ask respondents what they don't think instead of what they do - pitfall of sampling as they are leading question
sociology
systematic/scientific study of human society & social behavior, from large-scale institutions & mass culture to small groups & individual interactions
Which of the following lists norms in order from the most severely enforced to the least?
taboos, mores, folkways
weighting
techniques for manipulating the sampling procedure so that the sample more closely resembles the larger population
hegemony
term developed by antonio gramsci to describe the cultural aspects of social control, whereby the ideas of the dominant social group are accepted by all of society
Agency
the ability of the individual to act freely and independently
Power
the ability to control the actions of others
validity
the accuracy of a question or measurement tool; the degree to which a researcher is measuring what he thinks he is measuring
spurious correlation
the appearance of causation produced by an intervening variable
Rationalization
the application of economic logic to human activity; the use of formal rules and regulations in order to maximize efficiency without consideration of subjective or individual concerns
Praxis
the application of theory to practical action in an effort to improve aspects of society
Confidentiality
the assurance that no one other than the researcher will know the identity of a respondent
confidentiality
the assurance that no one other than the researcher will know the identity of the respondent
reliability
the consistency of a question or measurement tool; the degree to which the same questions will produce similar answers
Capital Punishment
the death penalty
representativeness
the degree to which a particular studied group is similar to, or represents, any part of the larger society - ethnography lacks this
cultural diffusion
the dissemination of beliefs and practices from one group to another
Impression Management
the effort to control the impressions we make on others so that they form a desired view of us and the situation; the use of self-presentation and performance tactics
target population
the entire group about which a researcher would like to be able to generalize
culture
the entire way of life of a group of people (including both material and symbolic elements) that act as a lens through which one views the world and is passed from generation to generation
Thesis
the existing social arrangements in a dialectical model
Personal Front
the expressive equipment we consciously or unconsciously use as we present ourselves to others, including appearance and manner, to help establish the definition of the situation
deception
the extent to which the participants in a research project are unaware of the project or its goals
Preparatory Stage
the first stage in Mead's theory of the development of self wherein children mimic or imitate others
social control
the formal and informal mechanisms used to elicit conformity to values and norms and thus increase social cohesion
Social Control
the formal and informal mechanisms used to increase conformity to values and norms and thus promote social cohesion
According to Sigmund Freud, which part of the mind is composed of biological drives, and consequently is the source of psychic energy?
the id
Which part of the minds of feral children would Sigmund Freud expect to be most fully developed?
the id
sapir-whorf hypothesis
the idea that language structures thought and that ways of looking at the world are embedded in language
Dual Nature of the Self
the idea that we experience the self as both subject and object, the "I" and the "me"
symbolic culture
the ideas associated with a cultural group including ways of thinking (beliefs, values, and assumptions) and ways of behaving (norms, interactions, and communication)
cultural imperialism
the imposition of ones cultures beliefs and practices on another culture through mass media and consumer products rather than by military force
Self
the individual's conscious, reflexive experience of a personal identity separate and distinct from other individuals
Authority
the legitimate right to wield power
latent functions
the less obvious, perhaps unintended functions of a social structure
Honor Killing
the murder of a family member- usually female- who is believed to have brought dishonor to her family
Synthesis
the new social system created out of the conflict between thesis and antithesis in a dialectical model
real culture
the norms, values, and patterns of behavior that actually exist within a society (which may or may not correspond to the society's ideals)
ideal culture
the norms, values, and patterns of behavior that members of a society believe should be observed in principle
technological determinism
the notion that developments in technology provide the primary driving force behind social change
Looking-Glass Self
the notion that the self develops through our perception of others' evaluations and appraisals of us
response rate
the number or percentage of surveys completed by respondents and returned to researchers - 20 to 30% generally
Sociologists who study deviance tend to focus only on the most extreme and obvious forms of deviance. What is this approach sometimes called?
the nuts and sluts approach
material culture
the objects associated with a cultural group such as tools, machines, utensils, buildings, and artwork; any physical object to which we give social meaning
manifest functions
the obvious, intended functions of a social structure for the social system
Nature vs. Nurture Debate
the ongoing discussion of the respective roles of genetics and socialization in determining individual behaviors and traits
Antithesis
the opposition to the existing arrangements in a dialectical model
experimental group
the part of a test group that receives the experimental treatment
control group
the part of rest group that is allowed to continue without intervention so that it can be compared with the experimental group
sample
the part of the population that will actually be studied
Group Dynamics
the patterns of interactions between groups and individuals
Primary Groups
the people who are most important to our sense of self; members' relationships are typically characterized by face-to-face interaction, high levels of cooperation, and intense feelings of belonging
Generalized Other
the perspectives and expectations of a network of others (or of a society in general) that a child learns and then takes into account when shaping his or her own behavior
Particular or Significant Other
the perspectives and expectations of a particular role that a child learns and internalizes
Social Loafing
the phenomenon in which as more individuals are added to a task, each individual contributes a little less; a source of inefficiency when working in teams
thick description
the presentation of detailed data on interactions and meaning w/in a cultural context, from the perspective of its members - facial expressions/tone of voice
culture relativism
the principle of understanding other cultures on their own terms, rather than judging or evaluating according to ones own culture
ethnocentrism
the principle of using ones own culture as a means or standard by which to evaluate another group or individual, leading to the view that cultures other than ones own are abnormal or inferior
Social Construction
the process by which a concept or practice is created and maintained by participants who collectively agree that it exists
access
the process by which an ethnographer gains entry to a field setting
cultural leveling
the process by which cultures that were once unique and distinct become increasingly similar
Emotion Work (Emotional Labor)
the process of evoking, suppressing, or otherwise managing feelings to create a publicly observable display of emotion
Socialization
the process of learning and internalizing the values, beliefs, and norms of our social group, by which we become functioning members of society
Role Exit
the process of leaving a role that we will no longer occupy
Resocialization
the process of replacing previously learned norms and values with new ones as a part of a transition in life
disenchantment
the rationalization of modern society
class consciousness
the recognition of social inequality on the part of the oppressed, leading to revolutionary action
basic research
the search for knowledge without any agenda or desire to use that knowledge to effect change
Play Stage
the second stage in Mead's theory of the development of self wherein children pretend to play the role of the particular or significant other
alienation
the sense of dissatisfaction the modern worker feels as a result of producing goods that are owned and controlled by someone else
Group Cohesion
the sense of solidarity or loyalty that individuals feel toward a group to which they belong
Role
the set of behaviors expected of someone because of his or her status
collective consciousness
the shared morals and beliefs that are common to a group and which foster social solidarity
Ethnomethodology
the study of "folk methods" and background knowledge that sustains a shared sense of reality in everyday interactions
reactivity
the tendency of people and events to react to the process of being studied
Role Strain
the tension experienced when there are contradictory expectations within one role
paradigm shift
the term used to describe a change in basic assumptions of a particular scientific discipline - kuhn - flat earth to round earth
Game Stage
the third stage in Mead's theory of the development of self wherein children play organized games and take on the perspective of the generalized other
social inequality
the unequal distribution of wealth, power, or prestige among members of a society
Cyberbullying
the use of electronic media (web pages, social networking sites, e-mail, instant messengers, and cell phones) to tease, harass, threaten, or humiliate someone
dominant culture
the values, norms, and practices of the group within society that is most powerful ( in terms of wealth, prestige, status, influence, etc)
gestures
the ways in which people use their bodies to communicate without words; actions that have symbolic meaning
Social Network
the web of direct and indirect ties connecting am individual to other people who may also affect the individual
social darwinism
theory of evolution; "survival of the fittest"
positivism
theory that sense perceptions are only valid sense of knowledge objective
quantitative research
translates the social world into numbers that can be treated mathematically; this type of research often tries to find cause-and-effect relationships - statistical analysis
According to the sociologist Howard Becker, there are no inherently deviant acts, only societal reactions to acts that make them deviant.
true
The differential association theory of deviance focuses on peer pressure and "bad influences" to show how deviance is a process of social learning.
true
As society changes and different groups gain access to power, the definitions of crime and deviance will remain the same.
true/false
Cultural relativism and ethnocentrism are extremely similar concepts.
true/false lol
variables
two or more phenomena that a researcher believes are related and hopes to believe are through research by examining in experiment
solidarity
unity within a particular society
Which of the following steps might help a researcher to avoid problems associated with reactivity?
using secrecy or deception
Hidden Curriculum
values or behaviors that students learn indirectly over the course of their schooling because of the structure of the educational system and the teaching methods used
sociological perspective
way of looking at the world through sociological lens
Although branding is no longer used as a form of punishment in the United States, some subcultures have adopted it as a form of body art. This demonstrates that:
what is considered deviant changes over time.
Proletariat
workers; those who have no means of production of their own and so are reduced to selling their labor power in order to live