Sociology Exam 3

intersexed

A broad term used by the medical profession to classify people with some mixture of male and female biological characteristics.

caste system

A form of social stratification in which people's statuses are determined by birth and are lifelong.

elasticity

A measure of how much one economic variable responds to changes in another economic variable.

glass ceiling

A metaphor alluding to the invisible barriers that prevent minorities and women from being promoted to top corporate positions.

closed system

A social system in which there is little or no possibility of individual social mobility.

ethnicity

A socially defined category based on common language, religion, nationality, history, or another cultural factor

doing gender

A theoretical perspective that interprets gender as something accomplished through the ongoing social interactions people have with one another.

slavery

An extreme form of stratification in which some people are owned by others.

In the past, bank tellers were overwhelmingly male, but today they are mostly female. Which of the following could explain this shift?

Changes in technology made the work easier and less important, which drove down wages and prestige accorded to the job.

accomplishment of natural growth (Lareau)

Developed by Lareau; mostly seen by lower class families, allows kids to be kids

individual discrimination

Discrimination carried out by one person against another

institutional discrimination

Discrimination carried out systematically by institutions (political, economic, educational, and others) that affect all members of a group who come into contact with it.

Social structures help to shape everyday interactions, but interactions can never reshape larger social structures like social class.

False

proletariat (Marx)

Marx's term for the exploited class, the mass of workers who do not own the means of production

How is Max Weber's idea of social class different from Karl Marx's?

Weber believed that wealth, power, and prestige could all affect a person's social class.

race

a socially defined category based on real or perceived biological differences between groups of people

social class

a system of stratification based on access to such resources as wealth, property, power, and prestige

Annette Lareau described poor and working-class parents' cultural logic towards parenting as:

accomplishment of natural growth.

prejudice

an idea about the characteristics of a group that is applied to all members of that group and is unlikely to change regardless of the evidence against it

sex

an individual's membership in one of two biologically distinct categories - male or female

Which of the following is an example of a prejudice?

believing that Asians are better at math

homophobia

fear or discrimination toward homosexuals or toward individuals who display purportedly gender-inappropriate behavior

concerted cultivation (Lareau)

generally a middle/upper-class practice; parents incorporate organized activities into child's daily life, also encourage children to develop language use and ability to interact with social institutions (doctor, teacher, etc.); leads to an increased comfort in children to challenge and question adults, more confidence

colorblind racism

ignores legitimate racial-ethnic, cultural, and other differences and insists that the race problems is ignored all together (illusion)

upstream solution

looking to solve problems at the root (sexual assault - gender inequality)

glass escalator (Williams)

men get promoted more quickly in female dominated fields; women react positively to the opposite sex in their occupation; opposite reaction of men with females in their field

gender-blind sexism

not taking gender into account

equality vs. equity

one is 50/50 split among teams and organizations and another is about giving more to be on even playing field to one side or the other (proportionate)

social reproduction (Bourdieu)

the tendency of social classes to remain relatively stable as social class status is passed down from one generation to the next

social inequality

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

essentialists

those who believe gender roles have a genetic or biological origin and therefore cannot be changed

discrimination

unequal treatment of individuals based on their membership in a social group; usually motivated by prejudice

An accountant with a college degree and a license from the state accounting board works for the Department of Defense as a senior auditor. He makes about $100,000 a year and will soon retire with benefits and a pension. What class would you expect him to belong to?

upper middle class

blanqueamiento

whitening, marrying someone of lighter skin color in hopes of reproducing lighter offspring

legitimating rationales

widely accepted beliefs that the inequalities that exist in a particular society are essentially right and reasonable

What is the relationship between the American Dream and the system of social class through which the United States is stratified?

The American Dream legitimizes inequality by reinforcing the idea that everyone has the same chance to get ahead.

bourgeoisie (Marx)

The class that, in contrast to the proletariat or wage-earning class, is primarily concerned with property values.

What sort of social mobility is possible in a caste system?

There is little or no chance of social mobility.

structural mobility

changes in the social status of large numbers of people due to structural changes in society

downstream solution

deals with the problem after it's become an issue (sexual assault)

inter-generational mobility

movement between social classes that occurs form one generation to the next

According to Talcott Parsons and other functionalists, which role are women better suited for?

the expressive role

gender

the physical, behavioral, and personality traits that a group considers normal for its male and female members

Which of the following was NOT discussed or portrayed as a consequence of living on minimum wage in the film "30 Days"?

Inability to acquire credit.

How is institutional discrimination different from individual discrimination?

Institutional discrimination is more systematic and widespread.

Why did Morgan Spurlock and Alex (the fiance) have trouble finding housing in "30 Days"?

Landlords often required proof of employment or security deposits that exceeded the couple's budget.

social mobility

Movement of individuals or groups from one position in a society's stratification system to another

The Brazilian census has traditionally only had four racial categories: preto, branco, amarelo, and pardo. However, in everyday life, Brazilians have many other racial categories, including moreno, mulato, neguinho, and pretinho. Most of these terms don't have an equivalent in the United States. What does this tell you?

Race is a social construct.

How do sociologists differentiate between sex and gender?

Sex is biological; gender is social.

gender inequality

The inequality between men and women in terms of wealth, income, and status.

constructionists

Those who believe that notions of gender are socially determined, such that a dichotomous system is just one possibility among many.

Why is saying "where are you from" to a person of Asian or Latino ancestry a microaggression according to the handout?

Those who have Asian or Latino ancestry may interpret the question as a way to communicate "You are a foreigner."

In "Brazil: A Racial Democracy?" the documentary by Henry Louis Gates, Jr, a scholar he interviewed discussed a policy in early 20th Century Brazil of "blanquemiento" or "whitening." What did this refer to?

White Europeans were associated with progress and civilization, so Brazil recruited millions of immigrants from Europe to "whiten" their population.

expressive role

a role that requires taking care of personal relationships

open system

a social system with ample opportunities to move from one class to another

Although Lareau saw that the interactions between parents and children in middle-class families bestowed many advantages, she also saw a few negative effects such as:

children didn't always respect their parents' leadership and they showed a sense of entitlement.

"Men have historically had access to most of society's material resources and privileges and sought to maintain their dominant status." This statement most likely comes from which perspective?

conflict theory

blind spots

denying or ignoring certain aspects of experience because they are not in accordance with one's idealized self-image

According to Lareau's interpretation of Bourdieu, encouraging poor and working class families to raise their children in ways similar to middle and upper class families would:

potentially benefit individual families, but could not work on a large scale due to middle and upper class efforts at distinction.

one-drop rule

supporting pure blood; one drop makes you black

Sociologists who examine the ways that gender is constructed and maintained in our everyday lives tend to come from which school of social theory?

symbolic interactionism

microaggressions

the "slights, indignities, and put downs" that many minorities and ppl with physical disabilities experience

power (Weber)

the ability to pose one's will on others

social stratification

the division of society in groups arranged in a social hierarchy

intra-generational mobility

the movement between social classes that occurs during the course of an individual's lifetime

instrumental role

the position of the family member who provides the family's material support and is often an authority figure

prestige (Weber)

the social honor people are given because of their membership in well-regarded social groups

cultural capital (Bourdieu)

the tastes, habits, expectations, skills, knowledge, and other cultural dispositions that help us gain advantages in society