SOCY1001-Chapter 8

Structural functionalism

- groups have a tendency toward ethnocentrism, which binds people together but also makes them act unfavorably toward those outside the group -racial and ethnic differences are a necessary part of society, even racial inequality has functions that help maintain order

Symbolic Interactionism

- race and ethnicity are created symbolically in everyday interactions - race and ethnicity are part of our identity as displayed through our presentation of self

Race, ethnicity, and life chances

-family: blacks more likely to never marry or divorce, black teenage girls see less opportunity for work and education so choose motherhood -health: blacks have lower life expectancy, more without health insurance (most white, asians, blacks, hispanics least) -education: blacks have more high school dropouts, hispanics have most drop (same with bachelor degrees) -work and income: no education more likely to be at bottom of the job market, blacks have lowest income and more below poverty line (blacks, hispanics, asian,white) -criminal justice: blacks more likely to get murdered, more blacks in prison even though population is more white

Conflict theory

-majority groups use racism and ethnocentrism to protect their interests -racial and ethnic differences create intergroup conflict- minority and majority groups have different interests and may find themselves at odds as they attempt to secure and protect their interests

Double-consciousness

W.E.B. DuBois's term for the divided identity experienced by blacks in America -can they be black and still claim rights as an american

Pluralism

a cultural pattern of intergroup relations that encourages racial and ethnic variation and acceptance within a society -instead of a "melting pot" its a "salad bowl"

Assimilation

a pattern of relations between ethnic or racial groups in which the minority group is absorbed into the mainstream or dominant group, making society more homogeneous

Racism

a set of beliefs about the superiority of one racial or ethnic group; used to justify inequality and often rooted in the assumption that differences between groups are genetic

Ethnicity

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

Race

a socially defined category based on real or perceived biological differences between groups of people -there are no "pure"or "superior" race -genetic diversity greater within racial populations than between them

Situational ethnicity

an ethnic identity that can be either displayed or concealed depending on its usefulness in a given situation -nonwhites have few situations to have a choice about if they display group membership

Symbolic ethnicity

an ethnic identity that is only relevant on specific occasions and does not significantly impact everyday life -ex. Irish St. Pattys, Cinco de Mayo

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

Individual discrimination

discrimination carried out by one person against another

Institutional discrimination

discrimination carried out systematically by institution (political, economic, educational, etc) that affect all members of a group who come into contact with it

Passing

presenting yourself as a member of a different racial or ethnic group than the one you were born into

Colonialism

refers to a policy whereby a stinger nation takes control of a weaker foreign nation (the colony)

Miscegenation

romantic, sexual, or marital relationships between people of different races

Minority Group

social group that is systematically denied the same access to power and resources available to societies dominant groups though they are not necessarily fewer in number than the dominant group -"master status" over age, gender, etc.

Genocide

the deliberate and systematic extermination of a racial, ethnic, national, or cultural group -ex. Holocaust

Internal colonialism

the economic and political subjugation of the minority group by the dominant group within a nation -exploitation of the minority group

Population Transfer

the forcible removal of a group of people from the territory they have occupied -ex. Native Americans to Indian reservations

Segregation

the physical and legal separation of groups by race or ethnicity

Cultural assimilation

the process by which racial minority groups are absorbed into the dominant group by adopting the dominant group's culture

Racial assimilation

the process by which racial minority groups are absorbed into the dominant group though intermarriage

Embodied identity

those elements of identity that are generated through others' perceptions of our physical traits

Discrimination

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

The Main Concept

when a society categorizes people based on their race and ethnicity it creates a system of stratification that leads to inequality (resources- wealth, power, privilege, opportunity- are distributed based on these categories)