Intro to Sociology - Online

Culture

A group's shared practices, values, and beliefs

Capitalism

An economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of goods and the means to produce them

Communism

An economic system under which there is no private or corporate ownership: everything is owned communally and distributed as needed

Reification

An error of treating an abstract concept as though it were alive in its own right

Constructivism

An extension of symbolic interactionism which proposes that reality is what humans cognitively construct it to be

Kalervo Oberg

Coined the term of culture shock

Reliability

How likely the results of a study are to be replicated if the study is reproduced

Validity

How well a study measures what it was designed to measure

Sociological imagination

In 1959, C. Wright Mills described it as an awareness of the relationship between a person's behavior and experience, and the wider culture that shaped the person's choices and perceptions

Stanford Prison Experiment

In 1971, 24 healthy, middle-class male university students took part in a simulated jail environment to examine effects of social setting and social roles on individual psychology and behavior

Second Wave of Feminism

In the 1960s-70s, the women's liberation movement turned its attention to a broader range of inequalities like the workplace, family, and reproductive rights

Participant Observation - Field Research

Researchers join people and participate in a group's routine activities for the purpose of observing them within that context

Interpretive Framework

Seeks to understand social worlds from the point of view of participants which leads to in-depth knowledge

Dominant Gender Ideology

The assumption that physiological sex differences between males and females are related to differences in their character, behavior, and ability

Cultural Imperialism

The deliberate imposition of one's own cultural values on another culture

Ethnography - Field Research

The extended observation of the social perspective and cultural values of an entire social setting, involving objective observation of an entire community

Social Facts

The laws, morals, values, religious beliefs, customs, fashions, rituals, and all of the cultural rules that govern social life

Material Culture

The objects or belongings of a group of people

Xenocentrism

The opposite of ethnocentrism which refers to the belief that another culture is superior to one's own

Generalized Others

The organized and generalized attitude of a social group

Cultural Relativism

The practice of assessing a culture by its own standards

Social Control

The regulation and enforcement of norms

Ideal Culture

The standards society would like to embrace and live up to

Sociology

The study of groups and group interactions, societies, and social interactions, from small and personal groups to very large groups

Beliefs

The tenets or convictions that people hold to be true

Latent Functions

The unsought consequences of a social process

Secondary Data Analysis

The use of data collected by others, but applying new interpretations or lens' of focus

Real Culture

The way that society actually is

Ibn Khaldun (1332 - 1406) of Tunisia

The world's first sociologist

Quantitative Sociology

Use of statistical methods such as surveys with large numbers of participants

Scientific Method of Sociology

1. Ask a question 2. Research Existing Sources 3. Make a hypothesis 4. Design and Conduct a Study 5. Draw conclusions 6. Report results

Four Characteristics Common to the Feminist Perspective

1. Gender is a central focus of the perspective 2. Gender relations are viewed as a problem: the site of social inequalities, strains, and contraindications 3. Gender relations are not immutable: they are sociological and historical in nature 4. Feminism is about an emancipatory commitment to change: the conditions of life that are oppressive for women need to be transformed

Karl Marx (1818 - 1883)

1. Scientific socialist who coauthored "The Communist Manifesto" 2. Believed that the history of class conflict would result in the collapse of capitalism, which would be replaced by communism 3. Contended that a class struggle between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat would lead "to the dictatorship of the proletariat," which in turn would be a transitional phase leading to a classless society

First Wave of Feminism

19th and early 20th century focus on official, political inequalities and fought for women's suffrage

Frances Heussenstamm

A 1971 experiment to explore the correlation between traffic stops and race-based bumper stickers

Georg Simmel (1858 - 1918)

A German art critic who wrote widely on social & political issues as well who took an anti-positivism stance. Focused on two and three person groups and emphasized individual culture as creative capacities of individuals

Paradigm

A broad viewpoint, perspective, or lens that permits social scientists to have a wide range of tools to describe society, and then to build hypotheses and theories

Critical Theory

A contemporary form of conflict theory that criticizes many different systems and ideologies of domination and oppression

Values

A culture's standard for discerning what is good and just in society

Sample

A manageable number of subjects who represent a larger population

Value Neutrality

A practice of remaining impartial, without bias or judgment, during the course of a study and in publishing results

Heterosexism

A system of attitudes, biases, and discrimination that favor male-female sexuality and relationships

Content Analysis

A systematic approach to record and value information gleaned from secondary data as they relate to the study at hand

Meta-Analysis

A technique in which the results of virtually all previous studies on a specific subject are evaluated together

Theory

A way to explain different aspects of social interactions and to create a testable hypothesis about society

Functionalism

A.K.A. Structural-Functional Theory created by Hebert Spencer, sees society as a structure with interrelated parts designed to meet the biological and social needs of the individuals in that society. No longer believed to be useful at the Macro-level

Multiculturalism

Aims to allow distinct cultures to reside together

Function of a Recurrent Activity

Alfred Radcliff-Brown defined it as the part it plays in social life as a whole and therefore the contribution it makes to social stability and continuity

ASA

American Sociological Association

Case Study - Field Research

An in-depth analysis of a single event, situation, or individual

Auguste Comte (1798 - 1857)

As the father of sociology, he invented what he called "social physics" or "positivism"

Peter L. Berger

Asserts that sociologists have a natural interest in the monumental moments of people's lives

Grand Theory

Attempts to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental questions

Feminist Theory

Attempts to explain the forces that maintain gender inequality as well as how such a system can be changed

Positivism

Believed in the use of scientific methods to reveal the laws by which societies and individuals interact

Survey

Collects data from subjects responding to a series of questions. This is a very common method

Manifest Functions

Consequences of a social process that are sought or anticipated

Nonmaterial Culture

Consists of the ideas, attitudes, and beliefs of a society

Operational Definition

Define the concept in terms of the physical or concrete steps it takes to objectively measure it

Institutional Enthnography

Developed by Dorothy E. Smith, it is an extension of ethnography that focuses intentionally on everyday concrete social relationships

Standpoint Theory

Dorothy Smith's innovation that enabled feminist perspective issues to be seen and addressed in a systematic way

Dramaturgical Analysis

Erving Goffman's term for the study of social interaction in terms of theatrical performance

Emile Durkheim (1858 - 1917)

Established sociology as a formal academic discipline, and also theorized that societies transformed from a primitive state into a capitalist, industrial society. Studied suicide statistics as well

Ethnocentrism

Evaluating and judging another culture based on how it compares to one's own cultural norms

Random Sample

Every person in a population has the same chance of being chosen for a study

Empirical Evidence

Evidence that comes from direct experience

Symbolic Interactionism

Focuses on one-to-one interactions and communications and is studied at the micro level

Structural Functionalism

Focuses on the way each part of society functions together to contribute to the whole. This can be studied at either the macro or mid level

Conflict Theory

Focuses on the way inequalities contribute to social differences and perpetuate differences in power. This can be studied at the macro level

Code of Ethics

Formal guidelines for conducting sociological research consisting of principles and ethical standards to be used in the discipline

George Murdock

Found that cultural universals often revolve around basic human survival, such as finding food, clothing, and shelter, or around shared human experiences such as birth and death or illness and healing

Third Wave of Feminism

From the 1980s to present day, criticizing the fact that the firs two waves of feminism were dominated by white women from advanced capitalist societies. Emphasizes diversity and change

Progressive View of Institutions

Institutions were artificially produced and need to be redesigned if they are to be helpful

Conservative View of Institutions

Institutions were formed out of human nature and are naturally positive

Macro-Level

Large-scale issues and large groups of people

Critical Race Theory

Looks at the structural inequality based on white privilege and associated wealth, power, and prestige

Institutions

Meet the needs of society by filling expected roles and behaviors

Figuration

Norbert Elias called this the process of simultaneously analyzing the behavior of individuals and the society that shapes that behavior

Egalitarian Societies

Ones in which women have political rights and control over their own bodies

Verstehen

Outside observers of a social world attempt to understand it from an insider's point of view

Social Institutions

Patterns of beliefs and behaviors focused on meeting social needs, such as government, family, healthcare, religion, and the economy

Hawthorne Effect

People change their behavior because they know they are being watched as part of a study

Personal Troubles

Private problems experienced within the character of the individual and the range of their immediate relation to others

Herbert Spencer (1820 - 1903)

Rejected Comte's philosophy and Marx's theory and instead favored a form of government that allowed market forces to control capitalism in his book The Study of Sociology

Qualitative Sociology

Seeks to understand human behavior by learning about it through in-depth interviews, focus groups, and analysis of content sources

Dysfunctions

Social processes that have undesirable consequences for the operation of society

Antipositivism

Social researchers strive for subjectivity as they worked to represent social processes, cultural norms, and societal values

Social Solidarity

Social ties within a group

Patriarchy

Societies where women have been systematically oppressed and men have been historically dominant

Significant Others

Specific individuals that impacted a person's life

Public Sociology

Strives to bring sociological dialogue to public forums. Goal is to increase understanding of social problems and assist in finding solutions

Michael Foucault

Studied the relationship between power and sexuality

Culture Shock

The experience of disorientation or frustration when confronted with all of the differences of a new culture

Sanction

To give support, approval, or permission, or by instilling formal actions of disapproval and nonsupport

Harriet Martineau (1802 - 1876)

Translated Comte's work to English, thereby introducing sociology to English-speakers. Also made the first systematic methodological international comparison of social institutions

Micro-level

Very specific relationships between individuals or small gorups

Dynamic Equilibrium

When all parts work together to maintain stability in a healthy society

George Herbert Mead (1863 - 1931)

Worked on the ways in which the mind and self were developed as a result of social processes

Mary Wollstonecraft (1759 - 1797)

Wrote about women's conditions in society, and is noted as the first feminist thinker of consequence

Max Weber (1864 - 1920)

Wrote on topics related to sociology including political change in Russia and social forces that affect factory workers. Best known for book titled The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism.