SOCI 001 Final Exam
what is the primary function of schools?
Education, socialization
What is the hidden curriculum, how does it relate to inequality?
any answer - school is meant to socialize students, but kids get socialized differently depending on their school which is linked to class
In order to make workers more efficient, Walmart makes a rule that whoever completes the most orders the fastest gets a giftcard. This is:
gamification
BLM, Stonewall, ACT UP are examples of
social movements
Social Institutions
the central domains of social life that guide our behaviors and meet our basic social needs include an idea (the category of need) and a related set of formal and informal practices (that guide our behaviors and interactions)
True or False According to Smith the division of labor simplifies work for the workers and is therefore detrimental to the workers.
False - Marx said this
True or False Race is a determinant of health
False - racism is
Policy
Formal: Laws (rules of behavior) Informal: Unofficial and part of the unwritten culture of the state Services that governments provide for people
Cultural capital and the hidden curriculum - reading overlap
From the family (Lareau - socialization in the family) to schooling (Jack) to the workplace (Rivera - how culture fit matters for people's outcomes in hiring)
Impacts of climate change on society - Extreme Weather Events
Higher temperatures Drought Wildfire Heavy rains Flooding More powerful hurricanes
future of families -economic change
Will fewer ppl have children due to economic circumstances?
I am a Vanderbilt, I am part of one of New York's most elite families. How did I get here?
ascribed status
family definition
A group of people who are connected by blood, a sexual relationship, or the law Understandings of family depend on context
health and illness are spatially patterned - examples
Emile Durkheim Studied suicide across and within European countries Found differing suicide rates by region/country WEB DuBois Studied the living conditions of Black Philadelphians Highest mortality rates depending on social conditions The infant mortality rate by ward in Washington, D.C., shows that the death rate among infants is not the same in all areas of the city.
True or False The inclusion of woman in the labor force has created better home lives for them
False
Explain one reason that meritocracy is a myth (schools)
SES can determine SAT scores, who you know, etc
plan B: bioengineering?
We try to control planet on large scale Some concern about this
Concerted Cultivation vs Natural Growth - language use
parents tend to ask pointed questions, reason with children over decisions; reasoning/directives; child contestation of adult statements; extended negotiations bw parents and child vs parents tend to ask fewer questions and issue more direct commands ; directives, rare for child to question or challenge adults; general acceptance by child of directives
demographic trends: Divorce trends in the US
1870-1970: gradual but consistent increase in marriages ending in divorce By 1970: half of marriages in US end in divorce
Democracies
Allow people opportunities to vote for leaders and policies The electorate can be expanded and contracted to affect the power of different groups Access to the state can change over time. This reflects the ability of a group to defend and assert its interests.
functions of schooling
Educating students Teaching general skills - eg. reading, writing, arithmetic Teaching vocational skills ("upgrading" human capital)
Education as a social institution
Idea behind education: Young people should be educated so they are prepared for citizenship and the workplace Practices: Attendance requirements (formal), back-to-school shopping (informal)
Social Movements
Persistent and organized collective action meant to promote or oppose social change To build a social movement, activists need to: Collectively define the state of affairs and grow an insurgent consciousness Overcome the collective action problem Overcome the mechanisms of social control
Pluralism Theory
Policy outcomes reflect the balance of interests around an issue Policy emerges from the bottom up out of the push and pull between organized interest groups
demographic change - future of families
Relative decline in immigrants from LA, Europe, increase in immigrants from Africa and Asia → impact on average family structure
Ultimate authority within some geographical territory Rely on taxation to collect funds used to pay for services
State
state
States are the "ultimate authority" within some geographical territory Weber: "a human community that (successfully) claims the monopoly of the legitimate use of physical force within a given territory." States rely on taxation to collect funds used to pay for services Welfare state: a system in which the state is responsible for the well-being of its citizens
Overcome the collective action problem
The challenge of getting large groups of people to act in coordinated ways It can help to have leadership, mechanisms of communication, resources, and inspiration Recruited prominent activists, sent out 50,000 flyers, Rosa Parks arrest used to mobilize people's energy spur boycott Sustained for 381 days - taxi drivers charging bus fare to people to take taxis, shoe donations, carpools Resources helped movement overcome the collective action problem
When enslaved people ran away, they were diagnosed with a mental illness called drapetomania. This demonstrates that illness is:
a social construction
health - parallel to c wright mills
the medical approach emphasizes solutions to illness as a personal trouble, sociology tries to understand illness as public issues
According to Roberto Gonzales, what are 3 ways that undocumented people exprience social hardships?
eg. mental illness, responsibilities, drivers licenses, work etc
family today
no typical US family today No family arrangement that applies to majority of Americans anymore Only 20% of families have two parents where just father is main earner Around 45% of marriages today end in divorce But increase has been gradual since the 19th century -- gradually increasing as women become less economically dependent on men and as social/religious of taboos around divorce have declined
Ruth Milkman. "A New Political Generation: Millennials and the Post-2008 Wave of Protest."
not all social movements adopt the same tactics & goals modes of organization non-hierarchical, leaderful, disruptive, challenging social structures: occupy wall street, BLM traditional organizational forms. story-telling as a key strategy, also engage in conventional politics, working inside the system - movement against sexual assault, DREAMERs social characteristics of activists & leaders insiders - mostly white, US-born, and affluent - occupy wall street, movement against sexual assault outsiders - of color and often LGBTQ - BLM, DREAMERs
family & the reproduction of inequality
parents play a role in shaping their children's life chances
Brandon is interviewing people to join student government. He mentions that he would prefer people to join who were a part as the same honor society as him in high school. He is looking for a candidate with what?
social capital
Arlie Russell Hochschild. Strangers in Their Own Land: Anger and Mourning on the American Right.
study of the rural right in Louisiana empathy walls -"an obstacle to deep understanding of another person, one that can make us feel indifferent or even hostile to those who hold different beliefs or whose childhood is rooted in different circumstances" (351).
impact of childrearing strategies on interactions with institutions - Lareau
"Although they often addressed similar problems (e.g., learning disabilities, asthma, traffic violations), they typically did not achieve similar resolutions" (582). Concerted cultivation fosters an emerging sense of entitlement Accomplishment of natural growth fosters an emerging sense of constraint
resources are also spatially patterned - example
"[T]he deadliest and most thoroughgoing kind of violence is woven into the fabric of American society. It exists when some groups have more access to goods, resources, and opportunities than other groups, including health and life itself. This violence delivers specific blows against particular bodies in particular neighborhoods. [...]. This kind of violence is called structural violence because it is embedded in the very laws, policies, and rules that govern day-to-day life. [...]." (7-8).
rise of single parenthood
(grown by 250% since 1960) Single parenthood is associated with worse outcomes for children, though causation can be difficult to determine Does that mean societies should be promoting two-parent families, or doing more to support families in whatever forms they take? Problem isn't that we don't have enough 2 parent households, but that society doesn't provide enough help to households who are struggling
tensions bw career obligations & family needs
- avg American work week has not changed drastically, but the distribution of workers working short work weeks & long work weeks has changed (professional jobs vs blue collar)
What are the 3 social drivers of climate change?
Consumption, production, population
What are forms of coping with stigma? A.Fixing B.Joining groups C.Passing D.Forgetting E. A, B, C
E
Policy responses to climate change
Eg 2015 Paris Agreement In general, analysts are very skeptical about whether or not changes in these agreements will be implemented, which countries will follow through US also tends to have policies go back and forth bw administrations More progress at state/city levels with clean energy goals
Technological innovation
Government will play a big role in defining the rules for these new types of energy that may slow down technological change Wind and solar energy now vs what it needs to look like by 2050 to reach near zero carbon Prices going down as tech becomes more widespread
Who should be held accountable for losses? - Elliott
Homeowners who invested their life savings in homes that are now unaffordable to maintain? Taxpayers who should subsidize "morally worthy" homeowners Corporations that contributed to climate change by emitting greenhouse gases? There is no one "objective" answer. The answers will be determined through social and political processes. "Underpinning these claims and their outcomes are social processes of adjudicating what counts as a loss, what values we ascribe to loss, whether loss can be attributed to climate change specifically, and who, if anyone, can be held responsible" (317). The prevalence of loss and the struggles over its meaning could make climate politics and climate policy a key influence over nearly every aspect of how we live and work.
Social drivers of climate change
Industrial production Population Consumption
The Firm as Family emphasized these 3 core values:
Internal Mobility, Pay Equity, long term careers
Media coverage & climate change
Media's role in socialization, broader processes through which values beliefs, and understandings are passed down Sociologists know that media coverage shapes people's understanding of social problems
The recycling plant in West Philly was placed in a low income community and recently caught on fire. As a result 30 families in the area have complained of difficulty breathing. What social determinant?
Neighborhoods, SES
Markets are influenced by what 4 things?
Networks, Institutions, Culture, Performativity
Pressure from the private sector to respond to climate change
Now, some energy companies have begun to acknowledge that climate change is a real problem and have begun to paint themselves as part of the solution by investing in greener energy sources Insurance industry worried about climate risks bc of the high amount they pay for climate damage
Elite Theory
Proposes that policies are more likely to be adopted by states if economic and social elites support them
African Americans are more likely to have high blood pressure due to the stress associated with discrimination. What social determinant?
Racism
The Green New Deal is an example of what response to climate change?
Social, political policy
Alexander goes to KIPP elementary school. In school he is taught that the should wear a clean professional uniform, the school enforces a zero tolerance policy, and encourages involvement in extracurriculars such as piano and cooking. The school is doing what to Alexander?
Socialization
4 ways to do sociology
Sociologists do sociology in different ways Professional sociology - Science for the sake of science: advancing knowledge of the social world Critical sociology - Critiquing the biases and silences in professional sociology Public sociology - ie matt desmond - eviction economy - Bringing sociological knowledge to non-sociologists to build dialogues between sociologists and the public Policy sociology - Conducting research aimed at providing solutions to particular social problems
hope in avoiding climate catastrophe?
The work of scientists The continuing rise of climate activism Powerful private sector actors Increasing coverage in traditional media Positive trends in public opinion Nations implementing international agreements Policy in the states and cities Innovations in clean energy, green technology
inequality within schools - tracking
Tracking - the practice of placing students in different classrooms according to their perceived ability - is a racialized process White and asian american students 2x as likely to be placed in most rigorous tracks as immigrants and children of color Potentially bias (overestimate potential of white and asian students) Some call this pattern second generation segregation
According to Annette Lareau what are the differences between middle class and working class socialization?
concerted cultivation,natural growth
Brandon identifies as male. He joins football and goes to parties and dances intimately with girls to be seen as masculine. He is engaging in what concept?
doing gender
What is one way that class influences health?
eg. access to resources, neighborhood, kinds of foods available, quality of healthcare
Who is the largest Consumer, Employer, Lender, Borrower, Insurer, and Property Owner in Modern Market Economies?
government
According to Jacobs and Gerson how have changes in work structure and time affected families?
ie. Women bear more burdens, salaried workers are spending more time at work
Concerted Cultivation vs Natural Growth - key elements
parent actively fosters and assesses a child's talents, opinions, and skills vs parent cares for child & allowed child to grow
Astrid is a sophomore at Penn and is struggling to get in Sociology 100. There are no open seats and will not be able to take it this semester. She speculates that the reason she can't get in is because the department of sociology has a shortage of TAs and Professors who can teach the course due to the constraints on the university by a myriad of larger factors. This is an example of her what?
sociological imagination
Why are families social constructions?
vary across time & place, no nuclear
public opinion on climate change
⅔ of Americans agree that climate change is caused by human activity Differences in concerns Biggest gap bw Dems and Republicans
NY example - Elliott
"Climate change does not drive loss in a deterministic fashion...the work of individuals, groups, communities, powerful interests, and institutions shapes the course of loss, producing divergent outcomes in terms of who loses what, when, how much, and with what results, at multiple geographic scales" (Elliott 2018:327) "[C]oalitions of homeowners, real estate and construction interests, local officials, and chambers of commerce mobiliz[ed] to blunt the force of insurance-led devaluations of hazardous areas" (313).
Marx on the environment
"Men make their own history, but they do not make it as they please; they do not make it under self-selected circumstances, but under circumstances existing already, given and transmitted from the past. The tradition of all dead generations weighs like a nightmare on the brains of the living." In "scarce one hundred years...more massive and more colossal productive forces [emerged] than [were created in all] preceding generations together. [...] [M]achinery,...steam-navigation, railways, electric telegraphs, clearing of whole continents for cultivation, canalisation of rivers, whole populations conjured out of the ground" -- Karl Marx
race and health
"Race" is not a cause of health disparities. "[I]t would be biologically and evolutionarily preposterous to attribute diseases as wide ranging as breast cancer, hypertension, diabetes, renal failure, and tuberculosis to the genes that program melanin deposition in the skin. Yet a prevailing notion of race in biomedical and social research has assumed that traits like skin color can be used to categorize people into meaning genetic subgroups to better understand disease and death predisposition" (57). Racism is "This embodiment of racism and poverty accounts for some of the patterns of health and disease we see" (64). "These studies have found that people who experienced high degrees of personal discrimination had worse health outcomes across a series of diseases. For example, women who had experienced high levels of perceived racism over their lifetimes were five times more likely to deliver a low- birthweight baby than those who did not. This suggests that the experience of inequality causes disease" (64).
the hidden curriculum in schools
"The hidden curriculum is taught by the school, not by any teacher...something is coming across to the pupils which may never be spoken in the English lesson... they are picking up an approach to living and an attitude to learning" Roland Meighan Conveyed through formal rules and r regulations and informal norms Eg we learn about patriotism and what it learns to be American in the school system - ie when we say the pledge of allegiance and learn about US history Helps to form a more cohesive society, but has also been used to impose the values of a dominant culture on outsiders or minorities
(Climate) politics are everywhere - Elliott
"[C]limate change will create [political] constituencies by imperiling people in locally specific ways. People will realize or anticipate loss and they will be activated to engage politically to address climate change as the cause of that loss" (314). Example: National Flood Insurance Program, run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency Federal government requires people who have federally-backed home mortgages to buy federally-subsidized flood insurance if they live in high-risk flood zones
Rebecca Elliott.. "The Sociology of Climate Change as a Sociology of Loss."
"[F]undamentally, climate change is a problem of how we live, produce, and consume, and the science of society ought to be at the forefront of efforts to understand and address such a problem" (Elliott 2018: 302) "[H]ow [can] environmentally destructive ways of producing, living, and consuming [be] broken and dispensed with" (324)? "Loss...disrupts the stable meanings that frame our lives and that root our sense of identity and belonging" (305). "Loss is an unavoidable human experience under any conditions. [...] Some do and will lose more frequently and profoundly than others, but the shared experience of loss is something that empathically connects humans—we often respond with sensitivity and generosity to the losses of others" (329). We are "capable of losing in order to transform [...]." We can "let go and learn to love other worlds" (330).
Why do "natural" disasters have unequal impacts across social class and race? - Elliott
"[L]osses are socially organized. [...] [T]he sociology of loss examines which people become stranded or displaced, how, and with what effects [and] how loss can be designed by social actors and institutions [...]" (307). People who have more resources are better equipped to... ...avoid trouble before an event ...cope during an event ...recover faster after an event "[M]aterial losses necessarily intersect with a stratified world" (309). Researchers have already observed differential impacts of climate change across race/ethnicity "Heat islands" in cities are more intense in neighborhoods predominantly comprised of people of color Sea levels are rising fastest in coastal areas with high concentrations of people of color "Natural" disasters cause more damage in poor communities of color
occupation divide - Jacobs & Gerson
"average" work week has continued, but there have been shifts at both extremes - growing divide bw those putting in long hours at work (often male professionals, managers) & those who aren't able to work as many hours as they need
David A. Ansell. "American Roulette," "Structural Violence and the Death Gap," and "The Three Bs: Beliefs, Behavior, and Biology."
- discusses inequality in healthcare/ medical treatment in the US - huge disparities in illness rates/treatment/outcomes - discusses chicago - live in a nice neighborhood and you'll live a long and healthy life, but live in a poor neighborhood like Windora and your life expectancy will be v low (comparable to that of Haiti) - Windora had a stroke early on - discusses structural violence & the death gap - health inequities --> death gaps (people die prematurely bc of inequity) - doctors are trained to attribute premature death/illness to the individual, but sociologists also attribute to the embodiment of ills created by the conditions imposed on the communities where patients live - inequality is a cause of death - people immediately jump to the 3 Bs: beliefs, behaviors, & biology to explain health and life expectancy differences - but are incorrect - race not a cause of health disparities, racism is
families & socialization
- families are primary agents of socialization - Socialization is the process by which we become culturally competent in our various social environments. - Families of different social classes tend to socialize their families differently
Annette Lareau - "unequal childhoods"
- looked at class, race, and family life in the U.S. - chose 12 children and their families to follow closely - white & black families, who were middle class, working-class, or poor, and with boys & girls in each group - key differences in parenting between middle & upper classes and poor & working classes - middle & upper class: concerted cultivation - working & poor: accomplishment of natural growth
parenting divide - Jacobs & Gerson
- mothers and fathers alike confront work structures that penalize parental involvement & reinforce parenting inequities - esp in era where single-parent households are common, children increasingly rely on the earnings of women and need to be able to count on a wide net of caretakers, including fathers, mothers, and others --> need to create both work opportunities and child support opportunities
Education - Meritocracy
- myth - meritocracy: a society where status and mobility are based on individual attributes, ability, and achievement According to this ideology, in the US effort + natural skills = social position Think about outrage with college cheating scandal
Jerry Jacobs and Kathleen Gerson. "Work and American Families: Diverse Needs, Common Solutions."
- trends in today's labor landscape that have forced people to choose between work and family commitments --> lack of time for daily tasks is a public issue - They explain that the labor force is diverging in that some workers have to sacrifice family time for long work hours, while others struggle to find work for as many hours as they need. - The group that spends more time working often feels squeezed for the time needed to complete daily tasks - "...reflects fundamental and enduring changes in the nature and composition of American society" (454). - Historically, American families typically had one earner and one person who did not work and could dedicate time to the home. - Today, families are more diverse (eg. there are more single-parent and dual-income households). This has left household members feeling that no one has time to care for daily tasks, especially since many of these individuals have entered demanding fields that require long hours. - On the other hand, individuals who struggle to find enough work are often financially insecure which causes other issues when trying to complete daily tasks. - society-wide problem that the authors say requires "creating opportunities for a more equitable balance between paid work and the rest of life" (458). Because finding this balance is a public issue, Jacobs and Gerson argue that public policy must play a role in its solution.
gender divide - Jacobs & Gerson
- women more likely to hold part time jobs, which might not meet family's financial needs or provide long-term career opportunities - overly long work weeks erode chance for parenting equality & male involvement at home - contributes to gender gap in earnings - more pressure on women to take on heavy workload & homecare/childcare load
the 'traditional' family
1950s America: The nuclear family emerges as the dominant, normative, and mythical model for domestic life Traditional model: Male breadwinner, female homemaker, dependent children The traditional nuclear family is not a timeless and universal concept. It developed in response to conditions in a specific time and place. -- historically peculiar & fleeting model
inequality bw schools
Almost half of US public school funding comes from taxes paid by local property owners The children of wealthy families receive the most expensive educations. The children of poor families receive the least expensive educations 4.4x difference in amt of local funding for kids in Grosse Pointe vs Detroit More white children attend wealthier schools vs Black and Latino districts Instead of being the "great equalizer" the US education system delivers the most expensive education to children from wealthy families and cheapest education to children from poor families
Median Voter Theorem
Assumes that policy tends to reflect the views of the median voter If a politician doesn't support the policy in the middle of the bell curve, the other politician can get more votes by moving closer to the middle Better at describing issues with high salience to voters than issues that voters care less about
steps of a social movement
Collectively define the state of affairs and grow an insurgent consciousness overcome the collective action problem Overcome the mechanisms of social control
how poverty in college relates to Goffman's concept of stigma
Consequences of stigma for the stigmatized Social rejections/self-isolation Loss of social status Shame Prejudice Decreased access to resources Reduced self-esteem Tension and anxiety related to information management
demographic trends & women's employment
Declining fertility rate, increasing divorce rate, women's increasing participation in the paid labor force
Collectively define the state of affairs and grow an insurgent consciousness
Define a state of affairs as harmful and then convince the public that the harm requires a cultural or institutional solution. Grow an insurgent consciousness: a recognition of a shared grievance that can be addressed through collective action C Wright Mills - social movement leaders have to frame their personal troubles as a broader social/cultural issue In Montgomery, Alabama, bus boycotters knew that if they stayed off the buses they could bankrupt the bus system
what defines the boundaries of health and illness?
Definitions and experiences of health and illness are socially constructed Disease (a disorder) and impairment (a loss of function) are not inherently illnesses or disabilities
epidemiology - view on health
Describe patterns in health Focus on biomedical mechanisms and health behaviors that result in those patterns Smoking leads to lung cancer
Sociology - view on health
Describe patterns in health Focus on social forces that underlie those patterns Eg as people have more income, they tend to smoke cigarettes less
Social consequences of extreme weather events and increasing temperatures
Disrupts agriculture, decreased food supplies Reduces and pollutes water supplies Health and illness Economic impacts Political impacts
consequences of diff experiences for The privileged poor vs the doubly disadvantaged - Jack
Doubly disadvantaged students tend to... - Feel uncomfortable, alienated, and isolated on campus (36) - Draw moral boundaries between themselves and rich students (47, 66) - Withdraw from dominant settings of campus social life and avoid contact with students from elite backgrounds (51) - Be less likely to take advantage of college resources, experience more stress, underperform academically and give up more easily, get less social support from peers and the college, and experience less success post-graduation (28) Privileged poor students tend to... - Feel more at ease navigating an elite university setting and more comfortable interacting with wealthy peers (56) - Feel less bothered by rich students' displays of wealth (57, 72) - Be more comfortable engaging in impression management to strategically hide their socioeconomic status from wealthier peers (75) - Be more inclined to integrate themselves into the college community, and as a result, they had access to a vast range of social and institutional resources. (77)
Overcome the mechanisms of social control
Elites can impose consequences on those who refuse to cooperate with social rules Boycotters attacked by white mobs, MLK's house firebombed, Rosa Parks threatened, Fined taxi drivers for giving discounted rides, etc
Experiences of and responses to climate change are socially constructed - Elliott
Experiences of climate change-induced loss will be mediated by government policy and economic arrangements "Who will lose what and when depends on the outcome of [political] struggles [...]" (316). "[L]oss is something that is both reacted to and actively produced, both materially real and socially constructed and mediated" (323).
Sociocultural change - future of families
Hard to predict how family forms may change, eg as gay marriage has become widely accepted
Sociology of Health and Illness
Health and illness are the purview of doctors, public health experts... ...and sociologists who study how health is socially patterned and how it's experienced Health: a state of complete physical, mental, and social well- being
economy as an institution
Idea: Societies need a way for people to produce and consume the goods and services they need Practices: Minimum wage (formal), free shipping on online orders (informal)
Family as an institution
Idea: Societies need to provide interpersonal intimacy, childrearing, and eldercare Practices: Marriage (formal), holiday traditions (informal)
politics & the state are everywhere
In democratic societies, voters' desires matter, but they don't always translate into policy outcomes Elites have a lot of social power, but social movements that organize non-elites to engage in collective action can bring about social change
Achievement gaps
Inequalities between and within schools contribute to racial and class disparities in academic achievement non-Asian students of color less likely to graduate from HS Only ⅓ of Black and Hispanic Americans enroll in college by 24 At competitive colleges (see readings) - dozens of the most prestigious colleges in the US enroll students from the top 1% than the entire bottom 60% combined Kids from top 1% (650,000 or more) are 77% more likely to enroll at an Ivy than kids whose families make less than 30,000 Almost half of white admits at Harvard were labelled with some sort of special status - eg child of an employee, legacy admit, personal connection to an administrator
Health inequities in the US
Infant mortality rate among major OECD countries and by race/ethnicity in the U.S., 2014 What does the infant mortality rate represent?
Interdependent Power
Interdependent power: the power of non-cooperation Institutions depend on predictable interactions. That dependence can be a source of power for the people This interdependence gives people some power If enough ppl deviate from the things that uphold institutions, they can affect society
sociologists examine how illnesses and experiences of illness are themselves socially constructed
Labeling, medicalizing, and defining the sick role
Lareau - How much does concerted cultivation matter for social reproduction?
Lareau followed up with all of her respondents 10 years later All but one of the middle-class children were enrolled in college and optimistic about their future careers None of the students from working-class or poor families were
The rise of modern capitalist societies & the environment
Massive increases in wealth and a variety of new social (and environmental) problems
Social control and definitions of health and illness
Medicalization: the description of an aspect of cultural or social life in medical or biological terms The medical profession labels sets of symptoms as diseases. These labels can reflect what is and isn't socially acceptable in any given place and time. Housewives who didn't meet expectation of being wives/mothers were diagnosed as schizophrenic During civil rights movement, black men who have engaged in violent acts became more commonly diagnosed Social shift in how schizophrenia was diagnosed shows how the medical community applies labels that are reflective of the social norms -- diseases are partially a social construction
Individualistic vs. structural perspectives on health and illness - Ansell
Medicine focuses on "proximate causes" of illness (13). These are "downstream" clinical, behavioral, and biological aspects of health and disease (i.e. personal troubles) Sociology focuses on "structural causes" of illness (13). These are "upstream" social forces that drive social health patterns. (i.e. public issues) The social determinants of health often result in social inequities in health.
concerted cultivation - emerging sense of entitlement - Lareau
Middle-class children "asserted themselves at school" (583) by... "requesting that the classroom's blinds be lowered" "badgering the teacher for permission to retake a math test for a higher grade" "demanding to know why no cupcake had been saved when an absences prevented attendance at a classroom party" "[C]hildren were not simply complying with adults' requests...They were displaying an emerging sense of entitlement by urging adults to permit a customized accommodation of institutional processes to suit their preferences" (583). "Middle-class children expect institutions to be responsive to them and to accommodate their individual needs" (585).
Benefits of education
More educated people tend to have higher income Benefits include higher cognitive skills, be engaged in communities, vote, mentally and physically healthier
rebuttals to Lareau's unequal childhoods thesis
Not that middle class parents are more invested in their children than working class children, but maybe they have more resources that lead to diff experiences/opportunities
4 time divides of work-family relationship - Jacobs & gerson
Occupation divide Aspiration divide Gender divide Parenting divide
political sociology
Political sociology tries to understand government and power from a sociological perspective What are some of the social processes that affect what governments do? Political sociology asks: How do people make states? How do people influence states? How do states make laws and policies? How do people interact with states? Who has power and how do our ideas and values affect what governments do?
Jack - The privileged poor vs the doubly disadvantaged
Privileged poor: "they are poor, but they have the privilege of an early introduction to the world they will enter in college" Doubly disadvantaged: "when they first set foot on an elite college campus, it looks, feels, and functions like nothing they have experienced before" (11)
intersectionality & the nuclear family
Race, SES, religion, class, sexual orientation, ethnicity, etc Idea of a nuclear family hasn't changed, but whether people meet it has Families change and shape due to the various circumstances they face
social determinants of health
Race, ethnicity, structural racism Gender, structural sexism Socioeconomic status/class Social networks Neighborhoods Stigma Stress
inequality within schools - discipline
Racial disparities in school discipline 3% of white students and 14% of black students suspended in a given year Black and brown students are punished more often and more aggressively than white students - disparities not just due to differences in student behavior Black and brown schools increasingly controlled by police - whereas in more white schools issues may be referred to administrators, here they are referred to criminal justice system
technological change - future of families
Remote work will help families balance activities better Results from the pandemic are not promising in this regard??
Anthony Abraham Jack. 2019. "Can Poor Students Be Privileged?" and "'Come With Me to Italy!'" - The Privileged Poor
Research questions: "who are the students admitted to college under these new financial aid regimes? And what happens to them when they arrive on campus?" (8) Access to elite colleges has increased, but we still know very little about the low-income students who are being admitted and their experiences on campus "Daily life at Renowned is shaped by the wealth of its students" (27) privileged poor vs doubly disadvantaged
sources of social change
Social movements Economic shifts New technologies Political revolutions, wars, elections Cross-cultural contact Population shifts Environmental pressures and disasters
the Tea Party movement
Social movements aren't necessarily about creating social change Nevertheless, it was still a social movement Defined a harmful state of affairs (left-wing government unfairly helping undeserving people "cut in line") that required a culturalor institutional solution (gutting government and facilitating the ascendance of "free markets") Grew a recognition of shared grievance that could be addressed through collective action (protests, rallies, marches, hostile town halls with members of Congress, internet activism, voting) Had leadership (dozens of members of Congress), mechanisms of communication (Fox News), and resources (Koch brothers) Members faced consequences (some stigmatized as racist or bigoted)
How the institution of education legitimates social inequalities
Sociologists aren't just concerned about unequal outcomes produced by education system, but also how education system might provide ideological legitimation for these social inequalities Kids who go to elite private schools have a higher chance of getting into elite college but had slightly lower scores and grades than public school kids, slightly lower GPAs at college, but end up with better outcomes Not that they're learning more in the classroom, but that they have better cultural/social capital
Solutions to work-family conflict
Solutions Legislation to ensure equality of opportunity between men & women Support for all involved parents
politics
The ability of people, or groups, to gain access to government and use its power to influence society Governments are involved in a wide range of activities and interactions with the public
collective action
The coordinated activities of members of groups with shared goals Repertoires of contention: shared activities widely recognized as expressions of dissatisfaction with social conditions ---E.g. sit-ins, boycotts, strikes, vigils, petitions, rallies, marches, hashtags, civil unrest
Social movements: climate activism
Traditional environmental organizations (e.g. Sierra Club, Greenpeace) New climate activism organizations (e.g. 350.org, Citizens' Climate Lobby) Climate justice movement (focused on how climate change disproportionately affects the poor and communities of color) Younger generation of activists (School Strike for Climate, Student Strike for Climate Action, Sunrise Movement, Extinction Rebellion) "Non-environmental" groups, e.g. religious groups
Social Movements and Social Change
We know that elites have a lot of social power They may use their social capital to access and hoard resources They may use their cultural capital to... ...communicate their social status and gain access to elite spaces ...create social closure to preserve advantages for people like them and restrict access to others They may use their cultural power (e.g. control over mass media) to frame social inequalities as natural or legitimate, or to stigmatize others They may use their political power to lock in laws that favor their economic interests and help them preserve their power How is it that people with less power are able to win anything in the realm of politics?
Social class and the environmental impact of consumption
Wealthier people tend to consume more and have a larger "carbon footprint" Between 1990 and 2015, the richest 10% of the world's population were responsible for 52% of carbon emissions The poorest 50% were responsible for just 7% of emissions The wealthy tend to consume more products, drive instead of taking public transit, travel by air Bigger homes with more amenities require more energy
demographic trends: women's role in the workforce
Women's participation in the labor force has increased --- Causes = higher education, changes in family structure, and institutional supports -- Women with higher education tend to have a higher participation in the labor force Women's wages have increased steadily since the 1900s -- Women make less than men on average --- The gap between women's and men's salaries depends on what metrics (all workers, full-time workers only, full-time workers only in a given age range...) are used to compare salaries -- The wage gap increases with increasing age -- Men tend to work more hours than women per week
natural growth - evidence of emerging sense of constraint - Lareau
Working-class students "In our observations, working-class and poor children could be quite lively and energetic, but we did not observe them try to customize their environments...they did not seem to be seeking to get educators to accommodate their own individual preferences" (585)
The Sick Role
a set of rights and responsibilities granted to some ill people Some illnesses are viewed as socially legitimate, conforming to dominant social norms and values. Some are not. A person with a legitimate illness is expected to seek expert advice on how to either overcome their illness or reduce the impact it has on their social responsibilities. They must follow the expert advice and try to overcome their condition. Goffman: there are illnesses that we tend to associate as mentally/personally weak → poor treatment - while other diseases are treated as socially legitimate The sick role doesn't apply equally to all social groups --- The social and policy responses to people affected by the crack epidemic of the 1980s vs. people affected by the current opioid epidemic
Concerted Cultivation vs Natural Growth - social connections
children from classrooms & organized activities vs extended family & neighborhood kids
4 areas of predicted change: the future of families
economic, demographic, sociocultural, technological
aspiration divide - Jacobs & Gerson
especially at both ends of the spectrum, supply of jobs available doesn't fit or reflect workers' desires - those working a lot of hours want to work less and those working few hours want to work more - long hours: hard to find work-life balance, social costs, lack of engagement in public life - significant personal, familial, and social costs are linked to an overly brief work week, financial insecurity, underemployment, lack of benefits
Concerted Cultivation vs Natural Growth - organization of daily life
parents structure children's leisure time with formal activities vs children's leisure time is relatively unstructured, informal, and child-directed - "hangs out" with kin
Concerted Cultivation vs Natural Growth - engagement with institutions and authority figures
parents tend to model speaking up, negotiating, and asserting one's own interests; criticisms & interventions on behalf of the child vs parents tend to model deference to and mistrust of officials; dependence on institutions; sense of powerlessness and frustrations; conflict bw childrearing practices at home and school
