Sociology: Chapter 20

Malthusian theory

a theory asserting that population is controlled through positive checks (war, famine, disease) and preventive checks (measures to reduce fertility)

demographic transition theory

a theory that describes four stages of population growth, following patterns that connect birth and death rates with stages of industrial development

fracking

another word for hydraulic fracturing, is a method used to recover gas and oil from shale by drilling down into the earth and directing a high-pressure mixture of water, sand, and proprietary chemicals into the rock.

what was the 2014 child migration crisis?

in 2014, a steady overall increase in unaccompanied minors from Central America reached crisis proportions when tens of thousands of children from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras crossed the Rio Grande and overwhelmed border patrols and local infrastructure

climate change; what drives it

long-term shifts in temperature and climate due to human activity, long-term shifts in temperatures due to human activity and, in particular, the release of greenhouse gases into the environment

environmental racism

refers to the way in which minority group neighborhoods (populated primarily by people of color and members of low socioeconomic groups) are burdened with a disproportionate number of hazards, including toxic waste facilities, garbage dumps, and other sources of environmental pollution and foul odors that lower the quality of life.

what do urban sociologists study

study those social, political, and economic relationships of cities

sustainable development

the biggest global challenge for urbanized populations, particularly in less developed countries, will be to achieve development that occurs without depleting or damaging the natural environment

gentrification

the entry of upper- and middle-class residents to city areas or communities that have been historically less affluent

white flight

the migration of economically secure white people from racially mixed urban areas toward the suburbs

environmental sociology

the sociological subfield that addresses the relationship between humans and the environment

demography

the study of population

urbanization

the study of the social, political, and economic relationships of cities

refugee vs. internally displaced person

--> an individual who has been forced to leave their country in order to escape war, persecution, or natural disaster -->someone who fled his or her home while remaining inside the country's borders