Sociology - Chapter 3, Lessons 1, 2, and 3

According to to this hypothesis, also known as the hypothesis of __________, people's perception of the world differ because people have learned different _____.

Sapir-Whorf, languages

As a result, the same symbol can have different meanings in different _____.

countries

The _____ of a symbol is the meaning that a culture chooses to give; it is not based on the symbol's physical _____.

definition, characteristics

Over time, what factors can cause norms to change?

3 factors have slowly changed norms over the year, which sociologists have identified as invention, discovery, and diffusion.

Suppose that an employee gets a raise. Would that be a formal sanction, or an informal sanction? What kind of behavior would the sanction encourage?

A formal sanction, because it (the raise) was given by someone with some sort of power or authority over the other person, like a manager or someone similar. It would encourage positive or negative behavior, positive in this case.

What sets laws apart from other kinds of norms?

A law is a type of norm that is formally defined and enforced by officials, while other types of norms are not enforced by officials.

Suppose that you eat a big breakfast each day. Are you acting according to instinct, or according to culture? Explain.

According to culture, because instincts are mainly patterns of behavior for survival. For example, you don't NEED to eat breakfast to survive on a daily basis, it's just a common thing that was learned in society as a sort of custom or routine we do each day.

Suppose that a driver throws a food wrapper from the car and is stared at by a pedestrian. Would that be a formal sanction, or an informal sanction? What kind of behavior would the sanction encourage?

An informal sanction, because the pedestrian was only staring at the driver, and was not given any sort of authority over the driver. It would encourage positive or negative behavior, negative in this case.

What do we mean when we say work is an American value?

Because people tend to prefer action over inaction in almost every case, so for most Americans, continuous and regular work is a goal in itself, and the reward is success and wealth (for the most part).

Why is it possible for groups to support the same value but interpret it differently?

Because values are so broad that they do not dictate precise ways of thinking, feeling, or behaving.

Summarize the main idea of this lesson by answering the following question. Is honesty a folkway, a more, or a value? What sanctions encourage honest behavior? Explain your answers.

Honesty can be both a more and a value, in the sense that honesty is a norm that has moral dimension, and is valued by a large part of society. Formal and informal sanctions encourage honest behavior, in the sense that workplace or business (formal) always encourages honesty in the workplace; and in places like home or out in public (informal), honesty is a kind of unspoken rule among everyone that more often than not, has a positive reward.

A group of people lives in a certain place. What other factor must be true in order to call that group a society?

In order for that group to be called a society, they must live a defined territory, and participate in a common culture. For example, the society's different elements of culture might include common knowledge, language, values, customs, and physical objects.

In what sense does culture guide people's interpersonal relationships?

In the sense that one role of culture is to help explain human social behavior. For example, what people do/don't do, like/dislike, value/discount, and believe/don't believe are all based off culture, and tie into things we do every day.

According to sociobiologists, where does the "best" behavior come from, and what makes certain behaviors "better" than others?

In the sense that some people believe that the importance placed on genetics could justify one race to be superior to the others. The "middle ground" that some sociobiologists believe is that genes work with culture to shape and limit human behavior and social life in a complex way.

_____ are objects, actions, and sensations that represent cultural ideas.

Symbols

How does the "nature vs nurture" argument combine with a person's culture to explain human behavior?

The "nature vs nurture" argument combines with culture in the sense that culture is an influence toward the development some behaviors and traits, and heredity sets the broad parameters for the development of said behaviors and traits,. The "nature vs nurture" argument is the debate over the relative balance of these factors.

What is the basic difference between mores and folkways?

The basic difference between mores and folkways is that a more is a norm that has moral dimension, and a folkway is a norm that has no moral dimension.

What is the difference between material culture and nonmaterial culture?

The difference between material culture and nonmaterial culture is that material culture includes the physical thing, and nonmaterial culture includes things you cannot see nor touch.

Summarize the main ideas of this lesson by answering the following question. How would you describe the mix of factors that influence behavior in a human society?

The mix of factors that influence behavior in a human society might include things like material and nonmaterial culture, and the "nature vs nurture" argument. For example, the material and nonmaterial culture idea influences American society with things like skyscrapers, computer, cell phones, cars, beliefs, rules, customs, family systems, and a capitalist economy, which influences that way people work and act in society everyday. The behaviors of human society can also be tied to the "nature vs nurture" argument in the sense that the "best" behaviors are thought to be transmitted in the genetic code.

Summarize the main ideas of this lesson by answering the following question. Suppose that someone traveled 500 years into the past and introduced a culture to the kinds of electronic communication that we use today. If that past culture considered this new technology important, how might the culture's language change? Why? What symbols might change or be added, and why?

They might try to incorporate this new culture into their everyday lives, and try to come up with new technology/ideas to work with this new culture. They might also use a new language to communicate with each other.

How has the value of group superiority? In what sense does it still exist?

Today, there is less emphasis on group superiority in America. It still exists in the sense that there is a decline in openly racist attitudes and behaviors.

How to people use values to make decisions?

Values are so broad, and general, that they are involved in most aspects of daily life, and because they form the basis for norms.

A person's perception of the world can be _____ through exposure to new _____ and other languages.

altered, worlds

The hypothesis suggests that the greater number of words and the greater the _____ of a society's language for talking about something, the more _____ that thing is to the society.

complexity, important

In addition to language, various other factors, including cultural practices, affect the ways in which people _____ the world.

experience

The Sapir-Whorf hypothesis considers language to be a _____ to reality.

guide

Humans often use _____, the most powerful symbols, to take part in cultural _____--that is, to share what they know, think, and experience.

language, transmission

Culture must be _____ by each new generation; it is not inherited genetically.

learned

On the other hand, a society may not have any words at all for talking about something that it considers _____.

unimportant