1.1 Explaining belief systems Flashcards
Religious
spiritual, scared
Secular
worldly, not sacred
Social Construct
something that is defined by society and that changes according to time and place
Animism
an early form of religion that sees humans, animals and plants as all having spirits or souls
Objective
free from bias or subjectivity; based on fact, not emotions
Subjective
biased; based on personal views or feelings
Rationalism
the view that knowledge must be based on reason
Relativism
the idea that all forms of knowledge are of equal status
Natural Selection
Darwin’s theory of the survival of those organisms best suited to their environment. The process involves favourable genetic characteristics becoming more common in successive generations, and unfavourable ones becoming less common.
Paradigm
a mode of viewing the world which underlies the theories and methodology of science in a particular period of history
New Age
a broad movement in Western culture that emphasises the individual’s responsibility for their own spiritual development
Holistic Milieu
the climate of New Age activities
Collective Conscience
a set of values and moral attitudes shared by everyone in a society
Totemism
the worship of an object or animal that has divine significance
Anomie
a state of normalessness
Civil Religion
a secular religion that unites people in multi-faith societies by instilling a spiritual patriotism
Social Control
keeping the population in line
Ideological Apparatus
a mechanism for promoting the views and interests of the ruling class
False Consciousness
the illusion instilled into the working class that the capitalist system is fair for everyone in society
Hegemony
the ideological control that the ruling-class elite have over the masses
Patriarchal Ideology
the universal system of male domination over women
Ethnocentric
seeing your own culture as superior to others, and using it to judge different norms and values unfavourably
Theodicy of Privilege or Non-Privilege
a religious explanation of social inequality
Caste System
a class structure based on Hinduism, where a person’s status is fixed at birth according to the family’s social position. Social promotion and demotion is through reincarnation, depending on the person’s behaviour in this life
DIY Cocktail
a personalised religion comprised of aspects of different faiths
Universe of Meaning
the collection of shared meanings that make up social reality
Plausibility Structure
the social basis for the continuation of society
