11: Social Structure And Demographics Flashcards
Manifest functions
Deliberate actions that serve to help a given system
Latent functions
Unexpected, Unintended, or unrecognized positive consequences of manifest functions
Conflict theory
Focuses on how power differentials are created and how those differentials contribute to maintenance of social order
Symbolic interactionism
Study of the ways individuals interact through a shared understanding of words, gestures, and other symbols
Social constructionism
Explores ways in which individuals and groups make decisions to agree upon a given social reality
Rational choice theory
States individuals will make decisions maximize potential benefit and minimize potential harm
- Expectancy theory applies rational choice theory within social groups
Feminist theory
Explores the ways in which one gender can be subordinated, minimized, or devalued compared to the other
Social institutions
Well established social structures that dictate certain patterns of behavior or relationships and are accepted as a fundamental part of culture (Ex: family, education, religion, government, economy)
Tenets of American medicine
- Beneficence: acting in patient’s best interest
- Nonmaleficence: Avoiding treatments for which risk is larger than benefit
- Respect for autonomy: Respecting patient’s rights to make decisions about own healthcare
- Justice: Treating similar patients similarly and distributing healthcare resources fairly
Culture
Encompasses the lifestyle of a group of people and includes both material and symbolic elements
Cultural lag
Idea that material culture changes more quickly than symbolic culture
Cultural barrier
Social difference that impedes interaction
Value
What a person deems important in life
Belief
What a person considers to be true
Ritual
Formalized ceremonial behavior in which members of a group or community regularly engage
- governed by specific rules, including appropriate behavior and predetermined order of events
Norms
Societal rules that define the boundaries of acceptable behavior
Demographics
Statistics of populations and are the mathematical applications of sociology
Ageism
Prejudice or discrimination on the basis of a person’s age
Gender
Set of behavioral, cultural, or psychological traits typically associated with a biological sex
Gender inequality
Intentional or unintentional empowerment of one gender to the detriment of the other
Race
Social construct based on phenotypic differences between groups of people; may be real or perceived differences
Ethnicity
Social construct that sorts people by cultural factors, including language, nationality, religion, and other factors
Symbolic ethnicity
Recognition of an ethnic identity that is only relevant on special occasions or in specific circumstances that does not specifically impact everyday life
Sexual orientation
Defined by one’s sexual interest toward members of the same, opposite, or both sexes
Immigration
Movement into a new geographic area
Emigration
movement away from a geographic area
Fertility rate
Average number of children born to a woman during her lifetime in a population
Birth rate
relative to population size over time, usually measured as number of births per 1000 people per year
Mortality rate
Average number of deaths per population size over time, usually measured as number of deaths per 1000 people per year
Migration
Movement of people from one geographic location to another
Demographic transition
Model used to represent drops in birth and death rates as a result of industrialization
Social movements
Organized to either promote (proactive) or resist (reactive) social change
Globalization
Process of integrating a global economy with free trade and tapping of foreign labor markets
Urbanization
Process of dance areas of population creating a pull for migration; aka creating cities
Functionalism
Function of each component of society and how these components fit together
