Ch 1

Question 1

anomie

Answer 1

term for a condition in which social control becomes ineffective as a result of the loss of shared values and of a sense of purpose in society
- created Emile Durkeim

Question 2

conflict perspectives

Answer 2

the sociological approach that views groups in society as engaged in a continuous power struggle for control of sarce resources

Question 3

content analysis

Answer 3

the systematic examination of cultural artifacts or various forms of communication to extract thematic data and draw conclusions about social life

Question 4

control group

Answer 4

not exposed to the independent variable

Question 5

correlation

Answer 5

a relationship that exists when two variables are associated more frequently than could be expected by chance

Question 6

dependent variable

Answer 6

variable assumed to be affected by the independent variable

Question 7

ethnography

Answer 7

a detailed study of the life and activities of a group of people by researchers who may live with that group over a period of years

Question 8

experiment

Answer 8

a carefully designed situation in which the researcher studies the impact of certain variables on subjects’ attitudes or behavior

Question 9

experimental group

Answer 9

exposed to the independent variable

Question 10

functionalist perspective

Answer 10

sociological approach that views society as a stable, orderly system

Question 11

high-income countries

Answer 11

nations with highly industrialized economies; technologically advanced industrial, administrative and service occupations and relative high levels of national and personal income

Question 12

hypothesis

Answer 12

a statement of the expected relationship between two or more varaibles

Question 13

hypothesis

Answer 13

a statement of the expected relationship between two or more variables

Question 14

industrialization

Answer 14

the process by which societies transformed by dependence on agriculture and handmade products to an emphasis on manufacturing and related industries

Question 15

interview

Answer 15

a data-collected encounter in which an interviewer asks the respondent questions and records the answers

Question 16

latent functions

Answer 16

unintended functions that are hidden and remain unacknowledged by participants

Question 17

low-income countries

Answer 17

primarily agrarian nations with little industrialization and low levels of national and personal income

Question 18

macrolevel analysis

Answer 18

an approach that examines whole societies, large-scale social structures and social systems instead of looking at important social dynamics in individual lives

Question 19

manifest functions

Answer 19

functions that are intended and/or overtly recognized by the participants in a social unit

Question 20

microlevel analysis

Answer 20

an approach that focuses on small groups rather than large-scale social structures

Question 21

middle-income countries

Answer 21

nations with industrializing economies, particularly in urban areas and moderate levels of national and personal income

Question 22

participant observation

Answer 22

research method in which researchers collect systematic observations while being a part of the activities of the group being studied

Question 23

posivitism

Answer 23

a belief that the world can best be understood through scientific inquiry

Question 24

postmodern perspectives

Answer 24

the sociological approach that attempts to explain social life in contemporary societies that are characterized by postindustrialization, consumerism, and global communication.

Question 25

qualitative research

Answer 25

use interpretive descriptions (words) rather than statistics (numbers) to analyze underlying meanings and patterns of social relationships.

Question 26

quantitative research

Answer 26

use numbers and numeric data

Question 27

reliability

Answer 27

the extent to which a study or research instrument yields consistent results when applied to different individuals at one time or to the same individuals over time.

Question 28

research methods

Answer 28

specific strategies or techniques for systematically conducting research.

Question 29

secondary analysis

Answer 29

a research method in which researchers use existing material and analyze data that were originally collected by others.

Question 30

social Darwinism

Answer 30

Herbert Spencer’s belief that those species of animals, including human beings, best adapted to their environment survive and prosper, whereas those poorly adapted die out.

Question 31

social facts

Answer 31

Emile Durkheim’s term for patterned ways of acting, thinking, and feeling that exist outside any one individual but that exert social control over each person.

Question 32

society

Answer 32

a large social grouping that shares the same geographical territory and is subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations.

Question 33

sociological imagination

Answer 33

C. Wright Mills’s term for the ability to see the relationship between individual experiences and the larger society.

Question 34

sociology

Answer 34

the systematic study of human society and social interaction.

Question 35

survey

Answer 35

a poll in which the researcher gathers facts or attempts to determine the relationships among facts.

Question 36

symbolic interactionist perspectives

Answer 36

the sociological approach that views society as the sum of the interactions of individuals and groups.

Question 37

theory

Answer 37

a set of logically interrelated statements that attempts to describe, explain, and (occasionally) predict social events

Question 38

urbanization

Answer 38

the process by which an increasing proportion of a population lives in cities rather than in rural areas.

Question 39

validity

Answer 39

the extent to which a study or research instrument accurately measures what it is supposed to measure.

Question 40

variable

Answer 40

any concept with measurable traits or characteristics that can change or vary from one person, time, situation, or society to another.