Ch. 1 Flashcards
What is sociology?
Sociology is the systematic study of human groups and their interactions.
How does the sociological perspective differ from everyday understanding?
The sociological perspective dissects the dynamic relationships between individuals and the larger social networks, recognizing patterns and influences that go beyond personal experience.
What does Peter Berger mean by “seeing the general in the particular”?
It refers to the ability to recognize larger social patterns in seemingly unique individual events and choices.
Define C. Wright Mills’ concept of sociological imagination.
The sociological imagination is the ability to understand the relationship between individual lives and larger societal structures, distinguishing between personal troubles and public issues.
What are private troubles versus public issues?
Private troubles are individual problems that can be solved by the individual, while public issues are societal problems that require understanding of larger social structures.
What are the three stages of thinking according to Auguste Comte?
Theological, metaphysical, and positive.
What is positivism in sociology?
A theoretical approach that considers understanding to be based on science, with an objective, knowable reality.
How does the structural-functional approach view society?
It sees society as a complex system where parts work together for stability and solidarity.
Describe the social-conflict approach.
It views society as an area of inequality that generates conflict and change, highlighting how various factors (race, class, gender) create social disparities.
What is the focus of the symbolic-interaction approach?
It emphasizes how society is constructed through everyday interactions and shared symbols among individuals.
What distinguishes quantitative sociology from qualitative sociology?
Quantitative sociology focuses on measurable behaviors (e.g., crime rates), while qualitative sociology examines non-measurable subjective experiences (e.g., living in poverty).
How does the structural-functional approach explain the role of sports in society?
It highlights how sports contribute to the functioning of society by promoting social cohesion and stability.
In what way does the social-conflict approach analyze sports?
: It examines how sports reflect social standings and inequalities, such as gender and racial disparities in access and representation.
