Chapter 1 Flashcards
Introduction to Sociology
Social Location
Sex, age, class, ethnicity, “race”, religion, and sexual orientation
what do sociologists do?
- they notice social patterns
discuss social issues
they conduct research that enables us to discuss social issues, such as the legalization of marijuana - they allow us to challenge perceptions such as stereotypes
what is sociology?
sociology is a social science that examines social variables such as social location and social patterns
Max Weber:
German sociologist
explored how a set of values embodied in early Protestantism lead to the development of modern capitalism
when did sociology become a thing in North America?
19th/early 20th century
when was the first sociology department founded in Canada?
in 1922 by Carl Addington
John Porter
- 1921-1979
- examined the relationship between social class and ethnicity
- coined the the term vertical mosaic
vertical mosaic
describes hierarchical stratification of racial, ethnic, and religious groups due to systemic discrimination
Annie Marion Maclean
1870-1934
- first Canadian women to get a PhD in sociology
Aileen Ross
1902-1995
- first woman hired as a sociologist at a Canadian university
- completed the first study of homeless women in Canada
Helen C. Abell
1917-2005
- founder of rural sociology in Canada
when did sociology become a significant area of study?
1960s and 1970s
the 5 basic sociological theories (5)
- structural functionalism
- conflict theory
- symbolic interaction
feminist theory
postmodern theory
different kinds of sociology
- Sociology by approach (includes the 5 basic sociological theories)
- Macrosociology (focuses on the big picture of society and it institutions)
- Microsociology (focuses on the plans, motivations, and actions, of individuals and small groups
key representatives of structural functionalism
Emile Durkheim, Robert Merton
Emile Durkheim
1858-1917
- one of the founders of sociology
- coined the term social fact
social fact
patterned ways of acting, thinking, and feeling that exist outside an individual but exerts social control
the 3 characteristics of social fact
- developed prior to + separate from the us as individuals
- can be seen as a characteristic of a particular group
- involves a constraining or coercing force that pushes individuals to act a certain way
Anomie
Durkheim’s term for a societal state of breakdown or confusion or an individuals lack of connection or contact with society
Robert K. Merton
1910-2003
- he was major contributor to functionalist thinking, he identified 3 types of functions
Merton’s 3 manifest and latent functions
- Manifest Functions: Intended and readily recognized (e.g. religion fulfills spiritual needs)
- Latent Functions: Unintended and unrecognised (e.g. religion creates a support network)
- Latent Dysfunctions: Unintended and produce socially negative consequences (e.g. religion justifies judging others)
Conflict Theory (AKA Critical Theory)
- based on the idea that conflict exists in large societies due to class division and is based on the 4 C’s:
1. Conflict
2. Class
3. Contestation
4. Change
George Herbert Mead
1863-1931
- examined socialization, the development of the self, and social roles in the context of human interaction
Herbert Blumer
1900-1987
- coined the term Symbolic interaction
- individuals and groups create and maintain social systems through interaction
Erving Goffman
1922-1982
- Canadian sociologist who coined the term total institution
total institution
prisons, boarding schools, concentration camps. all which seek to regulate, control, and manipulate its residents
Feminist Theory
- rooted in conflict theory
- feminist theories address issues of systematic discrimination against women
Mary Wollstonecraft
1759-1797
arguably one of western Europe first feminist analysts
Harriet Martineau
(1802-1876)
one of the first sociologists to systematically examine women’s roles in society
Dorothy Smith
-developed standpoint theory (that knowledge is always developed from a particular standpoint or lived experience
Feminism “waves”
- 1st wave: Campaign for civil and political rights (rights to vote-1918)
- 2nd wave: focus on public and private rights (equality in home and workplace-1960s)
- 3rd wave: Inclusion of LGBTI and racialized individuals (1980s)
- 4th wave: empowerment of women and gender equality (2012)
post modern Theory
seeks to include a diversity of voices that are drowned out by dominant groups
Discourses
distinct ways of speaking about some element of reality
Totalitarian
describes a set of beliefs or ideas that dominates all others
totalitarian discourse
refers to any universal claim about how knowledge or understanding is achieved
Sociology as a discipline can be separated into 4 categories:
- professional sociology
- critical sociology
- policy sociology
- public sociology
Professional Sociology
research designed to generate highly specific information, often with the aim of applying it to a particular problem or intellectual question
Critical Sociology
considered to be the “conscience of professional sociology
Policy Sociology
generates sociological data to be used in the development of social policies, laws, rules or plans (3 main areas: education, health + social welfare)
Public Sociology
the role of public sociologists is to make sociology accessible to the public through the use of jargon-free language
Sociological imagination:
- Coined by C. Wright Mills (1916-1962)
- the capacity to shift from one perspective to another, and be able to see the relationship between the 2
