Chapter 1 & 4.2- OpenStax Intro to Soc 3e

Question 1

antipositivism

Answer 1

the view that social researchers should strive for subjectivity as they worked to represent social processes, cultural norms, and societal values

Question 2

conflict theory

Answer 2

a theory that looks at society as a competition for limited resources

Question 3

constructivism

Answer 3

an extension of symbolic interaction theory which proposes that reality is what humans cognitively construct it to be

Question 4

culture

Answer 4

a group’s shared practices, values, and beliefs

Question 5

dramaturgical analysis

Answer 5

a technique sociologists use in which they view society through the metaphor of theatrical performance

Question 6

dynamic equilibrium

Answer 6

a stable state in which all parts of a healthy society work together properly

Question 7

dysfunctions

Answer 7

social patterns that have undesirable consequences for the operation of society

Question 8

figuration

Answer 8

the process of simultaneously analyzing the behavior of an individual and the society that shapes that behavior

Question 9

function

Answer 9

the part a recurrent activity plays in the social life as a whole and the contribution it makes to structural continuity

Question 10

functionalism

Answer 10

a theoretical approach that sees society as a structure with interrelated parts designed to meet the biological and social needs of individuals that make up that society

Question 11

generalized others

Answer 11

the organized and generalized attitude of a social group

Question 12

grand theories

Answer 12

an attempt to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental questions such as why societies form and why they change

Question 13

hypothesis

Answer 13

a testable proposition

Question 14

latent functions

Answer 14

the unrecognized or unintended consequences of a social process

Question 15

macro-level

Answer 15

a wide-scale view of the role of social structures within a society

Question 16

manifest functions

Answer 16

sought consequences of a social process

Question 17

micro-level theories

Answer 17

the study of specific relationships between individuals or small groups

Question 18

paradigms

Answer 18

philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them

Question 19

positivism

Answer 19

the scientific study of social patterns

Question 20

qualitative sociology

Answer 20

in-depth interviews, focus groups, and/or analysis of content sources as the source of its data

Question 21

quantitative sociology

Answer 21

statistical methods such as surveys with large numbers of participants

Question 22

reification

Answer 22

an error of treating an abstract concept as though it has a real, material existence

Question 23

significant others

Answer 23

specific individuals that impact a person’s life

Question 24

social facts

Answer 24

the laws, morals, values, religious beliefs, customs, fashions, rituals, and all of the cultural rules that govern social life

Question 25

social institutions

Answer 25

patterns of beliefs and behaviors focused on meeting social needs

Question 26

social solidarity

Answer 26

the social ties that bind a group of people together such as kinship, shared location, and religion

Question 27

society

Answer 27

a group of people who live in a defined geographical area who interact with one another and who share a common culture

Question 28

sociological imagination

Answer 28

the ability to understand how your own past relates to that of other people, as well as to history in general and societal structures in particular

Question 29

sociology

Answer 29

the systematic study of society and social interaction

Question 30

symbolic interactionism

Answer 30

a theoretical perspective through which scholars examine the relationship of individuals within their society by studying their communication (language and symbols)

Question 31

theory

Answer 31

a proposed explanation about social interactions or society

Question 32

verstehen

Answer 32

a German word that means to understand in a deep way

Question 33

collective conscience

Answer 33

the communal beliefs, morals, and attitudes of a society

Question 34

social integration

Answer 34

how strongly a person is connected to his or her social group

Question 35

mechanical solidarity

Answer 35

a type of social order maintained by the collective consciousness of a culture

Question 36

organic solidarity

Answer 36

a type of social order based around an acceptance of economic and social differences

Question 37

anomie

Answer 37

a situation in which society no longer has the support of a firm collective consciousness

Question 38

bourgeoisie

Answer 38

the owners of the means of production in a society

Question 39

proletariat

Answer 39

the laborers in a society

Question 40

capitalism

Answer 40

a way of organizing an economy so that the things that are used to make and transport products (such as land, oil, factories, ships, etc.) are owned by individual people and companies rather than by the government

Question 41

alienation

Answer 41

an individual’s isolation from his society, his work, and his sense of self

Question 42

false consciousness

Answer 42

a person’s beliefs and ideology that are in conflict with her best interests

Question 43

class consciousness

Answer 43

the awareness of one’s rank in society

Question 44

rationalization

Answer 44

a belief that modern society should be built around logic and efficiency rather than morality or tradition

Question 45

iron cage

Answer 45

a situation in which an individual is trapped by social institutions