Chapter 1 and 2 Flashcards
How has the college admission process changed over time?
they want the people who will excel after college instead of the people who will excel academically in college
Why do athletes have an advantage when it comes to getting into college?
they are more able to pursue higher paying careers
Why did colleges add interviews to the admissions process?
they didn’t want too many “nerds”, they wanted strong, powerful, attractive leaders. Big ears and shortness was unattractive
Sociological imagination
using imagination and thought when asking sociological questions
C. Wright Mills theory
each person lives in a very small orbit and our worldview is limited by the social situations on a daily basis. The average person doesn’t really understand their personal problems as part of any bigger picture or series of events, and we need to overcome our limited perspective. The solution is sociological imagination
Social structure
Underlying regularities or patterns in how people behave in their relationships with one another
Important questions for sociologists to ask
- How are the things we take to be naturally actually socially constructed?
- How is social order possible?
- Does the individual matter?
- How the times in which we are living different from the times that came before?
Social construction
An idea or practice that a group of people agree exists. It is maintained over time by people takings it existence for granted
Explanations for existence of social order
- It is rational for someone to follow social order or it is in their self interest
- existence of norms
- beliefs and values
Socialization
the social process through which children develop social norms and values and achieve a distinct sense of self. These processes continue throughout life but are most significant during infancy and childhood
What do Alexis de Tocqueville, Max Weber, Karl Marx and Emile Durkheim have in common?
They are sociologists who ask how people live in the light of social transformation
Auguste Comte theory
invented the word sociology to describe the discipline he wished to establish, believed that the scientific method could be applied to human behavior and society, he felt that social physics could be used to predict and control human behavior, social order and society are not naturla or made by a divine power, but by individuals. He came up with plans to reshape soceity, argued that sociologists should act and observe
Herbert Spencer theory
Influenced by and critical of Comte, development is the natural outcome of individual achievement, wrote “The study of Sociology” and argued that society can change and improve the life of all people only when everyone changes their behavior to maximize their individual potential. People with high status earned it and the state should not try to improve the life chances of individuals because that goes against natural order. Functionalist, survival of the fittest mentality.
Emile Durkheim theory
influenced by Comte, previous ideas were too vague, sociologists must develop methodological principles to guide their research in order to have a scientific basis, sociology must study social facts, society is a set of independent parts that could be studies separately, compared society to a biological organism-all the parts work together to compose of the organism. For a society to function over time, it’s parts must function as an integrated whole(cooperation). Societies exert social constraint. As division of labor expands, people become more dependent due to increased need of other services. Rapid changes cause difficulties for societies and anomie.
Social facts
according to Emile Durkheim, these are the aspects of social life that shape our actions as individuals, Durkheim believed these can be studied scientifically
Organic solidarity
(Durkheim) social cohesion that results from various parts of a society functioning as an integrated whole
Social constraint
the conditioning influence on our behavior of groups and societies in which we are members of, according to Durkheim it is a property of social facts.
Division of labor
specialized work tasks by means of which different occupations are combined within a production system. Present in some form in every society, complexity increased with industrialization
Anomie
(Durkheim) a situation in which social norms lose their hold over individual behavior
Karl Marx theory
tried to explain change resulting from the industrial revolution, his ideas contrast Comte and Durkheim, connected economical problems to social institutions, materialist conception of history, social change is prompted by economic influences, focused on development of capitalism, believed that capitalism would eventually be replaced by a society with no division between rich and poor with communal ownership as a result of the disputes of capitalism
materialist conception of history
view developed by Marx in which material or economic factors have a prime role in determining historical change
Max Weber theory
Influenced by Marx but disagreed on some stuff, didn’t think class conflict was as prevelent as Marx did, thought ideas and values were as important of economics, compared western society to other nations, Christian beliefs resulted in the rise of capitalism, differentiated between sociology and science
bureaucracy
a type of organization marked by a clear hierarchy of authority and the existence of written rules of procedure stagged by full-time, salaried officials. It is efficient but hinders democratic participation because experts make decisions without consulting others
Harriet Martineau
neglected theorist, first women sociologist, introduced sociology to England, advocate for women’s rights and abolition of slavery, argued that you must study all aspects of a society, analysis of a society must include all of its members, first to address marriage/religious/domestic/children living, argued that sociologist should act and observe
W. E. B. Dubois
neglected theorist, “double consciousness”-talking about indentity through the experiences of African Americans, argued that American society only lets African Americans see themselves through the lens of others, one self and one’s identity are greatly influenced by history and social circumstances, studied race realtions, first to connect problems experienced by African Americans to their economic problems, founding member of NAACP
rationalization
concept by Weber referring to the process by which modes of precise calculation and organization, involving abstract rule and procedures, come to dominate the social world
symbolic interactionism
theoretical approach in Sociology developed by George Herbert Mead that emphasizes the role of symbols and language as core elements of all human interaction, criticized for focusing on things that are too small in scope
Functionalism
pioneered by Comte and supported by Durkheim, it is a theoretical perspective based on the notion that social events can best be explained in terms of the functions they perform or the contributions they make to the continuity of a society
moral consensus
occurs when people share the same values
manifest functions
termed by Merton, these are the functions of a type of social activity that are known to and intended by the individuals involved in the activity
latent functions
termed by Merton, these are functional consequences that are not intended or recognized by members of a social system in which they occur
conflict theory
A sociological perspective that emphasizes the role of political and economic power and oppression as contributing to the existing social order
Marxism
conflict theory that views sociology as a combination of sociological analysis and political reform by generating a program of radical political change. Focuses of power, conflict, divisions and ideaologies
Feminist theory
conflict theory that emphasizes the centrality of gender in analyzing the social world and particularly the uniqueness of the experience of women. Explain gender inequality in society and work to overcome it
Rational choice theory
Theory developed by Weber in which he thought that all behavior could be divided into 4 categories:
- Behavior oriented toward higher values
- behavior oriented toward habit
- behavior oriented toward effect
- behavior oriented toward self interest, often called instrumental or rational action
rational choice approach
Theory that an individual’s behavior is motivated most by self-interest.
postmodernism
the belief that society is no longer governed by history or progress, highly pluralistic and diverse, no larger narrative guiding its developement
how does social imagination/sociology help us?
- It helps us see the social world from many perspectives
- We are better able to assess the results of public policy initiatives
- Sociology can provide us with self-enlightenment and increased self understanding
- This opens doors for new careers and improves the usefulness of other careers
quantitative methods
Statistical, objective approach to sociology focused on documenting trends, comparing subgroups, or exploring correlations. Sociology has come to rely on this more and more
qualitative methods
approach to sociological research that relies on personal/collective interviews, accounts or observations of a person/situation
Characteristics of sociology that make it scientific
- the goal of sociological research it to infer
- sociologists must ensure that other researchers can retrace the paths to their findings
- conclusions of all sociological research, like other research, is uncertain
reflexivity
acknowledging that the investigator is apart of the world they are studied and they cannot be separated
Sociological research process
- Define the research problem/puzzle
- Review related literature
- Make the problem precise-make a hypothesis that can be proved right or wrong
- Design an experiment
- Carry out research
- Interpret results
- Report findings, implications and conclusions
Ethnography definition
qualitative method, the firsthand study of people using observations, in-depth interviewing or both, includes participant observation and normal observation, researcher must justify their presence, AKA fieldwork
ethnography strengths
richer and more in-depth info than other methods, can provide a broader understanding of social processes
ethnography limitations
can only study relatively small groups/communities, findings might only apply to the group studied, not easy to generalize with a single fieldwork study
Survey strengths
data collection of large number of individuals can be made efficient, allows precise comparisons of answers among respondents
Survey weaknesses
material gathered may be superficial, if the questionnaire is highly standardized then the important differences among respondents can be missed, responses may not be accurate
Experiment strengths
investigator can control the influence of specific variables, usually easy to repeat
experiment weaknesses
many aspects of social life cannot be brought in the lab, responses may be affected by experimental situation
weakness of open ended survey questions
they can be more difficult to compare than standardized questions
pilot study
a trial run in survey research
comparative research
enables sociologies to document whether behavior differs across a time, place and/or someone’s membership in a social group, mostly quantitative
empirical investigation
factual inquiries carried out in any area of sociological study
