Chapter 1 - Intro to Soc Flashcards
Define Sociology -
The study of groups and group interactions in society - the systematic study of society, social variables, social institutions, social interactions (has many definitions)
Give examples of social variables
race, gender, ethnicity, religion
Give examples of social institutions
religion, education, the family
define society
group of ppl living in defined geographical location who interact with on another and share common culture
define culture
A groups shared practices and beliefs
define macrosociology
trends among and between large groups or societies
things change slowly
eg. elderly people, men, women, lgtbq+
define microsociology
trends among and between small groups
see things change quickly
define normative behavior
the expected behavior of a person
if you go against them you are deviant
eg. how to act in an elevator
define the sociological imagination
Relationship between persons behav and experiences and the winder culture that shaped the person’s choices and perceptions
_____ described sociological imagination as the capacity to shift from the perspective of personal experience to what has caused it (the grand societal scale)
Mills
give an example of believed choice
Obesity isn’t a personal preference: choosing to eat while others are you to avoid feeling not normal can eventually lead to obesity
homelessness is a choice by lazy people instead of the idea that society could be at fault as well
define agency
people’s capacity to make choices which have an impact on other people in society
explain agency vs structure
Are ppl free agents? Or directed by social structure?
Agency - ppls capacity to make choices which have an impact on other ppl + society
Social structure - framework of culture and social patterns in which social interactions take place. ie. structure that limits the choices or opportunities
define norms
Formal and informal rules of contact for membership in a group
Regulate human social interactions
Vary according to how widely accepted, how society enforces, how much conformity they require
define social structure
Social structures: the recurrent pattern or arrangement that limits society
Can be material (having a house)
Can be cultural (social norms)
Includes stratification: by race, gender, etc.
Those born in lower classes have less opportunities
explain what the social sciences study
Studies “laws” that govern human behaviour, harder to identify than nat sciences cause they change over time.
Eg. sociology and anthro used to be one discipline
sociology is a more recent academic discipline in response to _______ _________, _________, and population ______ in Europe in the _______.
A more recent academic discipline in response to the industrial revolution, urbanisation, population growth in Europe in the 1800’s
the emergence of wage labour; ppl working long hours to be able to afford food and cost of living, ppl moved into cities where they had horrible working conditions
who saw this and said that population will grow faster than food which will cause war, starvation and poverty
Thomas Malthus
who is the founder of sociology. what else did he contribute
August comte
Positivism: applying the scientific method to the social world
Believe we can improve the conditions of society
who is Harriet Matineau? what did she do?
Was the first female sociologist
Translated Comte’s work from French to English
Wrote about female rights, politics and religion
what did Confictus study?
Studied role modelling as a more effective than punishment/law enforcement in leading groups
who was the first person to systematically study soc
Ibn Khaldun
what did Thomas malthus propose
spoke on population increase; proposed that it would be kept in check by famine and disease
who talked about the protestant work ethic and the spirit of capitalism
Max Weber
what is the protestant work ethic and the spirit of capitalism
Protestant work ethic - hard work + good use of time + rejecting materialism demonstrates proof of being God’s lucky few
Ie. the protestant work ethic feeds into the capitalist spirit
No miracles: protestants didn’t believe in miracles and thought that everything could happen through knowledge
other than the protestant work ethic and the spirit of caitalism, what else did the founder of these things propose
Anti-positivism: rejection of the use of the scientific method to study the social world
Was known for his critic of objectivity - thought it was impossible to be totally objective as we bring our own values and judgements into or research
Used the term Verstehen
Known as the “interpretive method” - We cannot just use statistics and data, rather we need to pay attention to the subjective meaning of human behavior (their feelings, experiences, etc)
what did Karl Marx propose
We can improve the world by understanding social laws and social processes
Witnessed inequalities happening under industrialization and capitalism
“We have to overthrow capitalism because it oppresses people” Ie. The means of production are hurting society
Critical Sociology - Using knowledge to reduce inequality
Emilie Durkheim coined what
Social fact: patterned ways of acting, thinking and feeling that exist outside someone but exert social control over everyone
Ex: being a brother or a mother makes you act a certain way
Durkheim observed patterns in suicide facts
Men commit suicide more than women, it was higher for soldiers than citizens, there were patterns
Ex: masculinity and the expectations of man explain why a man has a higher chance to commit suicide than women
Anomie - “normelessness” when people dont have
what does Bourgeoisie and Proletariat mean
Bourgeoisie: owners of the means of production (in the early 1800’s rev these were the factory owners)
Proletariat: selling their labor to the bourgeoisie
W.E.B Du Boise was known as? and proposed?
First African American to receive a PhD from Harvard
Double consciousness: the conflict that black people experience from being subordinate in society
Black people need to be conscious of how they view themselves, but also how white people view them in a racist society
Ex: black people in the US view this double consciousness when encountering the police; How do they look in the police’s eyes?
George Herbert Mead came up with
Symbolic Interactionism: symbolic meanings of our social interactions
Carl Addington Dawson came up with
Social Gospel Movement: a movement in the 19th century to apply human welfare principals of Christianity to the social, medical and psychological ills created by industrialization and capitalism
what did erving goffman do
Impression management: people behave in a way to avoid embarrassment (we do things that show us doing a role)
Wrote asylums
when as the industrial revolution
the 1800’s
what is structural functionalism
Society is a structure with interrelated parts that are meant to meet biological and social needs of individuals
- A macrosociological approach which examines large scale patterns in society
- Social institutions - a relatively permanent societal structure that governs the behaviour of groups and promote social order
(the sexist/racist one)
what is a social fact and who coined it
a patterned way of responding to social stimuli, which is out of their control
Ie. aspects of your social location lead you to act in sociologically predictable ways (coined by Emile Durkheim)
eg. beer pressure
what is a social institution
a relatively permanent societal structure that governs behavior of groups and promote social order (eg. family, dad, mom; all have roles)
A societal functionalist would argue that women staying in the home is beneficial as it has the best child outcome
what are Merton’s Manifest and Latent Functions (3)
Manifest Functions - intended and easily recognized structural functions
Latent Function - unintended and unrecognized structural functions
Latent dysfunctions - unintended and produce societal negative consequences
who coint the latent and minest functions
robert merton
who is the father of conflic theory
Mark Marx
Viewed conflict theory about class
Believe that the conflict between the capitalist class (the bourgois) and the class of workers (the proletariat) would caused a socialist revolution that would produce a classless or egalitarian society
what is conflict theory (the 4 C’s)
society is in a state of perpetual conflict because of competition for limited resources.
Based on da 4 C’s:
Conflict - exists in all lage societies (race, sex, class etc)
Class - divisions of class cause conflict
Contestation - the functions of soc can be contested based on asking who this function serves best
Change - assumes that society will or should change
what is an egalitarian society
classless society
what did conflict theory expand into, acting as an umbrella term
expanded into critical sociology
umberella for feminist sociology, queer theroy etc…
what is praxis
engaging in research to help people recognize their position in society
what is the main criticism for conflict theory
too much stability
what is symbolic interactionism
looks at the meaning or symbolism of daily lives
A microsociological theory that focuses on the relationships between individuals in society
who pioneered symbolic interactionism and what did they say about it
George Herbert Mead
Examined how individuals self is constructed as we interact with others and how the self allows us to take one social roles, reflected on ourselves and internalise social expectations
who pioneered symbolic interactionism and what did they say about it
George Herbert Mead
Examined how individuals self is constructed as we interact with others and how the self allows us to take one social roles, reflected on ourselves and internalize social expectations
who came up with the idea of a “symbolic interaction” and what did they say about it
Herbert blumer
Social systems (friendship patterns, economy, education) are simply by products of our personal interactions
________ came up with dramaturgical analysis (front/back stage) and wrote asylums
Erving Goffman
Total institutions - institutions such as the military hospitals and asylums that regulate all aspects of an individual’s life (sleep, diet, etc)
All social interactions are performance - your try to put on the best performance
Front stage (in front of ppl) and backstage (you do things to prepare you for front stage such as putting on makeup)
what does the feminist theory study
tackles centuries of patriarchy; a social organization in which men hold all of the political, social and cultural social power
o was the first woman to examine women;s roles in society
Harriet Martineau
Dorthy smith coined _______ theory which is what
Standpoint theory - knowledge is developed from one’s particular lived position or standpoint so objectivity is impossible
what are the waves of feminism
1st- the suffrage movement; civil and political rights for women such as the right to vote
2nd- the right to education, work, equal pay, domestic violence, and reproductive rights
3rd- minorities left out of the second wave, POC, LGBTQ, women in poverty
4th- current feminism, bread spectrum, social media
what do Marxist feminists believe
Believe the economy is the route to feminism
Only way to solve the problem would ne to overthrow the capitalist system
what do liberal feminists believe
Instead over overthrowing the capitalist system, to change things work within the system itself; implement laws that will help improve women’s conditions
Progressive approach; take down structural barriers
They believe women should be able to participate in sex work freely
what do radical feminists believe
Women are oppressed by the patriarchy
Change the institutions within the patriarchy
Sex work is never fair or okay - women should not have to resort to selling their bodies to make money
the postmodernist perspective is a different lens of looking at society. Explain
-there is no real truth; knowledge is always made or invented not discovered, all ideas and facts are believed not known
Referred sometimes to “knowledges”
how does standpoint theory relate to the postmodernist perspective
Standpoint theory - Knowledge is always developed from a particular position, or “standpoint”
Eg. sociology was developed from a male standpoint that overlooked women
what is totalitarian discourse
any discourse that makes a universal claim about how all knowledge and understanding can be achieved; set of beliefs that dominate all others
explain what is meant by voices in the postmodernist perpestive
Sees many voices
Some voices are silenced by an overarching dominated voice; usually white upper class male, their view is heard over all others
Eg. American dream is true only for those with privilege
when did queen theory emerge and what is it
Emerged in 1990’s
Study of sexual phenomenon
Challenges the idea of man and woman, gay and straight
They argue that we perform our gender, it is a presentation that we put on
what is social location
An individual’s social location is defined as the combination of factors including gender, race, social class, age, ability, religion, sexual orientation, and geographic location.
the city of _____ was central to much of the early history of sociology in North America
Chicago
which chicago based sociologist focused on human ecology
Robert E. park
Park viewed the city as the main habitat for the human species, and he would explore it and observe.
Which Chicago-based sociologist created a 21-point system to measure the likelihood that an inmate of parole would reoffend?
Earnest Burgess
Which Chicago-based sociologist founded North America’s first settlement house?
Jane addams
turned a run-down mansion in one of Chicago’s poorest communities into a settlement house. Hull House was an outreach and research centre that offered social and educational services to people of different ethnic backgrounds and social classes.
Which movement applied Christian principles of human welfare to the treatment of social, medical, and psychological ills?
the social gospel movement
The interdisciplinary approach that involves sociology, political science, economics, law, anthropology, and history is
Political economy
looks primarily at the relationship between politics and the economics of the productions, distribution, and consumption of goods, and is often Marxist in nature.
To describe the systemic discrimination he observed in Canadian society, John Porter coined the term _____ _______
vertical mosaic
describes the systemic discrimination like the different tiles of a mosaic; stacked and not arranged evenly
a _______ ___ encourages the “rapid assimilation of recent immigrants to their new society”
melting pot
Which kind of sociology targets sociology departments, scholarly journals, professional associations, and conferences?
professional sociology - designed to generate very specific information that can be applied to a particular problem or intellectual question.
Which kind of sociology is called the “conscience” of another sociological branch?
critical sociology
Which kind of sociology emphasizes the ability to avoid “undue professionalism”?
public sociology
Public sociology addresses people who are not academics or politicians (i.e. the public) and therefore needs to communicate in an accessible way.
