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Chapter 1 Sociology: Theory and Method Flashcards

1
Q

sociology

A

the study of human groups and societies, giving particular emphasis to analysis of the industrialized world

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2
Q

personal troubles

A

difficulties that are located in individual biographies and their immediate milieu, a seemingly private experience

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3
Q

public issues

A

difficulties of problems that are linked to the institutional and historical possibilities of social structure

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4
Q

sociological imagination

A

the application of imaginative thought to the asking and answering of sociological questions;

someone using the sociological imagination “thinks himself away” from the familiar routines of daily life

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5
Q

structuration

A

the two-way process by which we shape our social world through our individual actions and by which we are reshaped by society

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6
Q

globalization

A

the economic, political, and social interconnectedness of individuals throughout the world

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7
Q

Auguste Comte:
What did he contribute?

What did he believe?

A

He invented the word sociology.

He believed sociology could produce a knowledge of society based on scientific evidence

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8
Q

Herbert Spencer:

What did he believe?

A

He held that development is a natural outcome of individual achievement;

He argued that society can change and improve the quality of life for all people only when everyone changes his or her behavior to maximize individual potential

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9
Q

Emile Durkheim:
What did he believe?

What did he think the key task of the sociologist was?

A

He thought that to become a science, sociology must study social facts. He believed that the continuation of a society depended on cooperation.

The key task of the sociologist was to search for correlations among social facts to reveal laws of social structure.

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10
Q

social facts

A

the aspects of social life that shape our actions as individuals

–Emile Durkeim

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11
Q

organic solidarity

A

the social cohesion that results from the various parts of a society functioning as an integrated whole

–Emile Durkeim

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12
Q

social constraint

A

the conditioning influence on our behavior by the groups and societies of which we are members

–Emile Durkheim

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13
Q

anomie

A

refers to a situation in which social norms lose their hold over individual behavior

–Emile Durkheim

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14
Q

Karl Marx:

What did he believe?

A

It is not the ideas or values human beings hold that are the main sources of social change (Durkheim believed it was), but rather social change is prompted primarily by economic influences

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15
Q

materialist conception of history

A

the view to which material, or economic, factors have a prime role in determining historical change

–Karl Marx

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16
Q

capitalism

A

an economic system based on the private ownership of wealth, which is invested and reinvested to produce profit

–Karl Marx

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17
Q

Max Weber:

What was his view?

A

He believed that economic factors are important, but ideas and values have just as much effect on social change. Cultural ideas and values help shape society and affect our individual actions

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18
Q

Harriet Martineau:

Why is she significant to sociology?

A

She argued that when one studies a society, one must focus on all its aspects, including the lives of women (as well as married life, children, domestic and religious life, race relations), and that sociologists shouldn’t just observe but should act in ways that benefit society

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19
Q

W.E.B. Du Bois:
What did he contribute to sociology?

What did he believe?

A

double consciousness: measuring one’s identity through the lens of another

He claimed that one’s sense of self and one’s identity are greatly influenced by historical experiences and social circumstances

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20
Q

What are 4 (6) theoretical approaches?

A

Symbolic Interactionism,
Functionalism,
Conflict Theories (Marxism & Feminism ad Feminist Theory),
Postmodern Theory

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21
Q

Symbolic Interactionism

A

A theoretical approach that emphasizes the role of symbols and language as core elements of all human interaction

–George Herbert Mead

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22
Q

symbol

A

one item used to stand for or represent another (flag symbolizes a nation)

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23
Q

Functionalism

A

A theoretical perspective based on the notion that social events can best be explained in terms of the functions they perform, that is, the contributions they make to the continuity of a society

(–Comte and Spencer)

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24
Q

manifest functions

A

the functions of a particular social activity that are known to and intended by the individuals involved in that activity

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25
latent functions
functional consequences that are not intended or recognized by the members of a social system in which they occur
26
Conflict Theories
A sociological perspective that emphasizes the role of political and economic power and oppression as contributing to the existing social order
27
Marxism
A body of thought deriving its main elements from Karl Marx's ideas (intended to generate a program of radical political change; places emphasis on conflict, class divisions, power, and ideology)
28
power
the ability of individuals or the members of a group to achieve aims or further the interests they hold
29
ideology
shared ideas or beliefs that serve to justify the interests of dominant groups
30
feminism
advocacy of the rights of women to be equal with men in all spheres of life
31
Feminist Theory
A sociological perspective that emphasizes the centrality of gender in analyzing the social world and particularly the experiences of women
32
Postmodernism
The belief that society is no longer governed by history of progress. Postmodern society is highly pluralistic and diverse, with no "grand narrative" guiding its development.
33
microsociology
the study of human behavior in contexts of face-to-face interaction
34
macrosociology
the study of large-scale groups, organizations, or social systems
35
science
the disciplined marshaling of empirical data, combined with theoretical approaches and theories that illuminate or explain those data
36
empirical investigation
factual inquiry carried out in any area of sociological study
37
factual questions
questions that raise issues concerning matters of fact (rather than theoretical or moral issues)
38
comparative questions
questions concerned with drawing comparisons among different human societies
39
developmental questions
questions that sociologists pose when looking at the origins and path of development of social institutions
40
theoretical questions
questions posed by sociologists when seeking to explain a particular range of observed events (allows us to generalize about the nature of social life)
41
What are 4 types of questions sociologists ask?
Factual Questions, Comparative Questions, Developmental Questions, Theoretical Questions
42
What are the 7 steps of the research process?
1. Define the research problem (select a topic for research) 2. Review the evidence (familiarize yourself with existing research on the topic) 3. Make the problem precise (formulate a hypothesis) 4. Work out a research design (choose one or more research methods) 5. Carry out the research (collect data and record information) 6. Interpret the results (work out the implications of the data collected) 7. Report the findings (define the significance)
43
hypothesis
an idea or a guess about a given state of affairs, put forward as a basis for empirical testing
44
data
factual information used as a basis for reasoning, discussion, or calculation (social science data often refer to individuals' responses to survey questions)
45
What are the 4 methods used in sociological resarch?
Ethnography, Surveys, Experiments, Comparative and Historical Research
46
qualitative methods
approaches to sociological research that often rely on personal and/or collective interviews, accounts, or observations of a person or situation
47
quantitative methods
approaches to sociological research that draw on objective and statistical data and often focus on documenting trends, comparing subgroups, or exploring correlations
48
ethnography
the firsthand study of people using observation, in-depth interviewing, or both ("fieldwork")
49
participant observation
a method of research widely used in sociology and anthropology in which the researcher takes part in the activities of the group or community being studied
50
survey
a method of sociological research in which questionnaires are administered to the population being studied
51
pilot study
a trial run in survey research
52
sampling
studying a proportion of individuals or cases from a larger population as representative of that population as a whole
53
sample
a small proportion of a larger population
54
representative sample
a sample from a larger population that is statistically typical of that population
55
random sampling
sampling method in which a sample is chosen so that every member of the population has the same probability of being included
56
experiment
a research method in which variables can be analyzed in a controlled and systematic way, either in an artificial situation constructed by the researcher or in naturally occurring settings
57
comparative research
research that compares one set of findings on one society with the same types of findings on other societies
58
oral history
interviews with people about events they witnessed earlier in their lives
59
triangulation
the use of multiple research methods as a way of producing more reliable empirical data than are available from any single method
60
~measures of central tendency
the ways of calculating averages
61
~correlation coefficient
a measure of the degree of correlation between variables
62
~mean mode median
the average, based on dividing a total by the number of individual cases the number that appears most often in a data set the number that falls halfway in a range of numbers
63
~standard deviation
a way of calculating the spread of a group of figures
64
informed consent
the process whereby the investigator informs potential participants about the risks and benefits involved in the study
65
debriefing
following a study, informing participants about the true purpose of the study and revealing any deception that happened during the study

Sociology (5 decks)

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