Chapter 4 - Key Terms Flashcards
Subcultures
is defined as ?
A culture within a culture. The concept of subculture implies some degree of group self-sufficiency where individuals can interact, find employment, recreation, and friends within the group.
Social Structure
is defined as?
The patterned and relatively stable arrangement of roles and statuses found within societies and social institutions. Social structures are inseparable from cultural norms and values that also shape status and social interaction.
Pathology
is defined as?
The manifestation of behaviours that are habitual, maladaptive, and compulsive.
Norms
is defined as?
Culturally established rules prescribing appropriate social behaviour.
Values
is defined as?
Relative, general cultural prescriptions of what is right, moral, and desirable. They provide the broad foundations for specific normative regulation of social interaction.
Strain Theory
is defined as?
A theory that assumes society is like an organism or mechanical system. If all parts of the system work together there is harmony. However, if one part of the organism does not work properly, strain occurs on the other parts of the system as well. The system must find ways to adapt to the strain or it will lead to system transformation.
Sociology
is defined as?
A social science that examines the structure, organization, and culture of societies and their processes of social change and social interaction.
Consensus
is defined as?
A commonly agreed upon position, conclusion, or set of values; this term is normally used in reference to public opinion.
Division of Labour
is defined as ?
The division of roles, tasks, and duties within a household, workplace, or community.
Mechanical Solidarity
is defined as?
Refers to a state of community bonding or interdependency that rests on a similarity of beliefs and values, shared activities, and ties of kinship and co-operation.
Organic Solidarity
is defined as?
Refers to the state of interdependency created by the specialization of roles. Individuals and institutions become dependent on others in a complex division of labour.
Egoism
is defined as?
An ethical theory that treats self-interest as the foundation of morality.
In Durkheim’s theory - the desires of the “pre-social self” that society must shape and limit.
Anomie
is defined as?
An absence, a breakdown, confusion, or a conflict in terms of the norms of society.
In Durkheim’s theory - refers to the lack of social regulation in which the unrestricted appetites of the individual conscience are no longer held in check: we have a state of normlessness in which society fails to impose norms that inhibit such behaviour.
Chicago School
Is defined as?
See ecological model.
Ecological model
Is defined as?
Also referred to as Chicago school, an approach that emphasizes the characteristics of population groups and the mapped locations of such groups relative to one another. It views the social disorganization that characterizes delinquency areas as a major cause of crime and victimization.
Social Disorganization Theory
is defined as?
The theory that crime and other deviant behaviour is most likely to occur where social institutions are not able to direct and control groups of individuals.
Concentric Circles
is defined as
A term coined by Clifford Shaw and Henry McKay to describe the “naturally” occurring distinct areas that developed in the city of Chicago. Each zone had stable but differing rates of crime.
Transition Zones
is defined as?
Zones that are characterized by frequent changes in population composition and high levels of social disorganization. Transition zones are typically located in inner cities.
Social Ecology
is defined as ?
An approach to theorizing that attempts to link the structure and organization of any human community interactions to interaction with its localized environment.
Environmental Criminological Theory
is defined as?
An emerging perspective that focuses on the importance of geographical location and architectural features as they are associated with the prevalence of criminal victimization.
Defensible Space
is defined as ?
A concept that emerged from environmental criminology that suggest public spaces should, and can, be designed to create a sense of ownership in residents and users. This philosophy believes that the type of design can make space easier to defend from potential criminal activity.
Routine Activities Theory
Is defined as?
A theory that claims occurrences of personal victimization are dependent on the “routine” of “daily activities” of people and are the outcome of three elements: motivated offenders, suitable targets, and the absence of suitable guardians.
