Chapter 5 Sociology Terms

Question 1

group

Answer 1

people who interact with one another and who believe that what they have in common is significant; also called a social group

Question 2

aggregate

Answer 2

individuals who temporarily share the same physical space but who do not see themselves as belonging together

Question 3

category

Answer 3

people, objects, and events that have similar characteristics and are classified together

Question 4

primary group

Answer 4

a small group characterized by cooperative, intimate, long-term, face-to-face relationships

Question 5

secondary group

Answer 5

a larger, relatively temporary, more anonymous, formal, and impersonal group based on some interest or activity

Question 6

voluntary associations

Answer 6

groups made up of people who voluntarily organize on the basis of some mutual interest; also known as voluntary memberships and voluntary organizations

Question 7

the iron law of oligarchy

Answer 7

Robert Michel’s term for the tendency of formal organizations to be dominated by a small, self-perpetuating elite

Question 8

in-group

Answer 8

a group toward which one feels loyalty

Question 9

out-group

Answer 9

a group toward which one feel antagonism

Question 10

reference group

Answer 10

a group whose standards we refer to as we evaluate ourselves

Question 11

social network

Answer 11

the social ties radiating outward from the self that link people together

Question 12

clique

Answer 12

a cluster of people within a larger group who choose to interact with one another

Question 13

bureaucracy

Answer 13

a formal organization with a hierarchy of authority and a clear division of labor; emphasis on impersonality of positions and written rules, communications, and records

Question 14

mcdonaldization of society

Answer 14

the process by which ordinary aspects of life are rationalized and efficiency comes to rule them, including such things as food preparation

Question 15

goal displacement

Answer 15

an organization replacing old goals with new ones; also known as goal replacement

Question 16

alienation

Answer 16

Marx’s term for workers’ lack of connection to the product of their labor; caused by workers being assigned repetitive tasks on a small part of a product - this leads to a sense of powerlessness and normlessness; others use the term in the general sense of not feeling a part of something

Question 17

self-fulfilling stereotype

Answer 17

ideas of what someone is like that lead to the person’s behaving in ways that match the stereotype

Question 18

“hidden” corporate culture

Answer 18

stereotypes of the traits that make for high-performing and underperforming workers, which end up producing both types of workers

Question 19

diversity training

Answer 19

efforts to minimize conflict among people of different backgrounds, to enhance their understanding of their contrasting backgrounds, and to promote their cooperation in reaching mutual goals; often in a work setting

Question 20

group dynamics

Answer 20

the ways in which individuals affect groups and the way sin which groups influence individuals

Question 21

small group

Answer 21

a group small enough for everyone to interact directly with all the other members

Question 22

dyad

Answer 22

the smallest possible group, consisting of two people

Question 23

triad

Answer 23

a group of three people