chapters 1 - 3 terms Flashcards
panethnic labels
“broad terms applied to diverse subgroups that are assumed to have something in common—have historically been used by people outside those groups for the sake of convenience”
assimilation
“the process by which members of minority groups alter their ways to conform to those of the dominant culture”
“One of the fundamental goals of U.S. society has always been the ultimate absorption of groups into mainstream society.”
multiculturalism
“emphasizes the importance of maintaining those diverse cultural elements that make us different from one another.”
stereotypes
widely held, but fixed and oversimplified images or ideas of types of people or things
Constructionism
“argues that what we know to be real and essential is always a product of the culture and historical period in which we live.”
— categorical distinctions may have some biophysical components, but they are human creations and don’t exist independently of our ideas about them and responses to them
Essentialism
“focuses on what are believed to be universal, inherent, and unambiguous “essences” that clearly distinguish one group from another.”
— “From an essentialist perspective, people’s definitions and labels can change, but an individual’s essence is permanent”
— “people’s definitions and labels can change, but an individual’s essence is permanent.”
The Social Construction of Race and Ethnicity
process by which humans come together and give meaning to people, objects, and events
Gender
designates the psychological, social, cultural aspects of masculinity and femininity
Doing Gender
– gender is ingrained social construct that actively surfaces in everyday human interaction
– children acquire knowledge abt gender through socialization and learn gender rules
– to accomplish gender one must “do gender” continuously through everyday interaction
The Sexual Dichotomy
“sexual dichotomy—the natural division of sex into two binary categories: male and female.
— These categories are considered to be biologically determined, permanent (you are what you’re born with), universal (males are males and females are females whether one lives in Seattle, Seoul, or São Paulo; in the 15th century or the 21st century), exhaustive (everyone can be placed into one of the two categories), and mutually exclusive”
Intersexuality and Anatomical Ambiguity
“individuals in whom anatomical sexual differentiation is either incomplete or unclear,”
Sexual Orientations
“sexual orientation—which indicates the sex for whom one feels erotic and romantic desire. ”
– “saying that sexual orientation is socially constructed does not necessarily mean that it is simply a learned behavior with no inherent genetic, hormonal, or physiological correlates.”
Heteronormativity
“heteronormative—that is, a culture where heterosexuality is assumed to be the normal, taken-for-granted mode of sexual expression.”
“The Closet”
– “people whose sexuality places them outside the heteronormative lines of acceptability would choose to keep this component of their identity hidden”
– “remaining in the closet has been a life-shaping strategy of concealing one’s sexual identity to avoid interpersonal rejection, social discrimination, or in extreme cases, violence. Historically, the closet has been a rational ”
Identity
“the definitional categories we used to specify, both to ourselves and to others, who we are inheritance of,”
Race
“a category of individuals who are believed to share common inborn biological traits, such as skin color; color and texture of hair; and shape of eyes, nose, or head”
Ethnicity
“the nonbiological traits such as shared ancestry culture, history, language, patterns of behavior, and beliefs, that provide members of a group with a sense of common identity”
Racial formation
the sociohistorical process by which races and the concepts of races are created, modified, or destroyed
Racialization
“the extension of racial meaning to a previously racially classified relationship”
– Attaching a race identifier to things that don’t inherently require it
Gender socialization
process by which people learn the cultural, norms, attitudes, and behaviors appropriate to their gender through sanctions
Social class
group of people who share similar economic position in society based on their wealth and income
Heterosexism
anti-homosexual prejudice
Moral boundaries
Moral boundaries between the classes consist of assessments of such qualities as honesty, integrity, work ethic, and consideration for others.
Cultural boundaries
“cultural boundaries identified on the basis of education, taste, and manners. In other words, class resides as much in how people talk, the way they dress, and the books, movies, and music they prefer as it does in how much money they make.”
Social mobility
“the movement of people or groups from one class level to another.”
Conspicuous consumption
the acquisition of particular goods or services that serve the express purpose of displaying one’s wealth
Invidious consumption
the acquisition of goods and services for the specific purpose of provoking other people’s envy of one’s presumably superior socio-economic status
Keeping up with the Joneses
the comparison to one’s neighbor as a benchmark for social class or the accumulation of material goods.
Agency
the ability to make any number of choices in any given situation
heteronormative
culture where hertrosexuality os assumed to be the normal, taken for granted mode of sexual expression
outed
forced to publicly acknowledge their homosexuality, serves as a means of social control, keeping homosexuals silent and invisible
Structural-Functionalism
“a theoretical perspective that posits that social institutions are structured to maintain stability and order in society”
Conflict Theories
“a theoretical perspective that views the structure of society as a source of inequality, which always benefits some groups at the expense of other groups”
Two-ness
Concept of at the point individuals recognize that in order to progress the need to connect themselves to others (marriage and kids)
Stereotype
“overgeneralized belief that a certain trait, behavior, or attitude characterizes all members of some identifiable group,”
Status inconsistency
occurs when an indiv. societal positions are varied and these variation influence theri overall social status
Slum tourism/poorism
Wealthy people visit poor neighborhoods to view impoverished conditions and lifestyle
– like the poor are an amusement park - fascination and dehumanization, even with good intent the subtext is ill
Social identity
membership in various social groups
Sociological Perspective
“a way of examining everyday social life that emphasizes the interplay between societal forces and personal characteristics in influencing people“s thoughts, actions, feelings, judgments, and interactions”
American Dream
someone can gain financial success through hard work
Horatio Alger idea
idea that anyone can become rich through hard work
Cultural Capital (and types)
“status characteristics that can determine a person“s social opportunities”
— Embodied - knowledge gained by socialization ( EX knowledgeable abt expensive cars)
— Objectified - things/property (EX own expensive cars)
— Institutionalized - formalized recognition (EX wants to an esteemed institution of cars, and gained credentials)
stratification
“ranking of entire groups of people that perpetuates unequal rewards and life chances”
ascribed status
“a social identity or position that we obtain at birth or develop into involuntarily as we get older”
achieved status
“a social identity or position that we take on voluntarily or earn through our own efforts or accomplishments”
socioeconomic status
“prestige, honor, respect, and power associated with different social class positions in society”
false consciousness
ppp in lower strats. accept their position/disadvantages bc they have come to believe that wealth/success are solely products of individual effort
power
the ability to influence others and to pursue and achieve ones own goals
prestige
the amount of honor and respect ppl receive from others
cultural appropriation
a dangerous and dehumanizing form of exploitation in which the customs, looks, and practices of one ethnoracial culture are adopted by members of another
Language
system of symbols with standard meaning
Symbols
“something used to represent or stand for something else. It can be a physical object, a characteristic or property of objects, a gesture , or a word.”
language of risk
“ because of continuing fears about condemnation or discrimination, closeted gays and lesbians often develop ways of speaking that camouflage their identities”
Style shifting
sociolinguistics referring to alternation between styles of speech included in a linguistic repertoire of an individual speaker.
– change the way you talk in different settings, in informal setting speak informally, in formal setting speak formally
code switching
occurs when a speaker alternates between two or more languages, or language varieties/dialects, in the context of a single conversation
Hypercorrection
when individuals of a lower or mid social class wish to achieve the next higher level of status, they attempt to talk like members of the next higher class, but take it too far
–> ex saying “it is I” is grammatically incorrect
–> being to proper in dress, lang, behavior
Covert prestige
when a individual speaks “lower” value dialect, which recognized as one, but has distinct value in other parts of the social world
Ethnomethodology
– study of common sense meanings of terminology
– a method of sociological analysis that examines how individuals use everyday conversation and gestures to construct a common-sense view of the world
Semantic derogation
the attachment of less valuable characteristics on female or feminine forms and versions of words
Controlling images
portrayal of stereotypes can be considered controlling images in media, social media, video games
linguistic reclamation
“the process by which a maligned group (women, LGBTQ individuals, people of color, the disabled) take a pejorative label that has historically been used to denigrate them and change it into a marker of pride”
