CLEP - Sociology 1-2 Flashcards
Scientific perspective
Approach to sociology that stresses acquiring objective empirical knowledge (the actual knowledge derived from experience or observation that can be measured or counted)
Humanistic
The approach to sociology that stresses self-realization, the full development of a cultivated personality, and the improvement of the human condition.
Sociological imagination
Term coined by C, Wright Mills to describe a means of knowledge that expresses both an understanding that personal troubles can & often do reflect broader social issues & problems & also faith in the capacity of human beings to alter the course of human history; expresses the humanistic aspect of the sociological perspective
Theological stage
1st stage in a pattern of development in which scientists look toward the supernatural realm of ideas for an explanation of what they observe
Metaphysical stage
2nd stage in a pattern of development in which scientists begin to look to the real world for an explanation of what they have observed
Positive stage
The definitive stage of all knowledge in which scientists search for general ideas or laws
Deductive theory
Proceeds from general ideas, knowledge, or understanding of the social world from which specific hypotheses are logically deduced & tested
Inductive theory
Proceeds from concrete observations from which general conclusions are inferred through a process of reasoning
Interpretative theory
Studies the process whereby human beings attach meaning to their lives; includes the perspective of symbolic interaction, dramaturgy, & ethnomethodology
Conflict theory
View of the social world that questions how factors such as race, sex, social class, & age are associated with an unequal distribution of socially valued goods & rewards
Structural functionalism
View of society as a social system of interrelated parts & analogous to a living organism where each part contributes to the overall stability of the whole; society is seen as a complex system whose components work with one another
Conflict paradigm
View of society as being characterized by conflict & inequality
Research methods
Refers both to a strategy or plan for carrying out research & the means of carrying out the strategy
Quantitative methods
Research method that makes use of statistical & other mathematical techniques of quantification or measurement in an effort to describe & interpret observations
Qualitative methods
Research method that relies on personal observation & description of social life in order to explain behavior
Verstehen
Understanding as a means of characterizing & interpreting or explaining, done through applying reason to the external & inner context of specific social situations; developed by Max Weber
Survey method
Method of observation in which subjects are asked about their opinions, beliefs, or behavior; info is collected directly from the respondents by means of an interview or indirectly by means of a self-administered written form of a questionnaire
Descriptive survey
Captures info about a situation, condition, event, attitude, or opinion at a specific time
Explanatory survey
Captures info in order to test theories & casual or correlational relationships between variables
Independent variable
A variable that influences another variable
Dependent variable
Variable that is influenced by another variable
Correlational relationship
Exists when a change in one variable coincides with, but does not cause, a change in another
Causal relationship
Exists when a change in one variable causes or forces a change in the other
Representative sample
A sample of respondents that accurately reflects the population from which it is drawn
Random sample
A sample where every member of the population has the same chance of being chosen for study
Systematic sampling
A type of sample in which the nth unit in a list is selected for inclusion in the sample
Stratified sampling
A type of sampling that uses the differences that already exist in a population as the basis for selecting a sample; knowing the percentage of the population that falls into a particular category, the researcher then randomly selects a number of persons to be studied from each category in the same proportion as exists in the population
Stratified sampling
A type of sampling that uses the differences that already exist in a population as the basis for selecting a sample; knowing the percentage of the population that falls into a particular category, the researcher then randomly selects a number of persons to be studied from each category in the same proportion as exists in the population
Experimental group
A group of subjects to be studied
Control group
A similar population to the experimental group upon which the action has not been performed
Unobtrusive observation
Observation from a distance, without being involved in the group or activity being studied
Participant observation
Observation by a researcher who is (or appears to be) a member of the group or a participant in the activity he is studying
Secondary analysis
The analysis of existing sources of info
Content analysis
The quantitative or qualitative techniques employed to describe the contents of the materials
Sociology
The science or discipline that studies societies, social groups, & the relationships between people
Auguste Comte
1838; concluded that every science follows the same regular pattern of development; coined the term Sociology–society as distinct from the mere sum of individual actions, & its methods, prudent observation & impartial measurement based on the scientific method of comparison
Stages of sociology development
1st stage - theological stage
2nd stage - metaphysical stage
3rd stage - positive stage
Harriet Martineau
1802-1876; observed English social patterns at same time Comte was laying a foundation for sociology
Karl Marx
1818-1883; theoretical giant of communist thought
Herbert Spencer
1820-1903; idea that society follows a natural evolutionary progression toward something better
Emile Durkheim
1858-1917; statistical study of suicide
Max Weber
1864-1920; series of studies in which he sought to explain the origins of capitalism
Lester Ward (1841-1913) & William Graham Sumner (1840 - 1910)
Influenced the concentration on narrower & more specific social problems
Grand theory
Advocated by functionalist Talcott Parsons, involves the building of a theory of society based on aspects of the real world & the organization of these concepts to form a conception of society as a stable system of interrelated parts
