CLEP - Sociology 5-6 Flashcards
Society
A relatively permanent grouping of people living in the same geographic area who are economically self- sufficient & politically independent & who share a common culture.
Sociocultural evolution
Tendency for society to become more complex over time
Hunting & gathering societies
Societies whose economies are based on hunting animals & gathering vegetation.
Horticultural & pastoral societies
Societies characterized by the domestication of animals & the use of hand tools to cultivate plants.
Agricultural societies
Societies who use a higher level of technology than horticultural & pastoral societies to support crops & livestock.
Industrial societies
Societies that utilize complex machinery & energy sources (rather than humans & other animals) for production.
Postindustrial societies
Societies in which info is created, processed, & stored.
Social structure
The way in which people’s relations in society are arranged to form a network.
Ascribed status
A position in society and/or in a group that is automatically conferred on a person at birth (such as race or sex), with no effort made or no choice involved on the individual’s part.
Achieved status
A position in society and/or in a group that is assumed largely through one’s own doings or efforts.
Master status
The status with which a person is most identified; the most important status that a person holds, not only because it affects almost every aspect of the person’s life, but also because of its general symbolic value.
Status set
All the statuses that an individual occupies.
Role
What a person does by virtue of occupying a particular status or position.
Role strain
The situation where different & conflicting expectations exist with regard to a particular status.
Role conflict
When a person occupies multiple statuses that contradict one another.
