culture and identity Flashcards
1
Q
what is a culture?
A
learned/shared behaviours of members of a society
2
Q
what does a culture include?
A
- laws
- religions
- celebrations/festivals
- foods
- dress sense
3
Q
what is a norm?
A
‘unwritten rules’
the rules that govern our behaviours and actions
4
Q
examples of norms?
A
- getting in to a lift and turning around
- giving your seat to the elderly/pregnant
- don’t sit next to the only person on a bus
5
Q
what are values?
A
the attitudes, beliefs, principles, goals and expectations hat a person holds
6
Q
examples of values?
A
- being respectful
- being well mannered
- trying your best
7
Q
what is socialisation?
A
the process of learning a culture
8
Q
what is primary socialisation?
A
socialisation that takes place within the family, learning language, basic skills and norms
9
Q
what is secondary socialisation?
A
socialisation that takes place within the school and wider society, learning specialist skills and knowledge
10
Q
what happens to children who are not exposed to socialisation?
A
feral children, they become under-developed and become outcasts
11
Q
what is a subculture?
A
where within a society or group, there may be variations of a culture
e.g youth
12
Q
examples of positive sanction?
A
- rewarding good behaviour
- smiling
- nodding head
- being in agreement
13
Q
examples of negative sanction?
A
- punishing undesirable behaviour
- disapproving looks
- getting told off
- rejection
14
Q
what is a theory?
A
an idea that tries to explain something
15
Q
what are sociological theories?
A
theories that are based on generalisations about social life rather than one-off statements, they try to explain the patterns we see in the world around us.
16
Q
what should a theory be like?
A
- be logically consistent and not contradict itself
- fit the facts we observe
- be open to testing by other sociologists
17
Q
what is functionalism?
A
a structural-consensus theory
18
Q
what is a structural-consensus theory?
A
‘structural’ social structure (society) that shapes individuals behaviour through socialisation
‘consensus’ a successful society is based on ‘value consensus’ which is where people agree around a set of shared norms and values
19
Q
who created the organic anology?
A
talcott parson
20
Q
what is the organic analogy is?
A
the theory that just like the human body, society is made up of different individual parts that are interdependent on one another to form a whole, each part is needed for society to function properly
21
Q
what parts of society do functionalists class as institutions in the organic anology?
A
- family
- healthcare
- workplace
- education
- religion
- government
22
Q
what are the two most important institutions?
A
- the family (primary socialisation)
- education (secondary socialisation)
23
Q
what are functional prerequisites?
A
basic needs
24
Q
what is a social order?
A
the way institutions in a society work together to maintain the harmony
25
what is social solidarity?
the cohesion between individuals in a society
e.g feeling part of a community
26
what is a consensus?
an agreement
27
what does a macro theory focus on?
- bigger scale
- bigger forces in society e.g institutions
- groups
28
what does a micro theory focus on?
- smaller scale
- free will of humans
- individuals
29
what do functionalists believe about institutions?
they believe institutions perform positive functions (good things for society and individuals)
30
emile durkheim believed society are influenced by social facts, what are they?
- beliefs
- moral codes
- basic norms and values
31
what did emile durkheim believe about society?
society shapes the individual, it is not a person's own consciousness that directs human behaviour but common beliefs in society
32
what did emile durkheim believe about freedom?
too much freedom is bad for the individual
too much freedom = no clear guidance = a sense of uncertainty around an individual's morals and there place in the world
33
what did emile durkheim believed societies needed to do?
- create a sense of solidarity, making individuals believe as if they are part of something
- teach individuals the standards of acceptable behaviours
34
how can a sense of social solidarity be achieved?
- family, ideally a nuclear family
- religion
- schools, workplaces or organisations
they provide 'social glue' where people feel like they belong
35
what was durkheim's concern when it came to religion in social solidarity?
religion is fading in society, modern societies are facing a crisis of anomie
36
what is a crisis of anomie?
lack of the unusual social or ethical standards in an individual or group
37
what did talcott parson believe was the basis for order in society?
institutions promoting value consensus, and the commitment to these common values
38
what are the two most important shared values in industrial societies?
- a belief in the work ethic
- a belief in meritocracy
39
what is meritocracy?
the idea of being rewarded for good acts
e.g the rich working hard for what they have
40
why did talcott parson believe that the 'belief in work ethic' and 'belief in meritocracy' were vital to society?
- work ethic = people value working rather than lazing about
- meritocracy = people who end up in lower paid jobs accept inequality in society because they accept that they at least had a fair chance to do better in life
41
what are the two conflict theorists?
marxists
feminists
42
what do conflict theorists believe about functionalists view on society?
they believe that functionalists have a ‘rose-tinted’ view on society, therefore, they focus too much on the positive functions that institutions perform
43
what do conflict theorists believe about functionalists view on shared values?
they criticise functionalism for assuming that society all have these shared values
44
what do internationalists criticise functionalists for?
for being a deterministic theory,
which is the idea that human behaviour is portrayed as being shaped by the social system, therefore we as humans are seen as ‘puppets’ of social forcrs
45
what is a social class?
a large scale grouping of people who share common economic resources, which strongly influence the type of lifestyle they are able to live
46
what does a persons social class show?
their status in society
47
what defines a persons social class? (4)
- occupation
- wealth
- income
- educational attainment
48
what jobs fit under the middle class?
- doctors
- solicitors
- teachers
49
what jobs fit under the working class?
- shop assistant
- electrician
- bus drivers
50
what is capitalism?
the economic and political system in which a country's trade and industry are controlled by private owners for profit rather than by the state (communism)
51
in a capitalist society, what is the bourgeoisie and the proletariat?
the bourgeoisie, the rich, is the powerful, ruling, middle class, they own the means of production e.g factories, machines, raw materials and land.
the proletariat, the poor or working class, is made up of workers who sell their labour in return for wages and a salary.
52
what is the relationship between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat?
the bourgeoisie exploit the proletariat and creates a surplus value
53
what is a surplus value?
the difference between the poor salary that workers receive, compared to the profit that is made, which is then pocketed by the capitalist class
54
it is believed that the ruling class, have ideological control, what is this?
control over the thoughts and beliefs of society
55
what is the 'infrastructure' ?
the economic system, the way that society produces goods
56
the relationship between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat is based on conflict, why?
the bourgeoisie aim to extract maximum labour at minimum cost, whilst the proletariat want higher wages and more benefits
57
what is alienation?
when workers are not in control of their actions
58
infrastructure produces class polarisation, what is this?
extreme class opposites
59
which class is minority? which class is majority?
minority = capitalist class
majority = working class
60
what is the superstructure?
the superstructure means the institutions
e.g family and education
61
what is the function of the superstructure/institutions?
to reproduce the values and ideas of the ruling class (the ideology)
62
if the ideology is taught to the working class through institutions, what will they start to believe?
the working class may accept their unequal position in society as natural and inevitable, therefore, believing they have no chance of changing their own fate. they may not be aware of the full extent of their exploitation (FALSE CLASS CONSCIOUSNESS)
63
give some criticisms of marxism
- only focuses on class inequalities and ignores other factors
e.g gender and age
- class is now harder to define than just 2 classes, which is arguably outdated nowadays anyway
- deterministic, it assumes everything and everyone is controlled and influenced by capitalism, it ignores that humans have their own free will
- postmodernism, people are free, not under false consciousness
64
is feminism a conflict or consensus theory?
a macro or micro theory?
conflict theory
macro approach
65
what is patriarchy?
a society that is ruled/dominated by males
66
why did feminism begin?
they believed the world we live in, especially the UK, is a very patriarchal society and they wanted to put women in the centre of this theory. they believed inequality between men and women is universal and one of the highest forms of inequality.
67
why is patriarchy the main cause of gender inequality?
women are subordinate to men because they have more power, and as a result more power over women
68
what are the 4 types of feminism?
liberal, radical, Marxist and difference
69
liberal feminists
- men and women are capable of being equal
- they feel no need for a revolution, reformists, and instead they believe we must gradually make changes
- they believe women are in need of basic human rights, civil rights and rights of individuals, that's what they believe needs changing
- socialisation patterns and stereotypes must be changed to get equality
- sexist attitudes and stereotypes are culturally constructed + transmitted through socialisation
- closest to a consensus view
70
how do liberal feminists believe gender inequality is influenced through stereotypical behaviour?
e.g toys
girls = dolls, learning to nurture and care for a baby from a young age
boys = pushed into outdoor sports e.g football and rugby
71
culture + socialisation that influences gender inequality?
- women are taught to raise children
- maternity leave
- traditional roles in the house
- bedroom culture
72
marxist feminists
- capitalism is the principal source of women's oppression
- husbands have to support their wife and kids = more dependent on his job = less likely to demand wage increases for themselves
- men and women should co-operate to work together to defeat capitalist societies and began a communist society in replacement
73
radical feminists
- blames men for the oppression of women
- men 'exploit' women
- men benefit from the subordination from women e.g rape, violence and pornography
- they do refugees for women who are victims
their alternatives :
- separatism = women only households
- political lesbianism
- political celibacy
being in a heterosexual relationship is seen as 'sleeping with the enemy'
74
difference feminists
argue that all other feminists tend to assume that ALL women live in nuclear families and share the same experiences in life. instead, this is not the case as women have different experiences in life due to their class, ethnic background and sexual orientation, so we cannot generalise about women
75
criticisims of feminism
- patriarchy is a vague concept
- ignores other conflicts in society e.g class, age and ethnicity
- LF = too positive, patriarchy will most likely never be eradicated
- RF = too extreme, advocates the abolishment of a family, which is unrealistic and impossible
- MF = fails to explain inequality in non-capitalist societies
- DF = criticise other types of feminists for ignoring the diversity of other women's experiences
76
what do social action theories focus on?
they focus on the interaction between individuals, it is a micro approach
77
explain interactionism
interactions between individuals and groups, rather than on the large-scale groups in society
78
what is the dramaturgical model?
the idea that society is like a play, we are actors with our scripts, with our props on stage. there is front-stage behaviour and back-stage behaviour
79
what theory did G.H Mead present?
symbolic interactionism, the theory that people interact via symbols/ labels
80
how does symbolic interactionism work?
the 3 core ideas:
- the symbol
- the self
- the interaction
e.g if we walk into a classroom, we see our teacher (the symbol), we are a student (the self), and this will then influence our behaviour (the interaction) and determine how we greet them for example
81
how does symbolic interactionism make society stable?
it makes society stable because we learn how to act appropriately in an environment and infront of certain 'symbols'
82
what are the criticisms for symbolic interactionism?
some critics argue that interactionists have gone too far, as human action is not as free, creative and flexible as they suggest.
83
what are the 6 stages of modernity?
1. industrialisation
2. urbanisation
3. social class
4. welfare states
5. scientific or rational thinking
6. meta-narratives
84
what was the scientific thoughts and/or rational thinking during modernism?
scientific or rational thinking became more important than irrational belief systems such as religions - secularisation
85
what are meta-narratives?
political theories e.g. socialism
sociological theories e.g. functionalism, Marxism and feminism (macro theories)
86
what is post modernity characterised by?
an unstable, fragmented, media saturated, global village where we define ourselves by what we consume
87
mind map 'an unstable, fragmented, media saturated, global village where we define ourselves by what we consume'
88
the postmodern world is described as 'globalised' what does this mean?
interconnected
89
what are the 3 main characteristics of postmodernism?
1. technological changes
2. economic changes
3. cultural changes
90
describe technological changes in postmodernism
- satellite communications
- the internet
- global televisions
the risks:
- greenhouse gases, contributing to climate change
- terrorist organisations can communicate and interact with people all over the globe
91
describe economic changes in postmodernism
-global markets dominate economic activity
- transnational companies carrying out production, which drives globalisation forward e.g. coca cola
risks:
- the financial crisis in the USA in 2008 had global repercussions
92
describe cultural changes in postmodernism
- Identity is now shaped by popular culture as a result of a media saturated society that is central to the way we live our lives e.g. the pick and mix culture where people form their identity from a range of structures such as ethnicity, sexuality and gender
- no common set of shared values
- modernist meta-narratives such as science, socialism and feminism have lost their power and influence as conspiracy theories have risen e.g. with covid
- individuals have more freedom and choice on how to live their lives
- education has become diverse with a range of specialist schools and free schools
- there is no longer one family type that is dominate. e.g. same sex couples, divorce, single-parent family.
93
positive evaluations of postmodernism
- postmodernists have raised new and important questions about cultural change, particularly in the areas of the media, culture and identity
- postmodern theories highlight how modernist theories are out of date e.g. Marxists with their idea of 'class' that nowadays is outdated
- it is useful as it explains the differences between the postmodern and modern world as well as the causes and effects of the change
94
criticisms of postmodernism
- PM contradict themselves, they claim that there is no such thing as the truth, yet they have made their own truth claims
- PM exaggerates the amount of social change that has happened
- PM ignore the fact that the nature of people’s consumption still very much depends on their income and thus their social class, meaning that class is still significant in forming identity, those who lack the means may not be able to adopt the identity that they wish to possess.
95
