Fundamentals of Sociology Flashcards
Sociology
The Study of Society
Social Construction
An idea/practice that a group of people agree exists; people often forget it exists, it just is so it gains power from its existence being taken for granted; often times man made
Social Order
An awareness of social norms/values that give us a distinct sense of self; we only realize social order exists when it is broken (ex: a seating chart that gets moved around)
Social Change
A change/entity that is always dynamic and changing due to human actions
Social Facts
Aspects of social life that shape our actions as individuals
Social Solidarity
- mechanical solidarity: everyone feeling/doing the same thing ; small collective consciousness
- organic solidarity: the social cohesion that results from the various parts of a society functioning as an integrated whole
Division of Labor
Specialization of work tasks by means of which different occupations are combined within a production system
Social Constraint
the conditioning influence in our behavior of the groups and societies of which we are members
Anomie
A situation which social norms lose their hold over individual behavior
Ecological Fallacy
Treating group data as if it is individual data
Materialist conception of history
The economy, and not values, culture, or ideas, drives social change
Base
All material aspects of society
Superstructure
Culture, ideology, norms, and social institutions (essentially every other aspect of society)
Capitalism
An economic system based on private wealth, which is invested and reinvested to produce profit
Social Classes
Groupings of individuals who played similar roles in the economic system of a society
Class consciousness
A shared identity based on one’s position in the means of production
False consciousness
Workers identifying themselves with the interests of capitalists
Impartiality
Based on achievements and family ties (in the context of the Mafia)
Three-fold approach
Wealth, power, and prestige
Protestant Ethic
A Calvinist approach, living frugally
Sprit of Capitalism
Investing in the surplus to make money
Bureaucracy
An organization marked by a clear hierarchy of authority and the existence of written rules of procedure and staffed by full time, salaried officials
Double Consciousness
Look through your eyes and eyes of society which leads to a better self identify
The Color Line
Racial segregation after slavery
Working consensus
Everybody gives up some sort of ideal/expectation when they enter and interaction/deal
Interaction
Anything that occurs throughout one occasion when people are in one space
Performance
Activity of a given participant on a given occasion
Symbols
Signs/things we put meaning towards
Interactionism
How our everyday lives are completely structured by interactions with others (involving more than one persons act)
Symbolic Interactionalism
Study of exchange of information through symbols that takes place in social intersection
Civil Inattention
The process when people quickly acknowledge other people but never acknowledge too deeply to avoid intrusiveness
Response Cries
Seemingly involuntary exclamations individuals make when they are taken by surprise, make a mistake, or want to communicate excitement
Unfocused Interaction
Interaction occurring among people in a setting but not face-to-face
Focused Interaction
Interaction when in a direct communication or engaged in the same activity
Time-space
When and where events occur
Regionalization
The division of social life into different regional settings or zones
Self fulfilling prophecy
The process by which someone is defined by a particular way and then comes to fulfill the expectation of that definition
Qualitative Interviews
Used to grasp the full picture of an event by asking real people about there expectations
The Feminist Critique
The importance of acknowledging your relationship and mutual respect with interviewee
Constructivist Approach
Interviewers should acknowledge that their conclusions do not completely capture reality
Social Reproduction
The transfer of knowledge cultural perspective, and social position from generation to the next
Theories
Interrelated concepts used to explain/predict how society and its parts are related
Conflict Theory
Claims that society is in a state of perpetual conflict
Power
Ability of people/groups to achieve aims or further interests they hold
Functionalism
A theoretical perspective based on the idea that social events can be explained in terms of the functions they preform
Social Exchange (Rational Choice)
The theory that an individuals behavior is purposive (maximize rewards while minimizing cost)
Macrosociology
Study of large scale groups, organizations, and social systems
Microsociology
Study of human behavior and interaction (face to face)
Surveys
More structured research method where specific, carefully constructed questions are asked to specific, carefully selected individuals
Ethnography
A method frequently used to study people in their own settings in a deep, thorough fashion
Experiments
A research method by which variables can be analyzed in a controlled and systematic way, either in an artificial situation constructed by the researcher or in a naturally occurring setting
Sampling
Studying a proportion of individuals or cases from a larger population
Population
All individuals, objects, or groups
Haphazard
Selecting anyone who is convenient
Quota
Selecting anyone in a predetermined group
Purposive
Selecting anyone in a hard to find target population
Snowball
Selecting people connected to one another
Simple
Selecting people on a truly random procedure
Systematic
Selecting every kth person (quasi random)
Stratified
Selecting random people in predetermined groups
Cluster
Take multistage random samples in each of several levels
Quantitative Research
Analysis of numerical data
Qualitative Research
A scientific method that does not require statistical methods for collecting or reporting data
Informed Consent
When recruiting subjects to a study, investigators must tell potential subjects what their participation will involve and must ensure that subjects have given their voluntary consent to participate
Debriefing
After a study concludes, the experimenters may explain exactly what happened and why
