Key Terms Flashcards
Ethical
Treating the participants in a morally acceptable way.
Reliable
Results are consistent.
Hawthorne Effect / Researcher Effect
The participants “act up” because they know they are being studied.
Valid
Measures what it’s supposed to.
Representative
Participants are an accurate sample of the whole population.
Absolute poverty
A situation on which someone lacks the money to pay for the food, clothing and housing necessary to maintain a healthy way of life.
Agency of social change
Influencing social attitudes and government policy.
Agent of social control
Individual or group that is responsible for ensuring members of society conform to socially acceptable behaviour.
Alienated
Lacking connection with the social world.
Alienation
Expressed the idea of separation. A sense of powerlessness is part or alienation. At wok an employee may have no power to decide how a job will be done or how quickly to wok. A citizen may reel powerless to influence the government.
Anomie
A situation where large numbers of people fail to follow generally accepted values, instead adopting various deviant forms of behaviour, such as theft.
Anonymity
Making sure that no names are mentioned in your finisher report or in the data collection process.
Anti-school sub-culture
These are ford because pupils feel that they are not valued by the school or because they do not identify with that value system and the goals or the school.
Arranged marriage
A marriage in which the parents have a say in the choice of a bride or bridegroom for their son or daughter.
ASBO (Anti-Social Behaviour Order)
This is an order made by the courts against a person who has been shown to have engaged in anti social behaviour, for example, drinking on the streets.
Ascribed status
A position or social standing given to an individual on the basis of inherited characteristics.
Authority
The power of those entitled to use it.
Bias
Not taking a neutral view but favouring one side of an argument or debate.
Bigamy
The illegal practice in a monogamous society of having more than one spouse.
Blog
Web-based comment by both amateurs and professional writers.
Breadwinner
The person in the household who is the main income earner.
British Crime Survey (BCS)
A victim survey conducted annually by a team of researchers at the Home Office. The BCS measures the amount of crime in England and Wales by asking people about crimes they have experienced in the last year.
Canalisation
Being channelled in a particular direction.
Capitalism
Industry and services are owned by private individuals who ago their profits from the labour power of their workers.
Capitalist society
An economic system where the production of goods is organised for profit and sold to a free market.
Caste
A rigid system of stratification in which an individual cannot move from the caste into which he or she was born.
CCTV (Closed-circuit television)
A television system often used for surveillance.
Censorship
Preventing certain information from becoming public knowledge.
Census
A survey of all people and households in the country, held every 10 years (UK).
Cereal packet family
The traditional image of the nuclear family presented through the media involving clearly defined male and female roles.
Chivalry thesis
The belief that the police and courts, because they are male dominated, are easier on women.
Chronic
A continuous problem that extends over a period of time.
Citizen
A full, legal member of a nation.
Class alignment
Suggests a connection between voters’ class positions and their voting preferences.
Class de-alignment
Suggests a weakening of the connection between class position and voting preference.
Cohabiting
Partners living together without being married.
Commune
A small community whose members share in the ownership of property and the division or labour.
Community service
A service that a person performs for the benefit of his or her local community in place of a prison sentence.
Community
A set of individuals between whom there is a strong sense of identity. The individuals may or may not live in the same locality.
Confidentiality
Keeping personal details between you and the respondent.
Conflict
A general state of disagreement between opposing groups.
Conformity
Doing what is expected and behaving in a way that is in agreement with norms.
Conjugal bond
The attachment that exists between marriage partners.
Consensus (non-political)
A general state of agreement between individuals or groups.
Consensus (political)
A situation in which those involved in government, of whatever party, share similar ideas about what governments should do.
Conservatives
They see radical change as dangerous and suggest that governments should only reform institutions only when a clear need to do so has been established.
Constituency
The geographical area which elects a single MP.
Constraint
Not being able to do what you want; being restricted or limited.
Covert observation
The researcher in “undercover and the group is not aware of the fact they are being observed.
Crime
Behaviour that breaks the law.
Crisis of masculinity
The idea that men’s and the group is not aware of the fact they are being observed.
Cultural capital
The desired skills, for example language which middle classes pass on to their children.
Culture of simulation
A virtual world that becomes more important to the individual than their day-to-day lived experience.
Culture
The whole way of life of a group of people passed from one generation to the next.
Cumulative effect
Long periods of exposure to particular media messages.
Cycle of deprivation
A social process which may lead the children of poor parents to suffer poverty when adults. The factors identified as driving the process will depend o. The perspective of sociologist outlining the cycle.
Dark figure of crime
A large amount of criminal activity never appears in the crime statistics.
Decree absolute
This is the legal ending if the marriage. Once this has been granted, your marriage has been dissolved and you are legally single.
Deferential
An attitude based on the belief that people high on the social scale are superior and should be looked up to.
Democracy
The political system that enables the people to elect periodically those who will govern them.
Dependent child
A person living in the household who is under 16 years of age or aged between 16 and 18 but in full-time education.
De-schooling
The idea that schools should be abolished because the compulsory nature of schools hinders the learning process.
Deviance
Behaviour that does not conform to the dominant norms of a specific society.
Deviancy amplification
The process whereby the mass media can exaggerate the significance of a particular social issue.
Dictatorship
A political system in which power is concentrated in the hands of an individual or small group who have not been freely and fairly elected.
Diploma
A qualification for 14-19-year-olds introduced as a pilot in 2009 with up to 10 subjects to choose from.
Direct action
Political action sometimes illegal, taken outside the normal political process.
Divorce
The legal ending of a marriage.
Divorce petition
The formal request to start divorce proceedings.
Domestic division of labour
How household tasks are divided between family members.
Education Action Zones (EAZs)
Are built around groups of schools that are determined to raise educational standards in the most challenging areas in the UK.
Educational Maintenance Allowance (EMA)
Money paid directly to students who stay on in education after the age of 16. The amount receiver depends on parents’ income.
Egalitarian
The idea that all are equal.
Eleven plus
A type of intelligence test taken at the age of 11 to determine whether a child should attend a grammar school, a technical school or a secondary modern.
Elite
A small dominant group (that may own and control the mass media).
Embourgeoisement
The proposition that members of the working class develop middle-class attitudes and patterns of behaviour as they become more affluent.
Empty shell marriage
When a couple are still married and live in the same house but lead separate lives.
Environmental poverty
Deprivation experienced in neighbourhoods that are ugly, dirty, unsafe and which lack adequate services and amenities.
Ethical considerations
Making sure that your research is not offending or harming anyone - that you are doing the right thing.
Ethnicity
The classification of people into groups that share the same culture, history and identity.
Ethnic minority
An identifiable section of society with a distinct culture which constitutes a relatively small proportion of the population.
Ethnocentric curriculum
Schools are structured in a particular way including such aspects as school assemblies, history and language which reflect the culture of the majority.
Ethnography
Looking at the whole way of life of a group, usually by using a variety of methods of data collection.
Excellence in Cities (EiC)
Excellence in Cities programme, launched in March 1999,’are a unique contribution to the raising of attainment of disadvantaged pupils in our most deprived cities, towns, and rural areas.
Extended family
A family composed of the nuclear family and other relatives.
Family
A group of two or more persons associated by birth, cohabitation, marriage, or adoption.
Family diversity
The idea that there are many different types of family structure.
Female infanticide
The intentional killing of baby girls due to the preference for males babies.
Feminist
Someone who believe that women should have the same status and opportunities as men.
Financial dependency
Relying upon someone else for money.
“First past the post”
The voting system in which the candidate who gains more votes than any of his or her rivals in a constituency is chosen to be the MP.
Focus group
Opinions of a small group are recorded and taken. Into account when decisions are made.
Formal curriculum
What students learn in their timetabled lessons, for example, maths and English.
Formal education
Learning particular subjects, for example, maths, English, in organised institutions (schools).
Freedom of speech
The democratic principle that protects legitimate comment regarding the actions of the government or matters of public interest.
Functionalism
An approach in sociology that seeks to explain the existence of social structures by the role they preform for society as a whole.
Functionalists
Argue that the function of institutions such ad education is to reproduce culture by socialising individuals into the key values and res required for social stability.
Gatekeeper (media)
One who has editorial control over media content.
Gatekeeper (research)
Someone who gives permission for others to be invoked in your research.
GCSE (General Certificate in Secondary Education)
National examinations taken at the age of 16.
Gender
The social and cultural differences between the sexes - between femininity and masculinity.
Gender discrimination
Treating people unfairly because of their gender.
Generalisations
Feeling confident that your finding will reflect the views of everyone else who could have been asked.
Generation
A group of people who live during the same time period.
Geographical proximity
Not being far away.
Glass ceiling
The informal barrier that makes it difficult for women to achieve high-level positions at work.
Global culture
The idea that’s y cultural values (generally Western and other American) are now shared by people across the world.
Globalisation
A process through which people, organisations and states become increasingly interdependent, both economically and culturally.
Grounds for divorce
The legal reasons give. For wanting a divorce.
Hidden curriculum
The ways in which the organisation of teaching, school regulations and routines shape pupil attitude and behaviour, that is, what students learn at school that is not taught in lessons.
Household
All the people live g together in a domestic dwelling.
Hyper reality
An alternative reality based on the individual’s experience of the mass media - particularly television and the internet.
Identity theft
The misappropriation of the identity (such as the name, date of birth, current address or previous address) of another person, without their knowledge or consent. These identity details are the. Used to obtain goods and services in that person’s name.
Image
The identity that individuals wish to present to the world, for example, the media image of a particular politician as young and dynamic.
Income
The money received by an individual in a period of time, for example, wages, interest on savings.
Indictable offences
Serious crimes, generally those for which an accused person may be sent to prison if found guilty.
Industrial disputes
Disagreements between management and workforce, often leading to workers going on strike.
Informal education
Occurs through observing what goes on around us, through experiences of life.
Information overload
The enormous volume of modern electronic communications (sometimes more than an individual can cope with).
Informed consent
Making site that your respondents know what you are doing and agree to participate.
Injustice
When a person is accused of a crime of which they are not guilty.
Institutional racism
Occurs when the everyday practices and procedures of an organisation, for example, the police, leaf to discrimination against ethnic groups either intentionally or unintentionally.
Integrated conjugal roles
Husband and wife perform similar tasks and have a number of common interests and activities.
Interest groups
Groups established to protect a sectional interest.
Intergenerational
Between or across generations.
Internet
A global system of interconnected computers.
Judiciary
The section of the government that had the power to apply the law, that is, the court system including judges.
Junk mail
The postal equivalent of SPAM.
Kibbutz
A collective community in Israel (plural Kibbutzim).
Labelling
Names/labels given to individuals by teachers (and others, for example, police) which the influences the behaviour of those individuals and also influences the way others respond to those individuals.
Ladette
Young women who behaves in a boisterously assertive or crude manner and engages in heavy drinking sessions.
Lads’ magazine
Publication aimed at a you g male readership often containing images of women as sex objects.
Law
A set of written rules regulating what may or may not be do e by members of a society.
League tables
Lists produced by the government indicating the position of each school I comparison to others depending in their exam performance.
Legislature
The section of the government that is responsible for making laws.
Liberal democratic values
The dominant political and social values of western society, for example, freedom of speech and free elections.
Life chances
The chances that sections of society have of achieving the “things” which are valued by their society.
Life expectancy
The age to which a person can be expected to live. Current UK figures are: male: 76.6; female: 81.
Lifestyle
The way in which memes of a group use their resource. Lifestyle will reflect the attitudes and priorities if the group.
Longitudinal studies
Studies that follow the same people over a long period of time.
Mainframes computer
Large, room-sized early computers that stored data using reel-to-reel magnetic tape.
Malestream
A word occasionally used by feminists to mean ‘mainstream,’ thereby drawing attention to the gender bias of much language.
Marketisation of education
Changes to the education system in the late 1980s, so that it became more business-like.
Marriage
A legally recognised union of a man and a woman by religion or civil ceremony.
Marxist
Someone who believes in the ideas of Karl Marx and sees the main divisions in society as being based on social class operating in a capitalist system.
Mass communication
Reaching an audience of thousand or perhaps millions.
Mass culture
The transmission of cultural values through mass media of communication, for example, television.
Matrifocal
A family organised by and focused on the mother.
Means tested
Income and savings assessed to find out if the total is less than a level set by the government.
Media amplification
Blowing things out of proportion by over reporting in the media.
Media imperialism
The idea that Western cultural values are imposed by a dominant media empire (swamping local cultures that lack the resources to match the volume of media output from countries like the US).
Media stereotype
Simple media image based on prejudice.
Member of Parliament (MP)
The person elected to represent a constituency in the House of Commons.
Meritocracy
A social system in which rewards are allocated justly in the basis of merit rather than factors such as class, gender, ethnicity.
Middle class
The section of society composed of people engaged in non-manual and professional work.
Mixed ability
Pupils of all ability levels are taught as one group.
Modernity
Relating to the modern world.
Monarchy
The political system that has a hereditary Head of State. Britain is a constitutional monarchy on which the monarch’s powers are exercised by the Prime Minister.
Monogamy
The practice of being married to only one person at a time.
Moral panic
When media coverage of an issue leads to exaggerated public concern.
Nation state
An independent state whose inhabitants from a single national community.
National Census
A survey conducted on behalf of the government. Data that I’d collected from every household in the country provides detailed information about our way of life.
National Curriculum
Subjects and subject content that must be studied by all children in state schools in an attempt to standardise educational provision.
Neo-conventional families
The new nuclear family headed by a married or cohabiting couple who are both working.
Neo-liberalism
A political approach based on the belief that governments should limit their activity to maintaining ‘law and order.’ In particular, governments should not interfere with market forces in the economy.
New media
Internet, tv…computerised communications technology.
New social movement
An informal, loosely organised coalition of individuals or groups supporting an interest or cause.
New vocationalism
Training aimed to equip the young with skills and education required by a rapidly changing economy.
News value
The importance attached to a particular news item.
Non-I five able offences
Less serious crimes such as parking offences.
Non-participant observation
Researcher watches and records what is happening but is not involved in the group’s activities.
Norm
An informal rule that guides our behaviour in a particular situation.
Norma and expectations
Generally accepted and expected patterns of behaviour in a particular society.
Nuclear family
A family group consisting of the father, mother and their dependant children.
Observation
A researcher watches a group of people and records information, either as a participant or a non-participant and either overt or covert.
Ofcom
The independent regulator and competition. Authority for the UK communications industries.
Official crime statistics
The way crime is officially measured, based on statistics collected by the Home Office.
Official statistics
A set of statistics generated from data gathered by the government or other official organisations. Often used as secondary data in social research.
Ofsted (Office for Standards in Education)
The government agency given the task of monitoring the quality of schools and teachers in the UK.
‘Old’ labour
Sees its main aim as protecting the interests of working people. Its approach to policies is based on working-class values such as solidarity.
Old media
Print media and electronic communications developed during the mid-20th century or earlier.
Open question
Requires a descriptive answer, not just “yes” or “no.”
Opportunistic sample
A technique that involves the researcher giving their questions to anyone who happens to be available. This means it is not a particularly representative type of sampling.
Opposition
The main party that is not in the governement.
Overt observation
The group being observed know why the researcher is there and what they are doing there.
Participant observation
Researcher is actively involved I. The group’s activities as well as making a record if what they see.
Patriarchal
A situation where men dominate society and its institutions.
Peer group pressure
A group of a person’s own age who are important to them and often influence them to behave in a particular way.
Pilot study
A study on a small scale before the main research is done.
Pluralism
Theories about the mass media that see variety and competition as healthy signs of a working democracy.
Police
Agents of social control with the power to enforce the law.
Police caution
An alternative to prosecution. It is intended to act as an officially warning to deter people from getting involved in further crime.
Political party
An organisation established to secure the election of its member or supporters into public office.
Political socialisation
The process by which people learn political skills, beliefs and values.
Polyandry
The accepted practice in Dom societies of a woman having more than one husband.
Polygyny
Accepted practice in some societies of a man having more than one wife.
Poverty
Means being poor (but this can be defined in many different ways).
Poverty trap
The particular difficulties the poor may experience in, for example, finding a job that pays more than is receive from benefits; saving money by buying in bulk or by buying high quality goods; avoiding borrowing which adds interest payments to their spending.
Pressure group
A group, usually concerned with a single issue, that applies pressure to try to bring about change. (Some pressure gourds protect sectional interests; others promote causes. Unlike political parties, pressure groups do not wish to form governments.)
Primary data
Data collected for the fort time by the researcher for a particular piece of research.
Primary schools (5-11 years)
His is the first level of education in the UK. They are generally mixed sex and usually located close to the child’s home. Children tend to be with the same group throughout the day, and the one teacher has responsibility for most of their work.
Prime Minister
The head of the government in Britain. He or she is the lease of the majority party in the House of Commons.
Probation
The suspension of a jail sentence. The person who had committed a crime permitted to Luce in the community and follow certain conditions set by the court under the supervision if a probation officer.
Proletarianisation
The proposition that many non-manual jobs in a modern economy put their workers in situations very similar to that of a manual factory worker.
Propaganda
The selection and control of information usually got political ends.
Prosecution
Conduct of legal proceedings against a defendant for criminal behaviour.
Qualitative data
Information I the firm of text or images, that is rich in description and detail.
Quantitative data
Information that is presented as numbers which can be analysed using statistical methods.
Questionnaire
A set of questions used to gather information.
Quota sample
Controls for factors such as age, gender, ethnicity, social class. The researcher then sets about finding people to for into these slots.
Racial discrimination
Treating people unfairly because of their ethnicity.
Racism
Attitudes to and beliefs about race which usually invoice negative stereotypes of another race and lead to discrimination against people of that race (being prejudiced against people because of their race).
Random sample
A group selected from a sampling gram where everyone has an equal chance of being chosen.
Reconstituted family
A new family formed when two adults remarry or cohabit and live together with children from a previous relationship.
Recorded crime
Crime that is recorded by the police. Not all reported crime is recorded.
Relative deprivation
Felt when people compare their own situation to that of others whom they believe to unfairly better off.
Relative poverty
A situation in which someone cannot afford to possess the kind of things and participate in the kind of activities considered by members of their society to be a normal part of life.
Reliability
Data is reliable if it can be repeated and consistently come up with the same results.
Reported crimes
Crime that is reported to the police. Not all crime is reported.
Representative
Your sample is not biased but the people are typical of those in a larger group.
Reprimand
A formal verbal warning given by a police officer to a you g person who admits they are guilty of a minor first offence.
Respondent
Someone who is providing the data for your research.
Role
Patterns of behaviour expected of people in different situations
Sample
The group of people who have been selected for your study.
Sampling frame
A complete list from which your sample is selected.
Sanction
Agreed reward for positive action or penalty for negative actions.
Secondary data
Data that exists prior to and independent from the researcher’s own research.
Secondary schools (11-16 years)
Most children transfer at the age of 11 to secondary school. Most cater for both sexes. Pupils are taught the National Curriculum subjects, normally by specialist teachers.
Segregated conjugal roles
Husband and wife perform different tasks and have a number of separate interests and activities.
Self-fulfilling prophecy
People hear labels about themselves from people who are more powerful than they are. They come to believe the labels are true and then act as if they are true. Therefore, the labels become true.
Self-report surveys
Surveys of the population which ask them to confess to crime they have committed but for which have not been caught.
Serial monogamy
A pattern of divorce and monogamous remarriage.
Setting
A way of dividing pupils into groups for particular subjects based on their ability in those subjects.
Sexism
Being prejudiced against people because of their gender.
Slavery
A form of stratification in which a section of the society has no rights. Individuals in this section of society are items of property which can be bought and sold.
Snowball sample
A small group of people that are probably not contained with a sampling gram, for example, single mums. Each person is then asked to pass on the researcher’s questions to similar people. The snowball gets bigger as it rolls from one person to another.
Social class
People having the same social status measured by such things as occupation and income.
Social cohesion
‘Sticking together’. It describes the integration of a society into a unified whole.
Social construct
Patterns of behaviour that are based on society’s norms and expectations, for example, masculinity and femininity.
Social control
The process by which people are persuaded to obey the rules and to conform.
Social convention
A generally expected form of social behaviour, for example, politeness and consideration of the needs of others.
Social exclusion
When people are unable, or feel unable, to play a full part in society. This may be owing to lack of material resources, discrimination by others and/or a sense that the rest of society neither want nor respects them.
Socialisation
The lifelong process of learning the skills, customs, attitudes, norms and values of your culture.
Socialists
Wish to create a society based on equality.
Socially constructed
Views of what is criminal or deviant behaviour are influenced by the values and norms of society we live in.
Socially defined behaviour
Thought of as a natural but is actually the product of cultural expectations.
Social mobility
Movement of individuals up or down a social scale.
Social networking site
Virtual community that enables members to establish a user profile and communicate and share images and information.
Social policy
Important decisions made by the government that aim to improve the conditions of people living in their society.
Social science
The systematic study of society and of human relationships with society.
Social stigma
Branding something with negative feelings of shame and disgrace.
Social stratification
The way different groups in society are placed at different levels.
Social survey
A collection of information about members of a population. Can be carried out on the street, at home, in a organisation (school, workplace, etc.), by mail, by telephone, online.
Society
A group of people who have common interests and a distinctive culture.
SPAM
Unwanted and unasked for bulk electronic messages accounting for much of the increased volume of email traffic.
Spin
Managing the message to influence the way in which events are reported.
Spouse
A marriage partner, husband or wife.
Status
The honour or prestige attached to a person’s position in society.
Stereotype
A simple, fixed mental image (usually unfavourable) of a group of people generally based on the blackout of a few individuals from with that group.
Stereotypical
Oversimplified and sometimes exaggerated view.
Stigmatise
To mark a particular social group or individual as different, disapproved of and even dangerous to others.
Strata
Bands or layers showing particular characteristics which are different from those above and below.
Stratified sample
Mirrors the distribution of particular groups in a larger population.
Streaming
A way of dividing pupils according to their supposed ability. A pupil will normally remain in the same stream across all areas of the curriculum.
Sub-culture
A group with a set of values and ways of behaving which are distinctive from the generally accepted cultural values of society.
Subjective class
The class into which an individual places him or herself.
Substitute hearth
The idea that the television replaced the fireplace as the focus of the living room.
Surveillance
Is the monitoring of the behaviour of people and objects within society.
Survey
A research tool, for example, a questionnaire or series of interviews.
Symmetrical family
Family where responsibilities and tasks are equally shared between husband and wife.
Systematic sample
A sampling frame in which the researcher chooses, for example, every 10th or 15th person on a list.
Tabloid
Popular newspapers generally published in a smaller format than the so called ‘quality press’.
Technological change
The changing technology of communication, for example, the printing press and television.
Telesales
The selling of goods and service over the telephone.
Theoretical perspective
Looking at a social issue through the eyes of one particular type of theorist.
Trade union
An organisation established by employees to protect their economic interests.
Transnational companies
Companies, businesses which operate on a global scale, in many countries.
Triangulation
Checking the accuracy of data collected through one method (for example, a questionnaire) by comparing it with data collected by using another method (for example, observation).
Tripartite system
Three types of secondary school for different types of pupil based on an IQ (Intelligence Quotient) test at the age of 11.
UCAS
University and Colleges Admissions Service. The organisation responsible for the allocation and administration of university and college places.
Underclass
The group of people at the very bottom of the social structure who, either by their economic situation or culture cut off from the rest of society.
Unstructured interview
A relatively informal conversation where the respondent talks freely but the researcher keeps the conversation heading in the right direction.
Validity
Data is valid if it gives a true picture of what is being studied.
Values
The beliefs held by a person or a social group that help to build a set of norms.
Victim surveys
Surveys of the public which ask then to report any crimes they have experienced, whether or not they have reported them.
Vocational
Describes a course or qualification designed to provide more of a ‘hands-on’ approach to learning. This encourages the application of knowledge and understanding of a subject in a practical way.
Wealth
The assets owned by an individual, for example, house, savings, a business.
Welfare scrounger
An individual who makes no contribution to society and exploits the benefits system, claiming as much as it is possible to get away with.
Welfare State
The government taking responsibility got the health and financial wellbeing of the population.
White collar
Clerical, routine middle class.
White-collar crime
Criminal acts committed by middle-class people in the course of their work.
Working class
The section of society composed of people engaged in manual work.
World information order
The idea that information is now available almost instantly in a global marketplace.
World view
A general view of the wag that society works.
