Key words Flashcards
Sociology
Sociology is a social science, it focuses on human behaviour, how we behave and act in social interactions. It also looks at much more complex issues such as culture, family etc.
Culture
Culture is a term that is used to group people by factors such as religion, beliefs, values, traditions etc.
Norms
A norm is a behaviour, act or attitude that is considered normal within society
(ie. Greeting someone when you meet them, forming a queue when waiting at the supermarket etc.)
There are 4 types/categories of social norms - Folkways
- mores
- taboos
- laws
Values
Values are something that people use a principle for how they live, there are some common ones (such as honesty, loyalty etc.) however they can vary from person to person
Primary socialisation
Primary socialisation is the stage in a person’s life (when they are very young), where they start to socialise with their family and friends. Through these social interactions, they start to learn, and begin building their personality
Second socialisation
Secondary socialisation is a process that takes place after primary socialisation, it is where the person is exposed to institutions such as school, the media, and their wider community.
Through these social interactions, they learn universalistic norms and values, as well as learning how to act in/react to both day-to-day and challenging situations
Ethnicity
Ethnicity is a concept that is both similar and very different to race. It is similar as it groups people together, however is it quite different as race is defined by biological features, whereas Ethnicity is most commonly based on where you are from (country of origin).
Ethnicity can be derivative of other factors as well, namely language and religion
Operationalisation
Operationalisation is a process that links concepts to variables.
This allows researches to be able to obtain some form of data and measure ideas that can not be measured directly.
Ethics
Ethics are standards of what is right and what is not.
Sociologists are often faced with ethical issues when deciding which research method to choose (being ethical and choosing and overt research method, which can risk the validity of the research or choosing a covert research method - being unethical and deceiving the participants of their study in attempt to obtain unaffected results)
Cultural hybridity
Cultural hybridity is a process of one culture adapting and blending into another to become more fitting with social and cultural norms
Reliability
The reliability of a study refers to the consistency and repeatability of its results
in simpler terms,
to which extent would you obtain the same results if you repeated the test
Validity
The validity of a study is a measure of how accurately the study tests and reflects what it is measuring – whether or not you are actually measuring what the study is trying to measure
Objectivity
Objectivity refers to the concept of not allowing your personal values to interfere and affect your findings
Triangulation
Triangulation is the idea of using more than one research method (combining one or more research methods) when conducting a study.
In some cases, triangulation refers to the use of more than one researcher on a study, this reduces the risk of contaminated results due to bias or other factors.
Pilot study
A pilot study is a small scale ‘trial run’ that is carried out before the ‘main research’.
This helps identify and rule out problems with the study (ie. design issues)
