Midterm Prep Flashcards
Functionalism
The idea, developed by Durkheim, that all societal constructs (beliefs, customs, institutions) serve a vital function. It addresses society as a whole in terms of constituent elements.
Material culture
The physical elements of a culture that members of a society make and use. With material cultures, there exists manifest and latent function.
Non-material culture
The abstract or intangible that influences behaviours- norms, folkways, taboos, mores, sanctions, etc are the non-material culture.
Collective consciousness
According to Durkheim, the desires and self-interests of human beings, which can only be held in check by forces that originate outside of the individual. Durkheim characterizes this external force as a collective consciousness, a common social bond as expressed by the values, ideologies, and ideals of a particular culture.
Cultural lag
Non material culture changes slower than material culture.
Culture
Culture (first defined by EB Taylor in 1871) refers to knowledge, values, customs, and material objects that are passed from person to person and from one generation to the next in a human group or society.
Symbolic Interactionism
Symbolic Interactionists attempt to examine day-to-day interactions and behaviour within groups. People continue to negotiate their social realities. Values and norms are not independent realities that automatically determine behaviour. Each person has a subjective reality of a given situation.
Society
A society is a large group that occupies the same geographic territory and is subject to the same political authority of the governing body.
Manifest function
The actual function of the object- ie; a tool cuts.
Latent function
The implicated function of the object- ie; a tool establishes craft specialization.
Post-modern perspectives
Assert that a Eurocentric lens conditions our view of all cultures and that the culture of our age produces a social world that is not real, but stimulated.
Feminist perspectives
Have no single unified approach. There are many different feminisms, but all are built on one core belief- that women and men are equal and should be equally valued. There is a focus on patriarchy- a hierarchical system of power in which males possess greater economic and social privilege than females. Gender roles are socially created and this limits our human potential.
Cultural relativism
The ability to view the beliefs and customs of other peoples within the context of their culture rather than one’s own. Conceptions of truth and moral values are not absolute but are relative to the persons or groups holding them.
Versthen
Coined by Weber- to understand.
Socialization
The process of acquiring a certain culture.
Enculturation
The process of being socialized into a specific culture.
Chronological age
The age one is, based on date of birth.
Macrolevel analysis
Sociological approach which emphasizes the analysis of social systems and populations on a large scale, at the level of sociological structure.
Microlevel analysis
Examines the interactions between people within a society and how they react to one another.
Conflict Theory
Assume that groups in society are engaged in one continuous power struggle for the control of scarce resources.
Mechanical solidarity
Social integration of members of a society who have common values and beliefs.
Organic (individualism)
Social cohesion based upon the dependence individuals have on each other in more advanced societies. Arises from division of labour.
The purpose of the family unit, according to functionalism
Families are the source of
procreation and socialization of
children. Learn dominant culture and
subcultures we belong to. Source of emotional & financial
support. They tame ‘excess individuality’.
Wright Mills
There is a need for extrapolation, compilation, rumination, and understanding that humans have of their own society, of their own place in the world, cosmos, and humour, etc (tea example- maintaining good health, a tradition/ritual/social activity/addiction).
Harriet Martineau
Secularist, sociologist examining religion politics, child rearing, slavery, immigration in categories of race, class, and gender. Friend of Charles Darwin.
Karl Marx
Examined conflict, believing that history is a continuous clash between conflicting ideas. Conflict, namely class conflict, was necessary in order to produce social change and a better society. Asserted that capitalism made poverty, controlling and exploiting the masses of struggling workers by paying them less than the value of their labour. This resulted in the alienation of the workers, a feeling of powerlessness that would make them aware and overthrow the capitalists, creating a free and classless society. Hugely influential.
Max Weber
Emphasized full objectivity in sociology, as well as cultural and political factors as key influences on economic development and individual behaviour. Economic systems as one but not the only source of change. Realized that sociology could not always be value-free, so they should employ versthen- “understand”, to gain the ability to see the world as others see it. Famous for studies of bureaucracies and religion. Also stressed power and prestige.
Emile Durkheim
Made several major contributions to sociology- focusing on the division of labour, functionalism, elaborating sociology, etc. According to Durkheim, a social fact (identifiable through the power of external coercion) and are “sui generis”- of its own kind, unique, and must be studied distinct from biological and physiological phenomena. Emile Durkheim focused continually on the nature of the social system and the relation of that system to the personality of the individual. People are the product of a social environment, societies are built on social facts
The purpose of the family, according to conflict theory
Socialization reproduces parents’ class rather than
challenging the conditions that currently exist.
Socialization contributes to a false consciousness – a lack
of awareness and a distorted perception of the reality of
class.
Etic way of viewing something
Seeing things from the perspective of an observer.
Seeing things in an emic way
Seeing things from the perspective of the observed.
Power
Defined as the ability of a person within a social relationship to carry out their own will despite resistance.
Prestige
Defined as a positive or negative social estimation of honour.
Anomie
Lack of the usual social or ethical standards in an individual or group.
Social group
A collection of two or more people who share a sense of belonging, have a feeling of interdependence, and frequently interact with one another. (A group of roommates)
Aggregate
A collection of people who happen to be in the same place at the same time, but have little in common. (One of my swimming classes).
Category
Categories are people or things who have never met each other. (Cat lovers, Catholics, etc)
The purpose of the school, according to conflict theory
The school, which offers varied experiences dependant on race, class, orientation, gender, etc. indoctrinates children with curriculum steeped in capitalism. Play is structured like competition, curriculum enforces capitalism.
The purpose of the school, according to symbolic interactionism
Socialization is a result of
daily interactions in the school setting
Here, students learn about their
culture, the nation, aggression and
compliance, and gender.
