Prelim Flashcards
Common sense Views
NATURALISTIC
explanations assume that “natural” and god given reasons for behaviour can be identified
-it is only natural that 2 people should fall in love, get married, live together and have children
Common sense Views
INDIVIDUALISTIC
an explanation that tries to explain a situation solely in terms of the individual or persons involved in it
- no attempt to understand it in terms of wider social forces
Sociological explanations
explanations that attempt to explain social behaviour in terms of wider social forces, processes and structures
- uses evidence from objective research to support these explanations
CS vs S
CS= people may divorce because they don't love each other anymore S= may look at divorce rates over time and consider laws that have made divorce either
Common sense Views:
- based on personal opinion
- may be individual or naturalistic
- is subjective and sees only from their own point of view
- does not acknowledge bias- carries notions of being factual and true
Sociological explanations
- based on particular theories which have been tested through research
- challenges taken for granted assumptions
- attempts to be objective and see the whole picture
- acknowledges bias and attempts to be value free when formulating theories
Structural Theories
- believe our behaviour is largely structured by the society that we live in and we have little free will
- examine how the structures of society( family, education, economy, government) influence individuals
Consensus theories= functionalism
Conflict theories= Marxism, feminism
Action Theories
- believe that people are “actors” and powerful in shaping their world
- social action is a result of individual or group action
- society is made up of the individuals that live in it
- analyses society in terms of the individuals and groups that live in it
- looks at meaning and interpretation
Consensus theories
- assumption there is a certain pattern to behaviour
- explanation of behaviour through the notion of social structure
- biological analogy to explain theories
- believe there is a value consensus in society
-claim that societies could not survive without a degree of generally held beliefs and values
Consensus theories:
Strengths
- looks at society as a whole
- refers to social structure when analysing behaviour
- good at explaining persistence of social phenomena
Consensus theories:
Weaknesses
- ignores individual or group interaction
- finds it difficult to explain conflict and change
- makes assumptions about value consensus ( not everyone agrees with values)
Conflict theories
- claim that such(value) consensus only exists on a surface level and that societies are in fact characterised by fundamental conflicts of power, interest and wealth
-conflict theorists tend to view society as having an infrastructure and aa superstructure
-do acknowledge the interdependence of social institutions but do not see relations between institutions as harmonious
-argue that values are imposed by powerful groups in society
interested in explaining society in terms of causes and development
-stresses conflict, struggle and change
Consensus theory
- view society as being made up of social institutions all dependent on each other and are important for maintaining order in society
- stress the necessity for co-operation and harmony between social institutions
- consider there to be a functional unity between the different social institutions
- argue that there is a value consensus that holds social institutions and society together
- explain everything in terms of the function it performs in society, especially the way it keeps the social system in good order
- EMPHASISES HARMONY,INTEGRATION AND STABILITY
Conflict theory:
Strengths
- looks at society as a whole
- recognises power interests of different groups
- good at explaining conflict and changes
Conflict theory:
Weaknesses
- finds it difficult to explain persistence of certain phenomena
- individual and small group plays a little part in these type of explanations
Feminism Theories:
Marxist
-concerned with dominance of men and patriarchal nature of capitalism
-believe that women are exploited by men and capitalism
- the disadvantages position of women is seen to be a result of the emergence of private property and their lack of ownership
Bourgeosie=rich proletariat = poor
- society uses capitalism to keep the rich rich and the poor poor
-false class consciousness = poor do not realise they’re being exploited
Feminism Theories:
Marxist
Strengths
- clear evidence of inequality
- structuralist approach
- emphasises the importance of the economy unlike functionalism
- less extreme than other forms
- believe in equality
Feminism Theories:
Radical
- concerned with revolutionary overthrow of patriarchy
- says that inequalities exist because of biology/ patriarchy
Feminism Theories:
Radical
Strengths
-clear evidence that there is inequalities
Feminism Theories:
Radical
Weaknesses
-ignores the progress women have made in many areas e.g work, controlling fertility, divorce
Feminism Theories:
Liberal
- concerned with equal rights for men and women
- less radical
- wider audience
- more diplomatic
Feminism Theories:
Liberal
Strengths
- played an important role in highlighting inequalities between men and women
- believes in equality unlike other groups
- considered more accessible than radical, so gained more support
Feminism Theories:
Liberal
Weaknesses
- overly optimistic and overly analytical
- ignores the fact that there may be a deep rooted reason for women oppression
- ethnocentric= it only really reflects the experiences of whit, middle class women
Feminism Theories:
Black
- believes that feminism derives from white female perspective
- believes that black women are doubly disadvantages as they suffer from both racism and sexism
Feminism Theories:
Black
Strengths
- identifies issues in other forms of feminism
- reminds mainstream feminists of the importance of difference
Feminism Theories:
Black
Weakneses
- can be accused of emphasising one race/ethnicity
- they fail to address the oppression faced by all races of women
Feminism Theories:
Features
need to raise gender issues
- dominance of male stream society
- desire to balance the social issues to reflect the fact that half of the pop. is female
Feminism Theories:
Strengths
- political movement and an academic theory=greatly raised awareness of gender issues
- given women a voice and achieved many legal changes (right to vote/divorce/abortion etc)
Feminism Theories:
Weaknesses
- may be ignoring wider factors such as social class
- ignores social categories such as ethnicity
- overlooks the oppression and exploitation of some men= men are more likely to lose children in child custody battles
Action theories:
Strengths
- takes account of the human agency
- good at explaining small scale interaction
- important in explaining the meaning and motives attached to social behaviour and the interpretation of social behaviour by others
Action theories:
Weaknesses
- analysis tends to be of individuals or groups thereby overlooking wider social factors
- tends to lack historical perspective
- emphasises meaning without necessarily investigating the origins of meaning
- can be seen as subjective
Functionalism
-society is a social system based on a value consensus
society has basic needs that must be met to survive
-the need for social order and harmony is very important
Durkheim argued that modern societies are made up of different social institutions(economic system, political system,eductaion s, religious s and the family s) and that each of these relate to a body part. All of these parts must then work together to create a system that adds up to something greater than the sum of its individual parts.
ex- the political s is like the brain, guiding society while the family,eduaction and religious systems are like the heart pumping morals of right and wrong around the body
when all parts are operating in harmony, the result is social order
if one part breaks then the whole system will break
Functionalism:
Strengths
macro = looks at society as a whole
-refers ro social structure when analysing social behaviour
Functionalism:
Weaknesses
- ignores individual or group interaction
- finds it difficult to explain conflict and change
- makes assumptions about value consensus
Marxist theory:
Weaknesses
-seen as economically deterministic= everything revolves around money
=ignores the role of women in society
=society doesn’t always operate in the interests of the ruling class
Action Theories:
Symbolic Interactionism
- Symbolic interactionism is a school of thought in sociology that explains social behavior in terms of how people interact with each other via symbols.
- Mead believed that one’s self develops through social interactions. Moreover, how people communicate and interact with each other depends on how they interpret factors such as language, actions, and statuses (potential symbols).
Action Theories:
Symbolic Interactionism
Strengths
- gives an insight into small scale interaction
- Sees humans as active, creative participants who construct their social world, not as passive, conforming objects of socialisation
- Considers the social environment in which learning takes place.
Action Theories:
Symbolic Interactionism
Weaknesses
- Symbols may be interpreted incorrectly or differently among different groups of people.
- It can be difficult to quantify things in Symbolic Interactionism
- Overestimates the power of individuals to create their own realities, ignoring the extent to which humans inhabit a world not of their own making
Action Theories:
Weberian theory
- individuals and their actions matter. the world is as it is because of social action
- wanted to achieve an understanding of subjectively meaningful human action
- society must recognise the part played by individuals who have the power to act freely
Action Theories:
Weberian theory
Strengths
- provided a bridge between structural and action theories
- loks beyond the individual level of analysis when studying social action
Action Theories:
Weberian theory
Weaknesses
-assumption that humans consciously interpret the meanings and interpret the meaning and intentions behind the action of themselves and others
-could be seen as subjective
information gained from individuals may be difficult to analyse and generalise to society as a whole
Quantitative Methods
NUMERICAL DATA
Questionnaires
Structured interviews
Official statistics
Qualitative Methods OPINION BASED (PEOPLE FEELINGS/EXPERIENCES)
Participant observation
unstructured interviews
case studies
Validity
-does it measure what its supposed to measure
Reliability
-other researches should be able to carry out the exact same research and get the same results
Questionnaires
list of questions the respondent should answer
Questionnaires:
Adv
- reliable and easy to quantify
- sent to large numbers of people cheaply, so the sample size can be increased without spending too much
- not time consuming/ easy to organise
Questionnaires:
Disadv
-few people complete and return them
-respondent may not understand the questions and misinterpret it/ completely ignore it
-asking in person is better= but it is v time consuming
=census = compulsory return= may result in prosecution if not returned
Structured interview
face to face interview with set questions
primary source
Structured interview
Adv
- good response rate
- easy to quantify
- respondent can ask for clarification if they do not understand = more reliable
Structured interview
Disadv
- can be expensive= face to face
- time consuming
- respondent cannot expand on answers
- people may not answer honestly
Official statistics
statistics collected by gov,police, NHS,
secondary data
used to analyse social behaviour
Official statistics
Adv
- good for quantitative studies
- saves the researcher time as they don’t need to collect the data
- low cost
Official statistics
Disadv
- may be biased beach of the way the info was collected= researcher has no control over this
- people may lie in official statistics- e.g it is estimated that 1 million people didn’t complete the census in 1991
- may be difficult to compare statistics between 2 time periods
Non - participant observation
primary source
researcher observes the social behaviour of others
records what he/she sees at the time or immediately afterwards
researches has to interpret what they see
Non - participant observation
Adv
- good for describing natural behaviour= the person being observed is unaware of the researchers presence
- good for gaining an in depth picture of social behaviour
Non - participant observation
Disadv
- needs a high input of time by the researcher
- costs are high = needs to be present
- difficult to qualify behaviour
- no way of checking details or exploring issues further
- may be a bait of researcher sees
- ethical considerations
Participant observations
primary source
researcher becomes a participant in the group they want to observe
researcher presence will be unknown
GLASGOW GANG OBSERVED MY JAMES PATRICK
Participant observations
Adv
- gives an in-depth picture of social behaviour
- gives a realistic picture of social behaviour
- goof at exploring meaning,feelings interactions and processes
Participant observations
Disadv
- high involvement of researchers time
- costs are high= always present
- can be bias
- hawthorne effect= presence of researcher may alter the way people act
- can be dangerous
- difficult to quantify results and generalise results
Unstructured interviews
primary source
open questions
researches has a lot of broad topics/general areas to cover
Unstructured interviews
Adv
- allows the researcher to explore issues in an in depth way
- researcher is not restricted to pre set questions
- respondent can elaborate answers
Unstructured interviews
Disadv
- can lose track of purpose and gain irrelevant information
- can be difficult to quantify results
- time consuming+ high costs = involvement
Case studies
involves systematic and in depth examination of a single event or case over time
carried out to gain specific info and understanding rather than to test a hypothesis
Case studies
Adv
- allows in depth analysis and understanding of particular cases
- may generate ideas and hypotheses for future research
- my compliment the use of other methods such as interviews
Case studies
Disadv
- very time consuming/ demanding
- info may only be applicable to case under investigation
- may be difficult to collate info
- may be difficult to quantify
Marxist theory
- society is in a state of conflict between the rich and poor
- society uses a system called capitalism to keep the rich rich and the poor poor
- capitalism is a economic system where a small minority of society own the forces of production( factories/ information)
- this minority is called the BOURGEOSIE(ruling class) - they employ people to work for them to produce the goods that they sell
- Marx called this the relations of production and argued that it exploited the PROLETARIAT(subject class)
Marxist theory
Adv
- marxism helps explain conflict and change
- this theory analyses power and conflict in society. It explains why there is such an uneven distribution of power and wealth between social classes.
Bourgeosie, petit bourgeoise, proletariat, lumpenproletariat
bougeosie= dominate and exploit then owners
petit bougeosie= small business owners
proletariat= those who need to sell their labour to survive
lumpenproletariat=the lowest of the low -beggars, prostitutes, gangsters, robbers
Infrastructure/ Superstructure
Economic base (bottom)
-relations of productions
-means of production
= BASE SHAPES THE SUPERSTRUCTURE
Superstructure (top) -education -family -mass media -politics -religion =SUPERSTRUCTURE MAINTAINS AND LEGITIMATES THE BASE
false class consciousness
the proletariat are brain washed so they don’t fully realise that they are being exploited. The proletariat think they are aware of their own class interests butter not fully aware of how much they are being exploited due to rolling class ideology.
Primary data
-when new data is collected by the researcher
Secondary data
-when the researcher uses existing sources of information
Sampling
-is a representation of the group you wish to study
it is important to remember that samples must be representative and adequate in size.
Research Process
1. Theory
- most sociologists begin by examining ideas and explanations(theories) which already exist.
e. g links between poverty and crime
Research Process
2. Hypothesis
- based on these ideas the researcher will form a hypothesis. A statement which can be proved or disproved
e. g poverty causes crime
Research Process
3. Operationalisation
-the researcher will choose their method, define the concepts used, decide of specific measurements will be used and decide how they will find a sample of subjects to use for their research.
there are 4 sub-stages for this
- choosing a suitable method
- define concepts e.g class defined by income/occupation
- decision on specific measurements and setting measurements are done before research
- choosing a sample to represent a larger population
Research Process
4. Fieldwork
- carrying out the research by implementing the chosen method
e. g interviewing the subject
Research Process
5. Processing the results
- analysis of data and presentation of findings
e. g as a graph or table
Choosing a research method
time= some methods need much more time than others, the researcher may also have a deadline which will make some methods not possible
money= researchers may be on a low budget meaning it affect the length and method of research
gender= it may be difficult for a male researcher to interview girls on a sensitive subject such as sexual health as they may not feel comfortable disclosing information to him
age=it may be difficult to have a 50 year old be involved with participant observation of hostile, disruptive youths
-the age difference between the 2 can sometimes negatively impact on the results
ethnicity= it would be pointless to put a middle class white researcher in with a group of black youths as trust would be harder to build
Hawthorne effect
people changing their behaviour in a positive manner when they are aware they are being observed
Sex vs Gender
sex= referred to as the “external genitalia, internal genitalia gonads, hormonal states and secondary sex characteristics”
gender= refers to cultural conceptions of masculine or feminine behaviour which are passed on to children by the society in which they live
Gender roles
baby girls are expected to be delicate, quite and caring while boys are expected to be strong, boisterous and active.
girls are given dolls and boys are given trains to play with
Stratification
-how society is organised in layers(some people in higher layers than others)
social groups are organised in a hierarchy where one groups lies onto of another
-those in the top group of society are seen to be better than those in lower classes
-individuals and groups have unequal access to advantages and disadvantages in society based on their position within the stratification system
higher layer= very good education, better healthcare and tend to live longer
lower layer= live in closely packed housing estates, poor health and children tend to achieve less at school
Life chances
the higher a person or group is within the category of stratification, the better their life chances - life chances= the opportunities we have in life and how we access them factors include; -health -income and wealth -education -life expectancy -infant mortality housing
Life chances
examples
-gender= females wages are only 75-85% of those of men who are doing the same job and men still dominate in terms of management and government jobs
location= incomes in south east england are higher than those in the regions
-it is also more expensive to travel to europe from the regions than from london
Immigrants= immigrants to the uk tend to have to take low paid work even if they have high levels of skill. BLACK ad ASIAN people are also under represented in positions of power.
private school= pupils from fee paying schools tend to do better in terms of exam results, thereby affecting their opportunities to go uni, study a career of their choice an thus have better life chances through a higher and sustained income
-home ownership= may enable a person to get extended and usually cheaper credit. It also gives people some choice as to where they live and the conditions under which they live. also indicates that these people have a greater security of income and lifestyle
Social class
- these social groups or classes usually share common interests and a common identity that separates them from other social groups in society.Most sociologists agree that social class is a significant feature of UK society and is one of the main bases for stratification and inequality
indicators for class may include: occupation income wealth ownership power status
Open mobility system
- it is claimed that we have an open mobility system in the UK, this is because it is possible for individuals to move between class groups, a concept called social mobility
e. x if social class is based on income and during a individuals lifetime they increase their income, then they would be moving from a low income group to a high income group
Closed system
- where it is impossible to move from one group to another
e. x in the hindu caste system the individual is born into a particular caste and remains in that caste for the rest of their life regardless of changes in circumstances, such as increases/decreases in wealth or marrying into a higher/lower caste.
Hidden barriers
these are things that make movement between classes difficult
-these could include things such as accent, education, cultural differences in terms official mannerisms and customs.
Objective measure of class
-definitions of class focus on things that can be measured about a persons life, such as their occupation
Subjective measure of class
- definitions of class focus on things that cannot be measured, such as the social class that a person thinks they are in
e. x a person with lots of money may still consider themselves working class. they may live in a working class area and have working class friends. the class a person thinks they belong to is likely to affect the way they act
Registrar General’s scale
-this scale groups occupations into 5 different categories
PROBLEMS
- doesnt take into account the class a person thinks they belong to
- doesnt take into uccountthe fact that some people who are in the lowest class due to their job may actually have a lot of money (lottery)
Changes in the industrial environment
employment changes have occurred over the last generation which have led to changes in the way social class is measured and studied.
- over the last generation or so, a process of DE-INDUSTRIALISATION has occurred, with more people working in service industries and less people working in heavy industries
- changing technologies and the process of globalisation have had an effect on the economy in the UK
- changing role of women= many women are now in paid employment, which has had a major impact on how class is studied
Functionalist theory of class stratification
Talcott parsons states that society has certain FUNCTIONAL PREREQUISITES(basic needs that ensures society can survive)
-functionalists suggests that a certain degree of order and stability is essential for the operation of society and they therefore consider how class stratification helps to maintain this
-Parsons suggests that order, stability and cooperation in society were based on a value consensus (general agreement by members of society concerning what is good and worthwhile), so says that those who perform successfully in terms of a societys values will be ranked highly and they will be likely to receive a variety of rewards
-therefore, successful business people who have achieved their position through their own initiative, ability and ambition will receive high rewards
they say that inequality is created by the differing rewards that people receive for the different tasks that they carry out, therefore those who carry out the most important tasks should be rewarded better than those who carry out unskilled or less important tasks or jobs, HOWEVER many of the vital occupations have low rewards(nurses/ bin men)
-also says that it gives those in lower classes something to aim for. Therefore, if you want people to study hard and better themselves, there must be some kind of economic reward for doing so.
KINGSLY DAVIS and WILBERT MOORE= functional prerequisite was effective role allocation and performance, which meant that all occupations must be filled by those who were best trained/ able to perform them(the necessary training for these roles must be undertakes) stratification therefore ensured that the most qualified person filled the most important positions and society would be a meritocracy
strength= emphasises the importance of hard work as there is evidence that individuals can climb up the hierarchy
Marxist theory of class stratification
according to marx there are 3 main classes, B,PB and the P. these sae described as being mutually antagonistic and marx states that there are major divisions in a capitalist society in terms of production. Those who own the means of production and demonstrate power in society are on one side (bourgeosie) and those who are non owners and have to survive by selling their labour are on the other( proletariat) -marx has the idea that individuals of similar class will develop class consciousness as they will realise that their interests are alike and how exploitative the capitalist system is. they will then move from a state of fCC to CC.
Strengths
-draws attention to the exploitative power the B have over the P
weakness
-to economically deterministic
-dont look at other factors of inequality such as gender and ethnicity
Case study
“Up and down the income ladder in britain”
this case study looks at “integration mobility” from people born after 1970 and looked at weather they earned more or less than their parents
- it found that there was a decline in mobility for those born between 1958 and 1970, and this low level of mobility has stayed the same for those born after 1970(supports MARXISM as it shows evidence of social closure- young people are not becoming upwardly mobile as they are staying at the same level as their parents)
- it also found that there are clear groups at the top(distinctive elite) and bottom of society
strength
- it is reliable as it was national sample conducted over a number of years
- findings are also still relevant today(slowing mobility rates and the widening divide between rich and poor)
weakness
-the study used people who who did not yet have jobs which leads to potentially unreliable statistics
Vertical mobility
describes the movement between strata both up and down the stratification system -example of long range mobility, display a change in class and status won the lottery= upwardly mobile
Horizontal mobility
geographical term used to describe movement around the country to new forms of employment can be seen as short range mobility because there is little change in the individuals class and status teacher moving from one school to another
Inter-generational mobility
refers to movement between generations -people who grew up with working class parents may become middle class through hard work, such or education
Intra-generational mobility
describes movement of an individual over their lifetime
as a result of changing career or promotion
Socialisation
societies are held together by people sharing core beliefs(values) and behaviour patterns (norms)
-socialisation is the passing of culture. it is a process that turns individuals into members of social culture by learning things like language, customs,knowlwdge,skills,roles,values and norms
Ascribed status
achieved at birth
Achieved status
acquired through education and work which has different arguments according to gender, class and ethnic identities
Agents of socialisation
Primary
family=children internalise norms and values by imitating their parents/guardians. they are rewarded for socially acceptable behaviour and punished for socially deviant behaviour.
Agents of socialisation
Secondary
these are formal institutions who have systems in place to reward and discourage certain behaviours
Agents of socialisation
Secondary
Education
skills such as numeracy and literacy. functionalists argue that school promotes consensus, children learn to belong to a larger group through things like school uniform and marxists argue that children are encouraged to accept exploitation (do as your told and don’t ask questions)
Agents of socialisation
Secondary
Peer groups
are of similar social status and socialise individuals towards conformity or deviance. youth subcultures sometimes encourage deviant behaviour
Agents of socialisation
Secondary
Religion
most religions oppose theft and murder and teach respect for elders
Agents of socialisation
Secondary
Mass Media
powerful in shaping norma and values in the audience. some sociologists argue that the media have now replaced religion in secondary socialisation
Agents of socialisation
Secondary
Workplace
enables people to join the world of work such as being on time and obeying the boss
Gender socialisation
one of the most important roles we learn to play in our life
-involves learning to act in an appropriate way for our gender
parents and the media reinforce stereotypes about normal male and female behaviour. this can begin with pink or blue wallpaper in a baby room and influence the way we interact with children
Culture
refers to a shared way of life of a group of people of society whose customs and norms of behaviour are passed on from one generation to another
-language,dress,diet
Personal identity
marks someone out as an individual
- name=sets us apart
- fingerprints
- birth certificate
- photographs
Social identity
when a person is defined as a type of person or label
they are clusters of personality characteristics related to social roles such as man, woman, child
-social identities are shared with others so that large numbers of people would identify with these labels
High culture
culture that is seen or have an artistic and/or intellectual merit which is highly valued in society
- classical music
- ballet
- polo
characteristics
- associated with the elites of society(wealthy and educated people)
- sperate/set apart
- superior
Popular culture
is commercially produced and includes objects, images, artefacts and music of ordinary people e.g films, TV, magazines
- sometimes pop. culture borrows an idea from high culture from high culture, popularises it and makes it available to the masses
- burberry print
characteristics
- reflects that norms values, institutions and activities of the majority
- culture of the working class
- it assumes consumers are active not passive
Mass culture
-inferior quality culture
associated with those from a lower socio economic group
characteristics
- created by commercial organisations
- passive- consumers lack critical judgement of the society in which they live- often dumbed down with goodies/baddies
- produced for profit-false needs are created through advertising
Folk culture
-the habits/customs of traditional rural communities emerging directly from their lived experience
characteristics
- authentic and actively created
- created by local communities
- rooted in experience,customs and believes of everyday people
Subculture
a subculture is a group where people who make up a minority within a wider mainstream culture.
they have distinct norms and values
members of subcultures have something in common with each other (shared interests ) which distinguishes them from the wider, mainstream culture
how does the media influence culture and identity
HYPODERMIC SYRINGE
- has an immediate /dramatic effect on behaviour
- the medium (tv/radio) is the syringe and th content is whats injected
problems
- people may be more media literate
- it only concentrates on short term effects
2 STEP FLOW
- ideas flow from the media to opinion leaders(teachers/family)
- then to less active sections of the population in drips
CULTURAL EFFECTS
-if ideas, images and interpretations are broadcaster long periods of time, there is a cumulative impact on the culture. there is a slow drip effect where people unconsciously come to terms with ideas over time.
Subcultures
Hippies
1970s-80s
valued freedom, uninhibited behaviour and individualism
rejects uniformity, militarism money
-looks= long hair, flowy bright clothes
Subcultures
Hip hop
late 1990s
saggy bagg7 gangsta jeans
moved away from this in early 2000s to designer clothes
distinctive music
Subcultures
Goths
2000s
valued individualism and living in their own imagined world
-looks= white face, dark hair, black makeup/clothes
Robert Merton’s theory on deviant subcultures
the american dream= encouraged people to seek money success but the structure did not provide unlimited opportunities so only a few can ever achieve that wealth
Most people use LEGIT ways of reaching money success, such as hard work but others INNOVATE,adopting illegitimate means of reaching goals through crime
RITUALISTS abandon the cultural goal but obsessively stick to the rules whereas RETREATISTS reject both the culturally prescribed roles and drop out of the race completely
REBELS seem to replace existing goals and the means of getting here with an alternative society
Albert Cohen’s subcultural theory
Argues that much of the delinquency in inner cities was due to immediate gratification rather than money success.
Those who experience failure at school find it hard to adhere to dominant values
Therefore Gangs develop to get back at the system that has banded them failures
Turns the norms upside down= stealing, aggression and vandalism
Clowned and Ohlin
CRIMINAL
- tend to emerge in areas where there is an established pattern of adult crime and a learning environment for the young
Financial rewards
CONFLICT
-tend to develop in areas where there is little opportunity to achieve in education or hard work
Often engage in gang violence to release anger
These offer status if they show loyalty
RETREATIST
-formed around drug use
Have failed in both ways of achieving wealth so retreat from the goals of society
Moral panic
The process of arousing social concerns over an issue
Moral entrepreneur
A person group or individual with the power to create or enforce rules and impose Their morals
Folk devil
This is an over simplified I’ll informed generalisation of particular people who moral entrepreneurs wish to demonise
Feminism:
Violence against women
PRE BIRTH/ INFANCY
-10,00 cases of female infanticide annually= recent study in india, although does not include gils killed through abortion
there are 60 million fewer women alive in the world then should be expected
GIRLHOOD
- Female genital mutilation - done without anaestethetic and can result in infection or HIV along with other problems
- early marriages - many young girls are given to middle aged men as brides
ADOLESCENCE AND ADULTHOOD
- more than 5,000 women are killed annually by their husbands and in - laws who burn them in “accidental” kitchen fires if their demands for money and goods are not met
- acid attacks are also used against girls who reject a marriage proposal or over family feuds
ELDERLY
indian practice -Sati- widows commit suicide by throwing herself on her husbands funeral pyre
- in 1987, a 17 year old bride publicly burned to death on her husbands funeral pyre
Feminism:
Equal pay
INDIVIDUAL CHOICES
-women may have little choice but to take low paid work
-evidence that when women move into an occupation there can often be a decline in pay
ex- when men did clerical work it was accosted with high social status and good pay and conditions, but it was the opposite for women
RANGE OF PROFESSIONS
-women are concentrated in a narrow range of occupations
ex- Rubery and Grimshaw found that more than 60% of womens employment is concentrated in just 10 out of 77 occupations
PUBLIC SECTOR WORK
- not a problem itself, but the brattish public sector is relatively low paid by international standards
PART TIME WORK
- while 66% of women work, 44% work mart time, usually due to childcare commitments.
- fewer high paid jobs allow for part time work
Consensus and conflict theories:
Similarities
both are structural theories= place a lot of importance on the structural aspects of society= law/family/ economy
-view these structures as shaping the way individuals and groups in society think and behave
Consensus and conflict theories:
Differences
Consensus= view society as being made up of social institutions that are dependent on each other to maintain order in society Conflict= view society as having an infrastructure and a superstructure
Conflict= do acknowledge the interdependence of social institutions but do not necessarily see relations between them as harmonious Consensus= stress the necessity for co-operation and harmony between social institutions
Consensus= consider there to be functional unity between the different social institutions Conflict= highlight the conflict and contradictions between the social institutions
Consensus= argue there is a value consensus that holds social institutions together Conflict= argue that values are often imposed by powerful groups in society even though everyone might not agree with them
Consensus= explain everything in terms of the function it performs Conflict = interested in explaining society in terms of causes and development
Consensus= emphasises HARMONT INTEGRATION AND STABILITY Conflict = Stresses CONFLICT, STRUGGLE AND CHANGE
Social issues:
- has to AFFECT MANY PEOPLE not just an individual
- show up in PATTERNS AND STATISTICS = social trends
- AFFECT A GROUP e.g social class, gender, sexuality, ethnicity
- INVOLVE SOME FORM OF INEQUALITY OR DISADVANTAGE TO THAT GROUP
Registrar General’s Scale
most commonly used system for measuring social class -groups occupations in 5 different categories class 1 = professional/ managerial class 5= unskilled/ cleaners
Registrar General’s Scale :
Problems
- ignores the class a person may think they are in
- doesnt take into account the fact that some people who are in class 5 due to their job, may actually have a lot of money= may have won the lottery or inherited money
- based on a 2 class model (pop. is divided into middle and lower class) occupations are assigned to different class categories by comparing their status, with the most important at the top
- very rich people may not work
- priests/ ministers are afforded a higher class status than their incomes would otherwise suggest
- who decides what the important jobs are ??- nurses/ bin men= necessary but not high status/ paid
Weber’s theory of class stratification
ownership/non-ownership was a important division, but what is important is what people have in terms of goods, wealth or skills. these can be exchanged in the market for a monetary value class position= market situation different classes have different life chances . those in a better market position have more life chances i.e increased opportunities through good health/ diet etc STATUS and PARTY are 2 other sources of power that also weaken the coherence of class groups status= social power which comes from belonging to a particular group party= belonging to group that has influence in society -believed that the "mode of production" changed from feudalism to capitalism due to religious movement not from class struggle -calvinists= believed people were "elect" and it was a persons duty to life a life without a life without sensual pleasure = resulted in them saving a lot of money which they invested in new factories
Embourgeoisement
becoming middle class -suggests that the manual working class are becoming more like the middle class due to increased salaries, greater job security and higher disposable income. these changes have eroded the distinctive values and lifestyle of the working class
Proletarianisation
opposite trend
-means as more work becomes deskilled, workers becomes proletarian
e.x - clerical workers used to be paid very well and were respected, but computers have replaced a lot of their work they now concentrate on routine data inputting tasks
may dress like white collar workers but have low skilled proletarian jobs
Measuring social mobility
- samples of the pop. need to be quite large in order to represent the whole of the UK
- it might be that social mobility and social closure have been easier for certain generations depending on the availability of certain types of work or the conditions of the economy
- women have not been represented in much of the work done on social mobility and social closure, despite their presence in the workforce in small numbers in the past to their present very strong position in the labour market
Functionalist theory of education
education is like an organ which is part of the body of society therefore if schools work, society will work
-schools work with other agents of socialisation in the process of transmitting norms, values and roles.
functionalists suggest that for a health society, individuals must learn societies norms and values. these norms and values contribute to social solidarity and value consensus and education plays a vital role in this.
DURKHEIM thought that the educational system should be seen as an agency of secondary socialisation. While the family perform the initial socialisation, the education system in an institution that broadens the individuals experience of the social world as it prepares us for adult roles.
they say that an education system has 3 basic functions
Functionalist theory of education:
The SOCIALISATION function
education is a secondary agent of socialisation, through which individuals learn important aspects of their culture
- the education system could be said to “knit” children from different backgrounds into a unified group
- this socialisation function contributes to social order, through the process of COLLECTIVE CONSCIOUSNESS(basic, fundamental values and norms that individuals share in society)
this function is often referred to as culture transmission
Functionalist theory of education:
The SELECTIVE function
-KINGSLY AND MOORE view the education systems being like a sieve, grading pupils according to their ability and placing individuals in OCCUPATIONAL ROLES best suited to their talents and abilities
-in this way, those who achieve high qualifications are seen as the most able and are therefore rewarded with higher pay levels and higher status in society
this is knows as a MERITOCRACY (system of stratification where the most qualified get high positions in the hierarchy)
Functionalist theory of education:
The ECONOMIC function
-education is seen to teach the skills and knowledge necessary for work in a modern, technical, industrial society
-vocational courses aim to train individuals for the world of work= education prepares them for their future occupational roles
-therefore the successful transmission of norms, values and roles helps society to progress in an orderly way
-claim that schools are meritocratic
DAVIS AND MOORE- social stratification represents a mechanism through which those who are the most able/talented intellectually are allocated work roles that offer the highest rewards in terms of income, power and status
-this is because the most able capable and competent members of society must fill the adult roles that are seen to be the most functionally important
-education system is seen as the proving ground for ability and the selective agency for placing people in different jobs according to those abilities
Functionalist theory of education:
Strengths
- links who goes on in the education system with the needs of wider society
- in this way the biological analogy is helpful- the school is an organ which serves the body, which is society
- the suggestion that the education system, as a mini- society socialises individuals into learning the norms and values of a wider society is helpful
Functionalist theory of education:
Weaknesses
- ignores differences in attainment between social groups based on class, gender and ethnicity
- ignores the two their education system- fee paying private schools have higher exam results than state schools
- assumes a monoculture where everyone shares similar norms and vales - the UK is now claimed to be multicultural with a variety of norms and vales, which can often be in conflict e.g. religion
- assumes everyone will learn their role and play their part in society- what about the unemployed?
- does not explain the success of individuals with few qualifications such as pop and sport stars or individuals who will the lottery or inherit wealth
- as a structural theory it does not take enough account of individual meaning and interpretation in education
Marxist theory on education
-claim that the education system serves the needs of capitalism by transmitting capitalist culture norms and values
-does this through the hidden curriculum, and helps prepare individuals for their place in society and their future work role
-the education system provides an illusion of equality of opportunity that results in inequalities. this in turn allows inequalities in other areas such as work, to be thought of as normal.
the education system reproduces the inequalities in society
-claim that much of the school day is taken up with boring repetitive tasks, and following the same time table day in day out might lead to a sense of powerlessness
-material deprivation disadvantages working class children e.g poor diet/housing,lack of books/privacy= they also tend to leave school earlier
-pupils have little say in the content of the subjects they study or the overall organisation of the school day
- schools prepare students for boring repetitive jobs= link between school experience and job experience
Marxist theory on education
strengths
- good at explaining why attainment levels are lower amongst children from working class backgrounds because they see class as being the main factor determining attainment
e. g scottish children from the lowest socioeconomic groupings tend to leave S4 with 2 standard grades less than those in the highest group - good at explaining the role of education in disseminating capitalist ideology
e. g every child in scotland is taught enterprise education and the benefits of making a profit - explanation of the negative aspects of the hidden curriculum is though provoking
- shows that to bring equality into education we would need to change the social structure that engenders inequality (capitalism)
Marxist theory on education:
weaknesses
- all aspects of education are not necessarily oppressive
e. g it has enabled some to change their social situation(become upwardly socially mobile) - focusses on class inequality and ignores other inequalities such as gender and ethnicity
- not good at explaining why boys tend to achieve less qualifications at school than girls even though they end up in better jobs or why minority children tend to achieve less qualifications than white children at school
Hidden curriculum
schools don’t just teach the formal curriculum, but a hidden curriculum of passivity and obedience to prepare individuals for their place in society and for their future wok role
Hidden curriculum
HEIERARCHY
the hierarchy in school can be seen to reflect the hierarchical structure of society at large
- students learn hierarchies of headteachers, deputes, teachers, cleaners
Hidden curriculum
COMPETITION
- schools encourage competition between students through sport and exam results
- prepares them for their place in society
Hidden curriculum
SOCIAL CONTROL
-the hidden curriculum of rules, regulations, obedience and respect for authority is one measure of social control that reflects those operating in society at large
Hidden curriculum
LACK OF SATISFACTION
- much of the school day is taken up with meaningless activities
- students have little say in what they are taught
- prepare pupils for the same experience in their jobs
Hidden curriculum
FRAGMENTATION
- subjects are broken into tiny parts and students are not encouraged to make links in their learning between subjects
- creative thinking is often seen as irrelevant to performing a task
Hidden curriculum
MOTIVATION THROUGH EXTERNAL REWARDS
- students are encouraged to get their rewards from external rewards like grades rather than intrinsic pleasure of studying subjects or completing tasks
- preares them for future jobs
Educational achievement
MATERIAL FACTORS
- t do with a lack money and resources such as a lack of educational books, a spare room to study
Educational achievement
CULTURAL FACTORS
-to do with the culture of the home which fails to prepare working class children for a success in middle class educational environment
Educational achievement
MATERIAL FACTORS
factors
- insufficient funds for school uniform, trips, transport, stationary and textbooks. this may create stigma and lead to bullying
- poverty related health affecting attendance e.g asthma and bronchitis from damp housing
- less access to private education and private tutors
- less likelyhood of a computer or internet access, well heated home, quiet space
- poorly resourced schools in deprived areas, with well resourced schools in middle class areas
Cultural deprivation theory
- theory argues that people that have come from lower class backgrounds are deprived of values, attitudes, skills and experiences that are important for success in education
e. g parents may not value education and expect their children to get a job at 15, and not encourage them to do their best at school - LONGITUDINAL STUDY=followed over 5,000 british children born in 1946 up until they were 16
- split them into 4 social class groupings
FINDINGS
- most important factor was parental interest in children education
- from a early age, middle class parents give more time and attention to children, and encouraged them to do well in a variety of activity
- also found that the length of stay in education was related to social class
- within the high ability group, 505 of students from the lower working class left school in their 5th year
EVALUATION
- highlights factors involved in working class underachievement
- however, parental interest was measured in terms of visits to the school, but working class parents may be doing shift work, or be put off teachers/ school by their own experiences
- theory blames working class families for their failure rather than material deprivation
Language and social class - Bernstein
-suggested that working class children received poor language learning experiences in the home so were linguistically deprived when they reached school =working class speak a restricted public language (shorter sentences, limited vocabulary, repetitiveness) -elaborated code= more complex speech patterns with more varied vocabulary/ more explanations -poor socialisation in the family is seen as the main lack of success in education
STRENGTHS - helped teaches understand a major barrier that working class children face in the middle class education system= paved the way for new initiatives such as SURE START
WEAKNESSES
- some disliked the idea of using a restricted code is inferior
- some may argue there is a lack of hard evidence for these two codes as he provides too few examples
- found that people vary their language according to the situation = talking to teachers
Cultural capital
is the support and information provided by contacts and social networks which can be converted into educational success and material rewards -middle class children are more likely to make use of their cultural capital as their parents are more likely to know people who can help propel them
Feminist theory on eductaion
suggest that the education system in the UK is instrumental in reinforcing inequalities in society
liberal
- campaign to reduce sex descrimination and to gain equal opportunities for girls/women in education
- these inequalities will be overcome by changes in educational legislation and policies
radical
-stress the basic conflict between the sexes
-the main enemy is patriarchy within the education system, whereby males achieve and maintain the dominant position to further their own interests
marxist
-stress that women, like men are members of social classes and this has a significant effect on their life chances and experiences
they agree that the education system serves the needs of the capitalist system
STRENGTHS
- highlights the gendered nature of much education
- creates a powerful argument that inequalities exist and the patriarchal system of education descriminates against women
WEAKNESSES
- different feminist perspectives have different solutions to the gender gap in education
- downplays the poor performance of boys as a “moral panic”
Why do girls underachieve
BIOLOGICAL
-girls matured at an earlier age, so they did better at a younger age and boys would catch up and overtake girls by the time they were 16
SOCIALISATION OF GIRLS
ANNE OAKLEY
-girls were directed into the domestic and caring roles
-parents manipulated their children self concepts by how they dressed them, paid attention to their appearance
DIFFERENTIAL ACCESS TO THE CURRICULUM
-in 1980, girls would be encouraged to opt out of science and languages in favour of less prestigious subjects such as child development
PATRIARCHIAL IDEOLOGY
- to retain power, women were pointed towards domesticity
- families gave financial support and priority to their sons education
IDEOLOGY OF ROMANCE
1970’s -teenage working class girls were unambitious because their focus was on early marriage and families.
1994- this had overturned as the focus was now on careers and the value of education
INVISIBLE GIRLS
-girls were disadvantaged during teacher pupil interactions as teachers spent more time with boys, knew fewer girls names and allowed boys to dominate the technical practical subjects
SELF CONFIDENCE
- girls underestimated their grades and performance, while boys were over confident
- boys if reprimanded thought it was due to a lack effort where girls felt it was their own fault and it knocked their confidence
HIDDEN CURRICULUM
-reading schemes underlined the gender stereotypes
BOYS, GIRLS AND ACHIEVEMENT (2000) - becky francis
observed 4 different classes of 14-16 year olds, half were maths and half were english
- found that boys tended to monopolise space in the classroom and playground and were considerably noisier than girls
- boys tended to be disciplined more than girls
- students no longer believed that girls were less academically able than boys
-found big improvements in female achievement in schools with girls overtaking boys in may subjects, however this was party due to increased choice of subjects for girls and significant problems still remained
LADS AND LADERRES IN SCHOOL(2006)- carolyn jackson
-interviewed 203 13-14 year olds in 8 schools
- boys laddish behaviour was constructed within the framework of hegemonic masculinity
- academic work was defined as feminine and uncool
- those who wanted to do well were described as swots nerds
- soloution was to mess around in school but work hard at home
-large samples provided valid and reliable results
Interactionist theory on education
- looks at interactions between students and teachers and between student
- looks at how these interactions may affect the performances of pupils in the education system
- teachers are agents of socialisation and they are significant actors in the educational drama that unfolds in the classroom
- when a teacher had labeled a pupil as far from the ideal they behaved towards that child in terms of the mental label they had created
- teachers didn’t like teaching pupils of perceived lower ability
- after being labelled for being nuisances, their performance and progress was hindered
strengths
- takes things as it finds them without making positive or negative assumptions
- consideres the experience of individuals and credits them with the ability to interact and negotiate in the classroom
- labelling theory is helpful when considering the class, gender an ethnic experience of students
weaknesses
- can be considered to be too subjective
- fails to take into account wider social influences of class, the family and the media
Status within subcultures
- give members a sense of identity and belonging, they may feel part of something bigger and feel fully accepted within the group. this gives them a sense of status and power when they may feel they have very little status in society at large
- gang leaders have higher status than gang members. within groups there are different pecking order of most to least powerful in terms of social honour, decision making and access to resources or people
Power and status for cultures
need both to make a change, as you may have power and no status= not taken seriously
may have status and no power=well regarded but don’t have the means to make a change
FOLK
-Lp -Ls
HIGH
-Lp -Hs
MASS
-Hp -Ls
POPULAR
-Hp -Hs
SUB
-Lp -Ls
marxist view on deviance
2 types of deviance
FINANCIAL (money) and NON FINANCIAL(protesting against the capitalist system)
-capitalism makes people greedy as people want the same as others
-greed/ competition( exclusion)- commit crimes/ cheat to be like the bourgeoisie, but the poor are prosecuted differently
-selective law enforcement = proletariat are policies heavier than the bourgeoisie (rich set the rules of society to benefit them, at the expense of the poor)
DARK FIGURE of crime= the difference in recorded crimes and actual crime
Interactionist perspective of crime and deviance
- argues that no act is always deviant
- definitions of crime/ deviance are negotiated through interaction between deviants and those who define themselves as such
- these people are known as the “agents of social control”
e. g teachers and police (actions are not deviant until AoSC decide they are) - the importance is placed on the meanings behind interaction
- interested in how and why someone is labelled criminal or deviant and what effect this has
Beckers labelling theory
- no such thing as a deviant act
- the application of a label depends on how an act is perceived, who commits the act, where and when it happens
Effects : Master status self fulfilling prophecy LABEL APPLIED FURTHER DEVIANCE RETURN(OR TURN) TO CRIME DEVIANT CAREER DEVIANT SUBCULTURE
MASTER STATUS= key part of your identity becomes deviant, other labels become less important than their deviant label
Beckers labelling theory
STRENGTHS
- successfully uses a micro sociological approach to explain how crime and deviance are defined
- illustrates the way in which labelling is a process which depends on circumstances
- recognises that crime and deviance is a social construct and therefore explains why definitions change over time and in different cultures
Beckers labelling theory
WEAKNESSES
- offers no explination as to the causes of crime in the first instance, unlike macro sociological explanations
- too preoccupied with the consequences of a label being applied
- some acts ARE always criminal or deviant and do not require a label e.g murder
- some argue it is too deterministic tat once a label is applied s person will inevitably become more criminal or deviant. this is not always the case
PRIMARY DEVIANCE
parking on double yellow lines
- not putting a trolley back
- lying about age to get a cheaper price
SECONDARY DEVIANCE
- taking class A drugs
- murder
- rape
Formation of identity
FUNCTIONALIST
- family are they key agent of P socialisation
- people form their identity in relation to the structures of society, to work in the world, play their part harmoniously following norms and values
Formation of identity
MARXIST
- formation of subcultures is due to turning against the oppressive bourgeoisie
- children are taught to obey these powers
Formation of identity
FEMINIST
- destinct gender roles are taught from a young age through PS
- clothes/ toys= pink or blue
- gender jobs= taught by parents
- taught to identify as what you are born as
Formation of identity
SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM
- role taking= being able to see yourself from someones perspective
- language allows us to engage in unique social behaviour
- sig. others teach us how to behave socially = parents =we see how they act and learn from that
- symbolising = learn empathy by imagining yourself as someone else or in a particular situ. = begin to understand yourself
MODS vs ROCKERS - stan cohen
media hype in the late 1960s
mods were well dressed/ up to date
rockers were bikers who wore lots of leather
often got into fights with each other
media coverage was a crucial link between the two= made the violence seem worse than it actually was
society turned on young people and created a moral panic
- cohens finding went against what the media was saying
- the violence was minimal
- the majority at the seaside weren’t mods or rockers
the groups = folk devils
media= moral entrepreneurs
whole situ= moral panic created by the media
Changing understanding on gender
SOCIAL MEDIA
-+ve impact= allows people to have a virtual world outwit their problems
allows people to voice their opinions
highlights problems within society on a large scale METOO
-ve impact= young women may base their appearance on how celebs appear on platforms
-reinforced stereotypical views on F/M
-males may feel they have to be tough/ strong
Changing understanding on gender
GLOBALISATION
way that nations around the world are interconnected
cultures are shared rapidly where everyone in the world adopts american culture
adopting from USA affects the way we see women because of the way they are seen on TV shows
american culture is seen as higher (more power)
when a bay is born parents will discuss the future depending on the gender
international peer pressure = cause counties to be pressured into passing laws against gender descrimnatin= Saudi Arabia = women can drive
Changing understanding on gender
COMPLEXITY OF MODERN LIFE
giving in a post modern era
more choices = causing or norms / values to become confused
tv shows used to only have a small range of channels that reinforce the same n/v to the masses but that isn’t the case anymore
gender roles are less specific and more subject to change
society is less likely to reject people for not conforming to gender roles as it is more open to changing roles taken on by different generations
Changing understanding on gender
FEMINISM
FWF focussed on achieving legal rights = vote/ legal custody of women
works published by wo
SWF focused on gaining workplace, sexuality, family and reproductive rights
works published by women are now fully recognised
gender studies are now being taught at the highest level of education across the word
Age
FUNCTIONALIST PERSPECTIVE
to enable younger people to assume important roles, society must encourage older people to disengage from their previous roles and to take on roles more appropriate to their physical and mental decline
age
INTERACTIONIST PERSPECTIVE
older people benefit themselves and their society if they continue to be active
their positive perception of the ageing process are crucial for their ability to remain active
Age
CONFLICT PERSPECTIVE
older people experience age based prejudice and discrimination inequalities among he aged exist along the lines of gender are and ethnicity and social class ge is a social contract and therefore society perception of it changes across time and place
Age
CHILDHOOD
0-12
Lp -Ls up to end of primary innocent stil developing/ growing less experienced
Age
ADOLESCENCE
12-18
Lp -Ls teenager/ high school still developing disliked by many= troublesome gaining more experience
Age
YOUNG ADULTHOOD
18-25
More power but still low
college/ uni
no longer developing but gaining experience
role models for younger people
Age
MID LIFE
25-60
Hp -Hs
role models
full time careers
expected to advance/ be advanced
Age
OLD AGE
60+
Lp - Ls mentally/ physically declining expected to retie/ be retired wise/ experienced respect
FOLK DEVILS AND MORAL PANICS - stan cohen
STRENGTHS
- cohen has highlighted stat moral panics can occur when behaviour or values emerge that can be perceived as a threat to social order. this is still a relevant observation in modern dat britain e.g fear over immigrants and asylum seekers and the rise of parties like UKIP to combat the perceived threat
- cohen demonstrates that concerns can escalate through media senstaionalism and shows how the process od deviance amplification creates folk devils. this has given us an insight in to the way that provocative media reports and negative public opinion leads to such groups being even more socially excluded or deviant, which in turn can cause them to identify even more strongly with their sub cultural identities
FOLK DEVILS AND MORAL PANICS - stan cohen
WEAKNESSES
- cohen is writing from an interactionist perspective where there is a tendency to ficus on the lower levels of social control like the police without looking at the role of the state
- interactionists do not look at where these stereotypes of these groups come from
- when interactionists focus on labelling of deviance they fail to examine the reasons for deviant behaviour in the first place
EDUCATION
THE GENDERED SUBJECT -becky francis (2000)
FEMINISM
- -males still dominate the classroom and get more teacher attention than girls
- boys tend to be disciplined more frequently than girls and girls received less attention as a result
- gender devision was getting stronger = less girls going into IT and pure science degrees than 10 years earlier
STRENGTHS
- updatres the work of Spender and Stanworth in 1983
- recognises improvements in female educational achievement
- highlights the inferior position held by females in school and the wider society
WEAKNESSES
- limited study that was confined to schools in london
- research was mostly based on observation which is subjective
EDUCATION
SCHOOLING IN CAPITALIST AMERICA - bowles and gintis (1976/2001)
MARXIST
schools serve the needs of the economic elite
MYTH OF MERITOCRACY
-students with similar abilities not end up in the same occupations after education- so education is not a meritocracy
-families from different class backgrounds socialise their children in different ways = working background of parents tends to be reproduces in the minds of their children
CORRESPONDENCE THEORY
- the way each social class socialises its children produces a correspondence between the family and the workplace
- reporoduces the class structures in a capitalist society
- the experience of young people correspondens to their experience in the workplace
STRENGTHS
- expaians why some children do better than others of the same ability level
- sinse new labour education does not work to serve the needs of the industry
- some evidence that the work ethic of parents is reproduced in their children
WEAKNESSES
- schools are committed to a programme of social inclusion which includes promoting the educational opportunities of those from poorer backgrounds
- some children actively seek to go in another direction from their parents = the study doesnt account for that
EDUCATION
PARENTAL SUPPORT AND EDUCATION - leon feinstein (2003)
FUNCTIONALISM
- the school an able child attends makes little difference to their educational performance = able students performed well in schools situated in working class areas
- financial deprivation had some effect on academic attainment but this was largely related to parental interest= most important factor was the extent to which parents encouraged and supported their children
STRENGTHS
- large study= representative of the population
- successfuly identified differences in attainment levels between different social classes
WEAKNESSES
- place the lame of the childs failure on the child and their parents thereby diverting attention away from the failings of the education system
- conclusions of parental interest= based on teachers assumptions = working class parents may have less time due to the demands of their job/ might be put off by their own experiences
