Psych/Soc: Culture, Demographics, and Social Inequality

Question 1

Sociobiology

Answer 1

The study of how biology and evolution have affected human social behavior

Question 2

*Cultural transmission

Answer 2

process through which cultural understanding is spread across generations, or the mechanisms of learning

Question 3

Cultural lag

Answer 3

material culture changes much faster than non-material culture, which often resists change
Transformative social changes like tech innovations often challenge our understanding of the world bc no social consensus about the new innovation
the creation of social rules lags behind

Question 4

Sociocultural evolution

Answer 4

Theories that describe the processes through which societies and cultures have progressed over time
Both individuals behavior and social structures change and sociologists argue that this is due to social factors such as social interactions rather than biological factors

Question 5

Crude birth rate/ Crude death rate

Rate of population change

Answer 5

Crude birth rate - annual number of births per 1,000 ppl in population
Crude death rate - annual number of deaths per 1,000 ppl in population
Rate of population change - difference b/w crude birth and death rates

Question 6

Prevalence rate and incidence rate

Answer 6

Prevalence rate - number of individuals experiencing a disease
Incidence rate - number of new cases of disease

Question 7

Gentrification

Answer 7

Refers to renovation of urban areas in a process of urban renewal and introduces wealthier citizens to the area

Question 8

*Demographic Transition Theory

Answer 8

Transition from overall higher to overall lower birth and death rates as a result of a country’s development from a pre-industrial to industrial framework due to both economic and social changes, thus fertility and mortality rates decrease
(first death rates fall and then birth rates fall)

Look at BOTTOM of population pyramid to see if there will be population growth, stability, or shrinking

Question 9

*Thomas Robert Malthus, Malthusianism, and Malthusian Catastrophe

Answer 9

Thomas Malthus hypothesized that unchecked pop growth would quickly exceed carrying capacity, leading to overpopulation and catastropies like famine or war.
He argued that population is the result of available resources for sustenance and humans are inclined to reproduce, and pop growth is often exponential, especially during times of excess
Malthusianism states that the possible rate of population increase exceeds the possible rate of resource increase. Malthus decribed two forms of checks on population growth:
a) positive checks that raise the death rate, like disease, disasters, hunger, and wars
b) preventative checks that lower the birth rate like abstinence, birth control, late marriage, same-sex relationships :)
Malthusian Catastrophe - when the means of sustenance are not enough to support the population, resulting in reduction through actual or predicted famine

Question 10

Gender schema theory

Answer 10

Study of how gender beliefs become socialized in society

Question 11

Race vs ethnicity

Answer 11

Race (physicial characteristics - skin color, facial structure) vs ethnicity (cultural, ex. Latino)

Question 12

Racialization or ethnicization

Answer 12

Social process in which the dominant group ascribes racial or ethnic identities, perceived or real, to groups that do not otherwise relate to labels

Question 13

*Globalization

Answer 13

process of increasing interdependence of societies and connections b/w ppl across the world

Question 14

*Social stratification

Answer 14

way ppl are categorized in society; ppl can be categorized by race, education, wealth, and income
It serves to define differences/inequalities and reinforce them

Question 15

*Caste system

Answer 15

Lower social mobility, less dependent on effort, social status defined by birth

Question 16

*Class system

Answer 16

Some degree of social mobility, social status determined by birth and individual merit

Question 17

*Meritocracy

Answer 17

Higher social mobility, more dependent on effort,
social status based on individual merit
doesn’t work for countries but works for military, some companies

Question 18

*Socioeconomic status (SES)

Answer 18

power (ability to get other ppl to do something), property (possessions and income), prestige (reputation in society)

Question 19

*Vertical mobility, horizontal mobility, intergenerational mobility, intragenerational mobility, structural mobility

Answer 19

Vertical mobility - up or down movement on social ladder for a person 
Horizontal mobility - change in employment w/o change in social status
Intergenerational mobility - when there's a increase or decrease in social class b/w parents and children Intragenerational mobility - describes differences in social class b/w different members of same generation 
Structural mobility - form of vertical mobility, but with structural it is something that impact society as a whole/great number of ppl in society ex. Pandemic caused ppl to lose income nad potentially drop social class

Question 20

*Social reproduction

Answer 20

occurs when social inequality is transmitted from one generation to the next
Refers to structures and activities in place in society that serve to transmit and reinforce social inequality

Question 21

*Cultural capital
Social capital
Physical capital

Answer 21

Cultural capital -> non-financial social assets that promote social mobility beyond economic means, such as education, intellect, style of speech, dress, and even physical appearance
Social capital - refers to the potential for social network to allow for upward social mobility
Physical capital - money, property, land, other physical assets

Question 22

*Socioeconomic gradient in health

Answer 22

Theory that there exists a proportional increase in health and health outcomes as socioeconomic status increases
The gradient extends from the top to the bottom ranks of society; it is not simply a poverty threshold that separates those with awful versus good health

Health can be bought like other goods so the socioeconomic gradient affects individual’s ability to pay for health care. This gradient applies within countries (higher SES ppl tend to have better health outcomes) and b/w countries (countries with higher gross domestic product tend to have better health outcomes)

Question 23

*Absolute and relative poverty

Marginal poverty
Structural poverty
Residual poverty

Answer 23

Relative poverty example: Inability to meet average standard, ex. don’t have smartphone, so Relative poverty refers to social disadvantage by income or wealth as COMPARED TO the social advantages linked to income or wealth in a society/ Comparing ourselves to those around us
Absolute poverty: Inability to meet bare min, leads to death
Marginal: Lacking stable employment, people lack the minimum amount of income needed in order to maintain avg standard of living in society
Residual: chronic, multigenerational
Structural: structural poverty refers to poverty that is derivative of the way that we have structured our economy. In particular, when I use it, I am generally referring to the way in which market economic structures (which, recall, are imposed by governments) distribute income, and how that distribution causes regular patterns of impoverishment.

Question 24

*Race vs ethnicity

Answer 24

Race - due to physical characteristics, shared geneology due to geographical isolation
Ethnicity - due to common nationality or shared cultural traditions, defined by BELIEF in shared genealogy

Question 25

*Environmental Injustice

Answer 25

Low socioeconomic status and minority groups tend to live in areas where environmental hazards and toxins are disproportionally high

Question 26

Residential segregation

Social segregation

Answer 26

Residential segregation - physical separation of groups into diff areas, typically along lines of race, ethnicity, social status
Social segregation - tendency of ppl from same social groups to interact with each other and have minimal contact with individuals from other social groups

Question 27

*Status - socially defined position in society
Master status
Ascribed status
Achieved status

Answer 27

Master status - role or position that dominates; this tends to determine your general “place” in society
Ascribed status - one assigned to you by society regardless of your effort
Achieved status - one that is earned
Ex. physician = master status and achieved status

Question 28

*Role conflict

Role strain

Answer 28

Role conflict - (multiple roles) occurs when there is conflict among the expectations for multiple social positions
Role strain - (one role) occurs when there is tension in the expectations of a single social position

Question 29

*Group
Aggregate
Category

Answer 29

Group - number of ppl (as few as two) who identify and interact
Aggregate - includes ppl who exist in the same space, but do not identify or interact (line at the bank)
Category - shares certain characteristics, but does not regularly interact (athletes, soldiers, have things in common but don’t interact)

Question 30

*Primary group

Secondary group

Answer 30

Primary group - usually larger, close/personal/enduring relationships over long period of time (families, friends)
Secondary group - usually larger, impersonal, goal-oriented, shorter-term (classmates in a college course, athletic teams, office)

Question 31

*In-group
Out group
Reference group

Answer 31

*In-group - Any group that a person belongs to and identifies with (MCAT taker)
Out group - any group a person does not belong to (me and Lawyers)
Reference group - group that one identifies with and compares themselves to, they may or may not be a member of the group (me and doctor, me and MCAT takers)