Social Structures Flashcards
A theoretical approach in understanding structures and institutions based on their functions
Functionalism
Intended functions of an institution
Manifest functions
Unintended functions of an institution
Latent functions
Example of manifest and latent function
4 year college
Manifest: providing a liberal arts education to students
Latent: being a credential for obtaining a job, connecting students with it alumni network, provide a space to experiment with living independently before having a full-time job, reinforces patterns of social inequality (an example of latent dysfunction)
Latent function that is negative
Latent dysfunction
A sociological theory that focuses on competition for resources between structures or groups
*Leads to conflicts and power differentials
Conflict Theory
Conflict theory example
4 year colleges
Conflict theorists will focus on how education control various economic opportunities in society or how SES and pre-existing resources shape access to 4 year college education
SES & resources —> College education —> Economic opportunities
Conflict theory trickery
Sibling argument because of annoying friends or bad attitude is not conflict theory
Sibling argument because of attention struggle from parents or resources can be conflict theory
T or F. Functionalism and Conflict Theory are mainly involved in macrosociology .
True
Symbolic Interactionism
- Requires an interaction
- Symbols- has a shared sense of meaning in society (hand-shaking as greeting), includes rituals and other social practices
The meaning of social structures/ concepts emerges from how we think and communicate about them
Social constructionism
Ex. Holidays, scientific method, gender roles, love, patriotism, respect, etc.
Symbolic interactionism vs Social constructionism
SI- focus on people interacting with each other in symbolic activities, tends to be microsociological
SC- focus on how we construct symbols, tends to be macro
Choose actions to maximize the likelihood of accomplishing certain goals
(It is not about what they value, but how they choose to act in pursuit of their goals)
Rational Choice Theory
Views social interactions as interchanges with costs and rewards
Social Exchange Theory
Ex. Friendship
The goal of understanding and remedying gender injustices through a focus on lived experiences and objective data
feminist theory
Education topic in MCAT
Unintended consequences of education
- Hidden curriculum- does not have to be negative
- Inequalities in education (segregation- race, poverty, stratification- SES: people with higher status have more options for education system)
- Teacher expectations
Kinship of descent vs kinship do affinity
Descent- based on shared ancestry
Affinity- based on marriage and adoption
Functions as institutions that replicate themselves over time and structure people’s lives by providing rituals, community, ethical frameworks, and important life events
Religion
Max Weber’s Sociology of Religion (spectrum of religious organizations)
Churches- stable, organized, and bureaucratic
Denominations- different interpretations, traditions, same religious context
Sects- smaller, dissident, and split-off
The cumulative impact of technological advances from the last century
Modernization
Impact of modernization on religion
- Secularization- decreased religiosity
2. Fundamentalism- literal, uncompromising approach to religion (superiority over other faith communities)
Government: power and authority
Power- the ability to get things done and compel certain behaviors
Authority- the legitimacy and right of the government to structure citizens’ lives
A type of government in which rulership, or sovereignty, is passed down in a defined succession usually through family networks.
Monarchy
Ex. United Kingdom- constitutional monarchy: a constitution puts restriction in place on a monarch’s power
Absolute monarchies: the king or queen is the sole person in charge
Type of government in which citizens have no input into the government, and are expected to obey whatever the government decides. In this system, the government minimizes its intrusions into citizens; private lives, while repressing outwards forms of dissent that could destabilize the system
Authoritarianism
*there are some soft authoritarian systems in which some elections may occur but with minted Chaucer of candidates
This type of government is like authoritarianism but the government regulates every aspect of life, including citizens’ communications, and any form of dissent whatsoever can be brutally punished
Totalitarianism
Ex. Nazi Germany and Stalinist period in the Soviet Union
Type of government where people vote
Democracy
Type of democracy in which people vote for laws themselves
Direct democracy
Type of democracy where people vote for representative who then make laws.
Indirect democracy or democratic republics
Ex. The federal government of US
*this is not exclusive. Indirect and direct can both be present
This type of economic framework is characterized by private ownership, both of property and of companies that produce goods and provide services
Capitalism
This type of economic framework emphasizes social ownership and workers; self-management, whether collectively or through the gov’t, but still maintaining many of the structures characteristic of a capitalist state
Socialism
This type of economic framework is formally defined as a utopian society, the end-goal of a transformation that proceeds through capitalism and socialism, in which society becomes class-less, state-less, and free of hierarchy
Communism
*have never been achieved
Anarcho-communism
System of communism that wouldn’t have centralized state at all
Capitalism is also sometimes associated with ___________, which refers to a movement tried to completely minimize the role of government.
Libertarianism
This allows everyone to be really good at something, and then we can work together to do lots of different things, rather than everyone producing and maintaining every single thing they own
Division of labor
There is no often self-evident objective boundary between things that are medical conditions and things that aren’t, and we negotiate and construct these boundaries as a culture. Social constructionism applied to medicine
Medicalization
Reflects a social consensus that it’s not someone;s fault that he or she becomes sick, and that sickness can make a person exempt from normal social responsibilities as a result, but with expectation to behave in certain ways- try to get better and listen to medical professionals
Sick role
* a key feature of the sick role is the balance of rights and responsibilities
The sick role works better for acute or chronic illnesses?
Acute such as flu.
Chronic illnesses that an be managed are usually exempt from the rights of the sick role
T or F. The sick role is consistent across relationships and cultures
False.
In the past, physicians often made decisions on patients’ behalf, without giving them much input or even information about their conditions. This is known as?
Paternalism
This paradigm is formulated in the US in an attempt to avoid paternalism and other potentially unjust or harmful patterns
Medical ethics
The medical ethics focus on these 4 principles
Beneficence, nonmaleficence, respect for Patrice to autonomy, and justice
What does nonmaleficence mean?
“Do no harm”
This field deals with who gets various illnesses, and how those patterns are affected by factors like age, se, where people live, behavioral patterns, SES, etc.
Epidemiology
*epidemiology can be applied to all diseases, not just infectious diseases
focuses on how social factors contribute to illness and health
Social epidemiology
