Social Theories and Social Structures Flashcards
standard deviations away from the mean
- 1 - 68%
- 2 - 95%
- 3 - 99%
population
- all of the potential people a study is trying to understand
sample
- a subset of the population whose data is utilized in the study.
sample statistic
- a value taken from a sample
population parameter
- a value taken from a population
type 1 error
- false positive
type 2 error
- false negative
internal validity
- the extent to which we can say that the change in the outcome variable is due to the intervention
external validity
- the extent to which the findings can be generalized to the real world.
what is absolutely essential in any study?
- assignment must be random!
functionalism
- parts of society work together to maintain stability (dynamic or equilibrium)
- compares society to a living organism
- macro (top-down)
- Durkheim
conflict theory
- parts of society work against each other in competition for limited resources
- macro (top-down)
- Marx/Weber
Symbolic interactionism
- individuals communicate with each other using culturally learned symbols
- micro (bottom-up)
- Mead
social constructionism
- individual interaction results in socially agreed upon “constructs”
- can be both
- bottom-up approach
rational choice theory
- individuals act based on the costs and benefits
- micro
social exchange theory
- individuals interact based on rewards (benefits) and punishments (costs)
- micro
feminism
- women deserve rights that are politically, socially, and economically equal to men
- can be both
manifest function
- intended and obvious consequences of a structure
latent function
- unintended or less obvious consequences
Karl Marx view of capitalism
- capitalism produces internal tensions that will ultimately destroy capitalist society, to be replaced by socialism
Max Weber view of capitalism
- capitalist system does lead to conflict, but the collapse is not inevitable.
founding fathers of sociology
- Durkheim
- Marx
- Weber
socialization
- the dynamic, ongoing process by which an individual internalizes the values, beliefs, and norms of their society and learns to function as a member of that society.
first-wave feminism
- women’s suffrage, to own property, equal rights in marriage, work for wages
second-wave feminism
- gender equality, sexual rights, reproductive rights, resisting patriarchal structure
third-wave feminism
- areas of concern left untheorized by first and second wave feminists who were mostly white, middle-class, heterosexual, and American or European.
intersectionality
- study of overlapping systems of oppression and how systematic injustice and social inequality can occur on a multidimensional basis.
hidden curriculum
- unintentional lessons taught in school about norms, values, and beliefs
teacher expectancy
- expectations about how an individual/group will perform academically that impacts the teachers behavior toward the individual/group and results in individual/group conforming to expectations
monarchy
- a representative from one family controls the government and power is passed on through that family from generation to generation
democracy
- a political system in which citizens periodically choose officials to run their government
authoritarian
- a political system that does not allow citizens to participate in government
totalitarianism
- a political system under which the government maintains tight control over nearly all aspects of citizen’s lives.
welfare capitalism
- a system that features a market-based economy coupled with an extensive welfare system that include free health care and education for all citizens
state capitalism
- a system under which resources and means of production are privately owned but closely monitored and regulated by the government
medicalization
- a social process whereby human conditions come to be defined and treated as medical conditions
conditional sick role
- the condition or illness is temporary
unconditionally legitimate sick role
- condition or illness is incurable
illegitimate role
- the condition or illness is stigmatized by others.
traditional theory
- learning and understanding a given society rather than proactively making change.
value
- culturally approved concept about what is right or wrong
beliefs
- specific ideas that people feel to be true
- values support beliefs
cultural lag
- the fact that culture takes time to catch up with technological innovations;
- causes social problems and conflicts
assimilation
- the process by which a person or a group’s language or culture come to resemble those of another group
multiculturalism
- the preservation of various cultures or cultural identities within a single unified society
ethnocentrism
- the belief in the inherent superiority of one’s own ethnic group or culture
cultural relativism
- the principle that an individual human’s beliefs and activities should be understood by others in terms of that individual’s own culture.
dominant culture
- the group whose members are in the majority or who wield more power than other groups
subculture
- a group that lives differently from, but not opposed to, the dominant culture
- culture within a culture
counterculture
- a subculture that opposes the dominant culture
cultural transmission
- the methods a group of people within a society or culture use to learn and pass on new information
cultural diffusion
- the spread of cultural beliefs and activities from one group to another.
wrote extensively on the nature of capital
- Karl Marx
known for studies of early religious behavior, the effect of religion on social solidarity, and his description of the modern division of labor
- Durkheim
known for his foundational studies in pragmatism and symbolic interaction
- Mead
known for his theories of social structure, economy, and religion
- Weber
