Sociological Theories Flashcards
which sociological theories are macro?
Functionalism and Conflict theory
Which sociological theories are micro?
symbolic interactionism, rational choice theory and exchange theory
Which theories can be BOTH micro and macro?
social constructionism and feminism
What is functionalism and who is the theorist
Functionalism: parts of society work together to maintain stability (dynamic equilibrium)
theorist: Durkheim
What is conflict theory? Name the theorist
Conflict theory: parts of society work against each other in completion for limited resources
Theorists: Marx, Weber
Describe symbolic interactionism ? Who is the theorist?
Symbolic interactionism: individuals communicate with each other using culturally learned symbols
Theorist: Mead
What is social constructionism? is it macro or micro?
Social constructionism: individual interaction results in socially agreed-upon constructs
what is rational choice theory? Is it macro or micro?
Rational choice theory: individuals act based on costs and benefits.
it is micro
What is exchange theory? is it micro or macro?
Exchange theory: individuals interact based on rewards (benefits) and punishments (costs)
-micro
Define feminism. Is it micro or macro?
Feminism: women deserve rights that are politically, socially and economically equal to men
-can be BOTH micro or macro
Define sociology
Sociology: the study of society and the individual in relationship to society
What are the Big three classical sociological theories ?
Functionalism (macro), Conflict theory (macro) and symbolic interactionism (micro)
Differentiate between manifest and latent functions
Manifest: intended or obvious reasons for something
Latent: Not intended; less recognizable
Ex: manifest for attending school would be to better critical thinking skills. Latent function would be social networking
What are conflict theorists primarily concerned with ?
imbalances in wealth, power and prestige among major groups in society
What is capitalism ?
capitalism: an economic system that encourages private ownership in order to produce profit and thereby wealth
What is socialism?
Socialism: an economic system in which most means of production are collectively owned in order to benefit all members of society equally
What is class consciousness?
Class consciousness: a social condition in which a members of a subordinate social class are aware they as a group are being exploited by the wealthy
What are symbols?
symbols: culturally derived social objects that have shared meanings created and maintained through social interaction
(ex: ties, logos, food sharing)
Discuss the “I” and “Me” theory and which theorist came up with it
Herbert Mead came up with I and Me theory.
The “Me” : the social self; develops through interactions with others and is based on our interpretation of how generalized others view us
The “I” : is the response to me; one’s personal identity and individuality
What is the looking Glass self? What sociological theory does it fall under?
Looking glass self: process of how individuals base their sense of self on how they believe others view them
it falls under symbolic interactionism (Charles Cooley)
Define social construct. What is an example of social construct?
Social construct: anything that is made real due to human interaction
ex: Childhood
-despite bio differences between adults and children, different societies have conceptualized childhood in different ways
What are major social constructs ?
Mental health and Illness
Race and Ethnicity
Money and wealth
Prestige and Power
Age and Time
What is intersectionality ?
Intersectionality: the study of how social identities (such as gender, race, class) interact
What is glass escalator?
Glass escalator: describes the way men are fast-tracked to advanced positions when enter pink collar positions
What is glass ceiling?
Glass ceiling: an invisible barrier that prevents a given demographic from rising beyond a certain level in a hierarchy
is rational choice theory and exchange theory micro or macro?
They can be both micro or macro. They weigh the costs and benefits of potential actions and always behave according to whichever outcome is most favorable
Describe Anomie
Anomie is a state of few to no moral or social guidelines. It most likely occurs in societies where individualism and autonomous decision making predominate
what theory would social solidarity and collective consciousness be apart of?
Structural functionalism
What is intersectionality ? what theory is it under?
Intersectionality:study of how various oppressive institutions (like racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, classism, etc.) are interconnected, often compound one another, and cannot be examined separately.
intersectionality is under feminist theory
Differentiate between Herbert Mead’s theory of Me and I
The ME component of the self seen as as the socialized and conforming aspect, while the I is the more spontaneous, less socialized, and individualized aspect of the self.
What is socialization? Which theory does it come fro
key concept in social constructionism is socialization
Socialization: the way in which social constructs are maintained, reaffirmed, and passed along to future generations.
what are agents of socialization?
Agents of socialization include things like popular culture, religion, schools, and the family
Which theory would view global variation in discussing mental health?
SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONISM
-Social constructionism argues that nothing is inherently real and that each culture defines reality for itself, including variations in mental health diagnosis and classification.
What is feminist theory interested in focusing on?
Feminist theory focuses on all forms of gender and sex inequality, especially in how different sexes and/or genders are treated/behave differently.
Which theory is feminist theory similar to ?
Conflict theory!!
Feminist theories, similar to conflict theories, are focused on structured social inequalities . Conflict theories are interested in social, political, and material inequalities.
What is Mcdonalization? which theorist does it relate to?
McDonalization : takes the concept of the bureaucracy (which ideally should be predictable, uniform, efficient, and automated) and applies it to chain stores, consumerism, chain stores, and society as a whole.
This is analogous to Weber’s (conflict theory) conception of rationalization
What is internal locus of control?
Internal locus of control: individual feels they are able to influence the outcome (a disposition that is not likely to lead to learned helplessness)
What is external locus of control?
An external locus of control, means that an individual feels like outside factors or forces will determine the outcome of a situation (they feel they have no control over the outcome of a situation) which likely leads to learned helplessness
What is social facilitation?
Social facilitation occurs when an individual is able to perform a simple task or skill somehow better in front of others than when alone
What is stereotype threat?
Stereotype threat is a phenomenon whereby the performance of individuals who belong to negatively stereotyped groups is reduced because these individuals experience anxiety in situations in which an individual has the potential to confirm a negative stereotype about his or her social group.
Describe which countries contribute to increase in population.
This process suggests that birth rates are highest in the least developed regions and lowest in the most developed regions. Thus, developing countries are responsible for the greatest contributions to the global population.
Differentiate between developing and developed countries
Thus, developing countries are some of the least industrialized regions and developed countries are some of the most industrialized regions
what is the self-serving bias?
Self-serving bias is the tendency to attribute our successes to ourselves (e.g. “I worked hard and deserved a good grade”) and our failures to others (e.g. “the teacher failed me because he hates me”)
What is optimism bias?
Optimism bias: belief that bad things happen to others but not to ourselves
What is fundamental attribution error?
The fundamental attribution error occurs when we tend to blame dispositional factors for others’ behavior (e.g. “she yelled at me because she’s a jerk”)
What is actor-observer bias?
actor-observer bias occurs when we tend to blame situational factors for our own behavior (e.g. “I yelled at her because work is really stressing me out”
What is group polarization?
Group polarization occurs when the average group member’s opinion becomes more extreme after group interaction; individual attitudes strengthen and intensify after group discussion
What is social loafing?
Social loafing occurs when individuals exert less effort in a group setting than they would if their performance was based solely on their personal effort
Define social reproduction
Social reproduction refers to the phenomenon of social inequality being transmitted from one generation to the next;
What is Deindividuation?
Deindividuation refers to the loss of one’s sense of self, typically when in a large crowd and/or during an emotionally arousing event (ex: MOB)
according to elaboration likelihood model, what are source characteristics ?
According to the Elaboration Likelihood Model of persuasion, the source characteristics include the person or organization delivering the message; messages from individuals or organizations that are highly reputed (such as experts or well-known organization) are more likely to be persuasive than messages from less credible sources
What are target characteristics for elaboration likelihood model?
The target characteristics include the features of the person receiving the message, such as self-esteem, motivation, mood, and intelligence
What are message characteristics for elaboration likelihood mold of persuasion?
The message characteristics, include the features of the message itself, including length, complexity, and logic
What is a reference group?
A reference group is a group that provides one with a model of appropriate beliefs, actions, and values; this is either a group you are currently a member of, or wish to be a member of
