sociology chapter one vocab

Question 1

globalization

Answer 1

process of increasing trans-border connectedness

Question 2

sociology

Answer 2

systematic study of individuals, groups and social structures

Question 3

sociological imagination

Answer 3

ability to link personal lives and experiences with the social word

Question 4

social problem

Answer 4

a social condition, behavior pattern that has negative social consequences

Question 5

objective reality

Answer 5

acknowledging a social problem does exist

Question 6

subjective reality

Answer 6

a social reality inside your mind (opinionated)

Question 7

social construction of reality

Answer 7

the world is a social creation that originates and evolves through everyday thoughts and actions

Question 8

social constructionism

Answer 8

social problems only become real when they are subjectively defined or perceived as a problem

Question 9

theory

Answer 9

a set of assumptions and propositions used for explanation, prediction and understanding

Question 10

macro level of analysis

Answer 10

analyzes society

Question 11

micro level of analysis

Answer 11

analyzes individuals

Question 12

anomie

Answer 12

a state of normlessness

Question 13

functionalist perspective

Answer 13

(macro) society has its own organs (family, religion, politics, etc) that have specific functions and work together

Question 14

dysfunctions

Answer 14

negative consequences of social structure

Question 15

conflict perspective

Answer 15

(macro) society is held together by power and coercion for the benefit of those in power. social problems emerge from conflict between different groups

Question 16

proletariat

Answer 16

working class

Question 17

bourgeoisie

Answer 17

business owners, capitalist ruling class

Question 18

species being

Answer 18

a humans true self

Question 19

alienation

Answer 19

separation from ones species being

Question 20

class consciousness

Answer 20

awareness of ones social positions

Question 21

feminist perspective

Answer 21

gender as a source of social problems. analyzes the lives and situations of women in society

Question 22

patriarchy

Answer 22

a society ruled by men

Question 23

interactionist perspective

Answer 23

(micro) we create our own social reality and social problems through interactions

Question 24

human agency

Answer 24

active role of individuals in creating their social environment

Question 25

symbolic interactionism

Answer 25

how we use language, words and symbols to create and maintain social reality

Question 26

basic research

Answer 26

expands our understanding of the causes and consequences of a social problem

Question 27

applied research

Answer 27

pursuit of knowledge for program application or policy evaluation

Question 28

variables

Answer 28

property of people or objects that can take on two or more values

Question 29

hypothesis

Answer 29

a proposed explanation based on limited evidence

Question 30

dependent variable

Answer 30

variable to be explained

Question 31

independent variable

Answer 31

expected cause of the dependent variable

Question 32

quantitative methods

Answer 32

collection of statistical data

Question 33

qualitative methods

Answer 33

observations of social behavior/activity

Question 34

social policy

Answer 34

enactment of a course of action through a formal law or program

Question 35

social innovation

Answer 35

a policy, program or advocacy that features an untested approach