Sociology: Theories and Institutions 11.1 [HY]

Question 1

Psychologists vs Sociologists

Answer 1

psychologists focus on the behaviors of individuals, sociologists focus on the way groups organize and interact

Question 2

Micro level (Sociology)

Answer 2

family groups and local communities

Question 3

Meso level (Sociology)

Answer 3

organizations, institutions, and ethnic subcultures

Question 4

Macro level (Sociology)

Answer 4

national and international systems

Question 5

Theoretical approaches to sociology used to

Answer 5

help analyze and explain aspects of human social behavior

Question 6

Symbolic interactionism

Answer 6

• Studies how humans interact and communicate using language, writing, and other symbols
• attempts to understand
  human action and interaction by studying the symbols we use to communicate

Question 7

3 main assumptions of symbolic interactionism

Answer 7

• Humans act toward symbols based on the meanings that these symbols carry.
• The meanings symbols carry come from social interaction.
• Humans interpret the meaning of symbols, and this interpretation influences action.

Question 8

Symbolic Interactionism in Human vs Dogs

Answer 8

lower animals simply respond to stimuli, while humans have the capability to interpret the stimulus first, then react

Question 9

Major limitation of symbolic interactionism

Answer 9

it overlooks macrolevel
structures, like cultural norms or class interactions

Question 10

Social constructionism

Answer 10

• the attempt to understand a society through the study of the society’s social constructs
• Abstract ideas might also
  be social constructs; like honor and justice rely on group agreement among individuals within a given society, and these concepts are therefore social constructs
• useful for explaining micro- and meso-level sociological phenomena.

Question 11

Limit of social constructionism

Answer 11

this theory cannot account for
macro-level sociological phenomena

Question 12

Rational choice theory

Answer 12

• micro- to meso-level approach to sociology
• focuses on individual decision making
• humans will make rational choices to further their own self-interests
• becomes a model of sociology when this idea of rational transactions is applied to the social interaction
• views all social interactions as
  transactions that take into consideration the benefits and harms to the
  individual.
• chooses the option that results in the greatest social benefit

Question 13

Exchange theory

Answer 13

• People stay in relationships because they get something from the exchange, and they leave relationships when there are more social costs than benefits.

Question 14

Limitation of rational choice (exchange) theory

Answer 14

does not easily explain charitable, illogical, unselfish, or
altruistic behavior

Question 15

Conflict theory (Marx)

Answer 15

a macro theory that attempts to understand society by examining the inevitable conflicts between groups in society

Question 16

Capitalist (bourgeoisie) class Marx

Answer 16

• private ownership naturally leads to a small, wealthy capitalist (bourgeoisie) class, who control the means of production
• rest of society is relegated to a lower worker (proletariat) class
• Because the capitalist class owns the means of production, this class has power over the worker class, and the disparity in power and resources between these two groups leads to conflict

Question 17

Modern conflict theory

Answer 17

• examines any conflict
  between groups with more power and those with less
• whereas Marx focused specifically on conflict between capitalists and workers
• conflict might exist between people of different generations, different religions, or different regions of a country.
• individuals in the group with more power attempt to preserve their power by shaping the structure of society itself. The group with more power uses their influence to dictate the laws, customs, and cultural norms of the society.
• for the more powerful in society, maintenance of the status quo is usually desirable, and for the less powerful, change comes through
  disruption and revolution

Question 18

Interest Groups

Answer 18

• if people in lower-status
  positions recognize the power differential and see that others share a common dissatisfaction, then these individuals can organize
• they can use tools such as protesting or voting to enact change and equalize power

Question 19

Limits of Modern conflict theory

Answer 19

• not very effective for explaining the choices of individuals in society.
• tend to focus on social stress and disharmony, so conflict theory is less effective than some other models at explaining social cohesion, cooperation, and altruism.

Question 20

Structural-functionalism

Answer 20

• Inverse of conflict theory
• concerned with social cohesion and stability
• compared society to
  an organism and proposed that each group in society has a role to play in the overall health and operation of society. These roles might be very different, in the same way that different organs or even different cells have very different functions within an organism, but each is important *and has a function

Question 21

Manifest function (structural-functionalism)

Answer 21

an intended consequence of the actions of a group within a society

Question 22

Latent function (latent functions)

Answer 22

unintended but beneficial consequences

Question 23

Dysfunctions

Answer 23

negative consequences of the existence of an institution, organization, or interaction

Question 24

Limits of structural functionalism

Answer 24

• focuses on social cohesion and equilibrium, this approach is not well suited for explaining social change.
• does not explain how individuals interact
  within a group only how groups
  interact with other groups

Question 25

Glass escalator

Answer 25

even in cases where men do not seek to climb the job ladder, invisible social forces sometimes push men up to higher positions

Question 26

Social institutions

Answer 26

• well-established social structures that dictate certain
  patterns of behavior or relationships and are accepted as a fundamental part of culture
• The exact nature of each institution differs from culture to culture, although each institution performs a similar role regardless of culture
• Education, Family, Religion, Government, Economy, Medicine

Question 27

Patterns of kinship

Answer 27

• the people who live in my
  house.” In fact, even terms for different family members (such as sister, father, cousin, and so on) are not conserved across time and culture
• family is the most basic of institutions. It is the institution most closely tied to the individual and helps to meet many of our most basic needs

Question 28

Domestic violence and Divorce stats

Answer 28

• Divorce rates in the United States rose significantly in the second half of the
  twentieth century but have started to drop over the last two decades
• Domestic violence is the #1
  cause of injury to American women

Question 29

Hidden Curriculum (education)

Answer 29

• transmitting social norms, attitudes, and beliefs to students

Question 30

Teacher expectancy

Answer 30

• the idea that teachers tend to get what they expect from
  students.
• a teacher who places high demands on students—but who also believes that students can rise to the challenge—will more often see students succeed than a teacher who places the same demands but doubts that the students can achieve them

Question 31

Fundamentalism

Answer 31

• strict adherence to religious code

Question 32

Socialist economies

Answer 32

• treats large industries as
  collective, shared businesses, and compensation is provided based on the work contribution of each individual into the system

Question 33

What is paternalism in medicine?

Answer 33

doctor knows best mentality

Question 34

Sick role

Answer 34

patients are not responsible for their illness and are exempt from normal social roles

Question 35

Illness experience

Answer 35

the ways in which people, rather than doctors, define and adjust to changes in their health

Question 36

Social epidemiology

Answer 36

social epidemiology is specifically the study of the effects of institutions, social structures, and relationships on health

Question 37

Justice (key tenet of medical ethics)

Answer 37

the physician has a responsibility to treat similar patients with similar care