Term 1 Flashcards
Sociology
The systematic study of human behaviour in social context
Social solidarity
Refers to (1) the degree to which group members shared beliefs and values, and (2) the intensity and frequency of their interaction
Social structures
Relatively stable patterns of social relations
Microstructures
Patterns of relatively intimate social relations formed during face-to-face interaction.
examples) families, friendships, work associations
Macrostructures
Overreaching patterns of social relations that lie outside and above a persons circle of intimates and acquaintances
examples) classes power systems (patriarchy)
Patriarchy
The traditional system of economic and political inequality between women and men in most societies
Global structures
Patterns of social relations that lie outside and above the national level.
Includes international organizations, patterns of worldwide travel and communication, and economic relations between countries
The sociological imagination
The quality of mind that enables a person to see the connection between personal troubles and social structures
Scientific revolution
Began in approximately 1550. Encouraged the view that sound conclusions about the workings of society must be based on solid evidence, not only speculation
Democratic revolution
Began in approximately 1750. Suggested that people are responsible for organizing society and that human intervention can therefore solve this social problems
Industrial revolution
Regarded as the most important event in world history since the development of agriculture in cities, refers to the rapid economic transformation that began in Britain in the 1780s. Involved the large scale application of science and technology to industrial processes, the creation of factories, and the formation of a working class.
Theories
Tentative observations of some aspect of social life that state how and why certain facts are related
Research
The process of systematically observing reality to assess the validity of a theory
Values
Ideas about what is good and bad, right and wrong
Concrete experience
Obtained by the five senses
Abstract experience
The imaginary world of the mind
Concepts
Abstract terms used to organize concrete experience
Propositions
Ideas that result from finding the relationship between concepts
Bias
The systematic tendency to reach a certain type of conclusion or judgement
 pseudoscience
Involves claims and beliefs that sound scientific but do not meet the standards of the scientific method
Objectivity
Assessed by the degree of consistency between the observations of independent observers
Positivists
Assume that social realities are objective and best studied through quantitive research methods
Interpretivists
Assume that social realities are subjectively constructed and our best study through qualitative research methods
Deductive reasoning
Begins with general ideas and proceeds to test their validity on specific cases
Inductive reasoning
Begins with concrete cases and proceeds to identify general patterns and themes
Informed consent
Participants acknowledging that they are aware of the risks of participating in research and are doing it voluntarily
Anonymity
Occurs when a researcher cannot identify research subjects based on evidence
Confidentiality
Occurs when a researcher can identify research subjects by examining evidence but agrees not to do so
Debriefing
Involves interviewing participants after a study to clarify what occurred and deal with any fallout related to deception
Operationalization
The process of translating concepts into variables and propositions into hypotheses
Variable
A measure of a concept that has more than one value or score
Hypothesis
The testable form of a proposition
Independent variable
The presumed “cause” in a cause and affect relationship
Dependant variable
The presumed “effect” in a cause and effect relationship
Experiment
A carefully controlled artificial situation that allows researchers to isolate hypothesized causes and measure their effects precisely
Randomization
Assigns individuals to the experimental or control group by chance processes. Ensures that the two groups are like in all respects
Control group
The group that is not exposed to the independent variable
Experimental group
The group exposed to the independent variable
Validity
The degree to which results reflect reality
Reliability
The degree to which procedures yield consistent results
Survey
Sociologist asking respondents questions about their knowledge, attitudes, or behavior. Either in a face-to-face or telephone interview, online, or paper format.
Sample
The part of the population of research interest that is selected for analysis
Population
The entire group about which the researcher wants to generalize
Probability sample
The units have known and non-zero chance of being selected
Control variable
Identifies the context of the relationship between an independent and dependent variable
Spurious
When a control variable is associated with change in both the independent and dependent variables
Official statistics
Includes data that are collected and analyzed by government agencies, such as unemployment records and the census
Purposive sampling
Involves researchers best judgement to locate members of the population of interest
Snowball sampling
Relies on existing participants to suggest additional subjects who might be willing to participate
Reactivity
Occurs when the presence of a researcher causes the observed people to conceal certain things or act differently
Key informants
Community members who are willing and able to provide credible information about an organizations culture, ideas, activities
Structured interviews
Follow carefully crafted protocols to acquire the respondents view on predetermined subjects
Unstructured or semi-structured interviews
Resemble conversations with pre-defined themes and topics, allow respondents to answer questions in their own words
Exploratory research
Research that seeks to formulate theories about the subject of interest rather than test theories in the rigourous manner of quantitative research
Focus group
Group interviews in which a small number of individuals discuss a specific issue under the guidance of a moderator
Authenticity
The extent to which qualitative investigation captures social realities as experienced by insiders
Mixed methods
Combine quantitative and qualitative methods in a single study
Digital sociology
Using a digital technology as both a tool and subject of research
Nonreactive
Methods involving studying social life without affecting the behaviour of the people involved
Social desirability bias
Error that results from respondents tendencies to answer in ways that will make them look favourable to the researcher
Macro analysis
Includes: culture, society, public policies
Mezzo analysis
Includes: schools, community, health agency
Micro analysis
Includes: family, peers, individuals
Nominal/categorical variable
Numbers are used to represent different conditions, but the phenomenon is not quantitative
Ex) race, neighbourhood, favourite kardashian
Ordinal variable
Different values of the variable can be ranked, but there is no way to measure the precise difference between ranked values.
Ex) class, pain, likert scale
Interval variable
Differences between values are measurable but there is no true zero
Ex) IQ
Ratio variable
Differences between values are measurable, and there exists a real zero (limit does exist)
Ex) number of siblings, income
Likert scale
Questionnaires with a ranking system consisting of “strongly disagree - disagree - neutral - agree - strongly agree”
Central tendency
Summary of the context of one variable.
Measured using: 1) mode, 2) median, 3) mean
Mode
Variable value that is most common, or has the highest count
Median
Value separating the sample into two equal halves
Mean
The average value
Sum of the variable values divided by the number of cases
Proportion
The percentage of a variable that falls into one particular variable value
Ex) proportion of students who prefer online learning = 0.12 , 12%
Range
The upper and lower limits of an interval or ratio level variable (the minimum and maximum of actual observed events)
Inferential statistics
Measure the relationship between two or more variables
Saturation
Occurs when a researcher determines that further data collection is unlikely to yield new information
Ethnography
A researcher embedding themselves in the social situation and make observations from within (observing from the perspective of a participant)
