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SOCI 333 > Test #2: 7 > Flashcards

Test #2: 7 Flashcards

1
Q

If something is institutionalized, what does it mean?

A

-it is stable and reproduced over time

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2
Q

Some times institutions is synonymous with what?

A

-social structures

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3
Q

Parsons, Berger & Luckmann conceptualize institutions as?

A
  • stable, abstract and integrated sets of roles and associated actions
  • reproduced over time and space
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4
Q

What are examples of institutions?

A

-Peters drive-in, gender, hand-shakes

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5
Q

What two things are institutions defined by? Use the example of education

A
  • roles and actions
  • teachers & students
  • lesson planning, teaching, homework etc.
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6
Q

What is the true institution?

A

-the abstract idea of the roles

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7
Q

What do functionalists say about institutions? Use the example of education

A
  • they work to support the maintenance of society as a whole
  • education socializes the new generations with knowledge to fill institutionalized roles
  • this reproduces institutions as a whole
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8
Q

How do marxist’s see institutions?

A

-an economic base institution of material production gives rise to a superstructure of institutions aimed at solidifying the base

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9
Q

What is the economic base compromised of?

A
  • roles, relations and means of production

- that allow society to produce its necessities

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10
Q

Explain how marxist’s see education?

A
  • Education instills the new generation with capitalist ideology
  • they see things like private property and the market as normal and natural
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11
Q

What is similar about the way functionalists and marxists view institutions?

A
  • they see institutions as fitting coherently together in support of the status quo
  • they disagree if the status quo is good or not
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12
Q

Define organizations

A
  • concrete systems of coordinated and controlled activities

- arise when work is embedded in complex networks of technical relations and boundary-spanning exchanges

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13
Q

Simpler definition of organizations?

A

-people coming together in coordination and coorporation to create structures

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14
Q

How do organizations operate? Give an example using education

A
  • they operate in relation to institutionalized templates

- U of C is an organization based on the institutionalized template of the university

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15
Q

Why did neo-institutionalism emerge?

A

-emerged in reaction to shortcomings of rational-choice theory, functionalism and Marxism

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16
Q

What did neo-institutionalism not like about the way functionalists and marxists viewed institutions?

A
  • they understood society as a rationally and coherently-organized set of institutions
  • static as opposed to dynamic
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17
Q

How do neo-institutionalists say marxists and functionalists are wrong in their opinions on institutions?

A
  • empirical evidence demonstrates that organizations are often “dumb”
  • institutions often exist for no reason (irrational and dysfunctional)
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18
Q

What do neo-institutionalists believe about institutions? (3)

A
  • they’re dynamic fields
  • where organizations are constantly positioning themselves relative to each other
  • driven by a concern for legitimacy rather than utility
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19
Q

What do neo-institutionalists mean when they say institutions are driven by a concern for legitimacy and not utility?

A

-institutions focus on sending the right signals to their audience

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20
Q

At the individual level, what do neo-institutionalists mainly draw from?

A
  • theories of practice and pragmatism

- emphasize automatic cognition over RTC/norm based theories

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21
Q

What is the main question in DiMaggio and Powell’s Paper?

A
  • Why are organizations all so similar?
  • tried to answer the questions without assuming efficiency maximization (b/c neo-instit don’t believe institutions are functional)
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22
Q

How did DiMaggio and Powell answer their main question?

A

Institutions as organizational fields:

  • organizations interact with each other
  • they’re involved in a common enterprise
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23
Q

How are organizational fields often influenced?

A

-by common suppliers, resource and product consumers and regulatory agencies

24
Q

What is a product of an organizational field?

A

-isomorphism

25
What is isomorphism?
- a constraining process that forces one unit in a population to resemble other units - that face the same set of environmental conditions
26
What are the three sources of isomorphism?
- coercive - mimetic - normative
27
What is coercive?
- formal and informal pressure exerted on organizations by other organizations - which they are dependent on - by cultural expectations in that society
28
What is an example of coercive?
-government policies and laws
29
What is mimetic?
- uncertainty is a powerful force that encourages imitation - when goals are ambiguous or the environment creates symbolic uncertainty - organizations may model themselves on other organizations - particularly that they perceive to be more legitimate or successful
30
What is an example of mimetic?
-urban planners look to successful cities like Vancouver
31
What is normative?
- organizations often rely on professionals - defined by similar knowledge base, professional norms and networks - that cut across individual organizations
32
What is an example of normative?
-accounting practices being more determined by professional norms that by decisions made within the organization itself
33
What is George Simmel's formal sociology?
- a focus on social form over the content - can focus on the size of the groups (dyad vs. triad) - or the type of interactions (superior vs. subordinate etc)
34
What did Simmel say about a dyad vs a triad?
-in a dyad any member of the group can destroy it but this is not possible in a triad
35
Who picked up Simmel's formal sociology and what question did they try to answer?
- John Levi Martin in his book social structures | - What forms of social relationships can develop into large scale social institutions ?
36
What two types of social institutions did Levi Martin talk about and what was important about each?
- clique vs. patronage triangle - in the clique, everyone knows everyone and it is symmetrical however, it cannot grow very large - in the patronage triangle, it can grow really big but you only know a few people
37
What did Levi Martin's ideas lead to?
-a method of sociology called Social network analysis
38
What was important for social network analysis and how many rules are there?
- nodes and ties | - there are 9 rules that I am not listing here they're in lecture notes
39
What are brokers?
-red node that bridges gap between two social networks
40
What are the two important uses of brokers?
- they bridge a gap in social structure | - they help goods, information, opportunities or knowledge flow across the gap
41
What twos studies were the basis for the idea of brokers?
- Mark Granovetter's "The strength of weak ties" | - Raymond Burt's "Structural Holes and Good ideas"
42
What did Mark Granovetter's, "The strength of weak ties" talk about?
- bonding ties exist within tight knit networks and are more emotional - bridging ties span otherwise unconnected networks and are emotionally weaker but provide access to new information and resources
43
What did Raymond Burt's "Structural Holes and Good ideas" talk about?
- structural holes are irreplaceable connections - argued being connected to actors who are themselves unconnected will enhance access to fresh ideas and opportunities - thus, improve performance
44
What relates to the concept of social capital?
-brokerage
45
Who developed social capital?
- Pierre Bourdieu | - it then emerged separate in the USA by James Coleman who was a RTC
46
What is the individual level definition for social capital?
-the ability of actors to secure benefits by virtue of membership in social networks or other social structures
47
What does individual capital provide?
-competitive advantage for employment, promotions etc.
48
What is the community/group definition of social capital?
-networks, norms and social trust
49
What are networks in community capital?
-the number of people that know each other and interact frequently
50
What are norms in community capital?
-the number of people who share similar values and ideas of right and wrong
51
What is social trust in community capital?
-the number of people who trust each other and assume everyone is inherently good
52
What do community level social capital's facilitate?
- collective actions | - which is important for democracies
53
What theories does Mario Small combine in his article, "Daycares as resource brokers?"
- neo-institutionalism (isomorphism) | - network analysis (brokerage)
54
What is the background for Mario Smalls article?
- racial and economic segregation has led to concentrated poverty in American cities - where residents are cut off from mainstream institutions and their resources
55
What was Small's argument?
- neighbourhood organizations act as resource brokers - connect poor neighbourhoods to mainstream societal institutions and create connections between neighbours - this is above and beyond their formal role
56
What does Small's article demonstrate the importance of?
-analyzing formal vs. informal
57
What is Small's conclusion?
- neighbourhood institutions can improve the inequality in poor neighbourhoods to some extent - because they function as resource brokers

SOCI 333 (6 decks)

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