Test 2 Class Notes Flashcards
goal of science
describe, explain, predict
some examples of folk wisdom
absence makes the heart grow fonder, out of dight out of mind
idea behind social facts
we are to study them as objects in their own right. they exist external to us
gender differences in suicide
women attempt suicide more, and men commit suicide more
empirical generalizations
isolated propositions that summarize the observations b/w 2 or more variables
logical induction
“bottom up” start with many cases and work up towards a general principle
steps to uncovering the general principle (from diagram)
observations - measurement - empirical generalizations - logical induction - general principle
logical deduction
beginning with a general principle and moving mentally towards a specific measurement
syllogism
- take a general principle
- take a specific instance of a general principle
- the conclusion should logically follow
4 types of suicide
egoistic
anomic
fatalistic
altruistic
egoistic suicide
lack of meaningful social integration to a group
anomic suicide
fatalistic suicide
overregulation from a group (prison, military)
altruistic
excessive loyalty/integration to a group where it may be expected members will sacrifice themselves at the group’s discretion (suicide bombers, cults)
culture
a part of the environment that humans create that is learned, shared and transmitted over time
material vs nonmaterial culture
material: physical substances
nonmaterial: ideas, values and beliefs
relationship b/w material and nonmaterial culture
material culture is an outgrowth of nonmaterial culture and would be meaningless without it
cultural proscriptions
things that we won’t do because it’s been taught in our culture that it’s wrong or inappropriate
how can we discover the values of a society?
the words that people use
how the people act
ideology and the 2 types
interrelated set of beliefs and values; dominant and counter
dominant ideology
explain/justify the perpetuation of a given state of affairs
counter ideology
provide a rationale to change a given state of affairs
relationship b/w norms and values
norms are more specific than values as norms can serve as immediate guides for behavior
3 types of norms
folkway
more
law
folkways
the way people commonly act, traditional behavior, ex: meet someone new formally and shake their hand
mores
actions of considerable moral importance that produce an emotional response by the community when violated
laws
consciously enacted for a particular purpose and enforced by the government
ideal vs real norms
ideal: formally taught and approved
real: how we really act
elements of culture are interrelated so as to produce a…..
relatively integrated and coherent whole
“sui generus”
the whole is equal to more than a sum of its parts
what makes the difference in sui generus?
how the parts fit together
focal points of communities can do what?
bring together a high degree of social integration
3 types of cultural disintegration
invasion
violation
turf defense
invasion
entering the territory of another without permission
violation
making use of a territory in a way that it was not intended to be used
turf defense
ultimate response when we can no longer tolerate the intrusion
can any norms become/absolutely not become another?
-folkways can’t become mores
-mores can become folkways
ex: legalization of marijuana
culture lag
2 interrelated parts of culture change at different rates so 1 lags behind the other
subculture
clusters of patterns that are both related to the general culture yet distinguishable from it
ex: opening christmas gifts; some do on xmas eve, some on xmas morning
contraculture
groups whose patterns not only differ from others but also challenge their beliefs and their values
ex: cults
ethnocentrism
view of things in which our own group is at the center of everything and all other groups are compared to our own group
ethnocentrism is a social extension of what common idea?
the idea that as individuals we consider ourselves as the center of the universe
cultural relativism
attempting to interpret the actions of others in terms of their own beliefs
xenocentrism
the belief that products and styles of another group is superior to those of our own culture
what does Cooley say about our sense of self?
we create it ourselves
3 stages to Cooley’s looking-glass self
- our imagination of how we appear to others
- our imagination of how we think others judge what we think they see
- our self-feeling (if we think they see us positively, we’re more likely to see ourselves positively)
3 main types of self according to Cooley
party face, funeral self & dog face
our underlying continuities despite variations in our many selves:
- our name and other identity pegs
- we remember the parts we played in our earlier life
- expectations from others that our actions are to be consistent
ways to change our sense of self
change name, location
Mead’s 3 stage theory of self-emergence
a. preplay
b. play
c. game
main point of Mead’s preplay stage
this is when children start engaging in meaningless imitation; if they can’t engage with the outside world they may be diagnosed with autism
main point of Mead’s play stage
children finally develop a SENSE OF SELF as this is when they are an object in an environment in which they can interact with; they also develop an egocentric POV where they think the world revolves around them
true or false: children understand that people can have multiple roles at once in the play stage
false
main point of Mead’s game stage
children begin to understand the logic of rules (they exist, what they are and what they define)
when do children understand the concept of the generalized other (and what is it)
Mead’s game stage; our perceptions of general societal expectations for our actions
once we finally understand the generalized other, how do our attitudes and commands change?
they shift from particular to universalized
the self is composed of 2 parts
I and Me
what is I
active portion of self that enables us to be aware of who we are; more spontaneous self
what is Me
organized set of attitudes that we assume; generalized other in our actions
relationship b/w I and Me
our actions begin in the form of I and end in the form of Me
Me vs I which has control over the other?
Me controls I
situated self
every role has a self waiting for us
interactional mechanisms for the protection of self
mention unapparent attributes
humor
avoid
choose friends carefully
interactional mechanisms for enhancement of self
dramatic realization and concealment
dramatic realization
showing off aspects of our self/performance that we think will give others a positive impression of us
concealment
hiding what we don’t want others to know about us bc we think it’ll reflect badly on us
social stratification
ordered ranking of strata in the form a hierarchy
criteria for ranking in social stratification
- objective
- subjective: people rank themselves
- reputational: people rank each other
review the superstructure of stratification from class
what did Mark say about the ruling class
the ruling ideas of anyage are the ideas of the ruling class
what did Mark say about or social position
we are born into our social position and it’s the most important life experience bc it shapes the way we view the world (politics, society, etc)
Weber’s view on rankings in society
power/class/status
