Week 2: Sociological Imagination, Theories and Key Concepts

Question 1

Sociology

Answer 1

the study of human society.

Question 2

Sociological Imagination

Answer 2

the ability to see the connections between our personal experiences and the larger forces of history. E.g. Christian getting pulled over by the police.

Question 3

Social Institution

Answer 3

a complex group of interdependent positions that, together, perform a social role and reproduce themselves over time. E.g. NYU example.

Question 4

Verstehen

Answer 4

German: understanding. The concept of Verstehen forms the object of inquiry for interpretive sociology. In other words, to truly understand why people act the way they do, sociologists must understand the meanings people attach to their actions. E.g. Bourgeois in the Barrio with Primo. Why would Primo risk his life each day to sell crack? To feed his family.

Question 5

Anomie

Answer 5

a sense of aimlessness or despair that arises when we can no longer reasonably expect life to be predictable; too little social regulation; normlessness. E.g. German citizens after WWII

Question 6

Positivist Sociology

Answer 6

a strain within sociology that believes the social world can be described and predicted by certain describable relationships (akin to a social physics). E.g. Yoda’s flying saucer or the iPhone 6.

Question 7

Double Consciousness

Answer 7

a concept conceived by W. E. B. DuBois to describe the two behavioral scripts, one for moving through the world and the other incorporating the external opinions of prejudiced onlookers, which are constantly maintained by African Americans.

Question 8

Functionalism

Answer 8

the theory that various social institutions and processes in society exist to serve some important (or necessary) function to keep society running. E.g. Banks and Education are integral to a functioning society.

Question 9

Conflict Theory

Answer 9

the idea that conflict between competing interests is the basic, animating force of social change and society in general. E.g. Differing ideologies on racial equality between Yankees and the Confederates was the foundation of the civil rights movement that came later.

Question 10

Symbolic Interactionaism

Answer 10

a micro-level theory in which shared meanings, orientations, and assumptions form the basic motivations behind people’s actions. E.g. Red light at an intersection means stop.

Question 11

Postmodernism

Answer 11

The idea that shared meanings have eroded over time. E.g. A red light may now have multiple different meanings to different groups in society. There is no longer one version of history that is correct. Everything is interpretable in this framework and facts are open for debate. E.g. Rory, your own skeptical mindset towards the best way to walk through life.

Question 12

Social Constructions

Answer 12

an entity that exists because people behave as if it exists and whose existence is perpetuated as people and social institutions act in accordance with the widely agreed-upon formal rules of informal norms of behavior associated with that entity. E.g. Slave labor in the 1800’s.

Question 13

Midrange Theory

Answer 13

a theory that attempts to predict how certain social institutions tend to function. E.g. A midrange theory might develop a theory for democracy (under what conditions did it arise?), a theory of the household (when do households expand to include extended kin?) The key to midrange theory is that it generates falsifiable hypotheses – predictions that can be tested by analyzing the real world.

Question 14

Microsociology

Answer 14

seeks to understand local interactional contexts; its methods of choice are ethnographic, generally, including participant observation and in-depth interviews. E.g. How do I interact with the lovely Erin Elizabeth Hawker?

Question 15

Macrosociology

Answer 15

generally concerned with social dynamics at a higher level of analysis - that is, across the breadth of society.

Question 16

Karl Marx

Answer 16

The most famous of the three really sociologists. His writings provide the theoretical basis for Communism.

Question 17

Max Weber

Answer 17

Said subjectivity is the foundation of interpretive sociology. He criticized Marx for his exclusive focus on the economy and social class, advocating sociological analysis that allowed for the multiple influences of culture, economics, and politics. He founded the concept of “Verstehen” (understand in German). This means to truly understand why people act the way they do, a sociologist must understand the meanings that people attach to their actions.

Question 18

Émile Durkheim

Answer 18

He wished to understand how society holds together and the ways that modern capitalism and industrialization have transformed how people relate to one another. He argued that the division of labor didn’t just affect work and productivity but had social and moral consequences as well. He is the founding practitioner of positivist sociology. E.g. Doctors (skilled laborers) are considered the creme of the crop and the medical factory workers (non-skilled workers) are the scum at the bottom of the barrel.

Question 19

Describe this week’s paradox.

Answer 19

A successful sociologist makes the familiar strange (sociological imagination).