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Intro to Sociology > Exam One - Terms > Flashcards

Exam One - Terms Flashcards

(114 cards)

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1
Q

Antipositivism

A

The view that social researchers should strive for subjectivity as they worked to represent social processes, cultural norms, and societal values

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2
Q

Conflict Theory

A

A theory that looks at society as a competition for limited resources

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3
Q

Constructivism

A

An extension of symbolic interaction theory which proposes that reality is what humans cognitively construct it to be

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4
Q

Culture

A

A group’s shared practices, values, and beliefs

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5
Q

Dramaturgical Analysis

A

A technique sociologists use in which they view society through the metaphor of theatrical performance

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6
Q

Dynamic Equilibrium

A

A stable state in which all parts of a healthy society work together properly

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7
Q

Dsyfunctions

A

Social patterns that have undesirable consequences for the operation of society

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8
Q

Figuration

A

The process of simultaneously analyzing the behavior of an individual and the society that shapes that behavior

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9
Q

Function

A

The part a recurrent activity plays in the social life as a whole and the contribution it makes to structural continuity

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10
Q

Functionalism

A

A theoretical approach that sees society as a structure with interrelated parts designed to meet the biological and social needs of individuals that make up that society

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11
Q

Generalized Others

A

The organized and generalized attitude of a social group

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12
Q

Grand Theories

A

An attempt to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental questions such as why societies form and why they change

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13
Q

Hypothesis

A

A testable proposition

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14
Q

Latent Functions

A

The unrecognized or unintended consequences of a social process

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15
Q

Macro-level

A

A wide-scale view of the role of social structures within a society

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16
Q

Manifest Functions

A

Sought consequences of a social process

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17
Q

Micro-level Theories

A

The study of specific relationships between individuals or small groups

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18
Q

Paradigms

A

Philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them

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19
Q

Positivism

A

The scientific study of social patterns

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20
Q

Qualitative Sociology

A

In-depth interviews, focus groups, and/or analysis of content sources as the source of its data

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21
Q

Quantitative Sociology

A

Statistical methods such as surveys with large numbers of participants

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22
Q

Reification

A

An error of treating an abstract concept as though it has a real, material existence

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23
Q

Significant Others

A

Specific individuals that impact a person’s life

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24
Q

Social Facts

A

The laws, morals, values, religious beliefs, customs, fashions, rituals, and all of the cultural rules that govern social life

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25
Social Institutions
Patterns of beliefs and behaviors focused on meeting social needs
26
Social Solidarity
The social ties that bind a group of people together such as kinship, shared location, and religion
27
Society
A group of people who live in a defined geographical area who interact with one another and who share a common culture
28
Sociological Imagination
The ability to understand how your own past relates to that of other people, as well as to history in general and societal structures in particular
29
Sociology
The systematic study of society and social interaction
30
Symbolic Interactionism
A theoretical perspective through which scholars examine the relationship of individuals within their society by studying their communication (language and symbols)
31
Theory
A proposed explanation about social interactions or society
32
Content Analysis
A way of analyzing a body of literature and doing statistical analysis of certain words and terms within it
33
Survey
Collects data from subjects who respond to a series of questions about behaviors and opinions, often in the form of a questionnaire or an interview
34
Random Sample
Every person in a population has the same chance of being chosen for the study. As a result, a Gallup Poll, if conducted as a nationwide random sampling, should be able to provide an accurate estimate of public opinion whether it contacts 2,000 or 10,000 people
35
Quantitative Data
Where people answer a series of closed-ended questions, the researcher might ask yes-or-no or multiple-choice questions, allowing subjects to choose possible responses to each question. This kind of questionnaire collects ____________-—data in numerical form that can be counted and statistically analyzed.
36
Qualitative Data
Some topics that investigate internal thought processes are impossible to observe directly and are difficult to discuss honestly in a public forum. People are more likely to share honest answers if they can respond to questions anonymously. This type of personal explanation is_______________—conveyed through words rather than numbers.
37
Beliefs
Tenets or convictions that people hold to be true
38
Countercultures
Groups that reject and oppose society’s widely accepted cultural patterns
39
Cultural Imperialism
The deliberate imposition of one’s own cultural values on another culture
40
Cultural Relativism
The practice of assessing a culture by its own standards, and not in comparison to another culture
41
Cultural Universals
Patterns or traits that are globally common to all societies
42
Culture Lag
The gap of time between the introduction of material culture and nonmaterial culture’s acceptance of it
43
Culture Shock
An experience of personal disorientation when confronted with an unfamiliar way of life
44
Diffusion
The spread of material and nonmaterial culture from one culture to another
45
Discoveries
Things and ideas found from what already exists
46
Ethnocentrism
The practice of evaluating another culture according to the standards of one’s own culture
47
Folkways
Direct, appropriate behavior in the day-to-day practices and expressions of a culture
48
Formal Norms
Established, written rules
49
Globalization
The integration of international trade and finance markets
50
High Culture
The cultural patterns of a society’s elite
51
Ideal Culture
The standards a society would like to embrace and live up to
52
Informal Norms
Casual behaviors that are generally and widely conformed to
53
Innovations
New objects or ideas introduced to culture for the first time
54
Inventions
A combination of pieces of existing reality into new forms
55
Language
A symbolic system of communication
56
Material Culture
The objects or belongings of a group of people
57
Mores
The moral views and principles of a group
58
Nonmaterial Culture
The ideas, attitudes, and beliefs of a society
59
Norms
The visible and invisible rules of conduct through which societies are structured
60
Popular Culture
Mainstream, widespread patterns among a society’s population
61
Real Culture
The way society really is based on what actually occurs and exists
62
Sanctions
A way to authorize or formally disapprove of certain behaviors
63
Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
The way that people understand the world based on their form of language
64
Social Control
A way to encourage conformity to cultural norms
65
Society
People who live in a definable community and who share a culture
66
Subcultures
Groups that share a specific identification, apart from a society’s majority, even as the members exist within a larger society
67
Symbols
Gestures or objects that have meanings associated with them that are recognized by people who share a culture
68
Values
A culture’s standard for discerning what is good and just in society
69
Xenocentrism
A belief that another culture is superior to one’s own
70
Achieved Status
The status a person chooses, such as a level of education or income
71
Agricultural Societies
Societies that rely on farming as a way of life
72
Alienation
An individual’s isolation from his society, his work, and his sense of self
73
Anomie
A situation in which society no longer has the support of a firm collective consciousness
74
Ascribed Status
The status outside of an individual’s control, such as sex or race
75
Bourgeoisie
The owners of the means of production in a society
76
Capitalism
A way of organizing an economy so that the things that are used to make and transport products (such as land, oil, factories, ships, etc.) are owned by individual people and companies rather than by the government
77
Class Consciousness
The awareness of one’s rank in society
78
Collective Conscience
The communal beliefs, morals, and attitudes of a society
79
False Consciousness
A person’s beliefs and ideology that are in conflict with her best interests
80
Feudal Societies
Societies that operate on a strict hierarchical system of power based around land ownership and protection
81
Habitualization
The idea that society is constructed by us and those before us, and it is followed like a habit
82
Horticultural Societies
Societies based around the cultivation of plants
83
Hunter-Gatherer Societies
Societies that depend on hunting wild animals and gathering uncultivated plants for survival
84
Industrial Societies
Societies characterized by a reliance on mechanized labor to create material goods
85
Information Societies
Societies based on the production of nonmaterial goods and services
86
Institutionalization
The act of implanting a convention or norm into society
87
Iron Cage
A situation in which an individual is trapped by social institutions
88
Looking-Glass Self
Our reflection of how we think we appear to others
89
Mechanical Solidarity
A type of social order maintained by the collective consciousness of a culture
90
Organic Solidarity
A type of social order based around an acceptance of economic and social differences
91
Pastoral Societies
Societies based around the domestication of animals
92
Proletariat
The laborers in a society
93
Rationalization
A belief that modern society should be built around logic and efficiency rather than morality or tradition
94
Role Conflict
A situation when one or more of an individual’s roles clash
95
Role Performance
The expression of a role
96
Role Strain
Stress that occurs when too much is required of a single role
97
Role-Set
An array of roles attached to a particular status
98
Roles
Patterns of behavior that are representative of a person’s social status
99
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
An idea that becomes true when acted upon
99
Self-Fulfilling Prophecy
An idea that becomes true when acted upon
100
Social-Integration
How strongly a person is connected to his or her social group
101
Society
A group of people who live in a definable community and share the same culture
102
Status
The responsibilities and benefits that a person experiences according to his or her rank and role in society
103
Thomas Theorem
How a subjective reality can drive events to develop in accordance with that reality, despite being originally unsupported by objective reality
104
Anticipatory Socialization
The way we prepare for future life roles
105
Degradation Ceremony
The process by which new members of a total institution lose aspects of their old identities and are given new ones
106
Hidden Curriculum
The informal teaching done in schools that socializes children to societal norms
107
Moral Development
The way people learn what is “good” and “bad” in society
108
Nature
The influence of our genetic makeup on self-development
109
Nurture
The role that our social environment plays in self-development
110
Peer Group
A group made up of people who are similar in age and social status and who share interests
111
Resocialization
The process by which old behaviors are removed and new behaviors are learned in their place
112
Self
A person’s distinct sense of identity as developed through social interaction
113
Socialization
The process wherein people come to understand societal norms and expectations, to accept society’s beliefs, and to be aware of societal values

Intro to Sociology (2 decks)

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