Sociology exam 1

Question 1

Sociology

Answer 1

the systematic or scientific study of human society

and social behavior, from large-scale institutions and mass culture to small groups and individual interactions

Question 2

Social sciences

Answer 2

the disciplines that use the scientific method to examine the social
world, in contrast to the natural sciences, which examine the physical world

Question 3

Approaches for developing a sociological perspective

Answer 3

Beginner’s Mind- approaching the world without preconceptions in order to see things in a new
way (Bernard McGrane 1994)

Culture Shock- a sense of disorientation that occurs when entering a radically new social or
cultural environment

The Sociological Imagination- a quality of the mind that allows us to understand the relationship between our individual circumstances and larger social forces (Ferris and Stein 2018)

Question 4

Key points made by King (2017)

Answer 4

Social context helps shapes one’s perspective and opportunities

The place we are living in shapes who we meet, where we work, what we eat, and what interests we pursue

King explains how his geographical context affected his career decision

He asks, “How about you? How do you feel where you have come from has shaped your social life? Is place an important component of your sociological imagination?”

Question 5

Microsociology-

Answer 5

face-to-face and small-group interactions in order to understand how they affect the larger patterns and structures of society
example: Fishman (1978); Lareau (2011)

Question 6

Macrosociology

Answer 6

large-scale social structures in order to determine how they affect the lives of groups and individuals

Question 7

Ibn Khaldun

Answer 7

-Arab Muslim philosopher and politician who lived in North Africa

• Coined the term as sabiyah translated as “social cohesion” or “solidarity” (Gierer 2001)
• Proposed the discipline of ilm alumran or “the science of civilization” often neglected from the sociological canon because of Eurocentrism
• Spoke about social cohesion, tribalism and how it can be magnified by religion

Question 8

Ilm alumran

Answer 8

the science of civilization

Question 9

Eurocentrism-

Answer 9

the practice of

favoring European or Western histories, cultures, and values over those of non-Western

Question 10

Auguste Comte

Answer 10

-Proponent of Positivism-the theory that sense perceptions are the only valid source
of knowledge

-Also known as a belief that accurate knowledge must be based on the scientific
method (Croteau and Hoynes 2015)

-Felt that society needed positivist guidance toward both social progress and social
order

• Wrote Introduction to Positive Philosophy
  (1842)

-Coined the term “Sociology”

Question 11

Harriet Martineau

Answer 11

• Endorsed labor unions, the abolition of slavery, and women’s suffrage
• Wrote Society in America (1837) and Retrospect of Western Travel (1838)
• Wrote How to Observe Morals and Manners (1838)
• Translated Introduction to Positive Philosophy in English in 1852

Question 12

Herbert Spencer

Answer 12

-Promoted social Darwinism

• the application of the theory of evolution and the notion of “survival of the
  fittest” to the study of society
• Did not believe government should intervene in society to address inequalities (Croteau and Hoynes 2015)
• Played a major role in establishing sociology in Britain and America (Ferris and Stein 2018)

Question 13

Social Darwinism

Answer 13

survival of the fittest, justification for imperialist expansion

Question 14

Émile Durkheim

Answer 14

Was a strong functionalist, came up with mechanical solidarity felt by people in old agriculture communities bound them by tradition and belief and organic solidarity. Organic was based on individual rights and interdependence

Question 15

Mechanical solidarity

Answer 15

social bonds present in premodern society; people in a simple agricultural society were bonded together by shared traditions, beliefs, and experiences

Question 16

Organic solidarity

Answer 16

social bond in modern day society; people bond together based on tasks performed, interdependence, and individual rights

Question 17

Anomie

Answer 17

lack of the usual social or ethical standards in an individual or group

Question 18

Karl Marx

Answer 18

German social philosopher, wrote heavily on social inequality, created proletariat and bourgeoisie. Created conflict theory as well. Saw social conflict as the basis of society

Question 19

Capitalism

Answer 19

An economic system based upon free trade

Question 20

Proletariat

Answer 20

workers or working-class people, regarded collectively (often used with reference to Marxism)

Question 21

Bourgeoisie

Answer 21

The owners, the wealthy capitalists who own the means of production

Question 22

Class consciousness

Answer 22

The recognition of social inequality on the part of the oppressed leading to social change

Question 23

Max Weber

Answer 23

Created the theory of rationalization or applying economics to humans, as well as a big proponent for bureaucracy

Question 24

Rationalization

Answer 24

Applying economic ideals to humans. Using formal rules and regulations to maximize efficiency without care for the individual.

Question 25

Georg Simmel

Answer 25

German sociologist interested in discovering the effects of size on groups, and he found that the mere entirely different between two and three people spawned entirely different group dynamics

Question 26

Tragedy of culture theory

Answer 26

a method in which researchers identify and | study specific variables or themes that appear in text, image, or media message

Question 27

Ida B. Wells-Barnett-

Answer 27

Gracie doesnt know

Question 28

George Herbert Mead

Answer 28

- Created Symbolic interactionism. Was a big part of the Chicago school., saw interaction and meaning as central to society

Question 29

Socialization-

Answer 29

is a term used by sociologists, social psychologists, anthropologists, political scientists, and educationalists to refer to the lifelong process of inheriting and disseminating norms, customs, values and ideologies, providing an individual with the skills and habits

Question 30

W.E.B. Du Bois

Answer 30

Pioneer in the study of race relations. Founding member of NAACP, created the color line

Question 31

The color line

Answer 31

highlighted the differences in society between blacks and whites.

Question 32

Jane Addams

Answer 32

Was a social activist who created the Hull House to help new immigrants, women and the poor. Helped found ACLU and NAACP

Question 33

Talcott Parsons

Answer 33

-Believed that different parts of society (i.e. education, the family, and religion) had various functions and contributed to stability -Believed a healthy society must have social cohesion (Ferris and Stein 2018)

Question 34

Robert Merton-

Answer 34

-Believed that some parts of society could have unintended functions -Stated that some patterns in society could be functional for certain groups, yet dysfunctional for other groups (Ritzer and Stepnisky 2013)

Question 35

Ralf Dahrendorf

Answer 35

- Developed conflict theory, which was a response to structural functionalism - Believed that society was held together by enforced constraint -Claimed that some groups in society had more power and authority over others (Ritzer and Stepnisky 2013)

Question 36

Erving Goffman

Answer 36

Was a symbolic interactionist who used dramaturgy to study human interaction

Question 37

Dramaturgy

Answer 37

Created by Goffmann in which social life is compared to in terms of its similarity to the theatre

Question 38

Impression management

Answer 38

is a goal-directed conscious or unconscious process in which people attempt to influence the perceptions of others about a person, object, or event.

Question 39

Patricia Hill Collins

Answer 39

Black Feminist Thought: Knowledge, Consciousness, and the Politics of Empowerment

Question 40

Intersectionality

Answer 40

the interconnected nature of social categorizations such as race, class, and gender as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage

Question 41

Structural functionalism

Answer 41

values and norms are widely shared and agreed upon, contribute to social stability by reinforcing beliefs

Question 42

Dysfunction

Answer 42

deviation from the norms of social behavior in a way regarded as bad

Question 43

Manifest function

Answer 43

- are the recognized and intended consequences of any social pattern

Question 44

Latent function

Answer 44

while latent functions are those unrecognized and unintended consequences

Question 45

Conflict theory

Answer 45

- are perspectives in sociology and social psychology that emphasize the social, political, or material inequality of a social group, that critique the broad socio-political system, or that otherwise detract from structural functionalism and ideological conservatism

Question 46

Social inequality

Answer 46

The unequal distribution of wealth, power or prestige in society

Question 47

Symbolic Interactionism

Answer 47

the view of social behavior that emphasizes linguistic or gestural communication and its subjective understanding, especially the role of language in the formation of the child as a social being

Question 48

Qualitative research

Answer 48

works with things like field notes, texts or photos. Hopes to understand how people make sense of their world

Question 49

Quantitative research

Answer 49

numbers and mathematics, often finding cause and effect results

Question 50

Scientific method

Answer 50

1. Ask a question 2. Literature review 3. Form a hypothesis 4. Choose a research method 5. Collect data 6. Analyze data 7. Disseminate findings

Question 51

Independent variable vs. dependent variable

Answer 51

An independent variable is the variable that is changed or controlled in a scientific experiment to test the effects on the dependent variable. A dependent variable is the variable being tested and measured in a scientific experiment

Question 52

Correlation

Answer 52

A relationship between variables in which they change each other, may or may not be causal

Question 53

Causation

Answer 53

a relationship in which one variable changing leads to the change of another

Question 54

Intervening variable

Answer 54

- a third variable, sometimes overlooked, that explains the relationship between two other variables

Question 55

Spurious relationship

Answer 55

Applying economic ideals to humans. Using formal rules and regulations to maximize efficiency without care for the individual

Question 56

Ethnography

Answer 56

a naturalistic method based on studying people in their own environment in order to understand the meanings they attribute to their activities; also the written work that results from the study

Question 57

Interviews

Answer 57

person-to-person conversations for the purpose of gathering information by means of questions posed to respondents

Question 58

Focus groups

Answer 58

- a process for interviewing a number of participants together that also allows for interaction among group members

Question 59

Surveys

Answer 59

a research method based on questionnaires that are administered to a sample of respondents selected from a target population

Question 60

Existing sources-

Answer 60

materials that have been produced for some other reason but that can be used as data for social research. These materials may include marriage licenses, building permits, books, magazines, TV shows, movies, albums, and websites

Question 61

Content analysis

Answer 61

a method in which researchers identify and study specific variables or themes that appear in text, image, or media message

Question 62

Experiments

Answer 62

formal tests of specific variables and effects, performed in a setting where all aspects of the situation can be controlled

Question 63

Social network analysis-

Answer 63

Gracie didnt write this one down :(

Question 64

Objectivity

Answer 64

impartiality; the ability to allow the facts to speak for | themselves

Question 65

Basic research

Answer 65

research that fills in the knowledge we don't have; it tries to learn things that aren't always directly applicable or useful immediately

Question 66

Applied research

Answer 66

research that seeks to answer a question in the real world and to solve a problem

Question 67

Reactivity

Answer 67

the tendency of people and events to react to the process of being studied

Question 68

Hawthorne effect

Answer 68

a specific example of reactivity, in which the desired effect is the result not of the independent variable but of the research itself

Question 69

Confidentiality

Answer 69

The assurance that no one other than the researcher will know the identity of the respondent

Question 70

Milgram’s obedience study

Answer 70

- study of the phenomenon of obedience to an authority figure, examined the effects of punishment on learning (shock treatment for mistakes, 65% shocked dangerous amounts when ordered

Question 71

Institutional review board

Answer 71

a group of scholars within a university who meet to regulate and review research proposals of their colleagues and recommend ways to protect subjects

Question 72

Kaufman’s (2015) views on ethnographies-

Answer 72

Gracie doesnt pay attention in class

Question 73

Culture

Answer 73

- The entire way of life for a group of people that acts as a lens for the way they see the world

Question 74

The ways most sociologists study culture

Answer 74

- conflict theory - functionalism - symbolic interactionism

Question 75

Ethnocentrism-

Answer 75

using your culture to judge others

Question 76

Cultural relativism

Answer 76

- the principle of understanding other cultures on their own terms, rather than judging or evaluating according to one’s own culture

Question 77

Xenophobia

Answer 77

unreasonable fear or hatred of foreigners or people from other cultures

Question 78

Material culture

Answer 78

the objects associated with a group

Question 79

Values

Answer 79

ideas about what is right and wrong, good or bad, desirable or worthy in a particular group

Question 80

Norms-

Answer 80

rules or guidelines regarding what kinds of behavior area acceptable and appropriate within a particular culture

Question 81

Folkway

Answer 81

a loosely enforced norm involving common customs, practices, or procedures that ensure smooth social interaction and acceptance

Question 82

Mores

Answer 82

norms that carry great moral significance, are closely related to the core values of a cultural group, often severe repercussions for violators

Question 83

Sanctions

Answer 83

- positive or negative reactions to the ways that people follow or disobey norms, including rewards for conformity and punishments for violations

Question 84

Hegemony-

Answer 84

ideas of the dominant are accepted by all

Question 85

Argot

Answer 85

specialized language used by members of a group or subculture

Question 86

Sapir-Whorf hypothesis or Whorfianism

Answer 86

- a concept that the structure of a language affects its speakers' cognition or world view

Question 87

Cultural Imperialism

Answer 87

The imposing of one cultures beliefs onto another culture

Question 88

Lori Delale O'Connor findings

Answer 88

Culture camps for international children are often watered down and often do not lead to the children connecting very much with their "own" culture. Culture is wherever you are raised, it isn't in you from birth

Question 89

Hawthorne effect

Answer 89

- a specific example of reactivity, in which the desired effect is the result not of the independent variable but of the research itself

Question 90

Wynn

Answer 90

our tastes are not our own, they develop through our interaction with those around us