Intro to Sociology – Ch 1-5, 8 – Flashcards
103 test answers
Unlock all answers in this set
Unlock answers 103question
individualistic explanation
answer
tendency to attribute people's achievements and failures to their personal qualities
Unlock the answer
question
sociological imagination
answer
ability to see the impact of social forces on our private lives, ability to see the impact of social forces on our private lives
Unlock the answer
question
sociology
answer
the systematic study of human societies
Unlock the answer
question
achieved status
answer
social positionacquired through our own efforts or accomplisments or taken on voluntarily
Unlock the answer
question
ascribed status
answer
social position acquired at birth or taken on involuntarily later in life
Unlock the answer
question
coalition
answer
subgroup of a triad, formed when two members unite against the third member
Unlock the answer
question
conflict perspective
answer
theoretical perspective that views the structure of society as a source of inequality, that always benefits some groups at the expense of other groups
Unlock the answer
question
culture
answer
language, values, beliefs, rules, behaviors, and artifacts that characterize a society
Unlock the answer
question
dyad
answer
group consisting of two people
Unlock the answer
question
feminist perspective
answer
theoretical perspective that focuses on gender as the most important source of conflict and inequality in social life
Unlock the answer
question
globalization
answer
process through which people's lives all around the world become economically, politically, environmentally, and culturally interconnected
Unlock the answer
question
group
answer
set of people who interact more or less regularly and who are conscious of their identity
Unlock the answer
question
latent function
answer
unintended, unrecognized consequences of activities that help some part of the social system
Unlock the answer
question
macro level
answer
way of examining human life that focuses on the broad social forces and structural features of socety that exist above the level of individual people
Unlock the answer
question
manifest function
answer
intedned, obvious consequences of activities designed to help some part of the social system
Unlock the answer
question
micro level
answer
way of examining human life that focuseson the immediate, every experiences of individuals
Unlock the answer
question
norm
answer
culturally defined standard or rule of conduct
Unlock the answer
question
organization
answer
large, complex network of positions, created for a specific purpose and characterized by a hierarchical division of labor
Unlock the answer
question
primary group
answer
collection of individuals, who are together over a relativelylong period, whose members have direct contact with and feel emotional attachment to one another
Unlock the answer
question
role
answer
set of expectations-rights, obligations, behaviors, duties-associated with a particular status
Unlock the answer
question
role conflict
answer
frustration people feel when the demands of one role the demands of one role they are expected to fulfill clash with the demands of another role
Unlock the answer
question
secondary group
answer
relatively impersonal collection of individuals that is established to perform a specific task
Unlock the answer
question
social institution
answer
stable set of roles, statuses, groups, and organizations-such as the institution of education, family, politics, religion, health care, or the economy-that provides a foundation for behavior in some major area of social life
Unlock the answer
question
society
answer
population of people living in the same geographic area who share a culture and a common identity and whose members fall under the same politcal authority
Unlock the answer
question
status
answer
any named social position that people can occupy
Unlock the answer
question
structural functionalist perspective
answer
theoretical perspective that posits that social institutions are structured to maintain stability and order in society
Unlock the answer
question
symbol
answer
something used to represent or stand for something else
Unlock the answer
question
symbolic interactionism
answer
theoretical perspective that explains society and social structure through an examination of the micro-level personal, day-to-day exchanges of people in individuals, pairs, or groups
Unlock the answer
question
triad
answer
group consisting of three people
Unlock the answer
question
value
answer
standard of judgment by which people decide on desirable goals and outcomes
Unlock the answer
question
analysis of existing data
answer
type of unobtrusive research that relies on data gathered earlier by someone else for some other purpose
Unlock the answer
question
content analysis
answer
form of unobtrusive research that studies the content of the recorded messages, such as books, speeches, poems, songs, television shows, web sites, and advertisements
Unlock the answer
question
dependent variable
answer
variable that is assumed to be caused by, or to change as a result of, the independent variable
Unlock the answer
question
empirical research
answer
research that operates from the ideological position that questions about human behavior can be answered only through controlled, systematic observations in the real world
Unlock the answer
question
experiment
answer
research method designed to elicit some sort of behavior, typically conducted under closely controlled laboratory circumstances
Unlock the answer
question
field research
answer
type of social research in which the researcher observes events as they actually occur
Unlock the answer
question
historical analysis
answer
form of social research that relies on existing historical documents as a source of data
Unlock the answer
question
hypothesis
answer
researchable prediction that specifies the relationship between two ore more variables
Unlock the answer
question
incorrigible proposition
answer
unquestioned cultural belief that cannot be proved wrong no matter what happens to dispute it
Unlock the answer
question
independent variable
answer
variable presumed to cause or influence the dependent variable
Unlock the answer
question
indicator
answer
measurable event, characteristic, or behavior community thought to reflect a particular concept
Unlock the answer
question
moral entrepreneurs
answer
groups that work to have their moral concerns translated into law
Unlock the answer
question
nonparticipant observation
answer
form of field research in which the researcher observes people without directly interacting with them and without letting them know that they are being observed
Unlock the answer
question
participant observation
answer
form of field resarch in which the researcher interacts with subjects, sometimes hiding his or her identity
Unlock the answer
question
probabilistic
answer
capable of identifying only those forces that have a high likelihood, but not a certainty, of influencing human action
Unlock the answer
question
qualitative research
answer
sociological research based on nonnumerical information (text, written words, phrases, symbols, observations) that describes people, actions, or events in social life
Unlock the answer
question
quantitative research
answer
sociological research based on the collection of numerical data that uses precise statistical analysis
Unlock the answer
question
reactivity
answer
a problem associated with certain forms of research in which the very act of intruding into people's lives may influence the phenomenon being studied
Unlock the answer
question
representative
answer
typical of the whole population being studied
Unlock the answer
question
sample
answer
subgroup chosen for a study because its characteristics approximate those of the entire population
Unlock the answer
question
self fulfilling prophecy
answer
assumption or prediction that in itself causes the expected event to occur thus seemin to confirm the prophecy's accuracy
Unlock the answer
question
social construction of reality
answer
process through which the members of a society discover, make known, reaffirm, and alter a collective version of facts, knowledge, and "truth"
Unlock the answer
question
spurious relationship
answer
a false association between two variables that is actually due to the effect of some third variable
Unlock the answer
question
survey
answer
form of social research in which a researcher asks subjects a series of questions, either verbally or on paper
Unlock the answer
question
theory
answer
set of statements or proposition that seeks to explain or predict a particular aspect of social life
Unlock the answer
question
unobtrusive research
answer
research techniqus in which the researcher, without direct contact with the the subjects, examines the evidence of social behavios that people create or leave behind
Unlock the answer
question
variable
answer
any characteristic, attitude, behavior, or event that can take on two or more values or attributes
Unlock the answer
question
visual sociology
answer
method of studying society that uses photographs, video, and film either as means of gathering data or as sources of data about social life
Unlock the answer
question
counterculture
answer
group that actively opposes the values and behavior patterns of the dominant culture
Unlock the answer
question
cultural relativism
answer
the principle that people's beliefs and activities should be interpreted in terms of their own culture
Unlock the answer
question
ethnocentrism
answer
tendency to judge other cultures using one's own as a standard
Unlock the answer
question
folkway
answer
informal norm that is mildly punished when violated
Unlock the answer
question
heteronormative culture
answer
culture in which heterosexuality is accepted as the normal, taken-for-granted mode of sexual expression
Unlock the answer
question
institutionalized norm
answer
pattern of behavior within existing social institutions that is widely accepted in a society
Unlock the answer
question
intersexuals
answer
individuals in whom sexual differentiation is either incomplete or ambiguous
Unlock the answer
question
material culture
answer
artifacts of a society, which represent adaptations to the social and physical environment
Unlock the answer
question
more
answer
highly, codified, formal. systematized norm that brings severe punishment when violated
Unlock the answer
question
nonmaterial culture
answer
knowledge, beliefs, customs, values, morals, and symbols that are shared by members of a society and that distinguish the society from others
Unlock the answer
question
sanction
answer
social response that punishes or otherwise discourages violations of a social norm
Unlock the answer
question
sexual dichotomy
answer
belief that two biological sex categories, male and female, are permanent, universal, exhaustive, and mutually exclusive
Unlock the answer
question
sick role
answer
set of norms governing how one is supposed to behave and what one is entitled to when sick
Unlock the answer
question
subculture
answer
values, behaviors, and artifacts of a group that distinguish its members form the larger culture
Unlock the answer
question
transexuals
answer
people who identify with a different sex and sometimes undergo hormone treatment and surgery to change their sex
Unlock the answer
question
agents of socialization
answer
the various individuals, groups, and organizations who influence the socialization process
Unlock the answer
question
anticipatory socialization
answer
process through which people acquire the values and orientations found in statuses they will likely enter in the future
Unlock the answer
question
collectivist culture
answer
culture in which personal accomplishments are less important in the formation of identity than group membership
Unlock the answer
question
eugenics
answer
the control of mating to ensure that "defective" gens of troublesome individuals will not be passed on to future generation
Unlock the answer
question
game stage
answer
stage in the development of self during which a child acquires the ability to take the role of a group or community (the generalized other) and to confirm his or her behavior to broad, societal expectations
Unlock the answer
question
gender
answer
psychological, social, and cultural aspects of maleness and femaleness
Unlock the answer
question
generalized other
answer
perspective of the larger society and its constituent values and attitudes
Unlock the answer
question
identity
answer
essential aspect of who we are, consisting of our sense of self, gender, race, ethnicity, and religion
Unlock the answer
question
individualist culture
answer
culture in which personal accomplishments are a more importnat component of one's self concept than a group membership
Unlock the answer
question
looking glass self
answer
sense of who we are that is defined by incorporating the reflected appraisals of others
Unlock the answer
question
play stage
answer
stage in the development of self during which a child develops the ability to take a rold, but only from the perspective of one person at a time
Unlock the answer
question
reflexive behavior
answer
behavior in which the initiating an action is the same as the person toward whom the action is directed
Unlock the answer
question
resocialization
answer
process of learning new values, norms, and expectations when an adult leaves an old role and enters a new one
Unlock the answer
question
role taking
answer
ability to see oneself from the perspective of others and to use that perspective in formulating one's own behavior
Unlock the answer
question
self
answer
uniqu set of traits, behaviors, and attitudes that distinguishes one person from the next, the active source and passive object of behavior
Unlock the answer
question
sex
answer
biological maleness or femaleness
Unlock the answer
question
socialization
answer
process through which one learns how to act according to the rules and expectations of a particular culture
Unlock the answer
question
total institution
answer
place where individuals are cut off from the wider society for an appreciable period and where together they lead an enclosed, formally administered life
Unlock the answer
question
tracking
answer
grouping of students into different curricular programs, or tracks, based on an assessment of their academic abilities
Unlock the answer
question
absolutism
answer
approach to defining deviance that rests on the assumption that all human behavior can be considered either inherently good or inherently bad
Unlock the answer
question
criminalization
answer
official definition of an act of deviance as a crime
Unlock the answer
question
deterrence theory
answer
theory of deviance positing that people will be prevented from engaging in deviant acts if they judge the costs of such an act to outweigh the benefits
Unlock the answer
question
deviance
answer
behavior, ideas, or attributes of an individual or group that some people in society find offensive
Unlock the answer
question
labeling theory
answer
theory stating that deviance is the consequence of the application of rules and sanctions to an offender; a deviant is an individual to whom the identity "deviant" has been successfully applied
Unlock the answer
question
medicalization
answer
definition of behavior as a medical problem and mandating the medical profession to provide some kind of treatment for it
Unlock the answer
question
relativism
answer
approach to defining deviance that rests on the assumption that deviance is socially created by collective human judgments and ideas
Unlock the answer
