Soc 102 – Flashcard

Seeks to "bring the individual back" into the analysis of society Social reality (i.e., norm, roles, institutions, structures) is constructed and negotiated through everyday interaction in social situations; the "situation" (not "structures") is the main unit of analysis. Social structures vary by time and place - processes of social construction Reality is not something given directly to our senses; instead, the mind "interprets" reality through meaningful symbols. For example, the American flag "symbolizes" different meanings to different individuals and groups.

The self

the individual self is a product of society (as with functionalism), but the individual is actively involved in the process of defining their self. The self develops through social interaction but this process is not the same for everyone.

the "I" and the "Me"

social and cooperative self, or those parts of society that an individual incorporates into the self (attitudes and expectations of others that one takes on); the sum of "generalized others"

spontaneous, impulsive, rebellious, imaginative, and creative phase of the self

The "I" takes chances and risks social sanction. In a free and open society with a high degree of individual freedom, the "I" is allowed greater expression. Over the course of a life-time the individual's "I" is overshadowed by the "Me"; that is, one's individuality becomes more limited and constrained. Of course, the balance between the I and the Me will vary somewhat by individual.

reflexivity - internalizing the attitudes and expectations of the group (of role-models, in particular) as your own

The self is developed in the play stage, the game stage, and the "generalized other" (idealized or typical attitudes and expectations in group)

The "complete" or unified self is constituted by multiple "elementary" selves; people who experience a highly contradictory and disorganized social environment, will also experience difficulty in developing a coherent and consistent self image. Conflicting demands placed on the individual by different social groups can create conflicting and irreconcilable elementary selves (self identities) within the individual.

a. Experience of oneself b. taking the attitudes of other individuals toward herself c. The individual must take an objective, impersonal attitude toward herself d. Indirect

a. Attitude of the whole community b. Allows the self to fully develop c. When the individuals tries to do what is expected of them d. It is the general notion that a person has of the common expectations that others have about actions and thoughts within a particular society, and thus serves to clarify their relation to the other as a representative member of a shared social system.

a. Individuals can only have a self in relation to the selves of others, people have to have interaction order to be able to have a self b. The self is constructed by these structures c. The 'I' would not have a concept of social structures or no social interaction - would not act and would not be acted upon

a. The self is not there at birth b. It is a reflection of social interaction c. The Play Stage - The Game stage i. Organizes individual attitudes of others into the organized group attitudes and becomes an individual reflection of the general systematic pattern of social group behavior in which they are involved with others

a. Earlier theories do not take into consideration the self of individuals b. Focuses on how the society is acting and are at play on people c. While symbolic interactionism focuses on social action as individuals fitting their actions in line with the action of others through interpretation

a. Students have to catch the process of interpretation b. They study it in terms of acting units and organization Organization of society is the framework in which social action takes place - does not determine the action Changes in the organization are products of the activity of acting units c. While sociologist study it in terms of social system, culture, norms, values, social stratification, status position, social roles and institutional organization

a. It is common for actions to in situation in which participants are not in an organized structure b. Therefore social organization does not shape the situation Causing the tools of interpretation to shift.

a. He acknowledges that the individual is forgotten and they are not recognized as persons constructing individual and collective action b. It simply sees people being acted on and acting as interpreters and responding based off their interpretation.

Life is a series of situations, or "stages" on which each of us seeks to project an ideal concept (image) of our self through various roles. The aim of these performances is "impression management" or trying to impress our self image on others.

situational acting that strives to impress others of your ideal self-concept (for that situation)

As people move from one stage to the next, they have to change roles and adapt their impression management to the new situation.

Individuals in groups are always struggling to control the "definition of the situation," or define the situation in ways that support their self-concept.

shallow, flexible and adaptable, social relationships are contrived We go out of our way to save other peoples faces His view may be hard to accept - we expect interaction to be real Conditioned and circumscribed by factors like age and gender

often times we have to defer to them

Keep some things hidden, too much honesty can undermine your impression management, hide the dirty work in constructing your performance Flattery Requires keeping different audiences separate You want to make your audience feel special Consistency Mystification Project a sense of mystery and awe, the trick is to amaze an audience by keeping specific social distance from it, keeps them from questioning your performance Defending your performances against disruptive intrusions If you want your performance to work you have to make sure there is some level of trust with the group You have to select the right audience, who is going to believe your line? Staging performances in "teams"

Wherever the audience is supposed to be

Off limits to the audience The performer can relax, practice their performance Is there ever a backstage? Even when you are alone, are you still performing for yourself?

It is instructed to look at gender roles in this way, men act differently around men and women, vice versa Women are pressured to act caring and passionate We feel the pressure to perform gender at school

labeling of individuals as deviants Physically handicapped Mentally ill Have a hard time giving off their impression management People with disabilities are outsiders, shunned, and avoided It can be hard to make an impression that will overcome The way people look at you is through this single lens of mental illness - role engulfment What is really dangerous is when the individual comes to identify themselves as that

Military - had for service men to re-enter society In the end people that are labeled deviant get sick of fighting society

Stigma complicates impression management; your audience only sees your spoiled identity, or master status. A stigma is an social characteristic that causes a person to be shamed, disgraced, or banished by a group or groups in society

Performing roles in situations is rarely spontaneous or improvised. People frame these situational encounters and attempt to define these situations according to preconceptions, ideas, traditions, and beliefs that are part of the larger culture and social structure. We see the world through "frames" or cultural lenses ("world view") that shape the way we think and act. Similar to Mead's generalized others or symbolic templates that assign meaning to a situation Principles of organization that define our experiences Assumptions about what we are seeing in the social world Master frames

This veneer of consensus is when the individual suppresses their immediate feelings conveying a view of the situation that will be socially acceptable Individual remains non-committal or silent They work to create a situation in which they create a single definition of the situation in which they come to an agreement as to whose claims will be honored

A process in which self and others involved in an interaction try to figure out what the interaction is about The definition of the situation is the individual's attempt to define the situation, how the individual wants to be perceived in the situation and what they expect When they get this wrong it can lead to anomy Provides a plan for the cooperation activity - it has a distinct moral character The person asserts who they are and the other individuals in turn know how to treat them Defensive practices: when the individual uses strategies to protect their own projections Protective practices: when the individual uses these strategies to save others

Class exploitation and misery in the economic realm are not sufficient to produce a revolutionary consciousness or human emancipation. The struggle must include a struggle over ideas in the cultural and political realms.

Early 20th century Marxists addressed this question by changing the focus from purely economic explanation, to political and cultural explanations; they conclude that the economic contradictions of capitalism are not enough to destroy it. Believed that capitalism would fall in the west first, but it fell in Russia first, there were very few proletarians Realized that the revolution is not automatic This is how Marxism changed in the 20's - becomes more sociologically Everything is an instrument of capitalism - education, religion

An extension of Marx's concept/process of Commodity Fetishism Capitalism's tendency to transform social relations (exploitative ones) into things/commodities, and thereby obscures the real source of value (i.e., labor), and the injustice and inhumanity of the system. A container of invisible relationships between workers and owners It's produced and behind this commodity are people Capitalist don't want you to see the workers that make the things that you buy We humanize what has become very dehumanized

Market penetration in, and commodification of, every nook and cranny of our life, beyond economic life

The proletariat have an active role in creating their fate The bourgeoisie has the organizational and intellectual weapons while the proletariat have the ability to see society for what it is The class struggle must be raised from the level of economic necessity to the level of conscious aim and effective class consciousness -The rise of capitalism over feudalism facilitated this process of becoming a class-for-itself among workers, but under late capitalism, it has once again become difficult for workers to identify with their class interests due to pervasive reification ala consumerism and "status" distinctions.

The process becomes so pervasive that it comes to conceal capitalist exploitation. Nevertheless, at the same time, as capitalism develops, class relations are increasingly exposed. Capitalism itself comes to sweep away all of the cultural beliefs and practices that had previously disguised its true exploitative nature. The hardening of class divisions in advanced capitalism facilitates the process in which the proletariat moves from a "class-in-itself" to a "class-for-itself"

Cultural domination in which the masses freely consent to their own exploitation and oppression Not a fixed or permanent state, but rather an ongoing process that is never complete or absolute. Ruling classes have to work tirelessly to maintain their hegemony - devise strategies and campaigns to convince the masses that the social order is just, necessary, and natural, and that resistance is futile. Much more effective than force to obtain the obedience of workers because it uses persuasion to convince workers that capitalism is legitimate; ideas are primary weapon of the capitalist class to subdue the working class. This concept is very similar to Weber's concept of authority, since it emphasizes "legitimate domination," whereby subordinates (in this case, the working class) give their consent to rulers (in this case the capitalist class). From Marxist perspective, the proletariat becomes an accessory of its own exploitation

Need not be revolutionary Any information that allows people to think outside of the box and escape the echo chamber can weaken or undermine the dominant hegemonic ideology than controls the hearts and minds of the masses Gramsci's analysis of hegemony serves as a critique of vulgar Marxism (i.e., economic determinism). The emphasis is placed on political and ideological struggle and away from economic contradictions and exploitation Role of intellectuals and culture in revolutionary struggle against capitalism - counter-hegemonic ideology. Workers must be re-educated and re-socialized into a workers class culture before they can mobilize against capitalists.

- technology as dehumanizing under capitalism; destroys individual freedom How technology becomes a tool of reification and control under capitalism Technology is not repressive in and of itself, but is corrupted under capitalism. Capitalism requires the all technology serve the profit-motive, rather than human needs.

Erodes individual freedom and creativity and promotes mindless conformity to procedures and routines imposed by technology (or more accurately, by large corporations that sell technology). Life becomes unthinkable and unbearable without it. In this way, Marcuse has re-envisioned Weber's "Iron Cage" of modernity. Technology now represents the bars of that imprison humanity. Capitalism rewards technocrats and computer geeks because they are the "experts" that execute the "efficiency imperative" - they maintain and guard the cage. Standardization or regimentation of all life Technology makes life increasingly predictable, routine, and uniform; the "mass society," in which everyone follows the same social patterns and leads identical lives, comes to pass; thus, Marcuse's "One-Dimensional Man."

The rebellious, autonomous, and critical thinker of the Enlightenment is replaced by the efficient, obedient, and servile rule- conformist. Individual worth is measured by efficiency, or how much one can produce or consume, rather than by creativity or originality (critical thought is shunned). Reminiscent of Weber's cog in the bureaucratic wheel. People only distinguish themselves as individuals by the differing amount and style of goods they consume (everyone drives a car but some people drive newer, bigger, and faster ones). To Marcuse, this modern conception of individualism based on the mass consumption of status symbols makes a mockery of the original conception.

Commodity production forced there to be a weaker competitor under giant enterprises, established society's dominion over nature and abolished the free economic subject

Characterizes the pervasive mode of thought and even the manifold forms of protest and rebellion Establishes standards of judgment and fosters attitudes which make men ready to accept and even to introcept the dictates of the apparatus Individuality was dependent upon social standards, set the individual against society

Self-interest as rational, it was guided by autonomous thinking The individual achievement has been transformed into standardized efficiency, his performance is measured by standards external to him

The ideological expression of instrumental rationality is "scientism," under which capitalist interests become embedded in the language of science and technology. That is, capitalists are able to use science to bolster their legitimacy insofar as scientific research proves that capitalism "works" (or benefits most people most of the time). Economists and experts of scientific management have devised a multitudes of quantifiable indexes, that can precisely measure quality of life, such as GDP, Consumer Confidence, inflation, Dow Jones index, etc. ad nauseum.

Under capitalism, "communicative competency" is distorted by "instrumental rationality" that reduces human relations to market transactions.

In reality, the truth of capitalism is not derived from science but from metaphysics, or self-evident principles that don't need to be proven to be true, they simply are assumed to be true by economists. There is no scientific evidence to show that unregulated "free" markets invariably spread wealth far and wide. Scientists under capitalism are reduced to corporate shills reduced to selling "snake oil" to gullible consumers who want to feel better about themselves. Placebos are very profitable business

Becomes the goal of socialism - equality in communication Rationalization of purposive action Led to the growth of productive forces and an increase in technological control over life Rationalization of communicative action (see Ritzer) Leads to communication free from domination , free and open communication, involves emancipation Truth as consensus - consensus is formed when 4 "validity claims" are met (ditto). The speaker's utterances are seen as understandable and comprehensible The propositions offered by the speaker are true, reliable knowledge The speaker is being truthful and sincere in offering the propositions, the speaker is reliable It is right and proper for the speaker to utter such propositions

The "de-coupling" of economics and politics in modern society (aka "deregulation") instigates a crisis. As the government intervenes less and less in the economy, "free" market forces result in increasing economic inequality; social unrest and instability ensue. The government must come to the rescue of the economy and prevent capitalism from destroying itself (aka massive bail outs). But this re-regulation and government stimulus creates a new backlash from anti-government reactionaries (think "Tea Party"). The government experts that intervene defend their policies with "scientism." The "data" show that some government regulation makes capitalism run more smoothly. The growing cooperation between government and business creates banks that are way too big to fail; Wall Street is awash in free government money and main street gets the bill. Sound familiar? Under liberal capitalism, the increasing inequality cause by free markets leads to mass discontent, which compels the state/government to increasingly regulate the marketplace to quell social unrest and maintain social order. Another potential crisis emerges when a backlash against state regulated capitalism occurs; discontent grows over the usurpation of individual freedom and democratic participation by bureaucratic experts (aka administrative despotism). Bureaucrats and administrators (so-called experts) attempt to justify their increasing authority (despotism) through scientism (scientific expertise). "New" social movements and the formation of ideal speech communities

Like all Marxists, Habermas believes that human emancipation is possible. He is very much "Enlightenment" thinker because he supports equality and individual liberty. He calls for removing the barriers to equal communication or expression The current struggle for human emancipation is being waged not by industrial workers, but by the participants of "New Social Movements" These movements include the Civil Rights Movement, Women's Movement, Green Movement, Gay and Lesbian Movements, Animal Rights to name a few. Not your typical Marxian proletarians. Other Marxists have criticized Habermas for taking the working class out of the revolution

As distinct from competitive capitalism Process by which monopoly capitalism displaces competitive capitalism - business consolidation Focus on advertising and marketing as opposed to pricing The rise of the large corporation as a requirement of monopoly capitalism - managers replace owners as dominant capitalist class

Core: the ruling class that benefits off of the periphery, they own things and control production - dominants the world economy and exploits the rest Periphery: the group of people that are exploited and are the workers -- provide materials to the core Semi-periphery: the class in-between the core and periphery, headed towards the core -- between the exploiter and the exploited Relationship between the parts The periphery and semi-periphery are locked by core nations and their governments and financial institutions into a dependent and exploited position Historical development of world-system: Geographic expansion (imperialism/colonialism), world-wide division of labor, formation of core states.