Sociology – Key Terms – Flashcards
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sociology
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the science that studies human society and social behavior
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social interaction
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how people relate to one another and influence each other's behavior
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phenomenon
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an observable fact or event
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sociological imagination
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the ability to see the connection between the larger world and our personal lives
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social sciences
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related disciplines that study various aspects of past and present cultures
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anthropology
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the comparative study of various aspects of past and present cultures
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psychology
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the social science that deals with the behavior and thinking or organisms
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social psychology
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the study of how an individual's behavior and personality are affected by the social environment
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economics
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the study of the choices people make in an effort to satisfy their wants and needs
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political science
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the examination of the organization and operation of governments
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history
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the study of past events
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Social Darwinism
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perspective that holds that societies evolve toward stability and perfection
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function
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the positive consequence that an element of society has for the maintenance of the social system
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Verstehen
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the empathetic understanding of the meanings others attach to their actions
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ideal type
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a description of the essential characteristics of some aspect of society
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theory
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a systematic explanation of the relationships among phenomena
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theoretical perspective
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a general set of assumptions about the nature of phenomena
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functionalist perspective
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viewing society as a set of interrelated parts that work together to produce a stable social system
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dysfunction
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the negative consequence an element has for the stability of the social system
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manifest function
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the intended and recognized consequence of some element of society
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latent function
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the unintended and unrecognized consequence of an element of society
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conflict perspective
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theoretical perspective that focuses on those forces in society that promote competition and change
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data
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scientific information
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variable
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a characteristic that can differ from one individual, group, or situation to another in a measurable way.
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interactionist perspective
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focus on how individuals interact with one another in society
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symbolic interaction
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interaction between people that takes place through the use of symbols
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personality
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the sum of total behaviors, attitudes, beliefs, and values that are characteristic of an individual
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heredity
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the transmission of genetic characteristics from parents to children
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instinct
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an unchanging biologically inherited behavior pattern
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sociobiology
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the systematic study of the biological basis of all social behavior
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aptitude
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a capacity to learn a particular skill or acquire a particular body of knowledge
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socialization
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the interactive process through which individuals learn the basic skills, values, beliefs, and behavior patterns of the society.
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self
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our conscious awareness of possessing a distinct identity that separates us from other members of society
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looking-glass self
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the interactive process by which we develop an image of ourselves based on how we imagine we appear to others
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role taking
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forms the basis of the socialization process by allowing us to anticipate what others expect of us
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significant others
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the people closest to us
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generalized other
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internalized attitudes, expectations, and viewpoints of society
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I
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the unsocialized, spontaneous,self interested component of our personality and self-identity
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me
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that part of our identity that is aware of the expectations and attitudes of soceity, aka our socialized self
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agents of socialization
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the specific individuals, groups, and institutions that provide the situations in which socialization can occur
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peer group
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a primary group composed of individuals of roughly equal age and social characteristics
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mass media
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forms of communication that reach large audiences with no personal contact
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total institution
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a setting in which people are isolated from the rest of society for a set period of time and are subject to the control of officials of varied ranks
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resocialization
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a break with past experiences and the learning of new values and norms
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culture
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all the shared products of human groups including physical objects and beliefs, values, and behaviors shared by a group
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material culture
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the physical objects that people create
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nonmaterial culture
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abstract human creations
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society
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a group of mutually interdependent people who have organized in such a way as to share a common culture and feeling of unity
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symbol
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anything that stands for something else
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language
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the organization of written or spoken symbols into a standardized system
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values
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shared beliefs about what is good or bad, right or wrong, desriable or undesirable
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norms
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the shared rules of conduct that tell people how to act in specific situations
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folkways
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norms that do not have great moral significance attached to them
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mores
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norms that have great moral significance attached to them
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law
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a written rule of conduct that is enacted and enforced by the government
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culture trait
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an individual tool, act, or belief that is related to a particular situation or need
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culture complex
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a cluster of interrelated traits
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culture pattern
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the combination of a number of culture complexes into an interrelated whole
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cultural universals
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features common to all cultures
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ethnocentrism
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tendency to view ones own culture and group as superior
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cultural relativism
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the belief that cultures should be judged by their own standards
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subculture
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group with its own unique values, norms, and behaviors that exists within a larger culture
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counterculture
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the subculture that emerges when a group rejects the values, norms, and practices of the larger society and replaces them with a new set of cultural patterns.
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narcissism
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extreme self centerdness
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internalization
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the process by which a norm becomes a part of an individual's personality, therby conditioning the individual to conform to society's expectations
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sanction
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a reward or punishment used to enforce conformity to norms
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positive sanction
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when a sanction is in the form of a reward
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formal sanction
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a reward or punishment that is given by some formal organization or regulatory body, such as the government, the police, a corporation, or school
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informal sanction
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a spontaneous expression of approval or disapproval given by an individual or group
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social control
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the enforcing of norms through either internalization or sanctions
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ideology
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a system of beliefs or ideas that justifies some social, moral, religious, politiical, or economic interests held by a social group or by society.
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social movement
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a long-term conscious effort to promote or prevent social change
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technology
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the knowledge and tools that people use to manipulate their environment for practical purposes
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discovery
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occurs when people recognize new uses for existing elements in the world or begin to understand them in new ways
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invention
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occurs when people use existing knowledge to create something that did not previously exist
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diffusion
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the process of spreading culture traits from one society to another
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assimilation
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the blending of culturally distinct groups into a single group
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cultural lag
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a situation in which some aspects of the culture change less rapidly, or lag behind, other aspects of the same culture
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ethnicity
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the set of cultural characteristics that distinguishes one group from another group
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ethnic group
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individuals who share a common cultural background and a comon sense of identity
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minority group
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a category of people who share physical characteristics or cultural practices that result in the group being denied equal treatment
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discrimination
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the denial of equal treatment to individuals based on their group membership
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prejudice
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an unsupported generalization about a category of people
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legal discrimination
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discrimination upheld by law
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institutionalized discrimination
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discrimination that is an outgrowth of the structure of society
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self-fulfilling prophecy
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a prediction that results in behavior that makes the prediction come true
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racism
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the belief that one's own race or ethnic group is naturally superior to other races or ethnic groups
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stereotype
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an oversimplified, exaggerated, or unfavorable generalization about a category of people
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scapegoating
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the practice of placing the blame for one's troubles on an innocent individual or group
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assimilation
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the blending of culturally distinct groups into a single group with common culture and identity
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cultural pluralism
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allowing each group within society to keep its unique cultural identity
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subjugation
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the maintaining of control over a group through force
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slavery
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the ownership of one group of people by another group
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segregation
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the physical separation of a minority group from the dominant group
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de jure segregation
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segregation based on laws
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de facto segregation
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segregation based on informal norms
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genocide
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when the goal of extermination is the intentional destruction of the entire targeted group
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white ethnics
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collective reference to immigrants from the predominantly Catholic countries of Ireland, Itaylr, France, Poland, and Greece.
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race
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a category of people who share inherited physical characteristics and who are perceived by others as being a distinct group
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deviance
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behavior that violates significant social norms
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stigma
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a mark of social disgrace that sets the deviant apart from the rest of society
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cultural transmission theory
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theory that views deviance as a learned behavior transmitted through interaction with others
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differential association
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proportion of associations a person has with deviant vs. nondeviant individiuals
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structural-strain theory
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theory of deviant behavior that views deviance as the natural outgrowth of the values, norms, and structure of society
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anomie
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the situation that arises when the norms of society are unclear or are no longer applicable
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control theory
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theory of deviant behavior in which deviance is seen as a natural occurance and conformity as the result of social control
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labeling theory
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theory that focuses on how individuals come to be labeled as deviant
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primary deviance
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nonconformity that goes undetected by those in authority
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secondary deviance
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results int he individual being labeled as deviant and accepting the label as true
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crime
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any act that is labeled as such by thsoe in authority is prohibited by law, and is punishable by government
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white-collar crime
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a crime that is committed by an individual or individuals of high social status in the course of their professional career
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crime syndicate
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a large-scale organization of professional criminals that controls some vice or business through violence or the threat of violence
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plea bargaining
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the process of legal negotiation that allows an accused person to plead guilty to a lesser charge in return for a lighter sentence
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corrections
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sanctions such as imprisonment, parole, and probation usd to punish
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recedivism
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the term for repeated criminal behavior
