Sociology Exam Review
The Scientific Revolution
Approx. 1550-1700. Revolution was the belief that thinkers should be using evidence rather than speculation to draw conclusions. “proof”.
Scientific Method
Using evidence to test theory.
The Enlightenment
Approx. 1700-1800. Period where the rise of science and religion clashed, sometimes violently. World full of war, revolution, and hardship.
Democratic Revolution
Approx. 1750-1800. This revolution was about the break away from believing that God shaped social order to believing that people are responsible for organizing society.
Industrial Revolution
Approx. 1780-1840. Brought a host of social problems for social thinkers to chew on. Unsafe factories that created a distinct lower class, child labour, and pockets of poverty.
Who is considered to be the founding father of Sociology? Like all early sociologists, he was heavily influenced by (blank).
Auguste Comte. The Industrial Revolution.
Auguste Comte was also the originator of (blank), the approach to the study of society that relies specifically on empirical scientific evidence, such as controlled experiments and statistics.
Positivism.
Who is the Second Father of Sociology? What was he influenced by?
Herbert Spencer. Charles Darwin’s Theory of Evolution.
Social Darwinism
Created by Herbert Spencer. “survival of the fittest” applied to humans. Societies evolved from “uncivilized” and “civilized”.
Who are the 3 theorists that are considered to be the historical giants of Sociology?
Max Weber, Emile Durkheim, and Karl Marx.
What sociological paradigm are each of the three a founding father of?
Max Weber (symbolic interactionism), Karl Marx (conflict theory), and Emile Durkheim (Functionalism).
Theories
Are explanations of some aspect of social life that states how and why certain facts are related.
Research
Is the process of systematically observing reality to assess the validity of a theory.
Values
Ideas about what is good and bad, right and wrong.
What was the very first sociological paradigm?
Functionalism
Who is considered to be the Mother of Sociology?
Harriet Martineau
Manifest Functions
The clear, intended effects of social structures
Latent Functions
The Unintended effects of social structures.
Which paradigm is the Mother of Sociology considered to be the founder of?
Feminist Theory.
What are the 3 levels of social structure used in the study of Sociology?
Micro, Macro, and Global.
Micro Social Structures
Are the patterns of close social relations formed during face to face interactions. Ex. Family, friends, classmates.
Macro Social Structures
Are the overarching patterns of social relations that lie outside and above a person’s intimates and acquaintances. Ex. Social class, government, education system.
Global Social Structures
Are the patterns of social relations that lie outside of and above the national level. Ex. Worldwide organizations, world-wide travel and communication.
Who is the founder of Hull House in Chicago, is considered to also be the founder of social welfare as we know it today, and won a Nobel Peace Prize for her life’s work and contributions to society?
Jane Addams
Social Constructionism
Argues that apparently natural or innate features of life are often sustained by social processes that vary historically and culturally.
Queer Theory
Denies the very existence of stable identities.
Which approach to sociological research focuses on micro social structures and studies the world from the individual’s perspective? Objective or Subjective?
Subjective approaches on symbolic interactionist paradigm.
Which one of the 4 main sociological paradigms focuses on subjective/micro sociology?
Symbolic Interactionism
Which of our 4 main sociological paradigms focuses on objective research and studies the macro social structures of society?
Functionalism (only)
Culture
consists of the shared symbols and their definitions that people create to solve real life problems.
Symbols
are the concrete objects or abstract terms that represent something else. They fill the human experience.
Language
is the primary symbols system that we share in order to understand communication
Books, food, clothing, transportation and building are some examples of ______________ culture, the tools and techniques that enable people to accomplish tasks.
Material Culture.
Things like values, symbols, customs and ideals are what make up _______________ culture, which are the intangible creations of human society.
Non-Material Culture.
Which of these two types of culture do sociologists focus on?
Non-Material Culture
__________ are the rules of conduct for membership in a group and the generally accepted way of doing things.
Norms
Beliefs
Are cultural statements that define what community members consider real.
What are the 4 categories that norms can be broken down into?
Folkways, taboos, laws, and Mores.
Folkways
Informal social preferences, powerful in terms of getting people to engage in conforming behaviour. Not illegal, but present social consequences. Ex. Presenting manners.
Mores
Formal social requirements punished for violation. Ex. Student code of conduct.
Taboos
Forbidden strongest norms, violation is met with revulsion and upsets the whole community. Sanctions are severe. Ex, cannibalism.
Laws
Codified by the state.
Canada is one of the most ethnically diverse nations in the world. True or False?
True
In 1971, the Canadian government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau, adopted a policy of ________________, making Canada the world’s first official multicultural society.
Multiculturalism.
Max Weber introduced the concept of ___________________ to describe the most efficient way of attaining goals and the unintentional negative consequences of doing so.
Rationalization.
Because Weber believed that rationalization constrains all aspects of our lives, he used the metaphor of living inside and _______________ .
Iron Cage
_________________ are subversive cultures that oppose dominant values and seek to replace them.
Countercultures
_________________ is the tendency for people to judge other cultures exclusively by the standards of their own culture.
Ethnocentrisms.
__________________ is the process by which people learn to function in social life and become aware of themselves as they interact with others.
Socialization.
What was Mead’s theory to explain the development of the Self
The “I” and the “me”; two parts of self. “I” is the subjective and unique part of the self and “Me” is the objective side of the Self through social interaction.
The major paradigms interpret socialization differently. What do each focus on?
• Functionalists: focus on how socialization helps to maintain orderly social relations while minimizing individual freedoms
• Symbolic interactionists: focus on how individuals attach meaning to their social surroundings and highlights how individuals conform to or modify the values and roles that authorities try to teach.
• Conflict and Feminist theories: focus on the discord (conflict) that occurs during socialization based on class, gender, and other divisions.
No matter what paradigm you choose, socialization operates through a number of social institutions. What are those institutions?
4 institutions; school, peer groups, mass media, and families.
______________ are where primary socialization takes place.
Families.
______________ is the process by which role performers act in relation to others. It involves an ongoing mix of ‘role taking’ and ‘role making’.
Social Interaction.
Role performance comes with both constraints and freedoms. What is role playing vs. role making?
Role playing is constraining and role making is a freedom.
Feminist theory reminds us that communication also requires the use of emotional labour. What is this?
This refers to the emotion management that people do as part of their job and for which they are paid. Seeing our culture and society has moved from primarily producing goods to providing services, it requires the need for more and more people to become skilled in emotional labour.
Conflict theory vs. Symbolic Interactionism on social interaction.
Conflict theories believe what guides social interaction are things like: attention, approval, prestige, information, money and resources…
Symbolic Interactionists say – not all interaction is guided by these conflicts and competitions….
Rather, people often behave in ways that have nothing to do with personal gain and that social life is much richer than conflict theories would have us believe. People interact with others based on learned norms, and by taking the role of the other.
What is the focus of conflict theory?
The competitive exchange of valued resources structures social interaction
What is the focus of feminist theory?
Status differences between men and women structure social interaction
What is the focus of symbolic interactionism theory?
Social interaction involves the interpretation, negotiation, and modification of norms, roles, and statuses.
The example we used in the chapter on Networks, Groups, Bureaucracies, & Societies was Nazi Germany and the holocaust. We asked: how is it possible for many thousands of ordinary German citizens to witness the systematic murder of millions of defenseless and innocent Jews? To answer that question, we used the sociological lessons learned from the study of Networks, Groups, and Bureaucracies.
a) Norms of Solidarity Demand Conformity
b) Bureaucracies are highly effective structures of authority
c) The structure of authority renders people to be obedient.
_________________ are large impersonal organizations comprising many clearly defined positions arranged in a hierarchy. It has a permanent, salaried staff of qualified experts and written goals, rules, and procedures.
Bureaucracies.
Why was the Nazi genocide machine so efficient?
Because it was a well-organized bureaucracy. And being efficient means achieving the bureaucracy’s goals at the least cost.
What are social collectives?
Other factors beyond our individual motives prompt us to act in certain ways… maybe even in ways we wouldn’t otherwise. These factors come in the form of SOCIAL COLLECTIVES. Ie: Social Networks, Groups, Bureaucracies, and Societies.
A ________________ is a bounded set of individuals who are linked by the exchange of material or emotional resources. This can include things from money to friendships.
Social Network.
_________________ are made up of one or more network of people who identify with one another, interact on a regular basis, and adhere to specific norms, roles, and statuses. They can be primary (ie: the family) or secondary (ie: our class).
Groups.
What were the 2 disadvantages to Group Conformity?
Group Think: the pressure to conform despite personal misgivings.
Bystander Apathy: when people observe someone in an emergency but don’t offer any help.
________________ groups comprise people against whom individuals evaluate their own situation and conduct.
Reference Group.
We feel a strong bond to other Canadians despite the fact that we will never interact with more than a tiny fraction of the 38 million of us…. Sociologically, this makes Canada a(n) ________________ community.
Imagined.
_____________ crimes are the punished the harshest and most people agree these crimes are terrible for society.
Consensus Crimes.
_______________ are minor acts of deviance that are generally perceived as relatively harmless.
Social Diversions.
The definition of Deviance is a contested issue. True or False?
True
Definitions of deviance vary depending on whether you study it from an objective or subjective position. What are these positions and what is the focus?
Subjective approaches to deviance see deviant behaviour as a social construction… and study deviance from the point of view of the actor/person.
Objective approaches to deviance view deviant behaviour as something inherent in the individual, or a violation of social norms, or the result of strain embedded in social conditions. Focus: more macro level – not from the individual perspective.
_____________ occurs when a person violates a norm and others define the violation as deviant.
Deviance.
Symbolic Interaction: Howards Becker’s Outsiders and Labelling Theory. (focuses on the individual)
Micro theories.
Symbolic Interaction: Edwin Sutherland’s Differential Association Theory. (focuses on the individual).
(focuses on the individual).
Functionalists on Deviance.
Look to theorists like Durkheim and Merton. Deviance is a natural and normal phenomenon and is a necessary part of society. They focused on deviance from a macro level.
Durkheim on Deviance
Durkheim: all groups will find a least one member that is deviant because it increases group solidarity.
Merton on Deviance
Merton: Modes of Adaptation to strain: how larger social structures are constructed in such a way that they (unintentionally) produce deviance
Conflict theories on deviance focus.
Conflict theories emphasize the connection between power and crime and how power is used to maintain and perpetuate privilege. Conflict theorists argue that the rich and powerful have a disproportionate amount of control over the criminal justice system and are therefore far more likely (and free to) engage in deviant behaviour and crime.
Control Theory (Travis Hirschi)
Social Bond Theory that suggests is young people are firmly bonded to 4 fundamental aspects of social life, they are far less likely to engage in deviant behaviour.
1) Significance/reference others
2) Career aspirations
3) Conventional activities
4) Beliefs/norms of society
Feminist Theory on Deviance
focuses on the consequences of power differences in terms of gender to study deviant behaviour.
What is social control?
Refers to the ways in which a social system attempts to regulate people’s thoughts, feelings, appearance and behaviour.
What is internal and external social control?
It can be broken down into INTERNAL social control (which regulates people through socialization)
EXTERNAL social control (which regulates people by imposing punishments and offering rewards).
When it comes to crime and deviance, our current post-industrial society is primarily a surveillance society. What is this?
A society characterized by the all-encompassing use of surveillance and technology to optimize social control.
Medicalization
Medical explanations of deviance have replaced other explanations of deviance. From “badness” to “sickness”.
Problems of the DSM-5
Usually about politics rather than the research of disorders. A lot of money to be made off of medicalization. Often overdiagnoses occur.
Scope of mental disorders due to…
Various professional organizations having an interest in doing so.
_______________ occur when fear of something is not matched by evidence. It is an extreme over response that occurs when many people believe that some form of deviance/crime poses a profound threat to our well-being.
Moral Panics.
What were the two alternative strategies to imprisonment discussed in class and in the textbook?
Rehabilitation and Decriminalization and Legalization.
What do sociologists and criminologist say is the best approach to dealing with the Opioid crisis?
Harm reduction strategies.
_______________ is a process where people become increasingly aware of, connected to, and dependent on one another.
Globalization. Globalization is about the rapid movement of capital, commodities, culture, and people across international borders. Lots of advantages and disadvantages to this…
_________________ is a worldwide network of labour and production processes whose end result is a finished product.
The Global Commodity Chain. We used a video clip of the production of a cotton t-shirt to demonstrate this.
We also discussed: The dangers of the “fast fashion” industry (the collapse of the Rana Plaza Factory in Bangladesh – 1132 deaths) and the homogenization of the world (into the USA) and the concept of McDonaldization.
What are the 3 sources of Globalization?
Technology, politics, and economics.
Symbolic Interactionists like the term __________________ rather than globalization.
Symbolic Interactionists challenge the idea of total homogenization and McDonaldization….
People adapt NA values to local customs and preferences. Glocalization refers to the simultaneous homogenization of some aspects of life and the strengthening of some local differences under the impact of globalization.
Functionalists and Modernization Theory to discuss globalization.
Economic under-development results from poor countries lacking Western attributes, including Western values, business practices, levels of investment, and stable governments. This simply means that functionalists believe the best way to help developing nations is to transfer these Western ideals to them.
Conflict theories use ________________ theory to examine globalization and believe functionalists are misguided with their Modernization theory. They see economic underdevelopment as the result of exploitive relations between rich and poor countries.
Dependency. See’s economic underdevelopment between the exploit of relations between rich and poor countries.
____________ is an attitude that judges a person on their group’s real or imagined characteristics.
Prejudice
Whereas ________________ is unfair treatment of people because of their group membership
Discrimination.
Why does studying race matter?
Despite the fact that the term “race” has, in many ways, lost its meaning, Sociologists continue with the term because PERCEPTIONS of race profoundly impact people’s lives.
Namely, race matters because it perpetuates SOCIAL INEQUALITY.