Study Guide 1 - Introduction To Sociology PDF

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Study Guide Exam 1
Erin Hatton...

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Soc 101 Exam 1 -- Study guide The above list should give you a general outline of course content. However, please note that you are responsible for all class materials: all lectures, book chapters, films, short videos, & examples cited in class lectures—it’s all fair game. The pre- and post-tests offered by the online text book (Pearson study resources) will be helpful in studying for the exam. Ch. 1:  What Is Sociology? o The study of social life, social change, and social causes and consequences of human behavior  Sociological Imagination o C. Wright Mills  ‘the sociological imagination (perspective) enables us to grasp the connection between history and biography

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History – each society is located in broad stream of events

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Biography – experiences within the historical settings, which gives us our orientations in life

Emile Durkheim/ Suicide/ Types Of Solidarity o First goal –get sociology recognized as a separate academic discipline o Second goal – to show how social forces affect people’s behavior o Comparison of suicide rates of several countries revealed an underlying social factor 

People are more likely to commit suicide if their ties to others in their community are weak

o He identified social integration – the degree to which people are tied to their other social groups  

Social Integration o the degree to which people are tied to their other social groups Social Facts o the patterns and behaviors that characterize a certain group 

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Example: in the US, June is the most popular time to have weddings

Origins Of Sociology As A Discipline o Natural sciences are the intellectual and academic disciplines that are designed to explain and predict the events in our natural environment

o Social sciences – the intellectual and academic disciplines designed to understand the social world objectively by means of controlled and repeated observations

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Industrial revolution

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Political revolutions

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Imperialism

Social Darwinism/Herbert Spencer o Second founder of sociology o Disagreed with Comte saying that sociologists shouldn’t guide social reform o Believed that sociologists should keep their hands off society because societies go through natural evolution o Believed helping the poor was wrong because you’d be helping the less fit survive

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Auguste Comte /Positivism o Positivism –applying the scientific method to the social world (first proposed by Auguste Comte (1798-1857) o He wondered what holds a society together o He named the study of society SOCIOLOGY

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Karl Marx / Types Of Alienation o Believed that the roots of human misery lay in class conflict, the exploitation of workers by those who own the means of production o Social change- workers over throwing the capitalists was inevitable o He didn’t think of himself as a sociologist but his ideas influenced many sociologists, especially the conflict theorists.

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Max Weber / Protestant Ethic & Capitalism/ Verstehen o Used cross cultural and historical materials to trace the causes of social change and to determine how social groups affect people’s orientations to life o Believed that sociology should be value free 

Value free –the view that a sociologists’ personal values or beliefs should not influence social research

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Values –the standards by which people define what is desirable or undesirable, good or bad, beautiful or ugly

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Objectively –value neutrality in research

o Verstehen –German word used by Weber that is perhaps best understood as ‘to have insight into someone’s situation’ o Subjective meanings –the meanings that people give their own behavior  

How people interpret their situation in life

Symbolic Interactionism / Dramaturgy/ Goffman o Verstehen –German word used by Weber that is perhaps best understood as ‘to have insight into someone’s situation’ o Subjective meanings –the meanings that people give their own behavior 

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How people interpret their situation in life

Functionalism (Aka Structural Functionalism Or Functional Analysis) o Manifest & Latent Functions; Dysfunctions  Functional Analysis 

Is that society is a whole unit, made up of interrelated parts that work together

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Functions 

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Dysfunctions 

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Unintended consequences that help a system adjust

Latent dysfunctions 

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Action is intended to help some part of a system

Latent Function 

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Harmful consequences of people’s actions

Manifest Function 

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Beneficial consequences of people’s actions

Human actions that hurt a system (usually unintended)

When family loses functions, marriage becomes more fragile and divorce more inevitable

Conflict Theory o A theoretical framework in which society is viewed as composed of groups that are competing for scarce resources 

Karl Marx 

Conflict is central in society

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Inequality will lead to competition for resources

o Macro Level Analysis 

An examination of large-scale patterns of society

o Micro Level Analysis 

An examination of small-scale patterns of society; such as how members of a group interact

o Social interaction 

One person’s actions influencing someone else; usually refers to what people do when they are in one another’s presence, but also includes communications at a distance

o Nonverbal Interactions  

Communication without words through gestures, use of space, silence, and so on

W.E.B. Dubois o Spent his lifetime studying relations between African Americans and whites o Du Bois combined the role of academic sociologist with that of a social reformer o Du Bois, Jane Addams, and others from Hull House were founders of the NAACP o Embraced revolutionary Marxism

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Jane Addams o Was a member of the American Sociological Society o Recipient of the Nobel Prize for peace for working on the behalf of poor immigrants. o Founded the Hull House with Ellen G Star 

Hull House – center to help immigrants in Chicago

o Leader in women’s rights and a peace movement of World War 1 o Cofounded the American Civil Liberties Union 

Applied Sociology o the use of sociology to solve problems 

from the micro level of classroom interaction and family relationships to the macro level of crime and pollution

Ch. 5:  Steps Of Conducting Research o Selecting a topic  Select a topic o Defining the problem  Specifying what you want to learn about the topic o Reviewing the literature  Must read what has been published on your topic  This helps you narrow down the problem, identify areas that are already known, and learn what areas need to be researched o Formulating a hypothesis  Predicts the relationship between or among your variables  Operational definitions –precise ways to measure the variables o Choosing a research method  7 different research methods  Surveys o Collection of data by having people answer a series of questions  Participant observations (fieldwork) o Research in which the researcher participates in a research setting while observing what is happening in that setting  Case studies o An intensive analysis of a SINGLE event, situation, or individual  Secondary analysis o The analysis of data that have been collected by other researchers  Analyzing documents o Studying documents or recorded sources  Experiments o The use of control and experimental groups and dependent and independent variables to test causation  Unobtrusive measures o Ways of observing people so they don’t know they are being studied o Collecting the data  Gather your data  Assure validity and reliability  Meaning if other researchers use operational definitions then they should find the same things o Analyzing the results  Analyze your data  Statistical techniques  Using software system that provides advice for collecting data and even about ethical issues

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o Sharing the results  Write a report to share your findings  Findings will be available for replication so others can repeat your study to see if they come up with similar results Operational Definitions Of Variables o The way in which a researcher measures a variable Variables o A factor thought to be significant for human behavior, which can vary from one case to another Hypothesis o A statement of how variables are expected to be related to one another, often according to predictions from a theory Validity o The extent to which an operational definition measures what it is intended to measure Reliability o The extent to which research produces consistent or dependable results Correlation Vs. Causation; Spurious (Cause, Effect, And Spurious Correlations --Text) o Causation  The change in one variable is caused by another variable o Spurious  Cause may be some underlining third variable o Correlation  When two things have no relation to each other  People who have big feet tend to read betterconflict How To Read A Table (Text) o Read the title  Title tells you the topic o Headnote (optional)  Located below title  More detailed information about how the data was collected o Headings  What kind of information is contained on the table o Columns  Information vertically o Rows  Information arranged horizontally o Source  Listed on the bottom  Provides information on where the data on the table is presented How Not To Do Research (Text) o Choose a biased sample o Ask biased questions o List biased choices o Discard undesirable results

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o Misunderstand the subjects’ world o Analyze the data incorrectly Different Research Methods Population Vs. Sample o You choose a SAMPLE to help you narrow down your research and help you make inferences on the larger population o POPULATION is the target group you are going to study Representative Sample Random Sample, Stratified Random Sample, Snowball Sample o Random sample  A sample in which everyone in the target population has the same chance of being included in a study o Stratified Random Sample  A sample from selected subgroups of the target population in which everyone in those sub groups has an equal chance of being included in the research o Snowball Sample  Technique where existing study subjects recruit future subjects from among their acquaintances. Importance Of Wording & Ordering Of Survey Questions Response Bias Pager’s Experiment (“Mark Of A Criminal Record”) (Class Lecture & Text) o Pager set out to examine how having a criminal record would prevent getting a job o White male with criminal records were more likely to be called for an interview than a black man without one

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Ethical Issues In Sociological Research o What Is Unethical In Sociological Research?  Research ethics require honesty, truth, and openness  Falsification of results are clearly forbidden  Condemn plagiarism  People should be informed that they are being studied and that they should never be harmed during the research  Sociologists are also required to protect the anonymity of those who provide information Brajuha Research (Text) – ETHICAL RESEARCH o Mario Brajuha worked as a waiter at a restaurant until it was burned down o He did participant observation of the people who worked there o The police asked for the notes that he took o He refused o Was threatened to jail by the DA and the noted were subpoenaed o Got threats from people who also wanted to see them o Refused to hand over his notes for over 2 years  Sociologists applaud his determination for holding on to his information

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Tuskegee Syphilis Study o They didn’t tell the very poor African American men that they had syphilis (no consent at all and deceived them) o There was no cure but they were subjugated to tests like spinal tests o Penicillin was shown to benefit syphilis, but the researchers absolutely did everything in their power not to give it to them o The GOVERNMENT fully endorsed every step of this research

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Milgram’s Obedience To Authority Study o Study to see if people follow orders not matter how unethical it is o People are given slips of ‘teacher’ or ‘learner’ o ‘Shock’ was given to the learner if they didn’t do what the ‘teacher’ taught them o Shots kept getting stronger and stronger as they went on

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Zimbardo’s Simulated Prison Study o They wanted to see the behavioral and psychological effects of being a prisoner or prison guard Laud Humphrey’s Study Of Gay Sex In Public Bathrooms – UNETHICAL STUDY o Looked for tearooms  Tearooms were public restrooms where men go for quick and anonymous oral sex with men (this was for both straight and gay men)  Became the ‘Watch Queen’ and took field notes of the encounters

Ch. 2:  What Is Culture? o Language, beliefs, values, norms, behaviors, and material objects  Material Vs. Nonmaterial/Symbolic Culture o Material  Jewelry, weapons, hair styles etc. o Nonmaterial Culture/Symbolic Culture  Forms of interaction, beliefs, ways of thinking, etc.  Ethnocentrism o The use of one’s own culture as a yardstick for judging the ways of another individuals or societies, generally leading to a negative evaluations of their values, norms, and behaviors  Positive o Reinforce mechanical solidarity 

Negative o Prejudice

o Discrimination between groups 

 Justification for some inequality Cultural Relativism o Not judging a culture but trying to understand it on its own terms o moving away from your own cultural lens and taking in another in their own individual way 

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Positive 

Being to understand other cultures

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More respect for the people in other cultures

Negatives 

Losing perspective

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Moral issues arise – ex. female genital mutilation

Different Facets Of Symbolic Culture (Gestures, Language, Values, Norms, Sanctions) o Gestures 

Using your body to communicate with each other

o Language 

Basis of culture

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Constantly changing –ex. African American Vernacular English (AAVE) or ‘Ebonics’

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Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis –language can (at a soft degree) help shape the way we think about the world

o Values, Norms, and Sanctions 

Indicate what is worthy and unworthy in your culture –ex. woman’s weight

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Norms are the expectations or the rules of behavior formed out of one’s culture/values –ex. France with the how to be a millionaire

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Sanctions 

Prescriptive – positive sanctions norms that people follow

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Proscriptive sanctions – you not following the norms o 3 types of norms 

Folkways –small norms –slamming door in a library

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Mores –large norms –law breaking, indecent exposure to murder 

Taboo –these are the norms that so strongly engrained in a culture that even the thought of violating the norm is met with revulsions and collective cultural horror o Cannibalism and incest

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Subcultures o Groups of people whose values and behaviors are distinct from dominant culture 

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Thousands of subcultures in American society today: 

Some are connected to occupations (cops in the city)

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Social interests and activities (fraternities and sororities)

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Religious affiliations (Muslims, Jews, Baptists)

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Ethnic and racial groups (Irish Americans or Native Americans)

Countercultures o Groups of people whose values and norms place them in opposition to the dominant culture o Generally resists dominant culture in some way and as a result, countercultures often encounter resistance or negative sanctions form the dominant culture for their norm violations 

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Negative way of looking at them: 

Gangs

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Satanists

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Scary cults

Positive way of looking at them: 

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Amish

Chicago School Vs. Birmingham School Approach To Studying Subcultures o Chicago School 

Developed in the early 20th century at the University of Chicago

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Subcultures are linked to deviance. They are a violation of conformity –a troubling violation of norms – and therefore can promote delinquency and crime

o Birmingham School Approach 

Developed in the 1960s at the University of Birmingham (UK)

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Subcultures are seen as engaging the dominant culture in some way

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They challenge, resist, reinvent, or even contribute to the dominant culture, even as they are also distinct from dominant culture

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Examined the youth of subcultures called ‘youth formations’

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They studies the music, fashion, language, gestured, and hairstyles of the 1960’s youth

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Said that they weren’t being deviant, instead they were creating their own subculture style and identity rather than simply adopting the mainstream cultural styles

Birmingham school notes that subcultures may engage in a process of BRICOLAGE (means to tinker or to fiddle) 

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Processes by which people use objects or material culture to create new cultural identities

Cultural Diffusion / Cultural Lag / Cultural Leveling o Cultural Diffusion  The spread of cultural traits from one group to another; includes both material and nonmaterial cultural traits  Groups are most open to changes in their technology or material culture o Cultural Lag  Ogburn’s term for human behavior lagging behind technological innovations  not all parts of a culture is changing at the same pace  points out that a group’s material culture usually changes first, with the nonmaterial culture lagging behind o Cultural Leveling  The process by which cultures become similar to one another; refers especially to the process by which Western culture is being exported and diffused into other nations Values (Clusters, Contradictions, Clash o Core Values  The values that are central of a group, those around which it builds a common identity o Value Contradiction  Values that contradict one another  To follow the one means to come into conflict with the other o Value Cluster  Values that together form a larger whole

Chapter 4  Social Structures And Social Institutions [Definitions] [What Are The Institutions?] o Social Structure - The framework of the society that surrounds us - Consists of the ways that people and groups are related to one another - This framework gives direction to and sets limits on our behavior o Social Class - Large numbers f people who have similar amounts of income and education and who work at jobs that are roughly comparable in prestige o Social Status - The position that someone occupies in a social group  Social Facts o On the one hand, social facts exist outside of the individual o On the other hand, they profoundly influence the individual by shaping their behavior

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