Social Change and Its Aspects

The 5 key messages of this course are:

1. Social change can be positive or negative, or sometimes both.
2. Abuse of power and an extreme feeling of disconnect (anomie) are the biggest societal problems in today's society.
3. Apathy, which is a lack of interest, enthusiasm, or concern, is the enemy of change.
4. There is always hope: we must seek first to understand, and then we can hope to create positive change.
5. Anyone can and should be a hero.

Today's class made me think about how media influences my perception of the world, and how it might be contributing to a sense of fear and negativity. While I understand that there are valid reasons to be cautious, I also see the importance of seeing the world from a more positive light.

The main takeaway from the "Poverty in Brazil" case study is that social scientists need to do more than just rely on government statistics to understand the true reality of poverty. They need to go out into the field and talk to people in order to get a more complete picture.

<p>The development of human species and human cultures throughout the world.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Individual behaviour to discover the underlying triggers or causes of human behaviour.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A fictive kin is a person who you consider to be family, even though you aren’t biologically related. This might include a friend who you consider to be an aunt or uncle, or a mentor who you view as a father figure.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A record or table of the descent of a person, family, or group from an ancestor or ancestors; a family tree; lineage or pedigree.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A family in Canada refers to those who live together in a common residence and share close, reciprocal relationships on a daily basis. Kinship involves a broader network of relatives, including uncles, aunts, cousins, grandparents, in-laws, and other relatives, even if they don’t live together.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A genogram is a visual representation of a family's relationships, often used by therapists to understand family dynamics and patterns of behavior. It's like a family tree, but it also includes information about emotional relationships and fictive kin.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>In a patrilineal descent system, lineage is traced through the father's side of the family. This means that property and inheritance are passed down through the male line, and children are considered members of their father's lineage.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A bilateral descent system traces lineage through both the father's and mother's sides of the family equally. This means that children inherit from both parents and are considered members of both their paternal and maternal lineages.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A school of thought is a set of theories or ideas that have been developed and widely accepted by a group of scholars. Schools of thought provide a framework for understanding a particular subject or field, and they can influence how we think about and approach a particular topic.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>An institution is a set of rules, customs, or practices that are established and widely accepted within a society. Institutions help to organize and structure society, and they play a significant role in shaping our lives.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A binary opposite is a pair of concepts that are defined in relation to each other, and that are often seen as being mutually exclusive. For example, good and evil, black and white, or male and female are binary opposites.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Materialism is a philosophy that emphasizes the importance of material goods and possessions. It can also refer to a focus on material things rather than spiritual or intellectual matters.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Functionalism is a school of thought that suggests societies are integrated systems that each serve a particular function; for instance, families provide a system of raising children, while education systems provide a system of learning.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Structuralism suggests that culture is best understood by looking at the relationship between contrasting elements. For example, structuralists suggest that we can understand the meaning of culture by considering opposite pairs like rich/poor or male/female.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Cultural materialism is a school of thought that argues the primary way to understand a culture is by carefully examining the resources that it has available. Specifically, cultural materialists believe that the way resources are used and distributed will help determine values and what is considered to be important.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Psychoanalysis suggests that early childhood experiences are crucial to understanding the personality of adults. Sigmund Freud, the founder of psychoanalysis, believed that the unconscious mind, which is a collection of memories and desires that exist below the level of conscious awareness, is a significant influence on behavior.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Behaviorism suggests that personality and behavior are shaped by learned patterns through an individual's experiences in life. There is less emphasis on innate personality traits and more emphasis on an individual's learned responses. This means that the environment greatly influences how individuals learn.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Learning theory is concerned with how people acquire knowledge and skills. It suggests that new behaviors are formed through a combination of associations, consequences, and observations of others, which is known as observational learning.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Game theory is a branch of mathematics that is used to understand the strategic interactions between individuals or groups. It considers situations where the outcome for each individual depends not only on their own choices, but also on the choices of others.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Experimental psychology is a branch of psychology that uses experiments to test hypotheses and gather new insights about human behavior. It involves manipulating variables and measuring the resulting outcomes, which are ultimately used to understand how the mind works.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Clinical psychology is a branch of psychology that focuses on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental and behavioral disorders. Clinical psychologists use a variety of methods to understand and treat individuals who are experiencing psychological difficulties.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>In the context of an experiment, an actor is a person who is instructed to play a specific role or behave in a certain way. Actors are often used in social psychology experiments to manipulate variables, or to create a believable environment for other participants.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A hypothesis is a testable prediction about the relationship between two or more variables. It is a statement that can be supported or refuted by evidence gathered through research.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A variable is a factor that can change or vary. In an experiment, variables are often manipulated or measured to see how they might influence other variables.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>An independent variable is a factor that is manipulated or changed by the researcher in an experiment. It is the cause in a cause-and-effect relationship.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>An intervening variable is a factor that can influence the relationship between the independent and dependent variable, often making the relationship more complex. It is a factor that is not directly manipulated by the researcher, but that can have a significant impact on the results of an experiment.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A control group is a group of participants in an experiment who are not exposed to the independent variable. They are used as a baseline for comparison, so the researcher can see the difference between the control group and the experimental group, which are the participants who are exposed to the independent variable.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Observation is the process of carefully watching and recording data in an experiment. It involves paying close attention to the participants' behaviors, interactions, and reactions, and then recording this information in a systematic way.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A conclusion is a statement that summarizes the findings of an experiment and draws inferences about the relationship between the independent and dependent variable. It should be supported by the data that was collected through observation and analysis.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Conformity is when people change their behaviors, attitudes, or beliefs to fit in with a group, Often this is due to social pressure, and people will conform to the group even if they do not agree with the group's beliefs.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Structural functionalism is a major school of thought in sociology that sees society as a complex system made up of interdependent parts, each with a specific function. Functionalists argue that these parts work together to maintain social order and stability.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Neo-marxism is a school of thought in sociology that builds on the work of Karl Marx, a prominent 19th-century sociologist. It focuses on how power and inequality are shaped by societal structures, especially economic structures, and how these factors can lead to conflict and social change.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Symbolic interactionism is a school of thought in sociology that focuses on how individuals create and interpret meaning through interaction with others. This theory argues that our understanding of the world is not simply based on objective reality, but instead, shaped by the meanings that we attach to symbols, objects, and gestures.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Apathy</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Understanding and empathy</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Fieldwork and participant observation</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Apathy</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Individual behavior</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Abuse of power</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Fearfulness and overprotection</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Challenge and change</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Having no interest in personal benefits</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Psychological egoism</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>It is non-falsifiable</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>A feeling of satisfaction</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Volunteering for a local charity</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Material rewards</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>As fundamentally selfish</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Donating to international charities</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Diffusion of responsibility</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>To evaluate the effectiveness of authority on public obedience</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The Bandura Bobo doll experiment</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Police brutality</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The impact of observed aggression</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>They all study human behavior.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Statistical analysis and observation.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Individuals recognized as family without biological ties.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The documentation of familial descent and lineage.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Through tribal or family storytellers.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Families live together and share daily relationships.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Mixed patterns where lineage is traced through either parent.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The cultural customs and rituals of societies.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Cases of police brutality.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Power corrupts individuals, leading to abusive behavior.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Divided students by eye color.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>It encouraged bullying and a sense of entitlement.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Participants' behavior was overly influenced by Zimbardo.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Social identity theory.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Stress hinders individuals from thriving.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Reinforcement of prejudice and discrimination.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The phenomenon where individuals feel less responsible because others are present.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Game theory</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>To immerse in a culture and observe behaviors closely.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>Patrilineal descent</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The observable actions and reactions of individuals in their environment.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>The belief that physical resources determine economic outcomes.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>It involves in-depth study of a culture through fieldwork.</p> Signup and view all the answers

<p>It can uncover patterns in how individuals react in group settings.</p> Signup and view all the answers