Sociology: Key Concepts

• Sociological Imagination: Connects personal experiences to larger social forces, understanding how individual problems are influenced by public issues.
• Rational Choice: A decision-making process weighing costs and benefits before acting.
• Theory: Systematically explains social phenomena to understand patterns and predict behavior.
• Institution: Organized systems like family, education, and government shape behavior and maintain order.
• Confirmation Bias: Favoring information confirming existing beliefs and ignoring contradictory evidence.
• Ethnocentrism: Belief in the superiority of one's culture, leading to misinterpretations of others.
• Cultural Relativism: Understanding a culture on its own terms without judgment by other cultural standards.
• Diffusion: The spread of cultural elements from one group to another.

Subculture and Counterculture

• Subculture: A group within a larger culture having distinct norms, values, or interests.
• Counterculture: A group opposing dominant cultural norms.

Norms and Values

• Norms: Rules and expectations for behavior within a society.
• Values: Shared beliefs about what is good, desirable, or appropriate.
• Language Instinct: Humans' innate capacity to acquire language.
• "Genie": Illustrated the critical importance of early socialization in language and psychological development through the case study of a socially isolated child.
• Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis: Language influences perception of reality and shapes thought processes.
• Democratic Bargain: Citizens agree to certain limitations in exchange for rights and protection in democracies.

Ascribed, Achieved, and Master Status

• Ascribed Status: Social position assigned at birth, like race or gender.
• Achieved Status: Position earned through individual effort, such as career or education.
• Master Status: Dominant status defining a person’s identity, overshadowing other statuses.
• Pluralism: Coexistence and interaction of multiple groups, values, and perspectives within a society.

System 1 and System 2 Thinking

• System 1: Fast, automatic, and intuitive decision-making.
• System 2: Slow, deliberate, and analytical reasoning.
• Bureaucracy: Formal organization characterized by hierarchical structure, specialized roles, clear rules, and procedures for efficiency.

Functionalist Perspective (Macro)

• Sees society as interconnected parts working together to maintain stability and social order.
• Manifest Functions: Intended and obvious outcomes. Example: schools educating students.
• Latent Functions: Unintended or hidden outcomes. Example: schools fostering social networks.
• Dysfunctions: Aspects that disrupt social equilibrium.

Conflict Perspective (Macro)

• Focuses on power differentials, inequality, and social conflict.
• Social institutions often serve the interests of dominant groups, leading to struggles over resources and power.

Interactionist Perspective (Micro)

• Emphasizes everyday interactions and meanings individuals attach to them.
• Social identities and roles are constructed through communication and behavior.

Private vs. Public Organizations

• Private Organizations: Profit-driven entities operating on market principles and competitive strategies. Example: corporations and small businesses.
• Public Organizations: Government-run bodies providing services and enforcing regulations for the public good. Example: schools, public hospitals, and government agencies.

Nature vs. Nurture

• Nature: Emphasizes genetic predispositions, biological factors, and inherited traits.
• Nurture: Highlights socialization, culture, environment, and personal experiences.
• Integrated View: Both factors interact to influence behavior, with genetics setting potential and social experiences determining whether that potential is realized.

Seven Basic Agents of Socialization

• Family: Imparts initial values, norms, and behaviors during early childhood.
• Peer Groups: Influence attitudes, interests, and behaviors, particularly during adolescence.
• School: Teaches academic skills, discipline, social norms, and exposes individuals to broader cultural values.
• Media & Technology: Shapes perceptions, behaviors, and identity through information, role models, and social cues.
• Workplace: Develops professional skills, work habits, and social roles.
• Religion: Offers moral guidelines, shared beliefs, and a sense of community that influence values and behaviors.
• Government/State: Shapes citizens' sense of rights, responsibilities, and identity through laws, policies, and civic education.

Analyzing Through the Three Sociological Perspectives

• Functionalist: Each agent contributes to societal stability and integration by transmitting core values and norms.
• Conflict: These agents may perpetuate inequality and power imbalances.
• Interactionist: Focuses on everyday interactions and how individuals negotiate and interpret their roles to construct meanings.

Five Basic Elements of Social Structure

• Statuses: Positions individuals occupy in society (ascribed, achieved, or master).
• Roles: Expected behaviors, obligations, and rights associated with a status.
• Groups: Collections of individuals who interact and share common interests or goals.
• Institutions: Established systems that organize societal life and provide guidelines for behavior.
• Networks: Web of social connections linking individuals and groups, facilitating the flow of information, resources, and opportunities.

Covers sociological imagination, rational choice, theory, and institutions. Also explores cognitive biases like confirmation bias and ethnocentrism. Includes subculture, counterculture, and cultural relativism.