Psychology: Social Theories (Pages 98-104) PDF

\-      In **large societies** individuals become [interdependent] on each other as everyone is specialized in different roles.   In functionalism, a change to production/distribution/coordination will force others to [adapt] to maintain stable state society. ***Social change***threatens mutual dep...

\-      In **large societies** individuals become [interdependent] on each other as everyone is specialized in different roles.   In functionalism, a change to production/distribution/coordination will force others to [adapt] to maintain stable state society. ***Social change***threatens mutual dependence of people in that society. Institutions adapt only just enough to accommodate change to [maintain mutual interdependence].           Problems -- functionalism focuses entirely on institutions [without regard for individual] (only acknowledged). Also largely unable to explain social change and conflict, so focused on equilibrium little change and conflict is modelled.           **Conflict Theory**          Focuses on [inequalities of different groups] in society, based on ideas of Karl Marx that believed society evolved through several stages: **feudalism -\> capitalism -\> socialism.** \-      19^th^ century Europe was capitalist -- rich upper class called bourgeoisie and poor lower class was proletariat and majority. Upper class had more power. Lower class depended on upper class, but upper class also depended on lower class for their labour. Significant inequality, which Marx believed led to change. Lower class united to create **class consciousness**. \-      The **thesis** was that bourgeoisie ran factories and working class provided labour. Desire of working class to change was the **antithesis.** Thesis + antithesis can't exist peacefully. One side is leave things, other side is looking for change.  \-      Struggle would lead to a compromise - a **synthesis** of the two by creating a new state. Would eventually become new thesis.           Ludwig **Gumplowicz** expanded on Marx by proposing that society is shaped by war/conquest, and cultural/ethnic conflicts lead to certain groups becoming dominant over others.          **Max Weber** said he did not believe collapse of capitalism was inevitable, but argued that several factors moderate people's reaction to inequality.           The **equal rights** and **women's suffrage** movements were all conflicts that resolved in a new thesis.  \-      Conflict theory models drastic changes that occur in a society, but doesn't explain the stability a society can experience, how society is held together (unity), and doesn't like the status quo.           **Social Constructionism **          **Social constructionism** argues that people [actively shape] their reality through *[social interactions]* -- it's something constructed, not inherent. Things are **social products** made of the values of the society that created it.  \-      A **social construct** is concept/practice everyone in society [agrees] to treat a certain way regardless of its inherent value, ex. money.           **Social constructionism** is theory that knowledge is not real, and only exists because we give them [reality through social agreement] -- nations, books, etc. don't exist in absence of human society.  \-      The **self** is a social construct too -- our [identity is created by interactions] with other people, and our reactions to the other people.           2 types: weak and strong \-      **Weak** social constructionism proposes that social constructs are dependent on **brute facts**, which are the most basic and fundamental facts. Ex. brute facts are what explain quarks in atoms, not the atoms themselves.  ·       **Institutional facts** are created by social conventions and do rely on other facts. Ex. money depends on the paper we have given value. \-      **Strong** social constructionism states that whole of reality is dependent on [language and social habits;] all knowledge is social construct and no brute facts. We created idea of quarks and everything we know to explain it. [No facts] that just exist.           *Main criticism* to social constructionism is it [doesn't consider effects of natural phenomenon] on society, and for strong social constructionism it has difficulties explaining those phenomena because they [don't depend on human speech or action.] Strong SC only explains reality through thoughts of humans, not using fundamental brute facts.           **Symbolic Interactionism**          Takes a **small-scale view** of society, focuses on [small interactions between individuals] like hanging out with a friend. Sees society as buildup of everyday typical interactions.  \-      Addresses the **subjective meanings** people believe to be true -- **meaning** is the central aspect of human behavior. Humans ascribe meanings to things, and act towards those things based on ascribed meaning. **Language** allows humans to generate meaning through interactions, and humans modify meanings to **thought processes**.  \-      Particularly interested in symbols use that people use to contribute values/beliefs to others.           Developed by **George Herbert Mead**,f believed [development] of individual was a [social process] as were the meanings individuals assigned to things. People change based on interactions with objects, events, ideas, others, and assign meaning to things to decide how to act.           **Herbert Blumer** continued Mead's work. He proposed 3 tenants to explain symbolic interactionism: \-      1. We act based on [meaning] we've given something, ex. tree is place to rest. \-      2. Different people assign [different meanings] to things. We give meaning to things based on social interactions, ex. someone tells us tree is infested with ants. But we have different views of the tree and we act differently.  \-      3. The meaning we give something [isn't permanent], ex. something bites my back, so might not sit under next one I find.           *Criticism* -- doesn't ask same questions as large scale sociologists do. Sometimes considered as supplemental instead of full theory, because restricted to small interactions between individuals. But gives different perspective necessary for fully understanding society. How societies can change when created/recreated by social interactions.           **Feminist Theory**          A contemporary approach of looking at world from **macroperspective**, developed from *feminism movement* [originating from **conflict theory**] by focusing on stratifications/inequalities in society. It examines women's social roles in education, family, and workforce.  \-      It looks beyond more common male-based perspective to focus on gender inequalities in society.  \-      Women face **discrimination**, **objectification**, **oppression,** and **stereotyping**.           Different types of feminist theory \-      1) **Gender differences** -- expectations for gender are passed down from generation to generation. Examines how women's position in social situations differ from men -- different values with feminity than men. Seen as soft, care, submissive. And different social roles, women stay home while men go to war. Objectified as sexual instruments.  \-      2) **Gender inequality** -- central to all behavior. Women subordination is viewed as inherent feature. Our society is a **patriarchy** -- men are governing body as heads of families and communities. Married women have higher stress levels than married men/unmarried women, and have less influence in public sphere. Men occupy higher paying jobs. ·       Ex. Ben Barres began his life as women, and after sex change he noticed people thought his research was much better than his sister Barbara's. However, Barbara was the same person.  \-      3) **Gender oppression** -- women are not only unequal as men, but they're oppressed and abused. Institution of family is especially beneficial to men. Family was split into 2 types of labour -- domestic labour was done by women, while men worked outside home in labour. Without men working, family wouldn't survive.  ·       Created educational and economic gap between men and women.  \-      4) **Structural oppression** -- women's oppression and inequality are due to capitalism, patriarchy, and racism. Direct parallel to conflict theory. Women like working class are exploited because of capital model, but not all women express oppression in same way. Linked to race, class, sexual orientation, age, and disability. Men are associated with mind, while women are associated with body.           Feminist theory is not an attempt to replace men -- different perspective on society to point out inequalities between men and women due to institutions of society.           **Rational Choice Theory and Exchange Theory**          Rational Choice Theory and Exchange Theory centre on [economics].           **Rational Choice Theory** - people not only motivated by money, but [do what's best] to get more good  \-      Main assumption is the idea that everything people do is ***fundamentally rational*** -- a person is acting as if they were [weighing ***costs and benefits***] of each action.  \-      People act in self-interest, driven by personal desires and goals.   \-      How do we calculate value of these actions? Social resources being exchanged -- time, information, prestige, etc.  \-      3 main assumptions:  ·       **Completeness** (every action can be ranked) ·       **Transitivity** (since A is preferable to B, A is also preferable to C) ·       **Independence of irrelevant alternatives** (if I have a fourth option, won't change order of how I ranked first 3 options. Just add it in to existing order).           **Exchange Theory** -- application of rational choice theory to [social interactions].  \-      Looks at society as [series of interactions between individuals].  \-      Used to study family relationships, partner selection, parenting, etc.  ·       ***Sexual selection*** -- natural selection arising through preference for one sex for characteristics in individuals of the other sex ·       ***Social selection*** -- idea that an individual's health can influence their [social mobility]. Also that social conditions can affect reproductive rates of individuals in a population. \-      Interactions are determined by [weighing ***rewards*** ***and punishments***] of each action.  ***Basic principle*** behind exchange theory -- behavior of individual in interaction can be figured out by comparing rewards and punishments.  ***Assumptions***: People seek to [rationally maximize their profits], behavior results in a [reward] is likely to be repeated - more often reward is available the less valuable it is, interactions operate within social norms, people access have information they need to make rational choices, human fulfillment comes from other people, and standards people use to evaluate interaction changes over time -- reward to one is punishment for another.  \-      What kind of interactions? ***Self-interest*** and ***interdependence***. We form relationships to benefit ourselves, no one is self-sufficient.  ·       Subjective interactions of rewards + punishments of each interaction.           Critiques -- are we really rational? Some people's choices are limited by gender/ethnicity/class, and make choice not in best interest. And why some people follow social norms that act in best interest of others. And is it really possible to explain every social structure by actions of individuals? Relationships aren't always linear too.           **[Social Theories Overview ]**          **Functionalism** -- how society can exist over time. Society is always trying to come to an equilibrium. Institutions remain constant and only make minor change when stability is lost. Ex. Business institution had to adapt to online shopping boom.           **Conflict Theory** -- how societies changes and adapt over time through conflict. Two opposing positions would merge to create a new society where both are content.           **Social Constructionism** -- what society is rather than how it exists/changes. Everything is created from the mind of society. Agreement that something has meaning and value that it doesn't have intrinsically, ex. Money. Everything only has value because everyone agrees it has value; we construct the world around us.           **Symbolic Interactionism --** Puts a lot of focus on individual and how they behave -- based on meanings we give to things, ex. Tree = shade.People are created by their society, and act based on past experiences, and meanings they've given things. Not everyone gives same meaning to same things. We interact with the world to give it meaning.  ·       Functionalism = looking at stability of society, conflict theory = how society changes, social constructionism = how things are given value, symbolic interactionism = how individuals act.  **Feminist Theory** - macro level perspective on society, focussing on gender inequalities inherent to patriarchal capitalist societies, where men occupy governing positions in family and community. Both men and women often forced into gender-based roles. Focuses on gender differences, gender inequalities, gender oppression, and structural oppression.           **Rational Choice Theory** -- people always take rational actions, weighing costs and benefits of each action to gain most benefit. 3 assumptions: completeness, transitivity, and independence of irrelevant alternatives.           **Exchange Theory** -- application of RCT to social interaction. Family, work, interpersonal relationships. People behave with goal of maximizing own rewards while minimizing punishments, and people can make rational choices in social norm, and self-interest and interdependence guide interactions, and from relationships from cost-benefit analysis.           Relating Social Theories to Medicine          **1. Functionalism** -- if we look at medicine from this point of view, when people become ill [medicine ensures they return to **functional state**. ] \-      Being [sick is detrimental] to well-being of society as a whole. Assumption is you're not supposed to participate in society when sick, affecting society on small scale. \-      [Medicine stabilizes] social system in emergency situations like earthquakes, etc. to provide medical assistance needed.  ·       Day-to-day, it improves quality of life for aging population to allow them to contribute longer to society.          **2. Conflict Theory** -- [Wealthier people] can pay for best medical care, the [poor] can't afford the deductibles/insurance so they skip hospitals, and are sick for longer.  \-      [Unequal access] to valuable resources in society (education, housing, jobs) leads to heath disparities and limited access to medical care.  \-      [Power struggle] between different interest groups can affect health of individual, ex. Factories vs. people living nearby.           **3. Social Constructionism** -- we attach different meanings to different behaviours, and have preconceptions of different people (stereotypes) \-      We have [preconceptions] about different races, genders, and subcultures. Assumptions dangerous to medical profession -- affect how you treat patient and their diagnosis.  ·       There are ***stereotyped assumptions*** on both sides -- patient may feel some symptoms aren't important enough to mention, or doctor makes false assumption based on how patient appears.  \-      [Can't] declare characteristic of person [based on circumstance], ex. people who don't work can still afford healthcare while those who work hard can't afford it. \-      **Medicalization** -- patients/doctors construct illness out of ordinary behavior.           **4. Symbolic Interactionism** \-      **[Doctor-patient]** relationship, given [meanings to lab coat/stethoscope] can affect interaction. Important for realize the meaning the patient has given to tools of medicine, ex. Lab coat is sign of authority.  \-      **Changes in society** -- recently, medicalization of society, where everything has a medical fix. Standards of beauty have made many undergo unneeded plastic surgery, or have C-sections. Normal behaviours are being shown as illnesses. Ex. Depression.           **5. Feminist Theory** -- medicine is still a [male-dominated] field, heads of doctors and hospitals usually men, and disparity in jobs/salary between the two. Translates into a disparity in power.           **6. Rational** **Choice-Exchange Theories** -- what's purpose of medical system as a whole? Or is it a [capitalist] competition to earn the most money? \-      People run every aspect of medical system and those people will make decisions that benefit themselves more than random sick stranger, may affect why people go to doctor or not. Some people avoid doctors if they don't think it will benefit them.  \-      Self-interested behavior of people in charge will trickle down and affect patients          Outside these theories -- where you live can affect your health (food deserts), and nearly impossible to get nutrition a body needs from only these sources. Some neighbourhoods have no gyms/playgrounds.           **Demographics**          Demographic Structure of Society -- Age          Sociology looks at different age **cohorts** (groups), specifically at age groups/generations, because they all live through the same events in certain time.  \-      Baby boomers is large population in US, now up to 60s. Grew up in post-WWII periods, leaving work force.  \-      Silent generation, older than baby boomers born during Great Depression  \-      GI generation -- oldest people alive today.          Because of new advancements people live longer, estimated by 2025 that 1/4^th^ of population will be \>65, right now only 13.5%. 65 is when people retire.           Can look at **dependency ratio**, an age-based measurement takes people \65 who are not in the labour force, and compares that to \# of people who are.  \-      Higher the ratio, more dependent people there are. o   **Life Course Theory** -- aging is a social, psychological, and biological process that begins from time you born till time you die.  \-      Age-based expectations no longer apply as they used to as people live longer o   **Age Stratification Theory** -- suggests [age is way of regulating behavior] of a generation o   **Activity Theory -** looks at how older generation looks at themselves. Certain activities or jobs lost, those social interactions need to be replaced so elderly can be engaged.  o   **Disengagement Theory** -- older adults and society separate, assumes they become more self-absorbed as they age. But considers elderly people still involved in society as not adjusting well, which is debatable. o   **Continuity Theory -** people try to maintain same basic structure throughout their lives. As they age make decisions to adapt to external changes and internal changes of aging.          Although need more healthcare professionals and other services to support them, we have a great social/cultural/economic resource is available to us.           Demographic Structure of Society -- **Race and Ethnicity**          **Race** -- a [socially defined] category based on [physical differences] between groups of people**. Racial formation theory** looks at social/economic/political forces that result in racially constructed identities.  \-      Sometimes differences are real, but sometimes only defined by history.  \-      In the US, race is defined by skin color but hair color is irrelevant. Latin America can be broken down to 5-6 races in SA.