Soc 105 Midterm Review PDF

SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION: C.W. Mills: For Mills, the individual and social are inextricably linked and we cannot fully understand one without the other to explore this connection males highlighted the difference between what he called personal troubles and social issues → personal troubles: Persona...

SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION: C.W. Mills: For Mills, the individual and social are inextricably linked and we cannot fully understand one without the other to explore this connection males highlighted the difference between what he called personal troubles and social issues → personal troubles: Personal challenges that require individual solutions || which result from Individual challenges → social issues: challenges caused by larger social factors that require collective solutions Quality of Mind: Mills term for the ability to see beyond personal circumstances and into the broader social context. For example you failed your midterm and all the others failed too and you reach out to the professors and peers and come up with the solution for the issue To improve the quality of mind, Mills argued that sociologists need to expose individuals to sociological imagination the ability to understand Sociological Imagination: the dynamic relationships between individual lives and the larger society || Mills’s term for the ability to perceive how dynamic social forces influence individual → it involves stepping outside of your own condition and looking at yourself from a new perspective - seeing yourself as a product of your family, income level, minority or majority status and gender. You employ the sociological imagination by asking yourself “Who am I?” “Why do I think the way I do?” Cheerful Robots: Mills referred to people who are unable or unwilling to see the social world as it truly exists as cheerful robots → Mills suggests that people who judge others without understanding all of the social issues involved May lack the quality of mind and thus view the world in black and white terms PETER BERGER: Seeing the General in Particular: According to Berger, seeing the General in particular is the ability to look at seemingly unique events or circumstances and then recognize a larger or general features involved → for example seeing one homeless person and then recognizing there are many more around the world that you do not see Seeing the Strange in the Familiar: According to Berger sociologists also need to tune their sociological perspective by thinking about what is familiar and seeing it as strange → for example the way is how we study for exam may seem familiar but when you think about it, it still seems strange STUDY PATTERN HOW SOCIOLOGISTS VIEW SOCIETY Social Structures: when general patterns persist through time and become routinized at micro levels or institutionalized at macro or global level Reification: the way in which abstract concepts, complex processes or mutable social relationships come to be thought of as objects → Reification is when we treat something abstract, like an idea or concept, as if it were a real, physical object. It's like turning something that's more of a thought or relationship into something we imagine is solid and tangible. ( for example, “Justice is blind.” or ‘Justice will prevail!” HISTORY OF SOCIOLOGY Socrates (469–399 BCE) and his student Plato (427– 347 BCE), challenged the virtue of being paid for one’s knowledge and advocated the necessity of deeper reflection on the human social condition. Plato’s The Republic is one of the most important works in Western philosophy, as it asks what social justice is and what the characteristics of a just individual are. IBN KHALDUN Theory of Asabiyyah Ibn Khaldun argued that societies are held together by a sense of solidarity (Asabiyyah) Asabiyyah is a social cohesion that comes from shared beliefs values and customs Asabiyyah is the driving force behind the rise and fall of civilizations 3 Stages of Asabiyyah: 1. Nomadism: strong sense of social cohesion/solidarity (Asabiyyah) & tribal unity 2. Sedentary life: as societies become more complex and sedentary the sense of Asabiyyah weakens → leads to a decline of society's cohesion 3. The Decline & Fall Stage: societies become corrupt and degenerate leading to their eventual collapse THE 3 REVOLUTIONS Scientific Revolution: With the emergence of the Renaissance in the fourteenth to seventeenth centuries, the insights by thinkers such as Galileo, Newton, and Copernicus began to gain wider acceptance despite resistance from the Church. The development of the scientific method during the Enlightenment period that followed (circa 1650–1800) facilitated the pace of social change Auguste Comte’s Laws of Three Stages: defines how advances of the mind created three different types of societies 1. Theological Stage: It was the longest period of human thinking, beginning with our earliest human ancestors and ending during the Middle Ages (roughly 1300). This stage is characterized by a religious outlook that explains the world and human society as an expression of God’s will and views science as a means to discover God’s intentions 2. The theological stage concluded with the emergence of the Renaissance and later the Enlightenment, when science, not religion, was used to explain the world. Comte called this next stage of intellectual development the metaphysical stage. The metaphysical stage was a period during which people began to question everything and to challenge the power and teachings of the Church. It was characterized by the assumption that people could understand and explain their universe through their own insight and reflection. To explore what it meant to be a conscious being, people tried to experience and understand their world through abstractions such as emotion and beauty 3. The Positive Stage: During this period, which began to emerge during Comte’s lifetime, he believed that the world would be interpreted through a scientific lens— that society would be guided by the rules of observation, experimentation, and logic. Comte argued that sociologists would be ideal leaders for this emerging society because they would be trained in the science of society: sociology Political Revolution: From Machiavelli to Rousseau, from the Renaissance to the Enlightenment, philosophers and social activists promoted novel ideals such as individual rights and social responsibility, equality of opportunity, and the political ideology of democracy. These ideas challenged tradition and nobility, inspired great debate and reflection, and ultimately led to the American and French Revolutions. While we take these ideas for granted today, this transformation of how we saw ourselves, each other, and our entire society led to a restructuring of everything we knew, and it was into this period of tension and re-examination that sociology was born. Machiavelli’s assertion that anyone could become a prince—that nobility and power were not a birthright and that one could take power if and when the opportunity presented itself—challenged the establishment of the time. René Descartes is most famous for his commitment to the idea that we are thinking beings, as captured in his famous phrase Cogito ergo sum, or “I think, therefore I am.” At the time it was a liberating position to think that human beings were able to understand their world through rational reflection John Locke is perhaps most famous for his assertion that ideas are not innate and that all knowledge is the result of experience. Locke argued that the only way to increase our knowledge is to gather more information about the material world through science and experimentation Rousseau suggested that, prior to organized society, human beings existed in a natural state whereby an individual’s desire was solitary and self-centered. As society developed, these early beings began to see the benefits they could achieve when they agreed to work together (i.e., the social contract). At its essence, the social contract is the acknowledgment that we achieve more by working together than apart; while we lose some of our independence, the benefits we assume (e.g., government, libraries, hospitals) far outweigh the costs (e.g., loss of autonomy, privacy, independence) INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION The Industrial Revolution changed virtually every aspect of life: family structures how people made a living and even people’s thoughts, dreams, and aspirations New production techniques created huge amounts of cheap goods that needed to be traded through larger and larger networks. Ultimately, the European economy became a global one. This expansion of trading networks for European goods drove the conversion from an agricultural to an industrial economy. Steam Engine: Millions of farmers abandoned traditional village life and moved into the rapidly growing cities in search of factory jobs (Hedley, 2002). The move from a rural to an urban environment led to a new series of social problems, including child labour in factories, crushing poverty, malnourishment, and exploding crime rates. Disturbed by these developments, early sociologists began to try to understand what was causing these conditions and what could be done to address them CANONS OF SOCIOLOGY Emile Durkheim (Sociologist) 4 Types of Suicide: 1. Altruistic: too much integration in society 2. Egoistic: too little integration in society 3. Fatalistic: too much regulation (i.e. North Korea) 4. Anomic: too little regulation Anomie: is a state of normlessness that results from a lack of clear goals and creates feelings of confusion that may ultimately result in higher suicide rates. For example: The feeling of doing everything right but not getting the intended rewards often makes people feel restless and unfulfilled; that is, they are suffering from anomie Collective Conscience: Emile Durkheim's concept of collective conscience refers to the shared beliefs, values, norms, and attitudes that bind a group of people together in society. It's like the common "mind" or "spirit" of a community that helps individuals feel connected to one another and guides their behavior. Think of it as the unwritten rules and feelings that everyone in a community understands and follows. These shared ideas create a sense of belonging and identity among people. Mechanical solidarity: is found in small, traditional societies where everyone shares similar values, beliefs, and lifestyles. People feel connected because they do similar work and have similar experiences. Organic solidarity: Organic solidarity is characteristic of larger, more complex societies where people have different roles and responsibilities. In these societies, individuals are connected by their dependence on one another; everyone contributes to the whole in different ways Social Facts: Social facts are general social features that exist on their own and are independent of individual manifestations—for example, laws, beliefs, customs, and morals. Social facts are the creation of human actions but are not the intended consequences of them—they are unintentional outcomes of collective behavior and interaction. According to Durkheim, the significance of social facts is that they are evidence of the collective conscience SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH Research: A systematic approach to gathering data through an agreed-upon set of methodological approaches Empirical evidence: evidence collected through direct observation and/or experience DEDUCTIVE AND INDUCTIVE REASONING Deductive Methodologies: hypothesis derived from theory and measured Quantitative data collection Inductive Approach: hypothesis emerges only after a substantial period of direct observation or interaction with subjects. Qualitative data collection Positivists: Quantitative, deductive (theory to data) Interpretivists: Qualitative, inductive (data to theory) Critical research strategies: both methods The Scientific Method: 1. Ask a question 2. Research existing sources 3. Formulate a hypothesis 4. Design and conduct a study 5. Draw conclusions 6. Report results Research existing sources: literature review: review of existing literature in the related field of study Proper citation Formulating a hypothesis: Hypothesis: an assumption about how two or more variables are related based on existing theory, observations, patterns of experience, or the existing literature Formulate a hypothesis and Quantitative Methods Variable: characteristics of objects, people or groups of people that can be measured I.V.: the variable that causes the change D.V.: the variable that changed through the intervention of the I.V. INTERVENING VARIABLE: a variable that can change the D.V. due to the change in the I.V. Correlation: a measure of how strongly two variables are related to each other (i.e.: LGBTQ people face high discrimination. Thus, There is a correlation between sexual orientation and experiences of everyday discrimination in Canada) Causation:  1. There must be a relationship or correlation between the independent and dependent variables. 2. The independent variable must be prior to the dependent variable. 3. There must be no other intervening variable responsible for the causal relationship. Causation indicates that one event is the result of the occurrence of the other event Research Methods: 1. Surveys 2. Interviews 3. Experiments 4. Participants observation 5. Secondary data or Text analysis 6. Participatory Action Research Surveys: Data collection from subjects who respond to a series of questions about behaviors and opinions, often in the form of a questionnaire. They are well suited to asking about what people do or think but not as helpful in answering why people do particular things or think a certain way. Population: a defined group serving as the subject of a study Sample: small, manageable number of subjects that represent the population Random Sample: a study’s participants being randomly selected to serve as the representation of a larger population Reliability: a measure of a study’s consistency that considers how likely results are to be replicated if a study is reproduced Research Design: a detailed, systematic method for conducting research and obtaining data → Self-administered questionnaires → Telephone surveys → In-person surveys Interviews: one-on-one conversation between the researcher and the subject Structured: every interviewee is asked the exact same questions and questions only, typically used in quantitative research  Semi-structured: interview with a set of questions but are also open to the interviewees introducing topics that they think are important Unstructured: interview begins without any predetermined questions being set by the interviewer. Rather, the idea is for the interview to proceed conversationally **Qualitative researchers typically use semi-structured or unstructured interviews, although quantitative researchers may use them as well** Researcher’s Gaze: At the outset of an interview, there is an unequal relationship between interviewer and interviewee. Those who conduct the interviews and subsequently analyze and report the data are in a position to select what is studied (setting the scene for what knowledge is produced), who is studied (who is given a voice, which persons or groups can be learned about), which data are reported (ultimately setting the direction of the public presentation of new knowledge), how the data are reported (another issue of “voice” concerning whether amalgamated data, summaries of people’s experiences, or actual interview excerpts are presented), and so forth. Experiments: the testing of a hypothesis under controlled conditions Experiment group: exposed to the Independent variable Control group: Not exposed to the independent variable Participant Observation (qualitative): learning through observation, explore the experience from the inside (be part of the group that you are observing) and record all observations Maintain an open-mind Seek a pattern to formulate a hypothesis Covert observation: people in the research setting are not informed of the researcher’s status Semi-Covert: specific people know that you’re a researcher and others don’t Open: everyone knows that you’re a researcher Secondary Data and Textual Analysis: not using first-hand analysis Content analysis: is the analysis of texts, which may include magazines, newspapers, television programs, movies, blogs, and so forth. In this framework, a text can be “printed, visual, aural, or virtual” (Bryman, Teevan, & Bell, 2009). Content analysis can be either quantitative, qualitative, or a combination of both. A quantitative approach means that you will be measuring your variables by counting in order to answer your research questions A qualitative approach to content analysis, on the other hand, is interested in a thematic analysis (Bryman, Teevan, & Bell, 2009). A qualitative analysis will consider what themes underlie the material under study. More concern is focused on how a topic is presented rather than on how many times a topic is addressed Nonreactive research: unobtrusive research that does not include direct contact with subjects and will not alter or influence people’s behaviors Participatory Action Research (PAR) is a combination of two types of research: action research and participatory research. Action research is when researchers do studies to make changes that help people, like creating new rules or policies to improve people’s lives. However, the people who are affected by these changes don’t always get to help plan or carry out the research. Participatory research focuses on getting the people involved in the problem to help plan and do the research, but it doesn’t always lead to making changes or fixing the problem. PAR brings these two together. It means that the research has two goals: (1) to make real changes that help people and (2) to involve those people in planning and carrying out the research. This way, the people most affected are part of the process and the solution! (PAR Notes simplified through ChatGPT) Mixed method: an approach in which both quantitative and qualitative procedures are used in a single research project Triangulation: happens when researchers employ more than one research method in an attempt to more fully understand what they are researching. Like the earlier justification for using mixed methods, using more than one method often gives researchers a fuller picture. Sexist Biases: 1- Androcentricity: a vision of the world in male terms- a reconstruction of the social universe through a male perspective -women are not seen as active subjects to the same extent as men but, rather, as passive objects to whom things happen 2- Overgeneralization: occurs when researchers include only one sex in their study, but present their findings as being applicable to both men and women (study that interviews only women in regards to parenting, but then presents results as applicable to parents in general rather than just mothers) -Overspecificity occurs when sex-specific terms are used in situations that are relevant to both sexes (terms like man-made or man-kind) 3- Gender Insensitivity: occurs when gender is ignored as a socially important variable (if you aren’t sure at the end of study whether men, women, or both were involved, that is gender insensitivity. Also insensitive if fails to take into account how different things might affect men and women differently) 4- Double standard: when a study employs different means to evaluate or measure the same actions, qualities, or circumstances 5- Sex Appropriateness: specific instance of double standard -when human traits or attributes are assigned to only one sex or the other and are treated as more important for the sex to which they have been assigned (ex: saying child rearing is a female trait) (childbirth would be a sex-specific attribute, however) 6- Familism: problem derived from gender insensitivity -occurs when families are taken as the smallest unit of analysis in situations where specific individuals within those families are responsible for particular actions or experiences 7- Sexual Dichotomism: extreme form of double standard -occurs when the two sexes are treated as completely separate and distinct social and biological groups rather than as two groups with overlapping or similar characteristics CULTURE AND SOCIALIZATION Culture: that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society'. Five Aspects of Culture: 1. Culture is learned 2. Culture is shared 3. Culture is transmitted 4. Culture is cumulative 5. Culture is human Elements of Culture: 1. Values and beliefs: -Values: a culture’s standard for discerning desirable states in society (what is true, good, just, or beautiful) -Beliefs: ideas that people hold to be true about social values -maintain values through reward, sanction, and punishment -ex: standard of beauty- belief that standard of beauty is achieved through lack of eating- you don’t eat and people tell you that you look great , you start eating and people warn you to be careful (sanction) 2. Norms: the visible and invisible rules of conduct through which societies are structured -Formal Norms: written and established rules which are agreed upon to serve most people (e.g., laws, employee manuals, college requirement handbooks) -laws: formally defined social norms 3. Folkways, Mores, and Taboos -Folkways: norms based on social preferences that direct appropriate behavior in the day-to-day practices and expressions of a culture (you hold the door for the person behind you and if they don’t say thank you, you get mad) -Mores: norms based on social requirements, which are based on the moral views and principles of a group Norm that structures the difference between right and wrong -Taboos: strong prohibitions based on deeply held sacred or moral beliefs  -worst of the worst (cannibalism, infanticide, etc) 5. Symbols and Language symbols: gestures or objects that have meanings associated with them that are recognized by people who share a culture (ex: different hand gestures being rude across cultures (two fingers in Canada ok, but in UK is a very rude gesture) material and nonmaterial culture material culture: the objects or belongings of a group of people nonmaterial culture: the ideas, attitudes, and beliefs of a society language: a symbolic system of communication written, spoken, non-verbal action (e.g., body language) (sign language is considered spoken) Sapir-Whorf hypothesis: the idea that people understand their world based on their form of language linguistic relativity ex: it is harder to be non-binary in a culture with gendered language (ex: French), it’s not very affirming Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism -Ethnocentrism: the tendency to view one’s own culture as superior to all others -Cultural relativism: appreciation of the diversity of cultures and understanding of the uniqueness of each cultural practice based on the culture’s standards -Cultural Shock: feeling of disorientation, alienation, depression, and loneliness when encountering a culture different from one’s cultural identity (starting school after being in the workforce for 10 years) SOCIALIZATION Nature vs Nurture: the debate between whether biological forces or environment define the person we become NATURE SIDE: the nature argument suggests that most of our behavior is determined by our genetic makeup. Sociologists also appreciate that biology plays a role in explaining some key aspects of your behavior, such as athletic ability and intellectual capacity. The science of sociobiology uses evolutionary theory and genetic inheritance to examine the biological roots of social behavior. NURTURE SIDE: argues that we are the product of our socialization—the lifelong process by which we learn our culture, develop our personalities, and become functioning members of society. Our sense of the world and of ourselves, then, is held to be the result of social interaction, which encompasses all of the ways that people interact in social settings while recognizing each person’s subjective experiences and/or intentions. Self: one’s identity, comprising a set of learned values and attitudes that develops through social interaction and defines one’s self-image. THEORIES OF SELF-DEVELOPMENT Sigmund Freud (Psychoanalyst) Oral stage: Underfed: Oral passive, trusting, dependant Overfed: Oral aggressive, aggressive, dominating Anal Stage: too harsh: anal retentive, tidy, mean, stubborn, obsessive Too lax: anal expulsive, untidy, generous Charles H. Cooley The looking-glass self is an active, imaginative process by which we develop our self-image through the cues we receive from others (Downey, 2015). There are three basic components to the looking-glass self: First, we must imagine how we appear to others. Second, we need to imagine how others would judge that appearance. Third, we must reflect on that image and develop some self-feeling (e.g., pride, fear, embarrassment) as a result. W.E.B. DU BOIS Double-consciousness: Du Bois’s term for a sense of self that is defined, in part, through the eyes of others, resulting in a sense of divided identity experienced by Black Americans. allows people to view themselves as theirselves but also as how people from the outside white world may perceive them. GEORGE HERBERT MEAD The Me and I: I: he referred to the first element as the I, the part of self that is spontaneous, creative, impulsive, and often unpredictable. The I is the part of consciousness that responds to things emotionally ME: according to Mead, the Me is the socialized element of the self, the part of consciousness that thinks about how to behave so that, for example, you don’t embarrass yourself. The Me, in other words, helps us to control the spontaneous impulses of the I. second level of consciousness. PLAY STAGE (0-3): young children’s first experiences when interacting with others are to imitate what they see others doing. Develop the I but Me is also forming. GAME STAGE (3-5): as children begin to assume the roles of others (“I’ll be Batman and you be Robin”), they move beyond simple imitation and assume the imagined roles of the characters they are playing. Because language skills are developing throughout this stage, children can more accurately communicate their thoughts and feelings—a skill that must be mastered before a stable sense of self can emerge. PREPARATORY STAGE (elementary schl yrs): as children continue to develop, they become increasingly proficient at taking on multiple roles at once (student, son or daughter, friend) and by doing so begin to identify with the generalized other. → primary socialization occurs; this is when people learn the attitudes, values, and appropriate behaviors for individuals in their culture. → secondary socialization occurs later, in early adolescence and beyond, through participation in groups that are more specific than the broader society and that have defined roles and expectations. Significant other: people we want to impress or gain approval from. Important people to us throughout our lifetime Generalized other: a compilation of attributes associated with the average member of society; represents an individual’s appreciation that other members of society behave within certain socially accepted guidelines and rules. Agents of socialization: individuals, groups, and social institutions that together help people to become functioning members of society. → CONSISTS OF SOCIAL GROUPS AND INSTITUTIONAL AGENTS SOCIAL GROUPS: families, peer group INSTITUTIONAL AGENTS: education, workplace, religion, government, mass media LIFE COURSE: Early to middle adulthood: Marriage remains a significant life decision, though traditional expectations have shifted, with more mothers working and greater acceptance of same-sex marriages. A notable trend is an increase in "living apart together" (LAT) relationships, where long-term couples live separately but in the same community. This arrangement is more common among individuals aged 20 to 29 and is predicted to rise due to higher divorce and lower marriage rates. Women in LAT relationships are seen as challenging traditional gender roles, which are still present in conventional marriages. Later adulthood, typically between ages 40 and 60, is marked by a focus on career achievement, children leaving home, becoming grandparents, and preparing for retirement. Physical signs of aging, like hair loss and the need for reading glasses, begin to appear. Contrary to the myth of "empty nest syndrome," research shows that women often experience greater life satisfaction once their children leave home, using this time to pursue hobbies and interests. Retirement, rather than children leaving, is seen as a more challenging transition for many. Reduced responsibilities often lead to increased marital satisfaction for both men and women. Men, however, may experience a "mid-life crisis," with physical symptoms like stiffness, hair loss, and weight gain, and emotional symptoms such as irritability, depression, and a decline in libido. These issues are often linked to hormonal changes, particularly declining testosterone levels, which can lead to anxiety about masculinity and sexual performance. The demand for drugs like Viagra, aimed at treating erectile dysfunction, reflects this concern. Overall, later adulthood is a time of growing self-confidence, with a focus on family, career, and enjoying the results of earlier efforts. “OLD” AGES: the term "old" is often used negatively in Western societies like Canada, where age is typically the basis for defining old age, regardless of an individual's health or abilities. This means a healthy 66-year-old and a frail 90-year-old might both be considered "old." Programs like the Old Age Pension and Old Age Security have historically set retirement at 65, but mandatory retirement is now mostly abolished as people are living longer and staying healthier. Canada’s population is aging, with the proportion of people aged 65 and older expected to reach 20% by 2024 and 25% by 2055. Meanwhile, the proportion of working-age individuals (15 to 64) is projected to decline, potentially leading to workforce shortages. To address this, some companies are offering "retirees on call" and phased retirement programs to retain older workers' expertise. Socialization in late adulthood shifts from taking on new responsibilities to adapting to changes like retirement and reduced family roles. While some may experience a loss of identity after retiring, this stage can also be liberating, allowing individuals to pursue interests they had previously postponed. Late adulthood involves both learning new roles and preparing for the final stage of life. SOCIALIZATION INTO DYING AND DEATH: The final stage of life, associated with old age and the awareness of approaching death, is studied in gerontology. People often begin confronting death during late middle age, particularly after experiencing declining health and the loss of parents. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross’s pioneering work on dying identified five stages individuals typically go through: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. While her model has been influential, it has faced criticism for lacking evidence of a strict sequence and for oversimplifying the complex and varied emotional responses to death. The study of death and dying, known as thanatology, explores topics like bereavement, palliative care, and the ethics of euthanasia and assisted suicide. In Canada, the debate over assisted suicide gained prominence after the 2015 Supreme Court decision to legalize physician-assisted dying. Since then, many Canadians have chosen medically assisted death under strict conditions. The process of socialization continues through death, as individuals adapt to their mortality in a manner similar to how they navigate other life stages. Sociologists see this as part of the broader socialization that shapes human life. Resocialization: the profound change or complete transformation of a person’s personality as a result of being placed in a situation or an environment dedicated to changing his or her previous identity. total institution Total Institutions: settings in which people are isolated from society and supervised by an administrative staff. 1. Institutions that help people who are incapable of taking care of themselves and can be considered harmless (homes for the blind, the aged, the orphaned, and the indigent) 2. Institutions that take care of people who are incapable of looking after themselves and pose a threat to the community, albeit an unintended one (psychiatric institutions or institutions for those with communicable diseases) 3. Institutions that protect the community from those who would do it harm (prisons or prisoner-of-war camps) 4. Institutions that perform instrumental tasks that require unique work arrangements (army/work camps or boarding schools) 5. Institutions that act as retreats from the rest of the world and serve as locations for religious training (monasteries and convents). Mortification of the Self: the first stage of the resocialization process, in which a person’s existing identity is stripped away.