Sociology Final Study Notes PDF

Summary

These notes discuss key sociological concepts related to race and ethnicity, including the social construction of race, racialization, and their consequences. The notes also cover theories of prejudice and discrimination, such as the scapegoat theory and authoritarian personality theory. The document also examines the relationship between prejudice and discrimination.

Full Transcript

**Race and Ethnicity** **Race:** Historically, a group of people that was physically and genetically distinguished from other groups (White scholar definition) (differences were attributed to skin colour, hair texture, facial features) -a socially constructed concept with social consequences- the...

**Race and Ethnicity** **Race:** Historically, a group of people that was physically and genetically distinguished from other groups (White scholar definition) (differences were attributed to skin colour, hair texture, facial features) -a socially constructed concept with social consequences- the assignment of individuals to racial categories can determine people's quality of life and even how long they live -since it is socially constructed, it can mutate to meet the views of the current population -historical legacy of Western colonialism and ethnocentrism -has colonial and ethnocentric biases -terms to use instead: **Minority Group, Racialized Population** **Racialization:** the social process by which certain social groups are marked for unequal treatment based on perceived physiological differences (skin colour most common) -the process of attributing complex characteristics (e.g. intelligence) to racial categories (e.g. white) (ex: Black athletes are better than White, White coaches are better than Black) -racialization rationalizes those racist views **Eurocentrism:** The view of Europeans as being better, smarter, and naturally superior to everyone else **Internalized Racism:** the internalization of racial categorizations into a person's identity -when members of a racial group assume the attributes associated with that racial classification and internalize them as a part of their identity -can result in identity confusion-people wanting to belong *and* wanting to embrace their differences from the majority **Ethnicity:** shared culture, which may include heritage, language, religion, and more (also socially constructed -a multidimensional concept that includes one's minority and/or majority status, ancestry, language, and often religious affiliation -people of the same racial background can have a different ethnicity, and vice versa **Ethnic Group:** a collection of people who identify with each other and share a common culture **Miscegenation:** the blending of different racialized groups through sexual relations, procreation, marriage, or cohabitation **Minority Group:** a definable category of people who are socially disadvantaged (size of group is not a factor, Black South Africans outnumbered White South Africans, but were still the minority group) (racial, social, religion, etc) -experience prejudice and discrimination because of lack of social power, and are often stigmatized by members of the majority group -2 Components of Minority Group -Lack of social power -experience prejudice and discrimination because of lack of social power -Distinct definable character from the majority group **Majority Group:** a definable category of people who are socially advantaged -uses its dominance to control the social system -in Canada, dominant group is White heterosexual males of European descent **Stigma:** an attribute that assigns negative characteristics that do not exist to a person or group -you make assumptions based on perceived characteristics (e.g. you decide some is lazy just by looking at them) (stigmatization) -negative traits -to be stigmatized is to be socially excluded and diminished because of one's minority status **Prejudice:** a negative prejudgment about a person or group (before you actually meet them) that is irrational, long-lasting, and not based on fact -**Ecological Fallacy-** drawing conclusions about individual attributes from data gathered from an entire group (all white people are hard working) -overarching generalized idea used to define a singular person -**Exception Fallacy-** drawing conclusions about an entire group based on observations of an individual -using assumptions based on one person to generalized about an entire population (ex: my professor is Persian, so all Persians must be professors) **Stereotypes:** oversimplified ideas about groups of people -a stable and sweeping generalization about a category of people that are applied to all members of that category -can be positive or negative (this group of people are good at this or bad at that) (you don't look Persian. What does Persian look like?) -even positive stereotypes are harmful (if a teacher assumes all Asian children are good at math, if an Asian student is struggling, they might not get the help they need) **Discrimination:** actions that deny or grant advantages to members of a particular group -when your thinking process becomes active behaviour -part of cultural capital, part of socialization process- can be taught -reasons we give to justify discrimination do not matter (not hiring a wheelchair user because of potential ostracization is still discrimination) -**Individual discrimination-** occurs when an individual advantages or disadvantages another because of that person's group membership -ex: not hiring a tutor because they are Italian -heavily influenced by **institutional discrimination** -**Direct institutional discrimination-** occurs when an institution employs policies and practices that are discriminatory against a person or group -ex: 1930's MacGill set a quota for how many Jewish people should apply, and it was so low that it was stopping people from attending, Residential school system -**indirect institutional discrimination-** when individuals are treated differently based on unlawful criteria (physical disability, cultural origin, age, gender, religion), even though this action was never meant to be discriminatory -banning of religious symbols in public in Quebec -- people who wore turbans, niqab, yammulke etc., couldn't access public services -one of the most common examples of this form of discrimination is the weight or size requirement to become a police officer or a firefighter- while not intended to exclude certain individuals (e.g., women are, on average, physically smaller than men), this requirement effectively limits some people's ability to pursue these careers -while Canadian law requires that people performing the same work receive the same pay, not all do **Relationship between Prejudice and Discrimination** -a person can be a prejudiced discriminator, a prejudiced non-discriminator, a non-prejudiced discriminator, or a non-prejudiced non-discriminator (**Merton)** **-Scapegoat Theory:** the assertion that prejudice and discrimination originate in the frustrations of people who want to blame someone else for their problems (**John Dollard) (Psychological Theory)** **-** a theory stating that the dominant group will displace its unfocused aggression onto a subordinate group -makes it easier to rationalize what is happening, and it is easier if you blame the subordinate group- scapegoating always happens when there is racism -people want to displace their frustrations about virtually anything onto other identifiable people whom they can target as being responsible for their problems (anger over Canadian factories being closed because of cheaper production in China being directed at a Chinese Canadian neighbour) (housing crisis framed as fault of immigrants, actually fault of big corporations not regulating the rental system) (also Covid being blamed on Asian Canadians) -people displace their anger with social inequality on minority groups -**authoritarian personality theory:** asserts that extreme prejudice is a personality trait of people who strongly believe in following cultural norms, traditions, and values (**Psychological Theory)** -prejudice is a personal trait of people who strongly believe in following cultural norms, traditions, and values -Extreme prejudice is a personality trait and may result from demanding parents who provide inadequate emotional support (ex: some people seem to be angry at everyone and often act as if they are superior to everyone else) -generally conformists, faithfully follow instructions from their superiors, and reject those they consider to be inferior to them -some suggest it could explain how Trump was elected (at least he says it like it is) -- this is how the system works, and this is how it should carry on -result of the **Frankfurt School:** a group of German social philosophers dedicated to understanding the role of culture and mass communication in the Nazi regime (worked from the Conflict perspective as employed by Karl Marx and Max Weber) -**Theodor Adorno** most responsible for the development of this theory (people who show strong negative reactions toward one minority group generally feel negatively about all minorities) -**f-scale-** Adorno's assessment tool to determine a person's personality and likelihood of holding prejudicial attitudes (f stands for fascist) (example of part of test would be answering a series of questions to reveal the belief that there are two distinct groups in society- the strong who are risk takers and believe that willpower can overcome obstacles, and the weak who are risk-averse and lack the willpower to accomplish their goals) -**Culture Theory:** the assertion that some prejudice is healthy and part of all cultures (**Sociocultural Theory)** -suggests that some prejudice is found in people all over the world (we see ourselves as different no matter what) \- a limited amount of prejudice acts to unify groups and is characteristic of all cultures (ex: many Canadians are passionate about hockey, and feel that this 'national sport' is superior to others, a shared enthusiasm that, by contributing to a national self-definition, serves to help unify a culture) -**social distance**- Bogardus's concept of the relative distance people feel between themselves and other racial/ethnic groups/minorities -**culture of prejudice-** a value system that promotes prejudice, discrimination, and oppression (at least Trump "says it like it is" -prejudice is not simply the result of an individual\'s personality but rather part of a culture's social fabric -**Functionalist Theory-** by identifying an individual, group, race, or nation as "other", the dominant groups in society are able to come together and confront the common enemy- racism as a form of community cohesion -limited prejudice is functional for a society, as it promotes social cohesion and stability (ex: by focusing on our collective similarities, we are better able to come together when faced with broad challenges such as wars and natural disasters) -each society needs a little bit of racism, that racism is beneficial to the dominant group, as it provides them with further privileges , provides them with access to many resources -if we want our society to be better, we need a little bit of racism- racism brings free labour, cheap labour, but if racism becomes too much and leads to social dysfunction, then we have a problem (e.g. people begin to ask for their rights, and functionalists see that as a problem) (little bit of racism is necessary, but you don't want the racism to turn into a dysfunction \[rioting, protesting, etc.\] -racist ideologies and the prejudice and discrimination they breed often promote social stability -discrimination prevents a society from maximizing the benefits of diversity and the abilities of all of its citizens -**group cohesion-** racism has a benefit as it creates group cohesion and people begin to create their own communities, as a member of the community they begin to see the positive function of racial discrimination, and they can build an emotional group to support each other (emotionally, socially, economically, politically) -- there is a lot of political mobilization that we experience racism, as people come together to kind of stand up against operations -**Dual Labour Market Theory:** (also called the split labour theory) asserts that modern societies have two distinct labour markets (call the primary and secondary labour markets) (**Conflict Theory)** **-primary market-** includes secure positions that pay people a healthy salary (instead of an hourly wage), offer attractive fringe benefits (such as vacation time and bonus structures), and have the potential for upward mobility within an organization -**secondary labour market-** includes jobs that offer none of these advantages; they are often insecure and temporary, pay workers hourly wages, provide only legally required benefits, and rarely offer any training to advance a worker's position -members of minority groups are disproportionately found here -**Marxist exploitation theory:** the assertion that the powerful economic elite promotes, and benefits from, prejudice and discrimination (**Conflict/ Critical Theory)** -ruling class deliberately promotes prejudice and discrimination in order to divide workers so they cannot present the rich with a united front of opposition (minority groups taught to view each other as the enemy (instead of the ruling class) -**Critical Race Theory:** an interdisciplinary approach used to investigate the intersections of race, class, ethnicity, gender, and sexuality to explain prejudice and discrimination (relies on multiple research methods) (**Conflict/ Critical Theory)** -emerged in the United States as part of an initiative to examine legal rulings that appeared to preserve the interests of the rich and powerful rather than upholding the legal principle of equality under the law -aims to redress social inequalities of the past, which makes it uniquely critical -understanding race from a critical angle -originally part of legal studies, but eventually expanded to education and other fields of research -several arguments -racism is a regular part of modern society (racism evolves into who we are and the society we are a part of) -racism provides material and psychological sense of superiority to the white elite, and therefore many do not see a reason to eliminate it from society (if you get a benefit from it, why would you want to eliminate it?) (racism advances the interests of both White elites (materially), and working-class White people (psychologically), and thus there is a large proportion of society that has little incentive to eradicate it -race is a social construct -racism, while affecting minority groups in different fields, a racial economic challenge is one of the biggest problems that comes from racism (one of the biggest issues is the economic disparities) (racism affects minority groups at different times, often in response to the labour market) -racialized people all have a unique experience with racism, therefore their experience affects their scholarly work (each one is affected by what was happening in their time period) (racial stratification is endemic to the dominant society, and people of colour have unique and marginalized historical experiences; therefore, their voices often centre their work) -Critical race theory also focuses on **post-colonialism** (is a foundation for critical race theory) -**Post-colonialism:** the colonial past of a nation shapes the social, political, and economic experience of the colonized country (**Conflict/ Critical Theory)** **-**continuously affects current time (ex: Rogers became rich by exploiting stolen land) -a country's colonial experience has a tremendous impact on the social fabric of its society. The long-term effects of imperialism and dependence on the colonial empire often translate into feelings of exclusion and at times result in people rejecting the ideas and attitudes of the dominant culture (for ex: challenging perceptions of race and ethnicity and promoting a desire for autonomy and independence) -Canada was created by controlling and acquiring lands occupied by other nations (i.e., Indigenous peoples) -Canada was built as a settler society and grew according to the needs and interests of the colonizers -Canada's economy was built, and continues to depend on, the exploitation of natural resources for the use and benefit of its settlers -the continued lack of access for some people and the continued access for others creates a huge gap -the reason Canada identifies as a White national settler society has to do with colonialism, because we are on stolen land -becomes foundation for **critical race theory** because critical race theory bases its ideas on post-colonialism **-Intersectionality Theory:** inability to separate the effects of race, class, gender, sexual orientation, and other attributes (**Conflict/ Critical Theory)** **-**various elements of power that come together -is a lens through which you can see where power comes and collides, where it lacks and where it intersects. It is the acknowledgement that everyone has their own unique experiences of discrimination and privilege -based on race, ethnicity, gender identity, class, language, religion, ability, sexuality, mental health, age, education, body size, citizenship status (and many more) -access of privilege and lack of privilege are interlocked together -- introduced by **Kimberly Crenshaw** -- to address the relationship between race, gender, and economic class- but the idea grew -important to understand how we can use our privileges to help others -the way you express yourself is defined by many elements, as you have more minority identities, your access becomes increasingly limited -positionality of an individual refers to those personal values and location in a space -**Symbolic Interactionism:** -**Herbert Blumer** and the construction of a prejudiced culture- wanted to understand why the dominant group creates this prejudice culture and create this sense of hatred toward other groups- 4 feelings experienced by the dominant group -1 a feeling of superiority (my wife doesn't wear a hijab) -2 a feeling that the subordinate race is intrinsically different and alien (oh my god, I am so different from this person who wears a hijab, no female relative of mine has ever worn one, we are so different) -3 a feeling of proprietary claim to certain areas of privilege and advantage (this is *my* neighbourhood, why is this woman coming into my neighbourhood wearing a hijab?) -4 a fear and suspicion that the subordinate race harbours designs on the prerogatives of the dominant race (they are here, they are going buy this house, but there is another house for sale, and they will buy that house, and soon they will turn the entire neighbourhood into a neighbourhood where women wear hijabs) -ex: you have a new neighbour, and you decide hey, I want to get to know this man, but then his wife gets out and is wearing a hijab, and you have never met a person who wears a hijab before- you would feel those four feelings -**Contact Theory (symbolic interactionism):** contact can mitigate those 4 feelings and help eliminate prejudice (if the man in the example above simply goes out and meets his new neighbours, he will discover that they really aren't all that different, -the proposal that prejudiced attitudes can decline with intergroup contact -contact must be between individuals of equal status (the contact between an Indigenous person and the rich White family they work for would tend to reinforce and perpetrate existing stereotypical views) -the contact between equals must be sustained and regular (ad hoc, short-term contact does not give either party enough time to appreciate the other fully) -social norms favouring equality must be agreed to by both parties (having members of the Black community meet with White skinheads would probably not be productive, given that skinheads have little interest in equality) -the fact that they are living in the same neighbourhood means they have more in common than they do different (socio-economic class that is similar, similar educational background, similar experience with socialization) -contact can address these fears and emotional upheavals -**selective perception (symbolic interactionism):** the process by whereby people see only those things that reinforce their preconceived perceptions (when you always make a note of when a woman or minority member is a bad driver, but fail to note when they are being good drivers) **Multiracial Feminist Theory:** an approach that investigates race, class, and gender and gives a voice to women of colour who may feel alienated from traditional White feminism -argues that domination and oppression are not simply the result of one's race, gender, or class, but the outcome of an entire system of inequality that diminishes both women and men **Racism:** a set of attributes, beliefs, and practices used to justify the belief that one racial category is somehow superior or inferior to others -an ideology that maintains that one "race" is inherently superior to another -**individual racism-** can be done through micro-aggression, violence -**institutional racism-** can support individual racism -- censorship under guise of uniformity, respect -- can be direct or indirect -a society that is built on a discriminatory foundation as a part of state policies implementation on a different group of people (ex: residential schools, Africville, etc) -Canada built on Institutional racism **Democratic Racism:** a system that advocates equality but in fact perpetuates minority differentiation and oppression -the belief that "we're all just people" and should treat everyone equally -minimizes peoples' experiences of racism and avoids engaging in self-reflection and understanding oppression (without real change, dominant groups will simply continue to maintain their positions of privilege) -we discuss the history of slavery, residential schools, etc., but racism still happens -kind of hides racism -I'm not racist, I don't see colour (must be seeing colour to say that) -delusional to think that because we are a democracy, racism can't happen **Canadian History of Institutional Racism** **Indigenous Peoples** -1763 Royal Proclamation -1876 Indian Act \- prohibition against hiring lawyers -women marrying Indigenous men got status, but Indigenous women marrying non-Indigenous men lost status -no right to vote, and so very much more -19^th^ century residential schools -60's scoop -**4 stages of colonialism:** -1 Mutual relationship- ex: Indigenous population helping European settlers learn how to survive, and the settlers offering technological knowledge in exchange -2 Economic Reliance -- "you focus on the fur trade, and we will provide you with everything else"- Indigenous population became very reliant on settlers as a result -3 Establishment of Reserves -- beginning to force Eurocentric ideas -4 Political Mobilization and Resistance -- how do we reverse the colonialization, decolonization -**Settler society:** a society historically based on colonization through foreign settlement and displacement of Aboriginal inhabitants **Black Canadians** -Canada abolished slavery when Britain did in 1834 -many former slaves who settled in Canada did so in Nova Scotia, in Africville -formed in response to lack of acceptance by Nova Scotians -in 1965 Africville designated a slum and entire city destroyed, Nova Scotia has still not apologized or provided restitution -equal, but segregated (until 1965 in Ontario, not until 1980's in Nova Scotia) -In BC in 1859, war for San Juan island, Pig war -fought by all Black rifle company -led by Mifflin Gibbs, first Black city councillor and mayor in BC -won the island for Canada, but were denied access to 'white only' events -- Mifflin Gibbs left in response to this -Black Canadians still paid less than White Canadians to this day **Asian Canadians** -**Chinese Canadians** -originally Chinese men, who originally came for the Gold Rush, but began to work for Canadian Pacific Railway -valued at 1/3 -- ¼ of all other workers -often assigned most dangerous work -over 700 Chinese men lost their lives building Canada's national railway -Currently the second largest minority group in Canada **-Japanese Canadians** **-** 1887 -- Issei were the first wave of Japanese immigrants (came for fishing and farming) -1907 -- migration policy change for Japanese immigrants -discouraged family reunion -immigration restriction on Japanese men **-South Asian** -1904 the first south Asians, who were only Indian Sikh -many men did not speak English -worked in factories and orchards where language wasn't needed -1908 -- the second wave of south Asian migration (90% were Indian Sikh) **-Asian Canadians** -labelled as immoral, lazy, criminals, unfit to be citizens -Orientalist stereotypes and lack of suitability to be Canadian citizens -Chinese head tax (1885-1923) -discouraged people from bringing their wives and children (started at \$50, increased to \$100 in 1900) -in 1905 amount skyrocketed to \$500 to bring wives over for Chinese and Japanese Canadians -lost right to vote (didn't regain right to vote until 1947 for Chinese Canadians and South Asian Canadians, then 1949 for Japanese Canadians) -after Pearl Harbour, in BC and Alberta, Japanese Canadians were placed in internment camps from 1941-1949 -funded from the sale of their property -in 1988 Mulroney apologized, only offered very small restitution, not nearly enough- Families had to start over with nothing after the camps -Komagata Maru in 1914 -376 passengers not allowed to disembark for 2 months, then sent back to India, still no apology **Model Minority:** the stereotype applied to a minority group that is seen as reaching higher educational, professional and socioeconomic levels without protesting the majority establishment **Genocide:** deliberate annihilation of a targeted (usually subordinate) group -the intentional extermination of all members of a minority group -most likely to happen when 3 conditions are met: -1 the dominant group is much larger than the minority -2 the minority is of little or no economic value to the dominant group -3 the dominant group needs a scapegoat to blame for economic or military setbacks -ex: Holocaust (important to note that Hitler got his ideas for ghettos from Canada's treatment of Indigenous peoples) -**Expulsion (or population transfer):** when a dominant group forces a subordinate group to leave a certain area or the country (goal to remove the minority group from society) -Holocaust, Colonization of North America, Darfur region of Sudan, Rohingyas in Myanmar **-Cultural Genocide:** an act and measure taken to destroy a groups culture -ex: residential schools **Segregation:** the formal physical or social separation of dominant and minority groups -the physical separation of two groups, particularly in residence, but also in workplace and social functions -**De jure segregation:** segregation that is legally introduced and enforced (Jim Crow, white women not being allowed to work in Chinese owned laundries, reserves (creates divides between Indigenous and non-Indigenous) -**De facto segregation:** segregation that occurs without laws but because of other factors (Africville, Chinatown, Little Japan, Little Korea) **Separatism (ethnic nationalism):** voluntary structural and cultural isolation by minority groups from the dominant group -occurs when minority groups believe that the dominant group will never allow them to assimilate or to exist within a truly pluralistic society (may take the form of seeking to form an independent state \[like the Quebec separatist movement\], or take the form of seeking to live a largely separate life within a country dominated by a different group \[ex: Chinatown\] **Assimilation:** a one-way process that occurs when a minority group sheds its differences and assumes the traits of the dominant group (does not apply to Canada) -give up identity and take on the characteristics of the dominant society, leave your cultural identity behind (ex: American Melting Pot (the blending of new immigrants' traditions and cultural identity into the dominant American culture), everyone who comes to the States is supposed to conform to that way of life) -made easier when 5 conditions are met: -1 members of the minority group migrate to the area voluntarily -2 members of the minority group arrive during a period of economic prosperity -3 members of the minority group are physically similar to the dominant group -4 the minority group is culturally similar to the dominant group -5 the number of members in the minority group is relatively small -4 criteria in notes are socioeconomic status (same access to socio-economic status as everyone else), spatial concentration (geographic factors come together so that everyone has the same access to resources), language assimilation (very common, encouraged to learn the official language), and intermarriage encouraged (in a properly assimilated society, intermarriage becomes more common, and actually encouraged) **Integration:** when different groups come together and shape society. It is the process by which minority groups become a part of mainstream society to create a cohesive experience -no loss of cultural and ethnic identity **-Multiculturalism (or cultural pluralism):** the retention of minority groups' cultural identities and the promotion of cultural, ethnic, and racial diversity by the larger society -the recognition of cultural and racial diversity and of the equality of different cultures -Canada became first country in the world to adopt multiculturalism as official policy in 1971 -1985/88 multiculturalism act: people should have the right to maintain their own cultural identity- confirmed the federal government's intention of preserving and enhancing the spectrum of human diversity in Canada, be it racial, cultural, or linguistic -became a fundamental principle for Canadian society -Canadian Multiculturalism grounded in the belief that, while all citizens must be treated equally, we should not overlook how our differences enrich our society -**Kymlicka's three methods of multicultural group-specific rights** -1 self-government rights -- when culturally distinct nation within a society attains some degree of political autonomy and self-determination, both of which ensures the survival of the unique identity for their people -- various ethnic groups have their own inter-governments within the government of Canada, a part of which is to ensure that resources are available for their community- when certain groups have the right to have a government within the government -2 polyethnic rights -- culturally distinct groups are able to express their particular culture and beliefs, if you believe as part of your cultural beliefs to wear a hijab, you should have the full rights to do so, if you have the polyethnic right to celebrate Diwali, you should have the full right to celebrate, should have the right to raise your children at home with the language you are familiar with -- way to preserve cultural identity -3 special representation rights -at political level, where the systematic underrepresentation of minorities in the political process is addressed, and trying to maintain a number of seats for racial and ethnic minority groups to be represented at all political levels (ex: in 1990, Canadian Sikhs fought for the right to practice their religious rights, as many police officers wanted to wear turbans instead of hats -- were granted that right) -in a true multicultural system, we should provide equal opportunities to everyone, no matter their ethnic or cultural background **Hybridity:** the process by which different racial and ethnic groups combine to create new or emergent cultural forms and practices -byproduct of multiculturalism -ex: Diwali slowly integrating elements of Canadian culture (ex, been commercialized in accord with Canadian culture) -when you are encouraged to preserve your cultural identity, but you are aware that your ethic identity is different from the dominant culture, and the two start to mix (Prof. is encouraged to preserve her Persian identity, but she knows that she cannot stand in front of the class and teach in Farsi) -dominant and minority cultures are slowly changed through hybridity and the process of socializing these new identities until they are accepted **Gender and Sexuality** **Sex**: a determination of male or female on the basis of a set of socially agreed-upon biological criteria -the physical or physiological differences between female, male, or other -rooted in biology -- our physical bodies **Gender:** social distinctions between masculinity and femininity -the social and cultural distinction that relates to the diversity of femininity and masculinity -gender is a social construct and has nothing to do with sex -term 'gender' started being used in 1970's by feminine theorists as a way to distinguish between biology and the social effects of biological differences -falls on a spectrum of feminine to masculine \- is socially constructed over both spaces and times **Gender identity:** an individual's sense of being on the spectrum of feminine and masculine -**cisgender:** individuals whose gender identity matches the gender assigned at birth -term for people who exclusively identify as their sexed body at birth and corresponding gender -**transgendered:** individuals identifying with a gender that is not assigned to them at birth -an umbrella term for the many gender identities of those who do not (exclusively) identify with the sex assigned to them at birth, regardless of whether they have undergone gender affirming medical interventions -includes non-binary, gender queer, tombois (individuals with female bodies who socially present as men), agender, intersex **Transphobia:** discrimination directed towards transgender individuals -can be social, emotional, physical, sexual -it can be difficult for trans men to access gynecologists -trans kids in Alberta are having their freedom taken away by the provincial government (a child under 16 is not able to seek medical help transitioning, and no children are able to transition without the permission of their parents) -organizations exist to help battle transphobia, including CPATH (Canadian Professional Association for Transgender Health), TransPulse, the National Centre for Trans Equality, Momentum- all of these try to address transphobia within society **Gender Dichotomy:** separating people into groups based on their sexual bodies -men should be men, women should be women -- we constantly equate sex to gender -intersex peoples' lives destroyed because of this **Binary Construction:** the division of the human population into two categories -based on the idea that a given phenomenon can be located within one or two mutually exclusive categories -implies that these groups are diametrical opposites **Intersex individuals:** individuals born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that does not fit the binary definitions of male or female -not just external genital differences, but also internal reproductive organs, genetic differences, and hormone insensitivities **Dominant Discourse of Gender** **Gender role:** society's concept of how women and men should behave **Gender Relations:** organizing principles in society that shape and order interactions between, as well as the relative social importance of, women and men -shape the relative social importance and worth of women and men -throughout most of the world, that which is associated with masculinity and men is more highly valued than that which is associated with femininity and women **Hegemonic Masculinity:** The normative ideal of dominant masculinity (ex: Batman) (men as active) -the normative ideal of masculinity that men are supposed to strive to achieve -not necessarily the most prominent form of masculinity- is the one that is the most socially endorsed -maintenance of hegemony requires men's and women's participation in sustaining images of the ideal masculinity -in North America, associated with traits of aggressiveness, control, strength, drive, ambition, not valuing women -doesn't need help, doesn't need support- opposite of everything that is feminine -irrevocably tied to heterosexuality (acts as a precursor for defining masculinity in western societies) -Kimmel argues homophobia is much more than irrational fear of gay men, is also fear that "men will unmask other men" emasculate them, and reveal to the world that they do not measure up to the idea construction of masculinity -fear of being unmasked leads to shame and silence, and complicity in the subordination or women and other men (ex: not speaking out when other men make racist or sexist jokes) \- men's fear of being revealed as frauds (not man enough) results in the continued perpetuation of gendered behaviour and stereotypes **Emphasized Femininity:** the normative ideal of femininity based on a woman's compliance with their subordination to men (there to support, in the supportive role) (Trad wives) (stiletto heels an enduring signifier) -understood as the ideal that women should try to achieve -characteristics associated with it include supportiveness, enthusiasm, and sexual attractiveness -cheerleading an example of performative emphasized femininity -often reflected in specific dress code rules for women -ex: women and girls involved in sports will "apologize" for their participation in a masculine realm **Patriarchy:** set of institutional structures which are based on the belief that men and women are dichotomous and unequal categories -built on gender stereotypes **Gender stereotypes:** overgeneralization of gender characteristics -women are weak, men are strong, women are emotional, men have no emotions -leads to sexism **Sexism:** the prejudiced belief that one sex should be valued over another **Gender and Socialization** -gendering starts at gender reveal parties (gender reveal parties = bad) -we are socialized into gender, and it never stops **Family:** first agent of socialization -feminine chores vs. masculine chores -gendered restrictions -gendered expectations begin in families before or at birth, after proclamation of whether a baby is a boy or a girl (ex: all blue for boys or all pink for girls- 'toys for boys' and 'toys for girls') -parents' child rearing practices are deeply gendered -mothers respond more quickly when their baby girls cry then when their baby boys cry, boys are more likely to be held during the first 6 months and the converse is true after the first 6 months **Education:** school is a gendered space and experience -gender segregation -girls vs boys- different sex ed, etc -educational divide -- you see more women in service industry teachers, etc (girls less like to be encouraged to pursue careers in STEM, etc) -girls are often not diagnosed with ADHD until later in life -all teachers, regardless of gender identity, tend to interact more with the boys than the girls -**the 'Chilly Climate'-** term used to represent women's experiences on university campuses -**peer groups-** enforce gender conformity (gender non-conformity leads to isolation) -have harsher sanctions for boys -lot of suicide and self harm among trans kids **Mass Media:** gender divisions are reflected in and reinforced by all forms of media -typecasting women -gendered advertisement -defining gender **Social Stratification** **Blue Collar jobs:** predominantly occupied by men -generally more physical -more valued -ex: mechanics, plumbers, miners, electricians -women not generally welcome **Pink collar jobs:** female dominated -teachers, nurses, dental assistants for example -men not generally welcome, but when they occupy positions in one of these jobs, they usually end up in management positions because of it **Wage gap:** the gap between the wages that men and women make -women only make \$0.84 for every dollar a man makes, and there will be no equalization of wage until 2240 the way things are going -can be explained by such factors as occupational segregation (women and men being employed in different employment sectors), the undervaluing of women's work (paying women less than men for working in the same positions), the restructuring of women's work by privatization and outsourcing, and the lack of affordable, quality childcare (limiting women's choices for employment) **4 Reasons for the Gender wage Gap** -1 Gender discrimination in hiring and salary (women are more likely to be paid less than their male counterparts) -2 Women and men are concentrated in positions that were encouraged by the early education of children -3 Unequal distribution of unpaid domestic duties among genders -4 Devaluation of pink-collar positions **Intersectionality:** the simultaneous influence of multiple social relations, including race, gender, ethnicity, and class **Stratification:** a system in which groups of people experience unequal access to basic, yet highly valuable resources **The Second shift:** unpaid domestic labour- refers to the unequal burden of unpaid labour that many women face in the domestic sphere, outside of their paid careers (come home from working your paid job to perform the unpaid labour of childcare, cooking, cleaning, etc) **The Feminization of Poverty:** poverty is a gendered phenomenon -more women than men live in poverty in Canada -are consistently the poorest of the poor -unattached senior women and female-headed-lone-parent families have high rates of poverty -more than 36% of Indigenous women lived in poverty in 2006 compared to 17% of non-Indigenous women, and Indigenous women have lower yearly incomes on average than non-Indigenous women **Exchange Theory:** the assertion that power in relationships is influenced by the resources that a member brings to the relationship -economically based relationship power influences who does what chores around the house -women decrease their housework as their earnings increase right up to the point where both spouses contribute equally to income. When women start making more money than their male partners, the women may compensate by performing more of the domestic labour and child-rearing responsibilities than their partners (women who earn more than their partners often have their unpaid domestic labour increase by 5 to 6 hours per week) -women who earn more money than their male partners attempt to address this disruption in gender relations by increasing their contribution to their household's domestic duties, while men who stay at home to parent proactive take on part-time work and home renovations to assert their masculinity **Theoretical Perspectives on Gender** **-Structural functionalism:** functionalists argue that women and men perform separate, distinct, specialized, and complementary roles to maintain cohesiveness within families and in wider society- well-defined roles reduce confusion and conflict in the family unit regarding gender expectations and also ensure that societal tasks are fulfilled -- the gender division of labour -men fulfill an instrumental role: through their paid labour in the public sphere, they provide the money for food, shelter, and other necessities, as well as make decisions for the family unit -women are positioned as fulfilling the expressive role, in that they provide emotional support and nurturance for all member of the family unit -primarily responsible for rearing society's next generation and are key in reproducing the moral fabric of society -also holds women directly responsible for changes in gender relations that may disrupt the smooth functioning of family life (such as women entering the paid labour force or fighting for social equality with men) -gendered division of labour -women were physically strained due to pregnancy and child-rearing -women expected to manage the domestic sphere while men would go out, like hunter gatherer society (creates a divide between the public and the private sphere) -changed in WWII because men went to war, and women were supposed to not only take care of children, but work the jobs that the men would normally have been working -**Talcott Parson (structural functionalism):** the function of men and women in the household -very traditional household, male breadwinner and women housemakers -need for a clear divide -men have higher value because they bring in money, and he as the opportunity and the right to replace his wife if she is not providing her end of the labour -women have to keep the house to the level her husband requires, while also keeping her husband happy **Conflict Theory:** power relationship and access to social resources -how gender affects one's control of, and access to, scarce resources -dominant group oppressing and exploiting the subordinate group -there is a clear divide between the genders because they are a means for control -**Friedreich Engels:** the relationship between a woman and a man in a family setting as a owner-worker relationship -in capitalist societies, private property produces gender stratification -a husband owns the household and owns the labour of his wife -therefore, women are **doubly exploited** within the capitalist model, because not only are they exploited by the capitalist system for their labour, they are exploited by their husbands \- monogamous marriage, as an institution, developed out of a need to ensure paternity in order to determine inheritance rights, thus having little to do with notions of romantic love **Feminist Theory:** endeavor to identify the ways in which institutionalized and internalized gendered norms can limit women's behaviours and opportunities -- "biology is not destiny" -takes an intersectional approach in its analysis of how gender, race, class, and so forth simultaneously produce relations of privilege and relations of subordination -also seeks to explore the multiplicity of femininities and masculinities **-Radical Feminist:** criticize the family structure, because they believe that this feminist structure is constantly feeding in social inequality -the marital unit is a space for encouraging this divide between women and men -the continuous divide between the domestic and public sphere limits women's access to economic independence- the fact that women are often solely responsible for the domestic sphere limits their economic independence -**bifurcated consciousness:** introduced by Dorothy Smith, and is the experience of a division between the directly lived, bodily world of women's lives and the dominant, masculine, abstract, institutional world to which they must adapt -Dorothy Smith used her own positionality to explain and explore her challenges within the higher educational level, noticed that there was a gap between her private life and her public experience (she couldn't talk about her private life at work because the men she was working with didn't have the same experience as her) **-Matriarchy:** matriarchy is about collaboration over competition **Theoretical Perspectives on Gender** **-Symbolic Interactionism:** talks about the symbolic representation of femininity and masculinity -- the meanings of male and female and of masculinity and femininity -gender is created through social interactions, mainly through the mechanisms of role-taking -people learn contrasting expectations about gender on the basis of their perceived sex -children learn gender-related behaviours through social institutions, such as families, schools, peers, and mass media -operant conditioning- whereby positive reinforcements increase socially gender-appropriate behaviours, while negative reinforcements decrease behaviours deemed to be socially inappropriate -representation of femininity and masculinity evolves over time -in the 1970's, if you were a working mom, you were seen as selfish because you don't want to stay at home and take care of your kids. Today, working mothers are celebrated as hardworking -in the 60's and 70's fathers were expected to be separated from their kids, and were not involved in their children\'s emotional upbringing. Today, fathers are encouraged to take care of their children in this way -**G.H. Cooley**- doing gender -**West and Zimmerman**- doing gender -gender as a social construct that actively and purposefully surfaces in everyday human interaction -we actively participate in and *do* gender -if I'm doing something, I'm trying to represent a certain gender, if I am behaving in a certain way I am trying to represent a gender -we "do" gender through social interaction- when we display ourselves as a member of a gender -gender constructions can then become institutionalized in ways that make them appear normal and natural (ex: public women's washrooms have different fixtures and trimmings than public men's washrooms) **Post Structuralist theories:** talk about gender as a performance, refer to gender as something that we perform- process of repeating the same thing until it becomes normalized **-Judith Butler:** Gender performance- you are continuously repeating the same gendered expectation through socialization until it becomes your norm and your natural expectation -gender is your performance of gender at particular times and in particular spaces -there is no coherent or essential self behind our performances -- our identities are fragmented, contradictory, and always in flux -our "performances" are driven by discourses of power that shape the limits and possibilities for the construction of our identities **Sex and Sexuality** -sexual practices are culturally diverse -sexual norms and values are influenced by family, education, peers, media, and religion -- sexuality is a social construct -sexuality also falls on a spectrum **Sexual identity:** our sense of self as a sexual being, our sense of attraction to potential others, our knowledge of our bodies, our sexual history, and our sexual preference -is constantly evolving and changing \- a broad term that can include our sense of self as being attractive to potential partners, our knowledge of our bodies, our sexual histories, and our sexual preferences **Sexual orientation:** an individual's sexual and emotional attraction to particular people -part of **sexual identity** **Alfred Kinsey:** one of the first sexologists **-seven point scale-** 0 equaled exclusively heterosexual behaviour and 6 being exclusively homosexual behaviour -- found most people fell between 1 and 5 -beginning of sexuality as a continuum **Homosexual:** an individual who is sexually attracted to members of the same sex/gender **Heterosexism:** the holding up of heterosexuality as the ideal and normal sexuality, rendering all other sexualities abnormal and deviant **Homophobia:** an irrational fear or hatred of homosexuals that can lead to discrimination, harassment, and violence against them -an extreme or irrational aversion to homosexuals -homophobic discourses are often expressed through language that constructs gay men as promiscuous, over-sexed, and effeminate, and lesbians as manly or butch -also has the effect of asserting heterosexuality in public spaces **John D'Emilio:** emphasizes the distinction between homosexual *behaviour* and the development of homosexual *identities* -argued that lesbian and gay identities are a product of the social changes that came about first during the industrial revolution and later in the early part of the twentieth century **Sexual Double Standard:** a concept that prohibits premarital sexual intercourse for women, but allows it for men -female sexuality seen as a taboo topic, whereas men's sexuality is not -another example of sexual double standard is the fact that women who work in the sex industry often don't have their claims of rape substantiated because of stigma -men who have multiple sexual relationships are referred to as 'studs' while women who have multiple sexual relationships are referred to as 'sluts' -sexually aggressive men vs. gatekeeping women -incel movement "I should have access to female sexuality" -**racialized sexual double standard:** non-white folks being seen as more sexually 'deviant' -ex: the construction of Black and Asian women as sexually exotic -ex: Disney's portrayal of Pocahontas, and the sexualization of Indigenous women through Halloween costumes and the like **Promiscuous:** derogatory term used to describe anyone who is assumed to have had sex with an "unreasonable" number of sexual partners -promiscuity discourse works the same way as slut-bashing -calling a woman promiscuous is a means of regulating her sexuality and encouraging her to remain firmly located within the boundaries of the sexual double standard **Rape culture:** the normalization of rape as a part of double standards of gender and sexuality **Gale Reuben:** The Charmed Circle and The Outer Limits **The Charmed circle:** what is viewed as good, normal, natural, blessed sexuality (inner circle) -heterosexual, married, monogamous, procreative, non-commercial, in pairs, in a relationship, same generation, in private, no pornography, bodies only, vanilla **The Outer Limits:** what is viewed as bad, abnormal, unnatural, damned sexuality -homosexual, unmarried, promiscuous, non-procreative, commercial, alone or in groups, casual, cross-generational, in public, pornography, with manufactured objects, sadomasochistic -sexual practices are constantly being regulated through legal and social forces **Bisexuality:** being attracted to both women and men -tend not to be equally attracted to both sexes -bisexual individuals tend to be framed as individuals in perpetual conflict who are also non-monogamous **Biphobia:** the irrational fear and hatred of bisexuals -can result in discrimination, marginalization, and even violence -stereotypes include assuming that bisexuals have heightened levels of sexuality and are promiscuous -discrimination is experienced in both heterosexual and homosexual contexts \- assumption that bisexual men are actually homosexual but also homophobic **Pansexuality:** romantic and sexual desire for people regardless of their gender identity or biological sex -non-binary sexual orientation **Asexuality:** the absence of sexual attraction toward others -simply do not feel the urge to have sex at all -there is a difference between sexual attraction and romantic love **Polyamory:** mutually acknowledged emotional, sexual, or romantic connections with multiple partners -emphasizes long-term, emotionally intimate relationships that may or may not be sexually intimate -also characterized by honesty and consensus -polyamorous people in the United States tend to be educated, middle-aged, White, middle- to upper- class individuals who work in professional occupations **Sociological Perspectives on Sex and Sexuality** **-Structural Functionalism:** how sexuality is functional to the smooth running of society- sexuality to strengthen bond -the significance of family in regulating sexual practices, family very important -procreation in a legal and stable relationship- children have a better chance at socialization -homosexual practices as dysfunctional -**Parsons** and the belief that there is a reason for women in home sphere and men in public sphere -- against homosexuality (it's a social dysfunction as people cannot procreate and they are just having sex for fun) and adoption (creates dysfunction within the family, you should be with someone you can reproduce with) -ensures for proper family upbringing, ensures socialization of children, and it continuously regulates sexual practices- anything outside of men in public and women in home would lead to family dysfunction -sexuality as a way to ensure the regulation of the family -**Kingsley Davis:** argued that men are sexual beings, need to be able to express their sexuality in more diverse ways -supported prostitution as a way for men to perform out limit sexual practices that were seen as taboo to practice with their wives -did agree with what Parson's said -the women prostitutes were labelled as deviant, but the men utilizing their services were not, also dangerous for women, as men saw it as paying to do anything they wanted -**Conflict/Critical Theory:** sexuality is caught between the sphere of knowledge and the sphere of power -if you control sexuality, you control society- if you view certain sexual behaviours as immoral, you have a much better chance of controlling every other aspect of society -by normalizing heteronormativity you are creating a very clear gender division of labour **-heteronormative:** the belief and practice that heterosexuality is the only normal sexual orientation -**micro power:** using sexual practice to put surveillance on the entire population -**cis-normative:** the belief that gender dichotomy is the only normal form of gender expression -**Michel Foucault-** exploring sexuality from a deviance perspective -location of deviance within society, and where the deviance comes from -trying to understand why various sexual activities are considered deviant **-Symbolic Interactionism:** the social meanings that a society attributes to sexuality, including sexual behaviour -sexuality as a symbolic expression -symbolic devaluing of women **-sexual script:** cultural expectations about appropriate sexuality that are learned through social interactions -we are socialized to accept the sexual script -how we act on a date is an example of the sexual script **-coming out process-** 6 stages introduced by Vivian Cass, not always so clear cut, depending on your culture and socialization, you may struggle with some steps and go back and forth between steps -1 identity confusion- realize you don't fit into the dominant sexual script -2 identity comparison -- you compare yourself to everyone and everyone around you -3 identity tolerance- I may be gay, but let me learn more about it and get to know it better, widen your horizons -4 identity acceptance -based on what I've learned, what I understand, I am gay -5 identity pride -- finally accepting who you are, expressing pride -6 identity synthesis -- your identity is now normal for you, you have a new sexual script for yourself **Post-Structuralist Theory:** argue that sexual behaviour and sexual identity are products of discourses (that is, ways of speaking, thinking, and writing about the world) -discourse of sexuality = socially constructed and taken-for-granted meanings regarding sexuality -has become socially normalized to the point that people have difficulty seeing anything outside of their normal understanding of sexuality \- we see things as normal because we have socialized to see it as normal **-Feminist Post-Structuralist:** Judith Butler -gender performativity- performing and performing etc until it becomes your norm, to the point that you are unaware of the process by which you learned it -since sexuality is another form of performance, we have socially accepted norms for sexuality, and we do have a very clear hierarchy for what is considered desirable sexual behaviour and what is undesirable sexual behaviour **-Queer theory:** a scholarly discipline that questions the fixed (normative) definitions of gender and sexuality \- views sexuality as a complex and fluid experience -**Eve Sedwick**- we need to reject that uniform definition of what sexuality is -sexuality can be broken down \- no sexual practices are wrong or right **Family** **Family:** a group of people connected through descent, marriage, or adoption (seeing best friend as family) -**Family of orientation:** family a person is born into -**Family of procreation:** family a person marries into or is adopted to- the family one creates by having children or adopting them **Nuclear family:** an adult male, an adult female, and their offspring -by-product of post- second world war -built on 'tradition', gender normativity, normalized gender division of labour, heteronormative ideals - patriarchal, elitist, ableist understanding of family **Extended family:** multiple generations of adults living with their spouses and children **Zimmel -- 5 interests of Family** -1 sexual activity (between mother and father) -2 economic cooperation (shaped as a way of ensuring economic stability for all) -3 reproduction (happens in to ways, reproduction of children and social reproduction \[taking care of the house and making sure the person is ready for the next day of work\]) -4 socialization of children (family first unit of socialization children are born into) -5 emotional support (created to ensure emotional support is taking place) **Marriage:** legal union between 2 people -family unit relies on marriage, not all of the time, but a lot of the time (legalizes that relationship and that union -marriage as a way regulate and govern sexual practices -idea of marriage born out of religion to control sexual practices in society and create a place for children to raised within that gender dichotomy -very important in understanding familial relationship, because a large part of the familial relationship is built on that marriage discourse -2 types of marriage -**exogamy:** marrying outside of their immediate community -exogamous relationships used to be seen as taboo (ex: interracial marriage) (can also be marrying outside of your social class **-endogamy:** marrying within your community (your culture, economic background, ethnicity, race, etc) (usually celebrated) **Monogamy:** the coupling of two people, excluding the intimate involvement of others -a relationship, often a sexual one, with just one person at a time -builds trust and respect between partners; it is a display of love; it signifies mutual sexual satisfaction and a loss of sexual opportunities with other people -can also signify lifelong coupling (not remarrying after your partner moves away -when cheating happens is seen as complete betrayal **Serial monogamy:** a relationship pattern that has one monogamous relationship following another **Non-monogamy:** sexual interactions with more than one person during a given period, or any sexual relationship involving more than two people **-polygamy:** mutually acknowledged emotional, sexual, or romantic connection with multiple partners -**polygyny:** sexual relationship of one male partner with multiple female partners -**polyandry:** sexual relationship of one female partner with multiple male partners **Intimacy** -we encourage intimacy for women as a form of love, but for men as a sexual thing -different types of intimacy- experiential, physical, intellectual, emotional, spiritual -intimacy is built through sharing and expressing your private thoughts -a lot of times intimacy and love are interconnected -women and AFAB are socialized to have a better relationship with intimacy **Love** -passionate love is sexual, and fades away -compassionate love, more rational and filled with intimacy -commodification of love and marriage more modern, starting in 19^th^ century **Households** -not every household is a family household **-family household:** a household that has a number of people who are connected, through ancestry, marriage, blood, etc -**non-family household:** household that has only 1 person living in it -creation of industrial revolution -people became more economically independent -people are becoming more independent -feminist movement allowed for women to be financially self-reliant and they could protect themselves and live on their own (not forced to be in a relationship for financial stability) -technological advancements -- you can still contact family easily via phone, etc, if you miss them -organization- provided more spaces for people to be socially active but still maintain your independence **Alternative forms of family** **-Cohabitation:** when a couple lives together without being married first -various reasons, one is when people don't want to be married in front of the church and the state, but want their relationship to be recognized -can be seen as a practice round before marriage \- first seen as legitimate in 1987 -**Lone-parents:** the ideal of single parenthood, parent alone with one or more children, and they are the sole provider for those children -s **-Non resident parents:** a parent or parents have to live apart from the family, often for financial reasons -often stigmatized -absent father or selfish mother -- supports the gender dichotomy discourse -**stepfamilies and blended families:** step-fathers, step-siblings, etc, when the couple decides to have a child, they become blended -**Queer families:** became recognized in 2005 with the legalization of gay marriage -existed before 2005 as well -some parents lost custody of their children after coming out -**couple living apart together:** is becoming increasingly common thanks to liquid modernity -long-distance relationships example \- couples who are in a relationship and because of circumstances they are forced to live apart -there is a need for financial stability and resources that might not be available to all others **-child-free families:** when people decide to live together but decide to not have a child -becoming more popular -had to fight for recognition as a family -still a lot of stigma, women seen as selfish -**horizontal families:** when siblings are living with each other -one reason is because an older child is taking care of a younger sibling -not just biological siblings, but adopted and step siblings **Social Theories on Families** -**Structural/Functional theories:** function of the family- family plays a very important function, and that is bringing equilibrium within society **-**a successful society has functioning families who follow the very specific norms within the society -certain social functions are accomplished within families -- individuals are provided with love, emotional and economic support, and sexual expression -family is understood to be a major societal institution -**Talcott Parsons:** very specific reason for gender division of labour -argued that within any family unit, for a successful family unit you need to have an expressive woman and an instrumental man -**expressive woman:** supposed to provide emotional support within the household, provide the domestic duties and take care of the children and socialize the children, and manage domestic duties -**instrumental man:** only there to discipline children and provide financially (value seen as higher because of financial provision) \- **7 functions of Family (Parson)** -1 population reproduction and procreation -- if a couple is together, they are responsible for population reproduction (society needs workers) -2 emotional and physical care for children -- within a family unit, children are supposed to be taken care of- is the responsibility of the family unit to feed the children, and bring them up in an emotionally stable space -3 socialization of children -- children need to be socialized within the norms and values of their society -- children are expected to learn about these norms and values -4 financial and economic support- a family unit should be financially stable - -5 intergenerational support -- it is the work of the family that is supposed to take care of the elderly financially, emotionally, and physically -6 controlling sexuality -- family unit is created because society is trying to set control of sexual behaviours -- want to ensure that within the family unit that sexuality is specifically located between a man and a woman who are married to each other -7 social location within society -family unit sets your social location -indicates where you are located within the greater society (higher class, middle class, lower class) -lot of criticism of his work because it focuses on the status quo -- it is what is expected, but it is not true for everyone -majority of families not based on these elements -**Conflict/Critical theory:** family unit is a unit of struggle- power struggle, and is made up of those who are dominant and those who are subordinate- conflict over the resources that are available within the family unit -- the relationship of family to the state -the inequalities inherent in the larger society are perpetuated inside families -the family is organized to meet the needs of capitalism, and more specifically, to serve ruling class interests -**Randall Collins:** the dominance and subordination is based on various elements such as gender, age, other social factors, access to financial resources -conflict within household -the gender and subordination of women in the family is the underlying reason for the gender division of labour \- we are expected to have the gender division of labour so we can have free labour from women -children within the family unit is in a vary vulnerable position -- under full control of parents -their only source of social resources is their family \- many times, children who are abused see it as the norm, and lack the language to explain -**Feminist Theory:** divide between the domestic and public sphere -**bifurcated consciousness** -**social reproduction:** the necessary activities that guarantee the day-to-day reproduction and survival of the population -**domestic labour:** the activities required to maintain a home and care for the people who live in it **-Symbolic Interactionism:** investigate how family members' behaviours are shaped by their definitions and interpretations of particular situations -- context crucial -tries to understand the symbolic representation of family units, and how that cost and benefit works -meaning of the family unit, the role of each member -**exchange theory:** argues that we do everything based on the cost and benefit (if you are doing something it is because you get a benefit out of it) -people who live in a family unit tend to live longer, tend to be more financially stable, more socially present, certain statues come with the family unit -exchange theory would say that the rising number of divorces is because you are looking at the cost and benefits of being married, and realising that you are not getting the benefits that you need/ are supposed to get -each member of the family has a role, this can lead to **role strain** **-role strain:** stress that results when someone does not have sufficient resources to play a role or roles (ex: in a heteronormative unit, women can experience role strain because not only are they working outside of the home, but they are also in charge of all the work inside the home as well) **Theoretical Perspectives** **-post-structuralist approach:** likely to seek to dismantle prevailing discourses about families -the concept of gender roles in a household is questioned as it is saturated with power relations -how certain roles are assigned to each parent -**normalization:** set boundaries on what is acceptable and appropriate mode of conduct to govern people's behaviour -tries to create a definition on what is considered a family, mother, father, etc -**state intervention:** can happen within the school system, healthcare system, governmental and political system, welfare system -ex: setting boundaries what can or can not be taught to a child -can happen through daytime tv and talk shows (ex: Dr. Phil) -**Queer Theory** -**heteronormativity** tries to govern the normalization process of family institution -a lot of our idea on family is governed by the idea that there is going to be a heterosexual couple/ relationship that is guiding the family unit -limits resources that are supposed to support all different types of families **Family and Power** -have to do with imbalance of power and gap in resources that are supposed to be available for all -**5 basic models of family conflict** -1 The deficit model- if a person is not properly socialized, they still have a hard time aiding in the socialization of other family members -2 the overload model -- not enough support from the state -- become overloaded by responsibilities that are supposed to be managed by the state -- the privatization of public services directly and negatively affects the family -- resources become limited because the state is not intervening where they are supposed to -3 the cultural tension model -- relates to the culture of communalism vs individualism- we are living in a society that is encouraging and celebrating individualism (because capitalism) -community and individual culture are hard to bring together -4 the conflict of interest model- regarding the equality and equilibrium within the family unit- while we try to encourage gender equality, structural inequality affects women's access to resources- so women become responsible for the majority of the second shift because of the sexism within society- the sexism in society places the burden of labour on those who identify more strongly with the feminine side -5 the anomie model- it is hard to have the security to know where you are going to get the resources that are supposed to be available to you, and therefore the individual is left to try to take care of all of those little details (where to send kids to school, how to spend free time, what is expected of you, how to get a job, etc), individuals have to decide how to carry on with role distribution, labour division, power distribution -becomes the families responsibility to define what is expected (straining) **Family and Gender inequality** **3 models of power distribution** -1 Head-compliment model -very traditional response to couples relationship -mother there to support father who is head of household -"just you wait until your father gets home!" -2 Junior partner/Senior partner -both partners contribute, but junior partner has more instability -ex: women deciding to be stay-at-home moms because the woman's work is not as stable and successful -3 Equal partners -equal distribution of power -true partnership -becoming more popular **Social Inequality** **Social stratification:** a society's hierarchical ranking of people into social classes **Social class:** a group of individuals sharing a position in a social hierarchy, based on both birth and achievement **Social status:** an individual's position within the class structure **Equality of condition:** a situation in which everyone in a society has a similar level of wealth, status, and power **Meritocracy:** an ideal system in which personal effort -- or merit- determines social standing -a system of rewards based on personal attributes and demonstrated abilities -reinforces the idea that people achieve what they deserve **Social inequality:** unequal distribution of socially valued resources based on various attributes -exists when certain attributes affect a person's access to socially valued resources (e.g., money, status, power, healthcare, education, political representation, etc.) **Classism:** an ideology that suggests that people's relative worth in society is at least partly determined by their social and economic status -legitimizes economic inequality and includes the ideology of competitive individualism -grounded in the idea that everyone in society starts out with the same chances of success **Blaming the victim:** holding individuals responsible for the undesirable conditions of their lives **Culture of poverty:** a fatalistic belief system held by the poor as an adaptation to systemic discrimination -the belief that the poor have different subcultural value systems than the larger American society and that these systems limit their ability and desire to escape their poverty **Deferred gratification:** the ability to forgo immediate pleasures in the interest of achieving greater rewards in the future **Blaming the system:** holding the system accountable for systematic discrimination existing within the social system **Deindustrialization:** the transformation of an economy from one based on manufacturing to one based on services -one structural variable that influences unemployment, and by extension poverty levels, is the loss of well-paying factory jobs as a result of deindustrialization- the poor lack the skills needed to compete for the new, more highly skilled jobs that replace industrial jobs **Achieved status:** a status received through individual effort or merits (e.g., occupation, educational level, moral character, etc.) **Ascribed status:** a status received by virtue of being born into a category or group (e.g., hereditary position, gender, race, etc.) **Closed system:** a social system in which status is based on attributes ascribed at birth **Open system:** a social system in which status is based on achieved attributes **Caste system:** a system in which people are born into a social standing that they will retain their entire lives -an ascribed system of hereditary class designation -the Dalits of India and the Burakumin of Japan are the lowest in those caste systems **Reincarnation:** the belief, associated with Eastern religions, that one's essence does not die and instead is reborn in another form (the only way Indian men can change their caste) **Class system:** a system that is based on both social factors and individual achievement **Social Mobility:** the ability to change positions within a social stratification system (mobility between social classes)- very few people are able to move out of the social class into which they were born -1 Upward mobility: an increase- or upward shift- in social class -2 Downward mobility: a lowering of one's social class -3 Intergenerational mobility: a difference in social class between different generations of a family (can be up or down) -4 Structural mobility: when societal changes enable a whole group of people to move up or down the social ladder -ex: a town is able to open a factory, increase in jobs means an increase in wealth and stability for a large group of people -5 Intragenerational mobility: status movement throughout one's lifetime (born poor, but able to get a scholarship and end up a successful lawyer) **Stratification's social factors** **-wealth:** the value of money and assets a person has from, for example, inheritance or property -net accumulated assets, including homes, land, and stocks **-income:** the money a person earns from work or investments -money received annually from all sources **-power:** how many people a person must take orders from vs how many people a person can give orders to **-status:** the degree of honour or prestige one has in the eyes of other, such as occupational prestige **Socio-economic status:** a group's social position in a hierarchy based on income, education, and occupation **Class structure:** a society's economic hierarchy that categorizes groups of people based on their socio-economic status **Intergenerational income elasticity (IGE):** a comparison between a father's and a son's earnings -how social mobility is typically measured -Canada's 3 social classes are the **owning class, middle class,** and **traditional working class** **Owner class** **-1 old money** **-**inherited wealth -fixed status **-2 new money** -maintained relationship with middle class -flashy and conspicuous consumption **Middle Class** **-1 higher (upper) middle class** -bachelor's degree and grad school -profession- occupations with highly specialized skills and intellectual expertise **-2 lower middle class** -bachelor's degree, college degree, trade school -white collar, paraprofessional occupation **Traditional working class** **-1 working class** -high skilled, less educated, more trades -sometimes makes more money than lower middle class, but has less status -majority of blue collar jobs considered working class **-2 working poor** -unskilled labourers -limited chance for upward mobility -can work full time job and still fall close to poverty line **-living wage vs minimum wage-** difference between living wage and minimum wage puts the working poor in a very precarious situation **-living wage:** the minimum income a family needs to meet their needs and still be functioning members of society (\$26.5/hr in Ontario) -at least 1 vacation a year, 1 leisure activity per week **-minimum wage:** the lowest wage permitted by the government (\$17.25/hr in Ontario) **-3 the underclass** **-**unemployed or underemployed -welfare dependent -houselessness = absolute poverty -do not have the resources to be underemployed or welfare dependent -can be chronic, episodic, transitional, hidden **Standard of living:** the level of wealth available to acquire material goods and comforts to maintain a particular socioeconomic lifestyle -rising standard of living -- what it takes to not live in absolute poverty **Absolute poverty:** a severe deprivation of basic human needs, including food, safe drinking water, sanitation facilities, health, shelter, education, and information **Relative poverty:** living without the minimum amount of income or resources needed to be able to participate in the ordinary living patterns, customs, and activities of a society **Social factors influencing inequality in Canada** **-colonization**- ex: treatment of Indigenous peoples -**geographic location**- some places (ex: Ontario) have access to more resources (ex: healthcare, food, housing, education, etc.) than others (ex. Manitoba, Northern Ontario) -**gender and family structure** **-visible minority status** **-education**- can change social status through education -- not everyone can get loans (need address, documents, etc.) -- not everyone can pay back loans -**disability**- one of the most important factors -- physical, mental, any kind of neurodiversity -- access to occupation becomes difficult for individuals with disability -- people often hide their disability in order to procure employment -- stigma follows invisible or visible disability **Theoretical Perspectives** **Functionalism** **Davis-Moore thesis:** the theory that social stratification is functional for society because it ensures that key social positions are held by the most capable people -instills in certain people the desire to fill certain social positions, and instills in those people the desire to complete their duties and responsibilities -argues that some social stratification is a social necessity -makes people work harder -encourages people to participate in jobs with better prospects -makes reward more desirable -unequal values of social roles- financial incentive for more skilled works **-criticisms** **-**one of the rewards that the social elite receive is the ability to help their children assume the same social benefits they have (even though there is no guarantee that these children are as capable or skilled as their parents) -even in modern, open, class-based societies, there is substantial discrimination in terms of who is eligible to assume elite positions (Canada still discriminates on the basis of gender and minority status) -- limits access to elite positions even for highly skilled and talented people -the capitalist economy determines the salary of a given occupation not on the basis of the work's value but, rather, through market forces (teachers are important, but paid much less than some professional athletes) -social inequality is extreme **-Melvin Tumin-** social stratification and social inequality -debunks the idea -lack of access to social resources and opportunities separates the gap between rich and poor **Conflict Theory- Marx and Weber** **-Marx:** believed that class struggle was the most important inspiration behind historical transformation in societies **-Max Weber:** agreed with Marx, *but* it's not just class and economic divide, have to look at status **-status:** the degree of honour or prestige one has in the eyes of other, such as occupational prestige (includes lifestyle, world view, standard of living etc.) -**status group:** a group of people who share similar social status, lifestyles, world views, occupations, and standard of living -**Party:** parties are organizations that attempt to achieve certain goals in a planned and logical manner -- are associations of people that have the power to influence social action and change (ex: nongovernmental organizations (NGO's) like the Canadian Red Cross or Mothers Against Drunk Driving)- organizations that aim to achieve goals systematically -**Power:** the ability to make others do something they would not otherwise do (ones social authority) -**Status inconsistency:** occurs when an individual occupies several differently ranked statuses at the same time (ex: a drug dealer may have a great deal of money and live in a big house but have little social prestige) **-Feminist theory:** how the dominant (that is, male) perspective permeates our society's evaluation of what is deemed valuable and important -recognizing the working lives of women within capitalism (effects of capitalism on women's lives) -investigating the role of class position in determining one's view of the world (role of social class in understanding one's surroundings) -social classes as one of the primary locations for struggle within society, and believe that this is where most people form important memories and life experiences that help to define who they are -- the production of social reality (one's individual perspective of the world) is influenced by one's class -ex: women's class position (and their resulting life experiences) leads low-income women to prefer more collective, egalitarian, and participatory approaches to life than women from higher classes, who tend to favour more hierarchical, bureaucratic organizations that support individual effort to achieve goals) -Pat and Hugh Armstrong: **Double Shift (double ghetto)** **-Symbolic Interactionism:** looking at how people interpret and construct their responses to class inequality- how class affects patterns of everyday social life -**status symbols:** material indicators that demonstrate a person's social and economic position -**conspicuous consumption:** the purchase of expensive goods simply because they are valuable, not because there is any innate satisfaction in them- buying and using products to make a statement about social standing -satisfaction is not in the products functionality, but rather in the status it implies -**conspicuous leisure:** the demonstration of one's high social status through forms of leisure (ex: taking long vacations in exotic locales) -**conspicuous waste:** the disposal of valuable goods to demonstrate wealth (ex: giving a \$100 tip to a valet for parking your car) **Global Stratification:** a comparison of the wealth, economic stability, status, and power of countries as a whole **Neoliberalism:** a set of policies in which the state reduces its role in providing public services, regulating industry, redistributing wealth, and protecting the commons while advocating using free market mechanisms to regulate society **Empire:** a new supra-national global form of sovereignty whose territory is the entire globe **Crime and Deviance** **Deviance:** actions or behaviours that violates social norms, which may be against the law or not -not all deviant acts are crimes -things once considered deviant can come to be accepted by society (perceptions of weed after legalization), and things that were accepted can come to be considered deviant (smoking indoors in public buildings used to be ok, now isn't) -ex: it's not a crime to wear clown makeup to your office job when it isn't Halloween, but it is definitely outside of normal behaviour. **Crime:** behaviours or actions that requires social control and social intervention, codified in law -most, but not all, crimes are understood to be deviant **Criminology:** the study of crime causation, crime prevention, and the punishment and rehabilitation of offenders **Social Norms:** shared and accepted standards and social expectations **Howard Becker:** deviant behaviour is not inherently good or bad, it's how we perceive that behaviour that it becomes good or bad (symbolic interactionist movement) -**moral entrepreneur:** an individual or group who influences or changes the creation or enforcement of a society's moral codes- sometimes a moral entrepreneur will begin to see something as deviant, and well start to portray that deviant behaviour as needed legal intervention -ex: anti-trans crusaders, moral entrepreneurs caused the prohibition of alcohol -very important role, aim to set social control, try to regulate and enforce norms of the society **Social control:** the regulation and enforcement of norms -Can be **formal** (things like laws) or **informal** (occurs through our social interactions and includes the ways we attempt to both communicate and enforce standards of appropriate behaviour- how we respond to behaviours can make people stop and question whether their behaviour is social appropriate or not (ex: friend saying "you did what?!") -**four styles of social control** **-sanctions:** the means of enforcing rules through positive (you do something, you follow the norm, and you will be rewarded \[study and do well on your exam\]) and negative means (don't study and fail)- one of the best ways to set control on an individuals behaviour and normalize behaviour -**formal sanctions:** sanctions that are officially recognized and enforced (ex: you don't do well in your class and so you fail that class, or you hit someone and you're imprisoned) -**informal sanctions:** sanctions that occur in face-to-face interactions (ex: teacher letting you know that if you don't shape up you will fail, or teacher encouraging a student to keep doing well) **Donald Black's four types of social control** **-1 penal social control**- limiting an individual's access to certain social behaviours (ex: putting someone in prison so that they can't keep committing crimes) **-2 compensatory social control-** requesting financial compensation from the perpetrator to the victim (ex: ticketing) **-3 therapeutic social control-** therapy to become an active member of society, make you normal again (ex: AA, NA) **-4 conciliatory social control-** try to reconcile the victim and the perpetrator -most successful approach in not only creating control but addressing problems -involves a lot of communication and is very expensive and time consuming **Michel Foucault:** discussion of social control and governance as it relates to deviance -governance introduced through 19^th^ century (1800's) -introduction of the modern institutions for control (happened during rise of capitalism)- prisons, public school, army, asylum, hospital, and factory, which are manageable through **disciplinary social control** **-disciplinary social control (modern form of government):** detailed continuous training, control, and observation of individuals to improve their capabilities (I will watch you and as a result you will work better and harder) -we consent to being controlled -- asserts control in a way that we become docile bodies (we don't question all the surveillance cameras, or our toxic work environments) **-Panopticon:** Jeremy Bentham's "seeing machine" that became the model for the ideal prison -**surveillance:** various means used to make the lives and activities of individuals visible to authorities -**normalization:** the process by which norms are used to differentiate, rank, and correct individual behaviour -**normalizing society:** a society that uses continual observation, disciple, and correction of its subjects to exercise social control **Rational Choice Theory: Cesare Beccaria and Jeremy Bentham** -four basic beliefs of rational choice theory -1 crime is a rational choice because people enjoy free will- they are able to choose to engage in criminal acts or in lawful acts -crime is a rational action -2 criminal solutions requiring less work yet yielding greater payoffs are understood as being more attractive than lawful solutions -criminal sets less work for greater reward -3 a fear of punishment can control a person\'s choices -4 when criminality is met with measured severity, certainty of punishment, and swiftness of justice, a society enhances its ability to control crime and criminal behaviour -when criminality matches its punishment, society will improve its ability to control criminal behaviours **Biological Perspectives** **-Biological determinism:** the hypothesis that biological factors completely determine a person's behaviour (if you are a criminal, you were born bad) -**Cesare Lombroso** (was very racist, racist approach to explain criminality) **-**people are born criminals, but there is no such thing as a female criminal -believed that skull measurement could indicate the likelihood of criminal behaviour -**James Fallon** **-**believed one of the flaws of Lombroso's technique was that he lacked our technological advancement (brain scans) -environmental factors (access to resources) play a bigger role than one's brain in determining criminality **Sociological Perspectives on Crime and Deviance** **-Functionalist Theory:** stress the ways in which the many groups in society coexist- although there are bound to be tensions, functionalists argue that the balancing of these tensions produces society- when a particular group or individual threatens this balance, efforts are made to ensure that everything returns to a state of homeostasis (balance, or status quo)- deviant behaviour occurs in a state of anomie, or normlessness, when norms are confused, unclear, or absent **-Robert Merton:** there are various responses based on the relationship between and access to cultural goal and institutionalized means **-strain theory:** the assertion that people experience strain when culturally defined goals cannot be met through socially approved means -**conformity:** has both the cultural goals and institutional means -**innovation:** has the cultural goal, but lacks the institutional means (ex: Walter White, breaking bad)- **ritualism:** don't have the cultural goals, but you do have the institutional means (burned out teacher, someone just going about the motions) -- **retreatism:** you have neither the cultural goals or the institutional means (ex: someone houseless) -**rebellion:** you reject both the cultural goals and the institutional means (various social movements, civil rights movement, queer rights movement, etc) -argues that most people within the same society share similar goals and values, and that when legitimate avenues to achieving those goals are not readily accessible, some will resort to deviant methods (e.g., theft, drug trafficking) to achieve them -- alternatively, some people will reject socially accepted goals altogether and will instead substitute them with more deviant or criminal goals -anomic conditions are produced through a relationship between two cultural elements, when culturally defined goals cannot be met through socially approved means, anomic conditions result -those of low socio-economic status may feel strain since legitimate avenues for success (means to acquire wealth and power) are less open for them than they may be to more affluent persons -remains influential because he provides an explanation for the continued existence of high-crime areas as well as the prevalence of criminal behaviour among the lower class **-illegitimate opportunity theory (Richard Cloward and Lloyd Ohlin):** the assertion that individuals commit crime as a result of deviant learning environments -you can't just become a rebellious person, you have to be raised in an environment that promotes rebellion -3 types of youth gangs -1 criminal- categorized as existing in stable but poor areas within which youth are able to establish close connections with adult offenders, thus creating an environment in which crime can be successfully committed -2 conflict- characterized by neighbourhoods that are much less stable than the ones associated with criminal gangs- often have a high rate of temporary residents, are in physical disrepair, and are incapable of providing either legitimate or illegitimate opportunities to their youth- crime in these neighbourhoods is without organization and operates on an individual and petty level -3 retreatist- ones that have been unable to achieve success through socially approved means and are also not inclined to gain success through illegal means- member often sell drugs or commit petty crimes to have enough money to supply themselves with drugs and alcohol -**Hirschi- Control theory:** argues that crime is a response to environmental factors, and directly related to the strength or weakness of an individuals social bonds, therefore not everyone has the opportunity to be a criminal (closely related to understanding the status quo) -if you have strong bonds of attachment (friends, family, community), commitment (future, career, success, personal goals), belief (honesty, morality, fairness, patriotism, responsibility), and involvement (school activities, sports teams, community organizations, religious groups, social clubs), you are not going to participate in criminal behaviours- if you have weak bonds of these four, it is more likely that you are going to participate in criminal activities -easy to poke hole, as sometimes people have all of these strong bonds and still commit criminal behaviour, and sometimes people have weak or broken bonds and they still don't commit criminal behaviour **Conflict Theory:** view crime as a product of class struggle -- goal is to situate and explain crime within economic and social contexts -how bias plays out in the criminal justice system -crime as a testament to social inequality -**criminogenic environment:** an environment that, as a result of laws that privilege certain groups, produces crime or criminality -**crimes of accommodation:** crimes committed as ways in which individuals cope with conditions of oppression and inequality -way of standing up against the power elite -if you are robbing the bank, you are just trying to get back what is rightfully yours -**power elite (C. Wright Mills):** a small group of wealthy and influential people at the top of society who hold the power and resources -continuously create a gap between those who have access to the resources and those who have limited access -laws are introduced and criminal behaviours are defined as a way to maintain the location of the power elite -laws are to protect the power elite, not the masses and individuals -Crime and social class -**street crime:** crime committed by average people against other people or organisations, usually in public spaces -usually treated much harsher, with violence even -**white-collar crime:** crimes committed by high status or privileged members of society -criminal activities in which the victims are usually much larger, but they are treated with less severity **Symbolic Interactionism:** argue that criminal behaviour is learned in the same way as any other type of behaviour: through social interactions with others -- crime is an observable behaviour -**Differential association theory (Edwin Sutherland):** criminal behaviour occurs when our association with definitions favourable to crime outweighs definitions favourable to law-abiding behaviour -**Labelling Theory (Howard Becker):** the assertion that once labelled as deviant, people come to accept the label as part of their identity -- the ascribing of a deviant behaviour to another person by a member of so

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