Exam 1 Study Guide Lectures 1 14 SOC 225 1st Edition Introduction January 29 Sociology systematic study of social behavior and human groups looks at social context patterns and effects on individual behavior promotes tolerance and understanding Socialization process by which we learn from others acquiring ideas and ways to think about the world including racism and biases Commonsense knowledge anecdotal evidence vs empirical knowledge anecdotal evidence is based on personal observation empirical knowledge is based on study commonsense knowledge is limited bias and leads to a narrow understanding and is not always supported by empirical knowledge Sociological imagination the ability to see the relationship between individual experience and the larger society person experiences and history interest to create a unique perspective helps to remove ourselves from study Quantitative vs qualitative research quantitative deals with numbers to collect data while qualitative research deals more with categories quantitative research seeks to quantify statistical data and use it to make generalizations about a given population from a sample qualitative research seeks to understand reasons motivations or common thought patterns not used to make generalizations but perhaps used to gather a hypothesis to be tested by quantitative research Lecture Two February 3 Types of research survey research quantitative asking opinions from surveys can be biased if people are not honest or the sample taken does not accurately reflect the population secondary analysis of data looking at data that has already been collected by someone else to form conclusions field research qualitative includes observing and interacting with people in natural environments content analysis analyzing the material culture or artifacts of a given culture like film newspapers books music etc Racial group category of people that are considered superior or inferior to other groups based on subjectively selected physical appearances such as skin color hair texture eye shape etc Ethnic group category of people that are superior inferior to others based on culture or nationality characteristics Official racial and ethnic classification exists to rank people for political economic and social purposes and it has changed over time arbitrary socially constructed one drop rule any one drop of African blood means you are black pre Jim Crow eye ball test if you looked black to the ordinary person then you were Dominant group group that is advantaged and has superior resources and rights Subordinate group group that is disadvantaged due to their cultural or physical characteristics that are subjectively based placed in a lower status with less opportunity and rights Important Points from the Race The Power of an Illusion Part One Genetic material does not determine or indicate race meaning race is not biologically constructed There is likely more genetic variation between people of a single race or similar group than there is between two people of a different race Remember that scientists are not removed from social factors hence why race was studied as a biological matter in the past which contributed to racist attitudes Things that are mistakenly attributed to the biology of race like athletic ability can more accurately be attributed to social factors and skin color is better explained by geography as skin color is darker in climates that receive more sunlight Part Two The central focus of this part of the documentary was how the idea race was created Before slaves arrived in 1619 race was of little importance people were more likely to distinguish others by religion Jefferson set us on the path to turn to science for answers on race He believed Native Americans could be considered white if educated and assimilated into society as the Cherokees were Jefferson and others justified slavery and inequality by writing certain groups out of the human race while all men are created equal blacks were not considered men and therefore privilege is justified Part Three Minorities have historically been barred from services such as job insurance under FDR which wouldn t allow domestic or agricultural workers insurance and housing loans which are given at a disproportionately low rate for minorities Though a black president has been elected we are far from post racial and racism is still an issue We don t want to be a color blind society we want to be a color conscious society aware and appreciative of diversity Lecture 2 19 White Privilege Belonging to a privileged society does not guarantee anything other factors such as gender and socioeconomic status can put you at a disadvantage To have privilege at the expense of others can cause distress for both groups Two fundamental types of privilege unearned entitlements things that all should have but are restricted to certain groups conferred dominance one group is given privileged over another including the feeling of superiority The underlying notion of white privilege is white supremacy shown through slavery and Native American genocide We must address law and policy simply not being racist individuals is not enough with the system of oppression still in place Critical whiteness studies looks at what it means to be white not the first time scholars looked at this Lecture 2 23 Owning the Trouble Big picture patterns of oppression are rooted in systems that we all participate in and help make happen order to create change we must own the trouble What does it mean to own the trouble see how race affects us meaning the majority group so that we feel compelled to do something vested interest assuming you will derive gains from something so you commit to it Social psychological studies of race have focused on prejudice believing it is irrational and that it can be distressed BUT racism is very rational if you are benefiting from it and if you are benefiting you are invested in something even if you are not actively participating Path of least resistance actions and courses of actions that have the least amount of obstacles ex ignoring racist jokes paths of least resistance do not create change paths of greater resistance do Reasons some of us may not see privilege as a problem 1 we don t know it exists 2 dominant groups don t have to know which is a part of their privilege 3 we think that it is only a personal problem not an institutional one this is where we get the idea of a post racial society from 4 we