Soc201 Exam 1Dr. Ann Bell - [email protected] TA: Andrea Schloss - [email protected]/30Sociology- study of human society- a way of thinking about the world- link individual actions to social phenomena- explain human behavior with reference to social groups- ex - Why does one individual get accepted to UD over another? OR, why does an individual apply to UD compared to an individual who doesn’t? Why do men cross their legs a particular way and women a different way?Sociological Perspective- C Wright Mills wrote about the sociological perspective in The Sociological Imagination- understand the relationship between individuals and their society- defined sociological imagination as the ability to see societal patterns that influence an individual as well as groups of individualsSociological Imagination- the ability to connect the most basic intimate aspects of an individual's life toseemingly impersonal and remote historical forces- 3 research questionso social structure - What is the structure of this particular society as whole?o sociohistorical Context - Where does this society stand in human history?o diversity - What varieties of men and women now prevail in this society and period?Troubles vs Issues- Troubles - private matter among individuals, individual values are threatened, limited to the immediate surroundings & awareness of the individual, personal relationship, individual unemployment- Issues - public matter among society: social values are threatened, go beyondthe individual to issues that affect larger society, natural disaster, gay marriage, 15 mil unemployedSocial Institutions- a complex group of interdependent positions that together perform a social role and reproduce themselves over time- put simply: any social institution that works to shape the behavior of the groups or people within it- institutions are not monolithic, stable or uniform- they are “socially constructed” and thus fluid and ever-changing- ex: govt, family, education religion9/4History (European Antecedents)- Sociology is a product of rational sensibilities unleashed by Enlightenment- Sociology as social physicso Auguste Comte, 1798-1857o The Positive Philosophy (1830)- Sociology as Darwinism applied to social lifeo Herbert Spencer (1820-1908)o Progress: Its Law and Cause (1857)- Sociology began to emerge during the nineteenth century as a way of making sense of democratization and industrialization.o Karl Marx (1818-1883) - Communist Manifesto (1848)o Max Weber (1864-1920) - Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (1904-5)o Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) - Division of Labor in Society (1893)History of Sociology (American Exceptionalism)- Sociology took root more slowly in the U.S. because of ideas about American Exceptionalism- Ideology that the United States is somehow different than the rest of the world- Free from the bonds of history; free of religious conflict and class strife- Started to question when conflict arose in late 19th centuryDevelopment in US- Chicago Schoolo 1st school of sociology in the US, Founded in 1892, Used the city of Chicago as a social laboratory for case studies, Polish immigrants adjusting to normal life- Middletowno 2 observational studies of social life, 1929 & 1937, First use of surveys, Social stratification, Indiana town run by 1 wealthy family and noted other problems- Parsonso Postwar sociology, 1950s-1960s, Functionalism (like Durkheim), Society = “big machine”- Contemporary Sociologyo Diversity is keyo No dominant paradigmo Focus on empirical researchSociological Theories- Functionalism Theoryo Theory that various social institutions and processes exist to serve important functions to keep society runningo Foundational theory for US sociology in the 20th centuryo Durkheim & Parsonso Crime and inequality exist for a reason, maintain status quo and no change- Conflict Theoryo What about challenging the social system?o Conflict, not consensus, drives social changeo Marx- Feminist Theoryo Came out of women’s movement in the 1960s and 1970so Conglomeration of many theorieso Unified by a focus on women’s inequalityo Sex (biological) vs Gender (social)o PowerSymbolic Interactionism- Micro-level - symbols within interactions, how symbols create social world, stop signs, baby clothes- Herbert Blumer- Cycle of MeaningGoffman- organization of everyday behavior- act differently around different people, "social actors" try to alter impression- the "dramaturgical approach" to human interaction- Front stage/Back stageo Front - in front of an audience, positive, desired impressionso Back - can be their true selves, drop identities- social norms are the basis of society9/6Sociology and Its Cousins- Sociology focuses on making comparisons across cases to find patterns and create hypotheses about how societies work now or how they worked in the past- Sociology looks at how individuals interact with one another as well as at how groups, small and large, interact with one another- Distinctions are important, but a lot of overlap exists between the work done in different academic disciplineso History and anthropology – cultural anthropology in particular – tend to focus more on particular circumstances.o Psychology and biology examine things on a more micro level than sociology does, and economics is an entirely quantitative disciplineo Political science focuses on one aspect of social relations – powerDivisions within Sociology- Microsociology understands local interactional contexts, focusing on face-to-face encounters and gathering data through participant observations and in-depth interviews.- Macrosociology looks at social dynamics across whole societies or large partsof them and often relies on statistical analysis to do so.Culture- meaning and behavior that defines the way of life for a society- includes beliefs, values, knowledge, art, morals, laws, customs, habits, language, and dresso Material culture: consists of objects created in a given society: buildings, art, tools, toys, print, tangible objectso Nonmaterial culture: norms, laws, customs, ideas, beliefs of group of peopleElements of culture- Language: english, spanish, hieroglyphics- Norms: manners- Mores (formal norm): religious doctrines, formal law- Folkways informal norm): cultural forms of dress, food habits- Beliefs: belief in a higher being- Values: Liberty, freedomCultural diversity- 11% of people living in the United States are foreign- born- Immigrants from more than 100 countries