Sociology Midterm Review Questions Part 1 1 Society is a group of people who shape their lives in aggregated and patterned ways that distinguish their group from other groups It is the study of people doing things together Sociologists develop a sociological perspective taking a sociological approach and looking at the word in a unique way There is no such thing as society There are individual men and women and there are families Margaret Thatcher 2 Sociologists study the collective to better understand the individual They study the using practical and scientific knowledge 3 Macro sociology looks at the large scale social structure in order to determine how it affects the lives of groups and individuals Micro sociology concentrates on the interactions between individual and ways in which those interactions construct the larger patterns processes and institutions of society The micro perspective assumes that society s larger structures are shaped through individual interactions while the macro perspective assumes that society s larger structures shape those individual actions 4 C Wright Mills stated that social imagination was the quality of the mind that allows us to understand the relationship between our individual circumstances and larger social forces It is imperative to understand the intersection between history and biography Private vs personal matters Help us appreciate alternative viewpoints and discover radically different ways of experiencing life 5 It is often difficult for most of us to think sociologically in our daily lives because we need to abandon reevaluate our opinions about our world 6 4 Major Sociological Schools of Thought ALL PREVENT INDIVIDUALISM Structural Functionalism Emily Durkheim s culture based o Largest theory o Society should be stable and have structure o Each structure should function in ways that contribute to the continued stability or equilibrium of the whole o Egoism narcissistic people too caught up with themselves o Anomie sense of confusion on how to behave o Personal troubles effect integration and regulations of society Conflict Theory Karl Marx s conflict based o Emphasis on social inequality class struggle o Idea that conflict between social groups is central to the workings of society and serves as the engine of social change o Argued that the most important factor in social life was a persons relationship to the means of production o Capitalism emerging economic system based on the private for profit operation of industry o Socialism each person contributed o and benefited from the public good o Takes a materialistic view of society o Personal troubles make us feel disconnected from society Weberian Theory Max Weber s power based o Individuals behavior was driven by bureaucracies goals Treated like objects not humans o Trap individuals in an iron cage o Individuality and creativity is suppressed o Modern society is rationalized use of ordered rules without the consideration of the individual Symbolic Interactionism George Mead s interaction based o Interaction is central to society meanings are not inherent but created through interaction o Face to face interaction provide building blocks to society o Micro level 7 August Comte developed positivism which seeks to identify laws that describe a behavior of a particular society Sense perceptions are the only valid source of knowledge Observation experimentation and comparison lead to the formation of sociology We look at different concepts and variables in soc and study the relationship b w the two 8 Conclusions on personal troubles Marx Not good for people to suffer from egoism and anomie Durkheim People feel disconnected not able to fulfill our individualism Says that social inequality racism poverty must serve a function in society Weber People become dehumanized helping research methods by developing verstehen empathetic understanding 9 The key component to Karl Marx s theory begins with capitalism The forces of capitalism were creating distinct social and economic classes exacerbating the rich and the poor Class struggle between those who owned the means of Part 2 production anything that could create business Proletariats were unable to benefit directly from the fruits of their labor led to alienation Marx believed that one day the proletariats would revolt against the powerful bourgeoisie He envisioned socialism in its place Proposed that conflict and tension are basic facts of life and that the transformation of society over time is inevitable Proposed a dialectic model where two extreme positions would eventually meet middle ground 10 Durkheim believed that even the most individualistic actions had sociological explanations Society is an ordered system made up of structures Furthermore each structure has a function that contributes to the stability of the society 1 Marx made economics the root of the problem to his conflict theory Marx s focus on economic exploitation and transformation has helped inspire theorists interested in power and inequality Ex Critical theory feminist theory queer theory Durkheim believed even the most individualistic actions had sociological explanations and set out to establish a scientific methodology for studying these actions His theory led to the idea that a functional society provides opportunity for success there also must be social cohesion 2 A subculture is a group within society that is differentiated by its distinctive values norms and lifestyles It exists harmoniously within the larger mainstream culture Ex Firefighters Korean Americans 3 Heavy metal creates an entirely new culture The activities in the metal subculture include the ritual of attending concerts and buying albums Concerts affirm the solidarity of the subculture as it is one of the ritual activities by which fans celebrate their music Metal magazines help the members of the subculture to connect find information and evaluations of bands and albums and express their solidarity The long hair leather jackets and band patches of heavy metal fashion help to encourage a sense of identification within the subculture 4 Symbolic Interaction Paradigm learn from interpretations of situations that contract people Charles Cooley Looking Glass Self sense of self develops through our perception of others evaluations and approval of us 1 How do I want to appear 2 How do I think I look to others Room for distortion 3 How do I feel about that George Herbert Mead George Herbert Mead