key words

• achieved status

  a position you are in society due to your hard work - earned your position
• ascribed status

  a position you are born into e.g. royal family
• agencies of socialisation


  different institutions/organisations which teach you how to behave in society
• agencies of social control

  institutions which manage people's behaviour through punishments and rewards - some are informal and formal
• breadwinner


  in the traditional family the man should go to work and earn the money
• culture

  a group of people who share the same values and beliefs e.g. language,food
• culture relativity 


  the way cultures do things differently e.g. the way they greet people,
• cultural universals

  the way cultures do hings the same way e.g. show respect to elders
• disiplinarian

  the father should play this role. he should reward and punish children
• dominant culture 


  a way of life that most people in society follow
• femenism 


  a group of sociologist who fight for equality between men and women
• radical femenists

  believe that men support women's oppression to maintain control. believe sexism is so deeply rooted that we should eliminate the concept of gender
• liberal femenists 


  focus on equal rights of men and women especially in regards to the workplace, law and society
• marxist femeists

  believe that women who are also poor have more barriers to deal with in order to thrive
• formal social control


  agents who manage people behaviour in a severe manner e.g. the police
• gender role


  the part you play as a male or female
• gender discrimination 


  being treated differently due to being male or female
• gender socialisation


  learning how to behave as a male or female
• glass ceiling 


  the idea that women only get far in thier career as society is patriarchal. they want men to be in power
• identity

  what makes you who you are e.g. your ethnicity
• informal social control

  agencies manage your behaviour in a more lenient manner e.g. family,education
• moral

  knowing the difference between right and wrong
• nature/nurture theory

  • the argument whether you are born a certain way or you are brought up a certain way.
  • those who believe in nature theory are biologists who believe we behave the way we do because of our genes/we are born that way.
  • those who believe in the nurture theory are sociologists and believe we behave the way we do because of our upbringing and environment
• norm/social behaviour

  • what is acceptable in society
  • unwritten rules of society
• nurturer


  this is a female's role to look after the child
• role conflict

  when you have 2 positions in society which class occasionally .e.g. if you are a mother and teacher you may have parents evening but also have to collect your child
• primary socialisation

  the first stage of learning how to be part of society. this happens between 0-5. the main agency is parents. you learn how to walk,talk, get potty trained
• secondary socialisation

  the second stage of learning how to part of society. this happens between 6-15. some of the agencies are media,education and peers. you learn how to talk to people your own age and different ages.
• social mobility

  being able to move up and down your social class
• status

  your position in society
• stereotype

  a general idea about a group of people
• subculture

  a group of people who decide to have different lifestyle to the majority of society e.g. hippies, goths
• values

  beliefs that are seen to be important e.g. honesty