sociology unit 1

• Nature


  Argues that behaviour is mainly determined by our genetics
• Nurture


  Argues that human behaviour is learned
• Nature arguments


  • Inherited behaviour from parents, similar to physical attributes
  • Sexuality, intelligence, and maternal instinct
  • Studies on identical twins provide evidence
• Nurture arguments


  • Individuals are socialised in the culture of family and society
  • Intelligence and maternal instinct are a result of nurture
  • Studies on feral children provide evidence
• Society


  A group of individuals involved in constant social interaction or a large social group living in an ordered community, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations
• Social order


  Sociologists wanted to understand how society holds itself together; they were interested in how individuals with personal needs cooperate to create/achieve a society
• Social values


  Basic beliefs we share to work together; standards of social behaviour and importance of social control
• Socialisation


  Learning the rules of our culture, from birth. A continuous process throughout our lives, new rules/behaving
• Social structure


  Institutions helping people live together; families or religions
• Social actions


  Behaviours with motive; anything done has reason/thought
• Social control


  Written and unwritten rules that we follow for a smooth society
• Culture


  Set of ideas, beliefs and expected behaviour in a social group
• Social identity


  We learn who we are, behaviour and self-image from people around us
• Social power


  Some people in society have more ability than others to influence how people think and act
• Social differentiation


  When whole social groups are treated differently based on identity. May have less/more influence on society
• Social stratification


  Extreme differentiation; valuing some social groups over others. Values groups = "top of society", others are "less"
• Consensus


  Some sociologists (functionalists) think that society holds due to agreement on rules and organisation
• Conflict


  Other sociologists (Marxists and Feminists) claim society is highly differentiated, and that there is competition with others for social power, due to set up rules
• Social change

  Societies change over time. Due to different reasons is an important part of work for sociologists. Many view social change as positive or a normal condition
• Social policy


  People often wish to control social change, to improve society. Basis of beliefs about good society. Therefore, values influence thinking. Political parties with power have guidelines/principles they apply to changes made
• Culture


  A term to describe the way of life of a group of people – how they are expected to behave and believe. It is a social construction, any idea that is created and given a special meaning by people (not physical, mental)
• Types of culture


  • Material culture - Physical things such as clothing, houses, cars and food
  • Non-material - Ideas that people share such as rules, traditions, languages, and history
• Collectivist culture


  Emphasises belonging to the group as more important than personal freedom
• Individualistic culture


  Emphasises individual freedom and personal gain
• Collectivist culture


  • China
• Individualistic culture


  • USA
• Social construction


  Ideas that are created and given special meaning; within the mind
• Social control


  Rules are created and followed by people who belong to that culture. Those who don't follow cannot be seen as full members of their culture. They experience punishment, this is known as "sanction"
• Deviant


  A person who breaks the rules of their culture
• Ways we punish deviant people

  • Prison
  • Exclusion
  • Special care
  • Death penalty
  • Fines
  • Physical punishment
  • Isolation
• Forms of control


  • Formal control - institutions in society force people to behave
  • Informal control - Internalisation of moral codes
• Cultural diversity


  A term to describe different behaviour between cultures, such as religious beliefs, greetings, and clothing/jewellery
• Socialisation


  The process of learning how to behave in a way that's appropriate and acceptable to your culture. It is a continuous process
• Stages of socialisation (Talcott Parsons)


  • Primary - e.g. family
  • Secondary - e.g. school, media, peer groups
  • Tertiary - adult life, colleagues, workplace
• Formal socialisation


  Deliberate process, consciously manipulated to ensure that they follow certain rules
• Informal socialisation


  People learn to fit into their culture by watching and learning from others
• Theorists' attitudes towards socialisation

  • Functionalism - Social structure made up of institutions which shape individual behaviour
  • Marxism - Individuals learn capitalist ideology through socialisation
  • Feminism - Children are socialised in accordance with traditional beliefs about gender and gender roles
  • Postmodernism - Every individual constructs their own identities for themselves
  • New Right - Individuals with poor socialisation result in deviance and crime
  • Interactionism - Active process between children and adults or other children
• Family socialisation


  A primary agent, it is a main source of socialisation within society
• Education socialisation

  A secondary agent, it builds socialisation in earlier years, providing academic knowledge to understand the world and develop social skills
• Religious socialisation


  A secondary agent, it introduces children to the spiritual world, and impacts values/behaviour