Sociology

• Sociology: Study of human interactions of social environment including their social behaviors
• What is the difference between Macro and Micro Sociology?


  Macro- Large social institutions and entire society

  Micro- Roles of small groups or individual have in society
• Positivism: The strict application of scientific method to obtain information to understand society.
• Structural functionalism: Society is stable when social institutions function in a way that meets the needs of its citizens

  Emile Durkheim: He thought that although suicide is a personal decisions, its causes are rotted in society
• Conflict Theory: Power imbalances between groups. Those with power seek to keep it - political, economic, gender, or race issue

  Karl Marx: The power imbalance between the wealthy and poor
• Feminism: Social equality for all sexes (more so women)- Men status are ties to economic while women status are based on their sexual connection to men

  Dorothy Smith: Women have been marginalized in a male dominated society
• Symbolic Interactionalism: Social values are formed by an individuals interactions and interpretation - NOT based on social systems but MICRO sociology

  Charles Cooley: LOOKING GLASS SELF- An individuals sense of self is mirrored and reflected by others (Relations to others)
• Socialization: Process were you learn particular ways of a group

  • Must occur through interactions
  • Most learned through ages 1-10
• Goals of socialization

  1. Ensure existence on society
  2. Ensure preservation and society stability
  3. Help society to improve
  4. To pass values and norms
• Agents of socialization:

  Primary: The family basic social skills of language, manners, behavior

  Secondary: Friends, School, Work, Religion
• Anticipatory Socialization: Preparing appropriate behavior ahead of new situations
• Resocialization: The process of returning a person to society after being removed from it.
• What is a social group?


  Two of more people who chares these for characteristics...

  1. Interact regularly
  2. Have a shared identity/goal
  3. Have social structure informal or formal
  4. Have certain values, behaviors and goals

  Ex. Family, Workplace, School
• Aggregates: Group of people who happen to be at the same place at the same time

  ex. People at bus station, shoppers at mall
• Social Category: Group of people who have similar appearance or situations (No regular interaction or sense of identity with each other)

  Ex. Homeless people, Tourists
• What is a role: The expected behavior of an individual in a social institution
• What is a norm: Rules the indicate how people should act and what they should do

  Mores: Highly regarded norms which are often never broken (or made laws)

  Folkways: Everyday interactions with people concerning proper manners (Holding doors, saying thank you, tipping)
• What is a sanction? Formal or informal penalty or reward to ensure conformity to norms Formal Sanctions: Public displays of punishments or rewards (Scholarships, Arrests, Expulsions)
• Social Institution: Social framework which functions to meet the needs of its members
• Family Institution: Responsible for taking care of children and members emotionally- Reproduction, Primary socialization
• Economic institutions: Responsible for regulates the distribution of goods and services- teaches values of money and hard work
• Governmental institutions: Responsible for instilling pride for their nation amoung citizens- providing welfare- enforce the laws
• Educational institutions: Prepares students for workforce- passes on skills, values, and knowledge
• Religious institutions: Responsible for satisfying spiritual needs -providing guidelines and purpose to life
• Deviance: A violation of the norms and values of a group or society. Ex. Stalking, murder, barking at people, holding a strangers hand. talking loud in a theatre
• Functionalist on deviance: Robert Merton's stated that deviance is a result of opportunities for people to achieve goals not being present.

  Ex. Poor people can't easily gain money thus they steal
• Conflict Theory on Deviance: Deviance likely to occur when an individual feels alienated.

  Alienation: Feeling of isolation (like an outsider) within society
• Alienation may cause deviance to...

  • Gain attention
  • Feel apart of a group
  • Less feeling toward conforming to norms and sanctions
  • Unequal social rewards or privileges
• Stereotyping: Using exaggerated and generalized judgments on a group of people

  • Learned from parents or peers
  • Causes the stereotypes group to feel estranged
  • The creation of false facts leading to mistreatment
  • Lead to prejudice
• Prejudice: Opinion or attitude that is based on preconceived ideas or stereotypes.
• Prejudice Theories (Where prejudice is gained/comes from):

  • Learned: From parents, peers etc.
  • Competition: When one feels threatened, they deny others rights
  • Frustration-Aggression: Displacing frustrations on another groups whom they deem scapegoats (people blamed)
  • Ignorance: Lack of experience with a group
• Discrimination: One acting out their prejudice. Treating those unfairly based on certain characteristics.

  
  

  Ex. Bullying, Injustice against black people, Indian Act
• Racism: Discrimination against race

  Ableism: Discrimination against certain disabilities

  Sexism: Discriminations against gender

  Ageism: Discrimination against age

  Classism: Discrimination against social class, economic background
• Bullying: The act of putting someone down and making them feel bad
• Upstander: One who does the right things in the face of a conflict; Takes action and tries to resolve the issue
• Bystander: Those who stay back and do not intervene to help a conflict
• Practical strategies to be an upstander:

  • Do something: Just act and take action
  • Distract: Create a diversion to separate those involved in a situation
  • Delegate: Go outside your comfort zone to help or go out your way to find assistance
• Benefits of online Dating:

  • More Variety of people
  • Can search for people with your desired interests
  • Easy access (24/7)
  • Meet people quickly
• Cons of online Dating:

  • Use Gamification (making it a game) -addicting
  • Dehumanizes people ("Shopping" for partners)
  • Fake profiles
  • Takes away the excitement of meeting face to face
• Clique: Small, exclusive groups of people with common features or interests