introduction to sociology chapter 1-5

A term that describes professionals who use sociological theories and methods outside of academic settings in order to produce social change.

In statistics, bias is a feature of the statistical technique or inputs, which causes the study results not to accurately reflect reality.

A formal organization that has defined terms of membership, written governance, and written communication, as well as a division of labor, responsibility, and accountability.

The relationship of cause and effect between variables.

An applied practice of sociology that focuses on health intervention, such as working with medical practitioners, community health services, social policy and public health campaigns.

The extent or degree of statistical association among two or more variables.

Research that describes a problem or situation.

A type of field research in which the researcher observes what is being studied.

W.E.B. DuBois' concept of a feeling of "twoness" where the experience of one's identity is fragmented into several contradictory facets, making it hard to develop a sense of self.

A process in society that disrupts the social system or reduces its stability.

A systematic study of people and cultures, where the researcher observes the people or society being studied from the point of view of the subject being studied.

Research that explains why a social phenomenon occurs.

A process in society that contributes to the social system and its stability.

The phenomenon that refers to a change in a subject's behavior in an experiment or study because they know they are being observed.

A tentative statement of the relationship between two or more concepts.

One of the most important rules that govern research on humans; it requires that participants in a study are aware of all of the potential risks, health, emotional, that could result from their participation.

The unconscious or unrecognized consequences of an action within the framework of a social group.

The stated, intended consequences of an institution, action, or social group.

Social bonds in small traditional societies which are based on common values.

Defines a trait or characteristic in terms of a process, test, or unit of measure that is needed to determine its existence, duration, and quantity. It makes a hypothesis about a characteristic testable.

Émile Durkheim's explanation for the way in modern societies rely on differentiation to form social bonds. Different parts of society function as a whole, much like an organism.

A type of field work in which the researcher observes and participates in the activity being studied.

The group (usually of people) about whom we want to be able to draw conclusions.

The application of the scientific approach to the social world in order to understand it.

A type of research focusing on observations or descriptions and using these to analyze underlying meanings, patterns, or themes of social relationships.

A type of research focusing on data that can be measured numerically (typically emphasizing complex statistical techniques.

Replacing traditional motives, values, and emotions for social action with rational, calculated ones, a replacement that leads to more efficient social institutions.

A subset of the population observed for the purposes of making inferences about the nature of the larger population of interest.

The name given to theories about society which claimed to apply concepts of natural selection and survival of the fittest to sociology.

External circumstances or events that have an effect on the way individual people behave, such as economy, religion, or government.

Any kind of communication between people that is understood to have meaning.

The term coined by C. Wright Mills to describe a way of understanding the world that involves thinking about things from different perspectives and putting personal circumstances into a wider context.

The academic study of social behavior using empirical investigation and analysis to draw conclusions about social order, disorder, and change.

Occurs when the differences between the groups being studied are the result of factors other than chance.

Objects, words, or actions that stand for something else.

A set of logically interrelated statements that attempts to describe, explain, and sometimes predict social events.

A factor that can vary or change from one case to another.

People and entities that influence an individual's development of self and provide social environments and contexts.

A language used by a subculture to distinguish themselves from the dominant culture; the jargon of a subculture.

The chronic absence of sexual attraction toward any sex or gender identity.

The orientation in which one has sexual attraction toward any sex or gender identity.

A culture or subculture with values and customs that are opposed to those accepted by most of the society.

The view that morality is culturally determined and consequently there is no objective moral rule or law that is universally correct.

Belief of a group or individual on which behavior and decisions are based.

Knowledge, language, values, norms, customs, and material objects that characterize a group and are passed from person to person from one generation to the next.

The transfer of cultural ideas from one national or ethnic group to another. Usually the cultural idea is transformed somehow.

A male-bodied individual who dresses in traditionally feminine clothing and exhibits feminine behavior that is often exaggerated for show or performance.

Learning cultural patterns of a new culture. Generally we use this concept to describe children learning their own culture.

Groups of people who share the same cultural identity, which is often based on their heritage and ancestry.

The attitude or opinion that the norms, values, and customs of one's own culture are superior to those of other people's.

The fundamental and often first social group for an individual; a family frequently consists of biological relatives to the individual, but more generally, it has strong emotional ties to and is instrumental in raising the individual.

A norm that is just a traditional or usual way of doing something

An activity done for pleasure that has definitive rules, organization, and structure.

A common synonym for "homosexual," often (but not always) referring to men.

Gender refers to the social component that reflects not only a person's biological identity but the cultural and social values and roles assigned to that identity.

Societal norms and conventions that define what behaviors and characteristics should be aligned with each sex.

A form of advertising that targets and appeals to a specific gender in order to sell a product or service.

A way of describing any individual's behaviors and interests that do not conform to society's expectations of that individual's perceived gender.

Demands and expectations for behavior agreed upon by a culture or society.

The ways people use their bodies to communicate with one another non-verbally.

The integration of national economies into the global economy with open access to people, goods, and information.

The orientation in which one's primary sexual attraction is toward the opposite sex.

The assumption that any aspect of a culture is integrated with other aspects, so that no dimension of culture can be understood in isolation.

The orientation in which one's primary sexual attraction is toward the same sex.

A complex behavior that is preprogrammed.

A large and comprehensive organization in a society that has a specific purpose.

The condition where an individual is born with biological characteristics that are both male and female.

A system of communication through conventional symbols.

A common term for homosexual women.

Acronym standing for "lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender," which is used to refer to nonheterosexual and transgender people.

The study of the roles, attitudes, and behaviors that are appropriate for a particular stage of life.

The state of being in between two life stages.

Charles Horton Cooley's concept of the process of individuals evaluating themselves based on how they imagine other people view them.

Any technological channel of communication that reaches a significant portion of the population.

The transition from a pre-modern society to a modern society; the process of urbanization and industrialization.

A norm that deals with questions of morality, right and wrong.

The biological or genetic attributes and predispositions of an individual.

The transmission of information and meaning through channels that are not spoken out loud or written down.

A culturally shaped way of acting that reflects and enforces culture.

The social environment that forms certain attributes of an individual.

Figures who significantly impact a child's life enough to affect their observations and internalization of social behavior. Also known as significant others.

Individuals who belong to the same social group, typically based on factors like age and/or economic standing.

An activity done for pleasure that lacks structure or rules.

The initial stage in George Herbert Mead's theory of the development of the self, where an infant mimics and imitates the simple actions and facial expressions they see others do. This stage precedes their ability to play or role-take.

A social concept that groups certain people together based on physical traits like skin color, though there is no biological basis for such categorization.

Public ceremonies or rituals recognizing the transition of a person from one group or status to another.

The process of mentally taking on the role of others in order to understand ideal or appropriate social behavior.

A punishment or reward given out in response to breaking or fulfilling a cultural norm.

An individual's perception of his or her identity, which is formed and developed by social interactions and immersion in society.

A fixed understanding that an individual has of themselves regardless of social context.

A perception that we have of ourselves that can change and fluctuate in different social contexts.

The identity given by a person's biological sex characteristics.

The way an individual defines their sexual attraction. Also referred to as sexual orientation.

The inclination of an individual's sexual attraction.

Perceptions and practices, largely shaped by the subjective meaning we give to our experiences, used to define what is real.

Constitutes the full development of the individual; involves the generalized other.

The process by which people discover themselves in relation to their society.

A group within a larger culture that has distinctive attitudes and behaviors which sets them apart from the dominant culture.

Any object, word, or action that signifies meaning of something else.

Norms that are so strong a violation is considered so offensive and even unmentionable and includes extreme sanctions.

A female-bodied individual who exhibits traditionally masculine behaviors and interests, such as dressing in masculine clothing or participating in masculine physical activities.

An umbrella term describing anyone whose gender identity does not match their assigned physical sex.

An individual whose gender identity is the opposite of their assigned physical sex, who often desires to align their physical body with their mental gender identity through some medical means (such as hormone replacement therapy or surgical sex reassignment).

Collective ideas about what is right or wrong, good or bad, and desirable or undesirable in a given culture.

People that come together in proximity for a short period of time, without regularity, and without knowing one another.

In sociology, people that share a trait or characteristic, such as age or eye color.

An organization that an individual is forced to join; these organizations often work to resocialize their members to conform to specific, strict rules for behavior and attitude.

The process of maintaining or changing behavior to comply with the norms established by a society, subculture, or other group.

A type of crime that involves executives violating laws in order to benefit their corporation.

Behavior or action that violates a society's legal code.

Actions, behaviors, traits, or characteristics that violate socially accepted standards or norms.

Edwin Sutherland's theory that people learn criminal behavior from others in their communities; that is, criminal behavior is taught.

Targeted, negative behavior directed toward others due to their membership in a particular group.

In sociology, a group comprising two people.

A leader focused on the group's morale and dynamics; typically this person acts as a mediator and motivator.

A smaller group of people within a larger group.

Groups comprised of secondary members that organize for an explicit purpose.

When an organization redefines its goals, mission, and purpose after it has reached its objectives in order to maintain its existence.

The conformity that frequently occurs in the decision-making processes of very close groups.

A crime that is motivated by biases based on characteristics of the victim such as race, gender, gender identity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and ethnicity.

A dynamic of conformity that describes the tendency to assume that the group judgment or answer is accurate.

A group to which an individual feels that they belong.

Preferences, advantages, and favorable judgment given to members of one's in-group over members of an out-group.

The response to social strain of pursuing the socially-promoted goal through an illegitimate or alternative means.

A leader focused on completing the task at hand, reaching goals, and ensuring that each individual is completing his or her work.

The theory that how people are labeled or identified will influence their self-identification or behavior.

A status that overrides other statuses a person may have.

The process by which certain human problems and conditions are redefined as medical conditions, and therefore treated as a disease or illness.

The dynamic of conformity that is influenced by the desire to be accepted and liked by a group.

An enterprise run by individuals who engage in illegal activity, usually for money or profit, that often involves the sale of illegal goods and services.

A group to which an individual feels that they do not belong and does not identify with.

An evaluation and unjustifiable attitude toward a group and its members.

A group of people with whom an individual shares long-lasting, personal relationships.

A crime to obtain money, property, or some other material benefit.

The response to social strain of rejecting both the socially-promoted goal and the legitimate means to attain it, while substituting new goals and means.

Any group to which an individual compares him or herself.

The response to social strain of rejecting both the socially-approved goal and the legitimate means to achieve it.

The response to social strain of giving up on or rejecting the socially-approved goal, but sticking with the legitimate means to achieve that goal.

The behaviors and attitudes expected of someone inhabiting a certain status.

Competing demands or expectations between multiple statuses.

The set of behaviors, actions and qualities expected of a certain role.

Competing demands or expectations within a given status.

People with whom an individual shares a functional relationship; the length of interaction is typically shorter and oriented around a common task.

Society's attempts to regulate and govern people's behavior, which can be through formal or informal means.

Occurs when an individual or group must weigh personal benefit against the well-being of society.

When members of a group exert less effort on a common task than they would if they were working individually.

Societal expectation for behavior.

A position given by society.

All the statuses that one person has.

A negative label attached to a person, behavior, or circumstance that distinguishes him or her from the rest of society.

The typology of responses to a mismatch between socially-promoted goals and legitimate means.

In sociology, a group comprising three people.

An organization that maintains membership through payment.

A crime that involves only the perpetrator or two consenting adults, such as the consumption of illegal drugs or prostitution.

A crime in which violence is used or threatened.

Organization that an individual joins willingly because its purpose aligns with his or her interests, beliefs, or values.

Nonviolent crime often committed by business professionals or someone of high social status who is motivated by financial gain.

The state of living without reliable access to basic resources needed for survival, such as nutritious food, clean water, and decent shelter.

Status that someone earns through his or her personal qualities.

A policy that requires institutions to favor under-represented minorities when determining whether to recruit or promote them.

Marx's theory that the working conditions of capitalism leads people to be estranged from themselves and society.

Status given by society that the individual has no control over.

The process by which ethnic groups gradually give up their distinctive culture and traditions to adopt the patterns of the dominant culture.

What every human needs in order to survive, be healthy, and be protected, such as nutritious food, clean water, and decent shelter.

An economic system characterized by private or corporate ownership of capital goods rather than by the government.

A social and economic category within a caste system, into which a person is born, determining his or her social and economic status within society, and which cannot be changed.

A fairly rigid system of social stratification that offers little to no social mobility, and which often determines a person's occupation, who they can marry, and even (in some cases) who they can touch.

A system of social and economic stratification within a population based on wealth and economic standing, which offers the opportunity for social mobility.

Theory that assumes that class conflict is inevitable in society, and that those in the dominant class will use prejudice as a means to oppress those in the economically-deprived lower classes.

A wealthy nation that is part of the global elite.

Theory that states that prejudice is a learned behavior; because prejudice is part of the culture that surrounds us all, it is present in all members of society to a greater or lesser degree.

A country that reflects indicators of advancement, comfort, and productivity, such as quality infrastructure (good roads and highways or efficient power grids) and a well-educated and technologically sophisticated workforce.

A country that currently lacks the resources and structures to provide advancement, comfort, and productive work opportunities for the majority of its residents.

Geographic areas that have high concentrations of a particular ethnicity, prevailing cultural norms, and in some cases, distinct economic systems.

Generally refers to a person's cultural identity, derived from a shared sense of cultural, ancestral, and/or national identity.

A social philosophy that promotes the improvement and perpetuation of desirable genetic qualities by encouraging people with those traits to procreate, and discouraging, limiting, or preventing (such as with sterilization) people without those qualities from procreating.

Conscious, known bias that a person harbors toward or against a particular group.

Emphasis on the internal affairs and emotional balance of the family unit.

A socially constructed way of describing personality traits, characteristics, and interests that are traditionally linked to female-bodied people.

Both a sociological perspective and a political movement that recognizes inequalities between the sexes and seeks to remedy those inequalities so that society provides equal treatment of and opportunity for all genders.

The phenomenon of there being far more women living in poverty than men.

The separation of people by gender, particularly prominent in occupations.

The designation of a given occupation as either "female" or "male," generally based on societal perception of gender roles.

The difference between the average earnings by men and the average earnings by women.

The systematic killing of one group of people by another.

A measure of income or consumption inequality; a Gini coefficient of 0 indicates perfect equality, while a Gini coefficient of 1 indicates complete inequality.

A certain rank or position in an organization beyond which women have difficulty being successfully promoted.

The act of men in female-dominated occupations being promoted through the ranks at a faster rate than their female coworkers.

The promotion of heterosexuality or assuming that heterosexuality is the default sexuality.

Irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals.

When co-workers and/or a supervisor engage in unwelcome sexually-charged behavior making the workplace atmosphere intimidating, hostile, or offensive.

Bias (associations, preferences, and prejudices) formed and harbored unconsciously through one's lifelong interaction with people, media, school, and even language.

Racism that is embedded into institutions; policies, laws, and practices that disproportionately favor or disadvantage one race over another.

Emphasis on tasks, goals, and external affairs of the family unit regarding status, reputation, and relationship to other social institutions.

Theory that holds that class, race, and gender are all intertwined and interact to create different levels of disadvantage in society.

A socially constructed way of describing personality traits, characteristics, and interests that are traditionally linked to male-bodied people.

A period of time that new mothers take off from work following the birth of their baby or babies.

A society in which women hold the dominant power.

A period of time that new fathers take off from work following the birth of their baby or babies.

A society in which men hold the dominant power.

A nation that lacks the industrialization and wealth of other nataions; under world systems analysis, periphery nations transfer wealth to core nations.

A set of genes that creates a certain physical appearance.

A society in which racial and ethnic groups are distinct but have equal social standing; minority groups do not have to give up their distinctive lifestyles and cultural traditions in order to avoid prejudice and discrimination, and all groups have a roughly equal share of resources and political power.

The state of being poor, or living without a certain amount of materials and possessions that would otherwise make life comfortable or luxurious.

The definition of financial circumstances below which an individual or family is considered 'poor,' usually determined by census statistics.

When a person in authority, usually a supervisor, demands sexual favors of a subordinate as a condition of getting or keeping a job benefit.

A generalization made about an entire racial or ethnic category of people.

The state of living below in impoverished circumstances compared to the comfort and wealth of the rest of society.

The sociological principle that states that we categorize other people on the basis of what is most noticeable (most salient) about them.

The theory that prejudice arises from the frustration of those who are economically or socially disadvantaged, who then turn that aggression against others who are lower on the social hierarchy.

The use of scientific theories, techniques, or research to rationalize racism, categorization of people, and racial superiority.

The physical and social separation of different racial or ethnic groups.

A type of discrimination or abuse of power consisting of verbal or physical abuse of a sexual nature.

The ownership of another human being.

The ability for people to change their class positions in society.

The categorization and ranking of groups of people to form a social and economic hierarchy.

The areas of study and professions in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.

A generalization about an entire category of people; it is generally presumed to describe a 'typical' member of that category.

The underlying societal attitude that drives any form of racism.

The increase of population in city areas, mainly due to mass migrations, and the subsequent growth of urban areas to accommodate the increase of numbers.

The rationale (often unfounded) that victims of abuse or assault are partially or entirely at fault for their suffering.

An analysis by Immanuel Wallerstein that divides the world into nations from most to least wealthy: core, semiperiphery, and periphery nations; the core nations dominate the world economically and politically.

Someone who does not know if gods or supernatural entities exist.

The belief that inanimate objects have souls because of a supernatural power that controls the material universe.

A lack of belief in the existence of a deity.

A family consisting of a couple and their children from this and all previous relationships.

Someone who inspires people within an organization because of his or her apparent extraordinary gifts or qualities.

A religious organization with its own doctrine, clergy, and central governing body.

The phenomenon of changes in weather patterns on a global scale due to the increase of temperature on the earth's surface.

An arrangement where two people living together are engaged in an intimate relationship but are not married.

The use of educational achievements to determine who is eligible for jobs, even if the degree does not apply to the actual job.

A recently formed and different religion that is at odds with the current dominant society or religion; also sometimes called new religion.

The assets a person has that are not financial such as education, patterns of speech, tastes, and manner of dress, which take time and energy to acquire.

The act of cutting down trees and reducing forests for the sake of industries such as logging and agriculture.

An independent branch of a larger church with members who might disagree with certain aspects of the church's teaching but who still subscribe to its main message.

A society's formal system of teaching knowledge and skills.

A family that includes more members than just parents and children, such as grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Emotional, physical, or sexual abuse between family members.

Materials that contain potential energy, formed from organic decay that has been converted to crude oil, coal, natural gas, or heavy oils by exposure to heat and pressure in the earth's crust over billions of years.

The increase of temperature on the earth's surface on a global scale.

A trend in the 1940s and 1950s in which there grew to be increasing reliance on, and spread of, new strains of high-yielding varieties (HYVs) of crops like corn, wheat, rice, millet, and sorghum.

A state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being.

A system to restore or maintain, especially by trained professionals, mental and physical well-being.

The tendency of people to marry others with similar characteristics as them.

A general measure of health. It is the number of children dying under one year of age, divided by the number of live births during the year, multiplied by 1,000 for a given region.

Connections between individuals that are established through ancestry, marriage, or adoption.

Life expectancy is the average number of years a person born in a given country is expected to live if mortality rates at each age remain the same in the future.

A social and legal union that usually involves economic cooperation, sexual activity, and childbearing.

The common practice in some cultures that involves living with or near the wife's parents.

The worship of or belief in a single god.

A traditional story of a people or culture that serves to explain some natural phenomenon, the origin of humanity, or customs or religious rites.

The practice in most industrialized cultures when a married couple finds a new place to live that is not in the household of either set of their parents.

Resources that cannot be naturally replenished at a rate equal to their consumption. Examples include natural gas, oil, and coal, whose formation takes billions of years.

A family composed of two parents and their children.

The common practice in some cultures that involves living with or near the husband's parents.

A worldview which accepts or values multiple religions coexisting in the same society.

The act of making air, land, water, and other aspects of the environment dirty or unsafe for humans and wildlife.

The worship of or belief in multiple gods.

An organized system of spiritual beliefs and practices, usually offering a moral code and a worldview.

A set of actions, often ceremonial in nature, performed mainly for their symbolic or religious value.

A subdivision of a larger religious group with members who usually share somewhat different beliefs from the dominant group.

The shifting in focus of a religion from spiritual concerns to concerns of this world, or the process in which religion loses its social and cultural significance.

A way of explaining the rights and responsibilities of a person who is ill.

The use of education to determine a person's social standing.

A family in which at least one of the adults is a stepparent.

The development of technological and systemic changes that will meet current production demands without causing further damage to the environment.

The belief that each person has a spiritual connection or kinship with animals or plants.

The constant pressure experienced by those in capitalist societies to meet the economic demand for profit and growth.