Terms in this set (110)
sociological imagination the ability to see how our experiences connect with structural arrangements of
our society and the times in which we live
Microsociology the detailed study of what people say, do, and think moment by moment as
they go about their daily lives.
Macrosociology focuses upon large-scale and long-term social processes of organizations,
institutions, and broad social patterns
Auguste Comte The Founder of Sociology (emphasized that the study of society must be
scientific, he urged sociologists to employ systematic observation,
experimentation and comparative historical analysis as their methods. He
divided the study of society into social statics and social dynamics.)
Harriet Martineau Feminist and Methodologist (wrote the first book on social research methods
and was among the first to do systematic, scientifically based, social research
(Her comparative analysis of slavery and the position of women in the Western
world paved the way for feminist scholarship and the further pursuit of gender
equality.))
Herbert Spencer Depicted society as a system, a whole made up of interrelated parts (Social
Darwinism founder)
Social Darwinism Spencer's application of evolutionary notions and the concept of 'survival of
the fittest' to the social world
Karl Marx believed that society is divided into those who own the means of producing
wealth and those who do not, giving rise to class conflict (The Role of Class
Conflict)
Dialectical materialism Marx's theory that development depends on the clash of contradictions and
the creation of new, more advanced structures out of these clashes
Émile Durkheim He contended that the distinctive subject matter of sociology should be the
study of social facts (especially concerned with social solidarity, distinguishing
between mechanical and organic solidarity.)(Social Integration and Social
Facts)
Max Weber said that a critical aspect of the sociological enterprise is the study of the
intentions, values, beliefs, and attitudes that underlie people's behavior. He
used the word 'Verstehen' in describing his approach and contributed his
notions of the ideal type and a value-free sociology (Subjectivity and Social
Organization)
, Intro to Sociology (StraighterLine) Final Exam
Social Laboratory The first department of sociology was established at the University of Chicago
in 1893, and Chicago served as a "social laboratory" at the beginning of the
century.
Contemporary movements in sociology critical theory, feminism, and postmodern social theory
Functionalist Perspective sees society as a system. (Functionalists identify the structural characteristics
and functions and dysfunctions of institutions, and distinguish between manifest
functions and latent functions. Functionalists also typically assume that most
members of a society share a consensus regarding their core beliefs and
values.)
Conflict Perspective argues that the structure of society and the nature of social relationships are
the result of past and ongoing conflicts (draws much of its inspiration from the
work of Karl Marx)
Interactionist Perspective contend that society is possible because human beings have the ability to
communicate with one another by means of symbols (we experience the world
as constructed reality)
Sociology is a social science (cause-and-effect relationships prevail in the universe. These
causes and effects can be observed and measured, and sociologists look for
correlations among variables as a way of doing so)
Four major techniques of data collection experiments, surveys, observation, and archival research
The scientific method includes selecting a researchable problem, reviewing the literature, formulating a
hypothesis, creating an operational definition, choosing a research design,
collecting the data, analyzing the data, and stating conclusions
correlation A change in one variable associated with a change in another variable
dependent variable The variable that is affected in an experimental setting
economic determinist (money makes the changes) A believer in the doctrine that economic factors
are the primary determinants of the structure of societies and social change.