SOCY 1000 MCCONNELL STUDY EXAMS ALL
ANSWERS AND QUESTIONS SET A+
✔✔ethnomethodology - ✔✔literally 'the methods of the people'; this approach to
studying human interaction focuses on the ways in which we make sense of our world,
convey this understanding to others, and produce a shared social order.
✔✔dyad - ✔✔a group of two.
✔✔triad - ✔✔a group of three.
✔✔mediator - ✔✔the member of a triad who attempts to resolve conflict between the
two other actors in the group.
✔✔tertius gaudens - ✔✔the member of a triad who benefits from conflict between the
other two members of the group.
✔✔divide et impera - ✔✔the role of a member of a triad who intentionally drives a
wedge between the other two actors in the group.
✔✔small group - ✔✔a group characterized by face-to-face interaction, a unifocal
perspective, lack of formal arrangements or roles, and a certain level of equality.
✔✔party - ✔✔a group that is similar to a small group but is multifocal.
✔✔large group - ✔✔a group characterized by the presence of a formal structure that
mediates interaction and, consequently, status differentiation.
✔✔primary groups - ✔✔social groups, such as family or friends, composed of enduring,
intimate face-to-face relationships that strongly influence the attitudes and ideals of
those involved.
✔✔secondary groups - ✔✔groups marked by impersonal, instrumental relationships
(those existing as a means to an end).
, ✔✔In-group - ✔✔another term for the powerful group, most often the majority.
✔✔Out-group - ✔✔another term for the stigmatized or less powerful group, the minority.
✔✔reference group - ✔✔a group that helps us understand or make sense of our
position in society relative to other groups.
✔✔social network - ✔✔a set of relations—essentially, a set of dyads—held together by
ties between individuals.
✔✔tie - ✔✔the connection between two people in a relationship that varies in strength
from one relationship to the next; a story that explains our relationship with another
member of our network.
✔✔narrative - ✔✔the sum of stories contained in a set of ties.
✔✔embeddedness - ✔✔the degree to which indirect ties (i.e., friends of friends)
reinforce social relationships.
✔✔strength of weak ties - ✔✔the notion that relatively weak ties often hold hidden value
because they yield new information.
✔✔structural hole - ✔✔a gap between network clusters, or even two individuals, if those
individuals (or clusters) have complementary resources.
✔✔elastic ties - ✔✔social connections that display the repeated interactions
characteristic of strong ties while maintaining a degree of protective social distance (i.e.,
not knowing more than a first name, if that).
✔✔social capital - ✔✔the information, knowledge of people or things, and connections
that help individuals enter, gain power in, or otherwise leverage social networks.
✔✔organization - ✔✔any social network that is defined by a common purpose and has
a boundary between its membership and the rest of the social world.
✔✔organizational culture - ✔✔the shared beliefs and behaviors within a social group;
often used interchangeably with corporate culture.
✔✔organizational structure - ✔✔the distribution of power and authority within an
organization.
✔✔isomorphism - ✔✔a constraining process that forces one unit in a population to
resemble other units that face the same set of environmental conditions.
ANSWERS AND QUESTIONS SET A+
✔✔ethnomethodology - ✔✔literally 'the methods of the people'; this approach to
studying human interaction focuses on the ways in which we make sense of our world,
convey this understanding to others, and produce a shared social order.
✔✔dyad - ✔✔a group of two.
✔✔triad - ✔✔a group of three.
✔✔mediator - ✔✔the member of a triad who attempts to resolve conflict between the
two other actors in the group.
✔✔tertius gaudens - ✔✔the member of a triad who benefits from conflict between the
other two members of the group.
✔✔divide et impera - ✔✔the role of a member of a triad who intentionally drives a
wedge between the other two actors in the group.
✔✔small group - ✔✔a group characterized by face-to-face interaction, a unifocal
perspective, lack of formal arrangements or roles, and a certain level of equality.
✔✔party - ✔✔a group that is similar to a small group but is multifocal.
✔✔large group - ✔✔a group characterized by the presence of a formal structure that
mediates interaction and, consequently, status differentiation.
✔✔primary groups - ✔✔social groups, such as family or friends, composed of enduring,
intimate face-to-face relationships that strongly influence the attitudes and ideals of
those involved.
✔✔secondary groups - ✔✔groups marked by impersonal, instrumental relationships
(those existing as a means to an end).
, ✔✔In-group - ✔✔another term for the powerful group, most often the majority.
✔✔Out-group - ✔✔another term for the stigmatized or less powerful group, the minority.
✔✔reference group - ✔✔a group that helps us understand or make sense of our
position in society relative to other groups.
✔✔social network - ✔✔a set of relations—essentially, a set of dyads—held together by
ties between individuals.
✔✔tie - ✔✔the connection between two people in a relationship that varies in strength
from one relationship to the next; a story that explains our relationship with another
member of our network.
✔✔narrative - ✔✔the sum of stories contained in a set of ties.
✔✔embeddedness - ✔✔the degree to which indirect ties (i.e., friends of friends)
reinforce social relationships.
✔✔strength of weak ties - ✔✔the notion that relatively weak ties often hold hidden value
because they yield new information.
✔✔structural hole - ✔✔a gap between network clusters, or even two individuals, if those
individuals (or clusters) have complementary resources.
✔✔elastic ties - ✔✔social connections that display the repeated interactions
characteristic of strong ties while maintaining a degree of protective social distance (i.e.,
not knowing more than a first name, if that).
✔✔social capital - ✔✔the information, knowledge of people or things, and connections
that help individuals enter, gain power in, or otherwise leverage social networks.
✔✔organization - ✔✔any social network that is defined by a common purpose and has
a boundary between its membership and the rest of the social world.
✔✔organizational culture - ✔✔the shared beliefs and behaviors within a social group;
often used interchangeably with corporate culture.
✔✔organizational structure - ✔✔the distribution of power and authority within an
organization.
✔✔isomorphism - ✔✔a constraining process that forces one unit in a population to
resemble other units that face the same set of environmental conditions.
