COMPLETE INTRODUCTION TO SOCIOLOGY
REVIEW & PRACTICE QUESTIONS| GRADED
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,dynamic equilibrium a stable state in which all parts of a healthy society are working together
properly
dysfunctions social patterns that have undesirable consequences for the operation of
society
figuration the process of simultaneously analyzing the behavior of an individual and the
society that shapes that behavior
function the part a recurrent activity plays in the social life as a whole and the
contribution it makes to structural continuity
functionalism a theoretical approach that sees society as a structure with interrelated parts
designed to meet the biological and social needs of individuals that make up
that society
generalized others the organized and generalized attitude of a social group
grand theories an attempt to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental
questions such as why societies form and why they change
,hypothesis a testable proposition that describes a relationship that may exist between
events
latent functions the unrecognized and unintended consequences of any social pattern
macro-level a wide-scale view of the role of social structures within a society
manifest functions sought consequences of a social process
micro-level theories the study of specific relationships between individuals or small groups
paradigms philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate
theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them
Positivism (Auguste Comte) a scientific approach to knowledge based on "positive" facts as opposed to
mere speculation; the scientific study of social patterns
qualitative sociology in-depth interviews, focus groups, and/or analysis of content sources as the
source of its data
, quantitative sociology statistical methods such as surveys with large numbers of participants
reification an error of treating an abstract concept as though it has a real, material
existence
significant others specific individuals that impact a person's life
Social Facts (Durkheim) the laws, morals, values, religious beliefs, customs, fashions, rituals, and all of
the cultural rules that govern social life
social institutions patterns of beliefs and behaviors focused on meeting social needs
Social Solidarity (Durkheim) the social ties that bind a group of people together such as kinship, shared
location, and religion