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Introduction to Sociology 3e

Key Terms

Introduction to Sociology 3eKey Terms

Key Terms

antipositivism
the view that social researchers should strive for subjectivity as they worked to represent social processes, cultural norms, and societal values
conflict theory
a theory that looks at society as a competition for limited resources
constructivism
an extension of symbolic interaction theory which proposes that reality is what humans cognitively construct it to be
culture
a group's shared practices, values, and beliefs
dramaturgical analysis
a technique sociologists use in which they view society through the metaphor of theatrical performance
dynamic equilibrium
a stable state in which all parts of a healthy society work 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
latent functions
the unrecognized or unintended consequences of a social process
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
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
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
the social ties that bind a group of people together such as kinship, shared location, and religion
society
a group of people who live in a defined geographical area who interact with one another and who share a common culture
sociological imagination
the ability to understand how your own past relates to that of other people, as well as to history in general and societal structures in particular
sociology
the systematic study of society and social interaction
symbolic interactionism
a theoretical perspective through which scholars examine the relationship of individuals within their society by studying their communication (language and symbols)
theory
a proposed explanation about social interactions or society
verstehen
a German word that means to understand in a deep way
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