Download Sociology - Ms. Thresher

What is
sociology?
Title goes here
Step Two
• Key Words
• Essential
Questions
• Headings
Step Three
• In 3-5
sentences,
summarize
the main
idea of the
notes
Step One
• Don’t copy
word from
word off of
slides
• You can
use
diagrams,
charts, lists,
etc. It does
not have to
look exactly
like the slide
“No Man is an Island.”
(John Donne)
Age
Economic
Background
Sex
How are
individuals
treated
according
to:
Nationality
Education
Race
Religion
The Role Of Influence In Our Lives
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The social science discipline that looks at the
development and structure of human society
and how it works
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Sociology is the study of social life, social
change, and the social causes and
consequences of human behavior.
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Sociologists investigate the structure of groups
(NOT individuals), organizations, and societies,
and how people interact within these contexts.
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The individual parts create a new whole.
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All human behaviour is social so the subject
matter of sociology ranges from the intimate
family to the hostile mob; from organized crime
to religious cults; from the divisions of race,
gender and social class to the shared beliefs of a
common culture; and from the sociology of work
to the sociology of sports. (ASA)
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We all play certain roles in our society – Social
Scientists refer to this as status
Status is the term used to describe our position
within an institution
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For eg. Erindale SS – There are many positions
at Erindale ranging from teacher, viceprincipal, guidance counselor, principal,
student and superintendent – Can you put
them in order on the hierarchy?
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Hierarchy is the ranking system used in any particular
environment based on authority of power.
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All groups encourage conformity e.g. Mean Girls is an
excellent example of cliques.
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Each position or role requires a certain type of expertise which
is valued by society. Other roles may not be valued but are
still useful to society according to a certain Sociological school
of thought. Do you know the school of thought that believes
that everything in society serves a purpose?
Hierarchy continued…
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In order to distinguish between these roles people are expected
to dress and act in a certain way
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On any given day we can play many different roles in society
– eg. A parent can drive their kids to school and then go to
work and teach their students
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Values – Society carries with it a system of values. A
particular set of values are assigned to each role. The
practitioners of these roles are expected to accept and
internalize these values.
Norms – These are rules set out for a particular role that
are considered standard behaviour (eg. Catholic Priests
are expected to be celibate)
Rules – These are developed by
cultures based on their system of
values
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Deviance – Any behaviour that is different from the
societal norm. It is deviant because we, as a society, do
not accept it
Deviance can range from simple eccentricities to
behaviour that harms society or is considered disreputable
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Sociology has formed a
strong link with the
justice system
A fundamental component
of modern imprisonment
is rehabilitation, or trying
to re-educate and
resocialize inmates so that
they can grow to accept
society’s values and
norms
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Sociologists have debated among themselves
about the real nature of society
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As societies change and become more diverse
sociologists need to consider cultural diversity
when considering sociological issues
Origins of Sociology
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French philosopher
Founder of sociology
Coined the term
“sociology”
Tried to find solutions to
the chaos caused by the
French Revolution
Influenced by the scientific
method
Believed that sociologists
should concern themselves
with the problems of order
and change
Improvement of society
Never completed college
Suffered from depression
August Comte
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French
Taught philosophy
Taught first social science course in
France
Systematically applied methods of
science to the study of society
Developed the idea of a functionpositive consequence that an
element of society has for the
maintenance of a social system
Study only aspects of society that
are directly observable
First sociologist to test theories
through statistical analysis
Argued agreement among citizens
for conformity and dependence
Emile Durkheim
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Born in Germany to middle-class parents
Received doctorate from the University
of Berlin
Worked as a writer and editor for a racial
newspaper
Believed that overall structure of a
society is influenced by how the
economy is organized
Thought that people who own the means
of production control society
Stated that imbalance of power leads to
conflict between owners and laborers
Was deeply troubled by social conditions
produced by capitalist system
Believed that the task of social scientist
was to transform society
Emphasized that conflict is the primary
cause of social change
Karl Marx
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English
Worked as a civil engineer for a railway
Received large inheritance in his thirties
Was influenced by views of Charles
Darwin
Viewed society as a system of
interdependent parts that work together
to maintain system
Believed that social change and unrest
were natural occurrences in society’s
evolution toward stability and
perfection
Asserted that the fittest societies would
survive over time
Believed in “Social Darwinism”
Herbert Spencer
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German with middle-class parents
Received doctorate from University of
Berlin
Founded the German sociological
society in 1910
Was interested in groups within a
society more than in society as a whole
Believed that sociologists should
uncover the feelings ands thoughts of
the individuals
Verstehen-sociologist places
himself/herself in the place of others
and attempts to see things through
their eyes
humans act on basis of own
understanding of a situation (walk mile
in my shoes)
Max Weber
Origins of Sociology…
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American Sociologists
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Jane Addams: social problems created by
imbalance of power w/in social classes
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W.E.B. DuBois: focused on race, racial
discrimination, and segregation
Schools of Thought in
Sociology
Sociological Theories
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According to structural-functionalism, each society
should provide its members with the fundamental
requirements for functioning
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A system must have a way of fulfilling material needs, a
system for socializing and educating the young, a way of
regulating human reproduction (usually marriage)
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Structural-Functionalists believe their role is to try to
explain the role of society’s systems in enabling human
society to function
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Structural-Functionalists do not concern themselves with
change but instead with how society works to meet their
needs
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Emphasizes the contribution (function) of each
part of society
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Basic agreement on values within a society
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People typically cooperate to reach common
goals
Different kinds of functions
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Manifest function (recognized functions)
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Latent function (unrecognized functions)
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Example: learning math at school
Example: forming friendships at school
Dysfunction (negative consequences)
Famous Practitioners
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Talcott Parsons
Bronislaw Manolinski
Criticisms…
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Too much emphasis on harmony
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Downplays forces that divides people
Sociological Theories
Symbolic Interactionism
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Focuses on the actual interaction among
people based upon mutually understood
symbols
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Symbols have assigned meanings to them
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It is essentially how we as individuals process and interpret
what we observe in society, not society’s institutions, that form
the core of our value system
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Understand societies by understanding how the human mind
intervenes between what we observe and how we act
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For this reason, Symbolic Interactionists focus their research
on the human mind rather than on structures in society
Symbolic Interactionism
Dramaturgy: approach that depicts
human interaction as a theatrical
performance
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Like actors, we present ourselves through dress,
gestures, and tone of voice
Social life as drama; actors performing roles
Impression Management- act in particular way to
attract attention
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Focuses on the actual interaction among
people based upon mutually understood
symbols
Symbols have assigned meanings to them
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Symbolic Interactionists believe humans have complex brains
and little instinctive behaviour
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This means they can interpret for themselves the stimuli they
receive in their daily life and attach their own meanings to
them
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Eg. One person might pursue fame and fortune while a sibling
might dedicate his or her life to charitable work in a
developing country
Three Assumptions of Symbols
1.
2.
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We learn the meaning of a symbol from the
way we see others react to it
Once meaning is learned, we base our
behavior (interactions) on them
Imagine how others will react to our
behavior
-we guide our interactions with people according to
the behavior we think others expect from us
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Cat
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Dog
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Colors, Words
Criticisms…
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Ignores structures’ influence on how we
interpret experiences
How can we be sure that our interpretations are
not influenced by class?
Sociological Theories
Conflict Theory
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Emphasis on power and competition
Groups compete to promote their special
interests and values
Conflict Theory…
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Focuses on disagreements among various
groups in a society
Social living is a contest
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Who gets what
People with power get large share of what’s
considered valuable
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Based on ideas originally proposed by Karl Marx (18181883)
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Marx believed that economic power led to political
power. This is the key to understanding societies
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The struggle for economic power means that society is
not static but ever-changing – social change is the result
of a change made to the economic system
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Therefore, if we want to understand society, we must
understand the economic system in place
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Neo-Marxists believe the economic system creates a rich
class of owners and a poor class of workers
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They also believe that social institutions (churches,
schools, prisons, family etc.) have been created to
perpetuate the division between the powerful and the
powerless
Criticisms…
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Too limited
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Ignores some good aspects of capitalism
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Constant downplays people’s attempts to bring
harmony
Feminist Theory
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Feminist Theorists focus on sex and gender issues,
believing that women have traditionally been
disadvantaged in society because men have
discriminated against them
They believe that men have made the decisions in
society and that they tend to favour men.
Criticisms…
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What about race and class?
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Not the only factor in who has power
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Inclusionists recognized that conflict could take place in a
society between ethnic, racial and religious groups as well
as between economic classes
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Before WWII, most sociologists took an assimilationist
view of race believing the cultural majority would
eventually absorb the minority (melting pot)
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In the late 1960s however, changing immigration policies
changed all this as large numbers of immigrants moved to
places like Canada to live
Theory Puzzle Practice
Theory Puzzle Practice
Theory Puzzle Practice
Activity
In pairs, empty your pockets/bag and analyze the
objects according to the following:
 Aesthetics (beautiful? Pleasant?)
 Utility (Purpose? Worth? Usefulness?
 Values (Your beliefs? Morals? Background?)
 Technology (Advanced? Tech. savvy?)
What do these items say about our society?