Sociology

Semester Study Guide

The Test will come from the following areas:

·  Unit 1—Chp. 1

1.  Terms: sociology, social sciences, social interaction, sociological perspective, anthropology, psychology, economics, political science, history, social Darwinism, function, verstehen, ideal type, dysfunctional, manifest function, latent function, symbol, symbolic interaction

2.  Names: Auguste Comte, Herbert Spencer, Karl Marx, Emile Durkheim, Max Weber

3.  The Sociological Perspective

4.  Sociology and the other Social Sciences

5.  The Founders of Sociology

6.  Current Perspectives: Functionalist, Conflict, and Interactionist

·  Unit 2—Chp. 2

1.  Terms: material culture, nonmaterial culture. culture, society, technology, language, values, norms, folkways, mores, laws, culture trait, culture complex, culture pattern, subculture, counterculture, cultural universals, ethnocentrism, cultural relativism

2.  Components of Culture

3.  Studying Culture

4.  Cultural Variation

·  Unit 3—Chp. 3-4

1.  Terms: diffusion, self-fulfillment, sanctions, internalization, social movement, technology, vested interests, narcissism, ideology, sanctions, ethnocentrism, cultural lag, exchange, reciprocity, competition, conflict, cooperation, accommodation, subsistence strategy, group, aggregate, social category, formal organization, bureaucracy, voluntary association, iron law of oligarchy, the Peter principle

2.  American Value System

3.  Social Control

4.  Social Change

5.  Social Structure (Status/Roles)

6.  Types of Social Interaction

7.  Types of Societies

8.  Groups & Formal Organizations

·  Unit 4—Chp. 5-7

1.  Terms: socialization, agents of socialization, media, peers, social institutions, isolation in childhood, Locke, Cooley, Mead, "Tabula Rasa", "Looking-Glass Self", "Role-Taking", adolescence, puberty, anticipatory socialization, dating, substance abuse, abstinence, suicide, triggering events, cluster effect, early adult transition, settling down, mid-life, world of work, retirement

2.  Socialization and Personality

3.  Adolescents and Society

4.  Adults and Society

5.  Phases of Adult Socialization

·  Unit 5—Chp. 8

1.  Terms and Names: Deviance, deviant, police discretion, social control, crime, racial profiling, recidivism, plea bargaining, stigma, anomie, primary deviance, secondary deviance, cultural transmission theory, control theory, labeling theory, functions of deviance

2.  What is the nature of deviance?

3.  What are the social functions of deviance?

4.  What are the principle types of crime in the US?

5.  What are the characteristics of the American Justice System?

·  Unit 6—Chp. 9

1.  Terms & Names: social stratification, social inequality, caste system, class system, social class, wealth, power, prestige, socioeconomic status, social mobility, horizontal mobility, vertical mobility, poverty, poverty level

2.  What are the characteristics of caste systems and class systems?

3.  What are the major theories of social stratification and how do they differ?

4.  What are the characteristics of the American class system?

5.  How do different motivations and cultural values influence the American class system?

6.  What groups in America are affected by poverty?

7.  How has the American government attempted to lessen the effects of poverty in America?

·  Unit 7—Chp. 10-11

1.  Chp. 10 Terms: race, ethnicity, ethnic group, minority group, discrimination, prejudice, legal discrimination, institutionalized discrimination, stereotype, self-fulfilling prophecy, racism, scape-goating, cultural pluralism, assimilation, segregation, de jure segregation, de facto segregation, subjugation, slavery, genocide, ethnic cleansing, white ethnics

2.  Chp. 11 Terms: gender, gender roles, gender identity, patriarchy, sexism, women’s movement, suffrage, wage gap, glass ceiling, second shift, ageism, graying of America, baby-boom, dependency ratio, Medicare, Medicaid, managed care, alternative medicine, AIDS

3.  How do sociologists define the terms race, ethnicity and minority group?

4.  What characteristics distinguish minority groups from one another?

5.  How do discrimination and prejudice differ?

6.  What are the most common patterns of minority group treatment?

7.  What are the conditions under which minority groups in the US live?

8.  How have government policies affected the lives of minority groups in the US?

9.  How do gender roles affect the opportunities available to men and women in society?

10.  How are gender roles affected by socialization?

11.  What effect is the aging of the population having on society?

12.  How is the aging of the population affecting the life chances of older Americans?

13.  What is the state of health care in the US?

14.  What are some of the special health care concerns of various segments of US society?

·  Unit 8—Chp. 13-14

1.  Terms:

Economic institution / Factors of production / Primary sector / Secondary sector
Tertiary sector / Capitalism / Socialism / Law of supply
Law of demand / Laissez-faire capitalism / Free-enterprise system / Communism
Protectionism / Free trade / Multinational / E-commerce
Power / State / Political institution / Legitimacy
Authority / Traditional authority / Rational-legal authority / Charismatic authority
Coercion / Democracy / Monarchy / Constitutional monarchy
Democratic socialism / Authoritarianism / Absolute monarchy / Dictatorship
Junta / Political party / Proportional representation / Interest group
Education / Schooling / Bilingual education / Tracking
Charter schools / School choice / Homeschooling / Zero tolerance

2.  Economy:

a.  Compare and contrast the characteristics of the capitalist and the social economic systems.

b.  Discuss developments that have transformed the American economic system.

3.  Politics:

a.  Explain how the exercise of power varies by type of government

b.  Describe the major characteristics of the U.S. political system.

4.  Education:

a.  Explain how the views of functionalist, conflict, and interactionist sociologists differ concerning education.

b.  Identify some of the current issues in American education.

5.  Religion:

a.  Identify the basic societal needs that religion serves.

b.  Describe the distinctive features of religion in American society.

·  Unit 9—Chp. 15

1.  Terms:

Science / Sociology of science / Scientific method / Universalism / Organized skepticism
Communalism / Disinterestedness / Matthew effect / Paradigm / Mass media
Information society / Media convergence / Opinion leaders / Digital divide / Social capital
Spiral of silence / Agenda setting / Gatekeepers / Knowledge-gap hypothesis

2.  What factors have contributed to the institutionalization of science?

3.  How do the norms of scientific research differ from the realities of scientific research?

4.  What are the major developments in the history of mass media?

5.  What are the types of mass media in the US?

6.  How do the sociological perspectives deal with mass media?

7.  What are contemporary mass media issues?