Social Problems Final Guide
Choose FIVE of these topics that we’ve discussed in class to analyze your media source
Unit 1: Sociological Point of View
· Sociology/Social Problem
· Social Interaction
· Social Imagination
· Social Phenomenon
· Social Sciences
o Anthropology
o Psychology
o Social Psych
o Economics (Economic Reason)
o History
o Political Science
· Ideas of:
o Auguste Comte
o Karl Marx
o Herbert Spencer
o Emile Durkheim
o Max Weber
· Functionalist Perspective
· Conflict Perspective
· Symbolic Interactionist Perspective
Unit 2: Culture
· Material Culture
· Nonmaterial Culture
· Symbols
· Language
· Values
· Norms
o Folkways
o Mores
o Law
· Internalization
· Social Control
· Sanctions
o Positive/Negative
o Physical/Psychological
o Formal/Informal
· Cultural Diversity
· Cultural Universals
· Ethnocentrism
· Cultural Relativism
· Subculture
· Counterculture
Unit 3: Social Structure/Socialization
· Social Structure
· Status
o Ascribed Status
o Achieved Status
o Master Status
· Roles
o Reciprocal Roles
o Role Expectations
o Role Performance
o Role Conflict
o Role Strain
· Social Institution
o Family
o Education
o Economics
o Politics
o Religion
· Groups
o Aggregate
o Social Category
o Primary/Secondary Groups
o Reference Groups
o In and Out Groups
· Social Network
· Personality
· Nature vs. Nurture
o Heredity
o Instinct
· Socialization (Agents)
o Family
o Peer Group
o School
o Mass Media
o Other
Unit 4: Adolescence
· Adolescence (Characteristics)
o Biological Development
o Undefined Statuses
o Increased Decision Making
o Increased Pressure
o Search for Self
· Teens and Dating
o Courtship
o Continuum of Dating
· Adolescence Issues
o Teen Sexuality
o Drug/Alcohol Abuse
o Suicide
· Bullying
o Cyber bullying
Unit 5: Gender Stratification
· Males and Females
· Gender
o Nature (Biological)
o Nurture (Cultural)
· Sex
o Primary Characteristics
o Secondary Characteristics
· Learning Gap based on Gender
o Left vs. Right Hemisphere
o Teaching Strategies
Unit 6: Mental Disorders
· Perceptions vs. Reality
o Stigma
o Treatment
· Psychological
· Sociocultural
· Biological
· Neuroses vs. Psychoses
o Organic
o Functional
· Disorders of Childhood
o ADHD
o Autism
§ Echolalia
· Anxiety Disorders
o Panic Disorder
o Phobic Disorders
o OCD
· Somatoform Disorders
o Conversion Disorder
o Hypochondriasis
· Dissociative Disorder
o Amnesia/Fugue
o PTSD
o Dissociative Identity
· Mood Disorders
o Depression
o Mania
o Bipolar
· Personality Disorder
o Antisocial
§ Sociopath
o Borderline Personality
· Schizophrenia
o Catatonic
o Paranoid
o Undifferentiated
· Mental Retardation
Unit 7: Crime and Deviance
· Deviance
· Stigma
· Functions
o Unification
o Clarification of Norms
o Diffusing Tension
o Identifying Problems
o Provides Jobs
· Cultural-Transmission Theory
o Differential Association
· Structural-Strain Theory
o Anomie
· Control Theory
· Conflict Theory
· Labeling Theory (Stereotype)
o Primary Deviance
o Secondary Deviance
· Crime
o Violent Crime
o Property Crime
o Victim-less Crime
o White-Collar Crime
o Organized Crime
· Corrections
o Retribution
o Deterrence
o Rehabilitation
o Social Protection
· Recidivism
· Typical Criminal
· Good/Bad Criminal
Possible Topics to Use (but not limited to)
· Abortion
· Addiction
· Alcoholism
· Capital Punishment
· Child Abuse and Neglect
· Cults
· Death and Dying
· Depression
· Divorce
· Drug Abuse
· Drunk Driving
· The Environment
· Family Violence
· Gambling
· Hate Crimes
· Immigration
· Infertility
· Interracial Relationships
· Prostitution
· Racism
· Religion
· Sexual Orientation
· Street and Runaway Teens
· Welfare