SOCIO NOTES SUMMARY

Sociology   Socialization Summary   Primary Socialization   Socialization is the process whereby we learn to become competent members of a group. Primary socialization is the learning we experience from the people who raise us. Researchers have many theories about the developmental stages that children experience. Freud theorized that the development of the id, ego, and superego occurs over time and that the three must be in balance. Mead developed a theory which posited that “self” is a product of social experience. Cooley developed the notion of the looking-glass self. Piaget posited four stages of cognitive development: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational. Kohlberg developed a theory of moral development with three levels: preconventional, conventional, and postconventional. Agents of socialization are people, groups, and experiences that influence behavior and self-image. They include family, school, peer groups, and the mass media. Isolated or institutionalized children may not experience primary socialization and can suffer many social and psychological defects as a result. Resocialization   Primary socialization occurs in childhood. Resocialization, the learning of new norms and values, occurs later in life, when life circumstances change or when people join a new group. The workplace is an agent of resocialization. Total institutions are environments in which people are isolated from mainstream society and expected to adhere to rigid rules. They demand resocialization. Some examples of total institutions are prisons, mental institutions, and the military. Anticipatory Socialization   When we learn new norms and values in anticipation of a future role, we are practicing anticipatory socialization. Practicing new norms in advance makes the transition easier and lets us know whether the role is right for us. Gender Socialization   Gender socialization is the tendency for boys and girls to be socialized differently. The impact of gender socialization can be seen in family, education, and career choice.   Social Institutions Summary   Economy   The economy is the social institution responsible for the production and distribution of goods. The two dominant economic systems in the world are capitalism, under which resources and means of production are privately owned, and socialism, a system under which those resources are owned by the society as a whole. Welfare capitalism and state capitalism are hybrids of capitalism and socialism. Welfare capitalism features a market-based economy coupled with an extensive social welfare system. Under state capitalism, the government closely monitors and regulates the resources and means of production, which are privately owned. According to Karl Marx, capitalism brings workers and employers into conflict. The only way to resolve the conflict is workers’ revolution to replace capitalism with communism. The economy is a quickly changing social institution. Economic trends include globalization, demand for educated professionals, self-employment, and diversity in the workplace. Government   The government is the institution entrusted with making and enforcing the rules of the society, as well as with regulating relations with other societies. Most of the world’s governments fall into one of four categories: monarchy, democracy, authoritarianism, or totalitarianism. A monarchy is a political system in which a representative from one family controls the government and power is passed on through that family from generation to generation. A democracy is a political system in which the citizens periodically choose officials to run their government. Authoritarianism is a political system that does not allow citizens to participate in government. Totalitarianism is a political system under which the government maintains tight control over nearly all aspects of citizens’ lives. The U.S. government is characterized by a limited welfare state and a two-party political system. Conflicts in governments generally take three forms: revolution, war, and terrorism. Family   The institution of family has three important functions: to provide for the rearing of children, to provide a sense of identity or belonging among its members, and to transmit culture between generations. There are two types of families. A nuclear family comprises a mother, father, and their children living under one roof. An extended family includes several generations and branches living nearby. Marriage is a foundation of family life. It exists in every society, with some variations. Alternative families such as single-parent households, unmarried couples, and gay and lesbian couples are on the rise in the United States. Religion   Religion is a social institution that answers our larger questions and explains the seemingly inexplicable. The world’s major religions include Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, and Buddhism. Religious groups include churches, sects, and cults. In the United States, social class, race, and ethnicity are factors in how religious a person is. Education   Education is the preparation of children for adulthood. It is an important agent of socialization and encourages social integration. The quality of education at public and private schools varies greatly in the United States. Medicine   The institution of medicine is responsible for defining and treating physical and mental illnesses among members of a society. The goal of a society’s medical establishment is to promote health, the total well-being of its people. The definitions of physical and mental illnesses are different in different cultures. Scientific medicine is an approach to healing that focuses on illness. This method is common in the United States. Holistic medicine is an approach to healing that focuses on a patient’s whole environment.   Social Groups and Organizations Summary   Groups, Aggregates, and Categories   A group consists of two or more people who interact over time, have a sense of identity and belonging, and have norms that make them act differently from nonmembers. An aggregrate is a collection of people who just happen to be in the same place at the same time. A category is a collection of people who share a particular characteristic. They do not necessarily interact with one another and have nothing else in common. Group Classifications   Primary groups tend to be small and are characterized by emotional intimacy among members. Secondary groups tend to be larger and meet primarily for the purpose of accomplishing some kind of task. An in-group is a group to which we belong and to which we feel a sense of loyalty. An out-group is a one to which we don’t belong and to which we don’t feel a sense of loyalty. For purposes of self-evaluation, people often turn to reference groups. Reference groups can be either primary or secondary in nature, or they can be general categories or even celebrities. Social Integration   It’s important to feel an emotional connection to one’s group or to one’s community. Such a feeling is called social integration. Émile Durkheim coined the term anomie to indicate a lack of social integration. He concluded that anomie was one factor in putting single, male Protestants at greater risk for suicide. Sociology also studies group dynamics, which is the term that implies that our thoughts and behaviors are influenced by the groups of which we are members. In turn, our thoughts and behaviors can influence those of other group members. Georg Simmel studied how group size affects interactions between group members. He found that a dyad, a group of two people, is less stable than a triad, a group of three people. Irving Janis coined the term groupthink to refer to the tendency of people in positions of power to follow the opinions of the group and to ignore any dissenting opinions. Groups Within Society   Each society is made up of smaller groups and associations. According to C. Wright Mills, the power elite, a small group representing the most powerful and influential people, runs the United States. A voluntary association is a group that we choose to join, in which the members are united by the pursuit of a common goal. These associations can be temporary or permanent. As societies modernize, groups change in size and purpose. A feature of modernized societies is the formal organization, a secondary group organized to achieve specific goals. A bureaucracy is an example of a formal organization that arises as a result of modernization. Weber argued that bureaucracies gain increasing power over everyday life in a process called rationalization of society. A bureaucracy is characterized by a division of labor, written rules, hierarchy, official communication, and impersonal relationships within the organization. Bureaucracies appear to be the most rational approach to accomplishing the stated goals, but human beings are not always rational. This conflict makes bureaucracies inefficient. Sociologist Robert Michels theorized that bureaucracies tend to be run by an oligarchy, a small, ruling group.   Deviance  Summary   What Is Deviance?   Deviance is any violation of society’s norms. Each society defines deviance differently. Deviance is a relative issue and may differ based on location, age, social status, and individual societies. Social control is a way society has of encouraging conformity to norms. It consists of positive and negative sanctions. Positive sanctions are socially constructed expressions of approval. Negative sanctions are socially constructed expressions of disapproval. Symbolic Interactionist Perspective   The symbolic interactionist perspective is one of the main frameworks that sociologists use to analyze society. Symbolic interactionists view society as a byproduct of everyday social interaction. Edwin Sutherland’s theory of differential association asserts that deviance is a learned behavior that people learn from the different groups with which they associate. Some people form deviant subcultures based on a shared deviance. According to William Reckless’s control theory, people have two control systems to keep them from acting outside society’s norms: inner and outer controls. Inner controls are internalized thought processes such as conscience. Outer controls include people who influence us. Travis Hirschi elaborated on control theory and identified four factors that make individuals more or less likely to commit deviance. These factors are attachment, commitment, involvement, and belief. Howard Becker’s labeling theory posits that deviant behavior is that which society labels as deviant. Edwin Lemert distinguished between primary deviance, the initial act, and secondary deviance, the repeated deviance that occurs in response to people’s reaction to the primary deviance. William Chambliss’s study of boys he called the Saints and Roughnecks showed the power of labeling. Structural Functional Theory   Another sociological framework, the structural functional theory, focuses on society as a whole rather than the individuals within society. Deviance is a normal and necessary part of any society. Émile Durkheim said that deviance fulfills four functions for society: affirmation of cultural norms and values, clarification of right and wrong, unification of others in society, and bringing about social change. According to Robert Merton’s strain theory of deviance, when people are prevented from achieving culturally approved goals through institutionalized means, they experience strain that can lead to deviance. Denied access to institutionalized means to success, poor people turn to illegitimate opportunity structures. Merton identified five reactions to goals and institutionalized means: conformists, innovators, ritualists, retreatists, and rebels. Conflict Perspective   The conflict theory is Karl Marx’s theoretical paradigm that views society as struggle between groups over limited resources. Conflict theory identifies two categories of people in industrialized societies: the capitalist class and the working class. Those in positions of wealth and power make up the capitalist class. The working class sells its labor to the capitalist class. The two classes are always in conflict with one another. Capitalists establish the norms of society; laws support them. Members of the capitalist class are less likely to be considered deviant because they make laws to benefit themselves. Members of the elite are more likely to commit white-collar crime, nonviolent crime committed in the course of their occupations. According to Alexander Liazos, people we commonly label as deviant are also relatively powerless. Crime   The three general categories of crime are crimes against the person, crimes against property, and victimless crimes. Age, gender, social class, and race and ethnicity are categories that sociologists use to create a criminal profile.   Social Stratification and Inequality Summary   The Origins of Social Stratification   All modern societies are stratified, arranged hierarchically into layers due to an unequal distribution of society’s rewards. Hunting and gathering societies had no social stratification because all members had to produce food and share it. Stratification arose with job specialization that began in pastoral and horticulture societies. Not everyone in the society needed to be involved in food production. Rise of industrialized societies led to increased stratification as the difference between the haves and the have-nots grew. Some improvement in working conditions created a middle class. New technologies created a new social group, skilled workers. The new technology used in postindustrial societies contributed to increased worldwide stratification. Historical Stratification Categories   Historical stratification systems include slavery, the estate system, and indentured servitude. Slavery is a system of stratification in which one person owns another. The estate system, prevalent in the Middle Ages, was a three-tiered system composed of the nobility, clergy, and commoners. Some commoners sought new opportunities in the New World and agreed to indentured servitude to get there. Unlike slavery, in which the enslaved have no choice, indentured servants agree to sell their bodies or labor to someone for a specified period of time. Modern Stratification Systems   Slavery still exists as a stratification system. The caste system is based on ascribed status, which is a condition of birth, and allows little or no possibility for mobility. India’s caste system is based on a belief in reincarnation, the belief that while the physical body dies, the soul of a person is immortal and goes on to be reborn into another body. People in castes must marry within their own caste. This practice is known as endogamy. Social mobility is an important characteristic of the class system, which is based on achieved status. The United States has a class system of stratification. Theories of Stratification   Karl Marx argued that there were only two classes of people in any capitalist society: the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. He believed that the proletariat would eventually realize they were being exploited by the bourgeoisie and would rise up in revolution. Max Weber argued that owning property was only part of determining a person’s social class. Power and prestige were equally important. Kingsley Davis and Wilbert Moore believed that stratification served an important function for society. It provided greater rewards to people willing to take more complex jobs. Melvin Tumin disagreed, arguing that all societies are not meritocracies, systems of stratification in which positions are given according to individual merit. Gender and a family’s wealth contribute to social class. The Stratification System of the United States   A person’s socioeconomic status (SES) is based on education, occupation, and income. These categories are not always reliable predictors of social class. Global Stratification   Societies are stratified in relation to one another. The three broad categories of global stratification are most-industrialized nations, industrializing nations, and least-industrialized nations. Each category differs in wealth, power, and prestige. Theories of global stratification include colonialism, world system theory, neocolonialism, and multinational corporations. Colonialism occurs when a powerful country invades a weaker country in order to exploit its resources. According to Wallerstein’s world system theory, as societies industrialized, capitalism became the dominant economic system, which led to the globalization of capitalism. Harrington’s theory of neocolonialism argues that most industrialized nations tend to politically and economically exploit less developed countries. Multinational corporations help maintain the global stratification system.