CHAPTER 1 SOCIOLOGY
•THE SYSTEMATIC STUDY OF HUMAN SOCIETY.
•SOCIOLOGY TEACHES THAT THE “SOCIAL WORLD” GUIDES ALL OUR LIFE CHOICES.
•IS THE SOCIAL WORLD THEN A COLLECTION OF THE NORMS, VALUES, AND “MORAL COMPASS” THAT WE ARE
EXPOSED TO?
THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
• 1963 PETER BERG• LOOKING FOR GENERAL PATTERNS IN THE
BEHAVIOR OF A PARTICULAR PEOPLE.(CATEGORIES--Adults, children, gender, wealth, etc)
• “SEEING THE GENERAL IN THE PARTICULAR” OR SPECIFIC. (“expectations”)
• A SOCIETY SHAPES THE LIVES OF PEOPLE WITHIN A CATEGORY.
EXAMPLES OF THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE• WHAT DICTATES PURPOSE OF
MARRIAGE?– MARRIAGE BASED ON EMOTION– MARRIAGE BASED ON PURPOSE– WHO DO YOU CHOOSE AS A MATE?
• Does this choice differ based on social expectations?
EXAMPLES OF THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
• DOES PRIVILEGED SOCIAL BACKGROUND CREATE PEOPLE MORE CONFIDENT OF THEIR FUTURE?– DEFINE PRIVILEGED?– MORE AND BETTER OPPORTUNITIES
EXIST FOR THE “PRIVILEGED”.
EXAMPLES OF THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE• THE CHOICE OF COLLEGE.
– COSTS, CURRICULUM, DISTANCE– SOCIETY INFLUENCES YOUR CHOICE OF
COLLEGE AND ABILITY OR CHANCE TO GO– THE AVERAGE STUDENT WILL CHANGE
THEIR MAJOR 3-4 TIMES
EXAMPLES OF THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
• THE SIZE OF THE FAMILY -THE NUMBER OF CHILDREN. (DEFINITELY INFLUENCED BY SOCIETY)– IN AMERICA THE AVERAGE IS 2 CHILDREN.
• AMERICAN WOMEN TEND TO FOCUS ON CAREERS.
– IN POORER COUNTRIES THEY HAVE MORE CHILDREN.
• SEEN AS A SIGN OF WEALTH AND MORE WORKERS
DOES A SOCIETY SHAPE WHO YOU ARE?
• SOCIAL INTEGRATION-PEOPLE WITH STRONG SOCIAL TIES.
• EMILE DURKHEIM--STUDY ON THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PEOPLE WITH STRONG SOCIAL TIES AND SUICIDE RATES.
• SOCIETY HAS AN EMPHASIS ON SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT:(Marriage, amount of education, religion,)
HOW DOES SOCIETY SHAPE INDIVIDUAL LIVES?: The way to
observe the sociological perspective. • LIVING ON THE MARGIN--AN “OUTSIDER IN
SOCIETY”(WHO ARE THE OUTSIDERS?)– THOSE IN MINORITY SEE THEMSELVES AS
OUTSIDERS ALL THE TIME– DOMINATES THEIR THINKING – LIVES ARE SHAPED BY THIS THINKING
• LIVING THROUGH A SOCIAL CRISIS– DO YOU CONSIDER YOURSELF A VICTIM OR A
CAUSE OF THE SOCIAL CRISIS?
SOCIETY AND SOCIOLOGY--”A GLOBAL
PERSPECTIVE”• THE STUDY OF THE WORLD AND “OUR”
INDIVIDUAL PLACE WITHIN THE WORLD.
• EXPLAINS HOW WE ENVISION THE REST OF THE WORLD.
• EXPLAINS OUR ACTIONS IN AREAS OF POLITICS AND ECONOMICS.
THE WORLDS NATIONS AND THEIR OWN SOCIAL INFLUENCE
• HIGH INCOME COUNTRIES– HIGHEST OVERALL STANDARD OF LIVING– PRODUCE AND OWN A MAJORITY OF WEALTH– FORTUNE BASED MORE ON WHERE THEY LIVE
• MIDDLE INCOME COUNTRIES– AVERAGE STANDARD OF LIVING--BUT SOCIAL INEQUALITY– LACK OF MANY LARGE “CITIES”– AVERAGE TO ABOVE AVERAGE EDUCATIONAL ACESS 6-8
YRS.
• LOW INCOME COUNTRIES– LOW STANDARD OF LIVING--LACK THE BASIC NEEDS– LIMITED EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES
COMPARING THE U.S. TO OTHER NATIONS.
• WHERE WE LIVE SHAPES OUR LIVES.• CHANGE NOW CONNECTS US TO THE ENTIRE
WORLD--GLOBALIZATION.– TECHNOLOGY
• U.S. MINOR SOCIAL PROBLEMS ARE HUGE WORLDWIDE. (ILLITERACY, POVERTY, ETC.)
• UNDERSTANDING GLOBAL LIFESTYLES HELP US UNDERSTAND OURSELVES!
THE GLOBAL VILLAGE SCENARIO
• IF A VILLAGE OF 1000 REPRESENTS THE WORLD.– 610 ASIANS (200 CHINESE)– 140 AFRICANS, 110 EUROPEANS– 85 LATIN AMERICANS, 5 AUSTRALIANS AND SOUTH
PACIFIC– 50 NORTH AMERICANS (45 FROM U.S.)
• ECONOMIC DIVERSITY– 80% OF TOTAL INCOME EARNED BY 200 PEOPLE– 50% OF PEOPLE DO NOT GET ENOUGH TO EAT.– POOREST 20% AT RISK OF DISEASE
• EDUCATION– 5% HAVE A COLLEGE DEGREE– 33% HAVE A DEGREE OF ILLITERACY– http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4B2xOvKFFz4
APPLYING THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
• HELPS SOCIETY ESTABLISH LAWS AND POLICIES THAT SHAPE PEOPLES LIVES.– (Right and wrong behaviors)
• HELP PEOPLE BECOME MORE AWARE AND TO THINK CRITICALLY.
• EXCELLENT WAY TO PREPARE FOR THE WORLD AT WORK.
• Read “Nickel and Dimed” page 10. • DISCUSSION--WHAT INSIGHTS HAVE WE
LEARNED?
SOCIOLOGY AND PERSONAL GROWTH.
• ASSESS THE TRUTH OF “COMMON SENSE.”– TAKING THINGS FOR GRANTED IS NOT
ALWAYS THE CORRECT MANNER.• EXAMPLE: LOW WAGE JOBS ARE HELD BY
UNEDUCATED LAZY PEOPLE.
– SOCIOLOGY SHOULD HELP US SEARCH AND DETERMINE THE VALIDITY OF PREDETERMINED IDEAS.
SOCIOLOGY AND PERSONAL GROWTH.
• SEEING OPPORTUNITIES AND CONSTRAINTS IN OUR LIVES.– “SOCIETY DEALS THE HAND”– INDIVIDUALS DETERMINE “HOW TO PLAY
THE CARDS!”– BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE WORLD
AND HOW PEOPLE LIVE WILL HELP US REACH BEST GOALS.
SOCIOLOGY AND PERSONAL GROWTH.
• THE MORE WE KNOW ABOUT SOCIETY, THE MORE “ACTIVE” WE ARE IN THAT SOCIETY.
• UNDERSTANDING LIVING IN A “DIVERSE WORLD”.– 95% OF PEOPLE LIVE DIFFERENTLY THAN
WE IN THE U.S. – YET WE SEE OURSELVES AS “RIGHT” OR
“BETTER” THAN THE REST OF THE WORLD.
THE ORIGINS OF SOCIOLOGY• THREE EVENTS INFLUENCED THE
DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIOLOGY AS A FIELD OF STUDY.
• 1) NEW INDUSTRIAL WORLD– WEAKENS THE TRADITION OF COMMUNITY AND
FAMILY
• 2) GROWTH OF CITIES– INCREASE OF SOCIAL PROBLEMS
• 3) CHANGE IN POLITICAL IDEALS– POLITICS BASED ON SELF INTEREST AND NOT AN
OBLIGATION TO GOD.
AUGUSTE COMTE-French Socialist
• INITIATED THE TERM SOCIOLOGY• SAW SOCIOLOGY AS A 3 STAGE HISTORICAL
DEVELOPMENT:• 1) Theological stage-Life based on religious
beliefs(beginning of human history thru early middle ages)
• 2) Metaphysical stage--Life seen as natural occurrence, the failings of man.(Renaissance period)
• 3) Scientific stage--Use of science to study the actions of society.(Comte called this “positivism”)
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Sociological Theories
• A Theory is a a statement of how and why facts are related.
• Theory helps guide thinking and research.
• Research shows 3-5 “Theories” to explain social behavior.
STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONAL APPROACH
• REFERS TO THE RELATIVELY STABLE TYPE OF BEHAVIOR.--PURE NON CONFLICT
• 1) MANIFEST FUNCTIONS RECOGNIZED AND EXPECTED
CONSEQUENCES OF A BEHAVIOR• 2) LATENT FUNCTIONS UNEXPECTED RESULTS OF A
RECOGNIZED BEHAVIOR 3) SOCIAL DYSFUNCTION--BEHAVIOR THAT
IS COUNTER TO EXPECTED BEHAVIOR
SOCIAL CONFLICT APPROACH• SEES SOCIETY AS AN ARENA OF INEQUALITY
THAT GENERATES CONFLICT AND CHANGE. • HOW DO FACTORS WHICH SEPARATE
PEOPLE(RACE, SOCIAL CLASS, GENDER) LEAD TO DIFFERNCES IN POWER, WEALTH, EDUCATION, ETC.
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4Bn52yuKy4&feature=related
FEMINISM AND THE GENDER-CONFLICT APPROACH
• FOCUS ON THE INEQUALITY AND CONFLICT BETWEEN MEN AND WOMEN.
• SOCIETY PLACES MEN IN POSITIONS OF POWER IN THE:
• 1) HOME--HEAD OF HOUSEHOLD
• 2) AT WORK--INEQUAL INCOMES
• 3) IN MASS MEDIA--MEN’S DOMINANT ROLES IN TV, MOVIES, MUSIC, ETC.
THE RACE CONFLICT APPROACH
• POINT OF VIEW THAT FOCUSES ON THE INEQUALITY AND CONFLICT BETWEEN PEOPLE OF DIFFERENT RACIAL/ETHNIC BACKGROUND.
• POINTS OUT THE CONCEPT THAT THE CAUCASIANHAVE BETTER AND MORE OPPORTUNTIES THAN MOST MINORITIES.
THE SYMBOLIC INTERACTION APPROACH
• SEES SOCIETY AS A PRODUCT OF THE INTERACTION OF INDIVIDUALS.
• 1) MACRO LEVEL ORIENTATION--sees all interaction overall.
• 2) MICRO LEVEL ORIENTATION-sees specific types of interactions
• MOST INTERACTIONS INVOLVE SYMBOLIC COMMUNICATION.
LABELING IN OUR SOCIETY
• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJr1mr8oYMA&feature=related
APPLICATION--THE SOCIOLOGY OF SPORTS
• STRUCTURAL-FUNCTIONAL APPROACH• MANIFEST FUNCTION--PROVIDES
RECREATION, TEACHES PHYSICAL FITNESS, EMOTIONAL RELEASE
• LATENT FUNCTION-- BUILDS RELATIONSHIPS, CREATES JOBS, ENCOURAGES SUCCESS
• DYSFUNCTIONAL--SCHOOLS BECOME SO INTENT ON WINNING THAT THEY “RECRUIT BASED ON SKILL-AND NOT ACADEMIC ABILITY.
• “WIN AT ALL COST MENTALITY”
APPLICATION--THE SOCIOLOGY OF SPORTS
• THE RACE AND / OR GENDER CONFLICT APPROACH.
• SOME SPORTS REFLECT SOCIAL STANDING(TENNIS, GOLF, SKIIING)
• SOME SPORTS ARE MALE DOMINANT– BASED ON STEROTYPING
• SOME SPORTS DISCRIMINATE BY POSITION OR DUTY.– POSITION OF LEADERSHIP OR AUTHORITY
APPLICATION--THE SOCIOLOGY OF SPORTS
• THE SYMBOLIC INTERACTION APPROACH• SPORTS IS A COMPLEX FACE TO FACE
CONTEST.• 1) POSITIONS AND RULES DICTATE THE
ACTIONS OF THE PLAYERS• 2) PLAYERS ARE SPONATNEOUS AND WILL
EXPRESS EMOTION DURING CONTESTS.• 3) PLAYERS ATTITUDE AND COMFORT LEVEL
CHANGES AS THEY INTERACT AND EVOLVE INTO THE GAME.
EMILE DURKHEIM--HOW DOES SOCIETY SHAPE OUR SUB
CONCIOUS?• HIS STUDY WAS CALLED SOCIAL INTEGRATION.• PEOPLE WITH STRONG SOCIAL TIES, (CLOSE
FAMILIES, ACTIVE SOCIAL LIFE) HAD A LOWER SUICIDE RATE THAT PEOPLE WITH A MORE INDIVIDUALISTIC LIFESTYLE.
• THORLINDSON & BJARNSON STUDY OF 2003 SUPPORTS PART OF THIS THEORY– WHITE SUICIDE RATES HIGHER THAN BLACK’S
SUICIDE RATES.– WHITE MEN SUICIDE RATES HIGHER THAN WHITE
WOMEN