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Sociology Midterm

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Term
Definition
Sociology   The scientific study of social behavior and human groups  
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Sociological Imagination   An awareness of the relationship between an individual and the wider society, both today and in the past  
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Science   The body of knowledge obtained by methods based on systematic observation  
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Psychology   The scientific study of the human mind and its functions, esp. those affecting behavior in a given context.  
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Theory   A set of statements that seeks to explain problems, actions, or behavior  
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Manifest function   An open, stated, and conscious function  
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Latent function   An unconscious or unintended function; hidden purpose  
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Operational definition   An explanation of an abstract concept that is specific enough to allow a researcher to assess the concept  
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Hypothesis   A speculative statement about the relationship between two or more variables  
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Variable   A measurable trait or characteristic that is subject to change under different conditions  
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Independent Variable   The variable in a casual relationship that, when altered, causes or influences a change in a second variable  
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Dependent Variable   The variable in a casual relationship that is subject to the influence of another variable  
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Correlation   A relationship between two variables in which a change in one coincides with a change in the other  
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Random sample   A sample for which every member of the entire population has the same chance of being selected  
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Sample   A selection from a larger population that is statistically representative of that population  
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Control variable   A factor held constant to test the relative impact of an independent variable  
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Reliability   The extent to which a measure produces consistent results  
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Validity   The degree to which a measure or scale truly reflects the phenomenon under study  
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Research design   A detailed plan or method for obtaining data scientifically  
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Interview   A face-to-face or telephone questioning of a respondent to obtain desired information  
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Qualitative research   Research that relies more on what scientists see in the field or in naturalistic settings than on statistical data  
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Quantitative research   Research that collects and reports data primarily in numerical form  
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Questionnaire   A printed or written form used to obtain information from a respondent  
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Ethnography   The study of an entire social setting through extended systematic observation  
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Experimental group   Subjects in an experiment who are exposed to an independent variable introduced by a researcher  
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Control group   Subjects in an experiment who are not introduced to the independent variable by the researcher  
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Secondary analysis   A variety of research techniques that make use of previously collected and publicly accessible information and data  
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Nonreactive research   Also called unobtrusive; indirect ways to find data  
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Content analysis   The systematic coding and objective recording of data, guided by some rationale  
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Socialization   The process through which people learn the attitudes, values, and behaviors appropriate for members of a particular culture  
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Culture   The totality of learned, socially transmitted customs, knowledge, material objects, and behavior  
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Society   A fairly large number of people who live in the same territory, are relatively independent of people outside it, and participate in a common culture  
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Innovation   The process of introducing a new idea or object to a culture through discovery or invention  
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Discovery   The process of making known or sharing the existence of some aspect of reality  
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Invention   The combination of existing cultural items into a form that did not exist before  
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Diffusion   The process by which a cultural item spreads from group to group of society to society  
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Material culture   The physical or technological aspects of our daily lives  
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Nonmaterial culture   Customs, beliefs, philosophies, governments, and patterns of communication, as well as ways of using material objects  
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Culture lag   William F. Ogburn's term for the period of maladjustment when the nonmaterial culture is still struggling to adapt to new material conditions  
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Language   An abstract system of word meanings and symbols for all aspects of culture; includes gestures and other nonverbal communication  
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Norm   An established standard of behavior maintained by a society  
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Law   Government social control  
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Folkway   A norm governing everyday behavior whose violation raises comparatively little concern  
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Mores   Norms deemed highly necessary to the welfare of society  
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Value   A collective conception of what is considered good, desirable, and proper - or bad, undesirable, and improper - in a culture  
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Subculture   A segment of society that shares a distinctive pattern of customs, rules, and traditions that differs from the pattern of the larger society  
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Argot   Specialized language used by members of a subculture  
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Countercultures   A subculture that conspicuously and deliberately opposes certain aspects of the larger culture  
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Ethnocentrism   The tendency to assume that one's own culture and way of life represent the norm or are superior to others  
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Cultural relativism   The evaluation of a people's behavior from the perspective of their own culture  
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Sociobiology   The systematic study of how biology affects human social behavior  
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Self   According to George Herbert Meade, a distinct identity that sets one apart from others  
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Looking-glass self   A concept used by Charles Horton Cooley to emphasize that the self is the product of our social interactions with other people  
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Role-taking   The process of mentally assuming the perspective of another in order to respond from that imagined viewpoint  
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Generalized other   A term used by George Herbert Meade to refer to the attitudes, viewpoints, and expectations of society as a whole that a child takes into account in his or her behavior  
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Dramaturgical approach   A view of social interaction popularized by Erving Goffman that examines people as if they were theatrical performers  
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Impression management   A term used by Erving Goffman to refer to the altering of the presentation of the self in order to create distinctive appearances and satisfy particular audiences  
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Life-course approach   A research orientation in which sociologists and other scientists look closely at the social factors that influence people throughout their lives, from birth to death  
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Resocialization   The process of discarding former behavior patterns and accepting new ones as part of a transition in one's life  
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Social control   Techniques and strategies for preventing deviant behavior in any society  
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Conformity   Going along with peers - individuals of our own status, who have no special right to direct our behavior  
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Obedience   Compliance with higher authorities in a hierarchical structure  
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Deviance   Behavior that violates the standards of conduct or expectations of a group or society  
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Anomie   Emile Durkheim's term for the loss of direction felt in a society when social control of individual behavior has become ineffective  
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Differential association   A theory of deviance proposed by Edwin Sutherland that holds that violation of rules results from exposure to attitudes favorable to criminal acts  
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Crime   A violation of criminal law for which some governmental authority applies formal penalties  
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Professional criminal   A person who pursues crime as a day-to-day occupation  
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Social inequality   A condition in which members of a society enjoy different amounts of wealth, prestige, or power  
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Stratification   The structured ranking of entire groups of people that perpetuates unequal economic rewards and power in a society  
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Income   Salaries and wages  
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Wealth   An inclusive term encompassing all a person's material assets, including land, stocks, and other property  
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Achieved status   A social position attained by a person largely through his or her own efforts  
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Ascribed status   A social position that is assigned to a person by society without regard for the person's unique talents or characteristics  
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Caste   A hereditary system of rank, usually religiously dictated, that tends to be fixed and immobile  
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Estate system/feudalism   A system of stratification under which peasants were required to work land leased to them by nobles in exchange for military protection and other services  
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Class system   A social ranking based primarily on economic position in which achieved characteristics can influence social mobility  
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Bourgeoisie   Karl Marx's term for the capitalist class, or the owners of the means of production  
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Capitalism   An economic system in which the means of production are held largely in private hands, and the main incentive for economic activity is the accumulation of profits  
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Proletariat   Karl Marx's term for the working class in a capitalist society  
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Class   A term used by Max Weber to refer to a group of people who have a similar level of wealth and income  
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False consciousness   A term used by Karl Marx to describe an attitude held by members of a class that does not accurately reflect its objective position  
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Absolute poverty   A standard of poverty based on a minimum level of subsistence that no family should be expected to live below  
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Relative poverty   A floating standard of deprivation by which people at the bottom of a society, whatever their lifestyles, are judged to be disadvantaged in comparison with the nation as a whole  
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Feminization of poverty   A trend in which women constitute an increasing proportion of the poor people of the United States  
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Closed system   A social system in which there is little or no possibility of individual mobility  
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Open system   A social system in which the position of each individual is influenced by his or her achieved status  
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Social mobility   The movement of individuals or groups from one position in a society's stratification system to another  
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Colonialism   The maintenance of political, social, economic, and cultural domination over a people by a foreign power for an extended period  
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Neocolonialism   Continuing dependence of former colonies on foreign countries  
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Dependency Theory   An approach to global stratification that contends that industrialized nations exploit developing countries for their own gain  
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Globalization   The worldwide integration of government policies, cultures, social movements, and financial markets through trade and the exchange of ideas  
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Modernization   The far-reaching process through which developing nations move from traditional or less developed institutions to those characteristic of more developed societies  
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Modernization theory   The functionalist view that modernization and development will gradually improve the lives of people in developing countries  
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