Sociology - A Global Introduction, 5Th Edition, Chapter 6

Front 1

What is McDonaldisation of society?

Back 1

A process by which the principles of the fast-food industry come to be applied to more and more features of social life.

Front 2

What is a social group?

Back 2

Two or more people who identify and interact with one another.

Front 3

What is primary group?

Back 3

A small social group whose members share personal and enduring relationships.

Front 4

What is a secondary group?

Back 4

A large and impersonal social group whose members pursue a specific interest or
activity

Front 5

What is a reference group?

Back 5

A social group that serves as a point of reference in making evaluations or decisions (primary OR secondary).

Front 6

What is a dyad?

Back 6

A social group with two members (Georg Simmel) with a special kind of relationship.
(more intense)

Front 7

What is a triad?

Back 7

A social group with three members which is more stable than a dyad.

Front 8

What are the 4 ways in which the composition of social groups affects intergroup associations? (Peter Blau)

Back 8

1) large groups turn inwards
2) Heterogeneous groups turn outwards
3) Social parity (Gleichheit) promotes contact (Caldera)
4) Physical boundaries foster social boundaries

Front 9

What is a formal organization?

Back 9

Large, secondary groups that are organized to achieve their goals efficiently (UN, NATO, Red Cross).

Front 10

What are the two types of formal organizations?

Back 10

1) utilitarian organizations
2) normative organizations

Front 11

What are utilitarian organizations?

Back 11

They prove material rewards (Belohnungen) for its members (e.g. income).

Front 12

What are normative organizations?

Back 12

Members join to pursue goals they consider morally worthwhile.

Front 13

What are total institutions?

Back 13

Settings in which people are isolated from the rest of society and manipulated by an administrative staff. (Sekten)

Front 14

What is bureaucracy (according to Weber)?

Back 14

An organizational model rationally designed to perform complex tasks efficiently.

Front 15

What are the 6 key elements of the ideal bureaucratic organization?

Back 15

1) Specialization
2) Hierarchy of offices (vertical hierarchy)
3) Rules and regulations
4) Technical competence (impersonal evaluation)
5) Impersonality
6) Formal, written communication (‘paperwork’)

Front 16

What is bureaucratic ritualism?

Back 16

A preoccupation (Hauptbeschäftigung) with rules and regulations to the point of thwarting (Vereitelung) an organization’s goals.

Front 17

What are the 4 basic organizational principles of the McDonaldisation of society?

Back 17

1) Efficiency (schnell erledigen)
2) Calculability (done due to a calculated plan)
3) Uniformity and predictability (specifies everything and leaves nothing to chance)
4) Control through automation

Front 18

What is humanizing bureaucracies?

Back 18

Fostering a more democratic organizational atmosphere that recognizes and encourages the contributions (Beitrag) of everyone (people are the greatest assets [Vermögen] of an organization)

Front 19

What is networked individualism?

Back 19

Each person sits at the centre of their own personal community.

Front 20

What are the 5 features of a network society?

Back 20

1) information as the raw material to act on
2) the pervasiveness of information technologies (they’re everywhere
3) the network logic of any system using them
4) flexibility
5) convergence of technology