Sociology Ch 4 Flash Cards

Front 1

age-grades

Back 1

The system found in small traditional cultures by which people belonging to a similar age-group are categorized together and hold similar rights and obligations.

Front 2

agents of socialization

Back 2

Groups or social contexts within which processes of socialization take place.

Front 3

cognition

Back 3

Human thought processes involving perception, reasoning, and remembering.

Front 4

concrete operational stage

Back 4

A stage of cognitive development, as formulated by Piaget, in which the child's thinking is based primarily on physical perception of the world. In this phase, the child is not yet capable of dealing with abstract concepts or hypothetical situations.

Front 5

egocentric

Back 5

According to Piaget, the characteristic quality of a child during the early years of her life. Egocentric thinking involves understanding objects and events in the environment solely in terms of the child's own position.

Front 6

formal operational stage

Back 6

According to Piaget's theory, a stage of cognitive development at which the growing child becomes capable of handling abstract concepts and hypothetical situations.

Front 7

gender roles

Back 7

Social roles assigned to each sex and labeled as masculine or feminine.

Front 8

gender socialization

Back 8

The learning of gender roles through social factors such as schooling, the media, and family.

Front 9

generalized other

Back 9

A concept in the theory of George Herbert Mead, according to which the individual takes over the general values of a given group or society during the socialization process.

Front 10

Identity

Back 10

The distinctive characteristics of a person's or group's character that relate to who they are and what is meaningful to them. Some of the main sources of identity include gender, sexual orientation, nationality or ethnicity, and social class.

Front 11

life course

Back 11

The various transitions people experience during their lives.

Front 12

mass media

Back 12

Forms of communication, such as newspapers, magazines, radio, and television, designed to reach mass audiences.

Front 13

peer group

Back 13

A friendship group composed of individuals of similar age and social status.

Front 14

preoperational stage

Back 14

A stage of cognitive development, in Piaget's theory, in which the child has advanced sufficiently to master basic modes of logical thought.

Front 15

self-consciousness

Back 15

Awareness of one's distinct social identity as a person separate from others. Human beings are not born with self-consciousness but acquire an awareness of self as a result of early socialization. The learning of language is of vital importance to the processes by which the child learns to become a self-conscious being.

Front 16

self-identity

Back 16

The ongoing process of self-development and definition of our personal identity through which we formulate a unique sense of ourselves and our relationship to the world around us.

Front 17

sensorimotor stage

Back 17

According to Piaget, a stage of human cognitive development in which the child's awareness of its environment is dominated by perception and touch.

Front 18

social identity

Back 18

The characteristics that are attributed to an individual by others.

Front 19

socialization

Back 19

The social processes through which children develop an awareness of social norms and values and achieve a distinct sense of self. Although socialization processes are particularly significant in infancy and childhood, they continue to some degree throughout life. No individuals are immune from the reactions of others around them, which influence and modify their behavior at all phases of the life course.

Front 20

social reproduction

Back 20

The process of perpetuating values, norms, and social practices through socialization, which leads to structural continuity over time.

Front 21

social roles

Back 21

Socially defined expectations of an individual in a given status, or social position.

Front 22

social self

Back 22

The basis of self-consciousness in human individuals, according to the theory of G. H. Mead. The social self is the identity conferred upon an individual by the reactions of others. A person achieves self-consciousness by becoming aware of this social identity.