Sociology Ch 5 - Ch 7

Front 1

Hypothesis

Back 1

A statement of how variables are expected to be related to predictions from a theory.

Front 2

Variable

Back 2

A factor thought to be significant for human behavior, which can vary (or change) form one case to another.

Front 3

Operational Definition

Back 3

The way in which a researcher measures a variable.

Front 4

Research Method (or Design)

Back 4

One of seven procedures that sociologists use to collect data: surveys, participant observation, case studies, secondary analysis, analysis of documents, experiments, and unobtrusive measures.

Front 5

Validity

Back 5

The extent to which an operational definition measures what it is intended to measure.

Front 6

Reliability

Back 6

The extent to which research produces consistent or dependable results.

Front 7

Survey

Back 7

The collection of data by having people answer a series of questions.

-Ask natural questions

*In person interview = interview bias.

Front 8

Population

Back 8

A target group to be studied.

Front 9

Sample

Back 9

The individuals intended to represent the population to be studied.

Front 10

Random Sample

Back 10

A sample in which everyone in the target population has the same change of being included in the study.

Front 11

Stratified Random Sample

Back 11

A sample from selected subgroups of the target population in which everyone in those subgroups has an equal chance of being included in the research.

Front 12

Respondents

Back 12

People who respond to a survey, either in interviews or by self-administered questionnaires.

Front 13

Questionnaires

Back 13

A list of questions to be asked of respondents.

Front 14

Self-Administered Questionnaires

Back 14

Questionnaires that respondents fill out.

Front 15

Interview

Back 15

Direct questioning of respondents.

Front 16

Interviewer Bias

Back 16

Effects of interviewers on respondents that lead to biased answers.

Front 17

Structured Interviews

Back 17

Interviews that use closed-ended questions.

Front 18

Closed-Ended Questions

Back 18

Questions that are followed by a list of possible answers to be selected by the respondent.

Front 19

Unstructured Interviews

Back 19

Interviews that use open-ended questions.

Front 20

Open-Ended Questions

Back 20

Questions that respondents answer in their own words.

Front 21

Rapport

Back 21

A feeling of trust between researchers and the people they are studying.

Front 22

Participant Observations

Back 22

Research in which the researcher participants in a research setting while observing what is happening in that setting.

Front 23

Generalizability

Back 23

The extent to which the findings from one group (or sample) can be generalized or applied to other groups (or population).

Front 24

Case Study

Back 24

An intensive analysis of a single event, situation, or individual.

Front 25

Secondary Analysis

Back 25

The analysis of data that have been collected by other researchers.

Front 26

Documents

Back 26

In its narrow sense, written sources that provide data; in its extended sense, archival material of any sort, including photograph , movies, CDs, DVDs, and so on.

Front 27

Experiment

Back 27

The use of control and experimental groups and dependent and independent variables to test causation.

Front 28

Experimental Group

Back 28

The group of subjects in an experiment who are exposed to the independent variable.

Front 29

Control Group

Back 29

The subjects in an experiment who are not exposed to the independent variable.

Front 30

Independent Variable

Back 30

A factor that causes a change in another variable, called the *dependent variable.

Front 31

Dependent Variable

Back 31

A factor in an experiment that is changed by in independent variable.

Front 32

Unobtrusive Measures

Back 32

Ways of observing people so they do not know they are being studied.

Front 33

Group

Back 33

People who interact with one another and who believe that what they have in common is significant; also called a social group.

Front 34

Society

Back 34

People who share a culture and a territory.

Front 35

Hunting and Gathering Society

Back 35

A human group that depends on hunting and gathering for its survival.

Front 36

Shaman

Back 36

A tribe's healing specialist who attempts to control the spirits thought to cause a disease.

Front 37

Pastoral Society

Back 37

A society based on the pasturing of animals.

Front 38

Horticultural Society

Back 38

A society based on cultivating plants by the use of hand tools.

Front 39

Domestication Revolution

Back 39

The first social revolution, based on the domestication of plants and animals, which led to pastoral and horticultural societies.

Front 40

Agricultural Revolution

Back 40

The second social revolution, based on the invention of the plow, which led to agricultural societies.

Front 41

Agricultural Society

Back 41

A society based on large-scale agriculture.

Front 42

Industrial Revolution

Back 42

The third social revolution, occurring when machines powered by fuels replaced most animal and human power.

Front 43

Industrial Society

Back 43

A society based on the harnessing of machines powered by fuels.

Front 44

Postindustrial (information) Society

Back 44

A society based on information, services, and high technology, rather than on raw materials nd manufacturing.

Front 45

Biotech Society

Back 45

A society whose economy increasingly centers on modifying genetics to produce food, medicine, and materials.

Front 46

Aggregate

Back 46

Individuals who temporarily share the same physical space but who don't not see themselves as belonging together.

Front 47

Category

Back 47

People, objects, and events that have similar characteristics and are classified together.

Front 48

Primary Group

Back 48

A small group characterized by cooperative, intimate, long-term, face to face relationships.

Front 49

Secondary Group

Back 49

Compared with a primary group, a larger, relatively temporary, more anonymous, formal, and impersonal group based on some interest or activity.

Front 50

In-Group

Back 50

A group toward which one feels loyalty.

Front 51

Out-Group

Back 51

A group toward which one feels antagonism.

Front 52

Reference Group

Back 52

A group whose standards we refer to as we evaluate ourselves.

Front 53

Social Network

Back 53

The social ties radiating outward from the self that link people together.

Front 54

Clique

Back 54

(Cleek) A cluster of people within a larger group who choose to interact with one another.

Front 55

Group Dynamics

Back 55

The ways in which individuals affect groups and the ways in which groups influence individuals.

Front 56

Small Group

Back 56

A group small enough for everyone to interact directly with all the other members.

Front 57

Dyad

Back 57

The smallest possible group, consisting of two persons.

Front 58

Triad

Back 58

A group of three people.

Front 59

Coalition

Back 59

The alignment of some members of a group against others.

Front 60

Leader

Back 60

Someone who influences others people.

Front 61

Instrumental Leader

Back 61

An individual who tries to keep the group moving toward its goals; also known as task-oriented leader.

Front 62

Expressive Leader

Back 62

An individual who increases harmony and minimizes conflict in a group; also known as a socioemotional leader.

Front 63

Leadership Styles

Back 63

Ways in which people express their leadership.

Front 64

Authoritarian Leader

Back 64

An individual who leads by giving orders.

Front 65

Democratic Leader

Back 65

An individual who leads by trying to reach a consensus.

Front 66

Laissez-Faire Leader

Back 66

An individual who leads by being highly permissive.

Front 67

Groupthink

Back 67

A narrowing of thought by a group of people, leading to the perception that there is only one correct answer and that to even suggest alternatives is a sign of disloyalty.

Front 68

Rationality

Back 68

Using rules, efficiency, and practical results to determine human affairs.

Front 69

Traditional Society

Back 69

A society in which the past is thought to be the best guide for the present; a primary characteristic of tribal, peasant, and feudal societies.

Front 70

Rationalization of Society

Back 70

A widespread acceptance of rationality and social organizations that are built largely around this idea.

Front 71

Capitalism

Back 71

An economic system characterized by the private ownership of the means of production, the pursuit of profit, and market competition.

Front 72

Formal Organization

Back 72

A secondary group designed to achieve explicit objectives.

Front 73

Bureaucracy

Back 73

A formal organization with a hierarchy of authority and a clear division of labor; emphasis on impersonality of positions and written rules, communications, and records.

Front 74

McDonaldization of Society

Back 74

The process by which ordinary aspects of life are rationalized and efficiency comes to rule them, including such things as food preparation.

Front 75

Goal Displacement

Back 75

An organization replacing old goals with new ones; also known as goal replacement.

Front 76

Peter Principle

Back 76

A tongue-in-cheek observation that the members of an organization are promoted for their accomplishments until they reach their level of incompetence; there they cease to be promoted, remaining at the level at which they can no longer do good work.

Front 77

Alienation

Back 77

Marx's term for workers' lack of connection to the product of their labor; caused by workers being assigned repetitive tasks on a small part of a product-this leads to a sense of powerlessness and normlessness; others use the term in the general sense of not feeling a part of something.

Front 78

Voluntary Associations

Back 78

Groups made up of people who voluntarily organize on the basis of some mutual interest; also known as voluntary membership and voluntary organizations.

Front 79

Iron Law of Oligarchy

Back 79

Robert Michels' term for the tendency of formal organizations to be dominated by a small, self-perpetuating elite.

Front 80

Humanizing the Work Setting

Back 80

Organizing a workplace in such a way that it develops rather than impedes human potential.

Front 81

Corporate Culture

Back 81

The values, norms, and other orientations that characterize corporate work settings.

Front 82

Self-Fulfilling Stereotype

Back 82

Preconceived ideas of what someone is like that lead to the person's behaving in ways that match the stereotype.

Front 83

Hidden Corporate Culture

Back 83

Stereotypes of the traits that make for high-performing and under performing workers, which end up producing both types of workers.