Sociology Final Exam

Front 1

power

Back 1

the ability of individuals or groups to achieve goals, control events, and maintain influence over others despite opposition

Front 2

the "power elite"

Back 2

political leaders, high-ranking military officials, and corporate leaders (CEOs) are the "power elite" - C. Wright Mills

Front 3

socioeconomic status (SES)

Back 3

the overall ranking of a person's position in the class hierarchy based on income, education, and occupation

Front 4

dimensions of stratification

Back 4

- wealth (the money and other assets that a person or family owns, including property and income)
- prestige (respect, recognition, or regard)
- power

Front 5

absolute and relative poverty

Back 5

absolute - can't afford basic necessities of life (food, clothing, shelter)

relative - can't afford things you want

Front 6

the poverty line

Back 6

the minimum level of income that the federal government considers necessary for basic subsistence

Front 7

poverty line is determined by?

Back 7

department of agriculture in federal government

Front 8

poverty line in 2012

Back 8

$23,050 for a family of four

Front 9

who are the poor?

Back 9

children, elderly, women, racial and ethnic minorities

Front 10

the feminization of poverty

Back 10

single, female heads of households are more likely to be in poverty

Front 11

thought "poverty is functional for society"

Back 11

Gans

Front 12

social mobility

Back 12

ability of a person to move up or down the class hierarchy

Depends on structural, demographic, and individual factors (education, gender, race, marital status)

Front 13

horizontal mobility

Back 13

within the same class

Front 14

vertical mobility

Back 14

from one class to another

Front 15

intragenerational mobility

Back 15

the social class movements in one lifetime

Front 16

intergenerational mobility

Back 16

one's movement in social class compared to parents

Front 17

prejudice

Back 17

an attitude, positive or negative, toward people because of their group membership

Front 18

discrimination

Back 18

an act that treats people unequally or unfairly because of their group membership

Front 19

individual discrimination

Back 19

one-to-one basis; a member of a dominant group against a member of a minority group

Front 20

institutional discrimination

Back 20

minority-group members experience unequal treatment and opportunities as a result of the every day operations of a society's laws, rules, policies, practices and customs

Front 21

active bigot

Back 21

prejudiced discriminator

Front 22

all-weather liberal

Back 22

unprejudiced nondiscriminator

Front 23

fair-weather liberal

Back 23

unprejudiced discriminator

Front 24

timid bigot

Back 24

prejudiced nondiscriminator

Front 25

De jure

Back 25

by law segregation (Jim Crow laws)

Front 26

De facto

Back 26

by fact segregation; type we currently experience such as in neighborhoods

Front 27

gender identity

Back 27

a perception of oneself as either masculine or feminine

Front 28

gender roles

Back 28

the characteristics, attitudes, feelings and behaviors that society expects of females and males

Front 29

androgyny

Back 29

the combination of masculine and feminine characteristics

Front 30

family

Back 30

(no universal definition; it is hard to define)

an intimate group of 2 or more people who:
- live together in a committed relationship
- care for one another and any children
- share close emotional ties and functions

Front 31

family functions

Back 31

5 functions of the family to ensure a society's survival:

1. sexual regulation (the incest taboo)
2. reproduction and socialization
3. economic security
4. emotional support
5. social placement

Front 32

nuclear families

Back 32

made up of married parents and their biological or adopted children

- thought of as the "traditional" family, but this concept is largely dated

Front 33

extended families

Back 33

a family consisting of parents and children as well as other kin, such as uncles and aunts, nieces and nephews, cousins, and grandparents

Front 34

serial monogamy

Back 34

one person is married to several different people, but one at a time

Front 35

polygamy

Back 35

form of marriage in which a man or woman has two or more spouses

Front 36

polygyny

Back 36

one man married to two or more women

Front 37

polyandry

Back 37

one woman married to two or more men

Front 38

mate selection; the marriage market

Back 38

a courtship process in which prospective spouses compare the assets and liabilities of eligible partners, and choose the best available mate

- allows for: fun, recreation, and companionship; a socially acceptable way of pursuing love and affection; opportunities for sexual intimacy, and finding a spouse

- not all societies encourage open dating, as marriage is seen as a family rather than an individual decision

Front 39

marriage

Back 39

a socially approved mating relationship that people expect to be stable and enduring

Front 40

endogamy

Back 40

the practice of selecting a mate from within one's group. Can be based on race/ethnicity, religion, social class

Front 41

exogamy

Back 41

the practice of selecting a mate from outside one's group

Front 42

cohabitation

Back 42

an arrangement in which two unrelated people are not married but live together and have a sexual relationship

Front 43

two-income families

Back 43

both parents are employed outside the home; higher incomes, but face conlicts between domestic and employment responsibilities.

Dual incomes are increasingly necessary.

Front 44

race

Back 44

a group treated as distinct in society based on certain characteristics, some of which are biological, that have been assigned or attributed social importance.

Because of presumed biologically or culturally inferior characteristics (as defined by powerful groups in society), a race is often singled out for differential and unfair treatment. It is not the biological characteristics per se that define racial groups but how groups have been treated historically and socially.

Front 45

ethnicity

Back 45

a social category of people who share a common culture, for example, a common language or dialect; a common nationality; a common religion; and common norms, practices, customs, and history.

They have a consciousness of their common cultural bond.

An ethnic group does not exist only because of the common national or cultural origins of a group, however. thnic groups develop because of their unique historical and social experiences. These experiences become the basis for the group’s ethnic identity, meaning the definition the group has of itself as sharing a common cultural bond.

Front 46

the scapegoat theory of prejudice

Back 46

historically, members of the dominant group in the United States have harbored various frustrations in their desire to achieve social and economic success. As a result of this frustration, they vent their anger in the form of aggression. This aggression is directed toward some substitute that takes the place of the original perception of the frustration. Members of minority groups become these substitutes, that is, the scapegoats.

The psychological principle that aggression often follows frustration is central to the scapegoat principle.

For example, a White person who perceived that he or she was denied a job because “too many” Mexican immigrants were being permitted to enter the country would be using Mexican Americans as a scapegoat if he or she felt negatively (thus prejudiced) toward a specific Mexican American person, even if that person did not have the job in question and had nothing at all to do with the White person not getting the job.

Front 47

authoritarian personality theory

Back 47

the authoritarian personality is characterized by a tendency to rigidly categorize other people, as well as inclinations to submit to authority, strictly conform, be very intolerant of ambiguity, and be inclined toward superstition. The authoritarian person is more likely to stereotype or categorize another and thus readily places members of minority groups into convenient and oversimplified categories or stereotypes.

Front 48

stereotypes

Back 48

an oversimplified set of beliefs about members of a social group or social stratum. It is based on the tendency of humans to categorize a person based on a narrow range of perceived characteristics. These beliefs are presumed, usually incorrectly, to describe the “typical” member of some social group.

Front 49

racism

Back 49

the perception and treatment of a racial or ethnic group, or member of that group, as intellectually, socially, and culturally inferior to one’s own group. It is more than an attitude; it is institutionalized in society. Racism involves negative attitudes that are sometimes linked with negative behavior.

Front 50

deviance vs crime

Back 50

Crime is one form of deviance, specifically behavior that violates particular criminal laws. Not all deviance is crime. Deviance becomes crime when it is designated by the institutions of society as violating a law or laws. Deviance is behavior that is recognized as violating rules and norms of society. Those rules may be formal laws, in which case the deviant behavior would be called crime, or informal customs or habits, in which case the deviant behavior would not be called crime.