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Exam 1: GST
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- 1What is Theory?Social theory is a frame for the social world, that brings attention to certain aspects, as opposed to others.
- 2Why is Theory important?Knowing social theory is like having x-ray vision because you see connections & causes that are hidden from normal view
- 3What is Positivism?Grand theories explaining human nature. There are truths to be discovered
- 4What is Postmodernism?There are no "truths". Our "truth" depends upon where we stand.
- 5Why are Theory and Data important?*Theory & data comprise the essence of sociological research
*Theory helps us make sense of empirical findings (we are not journalists)
*Data helps verify that our theories are correct - 6What are the Origins of Sociology?* Explaining rapid social change & its consequences
*Europe in the late 1700s
*Time of great social upheaval
*Industrial Revolution (changes in manufacturing & how people interact w/each other) & French Revolution (end of the aristocracy) - 7What are the 3 major paradigms and who created them?*Social Conflict Theory – Karl Marx
*Structural-Functionalism - Talcott Parsons
*Symbolic Interactionism - Harold Garfinkle & Erving Goffman - 8What are the main characteristics of Karl Marx?*Emphasizes conflict & inequality rather than unity
*History is driven by conflict over resources
*Class conflict
*Key words: class, power, conflict - 9What are the type of stakeholders?*Bourgeoisie: Owns means of production, factory workers
*Proletariat: Workers - 10What is Species Being?The Ideal human state. Humans realize our purpose through labor. We express our internal state through our "creations". We exercise our creativity & find meaning in work. But we need a connection to our "product"
- 11What is Alienation?Occurs when workers do not own the means of production or the product. Occurs under capitalism: Wage labor divorces us from species being.
- 12What are the types of Alienation?*From the work process
*From the product
*From other people
*From nature - 13What is False Consciousness?*Occurs when we are alienated
*When our purpose is grounded in anything other than species being
*Religion: "the opium of the people" - 14Who is Daniel Bell and what is the concept he came up with?He was a sociologist and he created the concept of Post-Industrial Society
- 15What is the Post-Industrial Society?From agricultural societies -> industrial societies -> post-industrial societies
Post-Industrial Economy:
1. Advanced capitalist economy
2. Also called late modernity
3. Began shift in 1970s - 16What changes do we see in the Post-Industrial Society?Where manufacturing once drove our economy:
1. Now "knowledge" drives our economy
2. We are now a service-driven economy
3. Knowledge = science, technology, etc
*Polarization of the economy
*High and low-skilled labor - 17What defines unskilled workers during the Post-Industrial Society?*Earn less
*Have fewer benefits
*Part-time employment (can't get 40 hours)
*Work in low-wage, service-oriented jobs - 18What defines the creative class during the Post-Industrial Society?*Experience intense demands
*No longer work 8:00 – 5:00 (more than 40 hours)
*But have some autonomy & creativity in their jobs
*Creative class often move to cities to be with other skilled workers - 19Who is Max Weber and what are his works and ideas?Max Weber is a sociologist and his important works include:
*The Protestant Ethic & the Spirit of Capitalism
*Economy & Society
His important ideas include:
*Rationalization: The rise of capitalism & bureaucracy
*The iron cage
*Authority & status - 20How is Weber different from MArx?*Marx argued conflict over resources drove economic changes
*Weber argued religious systems drove these changes
*Marx dismissed religion as the tool of the oppressors
*Weber thought religious values set the stage for capitalism - 21What is Rationalization?*Driven by means to ends calculations
*Goals & efficiency are of primary importance
*Capitalism – the rational society
*Bureaucracy - 22How does the Protestant Ethic influence the Spirit of Capitalism?Protestant values set the stages for capitalist system to emerge
Secularism: From magic to science & reason
*From polytheism to monotheism
*Loss of magic; the rise of rationalism
*Protestant religion do not pray to the saints
*Catholic religion takes communion literally (bread and wine are the body and blood of Christ) - 23What are Protestant values?We are called by God to work
*"Idle hands are the devil's workshop"
*Our salvation has already been determined
*We "labor" in hope of receiving signs of our salvation
*Important shift: our sense of control is gained through work, not through magic - 24How did Protestant values set the stage for capitalism?How did protestant values set the stage for capitalism?
It made it easier for capitalism to occur, since protestant values focused on accumulating wealth and working as a way to get into heaven (salvation). Protestant values encouraged people to work to please God, which prompts the success of capitalism (as more people work harder, the greater the likelihood of them getting into heaven). - 25What is Bureaucracy?*A rationalized system, goal-orientation
*Organization
*Efficiency
*Routinized - 26What are the key features of Bureaucracy?*Division of labor based on authority
*Office hierarchy
*Written rules
*Authority granted through credentials & accreditation
*Org. Own positions, not people
*Managed by emotionally neutral rules - 27What is the Iron Cage?*Occurs within capitalism & bureaucracy
*People become trapped
*Controlled by impersonal rules & hyper-focus on efficiency
*Impersonalization
*Loss of individuality
*Loss of personal freedom & fulfillment - 28What are the types of Authority?1. Charismatic:
*Authority based on the personal characteristics of an individual leader
*"Men obey him, not by virtue of tradition or statue, but because we believe in him"
*Actual power or capabilities of leader don't matter
*It's people's willingness to follow that matters
2. Traditional:
*Authority passed down by tradition or custom.
*Authority granted through tradition or custom
3. Rational/Legal:
*Authority imbedded in the position, not held by a person
*Once a person leaves office, their authority is lost
*Authority is granted through credentials, qualifications, and democratic elections
*Needs democratic elections - 29What is McDonaldization and who created it?George Ritzer created the concept of McDonaldization. McDonaldization is a
system of rationalized productivity driven by 4 components:
1. Efficiency: Minimizing time/ maximizing profit
2. Calculability: Using quantifiable goals (quantity over quality)
3. Predictability: Product and services are standardized and uniform
4. Control: Human work is replaced by machines - 30What is Irrationality of Rationality?*Fast food model has spread to other aspects of society
*We are dehumanized in the process
*Leads to irrational outcomes: lower quality of life, diminished community - 31Who is Emile Durkheim and what is his theory?He is the founder of sociology and his work includes:
*Structural Functionalism: Concerned with how society functions.
*Positivism: Focuses on "scientific" study of our social world.
*Durkheim articulated the sociological approach
*Distinguished sociology from philosophy
*Insisted we should be a rigorous scientific discipline - 32What is Structural Functionalism?*One of the 3 major paradigms in sociology
*Durkheim is a founder of this school of thought
*Dominant in U.S. sociology in 1950's
*Emphasizes unity
*Research begins w/the assumption that shared values and norms keep society healthy
*Dysfunction can result from rapid social change
Key Words: unity, status quo - 33What are Social Facts?*"Social facts" are patterns in social worlds that exist apart from individuals
*We can't understand people's decisions without identifying social facts that influence these decisions
*Through empirical research, sociologists should observe and explain these social patterns - 34What are Durkheim's major concerns?*Loss of social cohesion in industrial societies
*Challenges of a diversifying society
*Suicide - 35What is Social Cohesion?*A healthy society requires a common moral culture
*Modern societies experience a break-down of this shared moral system
*Increased division of labor
*Complex social institutions separate people
*Migration to urban areas
*Loss of religious ties - 36What are rituals and community ties?*Rituals serve as the glue that solidifies our attachment to the community
*Religion plays an important role
*Other secular rituals also serve this purpose
*What happens when we lose these rituals in rapidly changing societies? - 37What are the types of social solidarity?*Mechanical: Traditional societies, emphasize similarity, high levels of social regulation, little individuality
*Organic: Modern societies, rapid change, emphasize difference, cult of the individual. - 38What are social currents?*Waves of beliefs and sentiments that can run through a society
*Under organic solidarity, one society can experience competing social currents
*Under mechanical solidarity, there is only "one way". - 39What are the problems with mechicanical solidarity?What can go wrong with too many social regulations?
*Repression
*No room for growth - 40What are the problems with organic solidarity?*Forced division of labor
*Anomie - 41What is forced division of labor?*Durkheim was more optimistic about capitalism than Marx, but he was concerned about "forced division of labor"
*Society is harmed when people are forced to work in jobs for which they are ill-suited
*This suffering leads to social ills
*We should not have structural inequality, because this creates forced division of labor - 42What is anomie?*Individual gets "lost" from society
*Social instability and personal trust
*Caused by loss of social regulation
*When societies change too quickly, a mismatch between social expectations and what's actually achievable
*We can lose our moral compass in modern societies compared to modern society - 43What suicide was Durkheim worried about?*Durkheim argued we will see rising rates of suicide in modern societies
*Anomic Suicide: Caused by lack of social regulation. Weak social norms
*Egoistic Suicide: Caused by lack of social integration. What is there to live for if we aren't part of something bigger than ourselves? - 44Who is Antonio Gramsci and what was his theory?*Italian theorist & political activist
*Founding member of the Communist Party in Italy
*Was imprisoned by Mussolini's fascist regime
*Prison Notebooks: wrote 30 "notebooks" while in prison - 45What are Gramsci's interventions?*Weber focused on how culture matters in shaping societies
*Gramsci argued politics also matters immensely
*This was a break from Marx's sole focus on economic determinism - 46What are Gramsci's central questions?*Why hasn't the proletariat risen up and waged the bloody revolution as Marx predicted?
*Why do the masses consent to their own oppression? - 47What is cultural hegemony?*Hegemony means domination
*Coercion is not the only means by which the ruling class controls the oppressed
*They also control the oppressed by using cultural institutions to shape popular values
*The ideology of the bourgeoisie becomes common sense of the people
*And it leads people to act in ways that appear to go against their best interests - 48What is common sense for Gramsci?*A "common" understanding among people, which is considered beyond debate
*Elites have much control over the "common sense" of the masses
*Repeating soundbites
*Example: "frivolous lawsuits" - 49What is counter-hegemony?*The working class can develop their own hegemonic belief systems that resist the bourgeoisie
*Intellectuals can help workers develop this counter-hegemony
*"Good sense" - critical perspectives
*"We Are the 99%"
Informationen
- Beschreibung
- Review of the content discussed in General Sociological Theory.
- Erstellt von
- Alyssa Ramirez
- Aufrufe
- 5
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