Seeing Sociology: An Introduction

Cover Page......Page 1
Title Page......Page 3
Copyright Page......Page 5
ABOUT THE AUTHOR......Page 6
BRIEF CONTENTS......Page 8
TABLE OF CONTENTS......Page 10
Preface......Page 16
Theme Index......Page 28
1 Sociological Imagination......Page 32
Sociology: A Definition......Page 33
Why Study Sociology?......Page 36
The Power of Social Facts......Page 38
Suicide Rates......Page 39
Biography and Larger Social Forces......Page 42
Distinguishing between Troubles and Issues......Page 43
Industrial Revolution......Page 45
Changes to Society......Page 46
The Enlightenment......Page 47
Auguste Comte (1798–1857)......Page 49
Karl Marx (1818–1883)......Page 50
Émile Durkheim (1858–1918)......Page 51
Max Weber (1864–1920)......Page 52
W.E.B. DuBois (1868–1963)......Page 53
Jane Addams (1860–1935)......Page 54
Sociological Theory......Page 56
Functionalist Perspective......Page 57
Conflict Perspective......Page 58
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective......Page 60
Deciding Who or What to Study......Page 62
Samples......Page 63
Data Gathering Strategies......Page 64
Generalizability......Page 67
The Methods of Social Research......Page 68
Choosing a Topic/Reviewing the Literature......Page 69
Specifying Variables, Operational Definitions, and Hypotheses......Page 70
Analyzing the Data......Page 72
Drawing Conclusions......Page 73
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 74
2 Culture......Page 76
Defining Culture......Page 77
The Challenge of Describing a Culture......Page 78
Culture as a Rough Blueprint......Page 79
Cultural Universals and Particulars......Page 80
Passing on Culture......Page 81
Material Culture......Page 83
Nonmaterial Culture......Page 84
Cultural Variety......Page 89
Subcultures and Countercultures......Page 90
The Home Culture as the Standard......Page 93
Cultural Relativism......Page 95
Culture Shock......Page 96
Reentry Shock......Page 97
Cultural Borrowing......Page 99
Selective Borrowing......Page 100
The Diffusion Process......Page 101
The Connections between Local and Global......Page 103
Four Positions on Globalization......Page 104
Capitalism and Globalization......Page 106
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 108
3 Socialization......Page 110
Acquiring a Sense of Self......Page 111
Developing Human Capacities......Page 112
Internalization......Page 113
3.2 Nature and Nurture......Page 115
Nature and Nurture......Page 116
The Effect of Social Isolation......Page 117
Role-Taking......Page 119
The Self......Page 121
Looking-Glass Self......Page 122
Cognitive Development......Page 123
3.4 The Life Course and Transitions......Page 126
Life Stage Model......Page 127
Life Event Model......Page 129
Resocialization......Page 130
Voluntary versus Imposed Resocialization......Page 131
Primary Groups......Page 133
Mass Media......Page 136
Functionalist Perspective......Page 139
Conflict Perspective......Page 140
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective......Page 141
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 142
4 Social Structures......Page 144
4.1 Defining Social Structure......Page 145
Status and Roles......Page 146
Groups......Page 150
Institutions......Page 151
The Global Assembly Line......Page 154
Disruptions to the Division of Labor......Page 156
Social Networks......Page 157
The Importance of Weak Ties......Page 158
4.3 Formal Organizations......Page 160
Bureaucracy......Page 161
Performance Measures......Page 163
Dyads, Triads, and Beyond......Page 165
Oligarchy......Page 166
Instrumental Rational Action......Page 168
Rationalization......Page 169
McDonaldization of Society......Page 170
Assessing McDonaldization......Page 172
4.6 Workplaces......Page 173
Alienation......Page 174
Empowering versus Alienating Work Environments......Page 175
The Best Work Environments......Page 176
Dramaturgical Theory......Page 177
Emotion Work......Page 178
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 180
5 The Social Construction of Reality......Page 182
Definition of the Situation......Page 183
Self-Fulfilling Prophecies......Page 184
Dispositional and Situational Factors......Page 187
Applying Attribution Theory to AIDS......Page 188
Situational Factors and AIDS......Page 189
5.3 Dramaturgical Model......Page 191
Managing Impressions......Page 192
Front and Back Stage......Page 193
The Self and Impression Management......Page 194
Ethnomethodology......Page 195
Disrupting Social Order......Page 196
Reference Groups......Page 198
Nonmembers as a Reference Group......Page 200
5.6 Ingroups and Outgroups......Page 202
Ingroup-Outgroup Dynamics......Page 203
Multiple Ingroup Identities......Page 205
5.7 Applying Theory: Phenomenology......Page 206
The Social Construction of Reality......Page 207
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 212
6 Deviance......Page 214
Defining Deviance......Page 215
The Sociological Perspective......Page 216
Who Defines What Is Deviant?......Page 218
Sanctions......Page 220
Censorship and Surveillance......Page 221
Obedience to Authority......Page 222
Group Pressure......Page 224
Labeling Theory......Page 226
Categories of Conformists and Deviants......Page 227
The Status of Deviant......Page 229
Deviant Subcultures......Page 230
Differential Opportunity......Page 231
The Structure of Strain......Page 233
Anomie Applied to Financial Crisis......Page 234
Responses to Structural Strain......Page 235
Medicalization......Page 237
Agents of Medicalization......Page 238
The Medicalization Process......Page 240
Consequences of Medicalization......Page 241
Who Goes to Prison?......Page 242
Reasons for High Incarceration Rates......Page 244
6.8 Applying Theory: Post-Structural Theories......Page 245
The Panopticon......Page 246
Post-Structuralism......Page 247
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 248
7 Social Stratifi cation......Page 250
Social Stratifi cation......Page 251
Caste Systems......Page 253
Is the United States a Class System?......Page 254
Karl Marx and Social Class......Page 257
Max Weber and Social Class......Page 259
Determining Social Class......Page 260
7.3 Global Inequality......Page 263
Poverty and Wealth......Page 264
Modernization Theory......Page 267
Dependency Theory......Page 268
Millennium Development Project......Page 270
Criticism of the Millennium Declaration......Page 272
Functionalist Perspective......Page 274
Conflict Perspective......Page 275
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective......Page 277
The Functions of Poverty......Page 278
7.7 The Truly Disadvantaged in the United States......Page 281
Poverty in the United States......Page 282
Intersectionality......Page 285
Penalties and Privileges......Page 286
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 288
8 Race and Ethnicity......Page 290
Defining Race......Page 291
Race as Illusion......Page 292
Racial Formation Theory......Page 294
Race as a Social Construction......Page 295
Defining an Ethnic Group......Page 297
Involuntary Ethnicity and Ethnic Renewal......Page 298
Dominant Group Ethnic Identity......Page 299
8.3 Classifying Race and Ethnicity......Page 301
Official U.S. Racial Categories......Page 302
The Hispanic Ethnic Category......Page 303
The Origins of the Term Hispanic......Page 305
Characteristics of Minority Groups......Page 307
Origins of Racism......Page 312
Flaws in Racist Arguments......Page 313
Prejudice......Page 315
Discrimination......Page 316
Redlining......Page 318
Segregation......Page 319
Ethnic Cleansing......Page 320
Types of Assimilation......Page 321
Integration......Page 323
The Civil Rights Movement......Page 324
Functionalist Perspective......Page 327
Conflict Perspective......Page 328
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective......Page 329
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 330
9 Gender......Page 332
Sex......Page 333
Gender......Page 335
A Third Gender......Page 336
Gender Polarization......Page 338
Life Chances......Page 339
Structural Constraints......Page 340
9.3 Gender Stratification......Page 342
Explaining the Gender Gap......Page 343
Explaining Income Inequalities......Page 346
Workplace Fatalities and Injuries......Page 347
9.4 Gender Socialization......Page 348
Agents of Socialization......Page 349
Norms Governing Body Language......Page 350
Sexuality......Page 352
Sexual Orientation......Page 353
How Is Sexuality Commodified?......Page 354
Social Movements......Page 355
Sexism......Page 357
Homophobia and Hypermasculinity......Page 358
Hypermasculinity and the Military......Page 359
Feminism......Page 360
Feminism’s Activists’ Roots......Page 361
Functionalist Perspective......Page 363
Conflict Perspective......Page 364
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective......Page 365
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 366
10 Economics and Politics......Page 368
10.1 Economic Systems......Page 369
Capitalism......Page 370
Welfare States......Page 371
GDP and National Debt......Page 373
Dependence on Oil and Mineral Imports......Page 374
A Two-Tier Labor Market......Page 375
Decline in Union Membership......Page 376
Job Growth by Sector......Page 377
Multinational Corporations......Page 379
Criticism and Support for Multinationals......Page 381
10.4 Power and Authority......Page 383
Types of Authority......Page 384
The Power Elite......Page 385
Pluralist Model......Page 387
Democracy......Page 389
Totalitarianism......Page 390
Authoritarianism......Page 391
Theocracy......Page 392
Concepts of Power and Dominance......Page 394
Functionalist Perspective......Page 396
Conflict Perspective......Page 397
The Sociology of Immanuel Wallerstein......Page 399
Peripheral Economies......Page 401
Semiperipheral Economies......Page 402
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 404
11 Families......Page 406
Family Arrangements......Page 407
Functionalist View of Family Life......Page 409
Conflict View of Family Life......Page 410
Symbolic Interactionist View of Family Life......Page 411
Family Systems......Page 413
Japan’s Family System......Page 416
Afghanistan’s Family System......Page 418
11.3 Household Structures in the United States......Page 419
The Rise and Fall of the Breadwinner System......Page 420
Sexual Stratifi cation......Page 424
Lesbian and Gay Marriages and Partnerships......Page 427
Generations in the Context of Family......Page 429
Dramatic Increases in Life Expectancy......Page 430
Decline in Parental Authority......Page 431
Economic Status of Children......Page 432
Caregiving......Page 434
Impairment and Disability......Page 437
Caregiving for an Aging Population......Page 438
Critical Theory......Page 440
Caregiving Dynamics......Page 441
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 444
12 Education and Religion......Page 446
Informal and Formal Education......Page 447
Functionalist Perspective......Page 449
Conflict Perspective......Page 450
Tracking......Page 454
Formal and Hidden Curricula......Page 456
12.3 Learning Environments......Page 458
Racial Inequalities: Then and Now......Page 459
Peer Groups......Page 462
Who Goes to College?......Page 464
Funding Higher Education......Page 465
Rewards of Higher Education......Page 467
Defining Religion......Page 468
Society as the Object of Worship......Page 471
The Opiate of the People......Page 472
The Protestant Work Ethic......Page 473
12.6 Civil Religion and Fundamentalism......Page 475
Civil Religion......Page 476
Fundamentalism......Page 477
Secularization......Page 479
12.7 Applying Theory: Contemporary Theoretical Syntheses......Page 480
Habitus and Reproduction......Page 481
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 484
13 The Changing Environment......Page 486
What Has Changed?......Page 487
What Factors Trigger Change?......Page 490
Lifestyles and Carbon Footprints......Page 492
Types of Societies......Page 493
13.3 Population Dynamics......Page 499
Theory of the Demographic Transition......Page 500
Developing Countries......Page 502
Types of Social Movements......Page 504
The Life of a Social Movement......Page 506
Environment and Society......Page 508
Changing Consumption Habits......Page 509
Rational Choice Theories......Page 511
The Case of Brazilian Farmers......Page 512
Research Implications......Page 513
Summary: Putting It All Together......Page 514
14 Sociology at the Forefront......Page 516
Animals and Society......Page 517
Research on Animal Consciousness......Page 518
Corporate Construction of Childhood......Page 520
Ethnographic Methods......Page 521
Globalization and Identity......Page 523
Symbolic Significance......Page 524
A 60-Year-Long Controversy......Page 526
Intended and Unintended Consequences......Page 527
Is It Possible to Maintain Optimal Levels?......Page 528
Negotiating Cross-Gender Interactions......Page 530
Negotiating Same-Gender Interactions......Page 531
Analysis......Page 532
14.6 Stepping Outside Comfort Zones......Page 533
2: Constructing Reality......Page 534
3: The Vastness of the U.S.......Page 535
Summary: Sociology at the Forefront......Page 537
Alphabetized Glossary......Page 538
Glossary by Module......Page 556
References......Page 577
Index......Page 595