Transcript Sociology Unit 1 - Introduction and Culturex-1

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What is Sociology?
Mandy Peterson
Lincoln High School
Spring 2013
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Sociological Questions:
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Why do some students always sit in the back
of the classroom while others sit in front?
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Why do African Americans in predominantly
white colleges frequently say “hi” to other
African American students, even if they don’t
know them?
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Why do people face front in the elevator and
avoid eye contact?
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Why do we dress baby girls in pink and baby
boys in blue?
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Sociological Questions:
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Ground Rules
• One person talks at a time
• No names/gossip
• Respect
• Support your views with evidence
• Think of multiple perspectives
• Others?
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Sociology is:
The scientific study of interactions and relations among human
beings.
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4 parts:
• Scientific
• Interactions
• Relations
• Humans
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3 Questions:
• What is the human being?
• What holds the social organization together?
• What are the causes and consequences of social inequality?
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History of Sociology
Two factors contributed to philosophers converting
into sociologists:
1. The social change of nineteenth-century Europe
2. Advancement of the Natural Sciences
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Perspectives in Sociology:
Functionalist:
• emphasizes the contributions made by each part of the
society.
Conflict:
• portrays society as always changing and always
marked by conflict
Symbolic Interactionist:
• focuses on details of a specific situation and the
interaction between individuals in that situation
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Is this funny?
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Emile Durkheim:
Suicide
• Why is this such a taboo topic
• What factors contribute to suicide?
• Do you think attitudes toward suicide
vary around the world?
Article: Emile Durkheim
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C. Wright Mills:
American sociologist who conceptualized the
term “sociological imagination”.
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Sociological imagination is the ability to look
beyond what he called the personal troubles
of the individuals to see the public issues of
social structure – that is, the social forces
operating in the larger society.
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What does this mean?
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Sociological Imagination:
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Example
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Culture:
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Handout: Definitions of culture
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Questions for discussion:
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2.
3.
What elements must culture include?
What are some examples of cultures?
Write a personal definition for culture
and be prepared to share it with the
class.
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Culture – Group Influence:
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Solomon Asch - conformity
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Culture – Group Influence:
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Solomon Asch - conformity
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Culture – Group Influence:
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• Stanley Milgram – obedience to authority
• Women?
• Culture?
• Age?
• Group size?
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Culture – Group Influence:
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• The Stanford Prison Study – Zimbardo
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Culture – Fundamental Attribution
Error:
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Situational attributions
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Dispositional attributions
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The error
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Garfinkel – Accounts
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accounting is the means by which people engage in
sense-making. In other words, something becomes
socially "real" only when it has been talked about, and the
nature of this "reality" emerges as the person or person
keeps talking – important to look at what people
emphasize
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Example: Describe a situation in which you were wronged
or betrayed
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Culture – Attraction:
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Homophily – tendency to choose similar
partners
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Video: Candid Camera
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Video: The Science of Sex Appeal
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Claus Wedekind - Article
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Culture – Characteristics and
Elements:
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Scripts
Schema
Typifications – example: incest
Symbols
Language
Norms and Values
Beliefs
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Culture – Characteristics and
Elements:
• Sanctions as a means of instilling culture
• Sanctions are meant to “fix” behavior
• formal (prison) or
• informal (silent treatment)
• What do Americans value? (2 minute
brainstorm)
• What does your family value? (2 minute
brainstorm)
• Are there sanctions in your family? (1 minute
brainstorm)
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Family Culture - example
Term
general
principle
primary
principle
secondary
principle
example
example
Script (expected
behaviors)
family comes
first – always
Faripour’s are
mentally more
capable than
most
God intends for
women to be
subject to men
selfishness is a
high sin
Norm
(expectations for
how people
behave)
Value (moral,
long-term ends
worth working
for)
Belief
/truth(things
assumed to be
true, taken for
granted)
Goal (practical
shorter-term
ends worth
working for)
self-control at all
times
put others first
keep quiet if you
are
uncomfortable
sex before
marriage is not
necessarily
sinful, but is a
sign of weakness
empty chairs go
to the adults first
mutual,
unconditional
support
self-sufficiency –
don’t ask for
“stuff”
obedience
(knowing your
place)
get married and
have children,
get an education
be generous and
give what you
can (or more)
family will
always be there
for you
spending time is
seen as a
measurement of
caring
deference to
others is a sign
of respect
dress up for
family occasions
college is not
optional
maintain an
orderly life
maintain an
orderly
room/house
do what you say
you are going to
do
don’t talk back
everybody will
be at the dinner
table at 6 o’clock
save the best
piece for
somebody else
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Cultural Diversity
• Ethnocentrism
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Viewing one’s own group as the center
We see it in comedy – who do we poke fun at?
• Subcultures
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Religions, regional (southernors), hobbies, sexual
orientation
• Countercultures
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Subcultures perceived as a threat to parent culture –
KKK, neo-Nazi
• Global Culture
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Culture In Society
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Culture as cohesive, functional
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Culture as a source of improvisation, diversity,
innovation
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Popular culture and the mass media
• Miss Representations
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Culture In Society
Investigation into a range of cases suggests that it is
useful to classify the techniques used by perpetrators to
prevent or reduce adverse reactions to their actions into
five main methods: (Social mechanisms for injustice)
• covering up the action;
• devaluing the target;
• reinterpreting the events;
• using official channels to give the appearance of justice;
• intimidating and bribing participants and witnesses.
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Culture – Summary:
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• The MyLai Massacre
• The Most Hated Family in America