Vocabulary:
1. Sociology- the study of human society and collective human behavior
2. Sociological Imagination- the ability to see the connections between our personal experience and the larger forces of history.
3. Social Institution- is a complex group of interdependent positions that, together, perform a social role and reproduce themselves over time.
Ex: Duke University was once Normal College but changed its name but is still the same institution
Ex: Legal systems, primary and secondary educational systems, educational testing services, wage labor market, and language. They shape every aspect of our behavior but will always be changing because of new things that we encounter.
4. Microsociology- seeks to understand local interactional contexts by including participant observations and in-depth interviews.
Ex: They focus on face to face encounters and the types of interactions between individuals.
5. Macrosociology- generally concerned with social dynamics at a higher level of analysis—across the breadth of society. Statistical analysis is most typical for this type of research.
Ex: Might investigate immigration policies or gender norms.
6. Culture- the sum of social categories and concepts we recognize in addition to our beliefs, behaviors, and practices. A set of beliefs, traditions, and practices. (Everything but nature) **symbols are DNA for culture** (“is the software”)
Ex: Values, norms, beliefs, traditions, customs, worldviews, ideologies, rituals, music, art, images, symbols, texts, race, gender, class, inequality
TWO DIVISIONS OF CULTURE:
A: Nonmaterial Culture- includes values, beliefs, behaviors, and social norms.
B: Material Culture- is everything that is a part of our constructed, physical environment, including technology.
7. Ethnocentrism- the belief that ones own culture or group is superior to others and the tendency to view all other cultures from the perspective of one’s own.
Ex: Some believed that