Example questions!!!!!!

Know not just the definition but how to apply it 1) Who invented the term sociology and is generally considered the founder of the discipline? a. August Comte, French philosopher, 1838 2) Sociology is a hybrid of which two languages a. Latin and Greek, socio(Latin), logy (Greek) 3) According to C. Wright Mills, what is the sociological imagination? a. Sociological imagination is a bridge between history and biography. History is the large scale forces, biography are individual life experiences. One cannot understand the history of a society or the life of an individual without realizing that they inform each other. 4) What is the definition of Sociology? a. Sociology is the study of the nexus of social relations or web of social interactions that we call society 5) What are the factors that led to the rise of sociology: Protestant Reformation, American Revolution, French Revolution, Scientific Revolution, The Enlightenment, Industrial Revolution? (Know these in detail) relevance to sociology a. Protestant reformation: Martin Luther rebelled against the corruption in the Catholic Church, he attacked tradition and authority. He also translated the bible making it more accessible to people. b. Scientific revolution: Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Newton. The knowledge and experiments led to the enlightenment. c. The enlightenment- Sociological though develops as an offshoot during this period, replacing religion with science. d. Industrial revolution- the structure of social organization and structure developed, movement from rural to urban, rise of industrial capitalist economy, new class structure. e. American Revolution: empowerment of the people, government for the people f. French Revolution: years of social unrest, transforms French society 6) Know Durkheims definition of social fact and what it represents a. A social fact may be defined as any way of acting fixed or not, capable of exerting over the individual and external constraint. According to Durkheim sociology studies social facts, which include aspects that shape our actions

7) Know Durkheims different types of Suicide: Egoistic, Altruistic, Anomic and Fatalistic. Be sure you are able to understand application. a. Egoistic- excessive individualism, no longer feels attached to society, the outcast or outsider b. Altruistic- too much group attachment, too much society, individual counts little, (suicide bombers) c. Anomic- loss of/ little regulation. Lack of religion, morals, money, wealthy people. d. Fatalistic- too much social regulation. (parent who stifles childs individuality) 8) Correlation between social integration and suicide. a. Inversely correlated, lower suicide higher integration, low integration higher suicide. 9) Know Marxs critique of capitalism? Who are the bourgeoisie and proletariat? What is the relationship between them? a. Class exploitation, conflict. Bourgeoisie owner of production, proletariat wage laborer. Exploitation relationship 10) Webers definition and application of the rationalization and bureaucratization of modern life? a. Rationalization- the application of human logic to all spheres of human activity in order to increase efficiency, fast food, valentines day cards b. Bureaucratization- institutions characterized by hierarchal authority, specialized jobs, and fixed procedures

11) Know the major theoretical perspectives in sociology: structural functionalism, conflict theory perspective and symbolic interactionism and be able explain and give examples a. Structural functionalism- sees society as a complex system of interrelated parts that work together to promote solidarity and stability. Family, education b. Conflict theory- sees society as a battle ground of inequality and conflict generates change. It investigates how factors such as race, class, ethnicity, gender, age and education relate to unequal distribution of money, power, and status in society. Taxes on middle class, dont like rich. c. Symbolic interactionism- theoretical approach in sociology developed by George Herbet Mead, which emphasizes the role of symbols and language as core elements of all human interaction. Relate things on the basis of meaning, meaning is not inherent, meaning is transformed. Nigger ma nigga

12) Who was Robert K. Merton? a. Robert k Merton distinguished between manifest and latent functions, used the rain dance example, he was a leader in making functionalism prominent in society. 13) Know the definition and application of manifest and latent functions? a. Manifest functions-the function of a particular social activity that are known to and intended by the individuals involved in the activity. The rain dance to please gods for watering their crops b. Latent functions- functional consequences that are not intended or recognized by members of a social system in which they occur. Rain dance brings the tribe closer together. 14) What is feminist theory and postmodernism? a. Feminist Theory developed to understand the oppression of women in relation to political and economic factors, pushing advancement of the rights of women. Today, critique factors that keep women down b. Post modern theory- argue against grand narratives, marx, weber, one theory that explains everything. Truth is constructed temporarily, there is no absolute truth, we live in a world that is socially constructed, truth is relevant to your social position. 15) What is macrosociology and microsociology? a. Macrosociology studies large scale groups, organizations, social systems. Looks at the big picture. b. Microsociology- study of human behavior in contexts of face-to-face interactions. Close up. 16) What are factual, comparative, developmental and theoretical questions? a. Factual questions- questions that raise issues concerning matters of fact, how old were you when you started..money make b. Comparative questions- questions concerned with drawing comparisons between human societies for the purposed of sociological theory or research. Crime rates in Canada to the US. Prostitution rates between LA and NY

c. Developmental questions- questions that sociologists pose when looking at the origins and path of development of social institutions from the past to the present. How has the type of Latino crime in the 70s 80s 90s 00s changed? d. Theoretical questions- questions posed by sociologists when seeking to explain a particular range of observed events. Generalizing. How does money and social status affect the age of beginning prostitution? 17) What are the 7 steps in the research process? Be able to explain each step. a. Define the problem- what do you want to know b. Review the evidence (prior)- look at whats already been done c. Make the problem precise- hypothesize d. Work out a design- choose a method, survey, experiment, observation e. Carry out the research- collecting the data f. Interpret the results- analyze the info g. Report the findings- SHARE dehmrir 18) What are hypotheses? a. Hypothesis is an idea or guess about a given state of affairs, put forward as a basis for empirical testing. 19) What are ethnographies, participant observation, surveys, and experiments and when to use them? a. Ethnographies are firsthand study of people using participant observation or interviewing, used to interview small groups b. Participant observation is a method of research widely used in sociology and anthropology, in which the researcher takes part in the activities of the group or community being studied. Causes bias because sociologists usually omit hazards or problems. c. Surveys- a method of sociological research in which questionnaires are administered to the population being studied, large number of individuals but may be superficial d. Experiments- research method in which variables can be analyzed in a controlled and systematic wayallow for precise comparisons to be made among answers of respondents, easy to repeat

20) What is comparative research? a. Research that compares one set of findings on one society with the same type of findings on other societies. How social behavior varies across time, place, by ones social group membership. 21) What is triangulation? a. The use of multiple research methods as a way of producing more reliable empirical data than is available from any single method 22) What is meant by informed consent? a. The process whereby the study investigator informs potential participants about the risks and benefits involved in the research study. 23) What ethical dilemmas do sociologists face? Be aware of examples. a. They can witness crimes and not be allowed to say anything because they are part of the observation. b. Needs to have consent of the people first c. Cant reveal sources d. Blah blah blah you get it, its tough. You could get arrested.