030 Sociology Exam 1 Notes:
What is sociology and why is it important?
Part 1: Culture
- Sociology helps us look at things and people we dont understand
o We tend to question, reject, or judge things we dont understand
- Culture influences everything we think, do and believe
Some Characteristics of American Culture:
- fast food
- big spaces
- excessive things
- wastefulness
- little pub transport
Characteristics of College Culture:
- independence
- drinking
- hooking up
- THON
Culture:
- What is culture? It is the physical and emotional world of a distinct group of people.
o Physical (some examples): iPod, work, food, clothing, behavior, art, tools
o Emotional: beliefs, attitudes, religion, spirituality, stories
Part 2: Sociology and the Contexts Around Us
- Sociology helps us understand our culture
o What is sociology? Sociology is:
It is the scientific study of human social life with interest in finding patterns
o The way of looking at things is called sociological imagination
Sociological imagination: when we consider how culture and history influences
lives and then how our choices influence these contexts
- Contexts we deal with:
o Global Context: Climate change, war, food quality, globalization, global economy,
peace, loss of species, time in history
o National Context: economy, political system, laws, cultural values, media, religious
climate
o Community Context: access to jobs, schools, racial attitudes, religious climate,
resources for kids, peer influence, wealth of area
o Home Context: family composition, parents values, religious training, sibling relations,
money, rules
- Each person is surrounded and influenced by many contexts/cultures
o Contexts and cultures are always interrelated and always in action in the US
Part 3: How Do We Explain the Things We See?
- We rely on private and public explanations
- Private: relies on qualities of an individual to explain a behavior/situation
o Example: personality affects the judgments you make
o Private explanations can be an excuse or judgment
Private explanations are useful when an even is rare
- Public: include as aspects of the individuals social context to explain the behavior
Part 4: Thats How I Was Raised
- Determinism vs. Freedom
- Determinism: we are the product of our social world
o Culture, environment, and socialization determine who we are
o We are molded and have to conform
Culture/society will never support you being you
Society/culture has no care for your freedom or happiness
-
Freedom: we are socialized and learn the ways of our cultures and group AND we have a
choice and responsibility for ourselves
o Freedom makes us NOT want to be societys victim
- Any culture is simply a reflection of its members
- When we change, the culture also changes
**Some things to know: definition of sociology, sociological imagination, public/private explanation,
determinism vs. freedom, sociological explanation of culture
Things DEFINED as real become REAL in their consequences
- Socially constructed beliefs home real consequences
- Socially constructed beliefs have consequences:
o Culturally accepted
o Socialization: Internalization of socially constructed beliefs by individuals
o Reinforced by actions of individuals and groups (another form of socialization)
o Becomes the correct way
- Ethnocentrism: the belief that ones own culture is superior to all others
o Judgment of other cultures
Example shown in class: South Koreans eating raw octopi which caused most of
the class to be disgusted.
- Stereotypes: rigid and inaccurate images that summarize a belief
Social Construction of Beliefs
- Groups: can be societies/cultures/clubs/families
o The group decides what is true or right and then lives by these rules
- Example of social construction: Saliva vs. spit saliva is natural, spit is dirty/disrespectful
- Beliefs shape our attitudes toward others and shape what we allow ourselves to do
- Shared beliefs are reinforced by the culture
o Examples: reinforcement by media, magazines, newspapers (work by showing the
violators of the rules of society and that in turn reinforces the shared beliefs of the
culture), laws, religious teachings, family training (socialization), public opinion and
behavior, peers
o Laws are socially constructed
- Socially Constructed Ideas: change over time and place (did they believe it 100 years ago?)
o Are our definitions of family socially constructed?
Changes in family over time: Black and white marriage illegal until 1967,
polygamy was legal until 1878, premarital sex, cohabitation, and gay families
were taboo
Changes in family over place: polygamy in the US
- When we believe that our social constructions are the only correct way, we feel justified in
persecuting those with different beliefs
**Think of some real life examples of the power of beliefs, social construction and how it works
What is a Family?
- Family is defined in our culture in 2 ways
o Census Definition (Federal) and Individual State Laws
- Census: 2 or more individuals sharing a household, related by marriage blood, or adoption
o Does NOT define based on emotion
o Based on legality: family can be proven legally (evidence of bonds show with
certificates paperwork)
-
State Laws: have the most control in defining a family
o Some rules: marriage cannot be incestuous (unrelated), must be heterosexual (DOMA),
2 people only, parents have a lot of rights over their children (the state is hesitant to
step in and interfere in parenting)
- Why do states care enough to make laws on private behavior
o Family is seen as the foundation of society
o Family performs important functions for society through its effects on individuals
o Many believe that family problems = societal problems
Gender and Families
Part 1: Sex vs. Gender
- What is sex?
o Biological/genitals/hormonal makeup
Basically, it is your genital appearance at birth
- How many sexes are there?
o 2 Male and Female but what about the third sex? Intersex?
- What is gender?
o Gender is a socially constructed belief for what it means to be a male or female in a
particular culture, place, and time
o Gender is comprised of learned behaviors, characteristics, and expectations based on
our biological sex label
- Basically sex differs from gender: sex IS NOT the same as gender
- Sex is your biological composition while gender is the idea of what is expected of a certain
gender
Part 2: Where Does Gender Come From?
- How do we learn about gender?
o Socialization: process by which we learn ways of our society or group so we can
function in it.
Gender socialization: process of learning our societys gender rules and how to
behave according to what society considers appropriate for our gender
Part 3: What are the Traditional Gender Expectations of our Culture?
- Men: Traditional Expectation Instrumental (gets things done)
o 1. Emotions: bad communicator, insensitive, hides tender emotions, caring, detached
from feelings
o 2. Interaction #1: drama-free, aggressive, protector, fearless, analytical, dominant,
violent
o 3. Interaction #2: lazy, piggish, funny, smelly, dirty, irresponsible, goofy, simple,
dumb, boys will be boys
o 4. Sexuality: looking for sex, cheaters, dirty, sexy, driven by sex, jealous, expected to
be good at sex, in control regarding sex, heterosexual, the initiator
o 5. Family: breadwinner, provider, hard worker, NO MENTION OF FATHER
however, he IS a father, problem solver, self sacrifice, disciplinarian
o 6. Appearance: taller than women, deep voice, hairy, hungrier, muscular, big
- Men: Modern Gender Expectations:
o More involved in child care and housework, better at communicating
- Women: Traditional Expectation Expressive
o 1. Emotions: overly emotional, sensitive, moody, needy, insecure, weak, loving,
sympathetic, supportive, mature, smart, kind, good at loving
o 2. Interaction: dependent, sweet, polite, attentive, shy, dramatic, wants attention, crazy,
catty (gossipy), materialistic, wants to talk/analyze
o 3. Sexuality: sexy, cheaters, temptation, slut, flirty, inexperienced, gatekeeping on sex,
good girl vs. bad girl
Sexuality is rarely mentioned when describing girls
o 4. Family: nurturing, motherly, planning baby related stuff, good for the kitchen,
housekeepers, responsible,
o 5. Appearance: small, fragile, delicate, beautiful, pretty, petite, eat less,, beauty
conscious
- Women: Modern Gender Expectation
o Balances both work AND family, career, her own money
We are all combinations of both masculine and feminine characteristics and are expected to show both
sides.
- Things defined as real are real in their consequences
o Baby description experiment
Part 4: How Do the Cultural Expectations Become Part of Us?
- The socialization process (process of learning the socially constructed beliefs so that you can
function in your group):
o 1. Observation
o 2. Imitation
o 3. Instruction
o 4. Rewards/Punishment
o 5. Internalization (gender identity)
o 6. Socializing with Other People (reinforcing)
- Stigma: an attribute that is deeply discrediting and reduces the person (in our minds) from a
whole or normal person to one who is tainted or no longer normal
- Internalization: when the messages become our own. Part of forming a gender identity
- Gender identity: our understanding of ourselves as male or female and what that means in our
culture.
o Is formed early in childhood
o Formed by socialization
o Can be biological predetermined
o Gender socialization and gender identity play an intertwined role in our lives: gender
identity gender socialization and gender socialization gender identity
Part 5: Where Do Kids Get Information About Gender?
- Family: First socializer
- Media
- School, teachers and peers
- Parents behaviors
- Infant girls are held and cuddled more
- Infant boys are jostled and more likely to be engaged in rough and tumble play
- Different expectations:
- School: Boys good at science and math while girls are good at English and social studies
- Appearance: there is more focus/attention given to girls appearances
- Household chores: boy take out trash, girls do dishes
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