Review Notes – Sociology 101 – Morrisville State College – Final Exam

Major Concepts to Review for Final Exam:

Introduction - Chapter 1

- What is the function of a science of society?
- What were the social conditions that were changing in Europe in the 1800s to prompt these sociologists to write about their societies?
- How have three different classical sociologists explain different types of societies?
- Who invented the term sociology?
... When?
... Where?
... Why?
---- Durkheim: Structural-functionalism
---- Marx: Social Conflict
---- Weber: Symbolic Interaction
- What is the sociological imagination?
- What is a social institution?
- How do norms and roles relate to institutions?
- What is the difference between macro and micro level sociology?


Doing Social Science - Chapter 2

- How is the scientific method defined?
- What is a hypothesis? What is a theory?
- What are the four "foundations of belief"?
- What are the "norms" of science? (NOTTUS)
- What is NOT science?
- What are the typical methods of sociological research?
- What is the difference between a research method's reliability and its validity?

Culture - Chapter 3

- What is the definition of culture?
- What are the concepts of subculture, counterculture, and ethnocentricity?
- What are the four components of culture:
... What are Symbols?
... What is Language?
... What are Values, Beliefs, and Norms?
- What are the characteristics of a globalization of culture?


Types of Societies and Social Construction - Chapter 4

- How is food production related to social development?
- What types of societies have developed in relation to food production?
- What is Social Status? (what are: status set, ascribed status, achieved status?)
- What is a Social Role? (what are: role set, role conflict, role strain, role exit, role synchonicity?)
- What does the Social Construction of Reality mean?
- What is the Thomas Theorem?
- What is Ethnomethodology?
- What is Dramaturgy?

Socialization - Chapter 5

- What is the definition of socialization?
- What is the definition of personality?
- What is the nature vs. nurture debate?
- What effect does social isolation have on people? Give an example.
- Who/What are our agents of socialization?
- What were the ideas about role-taking ability identified with George Mead?


Social Groups and Conformity - Chapter 6

- What is a Social Group (vs. category or crowd)?
- What are the differences between a primary and secondary group?
- What are reference groups, and in/out groups?
- What does the phrase "six degrees of separation" mean?
- What is the Asch line experiment and what are the two types of conformity he discovered?
- What is the Milgram shock experiment and what does it show?


Deviance - Chapter 7

- How is deviance defined (violation of norms - expected behavior; neither good nor bad; demand sanctions)
- What are the social functions of deviance according to Durkheim?
- What does it mean to say that deviance is defined by power (Marx/conflict theory)?
- What is 'Labeling Theory'? (primary vs. secondary deviance; stigma)
- What are the four parts of the criminal justice system?
- What different types of sanctions exist in the criminal justice system?
- Why is the U.S. the nation with the highest incarceration rate in the world?

- Define stratification.
- How are social stratification categories socially constructed?
- What are the measures of stratification? (the 3 P's)
- What is the difference between Caste, Estate, and Class stratification?
- What are the relative class rankings in the U.S. (lower, middle, upper, etc.)?
- What is the functionalist perspective on inequality?
- What is the conflict theory perspective on inequality?

Human Population and Urbanization - Chapter 20

- What is the world population today and how has it changed over time?
- What is the J-curve?
- What are Fertility and Mortality?
- What is the population growth formula?
- What is the Demographic Transition? What do the stages on the graph represent?
- What is cultural lag?
- What are the effects of high fertility and decreasing mortality in developing countries?
- What is a megacity?
- What is the history of megacity growth, and where are they growing?
- What are the urban social issues arising from population growth?

Environmental Sociology - Chapter 20

- What are the logic and limits of growth?
- What are the chief toxic wastes entering our environment from industrial/agricultural uses?
- What are the causes and consequences of climate change?
- What other environmental problems exist due to human industrialization and urbanization?
- How can these environmental problems be addressed so they have a limited effect on future generations?