The Meaning of Sociology

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ISBN: 9780138133283 | 013813328X
Cover: Paperback
Copyright: 6/16/2008

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This classic introduction to sociology as aperspectivegives students a sound understanding of key sociological concepts as well as insight into how sociologists view society and human beings. Clearly written and organized, it shows students how the various aspects of sociology fit together-and are relevant to their own lives.

Preface	p. xiii
The Nature of Sociology
The Discipline of Sociology	p. 1
What Is Sociology?	p. 2
Sociology Is an Academic Discipline	p. 2
Sociology Focuses on Our Social World	p. 3
Sociology Asks Three Questions	p. 3
Sociology Focuses on Five Topics	p. 4
Sociology Is a Scientific Discipline	p. 5
The Meaning of Sociology: A Summary	p. 8
The Beginnings of Sociology	p. 8
Science Was an Inspiration ...	p. 8
And So Were the Problems of Industrialization ...	p. 9
And the Need to Understand Revolution ...	p. 9
As Well as Experiences with Other Peoples and Societies ...	p. 9
And a Climate for New Ideas Arose	p. 10
The Development of Sociology	p. 10
Conclusion and Summary	p. 12
Questions to Consider	p. 13
Recommended Reading	p. 13
Sociology as a Perspective: How Sociologists Think	p. 17
Humans Are Social Beings	p. 18
Humans Exist Within Social Patterns	p. 19
Humans Are Socialized	p. 20
Durkheim: The Study of Suicide	p. 22
Durkheim's Theory	p. 23
Durkheim's Evidence	p. 23
Extending His Theory	p. 24
Durkheim's Influence	p. 26
Sociology: A Summary	p. 27
Questions to Consider	p. 27
References	p. 27
Recommended Reading	p. 28
Humans Are Embedded in Social Organization	p. 31
Organization Begins with Social Action	p. 31
Mutual Social Action Is Social Interaction	p. 33
Social Organization Is Patterned Social Interaction	p. 34
The Forms of Social Organization	p. 36
Dyads Are Twos	p. 36
Groups Are More	p. 37
Formal Organizations Write Down Their Rules	p. 38
Communities Are Self-Sufficient Units of Organization	p. 39
Societies Are the Most Inclusive Form of Organization	p. 40
Social Organization Seems to Sit Right on Top of US	p. 41
Questions to Consider	p. 43
References	p. 43
Recommended Reading	p. 43
Social Structure	p. 47
We All Fill Positions in Social Structure	p. 47
Roles Are Attached to Positions	p. 49
Roles Are Not as Simple as a Script in a Play	p. 50
Status Positions Form Our Identities	p. 52
Positions Are Unequal	p. 54
Unequal Power	p. 56
Unequal Prestige	p. 56
Unequal Privileges	p. 57
Our Positions Also Give Us Our Perspectives	p. 58
Summary: The Meaning and Importance of Structure	p. 59
Questions to Consider	p. 59
References	p. 59
Recommended Reading	p. 60
The Nature of Social Organization
Inequality in Society	p. 63
The Meaning of Social Class	p. 66
Gender and Race	p. 67
Class, Race, and Gender Structures Are Special Social Structures	p. 68
Social Stratification Affects Placement in Other Social Organizations	p. 69
The Origin of Social Stratification Systems	p. 70
Social Mobility	p. 71
Structural Change	p. 72
Marx's View of Social Stratification	p. 73
Summary	p. 74
Questions to Consider	p. 75
References	p. 75
Recommended Reading	p. 75
Culture	p. 81
Culture Is a Shared Perspective on the World	p. 81
Culture Is Learned	p. 82
Culture Is a Social Inheritance	p. 82
Culture Is a Body of "Truth"	p. 83
Culture Is a Set of Values	p. 85
Values Are Reflected in Action	p. 86
There Is an American Value System, but It Is Complex and Often Inconsistent	p. 87
Culture Is a Set of Goals	p. 88
Culture Is a Set of Norms	p. 89
Culture, Subculture, and Counterculture	p. 90
Culture Is Important	p. 91
The Real Significance of Culture: The Social Construction of Reality	p. 91
Summary	p. 92
Questions to Consider	p. 92
References	p. 93
Recommended Reading	p. 93
Social Institutions	p. 97
Institutions Are Social Patterns	p. 97
Social Institutions Are the Most Central Grooves in Society	p. 98
Institutions Are the Central Ways a Society Functions and Solves Its Ongoing Problems	p. 98
Institutions Are Widely Accepted and Deeply Entrenched	p. 99
Social Institutions Are Real Forces Working on Actors	p. 101
The Meaning of Institutions: A Summary	p. 102
Institutions Are Important	p. 104
Institutionalization and Deinstitutionalization	p. 105
The Rejection of Social Institutions	p. 105
Summary	p. 106
Questions to Consider	p. 107
References	p. 107
Recommended Reading	p. 107
Organizations, Societies, and Globalization	p. 111
Social Organizations Influence Each Other	p. 111
Society in the World Order	p. 113
Karl Marx: A Future Worldwide Capitalist Order	p. 113
Immanuel Wallerstein: Core Societies, Semi-Peripheral Societies, and Peripheral Societies	p. 114
Globalization in the Twenty-First Century: Economic, Political, and Cultural	p. 115
The Meaning of Globalization	p. 115
Economic Globalization	p. 116
Cultural Globalization	p. 117
Political Globalization	p. 117
The Criticisms of Globalization	p. 118
Conclusion and Summary	p. 119
Questions to Consider	p. 119
References	p. 120
Recommended Reading	p. 120
Order and Power in Social Organization
Social Order, Social Control, and Social Deviance	p. 123
Social Order Is Established Through Structure and Culture	p. 124
Social Order Depends on Working Institutions	p. 126
Social Order Depends on Socialization	p. 127
Loyalty to the Organization Is the Fifth Foundation for Social Order	p. 129
Social Controls Contribute to Social Order	p. 131
Social Deviance	p. 132
Summary	p. 134
Questions to Consider	p. 135
References	p. 136
Recommended Reading	p. 136
Social Power	p. 139
The Meaning of Social Power	p. 139
Three Definitions of Power	p. 139
Resources and Social Power	p. 140
Influence, Control, and Powerlessness	p. 140
Authority	p. 141
The Inevitability of Inequality in Organization	p. 142
Class Position and Power	p. 143
Organization as Power	p. 144
Three Theories of Power	p. 145
Pluralism	p. 145
The Power Elite	p. 146
The Corporate Elite	p. 147
Summary	p. 148
Questions to Consider	p. 149
References	p. 149
Recommended Reading	p. 150
The Dynamic Nature of Human Social Life
Symbols, Self, and Mind: Our Active Nature	p. 153
Individuality and Freedom	p. 154
How Can We Explain Individuality?	p. 155
The Origin of Human Freedom	p. 156
Human Beings Are Symbol Users	p. 156
The Meaning of Symbols	p. 157
The Importance of Symbols	p. 158
Symbols and Freedom	p. 159
We Possess Self and Mind	p. 159
Summary	p. 161
Questions to Consider	p. 162
Recommended Reading	p. 163
Social Change	p. 165
Individual Change and Social Change	p. 165
Acts of Individuals and Groups Change Organization	p. 166
Social Conflict Changes Organization	p. 169
External Social Organizations and Environments Change Social Organization	p. 170
Technology Changes Social Organization	p. 172
Changes in Population Change Social Organization	p. 174
Change in Social Patterns Causes Change in Other Social Patterns	p. 175
Summary	p. 176
Questions to Consider	p. 177
References	p. 177
Recommended Reading	p. 177
The Family in Society	p. 181
The Importance of the Family to Sociology	p. 181
Meaning of the Family	p. 182
Is the Family Universal?	p. 182
Why Is Definition Difficult?	p. 183
The Family: A Primary Group in a Household	p. 183
The Family: The Socialization Function	p. 184
The Family: Economic and Social Functions	p. 184
The Family: The Social Class Placement Function	p. 184
The Family: The Expressive Function	p. 185
The Meaning of the Family: A Summary	p. 185
Marriage as an Institution	p. 185
The Changing Structure of Marriage	p. 187
Marital Satisfaction	p. 188
Divorce	p. 189
Children and Socialization in the Family	p. 190
Individual Choice and the Changing Family	p. 191
Summary	p. 192
Questions to Consider	p. 193
References	p. 193
Recommended Reading	p. 194
Religion, Society, and the Individual	p. 197
The Industrial Revolution: Religion and the Beginning of Sociology	p. 197
Auguste Comte (1798-1857): The Death of the Sacred	p. 198
Ferdinand Toennies (1855-1936): Religion and Community	p. 199
Karl Marx (1818-1883): Religion as the Opiate of the Masses	p. 200
Emile Durkheim (1858-1917): Meaning and Function of Religion	p. 201
Religion and the Creation of the Sacred	p. 201
Religion's Creation and Function Is Social	p. 201
Religion Creates and Upholds the Morality of Society	p. 202
Religion Is Important for the Individual	p. 202
The Future of Society	p. 203
Max Weber (1864-1920): Religion, the Rationalization of Life, and Social Change	p. 203
The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism: Religious Thought Influences Economic Action	p. 203
Rationalization of Life and the Future of Religion	p. 204
Charismatic Authority and the Role of Religion in Social Change	p. 205
Weber: A Summary	p. 205
The Heritage of Sociology from the Early Sociologists: Conclusion	p. 205
The Study of Religion in the Late-Modern World	p. 206
Secularization: Is Religion Becoming Less Important Today?	p. 206
The Role of Fundamentalism	p. 208
Organized Religion and Individual Spirituality	p. 209
Summary: The Sociology of Religion	p. 210
Questions to Consider	p. 211
References	p. 211
Recommended Reading	p. 212
Conclusion
The Meaning and Uses of Sociology	p. 215
The Uses of Sociology	p. 217
Questions to Consider	p. 219
Reference	p. 219
Recommended Reading	p. 219
Index	p. 221
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