| 1 |
The Sociological Perspective |
- What is Sociology?
- Theoretical Frameworks of Sociology
- The Sociological Imagination
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- Describe the sociological perspective and relate it to everyday life experiences and to contemporary social issues.
- Explain the three major theoretical perspectives in sociology.
- Define sociological imagination and apply it to social problems.
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| 2 |
Development of Sociology |
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- Describe the historical development of the three major sociological perspectives and list the sociologists who contributed to each.
- Demonstrate your understanding of the history of sociology by naming at least six early sociological thinkers and listing their contributions to the field.
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| 3 |
The Research Process |
- The Scientific Method
- Applying a Code of Ethics
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- Define and identify the basic steps of the scientific method.
- Differentiate between validity and reliability and differentiate between quantitative and qualitative research.
- Explain objectivity and evaluate the objectivity of a researcher in an article from a peer-reviewed journal.
- Discuss the major research designs used by sociologists.
- Discuss the role of technology in sociological research.
- Explain the importance of ethics in sociological research, and give an example.
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| 4 |
Culture and Society |
- Defining Culture
- Cultural Value
- Culture in Flux
- Cultural Values
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- Compare and contrast society versus culture.
- Differentiate between the following elements of a culture: language, norms, sanctions, and values.
- Give examples of cultural universals.
- Explain how sociologists use the terms diffusion and innovation.
- Examine and analyze questions of stereotypes, prejudice, and multicultural controversies.
- Differentiate between subcultures and countercultures.
- Describe what it means to be ethnocentric and give examples.
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| 5 |
Social Structure |
- Social Structure
- Social Roles
- Groups in Societies
- Parts of Complex Societies
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- Understand how we define and reconstruct our social reality.
- Give your own examples of ascribed, achieved, and master statuses.
- Discuss the social roles we acquire throughout our lives.
- Differentiate between role conflict, role strain, and role exit.
- Discuss the role of technology in sociological research.
- List the four stages of role exit.
- Explain what is meant by the term social network.
- Define groups.
- Contrast the functionalist, conflict, and interactionist views of social institutions.
- Describe the characteristics of the hunting-and-gathering society, the horticultural society, the industrial society, and the postindustrial and postmodern society.
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| 6 |
Socialization |
- What Is Socialization?
- Agents of Socialization
- Sociological Theory
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- Explain what is meant by the socialization process.
- Summarize the impact of isolation on both children and primates.
- Name the agents of socialization and rank their importance.
- Discuss what research tells us about the influence of heredity on social development (nature vs. nurture).
- Compare and contrast the development of self-identify as described by Charles Horton Cooley, by George Herbert Mead, and by Jean Piaget.
- Explain the significance of gender roles and how those roles relate to rites of passage. Differentiate between anticipatory socialization and resocialization.
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| 7 |
Deviance |
- Deviance
- Facets of Deviance
- Deviance and Sociological Theory
- Deviance and Crime
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- Explain the concept of social control.
- Provide examples of formal and informal social control.
- Explain how sociologists use the term deviance.
- List and describe Merton’s five adaptations people make according to the anomie theory of deviance.
- Summarize the various theories of deviant behavior.
- Describe what sociologists mean when they talk about cultural transmission.
- Give examples of types of crime. Discover and analyze patterns found in crime statistics.
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| 8 |
Social Stratification |
- Defining Social Stratification
- Social Stratification
- Stratification Theory
- Aspects of Stratification
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- Identify characteristics of the following systems of stratification: slavery, castes, estates, and social classes.
- Examine stratification from the functionalist and conflict perspectives.
- Differentiate between open and closed stratification systems.
- Define the problems associated with the culture of poverty.
- Define the threshold of poverty.
- Discuss social mobility in the United States.
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| 9 |
Social Inequality |
- Defining Social Inequality
- Terms Associated with Inequality
- Responses to Inequality
- Social Inequality Theory
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- Identify the five basic properties of a minority group.
- Differentiate between the biological significance of race and the social construction of race.
- Distinguish between prejudice and discrimination.
- Explain what the term institutional discrimination means.
- Differentiate between sexism, sex discrimination, and sexual harassment.
- Describe the effects of ageism.
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| 10 |
Social Institutions: The Family |
- Defining Family
- Family Structure
- Challenges to Families
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- Explain the functions of the family as a social institution.
- Explain the challenges to family life in America today.
- Compare and contrast traditional, blended, and extended families.
- Explain what the term institutional discrimination means.
- List at least four factors that contribute to divorce.
- Explain how family violence violates the protection function of a family.
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| 11 |
Social Institutions: Government, Economy, and the Environment |
- Defining Government and Economy
- Economic Systems
- Political Systems
- The Environment
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- Identify basic social institutions and how they contribute to the transmission of society’s values
- Compare and contrast democracy, socialism, and communism.
- Explain the relationship between the global economy and multinational corporations.
- Explain the concept of deindustrialization and its impact on the American economy.
- Identify the three basic sources of power within any political system.
- Discuss models of power structure in the United States.
- Discuss sociological approaches to war.
- Compare and contrast the conflict and functionalist views of environmental issues.
- Explain the connection between population growth and the environment.
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| 12 |
Social Institutions: Religion, Education, and Health Care |
- Defining Social Institutions
- Religion
- Education
- Health Care
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- Identify basic social institutions and how they contribute to the transmission of society’s values
- Develop a chart that illustrates the four functions of religion.
- Compare and contrast the views on religion of Marx, Durkheim, and Weber.
- Discuss why education can be seen as a transmitter of culture.
- Explain how education is used as a tool to maintain social control.
- Discuss the idea of the hidden curriculum.
- Contrast the Interactionist view of education with that of the Functionalist and Conflict views.
- Compare and contrast the Functionalist and Conflict approaches to health and illness in our society.
- Explain how health profiles of many racial and ethnic minorities reflect the social inequality that is evident in the United States.
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| 13 |
Social Change |
- Collective Behavior
- Social Movements
- Theories of Social Change
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- Define collective behavior and identify its six determinants.
- Explain how sociologists use the terms traditional social movements
- Compare and contrast the three theoretical approaches to change: evolutionary, functionalist, and conflict theory.
- List and discuss the four processes of social change according to Parsons. Discuss the factors involved in resistance to social change and technology.
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| 14 |
Review |
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- Review of the course topics
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