Hey, Nacirema!
The symbols, language, beliefs, values, norms, rituals, and artifacts that are part of a society.
What is culture?
This stage is where we engage in behaviors based on our knowledge that others are watching.
The ability to appreciate the structural basis for individual problems
What is The Sociological Imagination?
The specific way capitalists make money, by selling things workers produce.
What is profit?
The family, peer groups, and schools are all examples of the type of institution we learn our culture through.
What are 'agents of socialization'?
The standards and expectations for behaving in a given culture; both formal (mores, laws) and informal (folkways, customs).
What are norms?
A process by which people attempt to influence the perception of others by regulating and controlling information in social interaction.
What is impression management?
This theory emphasizes the importance of social institutions for social stability.
What is functionalism?
This belief system privileges the individual over the group, espousing a worldview where autonomy, independence, and self-reliance are highly valued and thought to be natural.
What is individualism?
Places like the military, where people are 're-socialized' and face strict rules of behavior.
What are 'total institutions'?
Established procedures and ceremonies that mark transition the life course, like graduation.
What are rituals?
This is the stage where we relax, let our guard down, and can be our "true" selves.
What is the "back stage"?
This theory believes society is unequal and that far-reaching social change is needed.
What is conflict theory?
This type of freedom begins with the assumption that human action is inherently social, and real freedom requires more than the removal of barriers.
What is positive (freedom)?
What is the hidden curriculum?
A person’s social assets that help them ‘climb the ladder’ in society; a combination of knowledge, skills, and behaviors that demonstrate status.
What is cultural capital?
The patterned arrangements which influence the choices and opportunities available to people.
What is structure?
This theory emphasizes the social meanings and understanding that individuals derive from their social interactions.
What is symbolic interactionism?
People who believe this myth think we all have a level playing field, and that every individual can 'lift themselves up by their boot straps.'
What is the myth of meritocracy?
Cooley's theory says that we see ourselves as if we are looking in a mirror when we interact with others (and act accordingly).
What is the looking-glass self?
What is "material"?
The capacity of individuals to act independently and to make their own choices.
The belief that several important human behaviors and emotions (competitions, aggression, altruism) stem from our biological makeup.
What is Sociobiology?
The economic system that sociologists see as corresponding historically with the belief system we call individualism.
What is capitalism?
What is the I?