sociology discussion
need 1 post and 2 responses, each 200 words
need in 24 hours
Week 4
SOSHTalk Assignment
Formatting Reminders
(for full instructions and grading rubric, please review the SOSHTalk Discussion Board folder under “Week 3”)
each post must be 200+ words
APA citations and references are required for your initial post (and in response posts if material from the textbook or assigned web links is used)
initial post (your response to the weekly Assignment) is due by Friday, your responses to classmate’s initial posts are due by Sunday; all posts are due on separate days – late posts will lose 5 points a day
proof read and edit before uploading your posts
include a Word Count (WC) for each post before your Reference(s)
Preparation
Read Chapter 12, The Family and Household Diversity, in your text. Your assignment must be informed by information from the chapter. No outside/web sources, please.
Attend the Week 4 Keiser Live! session or view the recording.
Review the
Purdue OWL
for instructions and examples of formatting in text citations and references. In-text citations go in the paragraph and the reference list is located after the Word Count at the end of your paper.
https://owl.purdue.edu/
Assignment
Based on information you learned in the chapter (not personal opinion or experience), answer the following questions:
If a matchmaker was going to arrange a marriage for you based on the the social norms associated with partnering in the US (including rules of endogamy/exogamy), who would likely be selected for you (gender, sexual orientation, race, socioeconomic status, etc)? (remember this question is NOT asking you what the characteristics are of a person you would select for yourself, but speaks to the social norms that we tend to follow by being socialized in the US).
How would this person be similar to and different from who you think you would choose for yourself?
Make sure to take into account social norms for partnering in terms of gender, race, socioeconomic status, rules of endogamy/exogamy,etc.
Click on “Week 4 SOSHTalk” then on “Create Thread” to post your Initial Post. Use the “Reply” option at the bottom of your classmate’s posts to respond to their comments.
responses to two other student initial posts
1.
According to Schaefer (2019), “Endogamy specifies that people are expected to marry within their own racial, ethnic, or religious group.” Conversely, “exogamy requires mate selection outside certain groups, usually outside one’s own family or certain kinfolk,” (Schaefer, 2019). If Schaefer were the matchmaker that is going to arrange a marriage for me on the social norms associated with partnering in the United States, he would choose exogamy. As stated by Schaefer (2019), “In the United States, love is important in the courtship process and is considered a rationale for marriage.” In other parts of the world, financial considerations often take precedence over romantic relationships, and parents or religious authorities can plan arranged marriages. Marriage in the United States of America is monogamous and is normally with the opposite sex.
I think the matchmaker would choose exogamy for me. The matchmaker would choose the opposite sex with similar norms as it relates to culture, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, class, and a strong sense of family. Also, it would not matter if she were religious or not. Even though I am an African American male and I am married to an African American woman, I did not get married to her because of race. I got married to her because I love her which is a norm that was earlier stated by Schaefer (2019).
Word count: 225
References
Schaefer, R. T. (2019). Sociology: A brief introduction (13th ed). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
2.
For a matchmaker to arrange a marriage for me today based upon the social norms of partnering in America, they would choose exogamy; according to Schaefer (2019), exogamy “requires mate selection outside certain groups, usually one’s family or certain kinfolk” (p.269). The matchmaker, I hope, would take into account homogamy, “the conscious or unconscious tendency to select a mate with personal characteristics similar to one’s own” (Schaefer, 2019). The selected individual would have to be open to monogamy, one partner, and heterosexual someone who is being of the opposite gender for marriage. As for the social norms that we follow today, a selected partner would be female, heterosexual, white, and middle-class. As stated in Schaefer 2019, “most couples met their partners through family or friends in their neighborhood or workplace. Today, however, many couples meet on the Internet, through online dating service” (p.268). You tend to search out those with similar social norms within online dating you are most accustomed to finding a match.
From the standpoint of the matchmaker’s choice of a partner, the similarities I see are monogamy, heterosexual, and some of the social norms based on the environment you live in at that moment of time. Still, just like time, things change as your social environment changes as you grow as a person, both physically and mentally. According to Schaefer (2019),” many people are expected to marry within their racial, ethnic, or religious group, and are strongly discouraged or even prohibited from marrying outside the group (p.268). “I, for one, do not take this into account when looking for a partner as I look more for the qualities and interests similar to my own and not be a partner of “socially acceptable” ( p.268) or by status but rather mutual feelings, principles, and interest.
WC: 297
References
Schaefer, R. T. (2019). Sociology: A brief introduction (13th ed). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Page iii
sociology
a brief introduction
13th edition
Richard T. Schaefer
DePaul University
Page iv
SOCIOLOGY: A BRIEF INTRODUCTION, THIRTEENTH EDITION
Published by McGraw-Hill Education, 2 Penn Plaza, New York, NY 10121.
Copyright © 2019 by McGraw-Hill Education. All rights reserved. Printed in
the United States of America. Previous editions © 2017, 2015, and 2013. No
part of this publication may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by
any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior
written consent of McGraw-Hill Education, including, but not limited to, in
any network or other electronic storage or transmission, or broadcast for
distance learning.
Some ancillaries, including electronic and print components, may not be
available to customers outside the United States.
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 LWI 21 20 19 18
ISBN 978-1-259-91243-6 (bound edition)
MHID 1-259-91243-4 (bound edition)
ISBN 978-1-260-15379-8 (loose-leaf edition)
MHID 1-260-15379-7 (loose-leaf edition)
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All credits appearing on page or at the end of the book are considered to be
an extension of the copyright page.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Schaefer, Richard T., author.
Title: Sociology : a brief introduction / Richard T. Schaefer, DePaul
University.
Description: 13th Edition. | Dubuque : McGraw-Hill Education, [2019] |
Revised edition of the author’s Sociology : a brief introduction, [2016]
Identifiers: LCCN 2018039145| ISBN 9781259912436 (alk. paper) | ISBN
1259912434 (alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Sociology.
Classification: LCC HM585 .S324 2019 | DDC 301—dc23 LC record
available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018039145
The Internet addresses listed in the text were accurate at the time of
publication. The inclusion of a website does not indicate an endorsement by
the authors or McGraw-Hill Education, and McGraw-Hill Education does not
guarantee the accuracy of the information presented at these sites.
mheducation.com/highered
Page v
dedication
To my grandchildren, Matilda and Reuben. May they enjoy
exploring life’s possibilities.
Page vii
about the author
Richard T. Schaefer: Professor Emeritus, DePaul
University
BA, Northwestern University,
MA, PhD, University of Chicago
Growing up in Chicago at a time when neighborhoods were going
through transitions in ethnic and racial composition, Richard T.
Schaefer found himself increasingly intrigued by what was happening,
how people were reacting, and how these changes were affecting
neighborhoods and people’s jobs. His interest in social issues caused
him to gravitate to sociology courses at Northwestern University,
where he eventually received a BA in sociology.
“Originally as an undergraduate I thought I would go on to law
school and become a lawyer. But after taking a few sociology courses,
I found myself wanting to learn more about what sociologists studied,
and fascinated by the kinds of questions they raised.” This fascination
led him to obtain his MA and PhD in sociology from the University of
Chicago. Dr. Schaefer’s continuing interest in race relations led him to
write his master’s thesis on the membership of the Ku Klux Klan and
his doctoral thesis on racial prejudice and race relations in Great
Britain.
Dr. Schaefer went on to become a professor of sociology at DePaul
University in Chicago. In 2004 he was named to the Vincent DePaul
professorship in recognition of his undergraduate teaching and
scholarship. He has taught introductory sociology for over 35 years to
students in colleges, adult education programs, nursing programs, and
even a maximum-security prison. Dr. Schaefer’s love of teaching is
apparent in his interaction with his students. “I find myself constantly
learning from the students who are in my classes and from reading
what they write. Their insights into the material we read or current
events that we discuss often become part of future course material
and sometimes even find their way into my writing.”
Dr. Schaefer is the author of the thirteenth edition of Sociology
(McGraw-Hill, 2012), Sociology in Modules, fourth edition (McGraw-
Hill, 2018), the seventh edition of Sociology Matters (McGraw-Hill,
2018), and, with Robert Feldman, Sociology and Your Life with
P.O.W.E.R. Learning (2016). He is also the author of Racial and
Ethnic Groups, now in its fifteenth edition (2019), Racial and Ethnic
Diversity in the USA (first edition, 2014), and Race and Ethnicity in the
United States, (ninth edition, 2019), all published by Pearson.
Together with William Zellner, he coauthored the ninth edition of
Extraordinary Groups, published by Waveland Press in 2015. Dr.
Schaefer served as the general editor of the three-volume
Encyclopedia of Race, Ethnicity, and Society, published by Sage in
2008. These books have been translated into Chinese, Japanese,
Portuguese, and Spanish, as well as adapted for use in Canadian
colleges.
Dr. Schaefer’s articles and book reviews have appeared in many
journals, including American Journal of Sociology; Phylon: A Review
of Race and Culture; Contemporary Sociology; Sociology and Social
Research; Sociological Quarterly; Patterns of Prejudice; and Teaching
Sociology. He served as president of the Midwest Sociological Society
in 1994–1995.
Dr. Schaefer’s advice to students is to “look at the material and
make connections to your own life and experiences. Sociology will
make you a more attentive observer of how people in groups interact
and function. It will also make you more aware of people’s different
needs and interests—and perhaps more ready to work for the
common good, while still recognizing the individuality of each person.”
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
Page viii
brief contents
Chapter Opening Excerpts xiv
Boxed Features xv
Social Policy Sections xvii
Maps xvii
Tracking Sociological Perspectives Tables xviii
Summing Up Tables xviii
Understanding Sociology . . . 1
Sociological Research . . . 25
Culture . . . 48
Socialization and the Life Course . . . 69
Social Interaction, Groups, and Social
Structure . . . 90
Mass Media and Social Media . . . 117
Deviance, Crime, and Social Control . . . 138
Stratification and Social Mobility in the United
States . . . 163
Global Inequality . . . 190
Racial and Ethnic Inequality . . . 208
Stratification by Gender and Sexuality . . . 239
The Family and Household Diversity . . . 261
Education and Religion . . . 284
Government and the Economy . . . 313
15
16
Health, Population, and the Environment . . .
339
Social Change in the Global Community . . .
370
Glossary 395
References 403
Name Index 441
Subject Index 450
Applications of Sociology’s Major Theoretical Approaches 469
Coverage of Race and Ethnicity, Gender, and Social Class 470
Page ix
contents
Chapter Opening Excerpts xiv
Boxed Features xv
Social Policy Sections xvii
Maps xvii
Tracking Sociological Perspectives Tables xviii
Summing Up Tables xviii
1 Understanding Sociology 1
©Cathy Yeulet/123RF
What Is Sociology? 3
The Sociological Imagination 3
Sociology and the Social Sciences 3
Sociology and Common Sense 5
What Is Sociological Theory? 6
The Development of Sociology 7
Early Thinkers 7
Émile Durkheim 8
Max Weber 8
Karl Marx 9
W. E. B. DuBois 10
Twentieth-Century Developments 10
Major Theoretical Perspectives 12
Functionalist Perspective 12
Conflict Perspective 13
Interactionist Perspective 14
The Sociological Approach 15
Research Today: Looking at Sports from Five Sociological Perspectives 16
Taking Sociology with You 17
Applied and Clinical Sociology 17
Developing a Sociological Imagination 18
Sociology in the Global Community: Your Morning Cup of Coffee 19
Appendix: Careers in Sociology 20
2 Sociological Research 25
©Jim West/PhotoEdit
What Is the Scientific Method? 27
Defining the Problem 27
Reviewing the Literature 28
Formulating the Hypothesis 28
Collecting and Analyzing Data 29
Developing the Conclusion 30
In Summary: The Scientific Method 31
Major Research Designs 32
Surveys 32
Our Wired World: Surveying Cell Phone Users 33
Ethnography 34
Experiments 34
Research Today: Visual Sociology 35
Use of Existing Sources 36
Ethics of Research 37
Confidentiality 37
Conflict of Interest 37
Taking Sociology to Work: Dave Eberbach, Associate Director, Iowa
Institute for Community Alliances 38
Value Neutrality 39
Feminist Methodology 39
Queer Theory and Methodology 40
The Data-Rich Future 40
SOCIAL POLICY AND SOCIOLOGICAL
RESEARCH: STUDYING HUMAN SEXUALITY 41
Appendix I: Using Statistics and Graphs 42
Appendix II: Writing a Research Report 44
3 Culture 48
©Nick Fox/Alamy Stock Photo
What Is Culture? 50
Cultural Universals 50
Ethnocentrism 51
Cultural Relativism 51
Sociobiology and Culture 51
Role of Language 52
Language: Written and Spoken 52
Nonverbal Communication 53
Norms and Values 54
Norms 54
Sociology in the Global Community: Symbolizing 9/11 55
Values 56
Global Culture War 57
Sociology on Campus: A Culture of Cheating? 58
Sociological Perspectives on Culture 58
Cultural Variation 59
Subcultures 59
Countercultures 60
Research Today: How Millennials View The Nation: Racial and Ethnic
Vantage Points 61
Culture Shock 61
Page x
Development of Culture around the World 62
Innovation 62
Globalization, Diffusion, and Technology 62
Sociology in the Global Community: Life in the Global Village 63
Sociology in the Global Community: Cultural Survival in Brazil 64
SOCIAL POLICY AND CULTURE: BILINGUALISM
64
4 Socialization and the Life Course 69
©Mike Kemp/Getty Images.
The Role of Socialization 71
Social Environment: The Impact of Isolation 71
The Influence of Heredity 72
The Self and Socialization 74
Sociological Approaches to the Self 74
Sociology on Campus: Impression Management by Students 76
Psychological Approaches to the Self 76
Agents of Socialization 77
Family 77
Research Today: Rum Springa: Raising Children Amish Style 78
Taking Sociology to Work: Rakefet Avramovitz, Program Administrator,
Child Care Law Center 79
School 79
Peer Group 79
Mass Media and Technology 80
Research Today: Parental Monitoring of the Digital World 81
Workplace 81
Religion and the State 82
Socialization throughout the Life Course 82
The Life Course 82
Anticipatory Socialization and Resocialization 83
Role Transitions throughout the Life Course 84
The Sandwich Generation 84
Adjusting to Retirement 84
SOCIAL POLICY AND SOCIOLOGICAL
RESEARCH: CHILD CARE AROUND THE WORLD
86
5 Social Interaction, Groups, and Social Structure 90
©Caia Image/Glow Images
Social Interaction and Reality 92
Elements of Social Structure 93
Statuses 93
Research Today: Disability as a Master Status 94
Social Roles 95
Groups 96
Taking Sociology to Work: Sarah Levy, Owner, S. Levy Foods 98
Social Networks 99
Social Institutions 99
Research Today: Twitter Networks: From Wildfires to Hurricanes 100
Understanding Organizations 102
Formal Organizations and Bureaucracies 102
Characteristics of a Bureaucracy 102
Sociology in the Global Community: McDonald’s and the Worldwide
Bureaucratization of Society 105
Bureaucracy and Organizational Culture 106
Social Structure in Global Perspective 107
Durkheim’s Mechanical and Organic Solidarity 107
Tönnies’s Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft
Lenski’s Sociocultural Evolution Approach 107
Our Wired World: Becoming Social in a Gesellschaft 108
Sociology in the Global Community: Disney World: A Postmodern Theme
Park 111
SOCIAL POLICY AND ORGANIZATIONS: THE
STATE OF THE UNIONS WORLDWIDE 112
6 Mass Media and Social Media 117
©Franziska Krug/German Select/Getty Images
Sociological Perspectives on the Media 119
Functionalist Perspective 119
Conflict Perspective 120
Our Wired World: Inside the Bubble: Internet Search Filters 123
Taking Sociology to Work: Lindsey Wallem, Social Media Consultant 125
Sociology in the Global Community: The Global Disconnect 126
Feminist Perspective 127
Interactionist Perspective 127
Our Wired World: Apps for Global Refugees 129
The Audience 129
Who Is in the Audience? 129
The Segmented Audience 130
Audience Behavior 131
The Media’s Global Reach 131
SOCIAL POLICY AND THE MEDIA: CENSORSHIP
133
7 Deviance, Crime, and Social Control 138
©Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images
What Is Deviance? 140
Deviance and Social Stigma 141
Page xi
Deviance and Technology 141
Social Control 141
Conformity and Obedience 142
Informal and Formal Social Control 143
Sociology on Campus: Binge Drinking 144
Law and Society 145
Sociological Perspectives on Deviance
146
Functionalist Perspective 146
Research Today: Debtors’ Jails in the Twenty-First Century 147
Interactionist Perspective 148
Research Today: Does Crime Pay? 149
Labeling Perspective 150
Conflict Perspective 151
Feminist Perspective 152
Crime: A Sociological Approach 152
Sociology on Campus: Packing Firearms on Campus 153
Victimless Crimes 153
Professional Crime 154
Organized Crime 154
White-Collar and Technology-Based Crime 154
Hate Crimes 155
Transnational Crime 155
Crime Statistics 156
Index Crimes and Victimization Surveys 156
Crime Trends 157
International Crime Rates 157
Taking Sociology to Work: Stephanie Vezzani, Special Agent, U.S. Secret
Service 158
SOCIAL POLICY AND SOCIAL CONTROL: GUN
CONTROL 158
8 Stratification and Social Mobility in the United
States 163
©PeerPoint/Alamy Stock Photo
Systems of Stratification 165
Slavery 165
Castes 167
Estates 167
Social Classes 168
Research Today: The Shrinking Middle Class 169
Sociological Perspectives on Stratification 170
Karl Marx’s View of Class Differentiation 170
Max Weber’s View of Stratification 171
Interactionist Perspective 171
Is Stratification Universal? 172
Functionalist Perspective 172
Conflict Perspective 172
Lenski’s Viewpoint 174
Research Today: Taxes as Opportunity 174
Stratification by Social Class 175
Objective Method of Measuring Social Class 175
Gender and Occupational Prestige 176
Multiple Measures 176
Income and Wealth 176
Poverty 177
Research Today: Calculating Your Risk of Poverty 178
Studying Poverty 179
Who Are the Poor? 180
Feminization of Poverty 180
The Underclass 181
Explaining Poverty 181
Life Chances 181
Sociology on Campus: Student Debt 182
Social Mobility 183
Open versus Closed Stratification Systems 183
Types of Social Mobility 183
Social Mobility in the United States 184
SOCIAL POLICY AND STRATIFICATION:
EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION 186
9 Global Inequality 190
©Stockbyte/Getty Images
The Global Divide 192
Sociology in the Global Community: It’s All Relative: Appalachian
Poverty and Congolese Affluence 193
Stratification in the World System 193
The Legacy of Colonialism 193
Poverty Worldwide 196
Millennium Development Goals 196
Sociology in the Global Community: Walking the Last Mile in Uganda:
The Avon Approach 197
Multinational Corporations 198
Modernization 200
Stratification within Nations: A Comparative
Perspective 201
Distribution of Wealth and Income 201
Social Mobility 201
Sociology in the Global Community: Getting Ahead Globally 203
SOCIAL POLICY AND GLOBAL INEQUALITY:
RETHINKING WELFARE IN EUROPE AND NORTH
AMERICA 204
10 Racial and Ethnic Inequality 208
©Diego G Diaz/Shutterstock
Page xii
Minority, Racial, and Ethnic Groups 210
Minority Groups 210
Race 211
Ethnicity 212
Prejudice and Discrimination 213
Prejudice 213
Color-Blind Racism 213
Sociology on Campus: Bias in Awarding Scholarship Money 214
Discriminatory Behavior 214
The Privileges of the Dominant 216
Taking Sociology to Work: Jennifer Michals, Program Assistant, Center
for Native American and Indigenous Research, Northwestern University 217
Institutional Discrimination 217
Sociological Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity
218
Functionalist Perspective 219
Conflict Perspective 219
Labeling Perspective 219
Interactionist Perspective 220
Spectrum of Intergroup Relations 221
Genocide 221
Segregation 222
Amalgamation 222
Assimilation 222
Pluralism 222
Race and Ethnicity in the United States 223
African Americans 223
Native Americans 224
Sociology in the Global Community: The Aboriginal People of Australia
225
Asian Pacific Americans 225
Arab Americans 228
Latinos 229
Research Today: Hurricane Maria and the Puerto Rican Community 230
Jewish Americans 231
White Ethnics 232
Immigration and Continuing Diversity 233
SOCIAL POLICY AND RACIAL AND ETHNIC
INEQUALITY: GLOBAL REFUGEE CRISIS 234
11 Stratification by Gender and Sexuality 239
©Jupiterimages/Getty Images
Social Construction of Gender 241
Gender Roles in the United States 241
Cross-Cultural Perspective 243
Sociology in the Global Community: Women in Combat Worldwide 244
Labeling and Human Sexuality 245
Gender and Human Sexuality 245
Sociology in the Global Community: No Gender, Please: It’s Preschool!
246
Labeling and Identity 246
Sociological Perspectives on Gender 247
Functionalist Perspective 247
Research Today: Measuring Discrimination Based on Sexual Identity 248
Conflict Perspective 248
Feminist Perspective 249
Intersections with Race, Class, and Other Social Factors 249
Interactionist Perspective 250
Women: The Oppressed Majority 251
Sexism and Sex Discrimination 251
The Status of Women Worldwide 251
Sociology in the Global Community: The Head Scarf and the Veil:
Complex Symbols 252
The Workforce of the United States 253
Labor Force Participation 253
Compensation 253
Social Consequences of Women’s Employment 255
Emergence of a Collective Consciousness 256
SOCIAL POLICY AND GENDER STRATIFICATION:
WORKPLACE SEXUAL HARASSMENT 256
12 The Family and Household Diversity 261
©Eyecandy Images/AGE Fotostock
Global View of the Family 263
Composition: What Is the Family? 263
Kinship Patterns: To Whom Are We Related? 264
Authority Patterns: Who Rules? 265
Research Today: An Extraordinary Patriarchy: The Oneida Community
265
Sociological Perspectives on the Family 266
Functionalist Perspective 266
Conflict Perspective 266
Interactionist Perspective 267
Feminist Perspective 267
Marriage and Family 268
Courtship and Mate Selection 268
Our Wired World: Love Is in the Air and on the Web 269
Variations in Family Life and Intimate Relationships 270
Child-Rearing Patterns 271
Research Today: Transracial Adoption: The Experience of Children from
Korea 273
Divorce 275
Statistical Trends in Divorce 275
Factors Associated with Divorce 276
Impact of Divorce on Children 276
Lesbian and Gay Relationships 276
Diverse Lifestyles 277
Cohabitation 277
Remaining Single 277
Marriage without Children 278
SOCIAL POLICY AND THE FAMILY: FAMILY
Page xiii
LEAVE WORLDWIDE 279
13 Education and Religion 284
©Martin Shields/Alamy Stock Photo
Sociological Perspectives on Education 286
Functionalist Perspective 286
Conflict Perspective 289
Feminist Perspective 291
Sociology on Campus: The Debate over Title IX 292
Interactionist Perspective 292
Schools as Formal Organizations 293
Bureaucratization of Schools 293
Taking Sociology to Work: Diane Belcher Gray, Assistant Director of
Volunteer Services, New River Community College 294
Teachers: Employees and Instructors 294
Student Subcultures 296
Homeschooling 297
Durkheim and the Sociological
Approach to Religion 297
World Religions 298
Sociological Perspectives on Religion 299
The Integrative Function of Religion 300
Religion and Social Support 300
Religion and Social Change 301
Religion and Social Control: A Conflict Perspective 302
Feminist Perspective 302
Components of Religion 303
Belief 303
Ritual 304
Experience 304
Religious Organization 305
Ecclesiae 305
Denominations 305
Sects 306
New Religious Movements or Cults 306
Comparing Forms of Religious Organization 306
Research Today: The Church of Scientology: Religion or Quasi-Religion?
307
SOCIAL POLICY AND EDUCATION: CHARTER
SCHOOLS 308
14 Government and the Economy 313
©Jim West/The Image Works
Economic Systems 315
Capitalism 315
Socialism 317
The Informal Economy 318
Power and Authority 318
Power 318
Types of Authority 319
Types of Government 320
Monarchy 320
Oligarchy 320
Dictatorship and Totalitarianism 320
Democracy 320
Political Behavior in the United States 321
Participation and Apathy 321
Race and Gender in Politics 322
Research Today: The Latino Political Voice 323
Models of Power Structure in the United States
324
Power Elite Models 324
Pluralist Model 325
War and Peace 326
War 326
Our Wired World: Politicking Online 327
Peace 327
Terrorism 328
Taking Sociology to Work: Joseph W. Drummond, Management Analyst,
U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command 329
Changing Economies 330
The Changing Face of the Workforce 330
Research Today: Affirmative Action 331
Deindustrialization 331
The Sharing Economy 332
The Temporary Workforce 333
Offshoring 333
SOCIAL POLICY AND THE ECONOMY:
MICROFINANCING 334
15 Health, Population, and the Environment 339
©Hung_Chung_Chih/Getty Images
Sociological Perspectives on Health and Illness
341
Functionalist Perspective 341
Conflict Perspective 342
Interactionist Perspective 343
Labeling Perspective 344
Social Epidemiology and Health 345
Social Class 345
Race and Ethnicity 346
Gender 346
Age 347
Gender Identity 347
Health Care in the United States 347
A Historical View 348
Physicians and Patients 348
Research Today: Health Care, Retail Style 349
Alternatives to Traditional Health Care 349
The Role of Government 350
What Is Mental Illness? 351
Theoretical Models of Mental Disorders 351
Patterns of Care 352
Population 353
Demography: The Study of Population 353
World Population Patterns 355
Sociology in the Global Community: Population Policy in China 356
Fertility Patterns in the United States 357
Migration 358
International Migration 358
Internal Migration 359
Sociological Perspectives on the Environment 359
Human Ecology 359
Conflict Perspective on the Environment 359
Ecological Modernization 360
Environmental Justice 360
Environmental Issues 361
Air Pollution 361
Sociology in the Global Community: Environmental Refugees 362
Water Pollution 362
Climate Change 363
Page xiv
SOCIAL POLICY AND THE ENVIRONMENT:
ENVIRONMENTALISM 364
16 Social Change in the Global
Community 370
©Caro/Alamy Stock Photo
Social Movements 372
Relative Deprivation Approach 373
Resource Mobilization Approach 374
Gender and Social Movements 374
New Social Movements 374
Sociology in the Global Community: Women’s Social Movements in South
Korea, India, and Bangladesh 375
Communications and the Globalization of Social
Movements 376
Our Wired World: Organizing for Controversy via Computer-Mediated
Communication 377
Theories of Social Change 377
Evolutionary Theory 377
Functionalist Perspective 379
Conflict Perspective 379
Resistance to Social Change 380
Economic and Cultural Factors 380
Resistance to Technology 381
Global Social Change 382
Anticipating Change 382
Social Change in Dubai 382
Technology and the Future 383
Computer Technology 384
Our Wired World: The Internet’s Global
Profile 385
Artificial Intelligence 386
Privacy and Censorship in a Global Village 386
Biotechnology and the Gene Pool 387
SOCIAL POLICY AND GLOBALIZATION:
TRANSNATIONALS 388
Glossary 395
References 403
Name Index 441
Subject Index 450
Applications of Sociology’s Major Theoretical Approaches 469
Coverage of Race and Ethnicity, Gender, and Social Class 470
chapter opening excerpts
Every chapter in this textbook begins with an excerpt from one of the works listed
here. These excerpts convey the excitement and relevance of sociological inquiry
and draw readers into the subject matter of each chapter.
Chapter 1
Outcasts United by Warren T. St. John 2
Chapter 2
The Tender Cut: Inside the Hidden World of Self-Injury by Patricia A. Adler and
Peter Adler 26
Chapter 3
“Body Ritual among the Nacirema” by Horace Miner 49
Chapter 4
The Wolfpack by Crystal Moselle 70
Chapter 5
“The Psychology of Imprisonment” by Philip Zimbardo 91
Chapter 6
Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of Talk in a Digital Age by Sherry Turkle 118
Chapter 7
Cop in the Hood: My Year Policing Baltimore’s Eastern District by Peter Moskos
139
Chapter 8
Speech at the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston by Janet Yellen 164
Chapter 9
Portfolios of the Poor: How the World’s Poor Live on $2 a Day by Daryl Collins,
Jonathan Morduch, Stuart Rutherford, and Orlanda Ruthven 191
Chapter 10
Asian American Dreams: The Emergence of an American People by Helen Zia 209
Chapter 11
Everyday Sexism: The Project That Inspired a Worldwide Movement by Laura
Bates 240
Chapter 12
The Accordion Family: Boomerang Kids, Anxious Parents, and the Private Toll of
Global Competition by Katherine S. Newman 262
Chapter 13
The Death and Life of the Great American School System by Diane Ravitch 285
Chapter 14
Who Rules America? The Triumph of the Corporate Rich, 7th edition, by G.
William Domhoff 314
Chapter 15
Shopping Our Way to Safety: How We Changed from Protecting the Environment
to Protecting Ourselves by Andrew Szasz 340
Chapter 16
Social Movements and New Technology by Victoria Carty 371
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boxed features
RESEARCH TODAY
Looking at Sports from Five Sociological Perspectives 16
Visual Sociology 35
How Millennials View the Nation: Racial and Ethnic Vantage Points
61
Rum Springa: Raising Children Amish Style 78
Parental Monitoring of the Digital World 81
Disability as a Master Status 94
Twitter Networks: From Wildfires to Hurricanes 100
Debtors’ Jails in the Twenty-First Century 147
Does Crime Pay? 149
The Shrinking Middle Class 169
Taxes as Opportunity 174
Calculating Your Risk of Poverty 178
Hurricane Maria and the Puerto Rican Community 230
Measuring Discrimination Based on Sexual Identity 248
An Extraordinary Patriarchy: The Oneida Community 265
Transracial Adoption: The Experience of Children from Korea 273
The Church of Scientology: Religion or Quasi-Religion? 307
The Latino Political Voice 323
Affirmative Action 331
Health Care, Retail Style 349
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SOCIOLOGY IN THE GLOBAL
COMMUNITY
Your Morning Cup of Coffee 19
Symbolizing 9/11 55
Life in the Global Village 63
Cultural Survival in Brazil 64
McDonald’s and the Worldwide Bureaucratization of Society 105
Disney World: A Postmodern Theme Park 111
The Global Disconnect 126
It’s All Relative: Appalachian Poverty and Congolese Affluence 193
Walking the Last Mile in Uganda: The Avon Approach 197
Getting Ahead Globally 203
The Aboriginal People of Australia 225
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Women in Combat Worldwide 244
No Gender, Please: It’s Preschool! 245
The Head Scarf and the Veil: Complex Symbols 252
Population Policy in China 356
Environmental Refugees 362
Women’s Social Movements in South Korea, India, and Bangladesh
375
OUR WIRED WORLD
Surveying Cell Phone Users 33
Becoming Social in a Gesellschaft 108
Inside the Bubble: Internet Search Filters 123
Apps for Global Refugees 129
Love Is in the Air and on the Web 269
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Politicking Online 327
Organizing for Controversy via Computer-Mediated Communication
377
The Internet’s Global Profile 385
SOCIOLOGY ON CAMPUS
A Culture of Cheating? 58
Impression Management by Students 76
Binge Drinking 144
Packing Firearms on Campus 153
Student Debt 182
Bias in Awarding Scholarship Money 214
The Debate over Title IX 292
©Andersen Ross/Blend Images
TAKING SOCIOLOGY TO WORK
Dave Eberbach, Associate Director, Iowa Institute for Community Alliances 38
Rakefet Avramovitz, Program Administrator, Child Care Law Center 79
Sarah Levy, Owner, S. Levy Foods 98
Lindsey Wallem, Social Media Consultant 125
Stephanie Vezzani, Special Agent, U.S. Secret Service 158
Jennifer Michals, Program Assistant, Center for Native American and Indigenous
Research, Northwestern University 217
Diane Belcher Gray, Assistant Director of Volunteer Services, New River
Community College 294
Joseph W. Drummond, Management Analyst, U.S. Army Space and Missile
Defense Command 329
©Ingram Publishing
Page xvii
social policy sections
Chapter 2
Social Policy and Sociological Research: Studying Human Sexuality
41
Chapter 3
Social Policy and Culture: Bilingualism 64
Chapter 4
Social Policy and Sociological Research: Child Care around the World
86
Chapter 5
Social Policy and Organizations: The State of the Unions Worldwide
112
Chapter 6
Social Policy and the Media: Censorship 133
Chapter 7
Social Policy and Social Control: Gun Control 158
Chapter 8
Social Policy and Stratification: Executive Compensation 186
Chapter 9
Social Policy and Global Inequality: Rethinking Welfare in Europe and
North America 204
Chapter 10
Social Policy and Racial and Ethnic Inequality: Global Refugee Crisis
234
Chapter 11
Social Policy and Gender Stratification: Workplace Sexual
Harassment 256
Chapter 12
Social Policy and the Family: Family Leave Worldwide 278
Chapter 13
Social Policy and Education: Charter Schools 308
Chapter 14
Social Policy and the Economy: Microfinancing 334
Chapter 15
Social Policy and the Environment: Environmentalism 364
Chapter 16
Social Policy and Globalization: Transnationals 388
©Last Resort/Getty Images
maps
Mapping Life Nationwide
Educational Level and Household Income in the United States 29
Percentage of People Who Speak a Language Other Than English at Home, by
State 65
Labor Union Membership by State, 2018 112
The Status of State Legalization of Marijuana 146
The 50 States: Contrasts in Income
and Poverty Levels 166
Minority Population by County 223
Average Salary for Teachers 295
Charter Schools 309
Percentage without Health Insurance 346
Mapping Life Worldwide
Countries with High Child Marriage Rates 52
Branding the Globe 121
Freedom on the Internet 134
Gross National Income per Capita 194
Global Peace Index 328
Global Terrorism Index 330
Page xviii
tracking sociological
perspectives tables
Major Sociological Perspectives 15
Sociological Perspectives on Culture 60
Theoretical Approaches to Development of the Self 77
Sociological Perspectives on Social Institutions 102
Sociological Perspectives on the Media 128
Sociological Perspectives on Deviance 152
Sociological Perspectives on Social Stratification 173
Sociological Perspectives on Global Inequality 201
Sociological Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity 220
Sociological Perspectives on Gender 251
Sociological Perspectives on the Family 267
Sociological Perspectives on Education 293
Sociological Perspectives on Religion 303
Sociological Perspectives on Health and Illness 344
Sociological Perspectives on Social Change 380
summing up tables
Existing Sources Used in Sociological Research 36
Major Research Designs 37
Norms and Sanctions 56
Mead’s Stages of the Self 75
Comparison of Primary and Secondary Groups 97
Characteristics of a Bureaucracy 104
Comparison of the Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft 109
Stages of Sociocultural Evolution 110
Merton’s Deviance Theory 148
Major World Religions 298
Components of Religion 305
Characteristics of Ecclesiae, Denominations, Sects, and New Religious
Movements 307
Characteristics of the Three Major Economic Systems 318
Contributions to Social Movement Theory 376
Page xix
Taking Sociology with You .
. . Wherever You Go
Why Does Sociology Matter?
Whether you’re a first-time student, someone who is returning to the
classroom, or even an instructor leading a discussion, you’ve probably
thought about that question. Sociologists examine society, from small-scale
interactions to the broadest social changes, which can be daunting for any
student to take in. Sociology:
A Brief Introduction, Thirteenth Edition, bridges the essential
sociological theories, research, and concepts and the everyday realities we all
experience. The program highlights the distinctive ways in which sociologists
explore human social behavior—and how their research findings can be used
to help students think critically about the broader principles that guide their
lives. In doing so, it helps students begin to think sociologically, using what
they have learned to evaluate human interactions and institutions
independently.
What do a police officer, a nurse, and a local business owner need to know
about the community that they serve? It turns out quite a lot. And Sociology:
A Brief Introduction is poised to give students the tools they need to take
sociology with them as they pursue their studies and their careers, and as they
get involved in their communities and the world at large. Its emphasis on
real-world applications enables students to see the relevance of sociological
concepts to contemporary issues and events as well as students’ everyday
lives. In addition, the digital tools in Connect foster student preparedness for
a more productive and engaging experience in class and better grades on
exams.
Help Your Students Succeed with Connect
McGraw-Hill Connect® is an integrated educational platform that
includes assignable and assessable quizzes, exercises, and interactive
activities, all associated with learning objectives for Sociology: A Brief
Introduction, Thirteenth Edition. Videos, interactive assessments, links to
news articles about current issues with accompanying questions
(“NewsFlash”), and scenario-based activities engage students and add real-
world perspective to the introductory sociology course. In addition, printable,
exportable reports show how well each student or section is performing on
each course segment.
Here are some of the media-rich activities that will help your students
succeed in the introductory sociology course:
In Their Shoes. In Their Shoes develops students’ sociological
imagination by walking them through the situation, challenges, and crises in
the character’s life. Covering topics such as “Deviance and Social Control,”
“Racial and Ethnic Inequality,” and “Socialization and the Life Course,”
students explore and navigate life choices.
Applying the Perspectives. In Applying the Perspectives, students
Page xx
examine a problem—global inequality, gender stratification, or family and
intimate relationships—from three sociological perspectives and apply their
critical thinking skills to align theories with the appropriate perspective.
Concept Clips. Concept Clips are animations designed to engage
students and walk them through some of the more complex concepts
in the course and conclude with assessment questions to demonstrate their
understanding. Topics include research variables, functions of religion, and
power and authority.
Mobile Interface. Put students first with Connect’s intuitive mobile
Page xxi
interface, which gives students and instructors flexible, convenient, anytime-
anywhere access to all components of the Connect platform. It provides
seamless integration of learning tools and places the most important priorities
up front in a new “to-do” list with a calendar view across all Connect courses.
Enjoy on-the-go access with the new mobile interface designed for optimal
use of tablet functionality.
Provide a Smarter Text and Better Value
with SmartBook
Available within Connect, SmartBook® makes study time as productive and
efficient as possible by identifying and closing knowledge gaps. SmartBook
is powered by the proven LearnSmart® engine, which identifies what an
individual student knows and doesn’t know based on the student’s confidence
level, responses to questions, and other factors.
SmartBook builds an optimal, personalized learning path for each student,
so students spend less time on concepts they already understand and more
time on those they don’t. As a student engages with SmartBook, the reading
experience continuously adapts by highlighting the most impactful content a
student needs to learn at that moment in time. This ensures that every minute
spent with SmartBook is returned to the student as the most value-added
minute possible. The result? More confidence, better grades, and greater
success.
New to this edition, SmartBook is now optimized for
cell phones and tablets and accessible for students with
disabilities using interactive features. Just like our
new eBook and ReadAnywhere App, SmartBook is
available both online and offline.
Access Performance Data Just in
Time
Connect Insight® is Connect’s one-of-a-kind visual analytics dashboard,
available for both instructors and students, that provides at-a-glance
information regarding student performance, which is immediately actionable.
By presenting assignment, assessment, and topical performance results,
together with a time metric that is easily visible for aggregate or individual
results, Connect Insight gives the user the ability to take a just-in-time
approach to teaching and learning, which was never before available.
Connect Insight presents data that empowers students and helps instructors
improve class performance in a way that is efficient and effective.
Page xxii
Prepare Students for Higher-Level
Thinking
Aimed at the higher level of Bloom’s taxonomy, Power of
Process for Sociology helps students improve critical thinking skills and
allows instructors to assess these skills efficiently and effectively in an online
environment. Through Connect,
preloaded readings are available for instructors to assign. Using a scaffolded
framework such as understanding, synthesizing, and analyzing, Power of
Process moves students toward higher-level thinking and analysis.
What’s New?
Changes to the Thirteenth Edition reflect new research findings, updated
statistics, and hot topics and issues. Revisions to the print and digital program
were also guided by student performance data anonymously collected from
the thousands of students who have used SmartBook with Sociology: A Brief
Introduction. Because virtually every text paragraph is tied to several
questions that students answer while using LearnSmart, the specific concepts
that students are having most difficulty with can be pinpointed through
empirical data.
Chapter 1: Understanding Sociology
Chapter-opening excerpt based on Outcasts United, a sociological study
about a youth soccer team made up of immigrants in suburban Georgia
Cartoon illustrating the increasing importance of globalization
Enhanced discussion of sociological study of episodes of violence and
hatred, based on Charlottesville march
Expanded and updated discussion of sociological study of the aftermath
of hurricanes and other natural disasters
Chapter 2: Sociological Research
“Thinking Critically” questions about the effect of operational
definitions on research results and value neutrality
“Taking Sociology with You” question about developing a research
project
Extensive discussion of the use of sociological data to help the children
of incarcerated adults
Chapter 3: Culture
Chapter-opening photo of a woman from the Mursi tribe in Ethiopia
Photo and caption of Confederate statue being removed, showing the
conflicting meaning of symbols
“Thinking Critically” question about communication as cultural capital
“Research Today” box: “How Millennials View the Nation: Racial and
Ethnic Vantage Points”
Updated figure, “Countries with High Child Marriage Rates,” and added
“Think about It” question
Chapter 4: Socialization and the Life Course
Extensive discussion of a recent sociological experiment involving
gender roles and expectations
“Thinking Critically” questions about public policy implications of early
childhood research, comparison of Mead’s and Piaget’s cognitive stages,
anticipatory socialization
“Research Today” box: “Parental Monitoring of the Digital World,”
including bar graph, “Parental Monitoring of Teenagers’ Online
Activity”
Enhanced and updated comparison of child care in the United States vs.
other countries
Cartoon about senior citizens’ attitudes toward aging
Chapter 5: Social Interaction, Groups, and
Social Structure
Enhanced discussion of Zimbardo prison experiment in chapter-opening
vignette, with link to Black Lives Matter
“Research Today” box: “Twitter Networks: From Wildfires to
Hurricanes,” with photo, on the use of social media networks for disaster
preparedness
Discussion of the role of humor in social interaction
Figures 5-2, “The Elements of Social Structure: An Overview”; and 5-3,
“Mapping Life Nationwide: Labor Union Membership by State, 2018”
Enhanced and expanded discussion of the influence of race and gender
on achieved status, using the James Blake case as an example
Cartoon illustrating hierarchy of authority in bureaucracies
Chapter 6: Mass Media and Social Media
Chapter-opening excerpt from Reclaiming Conversation: The Power of
Talk in a Digital Age, a study of the effects of the overuse of social
media
Enhanced discussion of infiltration of the social media “bubble” for
political purposes
Table 6-1, “Celebrity Status, as Measured by Number of Global Google
Searches,” including “Think about It” question
Expanded discussion of suppression of the media in authoritarian
regimes
Enhanced and updated discussion of the digital divide, with photo
Updated discussion of feminist perspective on access to cell phones
Updated and expanded “Our Wired World” box, now titled “Apps for
Global Refugees”
Revised and expanded Figure 6-3: “Who Uses Social Media?” and
Figure 6-4, “Internet and Social Media Penetration in Selected
Counties”
Social Policy section: “Censorship”
Chapter 7: Deviance, Crime, and Social Control
Images to illustrate the relationship between deviance and celebrity
status (with “Think about It” question), how the definition of deviance
varies widely in different places, and the prevalence of white-collar
crime (cartoon)
Enhanced discussion of cybercrime in reference to the 2016 election
Expanded discussion of public perception of crime as a growing threat,
despite statistics to the contrary
Social Policy section: “Gun Control,” including cartoon
Page xxiii
Chapter 8: Stratification and Social Mobility in the
United States
Cartoon illustrating struggles of the middle class
Cartoon in Social Policy section on differences of perception between
rich and poor
“Research Today” boxes: “Taxes as Opportunity” and
“Calculating Your Risk of Poverty”
Enhanced discussion of calculating the effects of unpaid women’s work
on determining poverty rate
Revised and expanded discussion of net worth, race, and ethnicity
Expanded discussion of the longevity gap between the affluent and the
poor
Enhanced and updated discussion of intergenerational mobility
Chapter 9: Global Inequality
“Sociology in the Global Community” box, “Getting Ahead Globally”
Updated and expanded overview of global poverty
Updated discussion of United Nations Millennium Development Goals
In Social Policy section, updated and expanded discussion of corporate
welfare and the social safety net in European countries
Revised Self-Quiz with new question and distractors
Chapter 10: Racial and Ethnic Inequality
Chapter-opening excerpt from Asian-American Dreams, a memoir about
discrimination against Asian Americans
“Taking Sociology to Work” box: Jennifer Michals, Program Assistant,
Center for Native American and Indigenous Research, Northwestern
University
“Sociology on Campus” box, “Bias in Awarding Scholarship Money”
Discussion of discrimination within the sharing economy
Discussion and photo illustrating the effects of the Rohinga genocide in
Myanmar
“Research Today” box, “Hurricane Maria and the Puerto Rican
Community”
Enhanced discussion of Jewish American assimilation, with photo
Chapter 11: Stratification by Gender and Sexuality
Chapter-opening excerpt from Everyday Sexism: The Project That
Inspired a Worldwide Movement, a study of the preponderance of
sexism in daily life
Key term treatment for intersectionality and expanded discussion of the
concept
“Research Today” box, “Measuring Discrimination Based on Sexual
Identity”
Social Policy section on workplace sexual harassment
Chapter 12: The Family and Household Diversity
“Research Today” box, “An Extraordinary Patriarchy: The Oneida
Community”
Expansion of coverage of interactionist perspective to emphasize the
growing diversity of family styles
Updated coverage of online dating as a part of courtship and mate
selection
Chapter 13: Education and Religion
Enhanced discussion of LGBQT student subcultures
Photo illustrating religion’s function of providing social support
“Research Today” box, “The Church of Scientology: Religion or Quasi-
Religion?”
Key Term treatment for quasi-religion
Chapter 14: Government and the Economy
Updated and enhanced background information about world inequality
and people’s reactions to it
Figure 14-7, “Increasing Diversity in the U.S. Labor Force,” with
“Think about It” question
Revised and updated discussion of use of social media in politics
Expanded and updated coverage of political participation in the United
States
Expanded discussion of use of militarized drones, with photos
Updated discussion of deindustrialization and its effects on politics
Chapter 15: Health, Population, and the Environment
Enhanced coverage of relationship between health insurance and income
level
Major section on Gender Identity under Social Epidemiology and Health
Updated information about the Affordable Care Act
Coverage of water pollution updated to include contamination of water
in Flint, Michigan, with photo
Expanded coverage of race and pollution
Discussion of the Paris Climate Accords
“Think about It” question about population change over time
Page xxiv
Chapter 16: Social Change in the Global Community
Photos of January 2018 Power to the Polls march to illustrate political
participation, women attending a soccer match in Saudi Arabia to
illustrate social change, military and civilian drones to illustrate effects
of new technology
Key Term treatment for artificial intelligence and digitalization
“Sociology in the Global Community” box expanded to include
women’s social movements in Bangladesh
Extended example of introduction of the HPV vaccine to illustrate
culture lag
Figures 16-4, “Digital Skill Levels of Select Occupations”;
16-6, “Average Willingness to Migrate Abroad Permanently, 2009 and
2016”; 16-7, “Migrants as a Percentage of Total
Population in Selected Countries, 2015”
Major section on artificial intelligence and its effects on society
Teaching Resources
Instructor’s Manual. The Instructor’s Manual includes detailed chapter
outlines and chapter summaries; learning objectives; a chapter-by-chapter
bulleted list of new content; key terms; essay questions; and critical thinking
questions.
PowerPoint Slides. Now accessibility compliant, PowerPoint
Slides include bulleted lecture points, figures, and maps. They can
be used as is or modified to meet the instructor’s individual needs.
Test Bank. The Test Bank includes multiple-choice, true-false, and essay
questions for every chapter. TestGen software allows the instructor to create
customized exams using either publisher-supplied test items or the
instructor’s own questions.
McGraw-Hill Create® is a self-service website that allows you to create
customized course materials using McGraw-Hill Education’s comprehensive,
cross-disciplinary content and digital products. You can even access third-
party content such as readings, articles, cases, videos, and more.
Select and arrange content to fit your course scope and sequence.
Upload your own course materials.
Select the best format for your students—print or eBook.
Select and personalize your cover.
Edit and update your materials as often as you’d like.
Experience how McGraw-Hill Education’s Create empowers you to teach
your students your way and go to http://create.mheducation.com to register
today.
McGraw-Hill Campus® is a groundbreaking service that puts world-class
digital learning resources just a click away for all faculty and students. All
faculty—whether or not they use a McGraw-Hill title—can instantly browse,
search, and access the entire library of McGraw-Hill instructional resources
and services, including eBooks, test banks, PowerPoint slides, animations and
learning objects—from any Learning Management System (LMS), at no
additional cost to an institution. Users also have single sign-on access to
McGraw-Hill digital platforms, including Connect, Create and Tegrity, a
fully automated lecture capture solution.
Acknowledgments
Author Acknowledgments
The Thirteenth Edition of Sociology: A Brief Introduction reflects the input of
many talented individuals. Since 2010, Elaine Silverstein has played a most
significant role in the development of my introductory sociology books.
Fortunately for me, in this Thirteenth Edition, Elaine has once again been
responsible for the smooth integration of all changes and updates.
This edition continues to reflect the many insightful suggestions made by
reviewers of the 13 hardcover editions and 12 brief paperback editions.
As is evident from these acknowledgments, the preparation of a textbook is
truly a team effort. The most valuable member of this effort continues to be
my wife, Sandy. She provides the support so necessary in my creative and
scholarly activities.
I have had the good fortune to introduce students to sociology for many
years. These students have been enormously helpful in spurring on my
sociological imagination. In ways I can fully appreciate but cannot fully
acknowledge, their questions in class and queries in the hallway have found
their way into this textbook.
Richard T. Schaefer
schaeferrt@aol.com
Academic Reviewers
This current edition has benefited from constructive and thorough evaluations
provided by sociologists from both two-year and four-year institutions.
Adriana Bohm, Delaware County Community College
Tammie Foltz, Des Moines Area Community College
Claire Giesen, Delgado Community College
Mehdi Haghshenas, University of Texas
Lucy Hurston, Manchester Community College
Margaret Jendrek, Miami University–Oxford
Laurie J. Linhart, Des Moines Area Community College
Joseph Oaster, Harcum College
Andrew Rochus, Western Virginia University at Parkersburg
Amy Ruedisueli, Tidewater Community College, Virginia Beach
Okori Uneke, Winston-Salem State University
Amanda Vandivier, Frostburg State University
Gregory Zachrison, Massosoit Community College
Page 1
1 Understanding
Sociology
©Cathy Yeulet/123RF
One of the things sociologists study is how people organize themselves into
groups to perform tasks necessary to society. In California, volunteers pick up
debris for eventual recycling.
‣ INSIDE
What Is Sociology?
Page 2
What Is Sociological Theory?
The Development of Sociology
Major Theoretical Perspectives
Taking Sociology with You
Appendix: Careers in Sociology
Have you ever reacted totally differently from the people around
you because of different life experiences?
Journalist Warren St. John shows how people with varied
backgrounds struggle to adjust to their new environment and to
each other.
“On a cool spring afternoon at a soccer eld in northern Georgia, two teams
of teenage boys were going through their pregame warm-ups when the heavens
began to shake. The eld had been quiet save the sounds of soccer balls
thumping against forefeet and the rustling of the balls against the nylon nets that
hung from the goals. But as the rumble grew louder, all motion stopped as boys
from both teams looked quizzically skyward. Soon a cluster of darts appeared in
the gap of sky between the pine trees on the horizon and the cottony clumps of
cloud vapor overhead. It was a precision ying squadron of ghter jets,
performing at an air show miles away in Atlanta. The aircraft banked in close
formation in the direction of the eld and came closer, so that the boys could
now make out the markings on the wings and the white helmets of the pilots in
the cockpits. Then with an earthshaking roar deep enough to rattle the change
in your pocket, the jets split in different directions like an exploding rework,
their contrails carving the sky into giant wedges.
©Ira C. Robert
On the eld below, the two groups of boys
watched the spectacle with craned necks, and from
different perspectives.
On the eld below, the two groups of boys watched the spectacle with craned
necks, and from different perspectives. The players of the home team—a group
of thirteen- and fourteen-year-old boys from the nearby Atlanta suburbs playing
with the North Atlanta Soccer Association—gestured to the sky and wore
expressions of awe.
The boys at the other end of the eld were members of an all-refugee soccer
team called the Fugees [as in “reFugees”]. Many had actually seen the
machinery of war in action, and all had felt its awful consequences firsthand.
There were Sudanese players on the team whose villages had been bombed by
old Russian-made Antonov bombers own by the Sudanese Air Force, and
Liberians who’d lived through barrages of mortar re that pierced the roofs of
their neighbors’ homes, taking out whole families. As the jets ew by the eld,
several members of the Fugees inched.
This was the rst time I’d ever seen the Fugees play. I’d shown up knowing
little about the team other than that the players were refugees and the coach a
woman, and that the team was based in a town called Clarkston. In a little more
than a decade, the process of refugee resettlement had transformed Clarkston
from a simple southern town into one of the most diverse communities in
America. And yet few in Atlanta, let alone in the world beyond, had taken
notice.”
Source: St. John, Warren T. Outcasts United. New York, NY: Spiegel & Grau Trade
Paperbacks, 2009. pp. 1–2, 6.
In Outcasts United, journalist Warren St. John takes us into the social world
of a soccer team, a world composed of refugees who find themselves in a
suburban Georgia town of under 8,000 people about 10 miles from Atlanta.
Many of the “Fugees” have escaped violence in their home countries. Now
they are making the United States their home, with all the adjustments that
radical change entails. While they adapt to their new environment, their
neighbors must adapt to having the refugees among them. And their
competitors on the soccer field must learn what it means to live in a diverse,
changing society.
We cannot assume that everyone we meet or communicate with, even when
we are young, will be just like ourselves. Today, we learn to work together
with people who are very different, and we sometimes struggle to create a
sense of community despite our differences. While the diversity in Clarkston
may be greater than that in many towns, learning to work in new and
changing social environments is critical to an individual’s and the entire
society’s success.
As a field of study, sociology is extremely broad in scope. You will see
throughout this book the range of topics sociologists investigate—from
immigration to suicide, from Amish society to global economic patterns,
from peer pressure to genetic engineering. Sociology looks at how others
influence our behavior; how major social institutions like the government,
religion, and the economy affect us; and how we ourselves affect other
individuals, groups, and even organizations.
How did sociology develop? In what ways does it differ from other social
sciences? This chapter will explore the nature of sociology as both a field of
inquiry and an exercise of the “sociological imagination.” We’ll look at the
discipline as a science and consider its relationship to other social sciences.
We’ll meet four pioneering thinkers—Émile Durkheim, Max Weber, Karl
Page 3
Marx, and W. E. B. DuBois—and examine the theoretical perspectives that
grew out of their work. We’ll note some of the practical applications for
sociological theory and research. Finally, we’ll see how sociology helps us to
develop a sociological imagination. For those students interested in exploring
career opportunities in sociology, the chapter closes with a special appendix.
What Is Sociology?
“What has sociology got to do with me or with my life?” As a student, you
might well have asked this question when you signed up for your
introductory sociology course. To answer it, consider these points: Are you
influenced by what you see on television? Do you use the Internet? Did you
vote in the last election? Are you familiar with binge drinking on campus?
Do you use alternative medicine? These are just a few of the everyday life
situations described in this book that sociology can shed light on. But as the
opening excerpt indicates, sociology also looks at large social issues. We use
sociology to investigate why thousands of jobs have moved from the United
States to developing nations, what social forces promote prejudice, what
leads someone to join a social movement and work for social change, how
access to computer technology can reduce social inequality, and why
relationships between men and women in Seattle differ from those in
Singapore.
Sociology is, simply, the scientific study of social behavior and human
groups. It focuses on social relationships; how those relationships influence
people’s behavior; and how societies, the sum total of those relationships,
develop and change.
The Sociological Imagination
In attempting to understand social behavior, sociologists rely on a particular
type of critical thinking. A leading sociologist, C. Wright Mills, described
such thinking as the sociological imagination—an awareness of the
relationship between an individual and the wider society, both today and in
the past (Mills [1959] 2000a). This awareness allows all of us (not just
sociologists) to comprehend the links between our immediate, personal social
settings and the remote, impersonal social world that surrounds and helps to
shape us.
A key element in the sociological imagination is the ability to view one’s
own society as an outsider would, rather than only from the perspective of
personal experiences and cultural biases. Consider something as simple as
sporting events. On college campuses in the United States, thousands of
students cheer well-trained football players. In parts of South America and
the Caribbean, spectators gather around two cages, each holding a finch. The
covers are lifted, and the owner of the first bird to sing 50 songs wins a
trophy, a cash prize, and great prestige. In speed singing as in football, eager
spectators debate the merits of their favorites and bet on the outcome of the
events. Yet what is considered a normal sporting event in one part of the
world is considered unusual in another part (Rueb 2015).
The sociological imagination allows us to go beyond personal experiences
and observations to understand broader public issues. Divorce, for example,
is unquestionably a personal hardship for a husband and wife who split apart.
However, C. Wright Mills advocated using the sociological imagination to
view divorce not as simply an individual’s personal problem but rather as a
societal concern. Using this perspective, we can see that an increase in the
divorce rate actually redefines a major social institution—the family. Today’s
households frequently include stepparents and half-siblings whose parents
have divorced and remarried. Through the complexities of the blended
family, this private concern becomes a public issue that affects schools,
government agencies, businesses, and religious institutions.
The sociological imagination is an empowering tool. It allows us to look
beyond a limited understanding of human behavior to see the world and its
people in a new way and through a broader lens than we might otherwise use.
It may be as simple as understanding why a roommate prefers country music
to hip-hop, or it may open up a whole different way of understanding other
populations in the world. For example, in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks
on the United States on September 11, 2001, many citizens wanted to
understand how Muslims throughout the world perceived their country, and
why. From time to time this textbook will offer you the chance to exercise
your sociological imagination in a variety of situations.
Use Your Sociological Imagination
You are walking down the street in your city or hometown. In looking around
you, you can’t help noticing that half or more of the people you see are
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overweight. How do you explain your observation? If you were C. Wright
Mills, how do you think you would explain it?
Sociology and the Social Sciences
Is sociology a science? The term science refers to the body of knowledge
obtained by methods based on systematic observation. Just like other
scientific disciplines, sociology involves the organized, systematic study of
phenomena (in this case, human behavior) in order to enhance understanding.
All scientists, whether studying mushrooms or murderers, attempt to collect
precise information through methods of study that are as objective as
possible. They rely on careful recording of observations and accumulation of
data.
Of course, there is a great difference between sociology and physics,
between psychology and astronomy. For this reason, the sciences are
commonly divided into natural and social sciences. Natural science is the
study of the physical features of nature and the ways in which they interact
and change. Astronomy, biology, chemistry, geology, and physics are all
natural sciences. Social science is the study of the social features of humans
and the ways in which they interact and change. The social sciences include
sociology, anthropology, economics, history, psychology, and political
science.
These social science disciplines have a common focus on the social
behavior of people, yet each has a particular orientation. Anthropologists
usually study past cultures and preindustrial societies that continue today, as
well as the origins of humans. Economists explore the ways in which people
produce and exchange goods and services, along with money and other
resources. Historians are concerned with the peoples and events of the past
and their significance for us today. Political scientists study international
relations, the workings of government, and the exercise of power and
authority. Psychologists investigate personality and individual behavior. So
what do sociologists focus on? They study the influence that society has on
people’s attitudes and behavior and the ways in which people interact and
shape society. Because humans are social animals, sociologists
examine our social relationships scientifically. The range of the
relationships they investigate is vast, as the current list of sections in the
American Sociological Association suggests (Table 1-1).
Source: “ASA Sections,” American Sociological Association, 2017. (American
Sociological Association 2017a)
The range of sociological issues is very broad. For example, sociologists who
belong to the Animals and Society section of the ASA may study the animal
rights movement; those who belong to the Sexualities section may study
global sex workers or the gay, bisexual, and transgender movements.
Economic sociologists may investigate globalization or consumerism, among
many other topics.
©RawPixel.com/Shutterstock
Sociology is the scientific study of social behavior and human groups.
Let’s consider how different social scientists might study the impact of the
global recession that began in 2008. Historians would stress the pattern of
long-term fluctuations in world markets. Economists would discuss the roles
played by government, the private sector, and the world monetary system.
Psychologists would study individual cases of emotional stress among
workers, investors, and business owners. And political scientists would study
the degree of cooperation among nations—or lack of it—in seeking economic
solutions.
What approach would sociologists take? They might note a change in
marital patterns in the United States. Since the recession began, the median
age of first marriage has risen to 28.7 years for men and 26.7 years for
women. Sociologists might also observe that today, fewer people are making
that trip to the altar than in the past. If the U.S. marriage rate had remained
the same as it was in 2006, about 4 million more Americans would have
married by 2010.
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Similarly, sociologists might evaluate the recession’s impact on education.
In the United States, private school enrollment from elementary through high
school declined from 13.6 percent in 2006 to 12.8 percent in 2010 as families
cut back on nonessential expenditures. Sociologists might even consider the
recession’s effect on environmental actions, such as carpooling. In all but 1
of the 50 largest metropolitan areas in the United States (New Orleans), the
percentage of working people aged 16 to 64 dropped significantly during the
recession. When friends and co-workers are laid off, carpools shrink and
more people end up driving to work alone (El Nasser and Overberg 2011).
Sociologists would take a similar approach to studying episodes of extreme
violence and hatred. In 2017, the nation was shocked by the open display of
pro-Nazi and pro-Klu Klux Klan sympathy by marchers in Charlottesville,
Virginia, at a “Unite the Right” rally protesting the removal of a statue of
Confederate leader General Robert E. Lee. Months earlier, a lone gunman
with leftist leanings opened fire at a Republican congressional baseball
practice, shooting four members of Congress. Observers struggled to explain
these individual and collective events by placing them in a larger social
context. For sociologists in particular, these events raised numerous issues
and topics for study, including the role of social media as a new
platform for extremist thought, growing anger against government
and people in authority, the gun control debate, and the inadequacy of the
nation’s mental health system. Extensive sociological research is already
under way concerning the effects of 2017 hurricanes Harvey and Irma.
©Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
As the nation struggled to recover from a deep and lengthy recession,
recently laid-off workers jostled the long-term unemployed at a crowded job
fair in San Francisco. Sociologists use a variety of approaches to assess the
full impact of economic change on society.
Besides doing research, sociologists have a long history of advising
government agencies on how to respond to disasters. Certainly the poverty of
the Gulf Coast region complicated the challenge of evacuating New Orleans
in 2005. With Hurricane Katrina bearing down on the Gulf Coast, thousands
of poor inner-city residents had no automobiles or other available means of
escaping the storm. Added to that difficulty was the high incidence of
disability in the area. New Orleans ranked second among the nation’s 70
largest cities in the proportion of people over age 65 who are disabled—56
percent. Moving wheelchair-bound residents to safety requires specially
equipped vehicles, to say nothing of handicap-accessible accommodations in
public shelters. Clearly, officials must consider these factors in developing
evacuation plans (Bureau of the Census 2005b).
Sociological analysis of the disaster did not end when the floodwaters
receded. Indeed, several steps were taken that improve the response to
hurricanes Harvey and Irma, which hit Texas and Florida in 2017. These
included:
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Requiring communities to develop workable disaster response plans in
advance.
Delivering emergency supplies to secure holding areas before the storms
struck.
Permitting prior approval for taking action rather than requiring plan
submission after the disaster.
Identifying emergency shelters that take pets to avoid people remaining
at home to safeguard their pets.
Ending federal prohibition against accepting volunteer responders,
especially when the scope of the disaster grows greater.
Tragically, many Katrina victims had relocated to Houston, where they
then had to be sheltered again after Harvey struck in 2017, but they often
expressed the realization that disaster response had improved. However, just
a month later the slow response in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria on
Puerto Rico, with most of the island left without clean water, power, or cell
phone service for weeks, left many scholars looking for still further ways to
improve both disaster preparedness and response (Carey 2017; Philips 2017).
Throughout this textbook, you will see how sociologists develop theories
and conduct research to study and better understand societies. And you will
be encouraged to use your sociological imagination to examine the United
States (and other societies) from the viewpoint of a respectful but questioning
outsider.
Sociology and Common Sense
Sociology focuses on the study of human behavior. Yet we all have
experience with human behavior and at least some knowledge of it. All of us
might well have theories about why people become homeless, for example.
Our theories and opinions typically come from common sense—that is, from
our experiences and conversations, from what we read, from what we
see on television, and so forth.
In our daily lives, we rely on common sense to get us through many
unfamiliar situations. However, this commonsense knowledge, while
sometimes accurate, is not always reliable, because it rests on commonly held
beliefs rather than on systematic analysis of facts. It was once considered
common sense to accept that the earth was flat—a view rightly questioned by
Pythagoras and Aristotle. Incorrect commonsense notions are not just a part
of the distant past; they remain with us today.
Contrary to the common notion that women tend to be chatty compared to
men, for instance, researchers have found little difference between the sexes
in terms of their talkativeness. Over a five-year period they placed
unobtrusive microphones on 396 college students in various fields, at
campuses in Mexico as well as the United States. They found that both men
and women spoke about 16,000 words per day (Mehl et al. 2007).
Similarly, common sense tells us that today, violent crime holds
communities on the border between the United States and Mexico in a kind
of death grip, creating an atmosphere of lawlessness reminiscent of the old
Wild West. Based on televised news stories and on concerns expressed by
elected officials throughout the southwestern United States, this assertion
may sound reasonable; however, it is not true. Although some communities
in Mexico have fallen under the control of drug cartels, the story is different
on the U.S. side of the border. All available crime data—including murder,
extortion, robbery, and kidnapping rates, whether reported or documented in
victim surveys—show that in the hundred-mile-deep border area stretching
from San Diego to Brownsville, Texas, crime rates are significantly lower
than in similar U.S. cities outside the area. Furthermore, the crime rate has
been dropping faster near the border than in other similar-size U.S.
communities for at least the last 15 years (Gillum 2011; Gomez et al. 2011).
Like other social scientists, sociologists do not accept something as a fact
because “everyone knows it.” Instead, each piece of information must be
tested and recorded, then analyzed in relation to other data. Sociologists rely
on scientific studies in order to describe and understand a social environment.
At times, the findings of sociologists may seem like common sense, because
they deal with familiar facets of everyday life. The difference is that such
findings have been tested by researchers. Common sense now tells us that the
earth is round, but this particular commonsense notion is based on centuries
of scientific work that began with the breakthroughs made by Pythagoras and
Aristotle.
thinking CRITICALLY
What aspects of the social and work environment in a fast-food restaurant
would be of particular interest to a sociologist? How would the sociological
imagination help in analyzing the topic?
What Is Sociological Theory?
Why do people commit suicide? One traditional commonsense answer is that
people inherit the desire to kill themselves. Another view is that sunspots
drive people to take their lives. These explanations may not seem especially
convincing to contemporary researchers, but they represent beliefs widely
held as recently as 1900.
Sociologists are not particularly interested in why any one individual
commits suicide; they are more concerned with identifying the social forces
that systematically cause some people to take their own lives. In order to
undertake this research, sociologists develop a theory that offers a general
explanation of suicidal behavior.
We can think of theories as attempts to explain events, forces, materials,
ideas, or behavior in a comprehensive manner. In sociology, a theory is a set
of statements that seeks to explain problems, actions, or behavior. An
effective theory may have both explanatory and predictive power. That is, it
can help us to see the relationships among seemingly isolated phenomena, as
well as to understand how one type of change in an environment leads to
other changes.
The World Health Organization (2010) estimates that almost a million
people die from suicide every year. More than a hundred years ago, a
sociologist tried to look at suicide data scientifically. Émile Durkheim
([1897] 1951) developed a highly original theory about the relationship
between suicide and social factors. Durkheim was primarily concerned not
with the personalities of individual suicide victims, but rather with suicide
rates and how they varied from country to country. As a result, when he
looked at the number of reported suicides in France, England, and Denmark
in 1869, he also noted the total population of each country in order to
determine the rate of suicide in each nation. He found that whereas England
had only 67 reported suicides per million inhabitants, France had 135 per
million and Denmark had 277 per million. The question then became “Why
did Denmark have a comparatively high rate of reported suicide?”
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Durkheim went much deeper into his investigation of suicide rates. The
result was his landmark work Suicide, published in 1897. Durkheim refused
to accept unproved explanations regarding suicide, including the beliefs that
inherited tendencies or cosmic forces caused such deaths. Instead, he focused
on social factors, such as the cohesiveness or lack of cohesiveness of
religious, social, and occupational groups.
Durkheim’s research suggested that suicide, although it is a solitary act, is
related to group life. He found that people without religious affiliations had a
higher suicide rate than those who were affiliated; the unmarried had much
higher rates than married people; and soldiers had a higher rate than civilians.
In addition, there seemed to be higher rates of suicide in times of peace than
in times of war and revolution, and in times of economic instability and
recession rather than in times of prosperity. Durkheim concluded that the
suicide rates of a society reflected the extent to which people were or were
not integrated into the group life of the society.
Use Your Sociological Imagination
If you were Durkheim’s successor in his research on suicide, how would you
investigate the factors that may explain the increase in suicide rates among
people age 55 and older in the United States today?
Émile Durkheim, like many other social scientists, developed a
theory to explain how individual behavior can be understood within a
social context. He pointed out the influence of groups and societal forces on
what had always been viewed as a highly personal act. Clearly, Durkheim
offered a more scientific explanation for the causes of suicide than that of
inherited tendencies or sunspots. His theory has predictive power, since it
suggests that suicide rates will rise or fall in conjunction with certain social
and economic changes.
©Digital Vision/Getty Images
Of course, a theory—even the best of theories—is not a final statement
about human behavior. Durkheim’s theory of suicide is no exception.
Sociologists continue to examine factors that contribute to differences in
suicide rates around the world and to a particular society’s rate of suicide. In
Las Vegas, for example, sociologists have observed that the chances of dying
by suicide are strikingly high—twice as high as in the United States as a
whole. Noting Durkheim’s emphasis on the relationship between suicide and
social isolation, researchers have suggested that Las Vegas’s rapid growth
and constant influx of tourists have undermined the community’s sense of
permanence, even among longtime residents. Although gambling—or more
accurately, losing while gambling—may seem a likely precipitating factor in
suicides there, careful study of the data has allowed researchers to dismiss
that explanation. What happens in Vegas may stay in Vegas, but the sense of
community cohesiveness that the rest of the country enjoys may be lacking
(Wray et al. 2008, 2011).
thinking CRITICALLY
Can you think of any other explanation for the high suicide rate in Las
Vegas? Does that explanation agree with Durkheim’s theory?
The Development of Sociology
People have always been curious about sociological matters—how we get
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along with others, what we do for a living, whom we select as our leaders.
Philosophers and religious authorities of ancient and medieval societies made
countless observations about human behavior. They did not test or verify
those observations scientifically; nevertheless, their observations often
became the foundation for moral codes. Several of these early social
philosophers correctly predicted that a systematic study of human behavior
would emerge one day. Beginning in the 19th century, European theorists
made pioneering contributions to the development of a science of human
behavior.
Early Thinkers
Auguste Comte
The 19th century was an unsettling time in France. The French monarchy had
been deposed in the revolution of 1789, and Napoleon had suffered defeat in
his effort to conquer Europe. Amid this chaos, philosophers considered how
society might be improved. Auguste Comte (1798–1857), credited with being
the most influential of the philosophers of the early 1800s, believed that a
theoretical science of society and a systematic investigation of behavior were
needed to improve society. He coined the term sociology to apply to the
science of human behavior.
Writing in the 1800s, Comte feared that the excesses of the French
Revolution had permanently impaired France’s stability. Yet he hoped that
the systematic study of social behavior would eventually lead to more
rational human interactions. In Comte’s hierarchy of the sciences, sociology
was at the top. He called it the “queen,” and its practitioners “scientist-
priests.” This French theorist did not simply give sociology its name; he
presented a rather ambitious challenge to the fledgling discipline.
Harriet Martineau
Scholars learned of Comte’s works largely through translations by the
English sociologist Harriet Martineau (1802–1876). But Martineau was a
pathbreaker in her own right: she offered insightful observations of the
customs and social practices of both her native Britain and the United States.
Martineau’s book Society in America ([1837] 1962) examined
religion, politics, child rearing, and immigration in the young nation.
It gave special attention to social class distinctions and to such factors as
gender and race. Martineau ([1838] 1989) also wrote the first book on
sociological methods.
©Georgios Kollidas/Alamy Stock Photo
Harriet Martineau, an early pioneer of sociology who studied social behavior
both in her native England and in the United States. Martineau proposed
some of the methods still used by sociologists, including systematic
observation.
Martineau’s writings emphasized the impact that the economy, law, trade,
health, and population could have on social problems. She spoke out in favor
of the rights of women, the emancipation of slaves, and religious tolerance.
Later in life, deafness did not keep her from being an activist. In Martineau’s
([1837] 1962) view, intellectuals and scholars should not simply offer
observations of social conditions; they should act on their convictions in a
manner that will benefit society. That is why Martineau conducted research
on the nature of female employment and pointed to the need for further
investigation of the issue (Deegan 2003; Hill and Hoecker-Drysdale 2001).
Herbert Spencer
Another important early contributor to the discipline of sociology was
Herbert Spencer (1820–1903). A relatively prosperous Victorian Englishman,
Spencer (unlike Martineau) did not feel compelled to correct or improve
society; instead, he merely hoped to understand it better. Drawing on Charles
Darwin’s study On the Origin of Species, Spencer applied the concept of
evolution of the species to societies in order to explain how they change, or
evolve, over time. Similarly, he adapted Darwin’s evolutionary view of the
“survival of the fittest” by arguing that it is “natural” that some people are
rich while others are poor.
Spencer’s approach to societal change was extremely popular in his
lifetime. Unlike Comte, Spencer suggested that since societies are bound to
change eventually, one need not be highly critical of present social
arrangements or work actively for social change. This viewpoint appealed to
many influential people in England and the United States who had a vested
interest in the status quo and were suspicious of social thinkers who endorsed
change.
Émile Durkheim
Émile Durkheim made many pioneering contributions to sociology, including
his important theoretical work on suicide. The son of a rabbi, Durkheim
(1858–1917) was educated in both France and Germany. He established an
impressive academic reputation and was appointed one of the first professors
of sociology in France. Above all, Durkheim will be remembered for his
insistence that behavior must be understood within a larger social context, not
just in individualistic terms.
To give one example of this emphasis, Durkheim ([1912] 2001) developed
a fundamental thesis to help explain all forms of society. Through intensive
study of the Arunta, an Australian tribe, he focused on the functions that
religion performed and underscored the role of group life in defining what we
consider to be religion. Durkheim concluded that like other forms of group
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behavior, religion reinforces a group’s solidarity.
Another of Durkheim’s main interests was the consequences of work in
modern societies. In his view, the growing division of labor industrial
societies, as workers became much more specialized in their tasks, led to
what he called “anomie.” Anomie refers to the loss of direction felt in a
society when social control of individual behavior has become ineffective.
Often, the state of anomie occurs during a time of profound social change,
when people have lost their sense of purpose or direction. In a period of
anomie, people are so confused and unable to cope with the new social
environment that they may resort to suicide.
Durkheim was concerned about the dangers that alienation, loneliness, and
isolation might pose for modern industrial societies. He shared Comte’s
belief that sociology should provide direction for social change. As a result,
he advocated the creation of new social groups—mediators between the
individual’s family and the state—that would provide a sense of belonging
for members of huge, impersonal societies. Unions would be an example of
such groups.
Like many other sociologists, Durkheim did not limit his interests to one
aspect of social behavior. Later in this book we will consider his thinking on
crime and punishment, religion, and the workplace. Few sociologists have
had such a dramatic impact on so many different areas within the discipline.
Max Weber
Another important early theorist was Max Weber (pronounced VAY-ber).
Born in Germany, Weber (1864–1920) studied legal and economic history,
but gradually developed an interest in sociology. Eventually, he became a
professor at various German universities. Weber taught his students that they
should employ verstehen (pronounced fair-SHTAY-en), the German word
for “understanding” or “insight,” in their intellectual work. He
pointed out that we cannot analyze our social behavior by the same
type of objective criteria we use to measure weight or temperature. To fully
comprehend behavior, we must learn the subjective meanings people attach
to their actions—how they themselves view and explain their behavior.
©Gary Conner/Getty Images
For example, suppose that a sociologist was studying the social ranking of
individuals in a fraternity. Weber would expect the researcher to employ
verstehen to determine the significance of the fraternity’s social hierarchy for
its members. The researcher might examine the effects of athleticism or
grades or social skills or seniority on standing within the fraternity. He or she
would seek to learn how the fraternity members relate to other members of
higher or lower status. While investigating these questions, the researcher
would take into account people’s emotions, thoughts, beliefs, and attitudes
(L. Coser 1977).
We also owe credit to Weber for a key conceptual tool: the ideal type. An
ideal type is a construct or model for evaluating specific cases. In his works,
Weber identified various characteristics of bureaucracy as an ideal type
(discussed in detail in Chapter 05). In presenting this model of bureaucracy,
Weber was not describing any particular organization, nor was he using the
term ideal in a way that suggested a positive evaluation. Instead, his purpose
was to provide a useful standard for measuring how bureaucratic an actual
organization is (Gerth and Mills 1958). Later in this book, we will use the
concept of ideal type to study the family, religion, authority, and economic
systems, as well as to analyze bureaucracy.
Although their professional careers coincided, Émile Durkheim and Max
Weber never met and probably were unaware of each other’s existence, let
alone ideas. Such was not true of the work of Karl Marx. Durkheim’s
thinking about the impact of the division of labor in industrial societies was
related to Marx’s writings, while Weber’s concern for a value-free, objective
sociology was a direct response to Marx’s deeply held convictions. Thus, it is
not surprising that Karl Marx is viewed as a major figure in the development
of sociology, as well as several other social sciences (Figure 1-1).
FIGURE 1-1 CONTRIBUTORS TO SOCIOLOGY
Karl Marx
Karl Marx (1818–1883) shared with Durkheim and Weber a dual interest in
abstract philosophical issues and the concrete reality of everyday life. Unlike
them, however, Marx was so critical of existing institutions that a
conventional academic career was impossible. He spent most of his life in
exile from his native Germany.
Marx’s personal life was a difficult struggle. When a paper he had written
was suppressed, he fled to France. In Paris, he met Friedrich Engels (1820–
1895), with whom he formed a lifelong friendship. The two lived at a time
when European and North American economic life was increasingly
dominated by the factory rather than the farm.
While in London in 1847, Marx and Engels attended secret meetings of an
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illegal coalition of labor unions known as the Communist League. The
following year they prepared a platform called The Communist Manifesto, in
which they argued that the masses of people with no resources other than
their labor (whom they referred to as the proletariat) should unite to fight for
the overthrow of capitalist societies. In the words of Marx and Engels:
The history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class
struggles. . . . The proletarians have nothing to lose but their chains.
They have a world to win. WORKING MEN OF ALL COUNTRIES,
UNITE! (Tucker 1978:473, 500)
After completing The Communist Manifesto, Marx returned to Germany,
only to be expelled. He then moved to England, where he continued to write
books and essays. Marx lived there in extreme poverty; he pawned most of
his possessions, and several of his children died of malnutrition and disease.
Marx clearly was an outsider in British society, a fact that may well have
influenced his view of Western cultures.
In Marx’s analysis, society was fundamentally divided between two classes
that clashed in pursuit of their own interests. When he examined the
industrial societies of his time, such as Germany, England, and the United
States, he saw the factory as the center of conflict between the
exploiters (the owners of the means of production) and the exploited
(the workers). Marx viewed these relationships in systematic terms; that is, he
believed that a system of economic, social, and political relationships
maintained the power and dominance of the owners over the workers.
Consequently, Marx and Engels argued that the working class should
overthrow the existing class system. Marx’s influence on contemporary
thinking has been dramatic. His writings inspired those who would later lead
communist revolutions in Russia, China, Cuba, Vietnam, and elsewhere.
Even apart from the political revolutions that his work fostered, Marx’s
significance is profound. Marx emphasized the group identifications and
associations that influence an individual’s place in society. This area of study
is the major focus of contemporary sociology. Throughout this textbook, we
will consider how membership in a particular gender classification, age
group, racial group, or economic class affects a person’s attitudes and
behavior. In an important sense, we can trace this way of understanding
society back to the pioneering work of Karl Marx.
W. E. B. DuBois
Marx’s work encouraged sociologists to view society through the eyes of
those segments of the population that rarely influence decision making. In the
United States, some early Black sociologists, including W. E. B. DuBois
(1868–1963), conducted research that they hoped would assist in the struggle
for a racially egalitarian society. DuBois (pronounced doo-BOYSS) believed
that knowledge was essential in combating prejudice and achieving tolerance
and justice. Sociologists, he contended, needed to draw on scientific
principles to study social problems such as those experienced by Blacks in
the United States. To separate opinion from fact, he advocated research on
the lives of Blacks. Through his in-depth studies of urban life, both White
and Black, in cities such as Philadelphia and Atlanta, DuBois ([1899] 1995)
made a major contribution to sociology.
Like Durkheim and Weber, DuBois saw the importance of religion to
society. However, he tended to focus on religion at the community level and
on the role of the church in the lives of its members (DuBois [1903] 2003).
DuBois had little patience with theorists such as Herbert Spencer, who
seemed content with the status quo. He believed that the granting of full
political rights to Blacks was essential to their social and economic progress.
Through what became known as the Atlanta Sociological Laboratory,
DuBois also promoted groundbreaking research by other scholars. While
investigating religion, crime, and race relations, these colleagues trained their
students in sociological research. The extensive interviews conducted by
students in Atlanta still enrich our understanding of human behavior (Earl
Wright II 2012).
Because many of his ideas challenged the status quo, DuBois did not
always find a receptive audience within either the government or the
academic world. As a result, he became increasingly involved with
organizations whose members questioned the established social order. In
1909 he helped to found the National Association for the Advancement of
Colored People, better known today as the NAACP (Morris 2015, Wortham
2008).
DuBois’s insights have been lasting. In 1897 he coined the term double
consciousness to refer to the division of an individual’s identity into two or
more social realities. He used the term to describe the experience of being
Black in White America. African Americans have held the highest offices in
the land, including President of the United States. Yet for millions of African
Americans, the reality of being Black in the United States typically is not one
of power (DuBois [1903] 1961).
Twentieth-Century Developments
Sociology today builds on the firm foundation developed by Émile
Durkheim, Max Weber, Karl Marx, and W. E. B. DuBois. However, the field
certainly has not remained stagnant over the past hundred years. While
Europeans have continued to make contributions to the discipline,
sociologists from throughout the world and especially the United States have
advanced sociological theory and research. Their new insights have helped us
to better understand the workings of society.
Charles Horton Cooley
Charles Horton Cooley (1864–1929) was typical of the sociologists who
came to prominence in the early 1900s. Born in Ann Arbor, Michigan,
Cooley received his graduate training in economics but later became a
sociology professor at the University of Michigan. Like other early
sociologists, he had become interested in this new discipline while pursuing a
related area of study.
Cooley shared the desire of Durkheim, Weber, and Marx to learn more
about society. But to do so effectively, he preferred to use the sociological
perspective to look first at smaller units—intimate, face-to-face groups such
as families, gangs, and friendship networks. He saw these groups as the
seedbeds of society, in the sense that they shape people’s ideals, beliefs,
values, and social nature. Cooley’s work increased our understanding of
groups of relatively small size.
Jane Addams
In the early 1900s, many leading sociologists in the United States saw
themselves as social reformers dedicated to systematically studying and then
improving a corrupt society. They were genuinely concerned about the lives
of immigrants in the nation’s growing cities, whether those immigrants came
from Europe or from the rural American South. Early female sociologists, in
particular, often took active roles in poor urban areas as leaders of
community centers known as settlement houses. For example, Jane Addams
Page 11
(1860–1935), a member of the American Sociological Society, cofounded the
famous Chicago settlement house called Hull House.
Addams and other pioneering female sociologists commonly combined
intellectual inquiry, social service work, and political activism—all with the
goal of assisting the underprivileged and creating a more egalitarian society.
For example, working with the Black journalist and educator Ida Wells-
Barnett, Addams successfully prevented racial segregation in the Chicago
public schools. Addams’s efforts to establish a juvenile court system and a
women’s trade union reveal the practical focus of her work (Addams 1910,
1930; Deegan 1991; Lengermann and Niebrugge-Brantley 1998).
By the middle of the 20th century, however, the focus of the discipline had
shifted. Sociologists for the most part restricted themselves to theorizing and
gathering information; the aim of transforming society was left to social
workers and activists. This shift away from social reform was accompanied
by a growing commitment to scientific methods of research and to value-free
interpretation of data. Not all sociologists were happy with this
emphasis. A new organization, the Society for the Study of Social
Problems, was created in 1950 to deal more directly with social inequality
and other social problems.
Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-H25- 71336-BF]
Jane Addams was an early pioneer both in sociology and in the settlement
house movement. She was also an activist for many causes, including the
worldwide campaign for peace.
Robert Merton
Sociologist Robert Merton (1910–2003) made an important contribution to
the discipline by successfully combining theory and research. Born to Slavic
immigrant parents in Philadelphia, Merton won a scholarship to Temple
University. He continued his studies at Harvard, where he acquired his
lifelong interest in sociology. Merton’s teaching career was based at
Columbia University.
Merton (1968) produced a theory that is one of the most frequently cited
explanations of deviant behavior. He noted different ways in which people
attempt to achieve success in life. In his view, some may deviate from the
socially approved goal of accumulating material goods or the socially
accepted means of achieving that goal. For example, in Merton’s
classification scheme, innovators are people who accept the goal of pursuing
material wealth but use illegal means to do so, including robbery, burglary,
and extortion. Although Merton based his explanation of crime on individual
behavior that has been influenced by society’s approved goals and means, it
has wider applications. His theory helps to account for the high crime rates
among the nation’s poor, who may see no hope of advancing themselves
through traditional roads to success. Chapter 7 discusses Merton’s theory in
greater detail.
Merton also emphasized that sociology should strive to bring together the
macro-level and micro-level approaches to the study of society.
Macrosociology concentrates on large-scale phenomena or entire
civilizations. Harriet Martineau’s study of religion and politics in the United
States is an example of macro-level research. More recently,
macrosociologists have examined international crime rates (see Chapter 7)
and the stereotype of Asian Americans as a “model minority” (see Chapter
10). In contrast, microsociology stresses the study of small groups, often
through experimental means. Sociological research on the micro level has
included studies of how divorced men and women disengage from significant
social roles (see Chapter 5) and of how a teacher’s expectations can affect a
student’s academic performance (see Chapter 13).
While Merton intended to be inclusive of all research, over the past fifty
years sociologists have identified two additional levels of research:
mesosociology and global sociology. Mesosociology is an intermediate level
of analysis embracing study of formal organizations and social movements.
Max Weber’s analysis of bureaucracies (see Chapter 5) and the study of
environmentalism (see Chapter 15) illustrate mesosociology. Global
sociology makes comparisons among nations, typically using entire societies
as the units of analysis. Émile Durkheim’s cross-cultural study of suicide is
an example of global sociology, as is the study of international crime rates
(Smelser, 1997).
Pierre Bourdieu
Increasingly, scholars in the United States have been drawing on the insights
of sociologists in other countries. The ideas of the French sociologist Pierre
Bourdieu (1930–2002) have found a broad following in North America and
Page 12
elsewhere. As a young man, Bourdieu did fieldwork in Algeria during its
struggle for independence from France. Today, scholars study Bourdieu’s
research techniques as well as his conclusions.
Bourdieu wrote about how capital in its many forms sustains individuals
and families from one generation to the next. To Bourdieu, capital included
not just material goods, but cultural and social assets. Cultural capital refers
to noneconomic goods, such as family background and education, which are
reflected in a knowledge of language and the arts. Not necessarily book
knowledge, cultural capital refers to the kind of education that is valued by
the socially elite. Though a knowledge of Chinese cuisine is culture, for
example, it is not the prestigious kind of culture that is valued by the elite. In
the United States, immigrants—especially those who arrived in large
numbers and settled in ethnic enclaves—have generally taken two or three
generations to develop the same level of cultural capital enjoyed by more
established groups.
In comparison, social capital refers to the collective benefit of social
networks, which are built on reciprocal trust. Much has been written about
the importance of family and friendship networks in providing people with an
opportunity to advance. Social bonds and capital have great value in health
happiness, educational achievement, and economic success. In his emphasis
on cultural and social capital, Bourdieu’s work extends the insights of early
social thinkers such as Marx and Weber (Bourdieu and Passerson 1990;
Poder 2011; Putnam 2015:207).
Today sociology reflects the diverse contributions of earlier theorists. As
sociologists approach such topics as divorce, drug addiction, and religious
cults, they can draw on the theoretical insights of the discipline’s
pioneers. A careful reader can hear Comte, Durkheim, Weber, Marx,
DuBois, Cooley, Addams, and many others speaking through the pages of
current research. Sociology has also broadened beyond the intellectual
confines of North America and Europe. Contributions to the discipline now
come from sociologists studying and researching human behavior in other
parts of the world. In describing the work of these sociologists, it is helpful to
examine a number of influential theoretical perspectives, also known as
approaches or views.
thinking CRITICALLY
What kinds of social and cultural capital do you possess? How did you
acquire them? What keeps you from acquiring more?
Major Theoretical Perspectives
Sociologists view society in different ways. Some see the world basically as a
stable and ongoing entity. They are impressed with the endurance of the
family, organized religion, and other social institutions. Other sociologists
see society as composed of many groups in conflict, competing for scarce
resources. To still other sociologists, the most fascinating aspects of the
social world are the everyday, routine interactions among individuals that we
sometimes take for granted. These three views, the ones most widely used by
sociologists, are the functionalist, conflict, and interactionist perspectives.
Together, these approaches will provide an introductory look at the
discipline.
Functionalist Perspective
Think of society as a living organism in which each part of the organism
contributes to its survival. This view is the functionalist perspective, which
emphasizes the way in which the parts of a society are structured to maintain
its stability. In examining any aspect of society, then, functionalists
emphasize the contribution that it makes to overall social stability.
Talcott Parsons (1902–1979), a Harvard University sociologist, was a key
figure in the development of functionalist theory. Parsons was greatly
influenced by the work of Émile Durkheim, Max Weber, and other European
sociologists. For more than four decades, he dominated sociology in the
United States with his advocacy of functionalism. Parsons saw any society as
a vast network of connected parts, each of which helps to maintain the system
as a whole. His approach, carried forward by German sociologist Niklas
Luhmann (1927–1998), holds that if an aspect of social life does not
contribute to a society’s stability or survival—if it does not serve some
identifiably useful function or promote value consensus among members of
society—it will not be passed on from one generation to the next (Joas and
Knöbl 2009; Knudsen 2010).
Let’s examine an example of the functionalist perspective. Many
Americans have difficulty understanding the Hindu prohibition against
slaughtering cows (specifically, zebu). Cattle browse unhindered through
Indian street markets, helping themselves to oranges and mangoes while
people bargain for the little food they can afford. What explains this devotion
to the cow in the face of human deprivation—a devotion that appears to be
dysfunctional?
©John Lund/Tiffany Schoepp/Blend Images/Corbis
Functionalists would see the family, as shown here in Panama City, Panama,
as important to contributing to the stability of the society.
The simple explanation is that cow worship is highly functional in Indian
society, according to economists, agronomists, and social scientists who have
studied the matter. Cows perform two essential tasks: plowing the fields and
producing milk. If eating beef were permitted, hungry families might be
tempted to slaughter their cows for immediate consumption, leaving
themselves without a means of cultivation. Cows also produce dung, which
doubles as a fertilizer and a fuel for cooking. Finally, cow meat sustains the
neediest group in society, the Dalit, or untouchables, who sometimes resort to
Page 13
eating beef in secrecy. If eating beef were socially acceptable, higher-status
Indians would no doubt bid up its price, placing it beyond the reach of the
hungriest.
Manifest and Latent Functions
A college catalog typically states various functions of the institution. It may
inform you, for example, that the university intends to “offer each student a
broad education in classical and contemporary thought, in the humanities, in
the sciences, and in the arts.” However, it would be quite a surprise to find a
catalog that declared, “This university was founded in 1895 to assist people
in finding a marriage partner.” No college catalog will declare this as the
purpose of the university. Yet societal institutions serve many functions,
some of them quite subtle. The university, in fact, does facilitate mate
selection.
Robert Merton (1968) made an important distinction between manifest and
latent functions. Manifest functions of institutions are open, stated, and
conscious functions. They involve the intended, recognized consequences of
an aspect of society, such as the university’s role in certifying academic
competence and excellence. In contrast, latent functions are unconscious or
unintended functions that may reflect hidden purposes of an
institution. One latent function of universities is to hold down
unemployment. Another is to serve as a meeting ground for people seeking
marital partners.
Dysfunctions
Functionalists acknowledge that not all parts of a society contribute to its
stability all the time. A dysfunction refers to an element or process of a
society that may actually disrupt the social system or reduce its stability.
We view many dysfunctional behavior patterns, such as homicide, as
undesirable. Yet we should not automatically interpret them in this way. The
evaluation of a dysfunction depends on one’s own values, or as the saying
goes, on “where you sit.” For example, the official view in prisons in the
United States is that inmate gangs should be eradicated because they are
dysfunctional to smooth operations. Yet some guards have come to view
prison gangs as a functional part of their jobs. The danger posed by gangs
creates a “threat to security,” requiring increased surveillance and more
overtime work for guards, as well as requests for special staffing to address
gang problems (G. Scott 2001).
Conflict Perspective
Where functionalists see stability and consensus, conflict sociologists see a
social world in continual struggle. The conflict perspective assumes that
social behavior is best understood in terms of tension between groups over
power or the allocation of resources, including housing, money, access to
services, and political representation. The tension between competing groups
need not be violent; it can take the form of labor negotiations, party politics,
competition between religious groups for new members, or disputes over the
federal budget.
Throughout most of the 1900s, the functionalist perspective had the upper
hand in sociology in the United States. However, the conflict approach has
become increasingly persuasive since the late 1960s. The widespread social
unrest resulting from battles over civil rights, bitter divisions over the war in
Vietnam, the rise of the feminist and gay liberation movements, the
Watergate political scandal, urban riots, confrontations at abortion clinics,
and shrinking economic prospects for the middle class have offered support
for the conflict approach—the view that our social world is characterized by
continual struggle between competing groups. Currently, the discipline of
sociology accepts conflict theory as one valid way to gain insight into a
society.
The Marxist View
As we saw earlier, Karl Marx viewed struggle between social classes as
inevitable, given the exploitation of workers that he perceived under
capitalism. Expanding on Marx’s work, sociologists and other social
scientists have come to see conflict not merely as a class phenomenon but as
a part of everyday life in all societies. In studying any culture, organization,
or social group, sociologists want to know who benefits, who suffers, and
who dominates at the expense of others. They are concerned with the
conflicts between women and men, parents and children, cities and suburbs,
Whites and Blacks, to name only a few. Conflict theorists are interested in
how society’s institutions—including the family, government, religion,
education, and the media—may help to maintain the privileges of some
groups and keep others in a subservient position. Their emphasis on social
change and the redistribution of resources makes conflict theorists more
radical and activist than functionalists (Dahrendorf 1959).
©Elmer Martinez/AFP/Getty Images
Sociologists who take the Marxist view ask “Who benefits, who suffers, and
who dominates?” What might these tattoos suggest to a Marxist theorist?
The Feminist Perspective
Sociologists began embracing the feminist perspective only in the 1970s,
although it has a long tradition in many other disciplines. The feminist
perspective sees inequity in gender as central to all behavior and
organization. Because it focuses clearly on one aspect of inequality, it is often
allied with the conflict perspective. Proponents of the feminist view tend to
focus on the macro level, just as conflict theorists do. Drawing on the work of
Marx and Engels, contemporary feminist theorists often view women’s
subordination as inherent in capitalist societies. Some radical feminist
theorists, however, view the oppression of women as inevitable in all male-
dominated societies, whether capitalist, socialist, or communist (Ferguson
Page 14
2017).
An early example of this perspective (long before the label came into use
by sociologists) can be seen in the life and writings of Ida Wells-Barnett
(1862–1931). Following her groundbreaking publications in the 1890s on the
practice of lynching Black Americans, she became an advocate in the
women’s rights campaign, especially the struggle to win the vote for
women. Like feminist theorists who succeeded her, Wells-Barnett
used her analysis of society as a means of resisting oppression. In her case,
she researched what it meant to be Black, a woman in the United States, and
a Black woman in the United States (Giddings 2008; Wells-Barnett 1970).
A more recent contribution that continues to spark discussion is the notion
of the intersectionalities, or the interlocking matrix of domination. In all
societies, privilege or lack of privilege is determined by multiple social
factors, such as gender, age, race, sexual orientation, and religion. Patricia
Hill Collins (2000), among other feminist theorists, drew attention to these
interlocking factors, demonstrating that it is not just wealth that influences
how we navigate our daily lives in any society.
©Photo Reseachers, Inc./Science Source
Ida Wells-Barnett explored what it meant to be female and Black in the United
States. Her work established her as one of the earliest feminist theorists.
Queer Theory
Traditionally, sociologists and other researchers have assumed that men and
women are heterosexual. They either ignored other sexual identifications or
treated them as abnormal. Yet as French social theorist Michel Foucault
(1978) has pointed out, what is regarded as normal or even acceptable human
sexuality varies dramatically from one culture to another, as well as from one
time period to another. Today, in queer theory, sociologists have moved
beyond narrow assumptions to study sexuality in all its forms.
Historically, the word queer was used in a derogatory manner, to stigmatize
a person or behavior. Beginning in the early 1970s, however, gay and lesbian
activists began to use the word as a term of empowerment. They dismissed
the notion of heterosexuality as the only normal form of sexuality, along with
the belief that people must be either heterosexual or homosexual. Instead,
they recognized multiple sexual identities, including bisexuality. Queer
theory is the study of society from the perspective of a broad spectrum of
sexual identities, including heterosexuality, homosexuality, and bisexuality.
Queer theorist Eve Sedgwick (1990) argues that any analysis of society is
incomplete if it does not include the spectrum of sexual identities that people
embrace. Consider, for example, the reelection of President Obama in 2012.
Political scientists have often noted the overwhelming support the president
received from African Americans, Latinos, and women voters. Yet most have
ignored the huge support—76 percent—that the president enjoyed among
gay, lesbian, and bisexual voters. In comparison, heterosexual voters split
evenly (49 percent to 49 percent nationwide) between Obama and his
opponent, Mitt Romney. In the three battleground states of Florida, Ohio, and
Virginia, support from gay, lesbian, and bisexual voters alone was enough to
put Obama over the top. If Romney had carried just 51 percent of the gay,
lesbian, and bisexual vote nationwide, he would have become the next
president of the United States (Gates 2012).
Use Your Sociological Imagination
You are a sociologist who takes the conflict perspective. How would you
interpret the practice of prostitution? How would your view of prostitution
differ if you took the functionalist perspective? The feminist perspective? The
perspective of queer theory?
Interactionist Perspective
Workers interacting on the job, encounters in public places like bus stops and
parks, behavior in small groups—all these aspects of microsociology catch
the attention of interactionists. Whereas functionalist and conflict theorists
both analyze large-scale, society-wide patterns of behavior, theorists who
take the interactionist perspective generalize about everyday forms of social
interaction in order to explain society as a whole.
Today, given concern over traffic congestion and commuting costs,
interactionists have begun to study a form of commuter behavior called
“slugging.” To avoid driving to work, commuters gather at certain
preappointed places to seek rides from complete strangers. When a driver
pulls into the parking area or vacant lot and announces his destination, the
first slug in line who is headed for that destination jumps in. Rules of
etiquette have emerged to smooth the social interaction between driver and
passenger: neither the driver nor the passenger may eat or smoke; the slug
may not adjust the windows or radio or talk on a cell phone. The presence of
the slugs, who get a free ride, may allow the driver to use special lanes
reserved for high-occupancy vehicles (Slug-Lines.com 2016).
Interactionism (also referred to as symbolic interactionism) is a sociological
framework in which human beings are viewed as living in a world of
meaningful objects. Those “objects” may include material things, actions,
other people, relationships, and even symbols. Interactionists see symbols as
an especially important part of human communication (thus the term
symbolic interactionism). Symbols have a shared social meaning that is
understood by all members of a society. In the United States, for example, a
salute symbolizes respect, while a clenched fist signifies defiance. Another
culture might use different gestures to convey a feeling of respect or defiance.
These types of symbolic interaction are classified as forms of nonverbal
communication, which can include many other gestures, facial expressions,
and postures (Masuda et al. 2008).
Manipulation of symbols can be seen in dress codes. Schools frown on
students who wear clothes displaying messages that appear to endorse
violence or drug and alcohol consumption. Businesses stipulate the attire
employees are allowed to wear on the job in order to impress their customers
or clients. In 2005, the National Basketball Association (NBA) adopted a new
dress code for the athletes who play professional basketball—one that
Page 15
involved not the uniforms they wear on court, but the clothes they wear off
court on league business. The code requires “business casual attire”
when players are representing the league. Indoor sunglasses, chains,
and sleeveless shirts are specifically banned. Indeed, partly as a result,
players embraced the restrictions and turned them into a display of the latest
fashions. Their runway-worthy attire now receives detailed media analysis
(Crowe and Herman 2005:A23; Marcus 2015).
While the functionalist and conflict approaches were initiated in Europe,
interactionism developed first in the United States. George Herbert Mead
(1863–1931) is widely regarded as the founder of the interactionist
perspective. Mead taught at the University of Chicago from 1893 until his
death. As his teachings have become better known, sociologists have
expressed greater interest in the interactionist perspective. Many have moved
away from what may have been an excessive preoccupation with the macro
(large-scale) level of social behavior and have redirected their attention
toward behavior that occurs on the micro (small-scale) level.
Erving Goffman (1922–1982) popularized a particular type of interactionist
method known as the dramaturgical approach, in which people are seen as
theatrical performers. The dramaturgist compares everyday life to the setting
of the theater and stage. Just as actors project certain images, all of us seek to
present particular features of our personalities while we hide other features.
Thus, in a class, we may feel the need to project a serious image; at a party,
we may want to look relaxed and friendly.
The Sociological Approach
Which perspective should a sociologist use in studying human behavior?
Functionalist? Conflict? Interactionist? Feminist? Queer theorist? We simply
cannot squeeze all sociological thinking into 4 or 5 theoretical categories—or
even 10, if we include several other productive approaches. However, by
studying the three major frameworks, we can better grasp how sociologists
seek to explore social behavior. Table 1-2 summarizes these three broad
approaches to sociological study.
Although no one approach is correct by itself, and sociologists draw on all
of them for various purposes, many sociologists tend to favor one particular
perspective over others. A sociologist’s theoretical orientation influences his
or her approach to a research problem in important ways—including the
choice of what to study, how to study it, and what questions to pose (or not to
pose). Box 1-1 shows how researchers would study sports from different
sociological perspectives.
RESEARCH TODAY
1-1 Looking at Sports from Five Sociological
Perspectives
We watch sports. Talk sports. Spend money on sports. Some of us live and
breathe sports. Because sports occupy much of our time and directly or
indirectly consume and generate a great deal of money, it should not be
surprising that sports have sociological components that can be analyzed
from various theoretical perspectives. In this section we will look at sports
from five major sociological perspectives.
Functionalist View
In examining any aspect of society, functionalists emphasize the
contribution it makes to overall social stability. Functionalists regard sports
as an almost religious institution that uses ritual and ceremony to reinforce
the common values of a society. For example:
Sports socialize young people into such values as competition and
patriotism.
Sports help to maintain people’s physical well-being.
Sports serve as a safety valve for both participants and spectators,
who are allowed to shed tension and aggressive energy in a socially
acceptable way.
Sports bring together members of a community (who support local
athletes and teams) or even a nation (during World Cup matches and
the Olympics) and promote an overall feeling of unity and social
solidarity.
©Sergei Bachlakov/Shutterstock
Professional golfer Brooke Henderson of Canada won $1.5 million in 2017,
making her the sixth most successful woman on the pro golf circuit that year.
Among men, her winnings would have put her in 74th place.
Conflict View
Conflict theorists argue that the social order is based on coercion and
exploitation. They emphasize that sports reflect and even exacerbate many
of the divisions of society:
Sports are a form of big business in which profits are more important
than the health and safety of the workers (athletes).
Sports perpetuate the false idea that success can be achieved simply
through hard work, while failure should be blamed on the individual
alone (rather than on injustices in the larger social system).
Professional athletes’ behavior can promote violence and the use of
performance-enhancing drugs.
Communities divert scarce resources to subsidize the construction of
professional sports facilities.
Sports maintain the subordinate role of Blacks and Latinos, who toil as
athletes but are less visible in supervisory positions as coaches,
managers, and owners.
Team logos and mascots (like the Washington Redskins) disparage
American Indians.
Despite their differences, functionalists,
conflict theorists, feminists, queer theorists, and
interactionists would all agree that there is
much more to sports than exercise or recreation.
Feminist View
Feminist theorists consider how watching or participating in sports
reinforces the roles that men and women play in the larger society:
Although sports generally promote fitness and health, they may also
have an adverse effect on participants’ health. Men are more likely to
resort to illegal steroid use (among bodybuilders and baseball players,
for example); women, to excessive dieting (among gymnasts and
figure skaters, for example).
Gender expectations encourage female athletes to be passive and
gentle, qualities that do not support the emphasis on competitiveness
in sports. As a result, women find it difficult to enter sports traditionally
Page 17
dominated by men, such as Indy or NASCAR.
Although professional women athletes’ earnings are increasing, they
typically trail those of male athletes.
Queer Theory
Proponents of queer theory emphasize the ways in which sports promote
heterosexuality as the only acceptable sexual identity for athletes:
Coaches and players routinely use slurs based on negative
stereotypes of homosexuals to stigmatize athletes whose performance
is inadequate.
As a group, professional athletes are highly reluctant to display any
sexual identity other than heterosexuality in public, for fear of
damaging their careers and losing their fans and commercial
sponsors.
Parents who are not heterosexual encounter hostility when they try to
register their children for sports or scouting programs, and are often
rejected from coaching and other support roles.
Interactionist View
In studying the social order, interactionists are especially interested in
shared understandings of everyday behavior. Interactionists examine sports
on the micro level by focusing on how day-to-day social behavior is shaped
by the distinctive norms, values, and demands of the world of sports:
Sports often heighten parent–child involvement; they may lead to
parental expectations for participation, and sometimes unrealistically,
for success.
Participation in sports builds the friendship networks that permeate
everyday life.
Despite class, racial, and religious differences, teammates may work
together harmoniously and may even abandon common stereotypes
and prejudices.
Relationships in the sports world are defined by people’s social
positions as players, coaches, and referees—as well as by the high or
low status that individuals hold as a result of their performances and
reputations.
Despite their differences, functionalists, conflict theorists, feminists, queer
theorists, and interactionists would all agree that there is much more to
sports than exercise or recreation. They would also agree that sports and
other popular forms of culture are worthy subjects of serious study by
sociologists.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. Have you experienced or witnessed discrimination in sports based on
gender, race, or sexual identity? If so, how did you react? Has the
representation of Blacks, women, or gays on teams been controversial
on your campus? In what ways?
2. Which of the five sociological perspectives seems most useful to you in
analyzing sports? Why?
Sources: Acosta and Carpenter 2001; Eitzen 2009; Fine 1987; Sefiha 2012;
Sharp et al. 2013; Young 2004; Zirin 2008.
Whatever the purpose of sociologists’ work, their research will always be
guided by their theoretical viewpoints. For example, sociologist Elijah
Anderson (1990) embraces both the interactionist perspective and the
groundbreaking work of W. E. B. DuBois. For 14 years Anderson conducted
fieldwork in Philadelphia, where he studied the interactions of Black and
White residents who lived in adjoining neighborhoods. In particular, he was
interested in their public behavior, including their eye contact—or lack of it
—as they passed one another on the street. Anderson’s research tells us much
about the everyday social interactions of Blacks and Whites in the United
States, but it does not explain the larger issues behind those interactions. Like
theories, research results illuminate one part of the stage, leaving other parts
in relative darkness.
thinking CRITICALLY
Relate the toys on display in your local store to issues of race, class, and
gender.
Page 16Taking Sociology with You
You’ve seen how sociologists employ the major sociological perspectives in
their research. How does sociology relate to you, your own studies, and your
own career? In this section you’ll learn about applied and clinical sociology,
two growing fields that allow sociology majors and those with advanced
degrees in sociology to apply what they have learned to real-world settings.
You’ll also see how to develop your sociological imagination, one of the keys
to thinking like a sociologist. See the appendix at the end of this chapter for
more information on careers in sociology.
Applied and Clinical Sociology
Many early sociologists—notably, Jane Addams, W. E. B. DuBois, and
George Herbert Mead—were strong advocates for social reform. They
wanted their theories and findings to be relevant to policymakers and to
people’s lives in general. For instance, Mead was the treasurer of Hull House,
where he applied his theory to improving the lives of those who were
powerless (especially immigrants). He also served on committees dealing
with Chicago’s labor problems and public education. DuBois led the Atlanta
Sociological Laboratory from 1895 to 1924, supporting scholars in their
applied research on business, criminal justice, health care, and philanthropy
(Earl Wright II 2012).
Today, applied sociology is the use of the discipline of sociology with the
specific intent of yielding practical applications for human behavior and
organizations. By extension, Michael Burawoy (2005), in his presidential
address to the American Sociological Association, endorsed what he called
public sociology, encouraging scholars to engage a broader audience in
bringing about positive outcomes. In effect, the applied sociologist reaches
out to others and joins them in their efforts to better society.
Often, the goal of applied or public sociology is to assist in resolving a
social problem. For example, in the past 50 years, eight presidents of the
United States have established commissions to delve into major societal
concerns facing our nation. Sociologists are often asked to apply their
expertise to studying such issues as violence, pornography, crime,
immigration, and population. In Europe, both academic and government
research departments are offering increasing financial support for applied
Page 18
studies.
One example of applied sociology is the growing interest in learning more
about local communities. Since its founding in 1994, the Northeast Florida
Center for Community Initiatives (CCI), based at the University of North
Florida in Jacksonville, has conducted several community studies, including a
homeless census and survey, an analysis of the economic impact of
the arts in Jacksonville, and a long-term survey of the effects of
Hurricane Katrina. Typical of applied sociology, these outreach efforts are
collaborative, involving faculty, undergraduate and graduate students,
volunteers, and community residents (Center for Community Initiatives
2014).
©Science Photo Library/Alamy Stock Photo
The Center for Community Initiativesʼs Magnolia Project, an example of
applied sociology, aims to decrease high rates of infant mortality.
Another of CCI’s applications of sociology, the Magnolia Project, is based
in a storefront clinic in an underprivileged area of Jacksonville. Part of the
federal Healthy Start initiative, which aims to decrease high infant mortality
rates, the project serves women of childbearing age who have little or no
regular access to health care. CCI’s responsibilities include (1) interviewing
and surveying key community participants, (2) coordinating data collection
by the project’s staff, (3) analyzing data, and (4) preparing progress reports
for funding agencies and community partners. Through June 2014, not a
single infant death had occurred among the 662 participants in the program
(Center for Community Initiatives 2014).
Growing interest in applied sociology has led to such specializations as
medical sociology and environmental sociology. The former includes
research on how health care professionals and patients deal with disease. To
give one example, medical sociologists have studied the social impact of the
AIDS crisis on families, friends, and communities (see Chapter 15).
Environmental sociologists examine the relationship between human
societies and the physical environment. One focus of their work is the issue
of “environmental justice” (see Chapter 15), raised when researchers and
community activists found that hazardous waste dumps are especially likely
to be situated in poor and minority neighborhoods (M. Martin 1996).
The growing popularity of applied sociology has led to the rise of the
specialty of clinical sociology. Louis Wirth (1931) wrote about clinical
sociology more than 85 years ago, but the term itself has become popular
only in recent years. While applied sociology may simply evaluate social
issues, clinical sociology is dedicated to facilitating change by altering social
relationships (as in family therapy) or restructuring social institutions (as in
the reorganization of a medical center).
Applied sociologists generally leave it to policymakers to act on their
evaluations. In contrast, clinical sociologists take direct responsibility for
implementation and view those with whom they work as their clients. This
specialty has become increasingly attractive to graduate students in sociology
because it offers an opportunity to apply intellectual learning in a practical
way. A shrinking job market in the academic world has made such alternative
career routes appealing.
Applied and clinical sociology can be contrasted with basic sociology (also
called pure sociology), which seeks a more profound knowledge of the
fundamental aspects of social phenomena. This type of research is not
necessarily meant to generate specific applications, although such ideas may
result once findings are analyzed. When Durkheim studied suicide rates, he
was not primarily interested in discovering a way to eliminate suicide. In this
sense, his research was an example of basic rather than applied sociology.
Developing a Sociological Imagination
In this book, we will be illustrating the sociological imagination in several
different ways—by showing theory in practice and in current research; by
noting the ways in which electronic devices and apps are changing our social
behavior; by thinking globally; by exploring the significance of social
inequality; by speaking across race, gender, and religious boundaries; and by
highlighting social policy throughout the world.
Theory in Practice
We will illustrate how the major sociological perspectives can be helpful in
understanding today’s issues, from capital punishment to abortion.
Sociologists do not necessarily declare, “Here I am using functionalism,” but
their research and approaches do tend to draw on one or more theoretical
frameworks, as will become clear in the pages to follow.
Research Today
Sociologists actively investigate a variety of issues and social behavior. We
have already seen that research can shed light on the social factors that affect
suicide rates. Sociological research often plays a direct role in improving
people’s lives, as in the case of increasing the participation of African
Americans in diabetes testing. Throughout the rest of the book, the research
performed by sociologists and other social scientists will shed light on group
behavior of all types.
Our Wired World
“What is the news today?” For many people, “the news” means the latest
Page 19
comments, pictures, and videos posted online by friends and acquaintances.
For some, such up-to-the-minute connectivity has become addictive. During
the superstorm that hit New Jersey and New York in October 2012, more
than a few people missed their wireless connections more than they did their
electrical service.
Thinking Globally
Whatever their theoretical perspective or research techniques, sociologists
recognize that social behavior must be viewed in a global context.
Globalization is the worldwide integration of government policies, cultures,
social movements, and financial markets through trade and the exchange of
ideas. Although public discussion of globalization is relatively recent,
intellectuals have been pondering both its negative and positive social
consequences for a long time. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels warned in The
Communist Manifesto (written in 1848) of a world market that would lead to
production in distant lands, sweeping away existing working relationships.
©Milt Priggee, Puget Sound Business Journal
The interconnectedness across the world makes globalization increasingly
important to many aspects of daily life.
In the chapter-opening excerpt from Outcasts United, Warren St.
John might have been focusing on a small Georgia town, but the key players
on the team he described were from Liberia, Iraq, Sudan, Burundi, Congo,
and Jordan. Such diversity is increasingly common throughout the United
States. Locally, this diversity serves to globalize local communities; it also
reflects major societal events and movements throughout the world.
Another aspect of the world landscape is how multinational corporations
are allowed to expand communications technology, particularly the Internet
and satellite transmission of the mass media. Others view it more critically, as
a process that allows multinational corporations to expand unchecked. We
examine the impact of globalization on our daily lives and on societies
throughout the world in Box 1-2 and throughout this book (Fiss and Hirsch
2005).
SOCIOLOGY IN THE
GLOBAL COMMUNITY
1-2 Your Morning Cup of Coffee
When you drink a cup of coffee, do you give much thought to where the
coffee beans came from, or do you think more about the pleasure you get
from the popular beverage? Coffee certainly is popular—as an import, it is
second only to petroleum, the most traded commodity in the world.
Although the coffee trade has been globalized, the customs of coffee
drinking still vary from place to place. Starbucks now has 21,000 locations
in 65 countries. Managers find that in European countries, where the
coffeehouse culture originated, 80 percent of customers sit down to drink
their coffee. Europeans want to get to know their baristas, so in 2012
Starbucks introduced nametags. In the United States, by contrast, 80
percent of Starbucks customers leave the store immediately, taking their
coffee with them.
©John Foxx/Stockbyte/Getty Images
Today, the coffee trade relies on the exploitation of cheap labor. Coffee is
a labor-intensive crop: there is little that technology can do to ease the
coffee picker’s burden. The typical coffee picker works in a developing
nation near the equator, receiving for a day’s wages an amount that
matches the price of a single cup of coffee in North America. In the 1940s,
advocacy groups began to promote the sale of certified fair trade coffee,
which gives a living wage to those who harvest the crop, allowing them to
become economically self-sufficient.
The typical coffee picker works in a
developing nation near the equator, receiving
for a day’s wages an amount that matches the
price of a single cup of coffee in North America.
Ecological activists have drawn attention to what they see as the coffee
industry’s contribution to the trend toward global warming. The need to
make room for more coffee fields, they charge, has encouraged the
destruction of rain forests. The same criticism can be aimed at much of the
consumption in industrial nations. Of all the products that emerge from
developing nations, however, few have as singular a place in many people’s
daily ritual as that morning cup of joe. The drink in your hand is your
tangible link to rural workers in some of the poorest areas of the world.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. Do you enjoy coffee? Would you willingly pay more for a cup of coffee if
you knew that the worker who picked the beans would benefit from the
higher price?
2. The coffee trade has been blamed for perpetuating social inequality and
global warming. Can you think of any positive effects of the coffee trade?
Who benefits most from this economic activity?
Sources: Alderman 2012; Cole & Brown 2014; Ritzer 2015; Timmerman
2009.
The Significance of Social Inequality
Who holds power? Who doesn’t? Who has prestige? Who lacks it? Perhaps
the major theme of analysis in sociology today is social inequality, a
condition in which members of society have differing amounts of wealth,
prestige, or power. For example, the disparity between what coffee bean
pickers in developing nations are paid and the price you pay for a cup of
coffee underscores global inequality (see Box 1-2). And the impact of
Hurricane Katrina on residents of the Gulf Coast drew attention to social
inequality in the United States. Predictably, the people who were hit the
hardest by the massive storm were the poor, who had the greatest difficulty
evacuating before the storm and have had the most difficulty recovering from
it.
Some sociologists, in seeking to understand the effects of inequality, have
made the case for social justice. W. E. B. DuBois ([1940] 1968:418) noted
that the greatest power in the land is not “thought or ethics, but wealth.” As
we have seen, the contributions of Karl Marx, Jane Addams, and Ida Wells-
Barnett also stressed this belief in the overarching significance of social
inequality, and by extension, social justice. In this book, social inequality will
be the central focus of Chapters 8 and 9, and sociologists’ work on inequality
will be highlighted throughout.
Speaking across Race, Gender, and Religious Boundaries
Sociologists include both men and women, who come from a variety of
ethnic, national, and religious origins. In their work, sociologists seek to draw
conclusions that speak to all people—not just the affluent or powerful. Doing
so is not always easy. Insights into how a corporation can increase its profits
tend to attract more attention and financial support than do, say, the merits of
a needle exchange program for low-income inner-city residents. Yet today
more than ever, sociology seeks to better understand the experiences of all
people.
Page 20Sociologists have noted, for example, that the huge tsunami that
hit South Asia in 2004 affected men and women differently. When
the waves hit, mothers and grandmothers were at home with the children;
men were outside working, where they were more likely to become aware of
the impending disaster. Moreover, most of the men knew how to swim, a
survival skill that women in these traditional societies usually do not learn.
As a result, many more men than women survived the catastrophe—about 10
men for every 1 woman. In one Indonesian village typical of the disaster area,
97 of 1,300 people survived; only 4 were women. The impact of this gender
imbalance will be felt for some time, given women’s primary role as
caregivers for children and the elderly (BBC News 2005).
Social Policy throughout the World
One important way we can use a sociological imagination is to enhance our
understanding of current social issues throughout the world. Beginning with
Chapter 2, each chapter will conclude with a discussion of a contemporary
social policy issue. In some cases we will examine a specific issue facing
national governments. For example, government funding of child care centers
will be discussed in Chapter 4, Socialization and the Life Course; global
immigration in Chapter 10, Racial and Ethnic Inequality; and religion in the
schools in Chapter 13, Education and Religion. These Social Policy sections
will demonstrate how fundamental sociological concepts can enhance our
critical thinking skills and help us to better understand current public policy
debates taking place around the world.
In addition, sociology has been used to evaluate the success of programs or
the impact of changes brought about by policymakers and political activists.
For example, Chapter 9, Global Inequality, includes a discussion of research
on the effectiveness of welfare programs. Such discussions underscore the
many practical applications of sociological theory and research.
Sociologists expect the next quarter century to be perhaps the most exciting
and critical period in the history of the discipline. That is because of a
growing recognition—both in the United States and around the world—that
current social problems must be addressed before their magnitude
overwhelms human societies. We can expect sociologists to play an
increasing role in government by researching and developing public policy
alternatives. It seems only natural for this textbook to focus on the connection
between the work of sociologists and the difficult questions confronting
policymakers and people in the United States and around the world.
thinking CRITICALLY
What issues facing your local community would you like to address with
applied sociological research? Do you see any global connections to these
local issues?
APPENDIX Careers in Sociology
For the past two decades the number of U.S. college students who have
graduated with a degree in sociology has risen steadily. In this appendix we’ll
consider some of the options these students have after completing their
education.
How do students first learn about the sociological perspective on society?
Some may take a sociology course in high school. Others may study
sociology at community college, where 40 percent of all college students in
the United States are enrolled. Indeed, many future sociology majors first
develop their sociological imaginations at a community college.
An undergraduate degree in sociology doesn’t just serve as excellent
preparation for future graduate work in sociology. It also provides a strong
liberal arts background for entry-level positions in business, social services,
foundations, community organizations, not-for-profit groups, law
enforcement, and many government jobs. A number of fields—among them
marketing, public relations, and broadcasting—now require investigative
skills and an understanding of the diverse groups found in today’s multiethnic
and multinational environment. Moreover, a sociology degree requires
accomplishment in oral and written communication, interpersonal skills,
problem solving, ability to work in a team, organizational skills, data
analysis, and critical thinking—all job-related skills that may give sociology
graduates an advantage over those who pursue more technical degrees (Hecht
2016).
Consequently, while few occupations specifically require an undergraduate
degree in sociology, such academic training can be an important asset in
Page 21
entering a wide range of occupations. To emphasize this point, a number of
chapters in this book highlight a real-life professional who describes how the
study of sociology has helped in his or her career. For example, in Chapter 6
a Taking Sociology to Work box explains how a college graduate uses her
training in sociology as a social media manager for nonprofit organizations.
And in Chapter 14, another Taking Sociology to Work box shows how a
recent graduate uses the skill set he acquired as a sociology major in his role
as a government analyst.
Figure 1-2 summarizes the sources of employment for those with BA or BS
degrees in sociology. It shows that fields including nonprofit organizations,
education, business, and government offer major career opportunities for
sociology graduates. Undergraduates who know where their career interests
lie are well advised to enroll in sociology courses and specialties best suited
to those interests. For example, students hoping to become health planners
would take a class in medical sociology; students seeking employment as
social science research assistants would focus on courses in statistics and
methods. Internships, such as placements at city planning agencies and
survey research organizations, afford another way for sociology students to
prepare for careers. Studies show that students who choose an internship
placement have less trouble finding jobs, obtain better jobs, and
enjoy greater job satisfaction than students without internship
placements. Finally, students should expect to change fields during their first
five years of employment after graduation—for example, from sales and
marketing to management (American Sociological Association 2013; Salem
and Grabarek 1986).
FIGURE 1-2 OCCUPATIONS OF GRADUATING SOCIOLOGY MAJORS
Note: Based on a national survey of current occupation in 2013 of 759
graduates with a sociology major in the Class of 2012.
Source: Spalter-Roth, Roberta, Nicole Van Vooren, and Mary S. Senter.
“Using the Bachelor’s and Beyond Project to Help Launch Students in
Careers.” 2013. Photo: ©Flashon Studio/Shutterstock
Many college students view social work as the field most closely associated
with sociology. Traditionally, social workers received their undergraduate
training in sociology and allied fields such as psychology and counseling.
After some practical experience, social workers would generally seek a
master’s degree in social work (MSW) to be considered for supervisory or
administrative positions. Today, however, some students choose (where it is
available) to pursue a bachelor’s degree in social work (BSW). This degree
prepares graduates for direct service positions, such as caseworker or group
worker.
©Aleksei Ivanov/123RF
One year after graduation, one out of four sociology majors was employed in
the social services as a counselor, child advocate, forensic interviewer,
program director, or caseworker.
Many students continue their sociological training beyond the bachelor’s
degree. More than 253 universities in the United States have graduate
programs in sociology that offer PhD and/or master’s degrees. These
programs differ greatly in their areas of specialization, course requirements,
costs, and the research and teaching opportunities available to graduate
students. About 72 percent of the graduates are women (American
Sociological Association 2017b, 2017c).
Higher education is an important source of employment for sociologists
with graduate degrees. Recently, 85 percent of recent PhD recipients in
sociology have sought employment in colleges and universities. These
sociologists teach not only majors who are committed to the discipline but
also students hoping to become doctors, nurses, lawyers, police officers, and
so forth (National Science Foundation 2011).
Sociologists who teach in colleges and universities may use their
knowledge and training to influence public policy. For example, sociologist
Andrew Cherlin (2003) commented on the debate over whether to provide
federal funding to promote marriage among welfare recipients. Citing the
results of two of his studies, Cherlin questioned the potential effectiveness of
such a policy in strengthening low-income families. Because many single
Page 22
mothers choose to marry someone other than the father of their children—
sometimes for good reason—their children often grow up in stepfamilies.
Cherlin’s research shows that children who are raised in stepfamilies are no
better off than those in single-parent families. He sees government efforts to
promote marriage as a politically motivated attempt to foster traditional social
values in a society that has become increasingly diverse.
For sociology graduates who are interested in academic careers, the road to
a PhD (or doctorate) can be long and difficult. This degree symbolizes
competence in original research; each candidate must prepare a book-length
study known as a dissertation. Typically, a doctoral student in sociology will
engage in four to seven years of intensive work, including the time required
to complete the dissertation. Yet even this effort is no guarantee of a job as a
sociology professor.
The good news is that over the next 10 years, the demand for instructors is
expected to increase because of high rates of retirement among faculty from
the baby boom generation, as well as the anticipated slow but steady growth
in the college student population in the United States. Nonetheless, anyone
who launches an academic career must be prepared for considerable
uncertainty and competition in the college job market (American
Sociological Association 2013).
Of course, not all people who work as sociologists teach or hold doctoral
degrees. Take government, for example. The Census Bureau relies on people
with sociological training to interpret data for other government agencies and
the general public. Virtually every agency depends on survey research—a
field in which sociology students can specialize—in order to assess
everything from community needs to the morale of the agency’s workers. In
addition, people with sociological training can put their academic knowledge
to effective use in probation and parole, health sciences, community
development, and recreational services. Some people working in government
or private industry have a master’s degree (MA or MS) in sociology; others
have a bachelor’s degree (BA or BS).
Currently, about 15 percent of the members of the American Sociological
Association use their sociological skills outside the academic world, whether
in social service agencies or in marketing positions for business firms.
Increasing numbers of sociologists with graduate degrees are employed by
businesses, industry, hospitals, and nonprofit organizations. Studies show that
many sociology graduates are making career changes from social service
areas to business and commerce. For an undergraduate major, sociology is
excellent preparation for employment in many parts of the business world
(Spalter-Roth et al. 2013).
Whether you take a few courses in sociology or complete a degree, you will
benefit from the critical thinking skills developed in this discipline.
Sociologists emphasize the value of being able to analyze, interpret, and
function within a variety of working situations—an asset in virtually any
career. Moreover, given rapid technological change and the expanding global
economy, all of us will need to adapt to substantial social change, even in our
own careers. Sociology provides a rich conceptual framework that can serve
as a foundation for flexible career development and assist you in taking
advantage of new employment opportunities.
Mastering This Chapter
Summary
Sociology is the scientific study of social behavior and human groups.
This chapter examines the nature of sociological theory, the founders of
the discipline, theoretical perspectives in contemporary sociology, practical
applications for sociological theory and research, and ways to exercise the
sociological imagination.
1. The sociological imagination is an awareness of the relationship
between an individual and the wider society. It is based on the ability
to view our own society as an outsider might, rather than from the
perspective of our limited experiences and cultural biases.
2. In contrast to other social sciences, sociology emphasizes the
influence that groups can have on people’s behavior and attitudes
and the ways in which people shape society.
3. Knowledge that relies on common sense is not always reliable.
Sociologists must test and analyze each piece of information they
use.
4. Sociologists employ theories to examine relationships between
observations or data that may seem completely unrelated.
5. Nineteenth-century thinkers who contributed sociological insights
included Auguste Comte, a French philosopher; Harriet Martineau, an
English sociologist; and Herbert Spencer, an English scholar.
6. Other important figures in the development of sociology were Émile
Durkheim, who pioneered work on suicide; Max Weber, who taught
the need for insight in intellectual work; Karl Marx, who emphasized
the importance of the economy and social conflict; and W. E. B.
DuBois, who advocated the usefulness of both basic and applied
research in combating prejudice and fostering racial tolerance and
justice.
7. In the 20th century, the discipline of sociology was indebted to the
U.S. sociologists Charles Horton Cooley and Robert Merton, as well
as to the French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu.
8. Macrosociology concentrates on large-scale phenomena or entire
civilizations; microsociology stresses the study of small groups.
Mesosociology is an intermediate level of analysis that focuses on
formal organizations and social movements. Global sociology
compares nations or entire societies.
9. The functionalist perspective emphasizes the way in which the
parts of a society are structured to maintain its stability.
10. The conflict perspective assumes that social behavior is best
understood in terms of conflict or tension between competing groups.
11. The feminist perspective, which is often allied with the conflict
perspective, sees inequity in gender as central to all behavior and
organization.
12. Queer theory stresses that to fully understand society, scholars must
study it from the perspective of a range of sexual identities, rather
than exclusively from a “normal” heterosexual point of view.
13. The interactionist perspective is concerned primarily with
fundamental or everyday forms of interaction, including symbols and
other types of nonverbal communication.
14. Sociologists make use of all five perspectives, since each offers
unique insights into the same issue.
15. Applied and clinical sociology apply the discipline of sociology to
the solution of practical problems in human behavior and
organizations. In contrast, basic sociology is sociological inquiry
that seeks only a deeper knowledge of the fundamental aspects of
social phenomena.
16. This textbook makes use of the sociological imagination by showing
theory in practice and in current research; by noting the ways in
which electronic devices and apps are changing our social behavior;
by thinking globally; by focusing on the significance of social
inequality; by speaking across race, gender, and religious
Page 23
boundaries; and by highlighting social policy around the world.
Key Terms
Anomie The loss of direction felt in a society when social control of
individual behavior has become ineffective. (page 8)
Applied sociology The use of the discipline of sociology with the specific
intent of yielding practical applications for human behavior and
organizations. (17)
Basic sociology Sociological inquiry conducted with the objective of
gaining a more profound knowledge of the fundamental aspects of
social phenomena. Also known as pure sociology. (18)
Clinical sociology The use of the discipline of sociology with the specific
intent of altering social relationships or restructuring social
institutions. (18)
Conflict perspective A sociological approach that assumes that social
behavior is best understood in terms of tension between groups over
power or the allocation of resources, including housing, money,
access to services, and political representation. (13)
Cultural capital Noneconomic goods, such as family background
and education, which are reflected in a knowledge of language and
the arts. (11)
Double consciousness The division of an individual’s identity into two or
more social realities. (10)
Dramaturgical approach A view of social interaction in which people are
seen as theatrical performers. (15)
Dysfunction An element or process of a society that may disrupt the social
system or reduce its stability. (13)
Feminist perspective A sociological approach that views inequity in gender
as central to all behavior and organization. (13)
Functionalist perspective A sociological approach that emphasizes
the way in which the parts of a society are structured to maintain its
stability. (12)
Global sociology A level of sociological analysis that makes comparisons
between entire nations, using entire societies as units of analysis.
(11)
Globalization The worldwide integration of government policies, cultures,
social movements, and financial markets through trade and the
exchange of ideas. (18)
Ideal type A construct or model for evaluating specific cases. (9)
Interactionist perspective A sociological approach that generalizes about
everyday forms of social interaction in order to explain society as a
whole. (14)
Latent function An unconscious or unintended function that may reflect
hidden purposes. (12)
Macrosociology Sociological investigation that concentrates on large-scale
phenomena or entire civilizations. (11)
Manifest function An open, stated, and conscious function. (12)
Mesosociology An intermediate level of sociological analysis that focuses
on formal organizations and social movements. (11)
Microsociology Sociological investigation that stresses the study of small
groups, often through experimental means. (11)
Natural science The study of the physical features of nature and the ways
in which they interact and change. (3)
Nonverbal communication The sending of messages through the use of
gestures, facial expressions, and postures. (14)
Queer theory The study of society from the perspective of a broad
spectrum of sexual identities, including heterosexuality,
homosexuality, and bisexuality. (14)
Science The body of knowledge obtained by methods based on systematic
observation. (3)
Social capital The collective benefit of social networks, which are built on
reciprocal trust. (11)
Social inequality A condition in which members of society have differing
amounts of wealth, prestige, or power. (19)
Social science The study of the social features of humans and the ways in
which they interact and change. (3)
Sociological imagination An awareness of the relationship between an
individual and the wider society, both today and in the past. (3)
Sociology The scientific study of social behavior and human groups. (3)
Theory In sociology, a set of statements that seeks to explain problems,
actions, or behavior. (6)
Verstehen The German word for “understanding” or “insight”; used to stress
the need for sociologists to take into account the subjective meanings
people attach to their actions. (8)
TAKING SOCIOLOGY With You
1. Research! Time your daily activities. How much time do you spend
Page 24
communicating with others via electronic media, compared to
speaking with them directly? How many different people do you
converse with in person and how many via digital devices?
2. In what ways were you or your family affected by the recession that
began in 2008? Did the widespread loss of jobs and homes make
you and others more aware of the problem of homelessness?
Similarly, how were you, your family, or your community affected by
the subsequent upturn in the job market?
3. Consider some group or organization that you participate in. Using
Robert Merton’s concepts, list its manifest and latent functions.
4. What specific issues could be best studied using a meso level of
analysis? Which are best approached through global sociology?
Self-Quiz
Read each question carefully and then select the best answer.
1. Sociology is
a. very narrow in scope.
b. concerned with what one individual does or does not do.
c. the systematic study of social behavior and human groups.
d. the study of interactions between two individuals at a time.
2. Which of the following thinkers introduced the concept of the
sociological imagination?
a. Émile Durkheim
b. Max Weber
c. Karl Marx
d. C. Wright Mills
3. Émile Durkheim’s research on suicide suggested that
a. people with religious affiliations had a higher suicide rate than
those who were unaffiliated.
b. suicide rates seemed to be higher in times of peace than in times
of war and revolution.
c. civilians were more likely to take their lives than soldiers.
d. suicide is a solitary act, unrelated to group life.
4. Max Weber taught his students that they should employ which of the
following in their intellectual work?
a. anomie
b. verstehen
c. the sociological imagination
d. microsociology
5. Robert Merton’s contributions to sociology include
a. successfully combining theory and research.
b. producing a theory that is one of the most frequently cited
explanations of deviant behavior.
c. an attempt to bring macro-level and micro-level analyses
together.
d. all of the above
6. Which sociologist made a major contribution to society through his in-
depth studies of urban life, including both Blacks and Whites?
a. Auguste Comte
b. Robert Merton
c. Auguste Comte
d. Charles Horton Cooley
7. In the late 19th century, before the term “feminist view” was even
coined, the ideas behind this major theoretical approach appeared in
the writings of
a. Karl Marx.
b. Ida Wells-Barnett.
c. Charles Horton Cooley.
d. Pierre Bourdieu.
8. Thinking of society as a living organism in which each part of the
organism contributes to its survival is a reflection of which theoretical
perspective?
a. the functionalist perspective
b. the conflict perspective
c. the feminist perspective
d. the interactionist perspective
9. Karl Marx’s view of the struggle between social classes inspired the
contemporary
a. functionalist perspective.
b. conflict perspective.
c. interactionist perspective.
d. dramaturgical approach.
10. Erving Goffman’s dramaturgical approach, which postulates that
people present certain aspects of their personalities while obscuring
other aspects, is a derivative of which major theoretical perspective?
a. the functionalist perspective
b. the conflict perspective
c. the feminist perspective
d. the interactionist perspective
11. Within sociology, a(n) _____________________________
_____________blank is a set of statements that seeks to explain
problems, actions, or behavior.
12. In __________________________________________blank
__________________________________________blank’s
hierarchy of the sciences, sociology was the “queen,” and its
practitioners were “scientist-priests.”
13. In Society in America, originally published in 1837, English scholar
__________________________________________blank
__________________________________________blank examined
religion, politics, child rearing, and immigration in the young nation.
14. __________________________________________blank
__________________________________________blank adapted
Charles Darwin’s evolutionary view of the “survival of the fittest” by
arguing that it is “natural” that some people are rich while others are
poor.
15. Sociologist Max Weber coined the term ___________
_______________________________blank ____________
______________________________blank in referring to a construct
or model that serves as a measuring rod against which actual cases
can be evaluated.
16. In The Communist Manifesto, _____________________
_____________________blank ____________________
______________________blank and _____________________
_____________________blank _____________________
_____________________blank argued that the masses of people
who have no resources other than their labor (the proletariat) should
unite to fight for the overthrow of capitalist societies.
17. __________________________________________blank
__________________________________________blank, an early
female sociologist, cofounded the famous Chicago settlement house
called Hull House and also tried to establish a juvenile court system.
18. The university’s role in certifying academic competence and
excellence is an example of a(n)
__________________________________________blank function.
19. The __________________________________________blank
__________________________________________blank draws on
the work of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in that it often views
women’s subordination as inherent in capitalist societies.
20. Looking at society from the broad spectrum of sexual identity,
including heterosexuality, homosexuality, and bisexuality, is called
_______________________________________blank theory.
Answers
1 (c); 2 (d); 3 (b); 4 (b); 5 (d); 6 (a); 7 (b); 8 (a); 9 (b); 10 (d) 11
systematic; 12 theory; 13 Auguste Comte; 14 Harriet Martineau; 15
Herbert Spencer; 16 ideal type; 17 Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels; 18 Jane
Addams; 19 manifest; 20 queer
Page 25
2 Sociological Research
©Jim West/PhotoEdit
On a busy street in Hamtramck, Michigan, a researcher interviews a man
about his views on contemporary social issues. Surveys are just one of the
methods sociologists use to collect data.
‣ INSIDE
What Is the Scientific Method?
Major Research Designs
Ethics of Research
Page 26
Feminist Methodology
Queer Theory and Methodology
The Data-Rich Future
Social Policy and Sociological Research: Studying Human Sexuality
Appendix I: Using Statistics and Graphs
Appendix II: Writing a Research Report
Did you ever wonder how researchers study behaviors that are
private and personal?
Sociologists Patricia Adler and Peter Adler went on the Internet to
study people who injure themselves. Read on to see what they
learned.
©Ira C. Roberts
“Self-injury has existed for nearly all of recorded history. Although it has
been defined and regarded in various ways over time, its rise in the 1990s and
early 2000s has taken a specific, although contested, form and meaning. We
focus in this book on the deliberate, nonsuicidal destruction of one’s own body
tissue, incorporating practices such as self-cutting, burning, branding,
scratching, picking at skin. . . .
Our goal here is to discuss the form of this latest incarnation of self-injury, now
often regarded as a typical behavior among adolescents, describing and
analyzing it through the voices and from the perspective of those who practice
it. . . .
Many self-injurers were driven to this behavior by nothing more serious than
the minor stresses typically associated with normal adolescence. . . . People
cited upsets with their friends, romantic relationships, and family members as
having led them to self-injury. Mike was a scruffy-looking college student who
always wore a stocking cap. He started cutting and burning himself between the
ages of 12 and 14. When he was in high school Mike’s girlfriend broke up with
him, leaving him devastated. He reflected, “Yeah, I thought every relationship
was the end of the world. I kept getting further and further depressed, and I just
needed something to where I could vent and rage without having any outward
signs so that anybody could tell anything was wrong.” He turned to cutting to
assuage his feelings of sadness. . . .
Over the years that we were actively involved in the self-injury cyber world, it
took several twists and turns. The earliest of the sites we discovered probably
originated during the late 1990s. At that time, most sites were privately owned
and unmonitored. Participants often used the term self-mutilation, and it was not
uncommon to find graphic details and pictures of injuries. Sites had names such
as “bleed me,” “ruin your life,” “bioetchings,” “bleeding to ease the pain,” “cut it
out,” and “gallery of pain.” Their main purpose, it appeared, was to offer
fellowship to self-harmers so they would know they were not alone. . . .
Mike was a scruffy-looking college student who
always wore a stocking cap. He started cutting and
burning himself between the ages of 12 and 14.
Over the course of our research we also collected tens of thousands (in the
range of 30,000–40,000) of Internet messages and emails, including those
posted publicly and those written to and by us. In 2006 we enlisted the aid of
three student coders to help us sort and analyze the emails and postings from
the Internet groups. At this time we were working on one paper, and the
students helped us find posts and emails pertinent to our specific focus. We
repeated this process again in 2008 with ten more student coders, expanding
the project greatly. Each student took one set of emails we had collected from a
group, board, or chat room and pored through the years of postings we had
assembled. We divided the students into groups of five and met with each group
Page 27
biweekly. At each session the students submitted notes and memos about the
material they had scanned, and we brainstormed for sociological codes,
categories, concepts, trends, and patterns.”
Source: Adler, Patricia A., and Peter Adler. The Tender Cut: Inside the Hidden World of
Self-Injury. New York, NY: New York University Press, 2011, pp. 1, 43, 44, 54–55.
In this excerpt from Patricia A. Adler and Peter Adler’s book The Tender
Cut: Inside the Hidden World of Self-Injury, the authors describe their
extensive research on a little-known behavior and its social underpinnings.
Over a six-year period, the Adlers conducted lengthy, emotionally intense
interviews with self-injurers, becoming friends with many. They met others
in virtual space, through Internet-based support groups and web postings.
“Rather than remaining strictly detached from our subjects, we became
involved in their lives, helping them and giving voice to their experiences and
beliefs,” the Adlers admit (2007:542; 2011).
The Adlers’ work on self-injury reflects all three major sociological
approaches. For self-injurers, who rarely come into contact with others like
themselves, the Internet functions as a meeting place, a refuge from their self-
imposed social isolation. As conflict theorists would point out, their
unconventional behavior marginalizes them, preventing them from receiving
assistance even when they would welcome it. Interactionists would recognize
the critical nature of self-injurers’ interpersonal contacts, in person and often
online. And feminist and queer theorists would look for gender or sexual
orientation differences in self-injurers’ behavior.
Though many people would like to ignore the phenomenon of self-injury,
believing that those who practice it will eventually “grow out of it,” the
Adlers’ research allows us to consider it intelligently and scientifically,
within the social context. Self-injurers, the Adlers found, are a diverse group,
whose behavior is carefully planned and considered. Surprisingly, members
often begin to injure themselves in the company of others rather than in
secret. They have recently begun to coalesce as a subculture (2007:559–560).
Effective sociological research can be quite thought-provoking. It
may suggest many new questions that require further study, such as
why we make assumptions about people who engage in atypical behaviors
like self-injury. In some cases, rather than raising additional questions, a
study will simply confirm previous beliefs and findings. Sociological
research can also have practical applications. For instance, research results
that disconfirm accepted beliefs about marriage and the family may lead to
changes in public policy.
This chapter will examine the research process used in conducting
sociological studies. How do sociologists go about setting up a research
project? How do they ensure that the results of the research are reliable and
accurate? Can they carry out their research without violating the rights of
those they study?
We will look first at the steps that make up the scientific method used in
research. Then we will look at various techniques commonly used in
sociological research, such as experiments, observations, and surveys. We
will pay particular attention to the ethical challenges sociologists face in
studying human behavior, and to the debate raised by Max Weber’s call for
“value neutrality” in social science research. We will also examine feminists’
and queer theorists’ methodologies and the role technology plays in research
today.
Though sociological researchers can study almost any subject, in this
chapter we will concentrate on two in particular. The first is the relationship
of education to income, which we will use as an example in the section on the
scientific method. The second is the controversial subject of human sexual
behavior. Like self-injury, sexual behavior is private and personal, and
therefore hard to study. The Social Policy section that closes this chapter
describes the difficulties and challenges of researching closely guarded
sexual behaviors.
Whatever the area of sociological inquiry and whatever the perspective of
the sociologist—whether functionalist, conflict, feminist, queer theorist,
interactionist, or any other—there is one crucial requirement: imaginative,
responsible research that meets the highest scientific and ethical standards.
What Is the Scientific Method?
Like all of us, sociologists are interested in the central questions of our time:
Is the family falling apart? Why is there so much crime in the United States?
Can the world feed a growing population? Such issues concern most people,
whether or not they have academic training. However, unlike the typical
citizen, the sociologist has a commitment to use the scientific method in
studying society. The scientific method is a systematic, organized series of
steps that ensures maximum objectivity and consistency in researching a
problem.
Many of us will never actually conduct scientific research. Why, then, is it
important that we understand the scientific method? The answer is that it
plays a major role in the workings of our society. Residents of the United
States are constantly bombarded with “facts” or “data.” A television news
report informs us that “one in every two marriages in this country now ends
in divorce,” yet as Chapter 12 will show, that assertion is based on
misleading statistics. Almost daily, advertisers cite supposedly scientific
studies to prove that their products are superior. Such claims may be accurate
or exaggerated. We can better evaluate such information—and will not be
fooled so easily—if we are familiar with the standards of scientific research.
These standards are quite stringent, and they demand as strict adherence as
possible. The scientific method requires precise preparation in developing
research. Otherwise, the research data collected may not prove accurate.
Sociologists and other researchers follow five basic steps in the scientific
method: (1) defining the problem, (2) reviewing the literature, (3) formulating
the hypothesis, (4) selecting the research design and then collecting and
analyzing data, and (5) developing the conclusion (Figure 2-1). After
reaching the conclusion, researchers write a report on their study. Often the
report will begin with an executive summary of the method they followed and
their conclusion. In the sections that follow, we’ll use an actual example to
illustrate the scientific method.
FIGURE 2-1 THE SCIENTIFIC METHOD
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The scientific method allows sociologists to objectively and logically evaluate
the data they collect. Their findings can suggest ideas for further sociological
research.
Defining the Problem
Does it “pay” to go to college? Some people make great sacrifices and work
hard to get a college education. Parents borrow money for their children’s
tuition. Students work part-time jobs or even take full-time positions while
attending evening or weekend classes. Does it pay off? Are there monetary
returns for getting that degree?
The first step in any research project is to state as clearly as possible what
you hope to investigate—that is, define the problem. In this instance, we are
interested in knowing how schooling relates to income. We want to
find out the earnings of people with different levels of formal
schooling.
Early on, any social science researcher must develop an operational
definition of each concept being studied. An operational definition is an
explanation of an abstract concept that is specific enough to allow a
researcher to assess the concept. For example, a sociologist interested in
status might use membership in exclusive social clubs as an operational
definition of status. Someone studying prejudice might consider a person’s
unwillingness to hire or work with members of minority groups as an
operational definition of prejudice. In our example, we need to develop two
operational definitions—education and earnings—in order to study whether it
pays to get an advanced educational degree. We’ll define education as the
number of years of schooling a person has achieved and earnings as the
income a person reports having received in the past year.
Reviewing the Literature
By conducting a review of the literature—examining relevant scholarly
studies and information—researchers refine the problem under study, clarify
possible techniques to be used in collecting data, and eliminate or reduce
avoidable mistakes. In our example, we would examine information about the
salaries for different occupations. We would see if jobs that require more
academic training are better rewarded. It would also be appropriate to review
other studies on the relationship between education and income.
The review of the literature would soon tell us that many factors besides
years of schooling influence earning potential. For example, we would learn
that the children of rich parents are more likely to go to college than those of
poor parents, so we might consider the possibility that rich parents may later
help their children to secure better-paying jobs.
We might also look at macro-level data, such as state-by-state comparisons
of income and educational levels. In one macro-level study based on census
data, researchers found that in states whose residents have a relatively high
level of education, household income levels are high as well (Figure 2-2).
This finding suggests that schooling may well be related to income, though it
does not speak to the micro-level relationship we are interested in. That is, we
want to know whether individuals who are well educated are also well paid.
MAPPING LIFE NATIONWIDE
FIGURE 2-2 EDUCATIONAL LEVEL AND HOUSEHOLD INCOME IN THE
UNITED STATES
Note: Cutoffs for high/medium and medium/low educational levels in 2015 were 32
percent and 27 percent of the population over age 25 with a college degree,
respectively; median for the entire nation was 30.6 percent. Cutoffs for high/medium
and medium/low household income levels in 2015 were $60,700 and $51,080;
national household median income was $55,775.
Source: American Community Survey. 2015 American Community Survey 1-Year
Estimates, 2016, Tables R1502, R1902.
Formulating the Hypothesis
After reviewing earlier research and drawing on the contributions of
sociological theorists, the researchers may then formulate the hypothesis. A
hypothesis is a speculative statement about the relationship between two or
more factors known as variables. Income, religion, occupation, and gender
can all serve as variables in a study. We can define a variable as a
measurable trait or characteristic that is subject to change under different
conditions.
Researchers who formulate a hypothesis generally must suggest how one
aspect of human behavior influences or affects another. The variable
hypothesized to cause or influence another is called the independent
variable. The other variable is termed the dependent variable because its
action depends on the influence of the independent variable. In other words,
the researcher believes that the independent variable predicts or causes
change in the dependent variable. For example, a researcher in sociology
might anticipate that the availability of affordable housing (the independent
variable, x) affects the level of homelessness in a community (the dependent
variable, y).
©Jason Lindsey/Alamy Stock Photo
It seems reasonable that these graduates of Fort Bethold Community College
on the Fort Bethold Reservation, North Dakota, will earn more income than
high school graduates. How would you go about testing that hypothesis?
Our hypothesis is that the higher one’s educational degree, the more money
one will earn. The independent variable that is to be measured is the level of
education. The variable that is thought to depend on it—income—must also
be measured.
Identifying independent and dependent variables is a critical step in
clarifying cause-and-effect relationships. As shown in Figure 2-3, causal
logic involves the relationship between a condition or variable and a
particular consequence, with one leading to the other. For instance, being less
integrated into society may be directly related to, or produce a greater
likelihood of, suicide. Similarly, the time students spend reviewing material
for a quiz may be directly related to, or produce a greater likelihood of,
getting a high score on the quiz.
FIGURE 2-3 CAUSAL LOGIC
In causal logic, an independent variable (often designated by the symbol x)
influences a dependent variable (often designated as y); thus, x leads to y.
For example, parents who attend church regularly (x) are more likely to have
children who are churchgoers (y). Notice that the first two pairs of variables
are taken from studies already described in this textbook.
A correlation exists when a change in one variable coincides with a
change in the other. Correlations are an indication that causality may be
present; they do not necessarily indicate causation. For example, data indicate
that people who prefer to watch televised news programs are less
knowledgeable than those who read newspapers and newsmagazines. This
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Page 29
correlation between people’s relative knowledge and their choice of news
media seems to make sense, because it agrees with the common belief that
television dumbs down information. But the correlation between the two
variables is actually caused by a third variable, people’s relative ability to
comprehend large amounts of information. People with poor reading skills
are much more likely than others to get their news from television, while
those who are more educated or skilled turn more often to the print media.
Though television viewing is correlated with lower news comprehension,
then, it does not cause it. Sociologists seek to identify the causal link
between variables; the suspected causal link is generally described in the
hypothesis (Neuman 2009).
Collecting and Analyzing Data
How do you test a hypothesis to determine if it is supported or refuted? You
need to collect information, using one of the research designs described later
in the chapter. The research design guides the researcher in collecting and
analyzing data.
Selecting the Sample
In most studies, social scientists must carefully select what is known as a
sample. A sample is a selection from a larger population that is statistically
representative of that population. There are many kinds of samples, but the
one social scientists use most frequently is the random sample. In a random
sample, every member of an entire population being studied has the same
chance of being selected. Thus, if researchers want to examine opinions of
people from a complete listing of neighborhood residences, they might use a
computer to randomly select addresses from the listing. The results would
constitute a random sample. The advantage of using specialized
sampling techniques is that sociologists do not need to question
everyone in a population (Igo 2007).
In some cases, the subjects researchers want to study are hard to identify,
either because their activities are clandestine or because lists of such people
are not readily available. How do researchers create a sample of illegal drug
users, for instance, or of women whose husbands are at least 10 years
younger than they are? In such cases, researchers employ what are called
snowball or convenience samples—that is, they recruit participants through
word of mouth or by posting notices on the Internet. With the help of special
statistical techniques, researchers can draw conclusions from such
nonrandom samples.
It is all too easy to confuse the careful scientific techniques used in
representative sampling with the many nonscientific polls that receive much
more media attention. For example, website viewers are often encouraged to
register their views on headline news or political contests. Such polls reflect
nothing more than the views of those who happened to visit the website and
took the time, perhaps at some cost, to register their opinions. These data do
not necessarily reflect (and indeed may distort) the views of the broader
population. Not everyone has access to a computer on a regular basis, or the
means and/or inclination to register their opinions. Even when these
techniques include answers from tens of thousands of people, they will be far
less accurate than a carefully selected representative sample of 1,500
respondents.
For the purposes of our research example, we will use information
collected in the American Community Survey conducted by the Bureau of the
Census. Each year, the Census Bureau surveys approximately 3.5 million
households across the United States. Technicians at the bureau then use the
data to estimate the nation’s entire population.
Ensuring Validity and Reliability
The scientific method requires that research results be both valid and reliable.
Validity refers to the degree to which a measure or scale truly reflects the
phenomenon under study. A valid measure of income depends on the
gathering of accurate data. Various studies show that people are reasonably
accurate in reporting how much money they earned in the most recent year. If
a question is written unclearly, however, the resulting data might not be
accurate. For example, respondents to an unclear question about income
might report their parents’ or spouse’s income instead of their own.
Reliability refers to the extent to which a measure produces consistent
results. Some people may not disclose accurate information, but most do. In
the American Community Survey, about 98 percent of the households that
researchers approach participate in the survey. The Census Bureau checks
their responses against those of similar households, to ensure that the data do
not differ significantly from other known responses. The bureau also checks
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their responses for reliability, since more and more data are being collected
online (American Community Survey 2013b).
Developing the Conclusion
Scientific studies, including those conducted by sociologists, do not aim to
answer all the questions that can be raised about a particular subject.
Therefore, the conclusion of a research study represents both an end and a
beginning. Although it terminates a specific phase of the investigation, it
should also generate ideas for future study.
Supporting Hypotheses
In our example, we find that the data support our hypothesis: people with
more formal schooling do earn more money than others. Those with a high
school diploma earn more than those who failed to complete high school, but
those with an associate’s degree earn more than high school graduates. The
relationship continues through more advanced levels of schooling, so that
those with graduate degrees earn the most.
The relationship is not perfect, however. Some people who drop out of high
school end up with high incomes, and some with advanced degrees earn
modest incomes, as shown in Figure 2-4. A successful entrepreneur,
for example, might not have much formal schooling, while the
holder of a doctorate may choose to work for a low-paying nonprofit
institution. Sociologists are interested in both the general pattern that emerges
from their data and exceptions to the pattern.
FIGURE 2-4 IMPACT OF A COLLEGE EDUCATION ON INCOME
Source: Author’s analysis of Semega, Fontenot, and Kollar 2017:PINC-
03. Education data for individuals 25 years or older, working full-
time. Semega, Jessica L., Kyla R. Fontenot, and Melissa A. Kollar.
Income and Poverty in the United States: 2016. Washington, DC: US
Government Printing Office, 2017. Photo: ©LAMB/Alamy Stock Photo
Thirty-three percent of people with a high school diploma or less (left)
earn under $25,000 per year, while only 44 percent earn $40,000 or
more. In contrast, only 27 percent of those with an associate’s degree or
higher (right) earn less than $25,000, while 78 percent earn $40,000 or
more.
Sociological studies do not always generate data that support the original
hypothesis. Many times, a hypothesis is refuted, and researchers must
reformulate their conclusions. Unexpected results may also lead sociologists
to reexamine their methodology and make changes in the research design.
Controlling for Other Factors
A control variable is a factor that is held constant to test the relative impact
of an independent variable. For example, if researchers wanted to know how
adults in the United States feel about restrictions on smoking in public places,
they would probably attempt to use a respondent’s smoking behavior as a
control variable. That is, how do smokers versus nonsmokers feel about
smoking in public places? The researchers would compile separate statistics
on how smokers and nonsmokers feel about antismoking regulations.
Our study of the influence of education on income suggests that not
everyone enjoys equal educational opportunities, a disparity that is one of the
causes of social inequality. Since education affects a person’s income, we
may wish to call on the conflict perspective to explore this topic further.
What impact does a person’s race or gender have? Is a woman with a college
degree likely to earn as much as a man with similar schooling? Later in this
textbook we will consider these other factors and variables. That is, we will
examine the impact that education has on income while controlling for
variables such as gender and race.
In Summary: The Scientific Method
Let us briefly summarize the process of the scientific method through a
review of the example. We defined a problem (the question of whether it
pays to get a higher educational degree). We reviewed the literature (other
studies of the relationship between education and income) and formulated a
hypothesis (the higher one’s educational degree, the more money one will
earn). We collected and analyzed the data, making sure the sample was
representative and the data were valid and reliable. Finally, we developed the
conclusion: the data do support our hypothesis about the influence of
education on income.
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©Martin Novak/Alamy Stock Photo
How would researchers study our attitudes toward people who smoke
cigarettes in public? They would likely use respondents’ past smoking
behavior as a control variable. In that case, they might hypothesize that
respondents who smoke may be more tolerant of smoking in public than
respondents who don’t smoke. Another interesting question would be
whether people who have quit smoking feel differently about lighting up in
public than other nonsmokers. What do you think?
thinking CRITICALLY
Suppose that two researchers used different operational definitions for the
same term. Could both researchers’ results be reliable and valid? Explain
your answer.
Major Research Designs
An important aspect of sociological research is deciding how to collect the
data. A research design is a detailed plan or method for obtaining data
scientifically. Selection of a research design is often based on the theories and
hypotheses the researcher starts with (Merton 1948). The choice requires
creativity and ingenuity, because it directly influences both the cost of the
Page 33
project and the amount of time needed to collect the data. Research designs
that sociologists regularly use to generate data include surveys, ethnography,
experiments, and existing sources.
Surveys
Almost all of us have responded to surveys of one kind or another. We may
have been asked what kind of detergent we use, which presidential candidate
we intend to vote for, or what our favorite television program is. A survey is
a study, generally in the form of an interview or questionnaire, that provides
researchers with information about how people think and act. As anyone who
watches the news during presidential campaigns knows, surveys have
become a staple of political life.
When you think of surveys, you may recall seeing online polls that offer
instant results. Although such polls can be highly interesting, they reflect
only the opinions of those who visit the website and choose to respond
online. As we have seen, a survey must be based on precise, representative
sampling if it is to genuinely reflect a broad range of the population. In our
wired world, more and more people can be reached only through their cell
phones. Box 2-1 describes the challenges of conducting a public opinion
survey on a cell phone.
OUR WIRED WORLD
2-1 Surveying Cell Phone Users
“Can you hear me now?” This question, familiar to cell phone callers
everywhere, could be used to characterize a debate among researchers in
sociology. Until recently, calling people on the telephone was a common
way for survey takers to reach a broad range of people. Though not
everyone owns a telephone—particularly not low-income people—
researchers managed to account for that relatively small portion of the
population in other ways.
However, the fact that many people now have a cell phone but no landline
presents a serious methodological problem to scholars who depend on
surveys and public opinion polling. As of 2016, 47 percent of households in
the United States could be reached only by cell phone, and the proportion
was rising. Among those under 18–29, the abandonment of landlines is
even greater, with 72 percent accessible only by cell phone.
Scholars are reluctant to rely only on landline-based surveys. They are
concerned about the potential for misleading results, such as
underestimates of the prevalence of health problems. For example, 38
percent of cell phone–only households have a binge drinker, compared to
only 17 percent of landline households. And 28 percent of cell phone–only
households do not have health insurance, compared to 14 percent of
landline households.
As of 2016, 47 percent of households in the United States could
be reached only by cell phone, and the proportion was rising.
Unfortunately, surveying cell phone users has its own problems. In
general, cell phone users are more likely than landline users to screen
incoming calls or ignore them. And studies show that because cell phone
users often take calls while they are involved in other activities, they are
much more likely to break off a call midsurvey than someone who is
speaking on a landline. Thus, it takes an average of nine calls to a working
cell phone number to complete one survey, compared to five calls to a
working landline number. Furthermore, federal law requires that calls to cell
phones be hand-dialed; the use of automatic dialers, a standard tool of
survey firms, is illegal. Survey takers have also found that calling cell phone
numbers means they will reach a higher proportion of nonadults than when
calling landline numbers. Finally, there are some ethical issues involved in
randomly dialing cell phone users, who may be driving a motor vehicle or
operating dangerous machinery when they answer.
Researchers are taking steps to stay abreast of technological change. For
example, they are making allowances for people who communicate without
any kind of telephone, using their personal computers and the Internet. And
by drawing on historical data that suggest what kinds of people tend to
adopt other wireless technologies, researchers are projecting which people
are likely to abandon their landlines in the near future.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. Are you a cell phone–only user? If so, do you generally accept calls
from unknown numbers? Aside from underestimating certain health
problems and distorting the degree of support for certain politicians,
what other problems might result from excluding cell phone–only users
from survey research?
2. Apply what you have just learned to the task of surveying Internet
users. Which of the problems that arise during telephone surveys
might also arise during Internet surveys? Might Internet surveys
involve some unique problems?
Sources: Blumberg and Luke 2007; David Brown 2009; Burger 2015;
Lavrakas et al. 2007; McGeeney 2016.
Web-based surveys are becoming attractive options because the costs are so
low once the questionnaire is developed. But are these anonymous Internet
responses accurate? They can be quite valid. One such example is a 2009
study that used an audience of more than 1 million residents in the United
States that had opted in through Internet advertising and direct-mail contacts.
Using this database, researchers carefully developed a sample representative
of the general population and asked sensitive questions about racial
stereotypes. The responses closely match the results obtained when similar
questions were asked in face-to-face interviews conducted in different
national samples at about the same time. Comparisons like these are
encouraging for the future of web-based surveys (Simmons and Bobo 2015).
In preparing to conduct a survey, sociologists must not only develop
representative samples; they must also exercise great care in the wording of
questions. An effective survey question must be simple and clear enough for
people to understand. It must also be specific enough so that there are no
problems in interpreting the results. Open-ended questions (“What do you
think of the programming on educational television?”) must be carefully
phrased to solicit the type of information desired. Surveys can be
indispensable sources of information, but only if the sampling is done
properly and the questions are worded accurately and without bias.
In wording questions, researchers must also pay careful attention to
changes in society. In December 2010, officials at the Bureau of Labor
Statistics recognized the effects of an extended recession by changing a
decades-old practice. In the past, multiple-choice questions about how long a
respondent had been unemployed had ended with a maximum of “99 weeks
or over.” By the end of 2010, joblessness had become so chronic that the
bureau increased the number of choices, ending with “up to 5 years.”
There are two main forms of the survey: the interview, in which a
researcher obtains information through face-to-face, phone, or online
questioning, and the questionnaire, in which the researcher uses a printed or
written form to obtain information from a respondent. Each of these has its
own advantages. An interviewer can obtain a higher response rate, because
people find it more difficult to turn down a personal request for an interview
than to throw away a written questionnaire. In addition, a skillful interviewer
can go beyond written questions and probe for a subject’s underlying feelings
and reasons. Patricia and Peter Adler conducted 139 in-depth interviews for
their book on the sensitive subject of self-injury (see the chapter-opening
excerpt). On the other hand, questionnaires have the advantage of being
cheaper, especially in large samples.
©Gatis Sluka, Latvijas Avize, Latvia
Interviewers must carefully record all responses and not appear judgmental
of any answer they receive.
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Why do people have sex? A straightforward question, but until recently it
was rarely investigated scientifically, despite its significance to public health,
marital counseling, and criminology. To find the answer, researchers
interviewed nearly 2,000 undergraduates at the University of Texas at Austin.
In developing the question for the interview, they first asked a random
sample of 400 students to list all the reasons why they had ever had sex. The
explanations were highly diverse, ranging from “I was drunk” to “I wanted to
feel closer to God.” The team then asked another sample of 1,500 students to
rate the importance of each of the 287 reasons given by the first group. Table
2-1 ranks the results. Nearly every reason was rated most important by at
least some respondents. Though there were some gender differences in the
replies, there was significant consensus between men and women on the top
10 reasons (Meston and Buss 2007).
Source: Meston, Cindy M., and David M. Buss. “Why Humanoids Have Sex.”
Archives of Sexual Behavior 36, August 2007, p. 506.
Studies have shown that the characteristics of the interviewer have an
impact on survey data. For example, female interviewers tend to
receive more feminist responses from female subjects than do male
interviewers, and Black interviewers tend to receive more detailed responses
about race-related issues from Black subjects than do White interviewers.
The possible impact of gender and race indicates again how much care social
research requires (D. W. Davis and Silver 2003).
The survey is an example of quantitative research, which collects and
reports data primarily in numerical form. Most of the survey research
discussed so far in this book has been quantitative. While this type of
research can make use of large samples, it can’t offer great depth and detail
on a topic. That is why researchers also make use of qualitative research,
which relies on what is seen in field and naturalistic settings, and often
focuses on small groups and communities rather than on large groups or
whole nations. The most common form of qualitative research is
ethnography, or observation, which we consider next. Throughout this book
you will find examples of both quantitative and qualitative research, since
both are used widely. Some sociologists prefer one type of research to the
other, but we learn most when we draw on many different research designs
and do not limit ourselves to a particular type of research.
Ethnography
Investigators often collect information or test hypotheses through firsthand
studies. Ethnography is the study of an entire social setting through
extended systematic fieldwork. Observation, or direct participation in
closely watching a group or organization, is the basic technique of
ethnography. However, ethnographic research also includes the collection of
historical information and the conduct of in-person interviews. Although
ethnography may seem a relatively informal method compared to surveys or
experiments, ethnographic researchers are careful to take detailed notes while
observing their subjects.
In some cases, the sociologist actually joins a group for a period, to get an
accurate sense of how it operates. This approach is called participant
observation. In Barbara Ehrenreich’s widely read book Nickel and Dimed:
On (Not) Getting By in America, the author was a participant observer.
Disguising herself as a divorced, middle-aged housewife without a college
degree, Ehrenreich set out to see what life was like for low-wage workers.
Her book chronicles her own and others’ experiences trying to make ends
meet on a minimum wage (Ehrenreich 2001).
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During the late 1930s, in a classic example of participant-observation
research, William F. Whyte moved into a low-income Italian neighborhood
in Boston. For nearly four years he was a member of the social circle of
“corner boys” that he describes in Street Corner Society. Whyte revealed his
identity to these men and joined in their conversations, bowling, and other
leisure-time activities. His goal was to gain greater insight into the
community that these men had established. As Whyte (1981:303) listened to
Doc, the leader of the group, he “learned the answers to questions I would not
even have had the sense to ask if I had been getting my information solely on
an interviewing basis.” Whyte’s work was especially valuable, since at the
time the academic world had little direct knowledge of the poor, and tended
to rely for information on the records of social service agencies, hospitals,
and courts (P. Adler et al. 1992).
The initial challenge that Whyte faced—and that every participant observer
encounters—was to gain acceptance into an unfamiliar group. It is no simple
matter for a college-trained sociologist to win the trust of a religious cult, a
youth gang, a poor Appalachian community, or a circle of skid row residents.
It requires a great deal of patience and an accepting, nonthreatening type of
personality on the part of the observer.
Ethnographic research poses other complex challenges for the investigator.
Sociologists must be able to fully understand what they are observing. In a
sense, then, researchers must learn to see the world as the group sees it in
order to fully comprehend the events taking place around them. This raises a
delicate issue. If the research is to be successful, the observer cannot allow
the close associations or even friendships that inevitably develop to influence
the subjects’ behavior or the conclusions of the study. Even while working
hard to gain acceptance from the group being studied, the participant
observer must maintain some degree of detachment.
An exciting tool for many ethnographers is visual sociology, described in
Box 2-2.
RESEARCH TODAY
2-2 Visual Sociology
As a discipline, sociology relies on the scientific observation of human
behavior, whether directly or through data gathered in surveys,
experiments, and existing sources. Increasingly, however, sociologists also
recognize visual documents as a significant research tool. Visual
sociology is the use of photographs, film, and video to study society.
Sociologist Howard Becker drew attention to the importance of images in
his influential essay “Photography and Sociology.” For over three decades
the International Visual Sociology Association has encouraged scholarship
in visual sociology, not only by sociologists but also by anthropologists,
communications scholars, and psychologists.
Although the term visual sociology is relatively new, the roots of visual
research methods go deep. As Becker (1974:3) reminds us, “Photography
and sociology have approximately the same birth date,” in the 1830s. Early
sociological works made use of photographs and other visuals, such as
maps, not merely as illustrations but as the basis of research. The
hardships of the American Civil War, conflicts between Native Americans
and U.S. Cavalry, and the Crimean War were all analyzed using early
photographs. In the 20th century, scholars assessed the toll of the Great
Depression in the United States by looking at photographs assembled by
the Farm Security Administration. At the time, however, such studies did not
receive much acceptance by sociologists. Until recently, only numerical data
were deemed appropriate for study.
Source: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division [LC-B8184-7964-A]
Photographs and other visual images improve our understanding of events that
affect social behavior. This scene from a Civil War battlefield suggests the utter
devastation visited on society by that war.
Today the value of visuals in comprehending social behavior is easy to
understand. For generations, music was shared and promoted through the
radio. Then music videos transformed popular music. MTV launched in
1981 with the Buggles video “Video Killed the Radio Star,” followed by Pat
Benatar’s “You Better Run,” which suggested the changes that were about
to occur in the music industry. Now scholars study these videos as
extensively as they do the music and lyrics of pop music.
“Photography and sociology have
approximately the same birth date,” in the 1830s.
Visual sociology includes the conscious creation of a visual record through
documentary films or photography. Sociologist Charles Suchar studied
gentrification by photographing commercial and residential areas over time
and then analyzing the record to note how neighborhoods had changed.
The photographs became the basis for interviews with residents and
merchants about the details they revealed and the concerns they
suggested, such as the desire for privacy and the need for security.
Photographic records can also be useful in comparative studies. Imagine
what sociologists might learn by contrasting images of a suburban barbecue
and an Amish community raising a barn. In both cases, images would be
treated as data, not merely as instructional aids.
©Spaces Images/Blend Images
Asking residents to describe photographs helps to call attention to details that
are often overlooked, such as an emphasis on security.
Today, visual sociology is proving useful in applied sociology, the use of
the discipline of sociology to yield practical applications for human behavior
and organizations. In England, public health researchers photographed
neighborhoods where illegal drug use was common. The images, which
showed drug users injecting themselves in parks and public toilets, helped
to identify unsafe areas where discarded needles and syringes littered the
ground. Although the visuals were not necessary to the research, they
proved invaluable in the researchers’ effort to convince social services and
law enforcement agencies that intervention was needed.
In short, the uses of visual sociology are as wide as the discipline of
sociology itself. Technological innovations such as the Internet, social
media, and 3D copiers will only continue to expand the field.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. Choose an image or series of images from reality TV or social media
and discuss it from a sociological perspective. What can you learn from
it? What sociological concepts can you relate to it?
2. Might some images be misinterpreted by researchers? Give an example.
How might scholars guard against such misinterpretation?
Sources: Becker 1974; Goffman 1979; J. Grady 2007; Harper 1988; Parkin
and Coomber 2009; Stryker and Wood 1973 [1935–43]; Suchar 1997;
International Visual Sociology Association 2018.
Experiments
When sociologists want to study a possible cause-and-effect relationship,
they may conduct experiments. An experiment is an artificially created
situation that allows a researcher to manipulate variables.
Page 36
©Carnegie Mellon University
Carnegie Mellon University’s Data Truck lets researchers go where their
subjects are—from nightclubs to marathon races. Equipped with the latest
technology, the truck allows social scientists to enter the responses to their
community surveys into their databases on-site. It also gives them access to
online social networks in the area, and even lets them videotape street
activity.
In the classic method of conducting an experiment, two groups of people
are selected and matched for similar characteristics, such as age or education.
The researchers then assign the subjects to one of two groups: the
experimental or the control group. The experimental group is exposed to an
independent variable; the control group is not. Thus, if scientists were
testing a new type of antibiotic, they would administer the drug to an
experimental group but not to a control group.
In some experiments, just as in observation research, the presence of a
social scientist or other observer may affect the behavior of the people being
studied. Sociologists have used the term Hawthorne effect to refer
to the unintended influence that observers of experiments can have
on their subjects. The term originated as the result of an experiment
conducted at the Hawthorne plant of the Western Electric Company during
the 1920s and 1930s. Researchers found that every change they made in
working conditions—even reduced lighting—seemed to have a positive
effect on workers’ productivity. They concluded that workers had made a
special effort to impress their observers. Though the carefully constructed
study did identify some causes for changes in the workers’ behavior that did
not have to do with their being observed, the term Hawthorne effect has
become synonymous with a placebo or guinea pig effect (Franke and Kaul
1978).
thinking CRITICALLY
How would you go about setting up an experiment to measure the effect of
screen time on schoolchildren’s grades?
Use of Existing Sources
Sociologists do not necessarily need to collect new data in order to conduct
research and test hypotheses. The term secondary analysis refers to a variety
of research techniques that make use of previously collected and publicly
accessible information and data. Generally, in conducting secondary analysis,
researchers use data in ways that were unintended by the initial collectors of
information. For example, census data are compiled for specific uses by the
federal government but are also valuable to marketing specialists in locating
everything from bicycle stores to nursing homes.
Sociologists consider secondary analysis to be nonreactive—that is, it does
not influence people’s behavior. For example, Émile Durkheim’s statistical
analysis of suicide neither increased nor decreased human self-destruction.
Researchers, then, can avoid the Hawthorne effect by using secondary
analysis.
There is one inherent problem, however: the researcher who relies on data
collected by someone else may not find exactly what is needed. Social
scientists who are studying family violence can use statistics from police and
social service agencies on reported cases of spouse abuse and child abuse,
but how many cases are not reported? Government bodies have no precise
data on all cases of abuse.
Many social scientists find it useful to study cultural, economic, and
political documents, including newspapers, periodicals, radio and television
tapes, the Internet, scripts, diaries, songs, folklore, and legal papers (Table 2-
2). In examining these sources, researchers employ a technique known as
content analysis, which is the systematic coding and objective recording of
data, guided by some rationale.
Content analysis can be revealing. Following a recent increase in
devastating hurricanes, floods, and prolonged droughts, many people have
expressed the need to educate future generations about climate change. To
assess children’s awareness of the environment, sociologists conducted a
content analysis of award-winning picture books over the last 70 years. Their
work revealed a noticeable decline in depictions of the natural environment
and animals. Today, when children’s books do address environmental events,
they are more likely to portray volcanic eruptions than floods or bad weather.
Page 37
Even when books about urban areas show smokestacks emitting huge
quantities of black smoke, the story line does not identify air pollution as a
problem (J. Williams et al. 2012).
Content analysis can also document what we suspect is happening as well
as reveal surprising trends. A 2015 study analyzed coverage of women’s
sports on the Los Angeles local television market as well as on ESPN over 25
years. Despite the tremendous increase in women’s participation in sports
over the last quarter century, content analysis revealed that only 3.2 percent
of airtime was devoted to women’s sports; further, this represented a decline
from the levels back in 1989. ESPN’s heavily watched SportCenter
consistently devotes 2 percent of airtime to women; of this, 82 percent
represents coverage of basketball (Cooky et al. 2015).
Table 2-3 summarizes the major research designs, along with their
advantages and limitations.
Use Your Sociological Imagination
Imagine you are a legislator or government policymaker working on a
complex social problem. What might happen if you were to base your
decision on faulty research?
Ethics of Research
A biochemist cannot inject a drug into a human being unless it has been
thoroughly tested and the subject agrees to the shot. To do otherwise would
be both unethical and illegal. Sociologists, too, must abide by certain specific
standards in conducting research, called a code of ethics. The professional
society of the discipline, the American Sociological Association (ASA), first
published the society’s Code of Ethics in 1971 and reviewed it most recently
in 1997. It puts forth the following basic principles:
1. Maintain objectivity and integrity in research.
2. Respect the subject’s right to privacy and dignity.
3. Protect subjects from personal harm.
4. Preserve confidentiality.
5. Seek informed consent when data are collected from research
participants or when behavior occurs in a private context.
6. Acknowledge research collaboration and assistance.
7. Disclose all sources of financial support (American Sociological
Association 1999).
These basic principles probably seem clear-cut. How could they lead to any
disagreement or controversy? Yet many delicate ethical questions cannot be
resolved simply by reading these seven principles. For example, should a
sociologist who is engaged in participant-observation research always protect
the confidentiality of subjects? What if the subjects are members of a
religious cult allegedly involved in unethical and possibly illegal activities?
What if the sociologist is interviewing political activists and is questioned by
government authorities about the research?
Because most sociological research uses people as sources of information
—as respondents to survey questions, subjects of ethnography, or participants
in experiments—these sorts of questions are important. In all cases,
sociologists need to be certain they are not invading their subjects’ privacy.
Generally, they do so by assuring subjects of anonymity and by guaranteeing
the confidentiality of personal information. In addition, research proposals
that involve human subjects must now be overseen by a review board, whose
members seek to ensure that subjects are not placed at an unreasonable level
of risk. If necessary, the board may ask researchers to revise their research
designs to conform to the code of ethics.
We can appreciate the seriousness of the ethical problems researchers
confront by considering the experience of sociologist Rik Scarce, described
in the next section. Scarce’s vow to protect his subjects’ confidentiality got
him into considerable trouble with the law.
Confidentiality
Like journalists, sociologists occasionally find themselves subject to
questions from law enforcement authorities because of knowledge they have
gained in the course of their work. This uncomfortable situation raises
profound ethical questions.
In May 1993, Rik Scarce, a doctoral candidate in sociology at Washington
State University, was jailed for contempt of court. Scarce had declined to tell
a federal grand jury what he knew—or even whether he knew anything—
about a 1991 raid on a university research laboratory by animal rights
activists. At the time, Scarce was conducting research for a book about
environmental protesters and knew at least one suspect in the break-in.
Curiously, although he was chastised by a federal judge, Scarce won respect
from fellow prison inmates, who regarded him as a man who “wouldn’t
snitch” (Monaghan 1993:A8).
The American Sociological Association supported Scarce’s position when
he appealed his sentence. Scarce maintained his silence. Ultimately the judge
ruled that nothing would be gained by further incarceration, and Scarce was
released after serving 159 days in jail. In January 1994, the U.S. Supreme
Court declined to hear Scarce’s case on appeal. The Court’s failure to
consider his case led Scarce (2005) to argue that federal legislation is needed
to clarify the right of scholars and members of the press to preserve the
confidentiality of those they interview.
Conflict of Interest
Sometimes disclosing all the sources of funding for a study, as required in
principle 7 of the ASA’s Code of Ethics, is not a sufficient guarantee of
ethical conduct. Especially in the case of both corporate and government
funding, money given ostensibly for the support of basic research may come
with strings attached. Accepting funds from a private organization or even a
government agency that stands to benefit from a study’s results can call into
question a researcher’s objectivity and integrity (principle 1).
TAKING SOCIOLOGY TO
WORK
Dave Eberbach, Associate Director, Iowa
Institute for Community Alliances
Courtesy of Dave Eberbach
Dave Eberbach is a people person who has been working with computers
most of his career. In 1994 he was hired as a research coordinator by the
United Way of Central Iowa. In that position he helped to create and
implement Iowa’s Homeless Management Information System (HMIS),
which coordinates data on housing and homeless service providers.
Eberbach also collaborated with the Human Service Planning Alliance to
create and maintain a “data warehouse” of social statistics from diverse
sources. As a research coordinator, he found that the data helped him to
identify small pockets of poverty that were generally hidden in state and
county statistics.
Today, Eberbach works at the Iowa Institute for Community Alliances, a
small nonprofit organization that offers computerized client management
and on-site program monitoring to homeless and housing service providers.
As Associate Director, Eberbach oversees a staff of seven and meets with
clients who are working to improve service delivery to vulnerable people.
“As fewer resources are being spent on social programs, it has been
imperative to make sure that the focus of programs is on client success, not
maintaining systems,” he explains.
Eberbach went to Grinnell College, where he took a variety of social
science courses before settling on sociology as a major. While there, he
benefited from the presence of several visiting professors, who exposed him
to a variety of racial and cultural perspectives. He found that his personal
acquaintance with them complemented the concepts he was learning in his
Page 38
sociology classes. Today, Eberbach draws on his college experiences in his
work, which brings him into contact with a diverse group of people.
As a student, Eberbach recalls, he never thought he would use statistics
in his career, and didn’t work very hard in the course. “As it turned out,” he
says, “I use it nearly every day. Understanding data and statistics and being
able to explain numbers to others has been very important in my job.” The
reverse has also been true, however: having a background in sociology has
been helpful to him in systems design. “Understanding that systems need to
work for a variety of groups of people, not just folks that grew up like I did,”
he explains, has been very helpful. “The world is not a computer problem or
a math problem to be solved,” he continues, “but rather a complex
environment where groups of people continually bump into one another.”
LET’S DISCUSS
1. Do you know what you want to be doing 10 years from now? If so, how
might a knowledge of statistics help you in your future occupation?
2. What kinds of statistics, specifically, might you find in the Human Service
Planning Alliance’s data warehouse? Where would they come from?
Another example is the Exxon Corporation’s support for research on jury
verdicts. In 1989, the Exxon oil tanker Valdez hit a reef off the coast of
Alaska, spilling more than 11 million gallons of oil into Prince William
Sound. Five years later a federal court ordered Exxon to pay $5.3 billion in
damages for the accident. Exxon appealed the verdict and began approaching
legal scholars, sociologists, and psychologists who might be willing to study
jury deliberations. The corporation’s objective was to develop
academic support for its lawyers’ contention that the punitive
judgments in such cases result from faulty deliberations and do not have a
deterrent effect.
©John Gaps III/AP Images
A floating containment barrier (or boom) encircles the Exxon oil tanker Valdez
after it was grounded on a reef off the coast of Alaska. Exxon was found
negligent in the environmental disaster and was ordered to pay $5.3 billion for
the cleanup. On appeal, the company managed to reduce the damages to
$500 million based on academic research that it had funded—research that
some scholars believe involved a conflict of interest.
Some scholars have questioned the propriety of accepting funds under these
circumstances, even if the source is disclosed. In at least one case, an Exxon
employee explicitly told a sociologist that the corporation offers financial
support to scholars who have shown the tendency to express views similar to
its own. An argument can also be made that Exxon was attempting to set
scholars’ research agendas with its huge war chest. Rather than funding
studies on the improvement of cleanup technologies or the assignment of
long-term environmental costs, Exxon chose to shift scientists’ attention to
the validity of the legal awards in environmental cases.
The scholars who accepted Exxon’s support deny that it influenced their
work or changed their conclusions. Some received support from other sources
as well, such as the National Science Foundation and Harvard University’s
Olin Center for Law, Economics, and Business. Many of their findings were
published in respected academic journals after review by a jury of peers. Still,
Page 39
at least one researcher who participated in the studies refused monetary
support from Exxon to avoid even the suggestion of a conflict of interest.
Exxon spent roughly $1 million on the research, and at least one
compilation of studies congenial to the corporation’s point of view has been
published. As ethical considerations require, the academics who conducted
the studies disclosed Exxon’s role in funding them. Nevertheless, the
investment appears to have paid off. In 2006, drawing on these
studies, Exxon’s lawyers succeeded in persuading an appeals court to reduce
the corporation’s legal damages from $5.3 to $2.5 billion. In 2008 Exxon
appealed that judgment to the Supreme Court, which further reduced the
damages to $500 million. The final award, which is to be shared by about
32,000 plaintiffs, will result in payments of about $15,000 to each person
(Freudenburg 2005; Liptak 2008).
Value Neutrality
The ethical considerations of sociologists lie not only in the methods they use
and the funding they accept, but also in the way they interpret their results.
Max Weber ([1904] 1949) recognized that personal values would influence
the questions that sociologists select for research. In his view, that was
perfectly acceptable, but under no conditions could a researcher allow his or
her personal feelings to influence the interpretation of data. In Weber’s
phrase, sociologists must practice value neutrality in their research.
As part of this neutrality, investigators have an ethical obligation to accept
research findings even when the data run counter to their personal views, to
theoretically based explanations, or to widely accepted beliefs. For example,
Émile Durkheim challenged popular conceptions when he reported that social
(rather than supernatural) forces were an important factor in suicide.
Although some sociologists believe that neutrality is impossible, ignoring
the issue would be irresponsible. Let’s consider what might happen if
researchers brought their own biases to the investigation. A person
investigating the impact of intercollegiate sports on alumni contributions, for
example, might focus only on the highly visible revenue-generating sports of
football and basketball and neglect the so-called minor sports, such as tennis
or soccer, which are more likely to involve women athletes. Despite the early
work of W. E. B. DuBois and Jane Addams, sociologists still need to be
reminded that the discipline often fails to adequately consider all people’s
social behavior.
In her book The Death of White Sociology (1973), Joyce Ladner called
attention to the tendency of mainstream sociology to treat the lives of African
Americans as a social problem. More recently, feminist sociologist Shulamit
Reinharz (1992) has argued that sociological research should be not only
inclusive but also open to bringing about social change and to drawing on
relevant research by nonsociologists. Both Ladner and Reinharz maintain that
researchers should always analyze whether women’s unequal social status
has affected their studies in any way. For example, one might broaden the
study of the impact of education on income to consider the implications of
the unequal pay status of men and women. The issue of value neutrality does
not mean that sociologists can’t have opinions, but it does mean that they
must work to overcome any biases, however unintentional, that they may
bring to their analysis of research.
Sociologist Peter Rossi (1987) admits to having liberal inclinations that
direct him to certain fields of study. Yet in line with Weber’s view of value
neutrality, Rossi’s commitment to rigorous research methods and objective
interpretation of data has sometimes led him to controversial findings that are
not necessarily supportive of his liberal values. For example, his measure of
the extent of homelessness in Chicago in the mid-1980s fell far below the
estimates of the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless. Coalition members
bitterly attacked Rossi for hampering their social reform efforts by
minimizing the extent of homelessness. Rossi (1987:79) concluded that “in
the short term, good social research will often be greeted as a betrayal of one
or another side to a particular controversy.”
thinking CRITICALLY
Why did Max Weber specify the need for neutrality in the interpretation of
data? Is complete value neutrality possible in research? To what extent
should researchers try to overcome their own biases?
Feminist Methodology
The feminist perspective has had a great impact on the current generation of
social researchers. How might this perspective influence research? Although
Page 40
researchers must be objective, their theoretical orientation may influence the
questions they ask—or just as important, the questions they fail to ask. Until
recently, for example, researchers frequently studied work and the family
separately. Yet feminist theorists see the two spheres of activity as being
closely integrated. Similarly, work and leisure, paid and unpaid domestic
work may be seen not as two separate spheres, but as two sides of the same
coin.
Recently, feminist scholars have become interested in self-injury, a practice
described at the beginning of this chapter. Research shows that 85 percent of
self-injurers are female; feminist researchers seek to explain why women
predominate in this population. Rather than treat the behavior as a medical
disorder, they note that society encourages women much more than men to
attend to their bodies through hair removal, skin treatments, and
depigmentation. Given this heightened attention to the female body, feminists
suggest that specific instances of victimization can lead women to self-injure.
They also seek to better understand male self-injurers, and are testing the
hypothesis that among men, self-injury is a manifestation of
hypermasculinity in the tolerance of pain (P. Adler and Adler 2011:25–27,
35–36).
©Winston George/Alamy Stock Photo
Feminist theorists see the global trafficking of sex workers as a sign of the
close relationship between the supposedly separate worlds of industrial
nations and dependent developing nations.
The feminist perspective has also had an impact on global
research. To feminist theorists, the traditional distinction between industrial
nations and developing nations overlooks the close relationship between
these two supposedly separate worlds. Feminist theorists have called for more
research on the special role that immigrant women play in maintaining their
households; on the use of domestic workers from less developed nations by
households in industrial nations; and on the global trafficking of sex workers
(Cheng 2003; Cooper et al. 2007; Sprague 2005).
Feminist researchers tend to involve and consult their subjects more than
other researchers, and they are more oriented toward seeking change, raising
the public consciousness, and influencing policy. They are particularly open
to a multidisciplinary approach, such as making use of historical evidence or
legal studies (T. Baker 1999; Lofland 1975; Reinharz 1992).
thinking CRITICALLY
Even if women are represented in a study, could the researcher’s gender
influence the data that are collected? If so, how, and how might the problem
be prevented?
Queer Theory and Methodology
If researchers wish to generalize about society, their findings must be
representative of all people. Over the last generation, feminist theorists have
insisted that women deserve as much attention from researchers as men.
Similarly, exponents of queer theory ask whether researchers consider gays
and lesbians in their studies, or simply assume that the generalizations they
make apply to everyone, whether heterosexual, gay, or transgender.
According to the National Bureau of Economic Research, most research
significantly underreports the proportion of gays and lesbians in the
population; it also underestimates the percentage of people who hold anti-gay
views. The bureau suggests using a “veiled reporting” technique, in which
respondents are asked whether they consider themselves to be heterosexual in
the context of other much less sensitive questions, such as “Did you spend a
lot of time playing video games as a child?” In one study, when respondents
were asked about their sexual orientation within a group of such questions, 19
percent of them reported that they were nonheterosexual; when the question
was asked more directly, the proportion was 11 percent (Coffman et al.
2013).
This study suggests that if researchers want to generalize about both
heterosexuals and homosexuals, they should be extremely careful in wording
questions about respondents’ sexual orientation—compared even to other
sensitive topics, such as political and religious affiliations.
thinking CRITICALLY
How might recent advances in gay and transgender rights affect queer
studies research?
The Data-Rich Future
Advances in technology have affected all aspects of our lives, and
sociological research is no exception. Massive increases in available data
have allowed sociologists to undertake research that was virtually impossible
just a decade ago. In the recent past, only people with grants or major
institutional support could work easily with large amounts of data. Now
anyone with a computer can access huge amounts of data and learn more
about social behavior.
When it comes to big data, the nation’s prison population offers many
avenues of research—the United States has about 5 percent of the world’s
population but nearly 25 percent of its prisoners. While precise numbers are
difficult to obtain because of the changing prison population and the myriad
of correctional departments in operation in the nation, there are nearly 7
million adults in correctional systems. Further, it is estimated that somewhere
in excess of 1.7 million children under age 18 have a parent in prison or jail.
These children, often in low-income households and in poor health, need help
to cope with such a life-changing circumstance. For example, Sesame Street
has mounted a program called “Little Children Big Challenges:
Incarceration” aimed to provide comfort for children as young as three years
old (Lynch 2012; Sesame Street 2018).
So do these programs help children? Further, how can they be
strengthened? Sociologists delve into mounds of data to evaluate program
offerings and discover ways to improve them. Weber State University
Page 41
sociologist R. C. Morris (2017) considered two programs: a Big Brothers Big
Sisters (BBBS) mentoring program in metropolitan Indianapolis, and the
national Fractured Family (FF) survey that followed 5,000 children over a
period of nine years.
Morris’s hypothesis was that social intervention would reduce the
likelihood that children with parents in jail would have problems such as
causing property damage, stealing, and cheating in school. This research
shows the importance of having data before assuming that a hypothesis is
correct. Unexpectedly, the participants in the mentoring program had more
problems than a similar group in the FF survey who were not in the program.
©In Pictures Ltd./Corbis via Getty Images
Incarceration has a major impact on an inmate’s children. Shown here, a
father and his sons during an all-too-infrequent family visit session.
Why would children who received mentoring experience more
problems than children who did not? The data did not reveal a
simple casual effect. Analysis showed that the children in the BBBS had
more reports of problems before the mentoring began compared to the control
sample, so the challenges they faced were greater. Second, the mentoring
program was intended to focus on school success and therefore may have had
the unintended effect of leading some participants to commit academic
dishonesty while trying to “succeed.” Third, the BBBS program focused on
older children than did many similar interventions, which meant the analysis
was measuring the impact of the continuing incarceration of a parent more
than a few more months of mentoring. In other words, the older children had
to overcome the effects of longer parental incarcerations or even multiple
parental absences. Morris suggests that to be effective, mentoring might need
to last longer than a year and perhaps go beyond focusing on improving
school grades, such as including skills that help children cope in a very
stressful social environment.
We have seen that researchers rely on a number of tools, from time-tested
observational research and use of existing sources to the latest in computer
technology. The Social Policy section that follows will describe researchers’
efforts to survey the general population about a controversial aspect of human
behavior: human sexuality. This investigation was complicated by its
potential social policy implications. Because in the real world, sociological
research can have far-reaching consequences for public policy and public
welfare, each of the following chapters in this book will close with a Social
Policy section.
thinking CRITICALLY
Explain how the evaluation of the mentoring program for children with
incarcerated parents reflected the different steps of the scientific method.
social policy and sociological
research
Studying Human Sexuality
How can researchers study human sexual behavior? Neuroscientists Ogi
Ogas and Sai Gaddam (2011) studied millions of web searches, websites,
and videos related to sex. They found that women and men differ decidedly
in their preferences, but very little (if any) distinction between heterosexuals
and homosexuals, other than their sexual orientation. This type of research
has significant limitations, however. Ogas and Gaddam could not
distinguish between online fantasies and rational desires, or between a
single search and one of many repeated searches by the same person.
Nevertheless, this cyber study is a step forward in the effort to understand
human sexual behavior (Bartlett 2011).
Looking at the Issue
In this age of devastating sexually transmitted diseases, there is no time
more important to increase our scientific understanding of human sexuality.
As we will see, however, this is a difficult topic to research, not only
because of privacy concerns but because of all the preconceptions, myths,
and beliefs people bring to the subject of sexuality. Many people actively
oppose research on human sexuality. How does one carry out scientific
research on such a controversial and personal topic?
There is little question that we live in a highly sexualized society. The
mass media continually bombard us with sexual ideas and images.
However, as a study released in 2015 reveals, it is women rather than men
who are disproportionately sexualized, particularly in motion pictures. A
content analysis of the characters in top box-office films of 2014 showed
that women are much more likely than men to be shown in sexy attire, with
some degree of nudity, or specifically referred to as “attractive” (see Figure
2-5).
FIGURE 2-5 WOMEN MORE SEXUALIZED THAN MEN IN TOP FILMS OF
2016
Note: Data based on analysis of 39,788 speaking or named characters in the 900 top-
grossing films released in 2016.
Source: Smith, Stacy L., Marc Choueiti, and Katherine Pieper. Inequality in 900
Popular Films: Examining Portrayals of Gender, Race/Ethnicity, LGBT, and Disability
from 2007-2016. Los Angeles: Annenberg Center, USC, 2017, p. 15.
Applying Sociology
Sociologists have little reliable national data on patterns of sexual behavior
in the United States. Until the 1990s, the only comprehensive study of
sexual behavior was the famous two-volume Kinsey Report, prepared in
the 1940s (Kinsey et al. 1948, 1953; see also Igo 2007). Although the
Kinsey Report is still widely quoted, the volunteers interviewed for the report
Page 42
were not representative of the nation’s adult population.
In part, we lack reliable data on patterns of sexual behavior because it is
difficult for researchers to obtain accurate information about this sensitive
subject. Moreover, until AIDS emerged in the 1980s, there was little
scientific demand for data on sexual behavior, except for specific concerns
such as contraception. And even though the AIDS crisis has reached
dramatic proportions, government funding for studies of sexual behavior is
still controversial and therefore difficult to obtain.
The controversy surrounding research on human sexual
behavior raises the issue of value neutrality, which becomes
especially delicate when one considers the relationship of sociology to the
government. The federal government has become the major source of
funding for sociological research. Yet Max Weber urged that sociology
remain an autonomous discipline and not become unduly influenced by any
one segment of society. According to Weber’s ideal of value neutrality,
sociologists must remain free to reveal information that is embarrassing to
the government, or for that matter, supportive of government institutions.
Initiating Policy
In 1987 the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development
sought proposals for a national survey of sexual behavior. Sociologists
responded with various plans that a review panel of scientists approved for
funding. However, in 1991, the U.S. Senate voted to forbid funding any
survey of adult sexual practices. Despite the vote, sociologists developed
the National Health and Social Life Survey (NHSLS) to better understand
the sexual practices of adults in the United States. The researchers raised
$1.6 million of private funding to make their study possible (Laumann et al.
1994a, 1994b).
The authors of the NHSLS believe that their research is important. They
argue that data from their survey allow interest groups to more easily
address public policy issues such as AIDS, sexual harassment, welfare
reform, sex discrimination, abortion, teenage pregnancy, and family
planning. Moreover, the research findings help to counter some
commonsense notions. For instance, contrary to the popular beliefs that
women regularly use abortion for birth control and that poor teens are the
most likely socioeconomic group to have abortions, researchers found that
three-fourths of all abortions are the first for the woman, and that well-
educated and affluent women are more likely to have abortions than poor
teens (Sweet 2001).
The usefulness of the NHSLS in addressing public policy issues has
proved influential. As Figure 2-6 shows, scholars around the world are now
studying human sexual behavior, in an effort to reduce the occurrence of
HIV/AIDS.
FIGURE 2-6 MEDIAN AGE OF FIRST SEX
Source: Durex. “The Face of Global Sex 2007—First Sex: An Opportunity of
a Lifetime.” 2007. Flags: ©admin_design/Shutterstock
Take the Issue with You
1. Do you see any merit in the position of those who oppose government
funding for research on sexual behavior? Explain your reasoning.
2. Exactly how could the results of research on human sexual behavior be
used to control sexually transmitted diseases?
3. Compare the issue of value neutrality in government-funded research to
the same issue in corporate-funded research. Are concerns about
conflict of interest more or less serious in regard to government funding?
APPENDIX I Using Statistics and
Graphs
In their effort to better understand social behavior, sociologists rely heavily
on numbers and statistics. For example, how have attitudes toward the
Page 43
legalization of marijuana changed over the past 50 years? A quick look at the
results of 20 national surveys shows that support for legalization of the drug
has increased (Figure 2-7), to the point that the most recent survey shows
almost majority support for legalization.
FIGURE 2-7 CHANGING ATTITUDES TOWARD THE LEGALIZATION OF
MARIJUANA
Source: Swift, Art. “Support for Legal Marijuana Use Up to 60% in
U.S.,” Gallup, October 19, 2016.
Recent legislation on the state level has complicated the task of assessing
public opinion on this issue. Some states have passed initiatives legalizing the
possession of small amounts of marijuana, even though possession remains
illegal under the federal Controlled Substances Act. Researchers now must
track how public opinion differs from the national trend in states where
marijuana use is both tolerated and legal.
Using Statistics
The most common summary measures used by sociologists are percentages,
means, modes, and medians. A percentage is a portion of 100. Use of
percentages allows us to compare groups of different sizes. For example, if
we were comparing financial contributors to a town’s Baptist and Roman
Catholic churches, the absolute numbers of contributors in each
group could be misleading if there were many more Baptists than
Catholics in the town. By using percentages, we could obtain a more
meaningful comparison, showing the proportion of persons in each group
who contribute to churches.
The mean, or average, is a number calculated by adding a series of values
and then dividing by the number of values. For example, to find the mean of
the numbers 5, 19, and 27, we would add them together (for a total of 51),
divide by the number of values (3), and discover that the mean is 17.
The mode is the single most common value in a series of scores. Suppose
we were looking at the following scores on a 10-point quiz:
10 10 9 9 8 8 7 7 7 6 5
The mode—the most frequent score on the quiz—is 7. While the mode is
easier to identify than other summary measures, it tells sociologists little
about all the other values. Hence, you will find much less use of the mode in
this book than of the mean and the median.
The median is the midpoint or number that divides a series of values into
two groups of equal numbers of values. For the quiz just discussed, the
median, or central value, is 8. The mean, or average, would be 86 (the sum of
all scores) divided by 11 (the total number of scores), or 7.8.
Some of these statistics may seem confusing at first. But think how difficult
it is to comb through an endless list of numbers to identify a pattern or central
tendency. Percentages, means, modes, and medians are essential time-savers
in sociological research and analysis.
Reading Graphs
Tables and figures (that is, graphs) allow social scientists to display data and
develop their conclusions more easily. In December 2016, the Gallup poll
interviewed 1,017 people in the United States age 18 and over, by both cell
phone and landlines. Each respondent was asked, “Do you think the use of
marijuana should be made legal, or not?” Without some type of summary,
there is no way that analysts could examine the hundreds of individual
responses to this question and reach firm conclusions. One type of summary
sociologists use, a cross-tabulation, shows the relationship between two or
more variables. Through the cross-tabulations presented graphically in Figure
2-8, we can quickly see that older people are less likely to favor the
legalization of marijuana than younger people, and that Republicans are less
Page 44
supportive of legalization than Democrats.
FIGURE 2-8 PEOPLE WHO FAVOR LEGALIZATION OF MARIJUANA
BY POLITICAL AFFILIATION AND AGE
Source: Swift, Art. “Support for Legal Marijuana Use Up to 60% in
U.S.,” Gallup, October 19, 2016.
Graphs, like tables, can be quite useful to sociologists. And illustrations are
often easier for the general public to understand, whether in newspapers or in
PowerPoint presentations. Still, as with all data, we need to be careful how
they are presented.
APPENDIX II Writing a
Research Report
Let’s say you have decided to write a report on cohabitation (unmarried
couples living together). How do you go about doing the necessary library
research? Students must follow procedures similar to those used by
sociologists in conducting original research. For your first step you must
define the problem that you wish to study—perhaps in this case, how much
cohabitation occurs and what its impact is on later marital happiness. The
next step is to review the literature, which generally requires library research.
Finding Information
The following steps will be helpful in finding information:
1. Don’t forget to begin with the materials closest at hand. Check this
textbook and other textbooks that you own.
2. Use the library’s online catalog. Computerized library systems now
access not only the college library’s collection but also books and
magazines from other libraries, available through interlibrary loans.
These systems allow you to search for books by author or title. You can
use title searches to locate books by subject as well. For example, if you
search the title base for the keyword cohabitation, you will learn where
books with that word in the title are located in the library’s stacks. Near
those books will be other works on cohabitation, which may not happen
to have that word in the title. You may also want to search other, related
keywords, such as unmarried couples.
3. Investigate using computerized periodical indexes, if they are available
in your library. Sociological Abstracts online covers most sociological
writing since 1952. In 2017, a search of just this one database found
exactly 2,655 documents having either cohabitation or unmarried
couples as words in the abstract or summary. Some dealt with laws
about cohabitation, while others focused on trends in other countries. If
you limited your topic to same-sex couples, you would find 169
citations. Other electronic databases cover general-interest periodicals
(Time, Ms., National Review, The Atlantic, and so forth), reference
materials, or newspapers. These electronic systems may be connected to
a printer, allowing you to produce a printout complete with
bibliographic information, and sometimes even complete copies of
articles.
4. Examine government documents. The U.S. government, states and
cities, and the United Nations publish information on virtually every
subject of interest to social science researchers. Publications of the
Census Bureau, for example, include tables showing the number of
unmarried couples living together and some social characteristics of
those households.
5. Ask people, organizations, and agencies concerned with the topic for
information and assistance. Be as specific as possible in making
requests. You might receive very different information on the issue of
cohabitation from talking with marriage counselors and with clergy from
different religions.
6. If you run into difficulties, consult the instructor or the reference
librarian at your college library.
A word of caution: be extremely careful in using the Internet to do
research. Much of the information on the Internet is simply incorrect—even
if it looks authoritative, is accompanied by impressive graphics, or has been
widely circulated. Unlike the information in a library, which must be
screened by a highly qualified librarian, “information” on the Internet can be
created and posted by anyone with a computer. Check the sources for the
information and note the web page sponsor. Is the author qualified to write on
the subject? Is the author even identified? Is the web page sponsor likely to
be biased? Whenever possible, try to confirm what you have read on the
Internet through a well-known, reputable source or organization. If the
accuracy of the information could be affected by how old it is, check the date
on which the page or article was created or updated. Used intelligently, the
Internet is a wonderful tool that offers students access to many of the reliable
print sources noted earlier, including government documents and newspaper
archives extending back over a century.
Writing the Report
Once you have completed all your research, you can begin writing the report.
Here are a few tips:
Be sure the topic you have chosen is not too broad. You must be able to
cover it adequately in a reasonable amount of time and a reasonable
number of pages.
Develop an outline for your report. You should have an introduction and
a conclusion that relate to each other, and the discussion should proceed
logically throughout the paper. Use headings within the paper if they
will improve clarity and organization.
Do not leave all the writing until the last minute. It is best to write a
rough draft, let it sit for a few days, and then take a fresh look before
beginning revisions.
If possible, read your paper aloud. Doing so may be helpful in locating
sections or phrases that don’t make sense.
Page 45
Remember that you must cite all information you have obtained from other
sources, including the Internet. Plagiarism is a serious academic offense, for
which the penalties are severe. If you use an author’s exact words, it is
essential that you place them in quotation marks. Even if you reworked
someone else’s ideas, you must indicate the source of those ideas.
Mastering This Chapter
Summary
Sociologists are committed to the use of the scientific method in their
research efforts. In this chapter we examined the basic principles of the
scientific method and studied various techniques used by sociologists in
conducting research.
1. There are five basic steps in the scientific method: defining the
problem, reviewing the literature, formulating the hypothesis,
collecting and analyzing the data, and developing the conclusion.
2. Whenever researchers wish to study abstract concepts, such as
intelligence or prejudice, they must develop workable operational
definitions.
3. A hypothesis states a possible relationship between two or more
variables.
4. By using a sample, sociologists avoid having to test everyone in a
population.
5. According to the scientific method, research results must possess
both validity and reliability.
6. An important part of scientific research is devising a plan for
collecting data, called a research design.
7. The two principal forms of survey research are the interview and the
questionnaire.
8. Ethnography allows sociologists to study certain behaviors and
communities that cannot be investigated through other research
methods.
9. When sociologists wish to study a cause-and-effect relationship, they
may conduct an experiment.
10. Sociologists also make use of existing sources in secondary
analysis and content analysis.
11. The Code of Ethics of the American Sociological Association calls for
objectivity and integrity in research, confidentiality, and disclosure of
all sources of financial support.
12. Max Weber urged sociologists to practice value neutrality in their
research by ensuring that their personal feelings do not influence
their interpretation of data.
13. Technology plays an important role in sociological research, whether
through a computer database or information obtained from the
Internet.
14. Despite failure to obtain government funding, researchers developed
the National Health and Social Life Survey (NHSLS) to better
understand the sexual practices of adults in the United States.
Key Terms
Applied sociology The use of the discipline of sociology to yield practical
applications for human behavior and organizations. (page 17)
Causal logic The relationship between a condition or variable and a
particular consequence, with one leading to the other. (28)
Code of ethics The standards of acceptable behavior developed by and for
members of a profession. (37)
Content analysis The systematic coding and objective recording of data,
guided by some rationale. (36)
Control group The subjects in an experiment who are not introduced to the
independent variable by the researcher. (34)
Control variable A factor that is held constant to test the relative impact of
an independent variable. (31)
Correlation A relationship between two variables in which a change in one
coincides with a change in the other. (28)
Cross-tabulation A table or matrix that shows the relationship between two
or more variables. (43)
Dependent variable The variable in a causal relationship that is subject to
the influence of another variable. (28)
Ethnography The study of an entire social setting through extended
systematic fieldwork. (34)
Experiment An artificially created situation that allows a researcher to
manipulate variables. (34)
Experimental group The subjects in an experiment who are exposed to an
independent variable introduced by a researcher. (34)
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Hawthorne effect The unintended influence that observers of experiments
can have on their subjects. (36)
Hypothesis A speculative statement about the relationship between two or
more variables. (28)
Independent variable The variable in a causal relationship that causes or
influences a change in another variable. (28)
Interview A face-to-face, phone, or online questioning of a respondent to
obtain desired information. (32)
Mean A number calculated by adding a series of values and then dividing
by the number of values. (43)
Median The midpoint or number that divides a series of values into two
groups of equal numbers of values. (43)
Mode The single most common value in a series of scores. (43)
Observation A research technique in which an investigator collects
information through direct participation, by closely watching a group
or community. (34)
Operational definition An explanation of an abstract concept that is
specific enough to allow a researcher to assess the concept. (28)
Percentage A portion of 100. (42)
Qualitative research Research that relies on what is seen in field or
naturalistic settings more than on statistical data. (34)
Quantitative research Research that collects and reports data primarily in
numerical form. (34)
Questionnaire A printed or written form used to obtain information from a
respondent. (32)
Random sample A sample for which every member of an entire population
has the same chance of being selected. (29)
Reliability The extent to which a measure produces consistent results. (30)
Research design A detailed plan or method for obtaining data scientifically.
(32)
Sample A selection from a larger population that is statistically
representative of that population. (29)
Scientific method A systematic, organized series of steps that ensures
maximum objectivity and consistency in researching a problem. (27)
Secondary analysis A variety of research techniques that make use of
previously collected and publicly accessible information and data.
(36)
Survey A study, generally in the form of an interview or
questionnaire, that provides researchers with information
about how people think and act. (32)
Validity The degree to which a measure or scale truly reflects the
phenomenon under study. (30)
Value neutrality Max Weber’s term for objectivity of sociologists in the
interpretation of data. (39)
Variable A measurable trait or characteristic that is subject to change under
different conditions. (28)
Visual sociology The use of photographs, film, and video to study society.
(35)
TAKING SOCIOLOGY With You
1. Think about a job you are interested in. How can you see yourself
using research techniques—surveys, observation, experiments, or
existing sources—in that occupation?
2. Pick a current issue on your campus or in your community. How
would you go about studying that issue using the scientific method?
Begin by defining your terms and stating a working hypothesis. Then
consider the most appropriate research methods to use.
3. Choose an aspect of your day-to-day environment that could be
studied using the techniques of visual sociology. How would you
design a research study using these techniques?
Self-Quiz
Read each question carefully and then select the best answer.
1. The first step in any sociological research project is to
a. collect data.
b. define the problem.
c. review previous research.
d. formulate a hypothesis.
2. An explanation of an abstract concept that is specific enough to allow
a researcher to measure the concept is a(n)
a. hypothesis.
b. correlation.
c. operational definition.
d. variable.
3. The variable hypothesized to cause or influence another is called the
a. dependent variable.
b. hypothetical variable.
c. correlation variable.
d. independent variable.
4. A correlation exists when
a. one variable causes something to occur in another variable.
b. two or more variables are causally related.
c. a change in one variable coincides with a change in another
variable.
d. a negative relationship exists between two variables.
5. Through which type of research technique does a sociologist ensure
that data are statistically representative of the population being
studied?
a. sampling
b. experiments
c. ethnography
d. control variables
6. In order to obtain a random sample, a researcher might
a. administer a questionnaire to every fifth woman who enters a
business office.
b. examine the attitudes of undergraduates at a college by
interviewing every 100th name in the official list of currently
enrolled students.
c. study the attitudes of registered Democratic voters by choosing
every 10th name found on a city’s list of registered Democrats.
d. do all of the above.
7. A researcher can obtain a higher response rate by using which type
of survey?
a. an interview
b. a questionnaire
c. representative samples
d. ethnographic techniques
8. In the 1930s, William F. Whyte moved into a low-income Italian
neighborhood in Boston. For nearly four years, he was a member of
the social circle of “corner boys” that he describes in Street Corner
Society. His goal was to gain greater insight into the community
established by these men. What type of research technique did
Whyte use?
Page 47
a. experiment
b. survey
c. secondary analysis
d. participant observation
9. When sociologists want to study a possible cause-and-effect
relationship, they may engage in what kind of research technique?
a. ethnography
b. survey research
c. secondary analysis
d. experiment
10. Émile Durkheim’s statistical analysis of suicide was an example of
what kind of research technique?
a. ethnography
b. observation research
c. secondary analysis
d. experimental research
11. Unlike the typical citizen, the sociologist has a commitment
to use the ____________________________
______________blank method in studying society.
12. A(n) __________________________________________blank is a
speculative statement about the relationship between two or more
factors known as variables.
13. __________________________________________blank refers to
the degree to which a measure or scale truly reflects the
phenomenon under study.
14. In order to obtain data scientifically, researchers need to select a
research __________________________________________blank.
15. If scientists were testing a new type of toothpaste in an experimental
setting, they would administer the toothpaste to a(n) __________
________________________________blank group, but not to a(n)
__________________________________________blank group.
16. The term __________________________________________blank
refers to the unintended influence that observers of experiments can
have on their subjects.
17. Using census data in a way unintended by its initial collectors would
be an example of ____________________________
______________blank.
18. Using __________________________________________blank,
researchers conducted a study of gender-stereotyped behavior in
children’s coloring books.
19. The American Sociological Association’s Code of __________
________________________________blank requires sociologists to
maintain objectivity and integrity and to preserve the confidentiality of
their subjects.
20. As part of their commitment to ____________________________
______________blank neutrality, investigators have an ethical
obligation to accept research findings even when the data run
counter to their personal views or to widely accepted beliefs.
Answers
1 (b); 2 (c); 3 (d); 4 (c); 5 (a); 6 (d); 7 (a); 8 (d); 9 (d); 10 (c); 11 scientific;
12 hypothesis; 13 Validity; 14 design; 15 experimental, control; 16
Hawthorne effect; 17 secondary analysis; 18 content analysis; 19 Ethics;
20 value
Page 48
3 Culture
©Nick Fox/Alamy Stock Photo
A woman from the Mursi tribe in Ethiopia makes her way home from the local
market. The Mursi are one of the last groups in Africa for whom it is the norm
for women to wear a pottery or wooden lip plate beginning at the age of 15.
‣ INSIDE
What Is Culture?
Role of Language
Norms and Values
Global Culture War
Sociological Perspectives on Culture
Page 49
Cultural Variation
Development of Culture around the World
Social Policy and Culture: Bilingualism
What do you think of the society described here by anthropologist
Horace Miner?
Could you live in such a culture?
“Nacirema culture is characterized by a highly developed market economy
which has evolved in a rich natural habitat. While much of the people’s time is
devoted to economic pursuits, a large part of the fruits of these labors and a
considerable portion of the day are spent in ritual activity. The focus of this
activity is the human body, the appearance and health of which loom as a
dominant concern in the ethos of the people. While such a concern is certainly
not unusual, its ceremonial aspects and associated philosophy are unique.
Source: NASA
The fundamental belief underlying the whole system appears to be that the
human body is ugly and that its natural tendency is to debility and disease.
Incarcerated in such a body, man’s only hope is to avert these characteristics
through the use of the powerful influences of ritual and ceremony. Every
household has one or more shrines devoted to this purpose. The more powerful
individuals in the society have several shrines in their houses and, in fact, the
opulence of a house is often referred to in terms of the number of such ritual
centers it possesses. Most houses are of wattle and daub construction, but the
shrine rooms of the more wealthy are walled with stone. Poorer families imitate
the rich by applying pottery plaques to their shrine walls.
The focal point of the shrine is a box or chest
which is built into the wall. In this chest are kept
the many charms and magical potions without
which no native believes he could live.
While each family has at least one such shrine, the rituals associated with it
are not family ceremonies but are private and secret. The rites are normally only
discussed with children, and then only during the period when they are being
initiated into these mysteries. I was able, however, to establish sufficient rapport
with the natives to examine these shrines and to have the rituals described to
me.
The focal point of the shrine is a box or chest which is built into the wall. In this
chest are kept the many charms and magical potions without which no native
believes he could live. These preparations are secured from a variety of
specialized practitioners. The most powerful of these are the medicine men,
whose assistance must be rewarded with substantial gifts. However, the
medicine men do not provide the curative potions for their clients, but decide
what the ingredients should be and then write them down in an ancient and
secret language. This writing is understood only by the medicine men and by
the herbalists who, for another gift, provide the required charm.
The charm is not disposed of after it has served its purpose, but is placed in
the charm-box of the household shrine. As these magical materials are specific
for certain ills, and the real or imagined maladies of the people are many, the
charm-box is usually full to overflowing. The magical packets are so numerous
that people forget what their purposes were and fear to use them again. While
the natives are very vague on this point, we can only assume that the idea in
retaining all the old magical materials is that their presence in the charm-box,
before which the body rituals are conducted, will in some way protect the
worshipper.”
Source: Miner, Horace. 1956. “Body Ritual among the Nacirema.” American
Anthropologist, vol. 58 (3), 1956, pp. 503–504.
In this excerpt from his journal article “Body Ritual among the Nacirema,”
Horace Miner casts an anthropologist’s observant eye on the intriguing rituals
of an exotic culture. If some aspects of this culture seem familiar to you, you
are right, for what Miner is describing is actually the culture of the United
States (“Nacirema” is “American” spelled backward). The “shrine” Miner
writes of is the bathroom; he correctly informs us that in this culture, one
measure of wealth is how many bathrooms one’s home has. In their bathroom
rituals, he goes on, the Nacirema use charms and magical potions (beauty
products and prescription drugs) obtained from specialized practitioners
(such as hair stylists), herbalists (pharmacists), and medicine men
(physicians). Using our sociological imaginations, we could update Miner’s
description of the Nacirema’s charms, written in 1956, by adding tooth
whiteners, contact lens cases, electronic toothbrushes, and hair gel.
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When we step back and examine a culture thoughtfully and objectively,
whether it is our own culture in disguise or another less familiar to us, we
learn something new about society. Take Fiji, an island in the Pacific where a
robust, nicely rounded body has always been the ideal for both men and
women. This is a society in which traditionally, “You’ve gained weight” has
been considered a compliment, and “Your legs are skinny,” an insult. Yet a
recent study shows that for the first time, eating disorders have been showing
up among young people in Fiji. What has happened to change their body
image? Since the introduction of cable television in 1995, many Fiji
islanders, especially young women, have begun to emulate not their mothers
and aunts, but the small-waisted stars of television programs still airing there,
like Grey’s Anatomy, Criminal Minds, and Black-ish. Studying culture in
places like Fiji, then, sheds light on our society as well (A. Becker 2007; Fiji
TV 2018).
In this chapter we will see just how basic the study of culture is to
sociology. Our discussion will focus both on general cultural practices found
in all societies and on the wide variations that can distinguish one society
from another. We will define and explore the major aspects of culture,
including language, norms, sanctions, and values. We will see how cultures
develop a dominant ideology, and how functionalist and conflict
theorists view culture. And we’ll study the development of culture
around the world, including the cultural effects of globalization. Finally, in
the Social Policy section, we will look at the conflicts in cultural values that
underlie current debates over bilingualism.
What Is Culture?
Culture is the totality of learned, socially transmitted customs, knowledge,
material objects, and behavior. It includes the ideas, values, and artifacts (for
example, DVDs, comic books, and birth control devices) of groups of people.
Patriotic attachment to the flag of the United States is an aspect of U.S.
culture, as is a national passion for the tango in Argentina’s culture.
Sometimes people refer to a particular person as “very cultured” or to a city
as having “lots of culture.” That use of the term culture is different from our
use in this textbook. In sociological terms, culture does not refer solely to the
fine arts and refined intellectual taste. It consists of all objects and ideas
within a society, including slang words, ice-cream cones, and rock music.
Sociologists consider both a portrait by Rembrandt and the work of graffiti
spray painters to be aspects of culture. A tribe that cultivates soil by hand has
just as much culture as a people that relies on computer-operated machinery.
Each people has a distinctive culture with its own characteristic ways of
gathering and preparing food, constructing homes, structuring the family, and
promoting standards of right and wrong.
The fact that you share a similar culture with others helps to define the
group or society to which you belong. A fairly large number of people are
said to constitute a society when they live in the same territory, are relatively
independent of people outside their area, and participate in a common culture.
Metropolitan Los Angeles is more populous than at least 150 nations, yet
sociologists do not consider it a society in its own right. Rather, they see it as
part of—and dependent on—the larger society of the United States.
© Rob Watkins/Alamy Stock Photo
Play ball! Baseball in Finland is not the same game we know in North
America. The pitcher stands next to the batter and throws the ball up to be
hit. If successful, the batter runs to first base (where we would expect third
base to be). Surveys show that baseball is the second most popular sport
(after ice hockey) among men and the most popular among women.
Introduced in 1907, baseball evolved very differently in Finland than in the
United States, but in both countries it is a vital part of the culture.
A society is the largest form of human group. It consists of people who
share a common heritage and culture. Members of the society learn this
culture and transmit it from one generation to the next. They even preserve
their distinctive culture through literature, art, video recordings, and other
means of expression.
Sociologists have long recognized the many ways in which culture
influences human behavior. Through what has been termed a tool kit of
habits, skills, and styles, people of a common culture construct their
acquisition of knowledge, their interactions with kinfolk, their entrance into
the job market—in short, the way in which they live. If it were not for the
social transmission of culture, each generation would have to reinvent
television, not to mention the wheel (Swidler 1986).
Having a common culture also simplifies many day-to-day interactions. For
example, when you buy an airline ticket, you know you don’t have to bring
along hundreds of dollars in cash. You can pay with a credit card. When you
are part of a society, you take for granted many small (as well as more
important) cultural patterns. You assume that theaters will provide seats for
the audience, that physicians will not disclose confidential information, and
that parents will be careful when crossing the street with young children. All
these assumptions reflect basic values, beliefs, and customs of the culture of
the United States.
Today, when text, sound, and video can be transmitted around the world
instantaneously, some aspects of culture transcend national borders. The
German philosopher Theodor Adorno and others have spoken of the
worldwide “culture industry” that standardizes the goods and services
demanded by consumers. Adorno contends that globally, the primary effect
of popular culture is to limit people’s choices. Yet others have shown that the
culture industry’s influence does not always permeate international borders.
Sometimes the culture industry is embraced; at other times, soundly rejected
(Adorno [1971] 1991:98–106; Horkheimer and Adorno [1944] 2002).
Cultural Universals
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All societies have developed certain common practices and beliefs, known as
cultural universals. Many cultural universals are, in fact, adaptations to meet
essential human needs, such as the need for food, shelter, and clothing.
Polish-born anthropologist George Murdock (1945:124) compiled a list of
cultural universals, including athletic sports, cooking, dancing, visiting,
personal names, marriage, medicine, religious ritual, funeral ceremonies,
sexual restrictions, and trade.
The cultural practices Murdock listed may be universal, but the manner in
which they are expressed varies from culture to culture. For example, one
society may let its members choose their marriage partners; another
may encourage marriages arranged by the parents.
Not only does the expression of cultural universals vary from one society to
another; within a society, it may also change dramatically over time. Each
generation, and each year for that matter, most human cultures change and
expand.
Ethnocentrism
Many everyday statements reflect our attitude that our culture is best. We use
terms such as underdeveloped, backward, and primitive to refer to other
societies. What “we” believe is a religion; what “they” believe is superstition
and mythology.
It is tempting to evaluate the practices of other cultures on the basis of our
perspectives. Sociologist William Graham Sumner (1906) coined the term
ethnocentrism to refer to the tendency to assume that one’s own culture and
way of life represent the norm or are superior to all others. The ethnocentric
person sees his or her group as the center or defining point of culture and
views all other cultures as deviations from what is “normal.” Westerners who
think cattle are to be used for food might look down on India’s Hindu
religion and culture, which view the cow as sacred. Or people in one culture
may dismiss as unthinkable the mate selection or child-rearing practices of
another culture. In sum, our view of the world is dramatically influenced by
the society in which we were raised.
Ethnocentrism is hardly limited to citizens of the United States. Visitors
from many African cultures are surprised at the disrespect that children in the
United States show their parents. People from India may be repelled by our
practice of living in the same household with dogs and cats. Many Islamic
fundamentalists in the Arab world and Asia view the United States as corrupt,
decadent, and doomed to destruction. All these people may feel comforted by
membership in cultures that in their view are superior to ours.
Cultural Relativism
While ethnocentrism means evaluating foreign cultures using the familiar
culture of the observer as a standard of correct behavior, cultural relativism
means viewing people’s behavior from the perspective of their own culture. It
places a priority on understanding other cultures, rather than dismissing them
as “strange” or “exotic.” Unlike ethnocentrists, cultural relativists employ the
kind of value neutrality in scientific study that Max Weber saw as so
important.
Cultural relativism stresses that different social contexts give rise to
different norms and values. Thus, we must examine practices such as
polygamy, bullfighting, and monarchy within the particular contexts of the
cultures in which they are found. Although cultural relativism does not
suggest that we must unquestionably accept every cultural variation, it does
require a serious and unbiased effort to evaluate norms, values, and customs
in light of their distinctive culture.
Consider the practice of children marrying adults. Most people in North
America cannot fathom the idea of a 12-year-old girl marrying. The custom,
which is illegal in the United States, is common in West Africa and South
Asia. Should the United States respect such marriages? The apparent answer
is no. In 2006 the U.S. government spent $623 million to discourage the
practice in many of the countries with the highest child-marriage rates
(Figure 3-1).
MAPPING LIFE WORLDWIDE
FIGURE 3-1 COUNTRIES WITH HIGH CHILD MARRIAGE RATES
Note: Data are the most recent available, ranging from 2005 to 2013. In
24 countries, 40 percent or more of the women under 18 are married.
Source: UNICEF. “Child Marriage in 2005–2014.” 2014.
From the perspective of cultural relativism, we might ask whether one
society should spend its resources to dictate the norms of another. However,
federal officials have defended the government’s actions. They contend that
child marriage deprives girls of education, threatens their health, and weakens
public health efforts to combat HIV/AIDS (Jain and Kurz 2007; B. Slavin
2007).
Sociobiology and Culture
While sociology emphasizes diversity and change in the expression of
culture, another school of thought, sociobiology, stresses the universal
aspects of culture. Sociobiology is the systematic study of how biology
affects human social behavior. Sociobiologists assert that many of the
cultural traits humans display, such as the almost universal expectation that
women will be nurturers and men will be providers, are not learned but are
rooted in our genetic makeup.
Sociobiology is founded on the naturalist Charles Darwin’s (1859) theory
of evolution. In traveling the world, Darwin had noted small variations in
species—in the shape of a bird’s beak, for example—from one location to
another. He theorized that over hundreds of generations, random variations in
genetic makeup had helped certain members of a species to survive in a
particular environment. A bird with a differently shaped beak might have
been better at gathering seeds than other birds, for instance. In reproducing,
these lucky individuals had passed on their advantageous genes to succeeding
generations. Eventually, given their advantage in survival, individuals with
the variation began to outnumber other members of the species. The species
was slowly adapting to its environment. Darwin called this process of
adaptation to the environment through random genetic variation natural
selection.
Sociobiologists apply Darwin’s principle of natural selection to the study of
social behavior. They assume that particular forms of behavior become
genetically linked to a species if they contribute to its fitness to survive (van
den Berghe 1978). In its extreme form, sociobiology suggests that all
behavior is the result of genetic or biological factors, and that social
interactions play no role in shaping people’s conduct.
Sociobiologists do not seek to describe individual behavior on the level of
“Why is Fred more aggressive than Jim?” Rather, they focus on how human
nature is affected by the genetic composition of a group of people who share
certain characteristics (such as men or women, or members of isolated tribal
bands). In general, sociobiologists have stressed the basic genetic heritage
that all humans share and have shown little interest in speculating about
alleged differences between racial groups or nationalities. A few researchers
have tried to trace specific behaviors, like criminal activity, to certain genetic
markers, but those markers are not deterministic. Family cohesiveness, peer
group behavior, and other social factors can override genetic influences on
behavior (Guo et al. 2008; E. Wilson 1975, 1978).
Certainly most social scientists agree that there is a biological basis for
social behavior. However, regardless of their theoretical position, most
sociologists would likewise agree that people’s behavior, not their genetic
structure, defines social reality. Conflict theorists fear that the sociobiological
approach could be used as an argument against efforts to assist disadvantaged
people, such as schoolchildren who are not competing successfully (Freese
Page 522008; Machalek and Martin 2010; E. Wilson 2000).
thinking CRITICALLY
Select three cultural universals from George Murdock’s list and analyze
them from a functionalist perspective. Why are these practices found in
every culture? What functions do they serve?
Role of Language
Language is one of the major elements of culture. It is also an important
component of cultural capital. Recall from Chapter 1 that Pierre Bourdieu
used the term cultural capital to describe noneconomic assets, such as
family background and past educational investments, which are reflected in a
person’s knowledge of language and the arts.
Members of a society generally share a common language, which facilitates
day-to-day exchanges with others. When you ask a hardware store clerk for a
flashlight, you don’t need to draw a picture of the instrument. You share the
same cultural term for a small, portable, battery-operated light. However, if
you were in England and needed this item, you would have to ask for an
electric torch. Of course, even within the same society, a term can have a
number of different meanings. In the United States, pot signifies both a
container that is used for cooking and an intoxicating drug. In this section we
will examine the cultural influence of language, which includes both the
written and spoken word and nonverbal communication.
Language: Written and Spoken
Seven thousand languages are spoken in the world today—many more than
the number of countries. For the speakers of each one, whether they number
2,000 or 200 million, language is fundamental to their shared culture.
The English language, for example, makes extensive use of words dealing
with war. We speak of “conquering” space, “fighting” the “battle” of the
budget, “waging war” on drugs, making a “killing” on the stock market, and
“bombing” an examination; something monumental or great is “the bomb.”
An observer from an entirely different culture could gauge the importance
that war and the military have had in our lives simply by recognizing the
Page 53
prominence that militaristic terms have in our language. Similarly, the Sami
people of northern Norway and Sweden have a rich diversity of terms for
snow, ice, and reindeer (Haviland et al. 2015; Magga 2006).
Courtesy of the Oneida Indian Nation
A native speaker trains instructors from the Oneida Nation of New York in the
Berlitz method of language teaching. As of 2015, there were 770 speakers of
the Oneida language. Many Native American tribes are taking similar steps to
recover their seldom used languages, realizing that language is the essential
foundation of any culture.
Language is the foundation of every culture. Language is an abstract
system of word meanings and symbols for all aspects of culture. It includes
speech, written characters, numerals, symbols, and nonverbal gestures and
expressions. Because language is the foundation of every culture, the ability
to speak other languages is crucial to intercultural relations. Throughout the
Cold War era, beginning in the 1950s and continuing well into the 1970s, the
U.S. government encouraged the study of Russian by developing special
language schools for diplomats and military advisers who dealt with the
Soviet Union. And following September 11, 2001, the nation recognized how
few skilled translators it had for Arabic and other languages spoken in
Muslim countries. Language quickly became a key not only to tracking
potential terrorists, but also to building diplomatic bridges with Muslim
countries willing to help in the war against terrorism.
Language does more than simply describe reality; it also serves to shape
the reality of a culture. For example, most people in the United States cannot
easily make the verbal distinctions concerning snow and ice that are possible
in the Sami culture. As a result, they are less likely to notice such differences.
For decades, the Navajo have referred to cancer as lood doo na’dziihii.
Now, through a project funded by the National Cancer Institute, the tribal
college is seeking to change the phrase. Why? Literally, the phrase means
“the sore that does not heal,” and health educators are concerned that tribal
members who have been diagnosed with cancer view it as a death sentence.
Their effort to change the Navajo language, not easy in itself, is complicated
by the Navajo belief that to talk about the disease is to bring it on one’s
people (Fonseca 2008).
Similarly, feminist theorists have noted that gender-related language can
reflect—although in itself it does not determine—the traditional acceptance
of men and women in certain occupations. Each time we use a term such as
mailman, policeman, or fireman, we are implying (especially to young
children) that these occupations can be filled only by males. Yet many
women work as mail carriers, police officers, and firefighters—a fact that is
being increasingly recognized and legitimized through the use of such
nonsexist language.
Language can shape how we see, taste, smell, feel, and hear. It also
influences the way we think about the people, ideas, and objects around us.
Language communicates a culture’s most important norms, values, and
sanctions. That’s why the decline of an old language or the introduction of a
new one is such a sensitive issue in many parts of the world (see the Social
Policy section at the end of this chapter).
Interaction increasingly takes place via mobile devices rather than face to
face. Social scientists are beginning to investigate how language used in
texting varies in different societies and cultures. For example, in much of
Africa, small farmers use texting for the vital task of checking commodity
prices. You probably use texting to perform a wide range of communication
tasks.
Nonverbal Communication
If you don’t like the way a meeting is going, you might suddenly sit back,
fold your arms, and turn down the corners of your mouth. When you see a
friend in tears, you may give a quick hug. After winning a big game, you
probably high-five your teammates. These are all examples of nonverbal
communication, the use of gestures, facial expressions, and other visual
images to communicate.
We are not born with these expressions. We learn them, just as we learn
other forms of language, from people who share our same culture. This
statement is as true for the basic expressions of happiness and sadness as it is
for more complex emotions, such as shame or distress (Fridlund et al. 1987).
Like other forms of language, nonverbal communication is not the same in
all cultures. For example, sociological research done at the micro level
documents that people from various cultures differ in the degree to which
they touch others during the course of normal social interactions. Even
experienced travelers are sometimes caught off guard by these differences. In
Saudi Arabia, a middle-aged man may want to hold hands with a partner after
closing a business deal. In Egypt, men walk hand in hand in the street; in
cafés, they fall asleep while lounging in each other’s arms. These gestures,
which would shock an American businessman, are considered compliments
in those cultures. The meaning of hand signals is another form of nonverbal
communication that can differ from one culture to the next. In Australia, the
thumbs-up sign is considered rude (Passero 2002; Vaughan 2007).
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© LM Otero/AP Images
Symbols can be powerful, yet different people may understand them in
different ways. In recent years there has been a call to remove or place in a
different context statues and other monuments honoring the Confederate
States of America because of the inherent meaning they represent. Others
feel that such symbols represent important values of the past. Here we see a
statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee being removed by Dallas city
workers in 2017.
A related form of communication is the use of symbols to convey meaning
to others. Symbols are the gestures, objects, and words that form the
basis of human communication. The thumbs-up gesture, a gold star
sticker, and the smiley face in an e-mail are all symbols. Often deceptively
simple, many symbols are rich in meaning and may not convey the same
meaning in all social contexts. Around someone’s neck, for example, a cross
can symbolize religious reverence; over a grave site, a belief in everlasting
life; or set in flames, racial hatred. Box 3-1 describes the delicate task of
designing an appropriate symbol for the 9/11 memorial at New York’s former
World Trade Center—one that would have meaning for everyone who lost
loved ones there, regardless of nationality or religious faith.
SOCIOLOGY IN THE
GLOBAL COMMUNITY
3-1 Symbolizing 9/11
On September 11, 2001, the World Trade Center’s Twin Towers took only
minutes to collapse. Nearly a decade later, the creator of the memorial to
those lost that day was still perfecting the site plan. Thirty-four-year-old
architect Michael Arad, the man who submitted the winning design, had
drawn two sunken squares, measuring an acre each, in the footprints left by
the collapsed towers. His design, “Reflecting Absence,” places each empty
square in a reflecting pool surrounded by cascading water. Today, as
visitors to the massive memorial stand at the edge of the site, they are
struck by both the sound of the thundering water and the absence of life.
The memorial does not encompass the entire area destroyed in the
attack, as some had wanted. In one of the great commercial capitals of the
world, economic forces demanded that some part of the property produce
income. Others had argued against constructing a memorial of any kind on
what they regarded as hallowed ground. “Don’t build on my sister’s grave,”
one of them pleaded. They too had to compromise. On all sides of the eight-
acre memorial site, new high-rises have been and continue to be built.
When construction is finished, the site will also accommodate a new
underground transit hub.
Originally, the architect’s plans called for the 2,982 victims of the attack to
be listed elsewhere on the site. Today, in a revised plan, the names are
displayed prominently along the sides of the reflecting pool. Arad had
suggested that they be placed randomly, to symbolize the “haphazard
brutality of life.” Survivors objected, perhaps because they worried about
locating their loved ones’ names. In a compromise, the names were
chiseled into the bronze walls of the memorial in groups that Arad calls
“meaningful adjacencies”: friends and co-workers; fellow passengers on the
two downed aircraft, arranged by seat number; and first responders,
grouped by their agencies or fire companies. Suggestions that would give
first responders special recognition were set aside. The list includes victims
of the simultaneous attack on the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., and
passengers on the flight headed for the White House, who were attempting
to thwart the attack when the plane crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. The
six people who perished in the 1993 truck bombing at the World Trade
Center are also memorialized.
© McGraw-Hill Education/Erica Simone Leeds, photographer
Numerous small monuments and simple
plaques grace intersections throughout
metropolitan New York, particularly those that
had a direct line of sight to the Twin Towers.
Also at Ground Zero is the National September 11 Memorial Museum,
which opened with great anticipation as well as criticism. Some objected to
showing pictures of the 19 hijackers, on the grounds that this would
symbolically honor them. Others objected to images that would seem to
objectify the victims. Unusual for a museum, recording studios were
installed to allow visitors to record where they were on 9/11, remember the
victims, or respond to the exhibits.
Away from Ground Zero, symbols of 9/11 abound. Numerous small
monuments and simple plaques grace intersections throughout metropolitan
New York, particularly those that had a direct line of sight to the Twin
Towers. In hundreds of cities worldwide, scraps of steel from the twisted
buildings and remnants of destroyed emergency vehicles have been
incorporated into memorials. And the USS New York, whose bow was
forged from seven and a half tons of steel debris salvaged from the towers,
has served as a working symbol of 9/11 since its commissioning in 2009.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. What does the 9/11 memorial symbolize to you? Explain the meaning of
the cascading water, the reflecting pools, and the empty footprints. What
does the placement of the victims’ names suggest?
2. If you were designing a 9/11 memorial, what symbol or symbols would
you incorporate? Use your sociological imagination to predict how
various groups would respond to your design.
Sources: Blais and Rasic 2011; Cohen 2012; Kennicott 2011; Needham
2011.
thinking CRITICALLY
Explain how the way you communicate verbally and nonverbally can be a
form of cultural capital.
Norms and Values
“Wash your hands before dinner.” “Thou shalt not kill.” “Respect your
elders.” All societies have ways of encouraging and enforcing what they
view as appropriate behavior while discouraging and punishing what they
consider to be inappropriate behavior. They also have a collective idea of
what is good and desirable in life—or not. In this section we will learn to
distinguish between the closely related concepts of norms and values.
Norms
Norms are the established standards of behavior maintained by a society. For
a norm to become significant, it must be widely shared and understood. For
example, in movie theaters in the United States, we typically expect that
people will be quiet while the film is shown. Of course, the application of this
norm can vary, depending on the particular film and type of audience. People
who are viewing a serious artistic film will be more likely to insist on the
norm of silence than those who are watching a slapstick comedy or horror
movie.
One persistent social norm in contemporary society is that of
heterosexuality. As sociologists, and queer theorists especially, note, children
are socialized to accept this norm from a very young age. Overwhelmingly,
parents describe adult romantic relationships to their children exclusively as
heterosexual relationships. That is not necessarily because they consider
same-sex relationships unacceptable, but more likely because they see
heterosexuality as the norm in marital partnerships. According to a national
survey of mothers of three- to six-year-olds, one in five mothers teaches her
young children that homosexuality is wrong. The same survey showed that
parenting reflects the dominant ideology, in which homosexuality is treated
as a rare exception. Most parents assume that their children are heterosexual;
only one in four has even considered whether his or her child might grow up
to be gay or lesbian (K. Martin 2009).
Types of Norms
Sociologists distinguish between norms in two ways. First, norms are
classified as either formal or informal. Formal norms generally have been
written down and specify strict punishments for violators. In the United
States, we often formalize norms into laws, which are very precise in defining
proper and improper behavior. Sociologist Donald Black (1995) has termed
law “governmental social control,” meaning that laws are formal norms
enforced by the state. Laws are just one example of formal norms. Parking
restrictions and the rules of a football or basketball game are also considered
formal norms.
In contrast, informal norms are generally understood but not precisely
recorded. Standards of proper dress are a common example of informal
norms. Our society has no specific punishment, or sanction, for a person who
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shows up at school or work wearing inappropriate clothing. Laughter is
usually the most likely response.
Norms are also classified by their relative importance to society. When
classified in this way, they are known as mores and folkways. Mores
(pronounced “mor-ays”) are norms deemed highly necessary to the welfare of
a society, often because they embody the most cherished principles of a
people. Each society demands obedience to its mores; violation can lead to
severe penalties. Thus, the United States has strong mores against
murder, treason, and child abuse, which have been institutionalized
into formal norms.
Folkways are norms governing everyday behavior. Folkways play an
important role in shaping the daily behavior of members of a culture. Society
is less likely to formalize folkways than mores, and their violation raises
comparatively little concern. For example, walking up a down escalator in a
department store challenges our standards of appropriate behavior, but it will
not result in a fine or a jail sentence.
Use Your Sociological Imagination
You are a high school principal. What norms would you want to govern the
students’ behavior? How might those norms differ from norms appropriate for
college students?
Norms and Sanctions
Suppose a football coach sends a 12th player onto the field. Imagine a college
graduate showing up in shorts for a job interview at a large bank. Or consider
a driver who neglects to put money in a parking meter. These people have
violated widely shared and understood norms. So what happens? In each of
these situations, the person will receive sanctions if his or her behavior is
detected.
Sanctions are penalties and rewards for conduct concerning a social norm.
Note that the concept of reward is included in this definition. Conformity to a
norm can lead to positive sanctions such as a pay raise, a medal, a word of
gratitude, or a pat on the back. Failure to conform can lead to negative
sanctions such as fines, threats, imprisonment, and stares of contempt.
Table 3-1 summarizes the relationship between norms and sanctions. As
you can see, the sanctions that are associated with formal norms (which are
written down and codified) tend to be formal as well. If a college football
coach sends too many players onto the field, the team will be penalized 15
yards. The driver who fails to put money in the parking meter will receive a
ticket and have to pay a fine. But sanctions for violations of informal norms
can vary. The college graduate who goes to the bank interview in shorts will
probably lose any chance of getting the job; on the other hand, he or she
might be so brilliant that bank officials will overlook the unconventional
attire.
The entire fabric of norms and sanctions in a culture reflects that culture’s
values and priorities. The most cherished values will be most heavily
sanctioned; matters regarded as less critical will carry light and informal
sanctions.
Acceptance of Norms
People do not follow norms, whether formal or informal, in all situations. In
some cases, they can evade a norm because they know it is weakly enforced.
It is illegal for U.S. teenagers to drink alcoholic beverages, yet drinking by
minors is common throughout the nation. (In fact, teenage alcoholism is a
serious social problem.)
In some instances, behavior that appears to violate society’s norms may
actually represent adherence to the norms of a particular group. Teenage
drinkers are conforming to the standards of their peer group when they
violate norms that condemn underage drinking. Similarly, business
executives who use shady accounting techniques may be responding to a
corporate culture that demands the maximization of profits at any cost,
including the deception of investors and government regulatory agencies.
Norms are violated in some instances because one norm conflicts with
another. For example, suppose that you live in an apartment building and one
night hear the screams of the woman next door, who is being beaten by her
husband. If you decide to intervene by ringing their doorbell or calling the
police, you are violating the norm of minding your own business, while
following the norm of assisting a victim of violence.
Acceptance of norms is subject to change as the political, economic, and
social conditions of a culture are transformed. Until the 1960s, for example,
formal norms throughout much of the United States prohibited the marriage
of people from different racial groups. Over the past half century, however,
such legal prohibitions were cast aside. The process of change can be seen
today in the increasing acceptance of single parents and even more in the
legalization of same-sex marriage.
When circumstances require the sudden violation of long-standing cultural
norms, the change can upset an entire population. In Iraq, where Muslim
custom strictly forbids touching by strangers for men and especially for
women, the war that began in 2003 brought numerous daily violations of the
norm. Outside important mosques, government offices, and other facilities
likely to be targeted by terrorists, visitors had to be patted down and have
their bags searched by Iraqi security guards. To reduce the discomfort caused
by the procedure, women were searched by female guards and men by male
guards. Despite that concession, and the fact that many Iraqis admitted or
even insisted on the need for such measures, people still winced at the
invasion of their personal privacy. In reaction to the searches, Iraqi women
began to limit the contents of the bags they carried or simply to leave them at
home (Rubin 2003).
thinking CRITICALLY
In the United States, is the norm of heterosexuality a formal norm or an
informal norm? Would you categorize it with mores or folkways? Explain
your reasoning.
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Values
Though we each have a personal set of values—which may include caring or
fitness or success in business—we also share a general set of values as
members of a society. Cultural values are these collective conceptions of
what is considered good, desirable, and proper—or bad, undesirable, and
improper—in a culture. They indicate what people in a given culture prefer as
well as what they find important and morally right (or wrong). Values may be
specific, such as honoring one’s parents and owning a home, or they may be
more general, such as health, love, and democracy. Of course, the members
of a society do not uniformly share its values. Angry political debates and
billboards promoting conflicting causes tell us that much.
Values influence people’s behavior and serve as criteria for evaluating the
actions of others. The values, norms, and sanctions of a culture are often
directly related. For example, if a culture places a high value on the
institution of marriage, it may have norms (and strict sanctions) that prohibit
the act of adultery or make divorce difficult. If a culture views
private property as a basic value, it will probably have stiff laws
against theft and vandalism.
The values of a culture may change, but most remain relatively stable
during any one person’s lifetime. Socially shared, intensely felt values are a
fundamental part of our lives in the United States. Sociologist Robin
Williams (1970) has offered a list of basic values. It includes achievement,
efficiency, material comfort, nationalism, equality, and the supremacy of
science and reason over faith. Obviously, not all 326 million people in this
country agree on all these values, but such a list serves as a starting point in
defining the national character.
Each year nearly 142,000 full-time, newly entering students at nearly 200
of the nation’s four-year colleges fill out a questionnaire about their values.
Because this survey focuses on an array of issues, beliefs, and life goals, it is
commonly cited as a barometer of the nation’s values. The respondents are
asked what values are personally important to them. Over the past half
century, the value of “being very well-off financially” has shown the
strongest gain in popularity; the proportion of first-year college students who
endorse this value as “essential” or “very important” rose from 42 percent in
1966 to 82 percent in 2016 (Figure 3-2).
FIGURE 3-2 LIFE GOALS OF FIRST-YEAR COLLEGE STUDENTS IN
THE UNITED STATES, 1966–2016
Sources: Eagan et al. 2017:47; Pryor et al. 2007
SOCIOLOGY ON CAMPUS
3-2 A Culture of Cheating?
A Harvard teaching assistant noticed something strange while grading
students’ take-home exams. Several students had cited the same obscure
event in 1912. Curiously, all had responded to another question using the
same wording. The assistant looked more closely. Eventually, Harvard
launched a formal investigation of 125 students suspected of plagiarism and
illicit collaboration. At the same time, in New York City more than 70
students at a high school for high achievers were caught sharing test
information using their cell phones.
Now that students do their research online, the temptation to cut and
paste passages from website postings and pass them off as one’s own is
apparently irresistible to many. In 2012, 51 percent of high school students
admitted cheating on a test, and 75 percent of them copied homework.
Research suggests that the proportion of students who cheat is even
higher among college students. According to the International Center for
Academic Integrity, 68 percent of undergraduates and 43 percent of
graduate students admit to cheating on tests and written assignments.
Students not only cut passages from the Internet and paste them into their
papers without citing the source; they share questions and answers on
exams, collaborate on assignments they are supposed to do independently,
and even falsify the results of their laboratory experiments.
© Eric Audras/PhotoAlto Agency RF Collections/Getty Images
According to the International Center for
Academic Integrity, 68 percent of
undergraduates and 43 percent of graduate
students admit to cheating on tests and written
assignments.
To address what they consider an alarming trend, many colleges are
rewriting or adopting new academic honor codes. Observers contend that
the increase in student cheating reflects widely publicized instances of
cheating in public life, which have served to create an alternative set of
values in which the end justifies the means. When young people see sports
heroes, authors, entertainers, and corporate executives exposed for
cheating in one form or another, the message seems to be “Cheating is
okay, as long as you don’t get caught.”
LET’S DISCUSS
1. Do you know anyone who has engaged in Internet plagiarism? What
about cheating on tests or falsifying laboratory results? If so, how did the
person justify these forms of dishonesty?
2. Even if cheaters aren’t caught, what negative effects does their
academic dishonesty have on them? What effects does it have on
students who are honest? Could an entire college or university suffer
from students’ dishonesty?
Sources: Argetsinger and Krim 2002; Bartlett 2009; Sarah Glazer 2013;
International Center for Academic Integrity 2018; R. Thomas 2003; Toppo
2011; Zernike 2002.
Beginning in the 1980s, support for values having to do with money,
power, and status grew. But so too did concern about racial tolerance. The
proportion of students concerned with helping to promote racial tolerance
reached a record high of 46.9 percent in 2016. Like other aspects of culture,
such as language and norms, a nation’s values are not necessarily fixed.
Whether the slogan is “Think Green” or “Reduce Your Carbon Footprint,”
students have been exposed to values associated with environmentalism.
How many of them accept those values? Poll results over the past 50 years
show fluctuations, with a high of nearly 46 percent of students indicating a
desire to become involved in cleaning up the environment. By the 1980s,
however, student support for embracing this objective had dropped to around
20 percent or even lower (see Figure 3-2). Even with recent attention to
climate change, the proportion reached only 34 percent of first-year students
in 2016.
Recently, cheating has become a hot issue on college campuses. Professors
who take advantage of computerized services that can identify plagiarism
have been shocked to learn that many of the papers their students hand in are
plagiarized in whole or in part. Box 3-2 examines the shift in values that
underlies this decline in academic integrity.
Values can also differ in subtle ways not just among individuals and
groups, but from one culture to another. For example, in Japan, young
children spend long hours working with tutors, preparing for entrance exams
required for admission to selective schools. No stigma is attached to these
services, known as “cram schools”; in fact, they are highly valued. Yet in
South Korea, people have begun to complain that cram schools give affluent
students an unfair advantage. Since 2008, the South Korean government has
regulated the after-school tutoring industry, limiting its hours and imposing
fees on the schools. Some think this policy has lowered their society’s
expectations of students, describing it as an attempt to make South Koreans
“more American” (Ramstad 2011; Ripley 2011).
Another example of cultural differences in values is public opinion
regarding the treatment of different racial and ethnic groups. Again, as Figure
3-3 shows, opinion on the acceptability of premarital cohabitation varies
dramatically from one country to another.
FIGURE 3-3 VALUES: ACCEPTANCE OF NONMARITAL
COHABITATION
Sources: International Survey Social Programme. “ISSP 2012- Family
and Changing Gender Roles IV Variable Report.” October 29. Cologne
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Germany: GESIS Leibniz Institute for Social Sciences, 2014. Flags: ©
admin_design/Shutterstock
Global Culture War
For almost a generation, public attention in the United States has focused on
what has been referred to as the “culture war,” or the polarization of society
over controversial cultural elements. Originally, in the 1990s, the term
referred to political debates over heated issues such as abortion, religious
expression, gun control, and sexual orientation. Soon, however, it took on a
global meaning—especially after 9/11, as Americans wondered, “Why do
they hate us?” Through 2000, global studies of public opinion had reported
favorable views of the United States in countries as diverse as Morocco and
Germany. But after the United States established a military presence in Iraq
and Afghanistan and then took an anti-immigrant and anti-refugee position
beginning in 2016, foreign opinion of the United States became quite
negative (Pew Research Center Global Attitudes and Trends, 2017).
In the past 30 years, extensive efforts have been made to compare values in
different nations, recognizing the challenges in interpreting value concepts in
a similar manner across cultures. Psychologist Shalom Schwartz has
measured values in more than 60 countries. Around the world, certain values
are widely shared, including benevolence, which is defined as “forgiveness
and loyalty.” In contrast, power, defined as “control or dominance over
people and resources,” is a value that is endorsed much less often
(Hitlin and Piliavin 2004; S. Schwartz and Bardi 2001).
Despite this evidence of shared values, some scholars have interpreted the
terrorism, genocide, wars, and military occupations of the early 21st century
as a “clash of civilizations.” According to this thesis, cultural and religious
identities, rather than national or political loyalties, are becoming the prime
source of international conflict. Critics of this thesis point out that conflict
over values is nothing new; only our ability to create havoc and violence has
grown. Furthermore, speaking of a clash of “civilizations” disguises the sharp
divisions that exist within large groups. Christianity, for example, runs the
gamut from Quaker-style pacifism to certain elements of the Ku Klux Klan’s
ideology (Brooks 2011; Huntington 1993; Said 2001; Schrad 2014).
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thinking CRITICALLY
Do you believe that the world is experiencing a clash of civilizations rather
than of nations, as some scholars assert? Why or why not?
Sociological Perspectives on Culture
Functionalist and conflict theorists agree that culture and society are mutually
supportive, but for different reasons. Functionalists maintain that social
stability requires a consensus and the support of society’s members; strong
central values and common norms provide that support. This view of culture
became popular in sociology beginning in the 1950s. It was borrowed from
British anthropologists who saw cultural traits as a stabilizing element in a
culture. From a functionalist perspective, a cultural trait or practice will
persist if it performs functions that society seems to need or contributes to
overall social stability and consensus.
Conflict theorists agree that a common culture may exist, but they argue
that it serves to maintain the privileges of certain groups. Moreover, while
protecting their self-interest, powerful groups may keep others in a
subservient position. The term dominant ideology describes the set of
cultural beliefs and practices that helps to maintain powerful social,
economic, and political interests. This concept was first used by Hungarian
Marxist Georg Lukacs (1923) and Italian Marxist Antonio Gramsci (1929),
but it did not gain an audience in the United States until the early 1970s. In
Karl Marx’s view, a capitalist society has a dominant ideology that serves the
interests of the ruling class.
From a conflict perspective, the dominant ideology has major
social significance. Not only do a society’s most powerful groups and
institutions control wealth and property; even more important, they control
the means of producing beliefs about reality through religion, education, and
the media. Feminists would also argue that if all a society’s most important
institutions tell women they should be subservient to men, that dominant
ideology will help to control women and keep them in a subordinate position.
A growing number of social scientists believe that it is not easy to identify
a core culture in the United States. For support, they point to the lack of
consensus on national values, the diffusion of cultural traits, the diversity
within our culture, and the changing views of young people (look again at
Figure 3-2). Instead, they suggest that the core culture provides the tools that
people of all persuasions need to develop strategies for social change. Still,
there is no denying that certain expressions of values have greater influence
than others, even in as complex a society as the United States (Swidler 1986).
Table 3-2 summarizes the major sociological perspectives on culture.
thinking CRITICALLY
Look around your campus. Do the people you see suggest that the United
States has a core culture with a dominant ideology, or a diverse culture with
differing values and ideologies? What about the city or town where your
college or university is located—does it suggest the same conclusion?
Cultural Variation
Despite the presence of cultural universals such as courtship and religion,
great diversity exists among the world’s many cultures. Inuit tribes in
northern Canada, dressed in fur for the hunt, share little with farmers in
southeast Asia, who dress lightly for work in their hot, humid rice paddies.
Cultures adapt to meet specific circumstances, such as climate, level of
technology, population, and geography.
Even within a single nation, certain segments of the populace develop
cultural patterns that differ from the patterns of the dominant society—thus
the difficulty of identifying a core culture in the United States, where regional
Page 60
differences fuel culture wars between conservatives and liberals. Moreover,
in every region, specific communities tend to band together to form their own
culture within a culture, called a subculture.
Subcultures
Rodeo riders, residents of a retirement community, workers on an offshore oil
rig—all are examples of what sociologists refer to as subcultures. A
subculture is a segment of society that shares a distinctive pattern of
customs, rules, and traditions that differs from the pattern of the larger
society. The existence of many subcultures is characteristic of complex
societies such as the United States.
Members of a subculture participate in the dominant culture while engaging
in unique and distinctive forms of behavior. Frequently, a subculture will
develop an argot, or specialized language that distinguishes it from the wider
society. Athletes who play parkour, an extreme sport that combines forward
running with fence leaping and the vaulting of walls, water barriers, and even
moving cars, speak an argot they devised especially to describe their feats.
Parkour runners talk about doing King Kong vaults—diving arms first over a
wall or grocery cart and landing in a standing position. They may follow this
maneuver with a tic tac—kicking off a wall to overcome some kind of
obstacle (Kidder 2012).
Such argot allows insiders—the members of the subculture—to understand
words with special meanings. It also establishes patterns of communication
that outsiders can’t understand. Sociologists associated with the interactionist
perspective emphasize that language and symbols offer a powerful way for a
subculture to feel cohesive and maintain its identity.
In India, a new subculture has developed among employees at the
international call centers established by multinational corporations. To serve
customers in the United States and Europe, the young men and women who
work there must be fluent speakers of English. But the corporations that
employ them demand more than proficiency in a foreign language; they
expect their Indian employees to adopt Western values and work habits,
including the grueling pace U.S. workers take for granted.
In effect, workers at these call centers live in a state of virtual migration—
not quite in India, but not in the United States, either. Significantly, call
centers allow employees to take the day off only on U.S. holidays, like Labor
Day and Thanksgiving—not on Indian holidays like Diwali, the Hindu
festival of lights. While most Indian families are home celebrating, call center
employees see only each other; when they have the day off, no one else is
free to socialize with them. As a result, these employees have formed a tight-
knit subculture based on hard work and a taste for Western luxury goods and
leisure-time pursuits (Rowe et al. 2013).
© Christine Pemberton/The Image Works
Employees of an international call center in India socialize after their shift has
ended. Call center employees, whose odd working hours isolate them from
others, tend to form tight-knit subcultures.
Another shared characteristic among some employees at Indian call centers
is their contempt for the callers they serve. In performing their monotonous,
repetitive job day after day, hundreds of thousands of these workers have
come to see the faceless Americans they deal with as slow, often rude
customers. Such shared understandings underpin this emerging subculture
(Bhagat 2007; Gentleman 2006; Patel 2010).
However, we do not need to make cross-national comparisons to identify
different ways of viewing society. The racial and ethnic diversity of the
United States underscores how divergently different groups can view what is
really important to society (Box 3-3).
RESEARCH TODAY
3-3 How Millennials View The Nation: Racial
and Ethnic Vantage Points
We read about continuing progress since the days of the Civil Rights
movements and hear about the “postracial America” heralded by the
election of Barack Obama. However, the reality is that members of different
racial and ethnic groups see America very differently. In May 2017, a
national survey asked millennials (young adults age 18 to 34) to name the
most important issues facing the nation. Respondents could select among
several dozen areas, including economic growth, military strength, crime,
and social security. Here are the results for White non-Hispanics:
White non-Hispanics: #1 health care, #2 terrorism and home
security, #3 national debt.
These all seem reasonable choices. But consider how differently
millennials who were members of racial and ethnic minorities saw the nation
at the same time:
African Americans: #1 racism, #2 heath care, #3 poverty and
education (tied).
Asian Americans: #1 health care, #2 education, #3 immigration.
Latino(a)s: #1 immigration, #2 racism, #3 terrorism and home
security.
While there are some common concerns, we
can identify important differences across race
and ethnicity that likely reflect the millennials’
lived experiences.
While there are some common concerns about health care, we can
identify important differences across race and ethnicity that likely reflect the
millennials’ lived experiences. Both African Americans and Latino(a)s
emphasized racism; both Asian Americans and Latino(a)s, immigration.
Page 61
Neither made the top three for Whites.
In a survey conducted just a few months earlier, at the time of the
polarizing presidential race between Donald Trump and Hilary Clinton, all
three minority groups noted racism as one of the top three issues, and
African Americans listed “police brutality” as the number two issue facing
the nation. Neither racism nor police brutality made it on the top ten list of
White non-Hispanics.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. How would you rank the issues discussed in order of importance? Do
you think your ranking reflects your racial or ethnic affiliation?
2. Why do you think the different groups’ views are so divergent? Do you
think this would be the case for people of other age groups?
Sources: Cohen, Luttig, and Rogowski 2017; GenForward 2016.
Countercultures
By the end of the 1960s, an extensive subculture had emerged in the United
States, composed of young people turned off by a society they believed was
too materialistic and technological. The group included primarily political
radicals and hippies who had dropped out of mainstream social institutions.
These young men and women rejected the pressure to accumulate cars,
homes, and an endless array of material goods. Instead, they expressed a
desire to live in a culture based on more humanistic values, such as sharing,
love, and coexistence with the environment. As a political force, this
subculture opposed the United States’ involvement in the war in Vietnam and
encouraged draft resistance (Flacks 1971; Roszak 1969).
When a subculture conspicuously and deliberately opposes certain aspects
of the larger culture, it is known as a counterculture. Countercultures
typically thrive among the young, who have the least investment in the
existing culture. In most cases, a 20-year-old can adjust to new cultural
standards more easily than someone who has spent 60 years
following the patterns of the dominant culture (Zellner 1995).
In the last decade, counterterrorism experts have become concerned about
the growth of ultraconservative militia groups in the United States. Secretive
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and well armed, members of these countercultural groups tend to be
antigovernment, and they often tolerate racism in their midst. Watchdogs
estimate that 663 antigovernment groups are operating in the United States
today (Southern Poverty Law Center 2017).
Culture Shock
Ever stepped out the door on your first day in a foreign country and felt weak
in the knees? Anyone who feels disoriented, uncertain, out of place, or even
fearful when immersed in an unfamiliar culture may be experiencing culture
shock. This unsettling experience may even be mutual—the visitor’s cultural
habits may shock members of the host culture. Imagine, for example, that you
are traveling in Japan. You know that you should remove your shoes and
leave them at the door when you visit someone’s home. However, there are
many more customs that you are unfamiliar with. During a visit with one
family, as you enter the bathroom, you see several pairs of identical slippers.
Thinking they are for guests, you put on a pair and rejoin your host, who
reacts with horror. Unwittingly, you have worn a pair of toilet slippers into
the living room (McLane 2013).
All of us, to some extent, take for granted the cultural practices of our
society. As a result, it can be surprising and even disturbing to
realize that other cultures do not follow our way of life. The fact is,
customs that seem strange to us may be considered normal and proper in
other cultures, which may see our social practices as odd.
© Tyler Cacek/Redux Pictures
Members of the militia group Ohio Defense Force engage in paramilitary
exercises, imagining they are destroying a threatening Muslim stronghold in
the United States. Ultraconservative militia groups are a form of
counterculture.
Use Your Sociological Imagination
You arrive in a developing African country as a Peace Corps volunteer. What
aspects of a very different culture do you think would be the hardest to adjust
to? Explain. What might the citizens of that country find shocking about your
culture?
Development of Culture around the
World
Today, despite the preference most of us have for our own way of life,
powerful forces link us to others around the world. Thus, students in the
United States may study the novels of Leo Tolstoy, the art of Pablo Picasso,
or the films of Ang Lee. They may listen to pop music from Nigeria or South
Korea, or follow the progress of social movements in Iran, Egypt, or Syria
via satellite TV and social media. In this section we will examine two of the
social processes that make these global links possible: innovation and the
diffusion of culture through globalization and technology.
Innovation
The process of introducing a new idea or object to a culture is known as
innovation. Innovation interests sociologists because of the social
consequences of introducing something new. There are two forms of
innovation: discovery and invention. Discovery involves making known or
sharing the existence of an aspect of reality. The finding of the structure of
the DNA molecule and the identification of a new moon of Saturn are both
acts of discovery. A significant factor in the process of discovery is the
sharing of newfound knowledge with others. In contrast, an invention results
when existing cultural items are combined into a form that did not exist
before. The bow and arrow, the automobile, and the television are all
examples of inventions, as are Protestantism and democracy.
© Frank Zeller/AFP/Getty Images
Members of Big Toe Crew, a Vietnamese hip-hop group, rehearse for a
performance. Through tourism and the mass media, music and dance spread
from one culture to another in a process called diffusion.
Globalization, Diffusion, and Technology
The emergence of Starbucks, the worldwide chain of coffeehouses, is just one
illustration of the rapidly escalating trend toward globalization (see Chapter
1). While people in Asia are beginning to enjoy coffee, people in North
America have discovered sushi, which has evolved from a once-exotic dish in
the United States to a mainstream food commonly found in supermarket
refrigerators. Yet its move across the Pacific has changed the delicacy.
Americans tend to treat sushi as a take-out or menu item. The authentic way
to eat sushi is to sit at a bar and engage the chef in conversation about the
day’s catch.
More and more cultural expressions and practices are crossing national
borders and affecting the traditions and customs of the societies exposed to
them. Sociologists use the term diffusion to refer to the process by which a
cultural item spreads from group to group or society to society. Diffusion can
occur through a variety of means, among them exploration, military conquest,
missionary work, and the influence of the mass media, tourism, the Internet
(Box 3-4), and the fast-food restaurant.
SOCIOLOGY IN THE
GLOBAL COMMUNITY
3-4 Life in the Global Village
Imagine a “borderless world” in which culture, trade, commerce, money, and
even people move freely from one place to another. Popular culture is
widely shared, whether it be Japanese sushi or U.S. running shoes, and the
English speaker who answers questions over the telephone about your
credit card account is as likely to be in India or Ireland as in the United
States. In this world, even the sovereignty of nations is at risk, challenged
by political movements and ideologies that span nations.
What caused this great wave of cultural diffusion? First, sociologists take
note of advances in communications technology. Satellite TV, cell phones,
the Internet, and the like allow information to flow freely across the world,
linking global markets. Consumers can view videos on handheld devices
and surf the Internet on their phones, shopping online from cars, airports,
and cafeterias. Second, corporations in the industrial nations have become
multinational, with both factories and markets in developing countries.
Business leaders welcome the opportunity to sell consumer goods in
populous countries such as China. Third, these multinational firms have
cooperated with global financial institutions, organizations, and
governments to promote free trade—unrestricted or lightly restricted
commerce across national borders.
Even superhero movies and Lady Gaga may
be seen as threats to native cultures.
Globalization is not universally welcomed. Many critics see the dominance
of “businesses without borders” as benefiting the rich, particularly the very
wealthy in industrial countries, at the expense of the poor in less developed
nations. They consider globalization to be a successor to the imperialism
and colonialism that oppressed Third World nations for centuries.
Another criticism of globalization comes from people who feel
overwhelmed by global culture. Embedded in the concept of globalization is
the notion of the cultural domination of developing nations by more affluent
nations. Simply put, people lose their traditional values and begin to identify
with the culture of dominant nations. They may discard or neglect their
native languages and dress as they attempt to copy the icons of mass-
market entertainment and fashion. Even superhero movies and Lady Gaga
may be seen as threats to native cultures, if they dominate the media at the
expense of local art forms. As Sembene Ousmane, one of Africa’s most
prominent writers and filmmakers, noted, “[Today] we are more familiar with
European fairy tales than with our own traditional stories” (World
Development Forum 1990:4).
Globalization has its positive side, too. Many developing nations are
taking their place in the world of commerce and bringing in much needed
income. The communications revolution helps people to stay connected and
gives them access to knowledge that can improve living standards and even
save lives.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. How are you affected by globalization? Which aspects of globalization do
you find advantageous and which objectionable?
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2. How would you feel if the customs and traditions you grew up with were
replaced by the culture or values of another country? How might you try
to protect your culture?
Sources: Dodds 2000; Giddens 1991; Hirst and Thompson 1996; D. Martin
et al. 2006; Ritzer and Dean 2015; Sernau 2001; Tedeschi 2006.
Sociologist George Ritzer coined the term McDonaldization of society to
describe how the principles of fast-food restaurants, developed in the United
States, have come to dominate more and more sectors of societies throughout
the world. For example, hair salons and medical clinics now take walk-ins. In
Hong Kong, sex selection clinics offer a menu of items, from fertility
enhancement to methods of increasing the likelihood of having a child of the
desired sex. And religious groups—from evangelical preachers on local
stations or websites to priests at the Vatican Television Center—use
marketing techniques similar to those that are used to sell Happy Meals.
McDonaldization is associated with the melding of cultures, through which
we see more and more similarities in cultural expression. In Japan, for
example, African entrepreneurs have found a thriving market for hip-hop
fashions popularized by teens in the United States. Similarly, the familiar
Golden Arches of McDonald’s can be seen around the world. Yet
corporations like McDonald’s have had to make some adjustments of their
own. Until 2001, McDonald’s ran its overseas operations from corporate
headquarters in suburban Chicago.
After a few false starts, executives at McDonald’s recognized the need to
develop the restaurant’s menus and marketing strategies overseas, relying on
advice from local people. Now, at over 3,700 restaurants in Japan, customers
can enjoy the Mega Tamago Burger—beef, bacon, and fried egg with special
sauces. In India, patrons who don’t eat beef can order a vegetarian
McAloo Tikki potato burger. Because some strict vegetarians in
India refuse to eat among nonvegetarians, in 2013 McDonald’s began
opening vegetarian-only restaurants there (Gasparro and Jargon 2012; Ritzer
2015).
Technology in its many forms has increased the speed of cultural diffusion
and broadened the distribution of cultural elements. Sociologist Gerhard
Lenski has defined technology as “cultural information about the ways in
which the material resources of the environment may be used to satisfy
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human needs and desires” (Nolan and Lenski 2015:357). Today’s
technological developments no longer await publication in journals with
limited circulation. Press conferences, often carried simultaneously on the
Internet, trumpet the new developments.
Technology not only accelerates the diffusion of scientific innovations but
also transmits culture. The English language and North American culture
dominate the Internet and World Wide Web. Such control, or at least
dominance, of technology influences the direction of cultural
diffusion. For example, websites cover even the most superficial aspects of
U.S. culture but offer little information about the pressing issues faced by
citizens of other nations. People all over the world find it easier to visit
electronic chat rooms about the latest reality TV shows than to learn about
their own governments’ policies on day care or infant nutrition.
Use Your Sociological Imagination
If you grew up in your parents’ generation—without computers, e-mail, and
smartphones—how would your daily life differ from the one you lead today?
© Robert Laberge/Getty Images
When a society’s nonmaterial culture (its values and laws) does not keep
pace with rapid changes in its material culture, people experience an
awkward period of maladjustment called culture lag. The transition to nuclear
power generation that began in the second half of the 20th century brought
widespread protests against the new technology, as well as serious accidents
that government officials were poorly prepared to deal with. Tensions over
the controversial technology have not run as high in some countries as in
others, however. France, where this nuclear power plant is situated,
generates 75 percent of all its electricity through nuclear power. The
technology is not as controversial there as in the United States and Canada,
which generate less than 20 percent of their electricity through nuclear
reaction.
Sociologist William F. Ogburn (1922) made a useful distinction between
the elements of material and nonmaterial culture. Material culture refers to
the physical or technological aspects of our daily lives, including food,
houses, factories, and raw materials. Nonmaterial culture refers to ways of
using material objects, as well as to customs, beliefs, philosophies,
governments, and patterns of communication. Generally, the nonmaterial
culture is more resistant to change than the material culture. Consequently,
Ogburn introduced the term culture lag to refer to the period of
maladjustment when the nonmaterial culture is still struggling to adapt to new
material conditions. For example, in 2010, manufacturers introduced
electronic cigarettes, battery-powered tubes that turn nicotine-laced liquid
into a vapor mist. The innovation soon had officials at airlines (which ban
smoking) and the Food and Drug Administration scrambling to respond to the
latest technology (Kesmodel and Yadron 2010; Swidler 1986).
Resistance to technological change can lead not only to culture lag, but to
some real questions of cultural survival (Box 3-5).
SOCIOLOGY IN THE
GLOBAL COMMUNITY
3-5 Cultural Survival in Brazil
When the first Portuguese ships landed on the coast of what we now know
as Brazil, more than 2 million people inhabited the vast, mineral-rich land.
The natives lived in small, isolated settlements, spoke a variety of
languages, and embraced many different cultural traditions.
Today, over five centuries later, Brazil’s population has grown to more
than 208 million, only about 900,000 of whom are indigenous peoples
descended from the original inhabitants. Over 240 different indigenous
groups have survived, living a life tied closely to the land and the rivers, just
as their ancestors did. But over the past two generations, their numbers
have dwindled as booms in mining, logging, oil drilling, and agriculture have
encroached on their land and their settlements (Survival International 2017).
Many indigenous groups were once nomads, moving around from one
hunting or fishing ground to another. Now they are hemmed in on the
reservations the government confined them to, surrounded by huge farms
or ranches whose owners deny their right to live off the land. State officials
may insist that laws restrict the development of indigenous lands, but
indigenous peoples tell a different story. In Mato Grosso, a heavily forested
state near the Amazon River, loggers have been clear-cutting the land at a
rate that alarms the Bororo, an indigenous group that has lived in the area
for centuries. According to one elder, the Bororo are now confined to six
small reservations of about 500 square miles—much less than the area
officially granted them in the 19th century.
In Mato Grosso, a heavily forested state near
the Amazon River, loggers have been clear-
cutting the land at a rate that alarms the Bororo.
In the face of dwindling resources, indigenous groups like the Bororo
struggle to maintain their culture. Though the tribe still observes the
traditional initiation rites for adolescent boys, members are finding it difficult
to continue their hunting and fishing rituals, given the scarcity of game and
fish in the area. Pesticides in the runoff from nearby farms have poisoned
the water they fish and bathe in, threatening both their health and their
culture’s survival.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. Compare the frontier in Brazil today to the American West in the 1800s.
What similarities do you see?
2. What does society lose when indigenous cultures die?
Sources: Brazier and Hamed 2007; H. Chu 2005; Survival International
2016.
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thinking CRITICALLY
Name one culturally significant discovery and one culturally significant
invention that have occurred in your lifetime. Explain how these innovations
have affected the culture to which you belong.
social policy and culture
Bilingualism
Looking at the Issue
The staff in the emergency room is unprepared. Although the issue is not a
medical one, the doctors and nurses do not understand the patient’s
complaints, nor can they communicate effectively with her companion. This
type of incident, which occurs frequently, can have serious consequences.
According to a study of two large pediatric emergency departments in
Massachusetts, even when the second language is a common one like
Spanish, interpreting errors can lead to clinically significant mistakes in 22
percent of such cases. In other words, language errors put patients at risk
(Flores et al. 2012).
How can we learn to work and live effectively when Americans
speak so many different languages? Throughout the world, not just
emergency rooms but schools and other institutions must deal with people
who speak many languages. Bilingualism refers to the use of two
languages in a particular setting, such as the workplace or schoolroom,
treating each language as equally legitimate. Thus, a teacher of bilingual
education may instruct children in their native language while gradually
introducing them to the language of the host society. If the curriculum is also
bicultural, children will learn about the mores and folkways of both the
dominant culture and the subculture.
To what degree should schools in the United States present the
curriculum in a language other than English? This issue has prompted a
great deal of debate among educators and policymakers. According to the
Bureau of the Census, 66 million U.S. residents over age five—that’s about
22 percent of the population—spoke a language other than English as their
primary language at home in 2016 (Figure 3-4). Indeed, 29 other languages
are each spoken by at least 200,000 U.S. residents (American Community
Survey 2016a; C. Ryan 2013).
MAPPING LIFE NATIONWIDE
FIGURE 3-4 PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE WHO SPEAK A LANGUAGE
OTHER THAN ENGLISH AT HOME, BY STATE
Note: Data for 2016 for people 5 years of age or older. National average was
21.6 percent.
Sources: American Community Survey 2016: R1601.
This trend toward a modestly increasing linguistic diversity is expected to
continue into the foreseeable future. Even as the children and grandchildren
of immigrants adopt English as their first language, a significant proportion
of the U.S. population will continue to speak a language other than English
(Ortman and Shin 2011).
Do bilingual programs help the children of these families to learn English?
It is difficult to reach firm conclusions, because bilingual programs in
general vary so widely in their quality and approach. They differ in the
length of the transition to English and in how long they allow students to
remain in bilingual classrooms. Moreover, results have been mixed. In the
years since California effectively dismantled its bilingual education program,
reading and math scores of students with limited English proficiency rose
dramatically, especially in the lower grades. Yet a major overview of 17
studies, done at Johns Hopkins University, found that students who are
offered lessons in both English and their home languages make better
progress than similar students who are taught only in English (Goldenberg
and Wagner 2015; R. Slavin and Cheung 2003).
Applying Sociology
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For a long time, people in the United States demanded conformity to a
single language. This demand coincided with the functionalist view that
language serves to unify members of a society. Little respect was granted to
immigrants’ cultural traditions; a young person would often be teased about
his or her “funny” name, accent, or style of dress.
Recent decades have seen challenges to this pattern of forced obedience
to the dominant ideology. Beginning in the 1960s, active movements for
Black pride and ethnic pride insisted that people regard the traditions of all
racial and ethnic subcultures as legitimate and important. Conflict theorists
explain this development as a case of subordinated language minorities
seeking opportunities for self-expression. Partly as a result of these
challenges, people began to view bilingualism as an asset. It seemed to
provide a sensitive way of assisting millions of non-English-speaking people
in the United States to learn English in order to function more effectively
within the society.
The perspective of conflict theory also helps us to understand some of the
attacks on bilingual programs. Many of them stem from an ethnocentric
point of view, which holds that any deviation from the majority is bad. This
attitude tends to be expressed by those who wish to stamp out foreign
influence wherever it occurs, especially in our schools. It does not take into
account that success in bilingual education may actually have beneficial
results, such as decreasing the number of high school dropouts and
increasing the number of Hispanics in colleges and universities.
Initiating Policy
Bilingualism has policy implications largely in two areas: efforts to maintain
language purity and programs to enhance bilingual education. Nations vary
dramatically in their tolerance for a variety of languages. China continues to
tighten its cultural control over Tibet by extending instruction of Mandarin, a
Chinese dialect, from high school into the elementary schools
there, which will now be bilingual along with Tibetan. In contrast,
nearby Singapore establishes English as the medium of instruction but
allows students to take their mother tongue as a second language, be it
Chinese, Malay, or Tamil.
One bilingual hot spot is Québec, the French-speaking province of
Canada. The Québécois, as they are known, represent 83 percent of the
province’s population, but only 25 percent of Canada’s total population. A
law implemented in 1978 mandated education in French for all Québec’s
children except those whose parents or siblings had learned English
elsewhere in Canada. While special laws like this one have advanced
French in the province, dissatisfied Québécois have tried to form their own
separate country. In 1995, the people of Québec indicated their preference
of remaining united with Canada by only the narrowest of margins (50.5
percent). Language and language-related cultural areas both unify and
divide this nation of 33 million people (The Economist 2005b; R. Schaefer
2019).
Policymakers in the United States have been somewhat ambivalent in
dealing with the issue of bilingualism. In 1965, the Elementary and
Secondary Education Act (ESEA) provided for bilingual, bicultural
education. In the 1970s, the federal government took an active role in
establishing the proper form for bilingual programs. However, more recently,
federal policy has been less supportive of bilingualism, and local school
districts have been forced to provide an increased share of funding for their
bilingual programs. Yet bilingual programs are an expense that many
communities and states are unwilling to pay for and are quick to cut back. In
1998, voters in California approved a proposition that all but eliminated
bilingual education: it requires instruction in English for 1.4 million children
who are not fluent in the language.
In the United States, repeated efforts have been made to introduce a
constitutional amendment declaring English as the nation’s official
language. As of 2018, 32 states had declared English their official language
—an action that is now more symbolic than legislative in its
significance. However, in 2018, the lobbying group ProEnglish met twice
with White House officials seeking their support in repealing a 2000
government action that mandates foreign language translations of certain
government documents and forms.
Public concern over a potential decline in the use of English appears to be
overblown. In reality, most immigrants and their offspring quickly become
fluent in English and abandon their mother tongue. Nevertheless, many
people are impatient with those immigrants who continue to use their
mother tongue. The release in 2006 of “Nuestro Himno,” the Spanish-
language version of the “Star-Spangled Banner,” produced a strong public
reaction: 69 percent of those who were surveyed on the topic said the
anthem should be sung only in English. In reaction against the Spanish
version, at least one congressman defiantly sang the national anthem in
English—with incorrect lyrics. And the proprietor of a restaurant in
Philadelphia posted signs advising patrons that he would accept orders for
his famous steak sandwiches only in English. Throughout the year,
passions ran high as policymakers debated how much support to afford
people who speak other languages (J. Carroll 2006; Guschov 2018; U.S.
English 2018).
In the end, the immigrant’s experience is not only about learning a new
language. It is about learning a whole new culture—a new totality of socially
transmitted customs, knowledge, material objects, and behavior.
Take the Issue with You
1. Have you attended a school with students for whom English is a second
Page 67
language? If so, can you identify the presence of different cultures or
subcultures?
2. The ultimate goal of both English-only and bilingual programs is for
foreign-born students to become proficient in English. In what ways is
this goal functional? Analyze the goal of such programs from the conflict
and interactionist perspectives.
3. Besides bilingualism, can you think of another issue that has become
controversial recently because of a clash of cultures? If so, analyze the
issue from a sociological point of view.
Mastering This Chapter
Summary
Culture is the totality of learned, socially transmitted customs, knowledge,
material objects, and behavior. This chapter examines social practices
common to all cultures, the basic elements that make up a culture, and
variations that distinguish one culture from another.
1. A shared culture helps to define the group or society to which we
belong.
2. Anthropologist George Murdock compiled a list of cultural
universals, or common practices found in every culture, including
marriage, sports, cooking, medicine, and sexual restrictions.
3. People who assume that their culture is superior to others engage in
ethnocentrism. In contrast, cultural relativism is the practice of
viewing other people’s behavior from the perspective of their own
culture.
4. Language, an important element of culture, includes speech, written
characters, numerals, and symbols, as well as gestures and other
forms of nonverbal communication. Language both describes culture
and shapes it.
5. Sociologists distinguish between norms in two ways, classifying
them as formal or informal and as mores or folkways.
6. The formal norms of a culture will carry the heaviest
sanctions; informal norms will carry light sanctions.
7. The dominant ideology of a culture is the set of cultural beliefs and
practices that helps to maintain powerful social, economic, and
political interests.
8. In a sense, a subculture can be thought of as a small culture that
exists within a larger, dominant culture. Countercultures are
subcultures that deliberately oppose aspects of the larger culture.
9. Culture is constantly expanding through the process of innovation,
which includes both discovery and invention.
10. Diffusion—the spread of cultural items from one place to another—
has fostered globalization. Still, people resist ideas that seem too
foreign, as well as those they perceive as threatening to their values
and beliefs.
11. The social policy of bilingualism calls for the use of two languages,
treating each as equally legitimate. It is supported by those who want
to ease the transition of non-native-language speakers into a host
society, but opposed by those who adhere to a single cultural
tradition and language.
Key Terms
Argot Specialized language used by members of a group or subculture.
(page 59)
Bilingualism The use of two languages in a particular setting, such as the
workplace or schoolroom, treating each language as equally
legitimate. (65)
Counterculture A subculture that deliberately opposes certain aspects of
the larger culture. (60)
Cultural capital Noneconomic goods, such as family background and
education, which are reflected in a knowledge of language and the
arts. (52)
Cultural relativism The viewing of people’s behavior from the perspective
of their own culture. (51)
Cultural universal A common practice or belief found in every culture. (50)
Culture The totality of learned, socially transmitted customs, knowledge,
material objects, and behavior. (50)
Culture lag A period of maladjustment when the nonmaterial culture is still
struggling to adapt to new material conditions. (64)
Culture shock The feeling of surprise and disorientation that people
experience when they encounter cultural practices that are different
from their own. (61)
Diffusion The process by which a cultural item spreads from group to group
or society to society. (62)
Discovery The process of making known or sharing the existence of an
aspect of reality. (62)
Dominant ideology A set of cultural beliefs and practices that helps to
maintain powerful social, economic, and political interests. (58)
Ethnocentrism The tendency to assume that one’s own culture and way of
life represent the norm or are superior to all others. (51)
Folkway A norm governing everyday behavior whose violation raises
comparatively little concern. (55)
Formal norm A norm that has been written down and that specifies strict
punishments for violators. (54)
Informal norm A norm that is generally understood but not precisely
recorded. (54)
Innovation The process of introducing a new idea or object to a culture
through discovery or invention. (62)
Invention The combination of existing cultural items into a form that did not
exist before. (62)
Language An abstract system of word meanings and symbols for all
aspects of culture; includes gestures and other nonverbal
communication. (53)
Law Governmental social control. (54)
Material culture The physical or technological aspects of our daily lives.
(64)
Mores Norms deemed highly necessary to the welfare of a society. (54)
Nonmaterial culture Ways of using material objects, as well as customs,
beliefs, philosophies, governments, and patterns of communication.
(64)
Norm An established standard of behavior maintained by a society. (54)
Sanction A penalty or reward for conduct concerning a social norm. (56)
Society A fairly large number of people who live in the same territory, are
relatively independent of people outside their area, and participate in
a common culture. (50)
Sociobiology The systematic study of how biology affects human social
behavior. (51)
Subculture A segment of society that shares a distinctive pattern of
customs, rules, and traditions that differs from the pattern of the
larger society. (59)
Symbol A gesture, object, or word that forms the basis of human
communication. (53)
Technology Cultural information about the ways in which the material
resources of the environment may be used to satisfy human needs
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and desires. (53)
Value A collective conception of what is considered good, desirable, and
proper—or bad, undesirable, and improper—in a culture. (56)
TAKING SOCIOLOGY With You
1. Locate ethnocentrism. For two days, bearing in mind what
sociologists mean by ethnocentrism, systematically record the places
where you see or hear evidence of it.
2. Study popular culture. For two days, record whatever evidence of the
dominant culture you see on the Internet or in literature, music,
movies, theater, television programs, and sporting events.
3. Document a subculture. For two days, record the norms, values,
sanctions, and argot evident in a subculture you are familiar with.
Self-Quiz
Read each question carefully and then select the best answer.
1. Which of the following is an aspect of culture?
a. a comic book
b. patriotic attachment to the flag of the United States
c. slang words
d. all of the above
2. People’s adaptations to meet the needs for food, shelter, and clothing
are examples of what George Murdock referred to as
a. norms.
b. folkways.
c. cultural universals.
d. sanctions.
3. What term do sociologists use to refer to the process by which a
cultural item spreads from group to group or society to society?
a. diffusion
b. globalization
c. innovation
d. cultural relativism
4. The appearance of Starbucks coffeehouses in China is a sign of what
aspect of culture?
a. innovation
b. globalization
c. diffusion
d. cultural relativism
5. Which statement about language is correct?
a. Language is a major element of culture.
b. A common language facilitates everyday interaction.
c. Thousands of languages are spoken around the world.
d. All of the above.
6. Which of the following statements about norms is correct?
a. People do not follow norms in all situations. In some cases, they
evade a norm because they know it is weakly enforced.
b. In some instances, behavior that appears to violate society’s
norms may actually represent adherence to the norms of a
particular group.
c. Norms are violated in some instances because one norm conflicts
with another.
d. all of the above
7. Which of the following statements about values is correct?
a. Values never change.
b. The values of a culture may change, but most remain relatively
stable during any one person’s lifetime.
c. Values are constantly changing; sociologists view them as being
very unstable.
d. all of the above
8. Which of the following terms describes the set of cultural beliefs and
practices that help to maintain powerful social, economic, and
political interests?
a. mores
b. dominant ideology
c. consensus
d. values
9. Terrorist groups are examples of
a. cultural universals.
b. subcultures.
c. countercultures.
d. dominant ideologies.
10. What is the term used when one places a priority on understanding
other cultures, rather than dismissing them as “strange” or “exotic”?
a. ethnocentrism
b. culture shock
c. cultural relativism
d. cultural value
11. __________________________________________blank are
gestures, objects, and/or words that form the basis of human
communication.
12. __________________________________________blank is the
process of introducing a new idea or object to a culture.
13. The bow and arrow, the automobile, and the television are all
examples of _____________________________
_____________blank.
14. Sociologists associated with the _____________________________
_____________blank perspective emphasize that language and
symbols offer a powerful way for a subculture to maintain its identity.
15. “Put on some clean clothes for dinner” and “Thou shalt not kill” are
both examples of _____________________________
_____________blank found in U.S. culture.
16. The United States has strong _____________________________
_____________blank against murder, treason, and other forms of
abuse that have been institutionalized into formal norms.
17. From a(n) __________________________________________blank
perspective, the dominant ideology has major social significance. Not
only do a society’s most powerful groups and institutions control
wealth and property; more important, they control the means of
production.
18. Countercultures (for example, hippies) are typically popular among
the __________________________________________blank, who
have the least investment in the existing culture.
19. A person experiences _____________________________
_____________blank _____________________________
_____________blank when he or she feels disoriented, uncertain,
out of place, even fearful when immersed in an unfamiliar culture.
20. From the __________________________________________blank
perspective, subcultures are evidence that differences can exist
within a common culture.
Answers
1 (d); 2 (c); 3 (a); 4 (b); 5 (d); 6 (d); 7 (b); 8 (b); 9 (c); 10 (c); 11 Symbols;
12 Innovation; 13 inventions; 14 interactionist; 15 norms; 16 mores; 17
conflict; 18 young; 19 culture shock; 20 functionalist
Page 69
4 Socialization and the
Life Course
©Mike Kemp/Getty Images
A father teaches his son to ride a bike. Around the world, the family is the
most important agent of socialization.
‣ INSIDE
The Role of Socialization
The Self and Socialization
Agents of Socialization
Socialization throughout the Life Course
Page 70
Role Transitions throughout the Life Course
Social Policy and Sociological Research: Child Care around the World
What would it be like to grow up in a family that isolates itself from
society? What would it be like to break away from such an
upbringing and discover the outside world for the first time?
Filmmaker Crystal Moselle documented the efforts of the six
Angulo brothers, who grew up confined in a small apartment on
Manhattan’s Lower East Side, to discover the social world outside
their family. Her documentary, The Wolfpack, attempted to
simultaneously capture the excitement of the brothers’ discoveries
while suggesting the issues of abuse and confinement that arise
from their extraordinary upbringing.
©Moviestore collection Ltd/Alamy Stock Photo
“It was serendipitous that I met these boys the first week they started going
out into the world. It almost felt as if I had discovered a long lost tribe, except it
was not from the edges of the world but from the streets of Manhattan. I was
moved by their openness, resilience and sense of humor, and I formed a trust
with them that could never be duplicated. I have been by their side as they
experienced the outside world for the first time. . . . It has been an incredible
journey for all of us, and it is strange to think that this story could never be told
the same way again, with the same sense of innocence and discovery. Their
minds and perceptions have already incorporated the rest of the outside world.
About five years ago, I was cruising down First Avenue in the East Village and
these kids with long hair ran past me, weaving through the crowd. I counted
one, two, three of them . . . then three more. . . . I asked where they were from
and they said ‘Delancy Street.’ They mentioned how they were not supposed to
talk to strangers but wondered what I did for a living. When I told them that I
was a filmmaker, they got really excited, exclaiming, ‘We are interested in
getting into the business of filmmaking.’ We made a time to meet so I could
show them some cameras.
This was the start of our friendship. I started filming them here and there while
teaching them and encouraging their film endeavors. About 4 months in, I was
able to come into their home. This is when I realized there was a deeper story
and continued from there–we shot for almost 5 years.
When I came into these boys’ lives there was nothing that alarmed me about
the situation. They seemed stable, well cared for and educated by their parents
(especially their mother). If I had come one year earlier things may have been
different. Also, at the point I came into the story the boys had started their
rebellion against their father and the power in the household had shifted. They
did not seem to need or desire for me to intervene.
What I did do was to encourage them to explore their interest in filmmaking,
by helping them to get internships and introduce them to people in the film
industry.
Susanne [the boys’ mother] feels like a different person to me now. When we
first met she was more submissive and reserved. I think her children’s step
towards freedom and socialization really helped her stand up for her own rights
as well. It’s a process but she is well on the right path to gaining her own
independence.
Their dad brought both classic and cult movies to them. They liked the violent,
horrific, morally complicated films the best. As they read more about movies
they started to request specific films.
It almost felt as if I had discovered a long lost
tribe, except it was not from the edges of the world
but from the streets of Manhattan.
Page 71
The boys first saw Pulp Fiction on television, and this started their Quentin
Tarantino obsession. It opened their eyes to film outside the realms of the
standard Hollywood films they were used to watching. Since films were their
world, they started to interpret these looks into their wardrobe. Their personal
style is directly related to their favorite characters from their favorite movies. A
lot of their early costumes were from clothing their dad would find on the street
and at Salvation Army, which they would re-work by hand into specific
costumes. For example, they’d tape blue Nike swooshes on tennis shoes to
look like Marty McFly’s, or cut up a woman’s rain coat and sew it into the shape
of Mad Max’s leather biker vest.”
Source: Magnolia Pictures. “The Wolf Pack: Final Film Notes.” 2014, pp. 3, 9-11.
In this excerpt from an interview with Crystal Moselle, director of The
Wolfpack, we appreciate the incredible variety of experiences that people
have in coming to terms with the world around them. Moselle describes the
strangeness of the six teenage brothers who grew up in isolation from all
social contact except that with their immediate family. As we will see
throughout this chapter, children are typically exposed to a gradually
widening circle of social contacts. As their social horizons widen, they learn
more and more about how to behave in their society and how to engage with
different kinds of people. The Angulo brothers, in contrast, were never
exposed to this widening circle, so everything they learned about the world
outside their own family came from movies and TV.
Hollywood movies became the brothers’ window to the world. They acted
out scenes and painstakingly transcribed, word for word on an old typewriter,
movies such as Reservoir Dogs and The Dark Knight. After years of
isolation, the boys, acting with a desire for independence typical of the
teenage years, finally ventured out, directly disobeying their father’s
commands. In the last five years, they have met extended family
members they had never before seen and traveled abroad. With each of these
experiences, they compared their experiences to scenes from motion pictures
they had watched in their isolated apartment (Whipp 2016).
Sociologists, in general, are interested in the patterns of behavior and
attitudes that emerge throughout the life course, from infancy to old age.
These patterns are part of the lifelong process of socialization, in which
people learn the attitudes, values, and behaviors appropriate for members of a
particular culture. Socialization occurs through human interactions that begin
in infancy and continue through retirement. We learn a great deal from those
people most important in our lives—immediate family members, best friends,
and teachers. But we also learn from people we see on the street, on
television, on the Internet, and in films and magazines. From a
microsociological perspective, socialization helps us to discover how to
behave “properly” and what to expect from others if we follow (or challenge)
society’s norms and values. From a macrosociological perspective,
socialization provides for the transmission of a culture from one generation to
the next, to ensure the long-term continuity of a society.
Socialization also shapes our self-images. For example, in the United
States, a person who is viewed as “too heavy” or “too short” does not
conform to the ideal cultural standard of physical attractiveness. This kind of
unfavorable evaluation can significantly influence the person’s self-esteem.
In this sense, socialization experiences can help to shape our personalities. In
everyday speech, the term personality is used to refer to a person’s typical
patterns of attitudes, needs, characteristics, and behavior.
How much of a person’s personality is shaped by culture, as opposed to
inborn traits? In what ways does socialization continue into adulthood? Who
are the most powerful agents of socialization? In this chapter we will examine
the role of socialization in human development. We will begin by analyzing
the interaction of heredity with environmental factors. Then we will explore
how people develop perceptions, feelings, and beliefs about themselves. We
will pay particular attention to important agents of socialization, including the
family, schools, peers, the media and technology, the workplace, and
religion. As we will see, socialization is a process that spans the entire life
course. In the Social Policy section that closes the chapter, we will focus on
the socialization experience of group child care for young children.
The Role of Socialization
What makes us who we are? Is it the genes we are born with, or the
environment in which we grow up? Researchers have traditionally clashed
over the relative importance of biological inheritance and environmental
factors in human development—a conflict called the nature versus nurture
(or heredity versus environment) debate. Today, most social scientists have
moved beyond this debate, acknowledging instead the interaction of these
variables in shaping human development. However, we can better appreciate
how heredity and environmental factors interact and influence the
socialization process if we first examine situations in which one factor
operates almost entirely without the other (Homans 1979).
Social Environment: The Impact of Isolation
Some viewers may have found the story of the Angulo brothers difficult to
believe, but social scientists have encountered similar cases. The two cases
that follow describe the documented effects of extreme social isolation and
neglect.
Extreme Isolation: Isabelle
The dramatic story of a child called Isabelle was all too real. For the first six
years of her life, Isabelle lived in almost total seclusion in a darkened room.
She had little contact with other people, with the exception of her mother,
who could neither speak nor hear. Isabelle’s mother’s parents had been so
deeply ashamed of Isabelle’s illegitimate birth that they kept her hidden away
from the world. Ohio authorities finally discovered the child in 1938, when
Isabelle’s mother escaped from her parents’ home, taking her daughter with
her.
When she was discovered at age six, Isabelle could not speak; she could
merely make various croaking sounds. Her only communications with her
mother were simple gestures. Isabelle had been largely deprived of the typical
interactions and socialization experiences of childhood. Since she had seen
few people, she showed a strong fear of strangers and reacted almost like a
wild animal when confronted with an unfamiliar person. As she became
accustomed to seeing certain individuals, her reaction changed to one of
extreme apathy. At first, observers believed that Isabelle was deaf, but she
soon began to react to nearby sounds. On tests of maturity, she scored at the
level of an infant rather than a six-year-old.
Specialists developed a systematic training program to help Isabelle adapt
to human relationships and socialization. After a few days of training, she
made her first attempt to verbalize. Although she started slowly, Isabelle
quickly passed through six years of development. In a little over two months
she was speaking in complete sentences. Nine months later she could identify
both words and sentences. Before Isabelle reached age 9, she was ready to
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attend school with other children. By age 14 she was in sixth grade, doing
well in school, and emotionally well adjusted.
Yet without an opportunity to experience socialization in her first six years,
Isabelle had been hardly human in the social sense when she was first
discovered. Her inability to communicate at the time of her discovery—
despite her physical and cognitive potential to learn—and her remarkable
progress over the next few years underscore the impact of socialization on
human development (K. Davis 1947:435–437).
The scientists involved with Isabelle’s case concluded that all children need
socialization in the form of love, care, and affection. Absent that kind of
attention, humans cannot learn to speak and interact with others as expected.
This need for positive social interaction does not end with childhood; it
continues throughout the life span.
Unfortunately, other children who have been locked away or
severely neglected have not fared so well as Isabelle. In many
instances, the consequences of their social isolation have proved much more
damaging.
Extreme Neglect: Romanian Orphans
Isabelle’s experience is important to researchers because there are only a few
cases of children who were reared in total isolation. However, there are many
cases of children raised in extremely neglectful social circumstances. In the
1990s, public attention focused on infants and young children who grew up in
orphanages in the formerly communist countries of eastern Europe. In
Romanian orphanages, babies once lay in their cribs for 18 to 20 hours a day,
curled against their feeding bottles, receiving little care from adults. This
minimal attention continued for the first five years of their lives. Many of
them grew up fearful of human contact, and prone to unpredictable antisocial
behavior. As recently as 2004, some 32,000 Romanian children were
institutionalized in this manner.
This situation came to light as families in North America and Europe began
to adopt thousands of the orphans. For about 20 percent of those adopted,
adjustment problems were so dramatic that the adopting families suffered
guilty fears of being ill-fit parents. Many of them have asked for assistance in
dealing with the children. Slowly, efforts are being made to introduce the
deprived youngsters to feelings of attachment and socialization that they have
never experienced before (Groza et al. 1999; S. Craig Smith 2006).
In 2001, Romania bowed to pressure and placed a moratorium on
international adoptions. The state took steps to reunite orphans with their
birth families, place them with adoptive families in Romania, or settle them
in small group homes. With supervision from attentive caregivers and
specialists, the once-abandoned children have made remarkable progress.
UNICEF is now using the program as a model for other nations that are
dealing with such children. Worldwide, an estimated 2 million children are
living in institutional care (Aslanian 2006; Bahrampour 2014; The Economist
2013a; Ironside 2011; UNICEF 2009).
©Thomas Coex/AFP/Getty Images
In Romania, special programs emphasizing social interaction have helped
orphans to overcome years of social isolation.
As with Isabelle, the Romanian orphans underscored the significance of the
social environment in a child’s development. Increasingly, researchers are
emphasizing the importance of the earliest socialization experiences for all
children, including those who grow up in more normal environments. We
know now that it is not enough to care for an infant’s physical needs; parents
must also concern themselves with their children’s social development. If, for
example, children are discouraged from having friends even as toddlers, they
will miss out on experiences with peers that are critical to their socialization
and emotional growth.
Primate Studies
Studies of animals raised in isolation also support the importance of
socialization in development. Harry Harlow (1971), a researcher at the
primate laboratory of the University of Wisconsin, conducted tests with
rhesus monkeys that had been raised away from their mothers and away from
contact with other monkeys. As was the case with Isabelle, the rhesus
monkeys raised in isolation were fearful and easily frightened. They did not
mate, and the females who were artificially inseminated became abusive
mothers. Apparently, isolation had had a damaging effect on the monkeys.
A creative aspect of Harlow’s experimentation was his use of “artificial
mothers.” In one such experiment, Harlow presented monkeys raised in
isolation with two substitute mothers—one cloth-covered replica and one
covered with wire that had the ability to offer milk. Monkey after monkey
went to the wire mother for the life-giving milk, yet spent much more time
clinging to the more motherlike cloth model. It appears that the infant
monkeys developed greater social attachments from their need for warmth,
comfort, and intimacy than from their need for milk.
While these studies may seem to suggest that heredity can be dismissed as a
factor in the social development of humans and animals, studies of twins
reveal a fascinating interplay between heredity and environment.
Use Your Sociological Imagination
What events in your life have had a strong influence on who you are?
The Influence of Heredity
Identical twins Oskar Stohr and Jack Yufe were separated soon after their
birth and raised on different continents, in very different cultural settings.
Oskar was reared as a strict Catholic by his maternal grandmother in the
Sudetenland of Czechoslovakia. As a member of the Hitler Youth movement
in Nazi Germany, he learned to hate Jews. In contrast, his brother Jack was
reared in Trinidad by the twins’ Jewish father. Jack joined an Israeli kibbutz
(a collective settlement) at age 17 and later served in the Israeli army. When
the twins were reunited in middle age, however, some startling similarities
emerged: They both wore wire-rimmed glasses and mustaches. They both
liked spicy foods and sweet liqueurs, were absentminded, flushed the toilet
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before using it, stored rubber bands on their wrists, and dipped buttered toast
in their coffee (Holden 1980).
The twins also differed in many important respects: Jack was a
workaholic; Oskar enjoyed leisure-time activities. Oskar was a
traditionalist who was domineering toward women; Jack was a political
liberal who was much more accepting of feminism. Finally, Jack was
extremely proud of being Jewish, whereas Oskar never mentioned his Jewish
heritage (Holden 1987).
©encrier/iStock/Getty Images Plus/Getty Images
Despite the striking physical resemblance between these identical twins
relaxing in Paris, there are undoubtedly many differences between them.
Research points to some behavioral similarities between twins, but little
beyond the likenesses found among nontwin siblings.
Oskar and Jack are prime examples of the interplay of heredity and
environment. For a number of years, the Minnesota Twin Family Study has
been following 137 sets of identical twins reared apart to determine what
similarities, if any, they show in personality traits, behavior, and intelligence.
Preliminary results from the available twin studies indicate that both genetic
factors and socialization experiences are influential in human development.
Certain characteristics, such as temperaments, voice patterns, and nervous
habits, appear to be strikingly similar even in twins reared apart, suggesting
that these qualities may be linked to hereditary causes. However, identical
twins reared apart differ far more in their attitudes, values, chosen mates, and
even drinking habits; these qualities, it would seem, are influenced by
environmental factors. In examining clusters of personality traits among such
twins, researchers have found marked similarities in their tendency toward
leadership or dominance, but significant differences in their need for
intimacy, comfort, and assistance.
Researchers have also been impressed with the similar scores on
intelligence tests of twins reared apart in roughly similar social settings. Most
of the identical twins register scores even closer than those that would be
expected if the same person took a test twice. At the same time, however,
identical twins brought up in dramatically different social environments score
quite differently on intelligence tests—a finding that supports the impact of
socialization on human development (Segal 2012).
We need to be cautious in reviewing studies of twin pairs and other relevant
research. Widely broadcast findings have often been based on preliminary
analysis of extremely small samples. For example, one study (not involving
twin pairs) was frequently cited as confirming genetic links with behavior.
Yet the researchers had to retract their conclusions after they increased the
sample and reclassified two of the original cases. After those changes, the
initial findings were no longer valid.
Critics add that studies of twin pairs have not provided satisfactory
information concerning the extent to which separated identical twins may
have had contact with each other, even though they were raised apart. Such
interactions—especially if they were extensive—could call into question the
validity of the twin studies. As this debate continues, we can certainly
anticipate numerous efforts to replicate the research and clarify the interplay
between heredity and environmental factors in human development (Horgan
1993; Plomin 1989).
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©Saleh Al-Obeidi/AFP/Getty Images
Socialization can be negative as well as positive. When the very young come
to view harmful behaviors like smoking or illegal drug use as “normal,”
socialization is negative. In Yemen, these child soldiers have learned to use
an automatic weapon.
thinking CRITICALLY
What are some social policy implications of research on the effects of early
socialization experiences?
The Self and Socialization
We all have various perceptions, feelings, and beliefs about who we are and
what we are like. How do we come to develop them? Do they change as we
age?
We were not born with these understandings. Building on the work of
George Herbert Mead (1964b), sociologists recognize that our concept of
who we are, the self, emerges as we interact with others. The self is a distinct
identity that sets us apart from others. It is not a static phenomenon, but
continues to develop and change throughout our lives.
Sociologists and psychologists alike have expressed interest in how the
individual develops and modifies the sense of self as a result of social
interaction. The work of sociologists Charles Horton Cooley and George
Herbert Mead, pioneers of the interactionist approach, has been especially
useful in furthering our understanding of these important issues.
Sociological Approaches to the Self
Cooley: Looking-Glass Self
In the early 1900s, Charles Horton Cooley advanced the belief that we learn
who we are by interacting with others. Our view of ourselves, then, comes
not only from direct contemplation of our personal qualities but also from our
impressions of how others perceive us. Cooley used the phrase looking-glass
self to emphasize that the self is the product of our social interactions.
The process of developing a self-identity or self-concept has three phases.
First, we imagine how we present ourselves to others—to relatives, friends,
even strangers on the street. Then we imagine how others evaluate us
(attractive, intelligent, shy, or strange). Finally, we develop some sort of
feeling about ourselves, such as respect or shame, as a result of these
impressions (Cooley 1902; Michael C. Howard 1989).
A subtle but critical aspect of Cooley’s looking-glass self is that the self
results from an individual’s “imagination” of how others view him or her. As
a result, we can develop self-identities based on incorrect perceptions of how
others see us. A student may react strongly to a teacher’s criticism and decide
(wrongly) that the instructor views the student as stupid. This misperception
may be converted into a negative self-identity through the following process:
(1) the teacher criticized me, (2) the teacher must think that I’m stupid, (3) I
am stupid. Yet self-identities are also subject to change. If the student
receives an A at the end of the course, he or she will probably no longer feel
stupid.
Mead: Stages of the Self
George Herbert Mead continued Cooley’s exploration of interactionist
theory. Mead (1934, 1964a) developed a useful model of the process by
which the self emerges, defined by three distinct stages: the preparatory
stage, the play stage, and the game stage (Table 4-1).
The Preparatory Stage
During the preparatory stage, children merely imitate the people around
them, especially family members with whom they continually interact. Thus,
a small child will bang on a piece of wood while a parent is engaged in
carpentry work, or will try to throw a ball if an older sibling is doing so
nearby.
As they grow older, children become more adept at using symbols,
including the gestures and words that form the basis of human
communication. By interacting with relatives and friends, as well as by
watching cartoons on television and looking at picture books, children in the
preparatory stage begin to understand symbols. They will continue to use this
form of communication throughout their lives.
The Play Stage
Mead was among the first to analyze the relationship of symbols to
socialization. As children develop skill in communicating through symbols,
they gradually become more aware of social relationships. As a result, during
the play stage, they begin to pretend to be other people. Just as an actor
“becomes” a character, a child becomes a doctor, parent, superhero, or ship
captain.
Mead, in fact, noted that an important aspect of the play stage is role-
playing. Role taking is the process of mentally assuming the perspective of
another and responding from that imagined viewpoint. For example, through
this process a young child will gradually learn when it is best to ask a parent
for favors. If the parent usually comes home from work in a bad mood, the
child will wait until after dinner, when the parent is more relaxed and
approachable.
The Game Stage
In Mead’s third stage, the game stage, the child of about age eight or nine no
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longer just plays roles but begins to consider several tasks and relationships
simultaneously. At this point in development, children grasp not only their
own social positions but also those of others around them—just as in a
football game the players must understand their own and everyone else’s
positions. Consider a girl or boy who is part of a Scout troop out on a
weekend hike in the mountains. The child must understand what he or she is
expected to do but must also recognize the responsibilities of other Scouts as
well as the leaders. This is the final stage of development under Mead’s
model: the child can now respond to numerous members of the social
environment.
Mead uses the term generalized other to refer to the attitudes, viewpoints,
and expectations of society as a whole that a child takes into account in his or
her behavior. Simply put, this concept suggests that when an individual acts,
he or she takes into account an entire group of people. For example, a child
will not act courteously merely to please a particular parent. Rather, the child
comes to understand that courtesy is a widespread social value endorsed by
parents, teachers, and religious leaders.
Table 4-1 summarizes the three stages of the self outlined by George
Herbert Mead.
Mead: Theory of the Self
Mead is best known for his theory of the self. According to Mead (1964b),
the self begins at a privileged, central position in a person’s world. Young
children picture themselves as the focus of everything around them and find
it difficult to consider the perspectives of others. For example, when
shown a mountain scene and asked to describe what an observer on
the opposite side of the mountain might see (such as a lake or hikers), young
children describe only objects visible from their vantage point. This
childhood tendency to place ourselves at the center of events never entirely
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disappears. Many people with a fear of flying automatically assume that if
any plane goes down, it will be the one they are on. And who reads the
horoscope section in the paper without looking at their own horoscope first?
Why else do we buy lottery tickets, if we do not imagine ourselves winning?
Nonetheless, as people mature, the self changes and begins to reflect
greater concern about the reactions of others. Parents, friends, co-workers,
coaches, and teachers are often among those who play a major role in shaping
a person’s self. The term significant others is used to refer to those
individuals who are most important in the development of the self. Many
young people, for example, find themselves drawn to the same kind of work
their parents engage in (H. Sullivan [1953] 1968).
Use Your Sociological Imagination
How do you view yourself as you interact with others around you? How do
you think you formed this view of yourself?
Goffman: Presentation of the Self
How do we manage our “self”? How do we display to others who we are?
Erving Goffman, a sociologist associated with the interactionist perspective,
suggested that many of our daily activities involve attempts to convey
impressions of who we are. His observations help us to understand the
sometimes subtle yet critical ways in which we learn to present ourselves
socially. They also offer concrete examples of this aspect of socialization.
Early in life, the individual learns to slant his or her presentation of the self
in order to create distinctive appearances and satisfy particular audiences.
Goffman (1959) referred to this altering of the presentation of the self as
impression management. Box 4-1 describes an everyday example of this
concept—the way students behave after receiving their exam grades.
SOCIOLOGY ON CAMPUS
4-1 Impression Management by Students
When you and fellow classmates get an exam back, you probably react
differently depending on the grades each of you earned. This distinction is
part of impression management. Researchers have found that students’
reactions differ depending on the grades that others received, compared to
their own. These encounters can be divided into three categories: those in
which all students earned high grades (Ace–Ace encounters); those
between Aces and students who received low or failing grades (Ace–
Bomber encounters); and those between students who all got low grades
(Bomber–Bomber encounters).
Ace–Ace encounters occur in a rather open atmosphere, because there is
comfort in sharing a high mark with another high achiever. It is even
acceptable to violate the norm of modesty and brag when among other
Aces, since as one student admitted, “It’s much easier to admit a high mark
to someone who has done better than you, or at least as well.”
Ace–Bomber encounters are often sensitive. Bombers generally attempt
to avoid such exchanges, because “you . . . emerge looking like the dumb
one” or “feel like you are lazy or unreliable.” When forced into interactions
with Aces, Bombers work to appear gracious and congratulatory. For their
part, Aces offer sympathy and support to the dissatisfied Bombers and even
rationalize their own “lucky” high scores. To help Bombers save face, Aces
may emphasize the difficulty and unfairness of the examination.
Bomber–Bomber encounters tend to be closed, reflecting the group effort
to wall off the feared disdain of others. Yet within the safety of these
encounters, Bombers openly share their disappointment and engage in
expressions of mutual self-pity that they themselves call “pity parties.” They
devise face-saving excuses for their poor performance, such as “I wasn’t
feeling well all week” or “I had four exams and two papers due that week.”
When forced into interactions with Aces,
Bombers work to appear gracious and
congratulatory.
Of course, grade comparisons are not the only occasion when students
engage in impression management. Another study has shown that students’
perceptions of how often fellow students work out can also influence their
social encounters. In athletic terms, a bomber would be someone who
doesn’t work out; an ace would be someone who works hard at physical
fitness.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. How do you react to those who have received higher or lower grades
than you? Do you engage in impression management? How would you
like others to react to your grade?
2. What social norms govern students’ impression management strategies?
Sources: Albas and Albas 1988, 1996; Austin 2009; M. Mack 2003; Scott
2016.
In analyzing such everyday social interactions, Goffman makes so many
explicit parallels to the theater that his view has been termed the
dramaturgical approach. According to this perspective, people resemble
performers in action. For example, a clerk may try to appear busier than he or
she actually is if a supervisor happens to be watching. A customer in a
singles’ bar may try to look as if he or she is waiting for a particular person to
arrive.
Goffman (1959) also drew attention to another aspect of the self, face-
work. How often do you initiate some kind of face-saving behavior when
you feel embarrassed or rejected? In response to a rejection at the singles’
bar, a person may engage in face-work by saying, “There really isn’t an
interesting person in this entire crowd.” We feel the need to maintain a proper
image of the self if we are to continue social interaction.
Face-work is a necessity for those who are unemployed. In an economic
downturn like the recent recession, unemployment affects people of all social
classes, many of whom are unaccustomed to being jobless. A recent
ethnographic study found the newly unemployed redefining what it means to
be out of work. They were focusing more than in the past on what they were
accomplishing, and had begun to value volunteer work more since they had
become volunteers themselves. Participants in this study engaged in both
impression management and face-work (Garrett-Peters 2009).
Goffman’s work on the self represents a logical progression of sociological
studies begun by Cooley and Mead on how personality is acquired through
socialization and how we manage the presentation of the self to others.
Cooley stressed the process by which we create a self; Mead focused on how
the self develops as we learn to interact with others; Goffman emphasized the
ways in which we consciously create images of ourselves for others.
©Scott Arthur Masear. Reprinted by permission of www.CartoonStock.com.
People judge us by our appearance, attire, body language, demeanor, and
mannerisms. Knowing that they do, most of us alter the way we present
ourselves to others, a strategy that Goffman called impression management.
Psychological Approaches to the Self
Psychologists have shared the interest of Cooley, Mead, and other
sociologists in the development of the self. Early work in psychology, such as
that of Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), stressed the role of inborn drives—
among them the drive for sexual gratification—in channeling human
behavior. More recently, psychologists such as Jean Piaget have emphasized
the stages through which human development progresses.
Like Charles Horton Cooley and George Herbert Mead, Freud believed that
the self is a social product, and that aspects of one’s personality are
influenced by other people (especially one’s parents). However, unlike
Cooley and Mead, he suggested that the self has components that work in
opposition to each other. According to Freud, our natural impulsive instincts
are in constant conflict with societal constraints. Part of us seeks limitless
pleasure, while another part favors rational behavior. By interacting with
others, we learn the expectations of society and then select behavior most
appropriate to our culture. (Of course, as Freud was well aware, we
sometimes distort reality and behave irrationally.)
Research on newborn babies by the Swiss child psychologist Jean Piaget
(1896–1980) has underscored the importance of social interactions in
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developing a sense of self. Piaget found that newborns have no self in the
sense of a looking-glass image. Ironically, though, they are quite self-
centered; they demand that all attention be directed toward them. Newborns
have not yet separated themselves from the universe of which they are a part.
For these babies, the phrase “you and me” has no meaning; they understand
only “me.” However, as they mature, children are gradually socialized into
social relationships, even within their rather self-centered world.
In his well-known cognitive theory of development, Piaget (1954)
identified four stages in the development of children’s thought processes. In
the first, or sensorimotor, stage, young children use their senses to make
discoveries. For example, through touching they discover that their hands are
actually a part of themselves. During the second, or preoperational, stage,
children begin to use words and symbols to distinguish objects and ideas. The
milestone in the third, or concrete operational, stage is that children engage
in more logical thinking. They learn that even when a formless lump of clay
is shaped into a snake, it is still the same clay. In the fourth, or formal
operational, stage, adolescents become capable of sophisticated abstract
thought and can deal logically with ideas and values.
According to Piaget, social interaction is the key to development. As
children grow older, they pay increasing attention to how other people think
and why they act in particular ways. In order to develop a distinct personality,
each of us needs opportunities to interact with others. As we saw earlier,
Isabelle was deprived of the chance for normal social interactions, and the
consequences were severe (Kitchener 1991).
We have seen that a number of thinkers considered social interaction the
key to the development of an individual’s sense of self. As is
generally true, we can best understand this topic by drawing on a
variety of theory and research. Table 4-2 summarizes the rich literature, both
sociological and psychological, on the development of the self.
thinking CRITICALLY
What are some similarities between Mead’s stages of the self and Piaget’s
cognitive development stages? What are some differences?
Agents of Socialization
As we have seen, the culture of the United States is defined by rather gradual
movements from one stage of socialization to the next. The continuing and
lifelong socialization process involves many different social forces that
influence our lives and alter our self-images.
The family is the most important agent of socialization in the United States,
especially for children. In this chapter, we’ll also discuss six other agents of
socialization: the school, the peer group, the mass media and technology, the
workplace, religion, and the state.
Family
The lifelong process of learning begins shortly after birth. Since newborns
can hear, see, smell, taste, and feel heat, cold, and pain, they are constantly
orienting themselves to the surrounding world. Human beings, especially
family members, constitute an important part of their social environment.
People minister to the baby’s needs by feeding, cleaning, carrying, and
comforting the baby.
All families engage in socialization, but the way that Amish families
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encourage their children to accept their community’s subculture is
particularly striking. Box 4-2 describes their tolerance for the period of
rebellion known as rum springa, during which Amish children flirt with the
adolescent subculture of mainstream American society.
RESEARCH TODAY
4-2 Rum Springa: Raising Children Amish
Style
All families face challenges raising their children, but what if your parents
expected you not to dance, listen to music, watch television, or access the
Internet? This is the challenge faced by Amish teens and their parents, who
embrace a lifestyle of the mid-1800s. Amish youths—boys in particular—
often rebel against their parents’ strict morals by getting drunk, behaving
disrespectfully, and indulging in “worldly” activities, such as buying a car. At
times even the girls may become involved, to their families’ dismay. As one
scholar puts it, “The rowdiness of Amish youth is an embarrassment to
church leaders and a stigma in the larger community” (Kraybill 2001:138).
Yet the strong pull of mainstream American culture has led Amish parents
to routinize, almost to accept, some of their children’s worldly activities.
They expect adolescents to test their subculture’s boundaries during a
period of discovery called rum springa, a German term meaning “running
around.” A common occurrence during which young people attend barn
dances and break social norms that forbid drinking, smoking, and driving
cars, rum springa is definitely not supported by the Amish religion.
©Lee Snider Photo Images/Shutterstock
Parents often react to these escapades by looking the other way,
sometimes literally. If they hear radio music coming from the barn, or a
motorcycle driving onto their property in the middle of the night, they don’t
retaliate by punishing their offspring. Instead, they pretend not to notice,
secure in the knowledge that Amish children almost always return to the
community’s traditional values. Indeed, despite the flirtation with popular
culture and modern technology that is common during the rum springa, the
vast majority of Amish youths do return to the Amish community and
become baptized. Scholars report that 85 to 90 percent of Amish children
accept the faith as young adults.
All families face challenges raising their
children, but what if your parents expected you
not to dance, listen to music, watch television, or
access the Internet?
To mainstream Americans, this little known and understood subculture
became a source of entertainment when in 2004, UPN aired a 10-week
reality program called Amish in the City. In the series, five Amish youths
allegedly on rum springa moved in with six worldly wise young adults in Los
Angeles. On behalf of the Amish community, some critics called the series
exploitative, a sign of how vulnerable the Amish are. No similar series would
be developed on the rebellion of Muslim or Orthodox Jewish youths, they
charged.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. Do you or anyone you know come from a subculture that rejects
mainstream American culture? If so, describe the community’s norms
and values. How do they resemble and how do they differ from Amish
norms and values?
2. Why do you think so many Amish youths return to their families’ way of
life after rebelling against it?
Sources: Kraybill 2001; R. Schaefer and Zellner 2015; Shachtman 2006;
Stevick 2007; Weinraub 2004.
In the United States, social development also includes exposure to cultural
assumptions regarding gender and race. Black parents, for example, have
learned that children as young as age two can absorb negative messages
about Blacks in children’s books, toys, and television shows—all of which
are designed primarily for White consumers. At the same time, Black
children are exposed more often than others to the inner-city youth gang
culture. Because most Blacks, even those who are middle class, live near very
poor neighborhoods, their children are susceptible to these influences, despite
their parents’ strong family values (Linn and Poussaint 1999; Pattillo-McCoy
1999).
The term gender role refers to expectations regarding the proper behavior,
attitudes, and activities of males and females. For example, we traditionally
think of “toughness” as masculine—and desirable only in men—while we
view “tenderness” as feminine. Other cultures do not necessarily assign these
qualities to each gender in the way that our culture does. The existence of
gender roles does not imply that inevitably, males and females will assume
certain roles, nor does it imply that those roles are quite distinct from one
another. Rather, gender roles emphasize the fact that males and females are
not genetically predetermined to occupy certain roles.
©Florian Franke/Purestock/SuperStock
A college experiment asking students to polish the fingernails of someone of
the opposite sex reveals both how we view gender expectations as well as
the care that needs to be shown in conducting experiments with human
subjects.
Experiments can help illuminate this aspect of social behavior. Sociologist
Nelta Edwards at the University of Alaska, Anchorage, would ask her
students to polish the fingernails of a friend of the opposite sex with supplies
she provided. Men were very reluctant to have their nails polished and
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typically chose clear or black as the color. When they then went out in public,
they encountered taunts and name-calling, even from strangers. The
male students reported that they either avoided going out in public,
quickly removed the polish, or engaged in some impression management: “I
had to do it for my Soc 101 class.”
The women whose nails were polished by men often expressed concern
with the sloppiness with which their fingernails were done. When men did
the job well, the female students admitted feeling surprised. Such an
experiment easily showed how gender roles can be defined. But since
experiments with people need to be carried out carefully, Edwards (2010)
acknowledges that the experimenter must be mindful that a student could be
physically abused or that the experiment might intensify anti-gay feelings.
©Michel Renaudeau/age fotostock
A daughter learns how to weave fabric from her mother in Guatemala. The
family is the most important agent of socialization.
As the primary agents of childhood socialization, parents play a critical role
in guiding children into those gender roles deemed appropriate in a society.
Other adults, older siblings, the mass media, and religious and educational
institutions also have a noticeable impact on a child’s socialization into
feminine and masculine norms. A culture or subculture may require that one
sex or the other take primary responsibility for the socialization of children,
economic support of the family, or religious or intellectual leadership. In
some societies, girls are socialized mainly by their mothers and boys by their
fathers—an arrangement that may prevent girls from learning critical survival
skills. In South Asia, fathers teach their sons to swim to prepare them for a
life as fishermen; girls typically do not learn to swim. When a deadly tsunami
hit the coast of South Asia in 2004, many more men survived than women.
School
Like the family, schools have an explicit mandate to socialize people in the
United States—especially children—into the norms and values of our culture.
As conflict theorists Samuel Bowles and Herbert Gintis ([1976] 2011) have
observed, schools in this country foster competition through built-in systems
of reward and punishment, such as grades and evaluations by teachers.
Consequently, a child who is experiencing difficulty trying to learn a new
skill can sometimes come to feel stupid and unsuccessful. However, as the
self matures, children become capable of increasingly realistic assessments of
their intellectual, physical, and social abilities.
Functionalists point out that schools, as agents of socialization, fulfill the
function of teaching children the values and customs of the larger society.
Conflict theorists agree, but add that schools can reinforce the divisive
aspects of society, especially those of social class. For example, higher
education in the United States is costly despite the existence of financial aid
programs. Students from affluent backgrounds therefore have an advantage in
gaining access to universities and professional training. At the same time, less
affluent young people may never receive the preparation that would qualify
them for the best-paying and most prestigious jobs.
Peer Group
As a child grows older, the family becomes somewhat less important in social
development. Instead, peer groups increasingly assume the role of Mead’s
significant others. Within the peer group, young people associate with others
who are approximately their age, and who often enjoy a similar social status
(Giordano 2003).
We can see how important peer groups are to young people when their
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social lives are strained by war or disaster. In Syria, social groupings have
been torn apart by civil war, invasion, and bombings. In 2012, Fatmeh
described her life as that of a typical teenager whose daily routine was all
about school, classes, friends, and homework. Three years later, at age 15,
she was living in a makeshift shelter in Lebanon. When she left Syria, she
still hoped to continue her studies in Lebanon and become a
language teacher, but that is unlikely to happen, because her whole
family must do farm work seven days a week to maintain their meager life.
Her only connection beyond her immediate family is her cell phone, which
allows her to keep up with news about Syria and to hear songs about her
homeland. Fatmeh says she still has “very small hope” that someday she will
be able to return to school and eventually go to college. “Very small, small
hope,” she says (Beaubien and Davis 2015).
TAKING SOCIOLOGY TO
WORK
Rakefet Avramovitz, Program Administrator,
Child Care Law Center
Rakefet Avramovitz has been working at the Child Care Law Center in San
Francisco since 2003. The center uses legal tools to foster the development
of quality, affordable child care, with the goal of expanding child care
options, particularly for low-income families. As a support person for the
center’s attorneys, she manages grants, oversees the center’s publications,
and sets up conferences and training sessions.
Courtesy of Rakefet Avriamovitz
Avramovitz graduated from Dickinson College in 2000. She first became
interested in sociology when she took a social analysis course. Though she
enjoyed her qualitative courses most, she found her quantitative courses
fun, “in that we got to do surveys of people on campus. I’ve always enjoyed
fieldwork,” she notes. Avramovitz’s most memorable course was one that
gave her the opportunity to interact with migrant farmworkers for an entire
semester. “I learned ethnography and how to work with people of different
cultures. It changed my life,” she says.
Avramovitz finds that the skills she learned in her sociology courses are a
great help to her on the job. “Sociology taught me how to work with people .
. . and how to think critically. It taught me how to listen and find the stories
that people are telling,” she explains. Before joining the Child Care Law
Center, Avramovitz worked as a counselor for women who were facing
difficult issues. “My background in ethnography helped me to talk to these
women and listen effectively,” she notes. “I was able to help many women
by understanding and being able to express their needs to the attorneys we
worked with.”
Avramovitz is enthusiastic about her work and her ability to make a
difference in other people’s lives. Maybe that is why she looks forward to
summer at the center, when the staff welcomes several law students as
interns. “It is really neat to see people learn and get jazzed about child care
issues,” she says.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. What might be some of the broad, long-term effects of the center’s work
to expand child care options? Explain.
2. Besides the law, what other professions might benefit from the skills a
sociology major has to offer?
Courtesy of Rakefet Avramovitz.
Gender differences are noteworthy among adolescents. Boys and girls are
socialized by their parents, peers, and the media to identify many of the same
paths to popularity, but to different degrees. Table 4-3 compares male and
female college students’ reports of how girls and boys they knew became
popular in high school. The two groups named many of the same paths to
popularity but gave them a different order of importance. While neither men
nor women named sexual activity, drug use, or alcohol use as one of the top
five paths, college men were much more likely than women to mention those
behaviors as a means to becoming popular, for both boys and girls.
Note: Students at the following universities were asked in which ways adolescents in
their high schools had gained prestige with their peers: Cornell University, Louisiana
State University, Southeastern Louisiana University, State University of New York at
Albany, State University of New York at Stony Brook, University of Georgia, and
University of New Hampshire.
Source: Suitor et al. 2001:445.
Mass Media and Technology
In the past century, media innovations—radio, motion pictures, recorded
music, television, and the Internet—have become important agents of
socialization. The question is no longer whether young people are plugged in,
but how they use these resources. Today, 95 percent of those ages 12 to 17
are on the Internet. No surprise there, but 91 percent of them post photos
identifying themselves by name. Ninety-two percent use their real names, and
82 percent post their birth dates on social media.
Increasingly, then, socialization occurs online. The age at which young
people go online has also been dropping, prompting concern about the
potential for media abuse at an earlier and earlier age. Over the last decade,
the American Academy of Pediatrics began by publishing concerns about
teen use of the Internet. Recently, the organization published guidelines for
the 90 percent of infants who use the Internet—via their parents, of course
(American Academy of Pediatrics 2011, 2013; Madden et al. 2013). Given
the manner in which young people access social media, little wonder that
adults are supervising their children’s ventures into online interaction, as we
see in Box 4-3.
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RESEARCH TODAY
4-3 Parental Monitoring of the Digital World
News stories about young people who engage in dangerous behavior, from
self-mutilation to acts of terrorism or attempts at suicide, often imply that
these bad outcomes had been preceded by risky online behaviors. In
addition more and more concern has been raised about cyberbullying
directed toward young people by their peers. Typically parents and other
adult guardians profess little or no knowledge of what their children were
doing online, even though recent surveys show about a third of young
people spend at least 4 hours a day with onscreen media. In comparison,
the majority report spending no time reading on any given day.
So what does social research tell us about how actively parents supervise
online activity? In 2014, a national survey of the parents of teens (ages 13
to 17) found that parents undertake a range of activities to monitor their
teens’ lives online. As shown in the accompanying figure, parents are more
likely to become involved in the digital lives of their younger teens than
those that are a bit older.
Parental Monitoring of Teenagers’ Online Activity
Source: Anderson, Monica. Parents, Teens, and Digital Monitoring. 2016,
pp. 7–8, 16.
[A]bout a third of young people spend at least 4
hours a day with onscreen media. In comparison,
the majority report spending no time reading on
any given day.
Overall mothers are more likely to monitor online activity than are fathers.
Parents who have lower incomes and less education tend to discuss online
activity more than affluent or better-educated parents. Hispanic and Black
parents report getting more involved with their children’s digital
communication than do White parents.
Despite this reported close involvement, only about half of all parents
report knowing their children’s password for e-mail and cellphone use, and
only one-third say they know the password to their children’s social media
accounts. This raises reasonable questions about how closely parents are
truly monitoring their children’s activities.
LET’S DISCUSS
1. How important is it for parents to monitor their children’s online activity?
At what age should monitoring end?
2. Why do you think the degree of parental monitoring varies by race,
income, and education level?
Sources: Anderson 2016; Common Sense Media 2015; Mesch 2009.
Not just in industrial nations, but in Africa and other developing areas,
people have been socialized into relying on new communications
technologies. Not long ago, if Zadhe Iyombe wanted to talk to his mother, he
had to make an eight-day trip from the capital city of Kinshasa up the Congo
River by boat to the rural town where he was born. Now both he and his
mother have access to a cell phone, and they send text messages to each other
daily. Iyombe and his mother are not atypical. Although cell phones aren’t
cheap, 51 percent of people in low-income nations have them, compared to 4
Page 82
percent who have a computer at home (World Bank 2015a:Tables 5.11, 5.12).
That said, not all new communications technologies are widely available in
developing nations. For example, many people in these countries cannot
afford broadband Internet service. In terms of their relative income,
broadband service is 40 times more expensive to people in developing
countries than it is to the typical person in an industrialized nation
(International Telecommunication Union 2012).
Workplace
Learning to behave appropriately in an occupation is a fundamental aspect of
human socialization. It used to be that going to work began with the end of
our formal schooling, but that is no longer the case, at least not in the United
States. More and more young people work today, and not just for a parent or
relative. Adolescents generally seek jobs in order to make spending money;
80 percent of high school seniors say that little or none of what they earn
goes to family expenses. These teens rarely look on their employment as a
means of exploring vocational interests or getting on-the-job training.
Some observers feel that the increasing number of teenagers who are
working earlier in life and for longer hours are finding the workplace almost
as important an agent of socialization as school. In fact, a number of
educators complain that student time at work is adversely affecting
schoolwork. The level of teenage employment in the United States is the
highest among industrial countries, which may provide one explanation for
why U.S. high school students lag behind those in other countries on
international achievement tests.
Socialization in the workplace changes when it involves a more permanent
shift from an after-school job to full-time employment. Occupational
socialization can be most intense during the transition from school to job, but
it continues throughout one’s work history. Technological advances may alter
the requirements of the position and necessitate some degree of
resocialization. Today, men and women change occupations, employers, or
places of work many times during their adult years. For example, the
typical worker spends about four years with an employer.
Occupational socialization continues, then, throughout a person’s years in the
labor market (Bialik 2010).
©Jake Lyell/Alamy Stock Photo
In Soroti, Uganda, a woman makes a quick telephone call. Cell phones play a
critical role in communications and commerce in developing countries, where
other ways of connecting are less available or more expensive.
College students today recognize that occupational socialization is not
socialization into one lifetime occupation. They anticipate going through a
number of jobs. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (2015a) has found that from
ages 18 to 48, the typical person has held 12 jobs, but nearly half of these
jobs are held between ages 18 and 24. This high rate of turnover in
employment applies to both men and women, and to those with a college
degree as well as those with a high school diploma.
Religion and the State
Increasingly, social scientists are recognizing the importance of both religion
and government (“the state”) as agents of socialization, because of their
impact on the life course. Traditionally, family members have served as the
primary caregivers in our culture, but in the 20th century, the family’s
protective function was steadily transferred to outside agencies such as
hospitals, mental health clinics, and child care centers. Many of these
agencies are run by groups affiliated with certain religions or by the state.
Both organized religion and government have impacted the life course by
reinstituting some of the rites of passage once observed in agricultural
communities and early industrial societies. For example, religious
organizations stipulate certain traditional rites that may bring together all the
members of an extended family, even if they never meet for any other reason.
And government regulations stipulate the ages at which a person may drive a
car, drink alcohol, vote in elections, marry without parental permission, work
overtime, and retire. These regulations do not constitute strict rites of
passage: most 18-year-olds choose not to vote, and most people choose their
age of retirement without reference to government dictates.
In the Social Policy section at the end of this chapter, we will see that
government is under pressure to become a provider of child care, which
would give it a new and direct role in the socialization of infants and young
children.
thinking CRITICALLY
How would functionalist and conflict theorists differ in their analysis of
socialization by the mass media?
Socialization throughout the Life
Course
The Life Course
Among the Kota people of the Congo in Africa, adolescents paint themselves
blue. Mexican American girls go on a daylong religious retreat before
dancing the night away. Egyptian mothers step over their newborn infants
seven times, and graduating students at the Naval Academy throw their hats
in the air. These are all ways of celebrating rites of passage, or rituals that
mark a symbolic transition from one social position to another. Rites of
passage are ways of validating and or dramatizing changes in a person’s
status. They may mark a separation, as in a graduation ceremony, or an
incorporation, as in an initiation into an organization (Van Gennep [1909]
1960).
Rites of passage are a worldwide social phenomenon. The Kota rite marks
the passage to adulthood. The color blue, viewed as the color of death,
symbolizes the death of childhood. Hispanic girls celebrate reaching
womanhood with a quinceañera ceremony at age 15. In the Cuban American
community of Miami, the popularity of the quinceañera supports a network
of party planners, caterers, dress designers, and the Miss Quinceañera Latina
pageant. For thousands of years, Egyptian mothers have welcomed their
newborns to the world in the Soboa ceremony by stepping over the seven-
day-old infant seven times.
©Paul Chesley/Getty Images
A young Apache woman undergoes a mudding ceremony traditionally used in
rites of passage, such as puberty and in some cases weddings.
These specific ceremonies mark stages of development in the life course.
They indicate that the process of socialization continues through all stages of
the life cycle. In fact, some researchers have chosen to concentrate on
socialization as a lifelong process. Sociologists and other social scientists
who take such a life course approach look closely at the social factors that
influence people throughout their lives, from birth to death, including gender
and income. They recognize that biological changes mold but do not dictate
human behavior.
Several life events mark the passage to adulthood, including marriage and
the birth of a first child. Of course, these turning points vary from one society
or even one generation to the next. In the United States, the key event seems
to be the completion of formal schooling. However, educational completion
Page 83
is not as clearly defined today as it was a generation or two ago.
More and more people are taking full-time jobs while finishing
their schooling, or returning to school to obtain a professional
certificate or advanced degree. Similarly, the milestones associated with
leaving home, finding a stable job, and establishing a long-term personal
relationship do not now occur at specific ages (Silva 2012; T. Smith 2003).
One result of these overlapping steps to independence is that in the United
States, unlike some other societies, there is no clear dividing line between
adolescence and adulthood. Nowadays, few young people finish school, get
married, and leave home at about the same age, clearly establishing their
transition to adulthood. The terms youthhood, emerging adulthood, and not
quite adult have been coined to describe the prolonged ambiguous status that
young people in their 20s experience (Côté 2000; Settersten and Ray 2011;
Christian Smith 2007).
Use Your Sociological Imagination
Why do you think the end of formal schooling is the most important milestone
of adulthood today? What about marriage, full-time employment, or financial
independence from parents or guardians? Which milestone do you think is
the most important?
Anticipatory Socialization and Resocialization
The development of a social self is literally a lifelong transformation that
begins in the crib and continues as one prepares for death. Two types of
socialization occur at many points throughout the life course: anticipatory
socialization and resocialization.
Anticipatory socialization refers to processes of socialization in which a
person rehearses for future positions, occupations, and social relationships. A
culture can function more efficiently and smoothly if members become
acquainted with the norms, values, and behavior associated with a social
position before actually assuming that status. Preparation for many aspects of
adult life begins with anticipatory socialization during childhood and
adolescence, and continues throughout our lives as we prepare for new
responsibilities.
You can see the process of anticipatory socialization take place when high
school students start to consider what colleges they may attend. Traditionally,
this task meant looking at publications received in the mail or making
campus visits. However, with new technology, more and more students are
using the web to begin their college experience. Colleges are investing more
time and money in developing attractive websites through which students can
take virtual campus tours and hear audio clips of everything from the college
anthem to a sample zoology lecture.
Occasionally, assuming a new social or occupational position requires us to
unlearn an established orientation. Resocialization refers to the process of
discarding former behavior patterns and accepting new ones as part of a
transition in one’s life. Often resocialization occurs during an explicit effort
to transform an individual, as happens in reform schools, therapy groups,
prisons, religious conversion settings, and political indoctrination camps. The
process of resocialization typically involves considerable stress for the
individual—much more so than socialization in general, or even anticipatory
socialization (Gecas 2004).
Resocialization is particularly effective when it occurs within a total
institution. Erving Goffman (1961) coined the term total institution to refer
to an institution that regulates all aspects of a person’s life under a single
authority, such as a prison, the military, a mental hospital, or a convent.
Because the total institution is generally cut off from the rest of society, it
provides for all the needs of its members. Quite literally, the crew of a
merchant vessel at sea becomes part of a total institution. So elaborate are its
requirements, so all-encompassing its activities, a total institution often
represents a miniature society.
Goffman (1961) identified four common traits of total institutions:
All aspects of life are conducted in the same place under the control of a
single authority.
Any activities within the institution are conducted in the company of
others in the same circumstances—for example, army recruits or novices
in a convent.
The authorities devise rules and schedule activities without consulting
the participants.
All aspects of life within a total institution are designed to fulfill the
purpose of the organization. Thus, all activities in a monastery might be
Page 84
centered on prayer and communion with God (Davies 1989; P. Rose et
al. 1979).
People often lose their individuality within total institutions. For example, a
person entering prison may experience the humiliation of a degradation
ceremony as he or she is stripped of clothing, jewelry, and other personal
possessions. From this point on, scheduled daily routines allow for little or no
personal initiative. The individual becomes secondary and rather invisible in
the overbearing social environment (Garfinkel 1956).
Source: Cpl. Benjamin E. Woodle, United States Marine Corp
Marine recruits undergoing grueling basic training at Parris Island, South
Carolina. The military is an example of what sociologists call a total
institution.
thinking CRITICALLY
What examples of anticipatory socialization did you experience as a child or
as a teenager? What examples are you currently experiencing?
Role Transitions throughout the Life
Course
We have seen that socialization is a lifelong process. We simply do
not experience things the same way at different points in the life
course. For example, one study found that even falling in love differs
according to where we are in the life course. Young unmarried adults tend to
treat love as a noncommittal game or an obsession characterized by
possessiveness and dependency. People over age 50 are much more likely to
see love as involving commitment, and they tend to take a practical approach
to finding a partner who meets a set of rational criteria. That does not mean
that romance is dead among the older generation, however. Among those age
65 and over, 39 percent are “head over heels in love,” compared to only 25
percent of those ages 18 to 34. The life course, then, affects the manner in
which we relate to one another (G. Anderson 2009;Montgomery and Sorell
1997).
How we move through the life course varies dramatically, depending on
our personal preferences and circumstances. Some of us marry early, others
late; some have children and some don’t. These individual patterns are
influenced by social factors such as class, race, and gender. Only in the most
general terms, then, can we speak of stages or periods in the life course.
One transitional stage, identified by psychologist Daniel Levinson, begins
at the time at which an individual gradually enters the adult world, perhaps
by moving out of the parental home, beginning a career, or entering a
marriage. The next transitional period, the midlife transition, typically begins
at about age 40. Men and women often experience a stressful period of self-
evaluation, commonly known as the midlife crisis, in which they realize that
they have not achieved basic goals and ambitions and have little time left to
do so. Thus, Levinson (1978, 1996) found that most adults surveyed
experienced tumultuous midlife conflicts within the self and with the external
world.
Not all the challenges at this time of life come from career or one’s partner.
In the next section we will examine a special challenge faced by a growing
number of middle-aged adults: caring for two generations at once.
The Sandwich Generation
During the late 1990s social scientists focused on the sandwich generation
—adults who simultaneously try to meet the competing needs of their parents
and their children. That is, caregiving goes in two directions: (1) to children,
who even as young adults may still require significant direction, and (2) to
aging parents, whose health and economic problems may demand
intervention by their adult children. By 2010, 13 million Americans were
caring for both their children and their parents.
Like the role of caring for children, the role of caring for aging parents falls
disproportionately on women. Overall, women provide 60 percent of the care
their parents receive, and even more as the demands of the role grow more
intense and time-consuming. Increasingly, middle-aged women and younger
are finding themselves on the “daughter track,” as their time and attention are
diverted by the needs of their aging mothers and fathers (National Alliance
for Caregiving 2015).
The last major transition identified by Levinson occurs after age 60—
sometimes well after that age, given advances in health care, greater
longevity, and gradual acceptance within society of older people.
Nonetheless, there is a point at which people transition to a different lifestyle.
As we will see, this is a time of dramatic changes in people’s everyday lives.
©Rex Moreton/Bubbles Photolibrary/Alamy Stock Photo
This sandwich-generation mom cares for both her aging parent and her
children. Increasingly, members of the baby boom generation find themselves
Page 85
caring for two generations at once.
Adjusting to Retirement
Retirement is a rite of passage that marks a critical transition from one phase
of a person’s life to another. Typically, symbolic events are associated with
this rite of passage, such as retirement gifts, a retirement party, and special
moments on the last day on the job. The preretirement period itself can be
emotionally charged, especially if the retiree is expected to train his or her
successor (Atchley 1976).
Today, the retirement stage is complicated by economic challenges: many
older people now lack health benefits, pensions, or both. From 1950 to 1990,
the average age at retirement in the United States declined; since then,
however, it has risen. In 1992, 11.5 percent of those over age 64 were in the
labor force. By 2012, the proportion had increased to 18.5 percent, and is
projected to hit 23.0 percent by 2022. In that year, the proportion of people
still working in their upper 70s will match the proportion of those who were
working in their upper 60s in 1992. Indeed, as recently as 2012, 5
percent of women and 11 percent of men over age 75 were still
working (Bureau of Labor Statistics 2013c).
A variety of factors explains this reversal in the trend toward earlier
retirement. Changes in Social Security benefits, the recent economic
recession, and workers’ concern about maintaining their health insurance and
pension benefits have all contributed. At the same time, life expectancy has
increased and the quality of people’s health has improved (Toossi 2012).
Phases of Retirement
Gerontologist Robert Atchley (1976) has identified several phases of the
retirement experience:
Preretirement, a period of anticipatory socialization as the person
prepares for retirement
The near phase, when the person establishes a specific departure date
from his or her job
The honeymoon phase, an often euphoric period in which the person
pursues activities that he or she never had time for before
The disenchantment phase, in which retirees feel a sense of letdown or
even depression as they cope with their new lives, which may include
illness or poverty
The reorientation phase, which involves the development of a more
realistic view of retirement alternatives
The stability phase, a period in which the person has learned to deal with
life after retirement in a reasonable and comfortable fashion
The termination phase, which begins when the person can no longer
engage in basic, day-to-day activities such as self-care and housework
Retirement is not a single transition, then, but rather a series of adjustments
that varies from one person to another. The length and timing of each phase
will differ for each individual, depending on such factors as financial status
and health. A particular person will not necessarily go through all the phases
identified by Atchley (Reitzes and Mutran 2006).
Some factors, such as being forced into retirement or being burdened with
financial difficulties, can further complicate the retirement process. People
who enter retirement involuntarily or without the necessary means may never
experience the honeymoon phase. In the United States, many retirees
continue in the paid labor force, often taking part-time jobs to supplement
their pensions.
Like other aspects of life in the United States, the experience of retirement
varies according to gender, race, and ethnicity. White males are most likely to
benefit from retirement wages, as well as to have participated in a formal
retirement preparation program. As a result, anticipatory socialization for
retirement is most complete for White men. In contrast, members of racial
and ethnic minority groups—especially African Americans—are more likely
to exit the paid labor force through disability than through retirement.
Because of their comparatively lower incomes and smaller savings, men and
women from racial and ethnic minority groups work intermittently after
retirement more often than older Whites (National Institute on Aging 1999;
Quadagno 2014).
©Dave Carpenter. Reprinted by permission of www.CartoonStock.com.
Naturally Occurring Retirement Communities (NORCs)
With recent improvements in health care, older Americans have gained new
choices in where to live. Today, rather than residing in nursing homes or
planned retirement communities, many of them congregate in areas that have
gradually become informal centers for senior citizens. Social scientists have
dubbed such areas naturally occurring retirement communities (NORCs).
Using observation research, census data, and interviews, sociologists have
developed some interesting conclusions about NORCs in the United States,
which account for an estimated 17 to 25 percent of people age 65 or older.
These communities can be as small as a single apartment building or as large
as a neighborhood in a big city. Often, they emerge as singles and young
couples move out and older people move in. Sometimes couples simply
remain where they are; as they grow older, the community becomes
noticeably grayer. Such has been the case in the Fort Hamilton neighborhood
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in Brooklyn, New York, where a third of residents are now over 55. In time,
business establishments that cater to the elderly—pharmacies, medical supply
outlets, small restaurants, senior citizen centers—relocate to NORCs, making
them even more attractive to older citizens.
Unfortunately, residents of some of these communities are threatened by
gentrification, or the takeover of low-income neighborhoods by higher-
income residents. In Chicago, a high-rise building known as Ontario Place is
converting to a condominium, at prices that current residents cannot afford.
About half the building’s occupants are Russian immigrants; most of the
others are people who are elderly or disabled living on fixed incomes. These
people are distressed not just because they will need to move, but because
their community is being destroyed (Gregor 2013; Piturro 2012; Sheehan
2005).
thinking CRITICALLY
Today, many young adults continue to live with their parents after finishing
their schooling. Contrast their situation with that of the elderly who live with
their children. Does society treat dependent adult children in the same way
as dependent parents? Why or why not?
Use Your Sociological Imagination
How have people close to you, such as relatives, personally handled their
retirement from the labor force?
social policy and sociological
research
Child Care around the World
Child care programs are not just babysitting services; they have an
enormous influence on the development of young children—an influence
that has been growing with the movement of more and more women into
the paid labor force. The rise in single-parent families, increased job
opportunities for women, and the need for additional family income have all
propelled mothers of young children into the working world. Who should
care for the children of working mothers during working hours?
Looking at the Issue
Preschoolers typically are not cared for by their parents. Eighty-eight
percent of employed mothers depend on others to care for their children,
and 30 percent of mothers who aren’t employed have regular care
arrangements. In fact, children under age five are more likely to be cared for
on a daily basis by their grandparents or other relatives than by their
parents. Over a third of them are cared for by nonrelatives in nursery
schools, Head Start programs, day care centers, family day care, and other
arrangements (Bureau of the Census 2015b).
Researchers have found that high-quality child care centers do not
adversely affect the socialization of children; in fact, good day care benefits
children. The value of preschool programs was documented in a series of
studies conducted in the United States. Researchers found no significant
differences in infants who had received extensive nonmaternal care
compared with those who had been cared for solely by their mothers. They
also reported that more and more infants in the United States are being
placed in child care outside the home, and that overall, the quality of those
arrangements is better than has been found in previous studies. It is
difficult, however, to generalize about child care, since there is so much
variability among day care providers, and even among government policies
from one state to another (Campbell et al. 2014; NICHD 2007).
Few people in the United States or elsewhere can afford the luxury of
having a parent stay at home, or of paying for high-quality live-in child care.
For millions of mothers and fathers, finding the right kind of child care is a
challenge both to parenting and to the pocketbook. At present, the federal
government supports child care through subsidized programs, which target
low-income families, and income tax credits, which benefit families with
moderate incomes. The annual expenditure to assist low-income parents is
about $12 billion; the expenditure to support parents with moderate incomes
is $58 billion. Unfortunately, collectively these programs fall far short of
meeting the needs of low-income families in the United States, where child
care costs are the third highest among industrial countries (Cushing-Daniels
and Zedlewski 2008; Hamm and Martin 2015).
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Courtesy of Communicare, Perth, Australia
Children play at the Communicare day care center in Perth, Australia. The
Australian government subsidizes children’s attendance at day care and
afterschool programs from birth to age 12.
Applying Sociology
Studies that assess the quality of child care outside the home reflect the
micro level of analysis and the interest of interactionists in the impact of
face-to-face interaction. These studies also explore macro-level implications
for the functioning of social institutions like the family. Some of the issues
surrounding day care have also been of interest to those who take the
conflict perspective.
In the United States, high-quality day care is not equally available to all
families. Parents in affluent communities have an easier time finding day
care than those in poor or working-class communities. Finding affordable
child care is also a problem. Viewed from a conflict perspective, child care
costs are an especially serious burden for lower-class families. The poorest
families spend 25 percent of their income for preschool child care, whereas
families who are not poor pay only 6 percent or less of their income. Despite
these problems, subsidized child care has steadily declined over the last
decade.
Feminist theorists echo the concern of conflict theorists that high-quality
child care receives little government support because it is regarded as
“merely a way to let women work.” Nearly all child care workers (97 percent)
are women; many find themselves in low-status, minimum-wage jobs.
Typically, food servers, messengers, and gas station attendants make more
money than the 1.3 million child care workers in the United States, whose
average annual salary of $22,310 puts them right at the poverty level for a
family of four (Child Care Aware 2017; Semega et al. 2017:43).
Initiating Policy
Policies regarding child care outside the home vary throughout the world.
Most developing nations do not have the economic base to provide
subsidized child care. Thus, working mothers rely largely on relatives or
take their children to work. In the comparatively wealthy industrialized
countries of western Europe, government provides child care as a basic
service, at little or no expense to parents. But even those countries with tax-
subsidized programs occasionally fall short of the need for high-quality child
care.
When policymakers decide that child care is desirable, they must
determine the degree to which taxpayers should subsidize it. In Sweden
and Denmark, one-half to two-thirds of preschoolers are in government-
subsidized child care full-time. In the United States, average 2017 annual
fees for full-time child care of a four-year-old range from $4,556 in
Mississippi to $14,256 in Massachusetts (Child Care Aware 2017; Morath
2016).
Japan is facing a special dilemma. Traditionally, married women and
certainly married mothers did not remain in the labor force. Although this
social pattern is slowly changing, the availability of day care has not kept
pace. Many Japanese policymakers have difficulty recognizing the need for
day care. “Is your work so important that you must put your baby in
childcare?” they ask. “Why are you being so self-centered?” Little wonder
that a single private day care center in Japan recently had a waiting list of
25,000 children (Tabuchi 2013:A9).
We have a long way to go in making high-quality child care more
affordable and accessible, not just in the United States but throughout the
world as well. In an attempt to reduce government spending, many
European countries reduced subsidies. Indeed, 53 percent of women report
that they either do not work or are forced to work part-time because child
care is too expensive. Another 25 percent are unable to locate child care
services. Increasingly European parents, like those in the United States, are
forced to cobble together child care out of after-school programs and
informal care with friends and relatives (Janta 2014).
Take the Issue with You
1. Were you ever in a day care program? If so, do you recall the experience
as good or bad? In general, do you think it is desirable to expose young
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children to the socializing influence of day care?
2. In the view of conflict theorists, child care receives little government
support because it is “merely a way to let women work.” Can you think of
other explanations?
3. Should the costs of day care programs be paid by government, by the
private sector, or entirely by parents?
Mastering This Chapter
Summary
Socialization is the process through which people learn the attitudes,
values, and actions appropriate for members of a particular culture. This
chapter examines the role of socialization in human development; the way
in which people develop perceptions, feelings, and beliefs about
themselves; important agents of socialization; and the lifelong nature of the
socialization process.
1. Socialization affects the overall cultural practices of a society; it also
shapes the images that we hold of ourselves.
2. Heredity and environmental factors interact in influencing the
socialization process.
3. In the early 1900s, Charles Horton Cooley advanced the belief that
we learn who we are by interacting with others, a phenomenon he
called the looking-glass self.
4. George Herbert Mead, best known for his theory of the self,
proposed that as people mature, their selves begin to reflect their
concern about reactions from others—both generalized others and
significant others.
5. Erving Goffman has shown that in many of our daily
activities, we try to convey distinct impressions of who we
are, a process he called impression management.
6. As the primary agents of socialization, parents play a critical role in
guiding children into those gender roles deemed appropriate in a
society.
7. Like the family, schools in the United States have an explicit mandate
to socialize people—especially children—into the norms and values
of our culture.
8. Peer groups and the mass media, especially television and the
Internet, are important agents of socialization for adolescents.
9. Socialization in the workplace begins with part-time employment
while we are in school and continues as we work full-time and
change jobs throughout our lives.
10. Religion and the state shape the socialization process by regulating
the life course and influencing our views of appropriate behavior at
particular ages.
11. Socialization proceeds throughout the life course. Some societies
mark stages of development with formal rites of passage. In the
culture of the United States, significant events such as the end of
formal schooling serve to change a person’s status.
12. As more and more mothers of young children have entered the labor
market, the demand for child care has increased dramatically, posing
policy questions for many nations around the world.
Key Terms
Anticipatory socialization Processes of socialization in which a person
rehearses for future positions, occupations, and social relationships.
Cognitive theory of development The theory that children’s thought
progresses through four stages of development.
Degradation ceremony An aspect of the socialization process within some
total institutions, in which people are subjected to humiliating rituals.
Dramaturgical approach A view of social interaction in which people are
seen as theatrical performers.
Face-work The efforts people make to maintain the proper image and avoid
public embarrassment.
Gender role Expectations regarding the proper behavior, attitudes, and
activities of males and females.
Generalized other The attitudes, viewpoints, and expectations of society as
a whole that a child takes into account in his or her behavior.
Impression management The altering of the presentation of the self in
order to create distinctive appearances and satisfy particular
audiences.
Life course approach A research orientation in which sociologists and
other social scientists look closely at the social factors that influence
people throughout their lives, from birth to death.
Looking-glass self A concept that emphasizes the self as the product of
our social interactions.
Midlife crisis A stressful period of self-evaluation that begins at about age
40.
Naturally occurring retirement community (NORC) An area that has
gradually become an informal center for senior citizens.
Personality A person’s typical patterns of attitudes, needs, characteristics,
and behavior.
Resocialization The process of discarding former behavior patterns and
accepting new ones as part of a transition in one’s life.
Rite of passage A ritual marking the symbolic transition from one social
position to another.
Role taking The process of mentally assuming the perspective of another
and responding from that imagined viewpoint.
Sandwich generation The generation of adults who simultaneously try to
meet the competing needs of their parents and their children.
Self A distinct identity that sets us apart from others.
Significant other An individual who is most important in the development of
the self, such as a parent, friend, or teacher.
Socialization The lifelong process in which people learn the attitudes,
values, and behaviors appropriate for members of a particular
culture.
Total institution An institution that regulates all aspects of a person’s life
under a single authority, such as a prison, the mi