Sociological Concepts

From ZuluNotes - Free Leaving Cert Notes

Sociology is the branch of knowledge that deals with the organisation and functioning of the human society. There are many words that are used to when discussing society.

• Society
• Norms
• Culture
• Status
• Values
• Socio- Economic Groupings
• Social Mobility
• Mores
• Primary Social Groups
• Secondary Social Groups
• Kinship
• Socialisation
• Social Institutions
• Primary Socialisation
• Kinship

Contents 1 Society 2 Norms 3 Culture 4 Status 5 Values 6 Socio-Economic Groups 7 Social Mobility 8 Mores 9 Primary Social Groups 10 Secondary Social Groups 11 Kinship 12 Socialisation 13 Social Institutions 14 Primary Socialisation 15 Roles 16 Kinship

[edit] Society

is a group of people with a common culture or way of life

[edit] Norms

Patterns of behaviour that are regarded as "normal" eg. getting a job, going to school or college etc

[edit] Culture

The beliefs, behavioural patterns, institutions and way of life of a society passed on form one generation to the next

[edit] Status

The position that a person has relative to others in society

[edit] Values

The principles, attitudes and beliefs considered worthwhile by society

[edit] Socio-Economic Groups

The classification of people in society according to their social or economic standing

[edit] Social Mobility

Movement of people between classes in society due to social or economic reasons

[edit] Mores

The accepted standards, rules and customs of a particular group

[edit] Primary Social Groups

Small groups which include family, work colleagues, close friends and neighbours

[edit] Secondary Social Groups

• Larger groups
• More impersonal
• Not considered to be permanent groups
• Members do not see each other very often
• Eg.. Religious & Ethnic groups, pressure groups, voluntary organisations, trade union membership

[edit] Kinship

Family relationships based on blood relationships

[edit] Socialisation

Process by which a person becomes a full member of society through a series of learning activities e.g. values, language, activities

[edit] Social Institutions

• In society, certain customs or ways of life become established through time.
• Occurs to such an extent that they become expected patterns of behaviour
• Eg. marriage, religion, education ,the family

[edit] Primary Socialisation

During childhood, the family teaches the child how to fit into society, e.g activities, values, language and discipline

[edit] Roles

The expected behaviour of an individual according to his/her status or position

[edit] Kinship

Family relationships based on blood relations