Post on 17-Dec-2015
I signed up for sociology because my
counselor told me I should…
(and Mrs. Heilander is an awesome
teacher)
What did I sign up for?
What is Sociology?
• The study of human society and social behavior.
What is Sociology?
• Think about our class as a “society” – our “Sociology Society”
Contradiction
• We are all individuals -unique and different in some ways,
but • We live in groups -
some pre-existing and some we develop
What is Sociology?
• The study of social groups.• The study of how group membership
shapes us (identity) and how we shape the behavior of others.
• The study of social order.
Groups of Three
1. How are we different?
Did you get the following?
• Class differences - Rich and poor• Age – young and old• Gender – male and female• Ethnicity – different cultures• Nationality – different nations, regions of the same
country• Family differences -divorced parents, single-parent
families…• Educational differences -are some people more
intelligent?• Religion – differences in faith / beliefs• Lifestyle differences – do we have different tastes?
2. What do we have in common?
• If we are so different / individual / unique how are we able to live together?
Behavior – the rights and obligations- expected of someone occupying a particular status.
Roles
Shared beliefs about what is good or bad, right or wrong, desirable or undesirable.
Values
Shared rules of conduct that tell people how to act in specific situations
Norms
The position or rank of a person or group within the society
Social Status
Rewards or punishments used to enforce conformity to norms
Sanctions
3. How is our “Sociology Society” possible?
• How is it possible for our society to function?
• Relationships, rules, responsibilities
4. How do we learn the rules?
• Experience
• Observation
• Teaching
That is a bite-size intro to Sociology but we will cover other topics
Culture
• Language – slang
• Norms and values
• Beliefs
• Diversity
Deviance
Race and Ethnicity
• Discrimination
• Prejudice
Gender and Age
• Gender Roles
• Women’s movement
• Ageism
Family
• Marriage patterns
• Child rearing
And so much more……