Sociology Terms and Concepts: A Comprehensive List

Sociological Terms and Concepts

• Autonomous State

  A theoretical model of the state that interprets the state as developing interests of its own, independent of other interests.

• Sexual Behavior

  Functional for society because it prevents the instability and conflict that more liberal sexual attitudes supposedly generate.

• Rationalization

  The process whereby some nationality is assigned what are perceived to be race characteristics.

• Semiperipheral Countries

  Semi-industrialized countries that represent a kind of middle class within the world system.

• Latent Function

  A latent function of education is social control.

• Unemployment Rate

  The percentage of those not working but officially defined as looking for work.

• Gender

  Socially learned expectations and behaviors associated with members of each sex.

• U.S. Maternity Leave

  The Family and Medical Leave Act is the first law to recognize the need for maternity leave and other dependents.

• Polygamy

  Polygamy is illegal in the U.S.

• Secondary Labor Market

  Characterized by low wages, few benefits, high turnover, and poor working conditions.

• Modernization Theory

  Global development is a worldwide process affecting nearly all societies that have been touched by technological change.

• Conflict Theories About Education

  Emphasizes the power and inequality that are part of education as a social institution.

• Queer Theory

  Recognizes the socially constructed nature of sexual identity.

• Racial Formation

  The process by which groups come to be defined as a “race” through social institutions such as the law and schools.

• Social Class

  The hierarchical position groups hold relative to the economic, social, political, and cultural resources of society.

• Gender Stratification

  The hierarchical distribution of social and economic resources according to gender.

• Estate System of Stratification

  A system where ownership of property and the exercise of power are monopolized by an elite or noble class.

• Social Differentiation

  The development of different statuses in any group, organization, or society.

• Divorce

  The legal and social dissolution of a marriage pair bond, and the legal division of any shared property and obligations.

• Symbolic Interaction Theory

  Used to negotiate family relationships, such as deciding who does what housework, or how they will arrange childcare.

• Sexual Experience

  Symbolic interaction interprets culture and society as shaping sexual experiences.

• U.S. Healthcare

  The nation’s healthcare is some of the best in the world. The U.S. is one of the few industrialized nations that does not provide universal healthcare.

• Marxian Theory on Capitalism

  Two primary classes exist under capitalism: the capitalist class, those who own the means of production, and the working class (or proletariat), those who sell their labor for wages.

• Teacher Expectancy Effect

  The effect of a teacher’s expectations on a student’s actual performance, independent of the student’s ability.

• Intersexed

  Having physical characteristics of both sexes.

• Coming Out

  Defining oneself as gay or lesbian.

• No Child Left Behind

  Holding teachers and school officials accountable for test scores.

• Gender Stereotypes

  Stereotypes based on a person’s gender. The stereotypes about women are more likely to be negative than those about men.

• Sexual Coercion

  A form of power relations shaped by social inequality between women and men.

• Social Institutions

  Systems of social behaviors with a recognized purpose.

• Marriage in the U.S.

  Same-sex marriage is legal in the U.S.

• Women

  Most women would be considered working class.

• Peripheral Countries

  Poor countries, largely agricultural, having little power or influence in the world system.

• Conflict Theory

  According to conflict theory, sexual norms are frequently contested.

• Domestic Violence Reporting

  Cases of domestic violence often go unreported, making statistics unreliable.

• Stereotypes

  A set of beliefs about the members of a social group or social stratum that is used to categorize individuals of that group.

• Sexual Identity

  Sexual identity develops sequentially.

• Feminist Theory

  Refers to analyses that seek to understand the position of women in society for the explicit purpose of improving their position in it.

• Social Stratification

  A system by which groups have different access to resources, power, and perceived social worth; a system of structured social inequality.