Sociology in Our Times: The Essentials

by Kendall, Diana

• ISBN13: 9780534579142
• ISBN10: 0534579140
• Edition: 3rd
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2001-08-01
• Publisher: Cengage Learning

Summary

This mainstream, technology infused (includes FREE Virtual Explorations: With Map The Stats CD-ROM and InfoTrac College Edition), best-selling text is noted for its especially strong integration of compelling and engaging "Lived Experiences" - extended examples that focus on various social issues to illustrate chapter coverage. These social issue extended examples are carried throughout the chapterin various boxes, features, and exercises. Kendall's text is also known for its exceptional coverage of classic and contemporary theory, along with its integration of race, class, gender, and age perspectives. The author's vivid, applied, personal writing style engages students, and her compelling everyday examples make sociology particularly relevant to the diverse student population of today. The author shows students that sociology involves important questions and issues that they confront both personally and vicariously.

Table of Contents

Studying Society and Social Life
The Sociological Perspective and Research Process	p. 1
Putting Social Life into Perspective	p. 3
Why Study Sociology?	p. 3
The Sociological Imagination	p. 4
The Importance of a Global Sociological Imagination	p. 5
The Development of Sociological Thinking	p. 7
Early Thinkers: A Concern with Social Order and Stability	p. 9
Differing Views on the Status Quo: Stability Versus Change	p. 10
The Development of Sociology in the United States	p. 11
Contemporary Theoretical Perspectives	p. 12
Functionalist Perspectives	p. 13
Conflict Perspectives	p. 14
Interactionist Perspectives	p. 15
An Alternative Perspective: Postmodernism	p. 17
The Sociological Research Process	p. 19
The "Conventional" Research Model	p. 20
A Qualitative Approach to Researching Suicide	p. 26
Research Methods	p. 27
Surveys	p. 27
Secondary Analysis of Existing Data	p. 28
Field Research	p. 29
Experiments	p. 29
Ethical Issues in Sociological Research	p. 30
Culture	p. 35
Culture and Society	p. 37
The Importance of Culture in a Changing World	p. 38
Material and Nonmaterial Culture	p. 40
Cultural Universals	p. 40
Components of Culture	p. 42
Symbols	p. 42
Language	p. 44
Values	p. 48
Norms	p. 50
Technology, Cultural Change, and Diversity	p. 51
Cultural Change	p. 51
Cultural Diversity	p. 52
Culture Shock	p. 57
Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism	p. 57
A Global Popular Culture?	p. 58
High Culture and Popular Culture	p. 59
Forms of Popular Culture	p. 59
Sociological Analysis of Culture	p. 62
Functionalist Perspective	p. 62
Conflict Perspective	p. 63
Interactionist Perspective	p. 64
An Alternative Perspective: Postmodernism	p. 64
Culture in the Future	p. 65
Socialization	p. 70
Why Is Socialization Important Around the Globe?	p. 72
Human Development: Biology and Society	p. 72
Social Isolation	p. 74
Child Maltreatment	p. 77
Socialization and the Self	p. 77
Sociological Theories of Human Development	p. 77
Psychological Theories of Human Development	p. 81
Agents of Socialization	p. 84
The Family	p. 85
The School	p. 85
Peer Groups	p. 86
Mass Media	p. 87
Gender and Racial-Ethnic Socialization	p. 88
Socialization Through the Life Course	p. 90
Infancy and Childhood	p. 90
Adolescence	p. 92
Adulthood	p. 92
Resocialization	p. 93
Voluntary Resocialization	p. 93
Involuntary Socialization	p. 93
Socialization in the Future	p. 94
Social Groups and Social Control
Social Structure and Interaction in Everyday Life	p. 98
Social Structure: The Macrolevel Perspective	p. 100
Components of Social Structure	p. 101
Status	p. 101
Roles	p. 105
Groups	p. 108
Social Institutions	p. 110
Societies: Changes in Social Structure	p. 111
Mechanical and Organic Solidarity	p. 111
Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft	p. 112
Social Structure and Homelessness	p. 112
Social Interaction: The Microlevel Perspective	p. 114
Social Interaction and Meaning	p. 114
The Social Construction of Reality	p. 115
Ethnomethodology	p. 115
Dramaturgical Analysis	p. 118
The Sociology of Emotions	p. 120
Nonverbal Communication	p. 121
Changing Social Structure and Interaction in the Future	p. 124
Groups and Organizations	p. 128
Social Groups	p. 130
Groups, Aggregates, and Categories	p. 130
Types of Groups	p. 131
Group Characteristics and Dynamics	p. 134
Group Size	p. 134
Group Leadership	p. 134
Group Conformity	p. 136
Formal Organizations in Global Perspective	p. 143
Types of Formal Organizations	p. 143
Bureaucracies	p. 144
Shortcomings of Bureaucracies	p. 147
Bureaucracy and Oligarchy	p. 152
An Alternative Form of Organization	p. 152
Organizational Structure in Japan	p. 153
Organizations in the Future	p. 154
Deviance and Crime	p. 158
What Is Deviance?	p. 160
Functionalist Perspectives on Deviance	p. 162
How Is Deviance Functional for Society?	p. 162
Strain Theory: Goals and Means to Achieve Them	p. 163
Opportunity Theory: Access to Illegitimate Opportunities	p. 163
Control Theory: Social Bonding	p. 166
Interactionist Perspectives on Deviance	p. 167
Differential Association Theory	p. 167
Labeling Theory	p. 168
Conflict Perspectives on Deviance	p. 170
The Critical Approach	p. 170
Feminist Approaches	p. 171
Postmodernist Perspectives on Deviance	p. 172
Crime Classifications and Statistics	p. 173
How the Law Classifies Crime	p. 173
How Sociologists Classify Crime	p. 174
Crime Statistics	p. 177
Street Crimes and Criminals	p. 178
Crime Victims	p. 180
The Criminal Justice System	p. 180
The Police	p. 181
The Courts	p. 182
Punishment	p. 183
Deviance and Crime in the Future	p. 185
Social Inequality
Class and Stratification in the United States	p. 189
What Is Social Stratification?	p. 191
Global Systems of Stratification	p. 193
Slavery	p. 193
The Caste System	p. 194
The Class System	p. 194
Classical Perspectives on Social Class	p. 196
Karl Marx: Relation to the Means of Production	p. 196
Max Weber: Wealth, Prestige, and Power	p. 197
Sociological Models of the U.S. Class Structure	p. 199
The Weberian Model of the U.S. Class Structure	p. 199
The Marxian Model of the U.S. Class Structure	p. 202
Inequality in the United States	p. 205
Distribution of Income and Wealth	p. 205
Consequences of Inequality	p. 209
Poverty in the United States	p. 212
Who Are the Poor?	p. 213
Economic and Structural Sources of Poverty	p. 215
Solving the Poverty Problem	p. 215
Sociological Explanations of Social Inequality in the United States	p. 216
Functionalist Perspectives	p. 216
Conflict Perspectives	p. 216
Social Stratification in the Future	p. 217
Global Stratification	p. 220
Wealth and Poverty in Global Perspective	p. 222
Problems in Studying Global Inequality	p. 224
The "Three Worlds" Approach	p. 224
The Levels of Development Approach	p. 224
Classification of Economies by Income	p. 227
Low-Income Economies	p. 227
Middle-Income Economies	p. 228
High-Income Economies	p. 229
Measuring Global Wealth and Poverty	p. 230
Absolute, Relative, and Subjective Poverty	p. 231
The Gini Coefficient and Global Quality of Life Issues	p. 231
Global Poverty and Human Development Issues	p. 232
Life Expectancy	p. 232
Health	p. 234
Education and Literacy	p. 234
Persistent Gaps in Human Development	p. 234
Theories of Global Inequality	p. 235
Development and Modernization Theory	p. 235
Dependency Theory	p. 238
World Systems Theory	p. 240
The New International Division of Labor Theory	p. 241
Global Inequality in the Future	p. 243
Race and Ethnicity	p. 248
Race and Ethnicity	p. 250
Social Significance of Race and Ethnicity	p. 251
Majority and Minority Groups	p. 251
Prejudice	p. 253
Theories of Prejudice	p. 253
Measuring Prejudice	p. 253
Discrimination	p. 255
Sociological Perspectives on Race and Ethnic Relations	p. 257
Interactionist Perspectives	p. 257
Functionalist Perspectives	p. 258
Conflict Perspectives	p. 260
Racial and Ethnic Groups in the United States	p. 262
Native Americans	p. 263
White Anglo-Saxon Protestants (British Americans)	p. 265
African Americans	p. 266
White Ethnic Americans	p. 269
Asian Americans	p. 270
Latinos/as (Hispanic Americans)	p. 273
Middle Easterners	p. 274
Global Racial and Ethnic Inequality in the Future	p. 275
Worldwide Racial and Ethnic Struggles	p. 275
Growing Racial and Ethnic Diversity in the United States	p. 275
Sex and Gender	p. 279
Sex and Gender	p. 281
Sex	p. 282
Gender	p. 283
The Social Significance of Gender	p. 285
Sexism	p. 286
Gender Stratification in Historical Perspective	p. 286
Hunting and Gothering Societies	p. 286
Horticultural and Pastoral Societies	p. 287
Agrarian Societies	p. 288
Industrial Societies	p. 289
Gender and Socialization	p. 289
Gender Socialization by Parents	p. 290
Peers and Gender Socialization	p. 292
Teachers, Schools, and Gender Socialization	p. 293
Sports and Gender Socialization	p. 294
Mass Media and Gender Socialization	p. 295
Adult Gender Socialization	p. 295
Contemporary Gender Inequality	p. 296
Gendered Division of Paid Work	p. 296
Pay Equity (Comparable Worth)	p. 297
Paid Work and Family Work	p. 299
Perspectives on Gender Stratification	p. 300
Functionalist and Neoclassical Economic Perspectives	p. 300
Conflict Perspectives	p. 302
Feminist Perspectives	p. 302
Gender Issues in the Future	p. 305
Social Institutions
Families and Intimate Relationships	p. 308
Families in Global Perspective	p. 310
Family Structure and Characteristics	p. 312
Marriage Patterns	p. 313
Patterns of Descent and Inheritance	p. 314
Power and Authority in Families	p. 315
Residential Patterns	p. 315
Theoretical Perspectives on Families	p. 317
Functionalist Perspectives	p. 317
Conflict and Feminist Perspectives	p. 318
Interactionist Perspectives	p. 318
Developing Intimate Relationships and Establishing Families	p. 319
Love and Intimacy	p. 319
Cohabitation and Domestic Partnerships	p. 320
Marriage	p. 321
Housework	p. 321
Child-Related Family Issues and Parenting	p. 322
Deciding to Have Children	p. 322
Adoption	p. 323
Teenage Pregnancies	p. 324
Single-Parent Households	p. 326
Two-Parent Households	p. 327
Remaining Single	p. 327
Transitions and Problems in Families	p. 328
Family Transitions Based on Age and the Life Course	p. 328
Family Violence	p. 329
Elder Abuse	p. 330
Divorce	p. 332
Remarriage	p. 333
Family Issues in the Future	p. 334
Education and Religion	p. 337
An Overview of Education and Religion	p. 339
Sociological Perspectives on Education	p. 340
Functionalist Perspectives on Education	p. 340
Conflict Perspectives on Education	p. 344
Interactionist Perspectives on Education	p. 349
Religion in Global Perspective	p. 351
Religion and the Meaning of Life	p. 351
Religion and Scientific Explanations	p. 353
Sociological Perspectives on Religion	p. 354
Functionalist Perspectives on Religion	p. 354
Conflict Perspectives on Religion	p. 356
Interactionist Perspectives on Religion	p. 357
Types of Religious Organization	p. 358
Ecclesia	p. 358
The Church-Sect Typology	p. 358
Cults	p. 360
Trends in Religion in the United States	p. 360
Education and Religion in the Future	p. 361
Politics and the Economy in Global Perspective	p. 366
Politics, Power, and Authority	p. 368
Power and Authority	p. 369
Ideal Types of Authority	p. 369
Political Systems in Global Perspective	p. 372
Monarchy	p. 372
Authoritarianism	p. 372
Totalitarianism	p. 373
Democracy	p. 374
Perspectives on Power and Political Systems	p. 374
Functionalist Perspectives: The Pluralist Model	p. 375
Conflict Perspectives: Elite Models	p. 376
The U.S. Political System	p. 378
Political Parties and Elections	p. 378
Political Participation and Voter Apathy	p. 378
Governmental Bureaucracy	p. 379
Economic Systems in Global Perspective	p. 382
Preindustrial, Industrial, and Postindustrial Economies	p. 382
Capitalism	p. 383
Socialism	p. 388
Mixed Economies	p. 388
Work in the Contemporary United States	p. 389
Professions	p. 389
Other Occupations	p. 390
Contingent Work	p. 392
Unemployment	p. 392
Labor Unions and Worker Activism	p. 393
Politics and the Economy in the Future	p. 394
Health and Medicine	p. 399
Health in Global Perspective	p. 403
Health in the United States	p. 403
Social Epidemiology	p. 403
Lifestyle Factors	p. 405
Health Care in the United States	p. 407
The Rise of Scientific Medicine and Professionalism	p. 407
Medicine Today	p. 409
Paying for Health Care: Comparing the United States with Other Nations	p. 411
Social Implications of Advanced Medical Technology	p. 415
Holistic Medicine and Alternative Medicine	p. 415
Sociological Perspectives on Health and Medicine	p. 418
Functionalist Perspective on Health: The Sick Role	p. 418
Conflict Theory: Inequalities in Health and Health Care	p. 419
The Interactionist Perspective: The Social Construction of Illness	p. 420
Health Care in the Future	p. 423
Social Dynamics and Social Change
Population and Urbanization	p. 427
Demography: The Study of Population	p. 429
Fertility	p. 429
Mortality	p. 431
Migration	p. 432
Population Composition	p. 433
Population Growth in Global Context	p. 435
The Malthusian Perspective	p. 435
The Marxist Perspective	p. 435
The Neo-Malthusian Perspective	p. 437
Demographic Transition Theory	p. 438
Urbanization in Global Perspective	p. 439
Emergence and Evolution of the City	p. 439
Preindustrial Cities	p. 440
Industrial Cities	p. 441
Postindustrial Cities	p. 442
Perspectives on Urbanization and the Growth of Cities	p. 444
Functionalist Perspectives: Ecological Models	p. 444
Conflict Perspectives: Political Economy Models	p. 446
Interactionist Perspectives: The Experience of City Life	p. 448
Urban Problems in the United States	p. 451
Divided Interests: Cities, Suburbs, and Beyond	p. 451
The Fiscal Crisis of the Cities	p. 453
The Crisis in Health Care	p. 453
Population and Urbanization in the Future	p. 453
Collective Behavior and Social Change	p. 457
Collective Behavior	p. 459
Conditions for Collective Behavior	p. 459
Dynamics of Collective Behavior	p. 461
Distinctions Regarding Collective Behavior	p. 461
Types of Crowd Behavior	p. 461
Explanations of Crowd Behavior	p. 464
Mass Behavior	p. 466
Social Movements	p. 469
Types of Social Movements	p. 470
Causes of Social Movements	p. 473
Stages in Social Movements	p. 477
Social Change in the Future	p. 480
The Physical Environment and Change	p. 480
Population and Change	p. 480
Technology and Change	p. 481
Social Institutions and Change	p. 482
A Few Final Thoughts	p. 483
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