informational conformity
when the respondent actually believes that the group is right
normative conformity
you're afraid of the disapproval of the group
groupthink
when pressures of unanimity overwhelms group members
Asch Conformity Experiment
subjects had to judge which line was longest, the only subject conforms and actually believes that they were right when the answer was clearly wrong, there is a need of social respect and conformity is the outcome
apparent unanimity
on the surface, it appears that everyone agrees
causes of groupthink
high group cohesion, everyone has similar ideas to start with, stress on group membership, lack of clear cut rules to make decisions
prevention of groupthink
encourage dissent, leaders should remain impartial, have subgroups work on parts separately, "second" chance meetings, have someone outside of group come in for analysis, don't have everything verbal
4 theories of why people deviate
biological positivism, psychological positivism, sociological positivism, social process theories
biological positivism
Italian physician thought you could tell who was a criminal by characteristics such as low forehead, hairy, protruded jaw
psychological positivism
deviance is a result of inadequate socialization, criminals have damaged egos, deviants have not reached the more advanced stages of moral reasoning-can't process information effectively
strain theory
Merton's theory, there is a strain in the attempt to get wealth or success (blocked opportunity structure)
retreatism
people who say that they don't accept the cultural goal of money and success (a drug addict, homeless by choice)
ritualists
accept the goal but realize that they will never get there (government worker)
relative opportunity structure
you have access to sources that help you deviate
differential association
by Sutherland, learning a behavioral pattern is a social process that takes place in groups, therefore your tendency to deviance or conformity is based on who you're around (birds of a feather flock together)
control theory
Hirschi, conformity arises from four sorts of controls...attachment, commitment, involvement, belief
attachment
a person's attachment to parents, peers, school can prevent deviance because you do not want to disappoint people
blocked opportunity
part of strain theory, there's something blocking a person's attempt at success or wealth
social deviance
a violation of social rules or norms
What is the difference between blocked opportunity and relative opportunity?
i believe that when people have blocked opportunities, they choose to deviate, but with relative opportunity, they somehow learn to deviate because of the pressures from the group they're apart of. It's not necessarily a conscious choice.
positive function of deviance
innovation, social change, boundary setting, solidarity
dysfunctions of deviance
Disruption of social order, confusion of norms and values, diversion of resources
looking glass self
the self that you understand as a result of what is reflected back to you from others
I
the spontaneous impulse to act
Me
the set of organized attitudes that the individual has been viewed by others
Self-Interaction
we say things to ourselves and have internal dialogue
Preplay Stage
occurs when children are two to three, they have the "I" part but haven't developed "Me." Children use dolls to imitate what they see.
Play Stage
Mead's second stage in the development of role taking; children act in ways they imagine other people would
Game Stage
occurs during early school years where children take on multiple roles at a single time
Thomas Theorum
The idea that what people define as real is real in it's own consequences
Front stage
area of social interaction where people perform and work to maintain appropriate impressions
Back stage
The region out of an audience's sight where individuals can do things that would be inappropriate or unexpected on the front stage.
Losing face
farting in class could be an example
Saving face
someone walks up with a black eye, and they don't want to admit what happened so they say "you should see the other guy
avoidance
withdrawing from a conflict or ignoring it
protective maneuvers
saying something in a joking manner to save face
non-observance
ignoring when someone makes a mistake (ex. don't say anything when someone's fly is down)
corrective process
attention is brought to the problem and someone is given the opportunity to restore equilibrium
society
a group of people who interact with each other to acquire certain needs
culture
the specific ways of life within a social group
subculture
a group of people within a society who share certain beliefs, values, and customs (EX. goth culture, cliques in high school)
conformists
socially acceptable ways of maintaining wealth
innovation
a different means of achieving wealth
sanctions
mechanisms for social control
formal sanctions
laws prohibiting certain deviant behavior (rape, murder, etc.)
positive sanctions
high five, pats on the back, other signs of encouragement
negative sanctions
formal or informal punishment
Labeling Theory
the idea that deviance and conformity result not so much from what people do as from how others respond to those actions
broken windows theory
theory explaining how social context & social cues of disorder impact whether individuals act deviantly
self fulfilling prophecy
the process that occurs when behavior is modified to meet preexisting expectations (Ex.when teachers have a higher expectation for certain students (& likely change their behavior toward those students), these certain students respond by meeting teacher expectations.
thing/object
an item is just an item until we give meaning to it, then it becomes an object
3 premises of symbolic interaction
Human beings act toward ideas, concepts, & values on the basis of the meaning that those things have for them.
These meanings are the products of social interaction in human society.
These meanings are modified & filtered through an interpretive process that each individual uses in dealing with outward signs.
prescriptive norms
those sanctioned or authorized by long-standing custom or usage. They are central to intra-group differentiation and includes the attitudes, beliefs and behaviors group members must exhibit in order to retain group membership.
socialization
the adoption of the behavior patterns of the surrounding culture
agents of socialization
family, school, peers, media, adult socialization
family
primary unit of socialization. middle class families work on "cultivation" while lower class families allow "natural growth
total institution
an institution that controls all of the basics of every day life (ex. prison, mental institutions)