SOCI 2610H Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Social Darwinism, Iceberg Theory, Scientific Method

• School: Trent University
• Department: Sociology
• Course: SOCI 2610H
• Professor: elizabethtorrens

Document Summary

Scientific and religious belief systems: vital to daily life, both proclaim truths, but both are social constructions. Belief systems: as deviance, as social typers of deviance. Churches: large powerful groups, not official, well established & bureaucratized, further subdivided into denominations. Sects: smaller religious groups, broken away from churches, less established, fewer members, more ridged doctrine, greater commitment from members. Cults: smaller than sects, handful of members, reactionary & oppositional doctrine, intense levels of commitment, charismatic leader. Different groups work to position others as deviant. What do you think of cults: manson family, waco. Why does the media focus only on these extreme examples: wright (1997, lack of knowledge, biased courses of information, limited time & financial resources, not unfounded concerns, but not the entire picture. Medicalization of deviant religions: tendency towards medicalization also extends to religions, shapiro (1977, pp. 83; 80, destructive cultism is a sociopathic illness which is rapidly spreading throughout the.