SOCIOL 1 Lecture : Intro to Sociology Lecture Notes Week 3 Thursday Oct 19
Intro to Sociology Lecture Notes Week 3 Thurs 10/12
Culture and Personality:
• Certain things are “culturally prescribed” (eating crickets in Vietnam, other animals as food)
• Culture shapes your sense of rationality and sense of right and wrong (morality)
• Morality does have a certain cultural relativity in our society
Socialization (learning the culture):
• Not automatically born into culture
• You become familiar with the culture by being socialized
• How does socialization take place?
o Through interaction with others human beings (parents, siblings, teachers, friends)
o When you interact with other people, you figure out they have certain expectations about
how you should behave
▪ Expectations express the values and norms of the culture
▪ In your interactions with other people, you begin to learn your own self-identity
o When you interact with other people, you use them as a mirror to see how they see you
o Self-identity: Looking Glass Self
Language and Thought:
• You develop a system of speaking and writing that convey your thoughts and feelings
• Language shapes your thinking
o Verbs and adjectives form our perceptions of reality our society exists
Groups:
• Primary Groups: Have an intimate relationship, are close to each other, smaller groups,
everyone knows each other well
o Ex: Family
• Secondary Groups: Larger groups, formal organizations, not everyone knows each person, they
all have a common goal
o Ex: Political parties, religious groups
• You go through life as a member of a group and your personality is shaped by the groups
• Groups predetermine much of your actions
• You are born into a group (family)
• Nuclear Family: Immediate family (parents, siblings)
• Each group assigns you a status (position)
• Each status comes with a role (set of behaviors that you’re supposed to perform)
• If you don’t fulfill the role, you’ll be in trouble
find more resources at oneclass.com
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