Category: Sociology

Social stratification is the study of class, status, and power in society.

If a city can be separated by wealthy people and poor people, and the wealthy have more power than the poor, then that society has social stratification. If, in a specific nation, more status comes with more wealth, then that society too, has stratification.

But what’s the issue with this?

The main problem with social stratification is that it creates inequality. The wealthy have power and status, but the poor don’t. In addition to that, it will be very difficult for the poor to reach a position of power. Continue reading “What is Social Stratification?”

The sociology of gender is the study of how society influences the sexes.

Men hunt, women gather.

Men go to work and are the main breadwinners.

Women stay home and are homemakers.

Men are the protector of the house.

Women are the caretaker of the house.

Are these statements valid? Are they biological or are they socially taught?

This is what gender sociologists study (or what you would study if you took a course on this). Continue reading “What is the Sociology of Gender?”

Xenophobia is an irrational fear and dislike of the “other.” But when is it at its strongest?

This is a term that I’ve seen being tossed around a lot lately. I see it on social media posts and on titles of news articles. So what is xenophobia?

Xenophobia is a fear or dislike of the “other.” It’s a prejudice against people from other countries.

But when is it at its strongest?

Society has a tendency of ramping up xenophobia when there is a crisis going on. When the 9/11 attack on the Twin Towers happened, non-Middle Eastern people automatically felt a need to blame Middle Eastern people and to fear all of them. Despite it being a terrorist group that did the attacks, anyone who had a brown complexion and followed a certain religion was prejudged. Continue reading “What is Xenophobia?”

Functionalism is a school of thought that is used in the social sciences to explain the functions or purpose of things.

Functionalism is a general theory or school of thought in the social sciences that was developed in the late 1800s. What it is, essentially, is a belief that everything (i.e. mental state, aspects of culture or society) serves a purpose.

In Sociology…

If you use this term sociologically and apply it to your observations of society, you would try to understand every facet of social behaviour and figure out what it does for society. Continue reading “What is Functionalism?”

Ever wonder what the difference between race and ethnicity is? Because, contrary to what some may believe, they’re not the same thing.

In college, I signed up for this sociology course called “Concepts of Race and Ethnicity.”

At first, I thought race and ethnicity were the same things. Race, to me, was what a person was born as –their skin colour, their culture and traditions, etc. I defined ethnicity in the same way.

But boy, was I wrong (and I learned this lesson on the very first day of class)!

In the very first session, the prof talked about what the course is about and what we (the students) are expected to do.

She handed us syllabuses and talked a bit about the assignments and readings –you know administrative stuff.

After about 15 minutes of this, she started getting into the good stuff. She grabbed a marker and started writing some terms down.

Then she explained them to us. Continue reading “What’s the Difference Between Race and Ethnicity?”

Ethnocentrism is a sociological term developed by Austrian sociologist Ludwig Gumplowicz. This term explores how people view other (or foreign) cultures.

What is ethnocentrism?

This was a term that I first learned about in one of my sociology classes back in college.

Its definition, according to Dictionary.com, is the belief that one’s own culture is superior or dominant to others.

It also describes a tendency that people often view other people’s cultures through their own cultural lens.

I have this friend.

He is a patriotic Chinese person and he believes that his culture is the best. He believes that all East Asian people are descendants of China, thus making China the dominant nation (and culture).

However, there isn’t much information or facts that back this up, except for ancient Chinese tales and myths.

But because he holds this belief, he is practicing ethnocentrism. Continue reading “What is Ethnocentrism?”