TOPIC 1. OBJECTS AND METHODS OF SOCIOLOGY.

1. Objects and methods of sociology.

The sociological imagination (Wright Mills) requires thinking about

ourselves away from the familiar routines of our daily lives in order to
look at them anew.
Drinking a coffee:
- Symbolic value.
- Caffeine.
- Social context and structure.
- Social and economic relationships across the world: globalization,
international trade, human rights and environmental destruction.
Sociology is the systematic study of human society. Sociology is
primarily a way of critically thinking and understanding social
phenomena. The main goal of sociology is to understand this world
and the future society.
A science/social science.
The relevance of time and space in the study of a society.
Deduction and induction. The sociological perspective involves to
observe the general in the particular (Berger): the experiences of the
individuals are related to their social categories.
Are our actions the result of our desires and decisions? Our society
and our social categories guide our thoughts and our actions.
The perception of the society and its phenomena is affected by:
- Prejudices, familiarity and knowledge.
- Empathy.
- Distance with the phenomena (deviation).
- Periods of crisis.
Benefits of the sociological perspective:
- It critically questions the knowledge we have about our society
and about us.
- Assess the opportunities and constraints that characterize our
lives.
- Stimulates active participation in our society.
- Recognizes the differences between humans and their social
situation, identifying a diverse world.
Problems with the sociological perspective:
- Analyze a world that is constantly moving and changing.
- The sociologists are part of their research.
- Reactivity in the results and conclusions.

- Sociological language.

2. The origins of sociology.

From the description of an ideal society to the analysis of the real

society.
Auguste Comte: the three stages to understand society and
sociological thought.
- Middle Ages: the theological stage.
 - Renaissance: the metaphysical stage.
- Modernity: the scientific stage.
Sociology was the result of the transformation occurred since the XIX
century:
- Industrial revolution and capitalism.
- Urbanization: demographical transitions and transformations. From
Gemeinschaft to Gesellschaft (Tnnies).
- New political ideologies.
- Development of modern science.

- Changes in religion and how it influences society.

3. Main paradigms in sociology.

Functionalism: society is a complex system whose various parts work

together to produce stability and solidarity. Organic and biological
analogies to explain how society works. Moral consensus and social
cohesion.
Conflict: power, inequality and struggle. Conflict theorists examine
the tensions between dominant and disadvantage groups within
society and seek to understand how relationships of control are
established and perpetuated.
Social interaction: actions and reactions among individuals, from
micro to macro. It intends to understand a social situation from the
point of view of the people who are involved in it.

Global perspective: finance, politics, communications, information,

culture, global actors and environment.

4. Truth and the sociological method.

Positivism is a logical system based on direct and systematic

observation. It applies similar techniques to natural science research.
Objectivity: actions free of prejudice.
The goal of positivism is to develop scientific propositions using
systematic research methods.
The limitations encountered by positivism are:
- Human behavior is too complex (and subjective) to predict
individual actions.
- The subjectivity of the sociologist to study the society in which
he/she lives.
- The presence of the researcher may affect the behavior of what is
observed.
- The constantly changing social patterns: time and space.
Other (alternative or complementary) perspectives to study the social
truth:
- Critical sociology: interests, domination and relationships among
the population.
- Interactionism: subjectivity as the best tool to obtain knowledge
about the object of study.
 - Situational epistemologies: relativism that takes into consideration
both the object of study and the context (time and space).

How would a sociologist approach the study of:

5. Social research methods.

How would a sociologist approach the study of:

- Number of mobile phones per capita.
- Situation of the immigrants in Spain.
- Prospect of finding a job for those students starting the University.
Quantitative research methods:
- Surveys.
- Experiments.
- Documentary research.
Factual questions: it allows asking comparative questions, relating
one social context within a society to another and also different
moments. Big amount of information but in a superficial level.
Relationship between dependent and independent variable.
- False correlations (calories and weight, hours studying and grade;
number of salsa dancers and hair color).
- Spurious correlations.
Qualitative research methods:
- In-depth interviews.
- Life-stories.
- Focus groups.
- Participant observation.
Interpretation and reflection about social phenomena. Small amount
of information but understanding the meaning.
Triangulation.
Ethical dilemmas and false/social responses.

RESEARCH
STRENGTHS LIMITATIONS
METHOD
Participant Generates rich and in-depth
Only to study small
observation. information.
groups.
Focus groups. Broader and deeper
Difficulties to
In-depth understanding of social
generalize the results.
interviews. processes.
Efficient and practical
collecting data on large Superficial information.
Surveys.
number of individuals. Social answers.
Allows comparisons.
Laboratory is not a
Variables can be controlled
good context for certain
by researcher.
Experiments. aspects of social life.
Repetition and causality are
Experimental situation
possible.
affects the result.
Documentary Large amount of data. The research depends
research. Essential in historical on the existent sources.
 The interpretation of
research. sources might change
the research.

TOPIC 2. CULTURE.

1. Culture.

Culture refers to the group of norms and values that configures and
provides symbolic content to the social interaction. Culture is a
toolbox of solutions to everyday problems and creates social
behaviour.
Culture is shared by people who have lived within the same social
environment. Thus we can speak of culture as the collective mental
programming that distinguishes the members of one group or
category of people from those of another group.
Cultural shock: inability to properly interpret the meaning of the
cultural products used in a society different from ours.
Universal characteristics of the culture:
- Relation with the authority, perception of the self, relation with the
society and ways to deal with conflicts.
- Symbols, language, norms, values and learning process
(socialization).
- Cultural solutions: cooking, funerals, medicines, sexual
restrictions, sports, marriage.
Culture and the environment (natural and artificial components of
culture to adapt to the weather conditions, geography, demography
and technology).
The culture is both in the individual and the social environment, is
tangible and intangible, visible and hidden.
Components of the culture:
- Products: material aspects of the culture (literature, folklore,
architecture, clothing, technology, etc).
- Behaviour: habits, customs and traditions. Solutions to problems.
- Language and symbols: cohesion, identity and tools to analyze the
world.
- Ideas, values and beliefs: moral standards, guiding elements of
social action.
- Norms shared by the members of a society. Translation of values
into written and unwritten norms (formal and informal sanctions).
Functions of the culture:
- External adaptation, adaptation to the environment.
 - Internal integration:
1) Agreement, consensus and social cohesion.
2) Provides a guide to the social action: identity and idea of being
a member of the group.
3) Provide standards of acceptable behavior- a guide about the
social behavior in different contexts.
4) Maintain and enforce the social order.
Culture is transmitted and acquired through the socialization process:
it provides the norms, values and knowledge that give stability to a
certain group.
Once the culture is assumed it establishes the pattern which
determines how we see the world. This pattern is difficult to modify as
it creates hidden and unquestioned archetypes.

Observation and examination of a certain culture:

- Ethnocentrism: judging another culture by the standards and
cultural patterns of the culture of reference.
- Cultural relativism: judging a culture by its own cultural patterns
(values, norms, etc).
Multiculturalism and cultural conflicts: Preconceived ideas about good
and bad, specific rules of behavior may produce conflicts.

Culture and deviation: Culture provides stability to a society or group

but it also allows disagreement with the values and norms. The result
is the evolution of the culture and cultural change.

2. Cultural change.

Unlike the biological evolution, the cultural evolution is (sometimes)

quick and in a cumulative process.
Cultural lags: material (technology) and immaterial culture.
The process of adding and deleting cultural features:
- Inventions and discoveries.
- The diffusion of cultural features from one culture to another
(acculturation, cultural imperialism, cultural hybridity).

- The influence of other (internal) elements in the social system.

3. Actors and cultural groups.

Principal actors of the culture: individuals, group/society/community,

the intellectuals.
Reference groups: evaluation and orientation.
- Primary groups: small social group with personal and long lasting
relationships.
- Secondary group: large and impersonal group whose members
pursue a specific interest or activity. Involves weak ties and little
mutual understanding.
Dominant and non dominant groups.
 - Subcultures: cultural patterns that distinguishes a segment of the
population.

- Counterculture: cultural patterns strongly opposed to those widely

accepted within a society.

4. Theories about culture.

From a functionalist perspective: a cultural element or practice

persists if it performs functions that society seems to need or
contributes to the stability and consensus.
From a conflict perspective: there may be a common culture, but to
maintain the privileges of certain groups. It would thus have a
dominant ideology.
The interactionism perspective: culture is defined and transmitted
through social interaction.
Globalization: to live in a single world, connected and interdependent.
Sceptical and radical visions of globalization: optimists and
pessimists.
Globalization refers to economic, social, cultural, political phenomena
driven by the technological development.
Symbolical and practical origin.
Changes in cultural elements: communication, information
(magnitude and origin), science and religion.
Rationality vs. tradition.
The information age and the network society.
Transnational corporations as mediums of the globalized culture: the
McDonalization of the society.
A more homogeneous and more multicultural culture.
Compression of time and space.
Cultural convergence: universalization of ways of life, cultural
symbols and behaviours.
Globalization in ideas and facts.
Signs of globalization:
- Language.
- Technology.
 TOPIC 3. SOCIALIZATION.

1. Socialization.

A lifetime social experiences in which individuals construct their

personal biography, assembling daily interaction rules and
assimilating social norms of their cultural characteristics.
A formation process that begins with the birth and finishes with the
death. From being incapable of doing anything by ourselves to being
able of controlling the social and natural environment.
Socialization is a sociocultural equipment to face the world and its
challenges; it is a learning process not inherent to the human being.
Transmits knowledge, values, norms and traditions from a generation
to the next but it also allows certain evolution.
Functions of the socialization process:
- Biological maturation.
- The process of acquiring knowledge and social skills to give sense
to the social and natural environment.

- Development of a personal and social identity.

2. Stages of socialization.

Primary socialization:
- Stable and necessary bonds with others.
- Configuration of the individual identity and feeling of community
through care and adult education.
- Children develop a conscience about themselves as someone
different to the environment and other objects.
Secondary socialization and adulthood:
 - Further from the family (school, peer group), extending and
pluralizing the knowledge about social roles, values and norms.
- The secondary socialization concurs with the formal education in
the school.
- From traditional societies to modern and postmodern societies.

Re-socialization.

3. Socialization agents: the family.

Principal source of socialization of the children.

Creates behaviours, values and prejudices about society.
Intermediate institution between the social structure and the
individual.

External factors and new values affect socialization of the family.

4. Socialization agents: peer groups.

Groups that share age, certain interests and a similar social

environment.
More democratic relationships amongst the members (normally).
Internalization of roles and values with members with equal status, a
previous step to adulthood.

Constitutes a guide to concrete aspects of individuals, development of

the adult identity: aspect and behaviour.

5. Socialization agents: school.

It is more than learning, it implies socializing.

It (normally) involves interaction with individuals with different values
and ideas.
From the personal instruction of the family to the impersonal
education of the school.

There is a simultaneous process of learning values such as respect for

the authority of the teacher, competitiveness, effort to obtain results,
and respect for deadlines.

6. Socialization agents: media.

Values.
The importance of television in the children (and adults).
Media influences children because:
- They have less filters when perceiving media content.
- The formats are appealing to children, with specific information
and values.
Influence of new media- virtual socialization: more flexibility and
interaction.
 Media in the life-course of the individuals.

7. Socialization theories: functionalism.

The process in which social forces shape a certain personality

adapted to cultural norms and social needs.
Relationship between socialization and social control.

Merton, role-model theory and deviation.

8. Socialization theories: conflict theory.

Superstructure, domination

The Frankfurt/critical school: mass-media, objectness, rationalization,

routinization, false consciences: One-dimensional Man (Marcusse,
1964).

9. Socialization theories: Freud.

The repressed unconscious: adult actions and behaviours are

determined by emotions, experiences and (hidden) traumas from
childhood.
Three elements:
- id: basic impulses.
- ego: balance between innate impulses in pursuit of pleasure and
the demands of society.
- superego: the power of culture and society inside the individual.
The development of children is based in dualities:
- Control over the innate impulses: Eros and Thanatos.
- Repression and sublimation.

- Selfishness and altruism.

10. Socialization theories: G.H. Mead, Symbolic Interactionism.

Self: human capacity for reflection and empathy.

I & me.
The generalized other and the significant- other (Mead), the
looking glass self (Cooley) and the presentation of the self
(Goffman).
Children learn to be social beings firstly by imitation and later
internalizing norms for more complex games (values and morals).
Three assumptions:
- Pre-existence of symbols and values in society.
- Human ability to think and reflect.

- The relevance of the public image and the externalization of the

society.

11. Socialization theories: Piaget.

 Children do not absorb information passively, they select and
interpret what they see, hear and feel about the world around them.
The child builds a logical understanding about the physical world.
Stages in the cognitive development of the child:
- Sensorimotor stage (0-2 years): Exploring the environment.
- Pre-operational stage (2-7 years): Language and symbolism.
- Concrete Operational stage (7-11 years): Logic and abstract
notions.
- Formal operational stage (11-15 years): Hypothetical and abstract
ideas.

TOPIC 4. FAMILY, KINSHIP AND MARRIAGE.

1. Family, kinship and marriage.

Family is a group of persons directly linked by kin connections, the

adult members of whom assume responsibility for caring for children.
The traditional understanding of the family faces the families of
choice, people with or without legal ties that feel very close to each
other and define themselves as a family.
A universal institution with different interpretations. The
global/western understanding of the family in the XXI century:
neolocal, (serial) monogamy, egalitarian-patriarchal, nuclear and with
exogamous connections.
 Contradictions in the modern family: divorce and remarriage,
marriage and cohabitation, number of kids and fertility treatments.
Common elements and differential functions:
- The family and the Welfare State: from Scandinavian, liberal to
Mediterranean models (education, care, support, work-life
balance).

- The importance of the family in western societies and in the lives

of individuals: socialization, reference group, emotional support
and

2. From the traditional family to the modern family.

TRADITIONAL MODERN/POSTMODERN
SOCIETIES SOCIETIES
Affection and emotion.
Incorporation of new
Function. Socialization is a shared
members: socialization.
activity.
Allocation. Patrilocal/matrilocal. Neolocal.
Emotional support,
Economic cooperation.
Family cohesion. distribution of tasks,
Inequalities.
higher equality.
Individualism, a relative
Social class and independence from the
Provides social status.
structures. family (work outside
the family).

3. (Post)modern family.

The family in the globalization process and the information society.

The number and size of the families has changed (increment and
diversification of single-person households).
Families are formed at a later age.
Marriage (-) and Divorce (+).
Single (and absent) parents.
Reconstituted families: the new roles of parents, step-parents and
siblings (diversity).
Cohabitation: unmarried couples (diversity).
Same sex marriage and civil partnerships: legal, cultural and social
evolution. Controversies and debates. The sociological implications.
Children, not a necessity but a choice.
Redistribution of house work.
Western way of life: work-life balance (The horizontal kids).
Late emancipation of the young members of the family and the
boomerang generation.
Change in values:
- Democratization and equalitarian relationships that affects
housework and childcare.
- Individualism that affects the relationships inside the family.
 - Commitment not always comes with the mediation of the state or
religion.

- Sexuality and love become more open.

4. Challenges of the postmodern families: tradition vs. modernity.

Work-life balance (kindergartens, parental leave and child benefits).

More equalitarian relationships- the women and the two shifts.
The social understanding of the new models of family. New values in
an old institution.

The economic crisis and the Welfare State.

5. Stages of the family.

Formation- 30 years.
Expansion- 32,6 years, size: 2,5
Reduction- emancipation: 28,9
Empty nest- 20 years.

Disappearance- 50% of single households are constituted by persons

who are 65 years old or above.

6. Theories about the family.

Functionalism: Important part of the society. It helps to perpetuate the

structure and culture of a society.
- Socialization.
- Regulates social activity.
- Constitutes an economic unit.
- Provides a position in the society: status.
- Material and emotional security.
Parsons and the ideal family type.
Conflict approaches: The family represents the dominant mode of
production (cultural conservation, authoritarianism and social
inequality).
- Property and inheritance.
- Patriarchy.
Feminist perspective: the presence of unequal power relationships
within the family means that certain family members tend to benefit
more than others.
Interactionist perspective: The family is perceived as a complex
exchange of mutually rewarded relationships. The family creates a
culture, a symbolic exchange.

TOPIC 5. GENDER.

1. Gender.

Sex and gender.

 Gender role (social and cultural practices associated with a particular
gender) and gender representation or identity (expression of
masculinity and feminity).
Is the social and cultural behavior of men and women determined by
the sex or by the gender?
Universal components of gender.

The influence of social change in the social construction of gender:

Historical and cultural variances and evolution.

2. Gender socialization.

Gender socialization maintains the social order through family, school,

peer groups and media.
The social environment (toys, books, clothes, etc.) are elements that
contribute to gender socialization.
- Social learning theories stress the different learning process
between genders: rewards and punishments. Identification with
the mother and the father.
- Cognitive theories: gender differences are provoked by a
categorization process in which boys and girls allocate themselves
in a male or female category.

- Psychodynamic theories: the gender differences are shaped during

early infancy as a consequence of the emotional tension with the
parents.

3. Gender stratification.

Gender is a critical factor in structuring the types of opportunities and

life chances faced by individuals and groups.
- The gender order can be defined in 3 dynamic spheres: labor
(home and labor market), power (authority, violence and ideology
in institutions) and social relations (emotional, intimate and
personal relationships).
- Private and public stratification. Unequal distribution of power,
wealth and social privileges.
1) Women in the labor market: salaries and positions.
2) The glass ceiling: Invisible barrier that hinders the promotion
of a qualified individual in a work environment because of their
gender.
3) Old values in a modern society (or new values in an old
society). New conflicts.

4) Is masculinity in crisis?

4. Gender theories.

Functionalism: gender division of task and duties is essential to

maintain the social system. Women and men perform those task for
 which they are biologically best suited. Socialization is the most
important element in the development of gender roles.
Marxist/conflict theories: Women are doubly exploited as proletarians,
at work and at home.
Pierre Bourdieu and structuralism: male domination is institutionalized
in society and internalized amongst its members. It is important to
consider the relevance of structures such as language.

Interactionism: from the generalized other to the male other.

5. Feminism.

The importance of a new perspective: abolition of gender

stratification.
It is necessary to restructure and reconfigure the classic dualities of
men and women, masculine and feminine, emotions and rationality.
Proposes to develop female social freedom and sexual autonomy.
Three ideological mechanisms that devaluate women's activities and
achievements:
- Trivialization.
- Idealization.

- Concealment.

6. Feminist theories.

Liberal feminism: They do not see womens subordination as part of a

larger system or structure; they instead look for many separate
factors which contribute to inequalities between men and women
(work, media, etc.).
Socialist and Marxist feminism: There are powerful interests in society
against equality for women. Socialist feminist have sought to defeat
both patriarchy and capitalism.
Radical feminism: men are responsible for and benefit from the
exploitation of women. They focus on the family and the role of the
mother. It is necessary to modify the current institution of the family.
Postmodern feminism: challenges the idea that there is a unitary
basis of identity and experience shared by all women. Deconstruction
of the existent binary codes.
 TOPIC 6. STRATIFICATION AND CLASSES.

1. Social stratification.

Four basic principles of social stratification:

- Social stratification is universal but variable.
- Social stratification provides unequal access to resources and
wealth.
- Social stratification persists through generations.
- Social stratification refers not only to inequalities but also
generates beliefs and shared identities that place people in
different social categories.
Stratification in history and in the world:
- Slavery.
- Caste system (varnas): Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and
Shudras. Also dalitss.
- Feuds: aristocracy, clergy, merchants, peasants and commoners.
- Classes in industrial society: upper-class, middle-class, lower-class.
- Clustering people who share common economic resources, which
strongly influence their lifestyle (wealth, social prestige,
consumption, (in)formation).
- The assignation and distribution of classes: unequal distribution of
wealth, power and prestige.

- In western countries: from the allocation to a self-

identification/self-assignment to a social class.

2. Social classes.

The class system is relatively more open and frequently enables

social mobility.
The current class system:
- Individuals have the same rights.
- The classes are not set by legal or religious provisions.
- Inheritance is less important.
- Relevance of ownership (properties) and occupation.
- Social mobility is more frequent.
- They operate through large-scale impersonal connections.

Status (influence, wealth and prestige) and Role (expectations and

behavior of a person with a certain status).

3. Social mobility.

Social mobility refers to the movement of individuals or groups from

one position to another in a system of social stratification. The
stratification systems can be open or close depending on whether the
individual's position is determined by the achievements.
 Social mobility: merits and individual skills?
- Horizontal and vertical mobility (also diagonal).

- Intergenerational mobility and between-generations.

4. Theories.

Functionalist theory: social stratification and inequality are important

for the functioning of the society. Inequalities (money, prestige and
power) are justified by the variable importance of the individuals in
different societies. Meritocracy and incentives.
Marxist Theory: classes depend on the relation of the population with
the means of production. Stratification provides advantages to some
people at the expense of others, which create conflicts.
Max Weber: added a multidimensional factor to social inequality.
Besides the class it is important to take into consideration the status
and power, their prestige and political leverage. The importance of
qualifications and political parties.
Interactionism emphasize that our social behavior is conditioned by
the accepted roles and status, the groups and the institutions within
which we operate.
Erik Olin Wright:
- Control over capital investments.
- Control over the physical means of production.
- Control over the labor market.
Two factors influence the position of workers: the relationship with the
authority and the possession of skills or expertise.
Lenski: technology level of a society is a critical factor to explain the
organization and stratification of a society. Bureaucratization and
modernization.

Bourdieu: lifetime choices are a good indicator of class. For him the
cultural, social and symbolic capitals are very important.

5. Social inequality.

Poverty in absolute (subsistence) and relative terms (depending on

time and space). Also social exclusion.
20% of the population receives 80% of the income; this distribution is
extensible, with variations, in nearly all Western societies.
More than 20% of the world population lives on $2 a day (or less).

The modernization theory and the dependency theories.

6. Welfare State: Gsta Esping-Andersen.

The WS aim to improve the quality of life of citizens in a society and

reduce current inequalities. Offers services and benefits that meet
 peoples basic needs for things such as healthcare, education,
housing and income
Models of WS according to Esping-Anderssen:
- Social democratic: services are subsidized by the state and
available to all citizens. (i.e. Scandinavian countries).
- Conservative-corporatist: services are not necessarily universal.
The amount of benefits to which a citizen is entitled depends on
their position in society. The aim is not to eliminate inequalities but
maintaining social stability. (i.e. Germany and France).
- Liberal: benefits are available to the very needy, but become
highly stigmatized. This is because the majority of the population
is expected to purchase its own welfare through the market. (i.e.
USA).
- Mediterranean: The state share with the families the main
responsibilities and other agents are also involved (private
resources).
 TOPIC 7. DEVIANCE AND SOCIAL CONTROL.

1. Crime and deviation.

Deviation is the non-conformity to a given set of values and norms

that are accepted by a significant number of people in a community
or a society.
Societies are regulated by norms and values that guide individual and
group activities; deviation is the violation of those norms and values
together with the labelling of those actions.
Deviants are different (?) to the rest of the citizens as they do not
respect some or most of the established social norms.
Deviation is a normal phenomenon, inherent to the human condition
and to processes of social conflicts.
Deviation = crime?

Deviation: conscious, learnt, imposed.

2. The relevance of deviation in other social phenomena:

Objects and methods of sociology: Empathy and sociological

imagination.
Deviation and cultures (also periods).
- Diversity of deviation processes and social control in different
cultures and different historical moments (i.e. alcohol, drugs,
abortion, divorce, same sex marriage).
- Modernization of social control: rationality vs. emotions.
Deviation and socialization processes: growing diversity (values).
Deviation and gender.
Deviation and social structure:
- Is deviation a phenomenon that affects all the individuals of the
society in the same manner?
Deviation in different ethnic groups.
- Social exclusion and prejudices (distorted images culturally
created and embedded in a society).
- The interpretation of deviation and crime: the underground values.
- The criminalization in a multicultural society.

Deviation and social change.

3. Deviation and crime.

 Crimes and deviation in current western societies:
- Standard crimes.
- Organized crimes.
- White-collar crimes.
- Crimes without victims.

The role of the State: intervention and crime.

4. Theories about deviation and crime.

Classic theory: crime is a rational and voluntary action. Punishment is

normally fair.
Positivist theory: there are certain identifiable characteristics and a
prototype of a criminal. A criminal behaviour is pre-determined
biologically and psychologically. Modernization of the positivist theory
(DNA).
Conflict theory: deviation is the reflection of social, economic and
political inequalities. The definition of deviation and crime depends on
the dominant groups.

Subcultural theories: illegitimate mediums are adopted when the

legitimate mediums are inaccessible to obtain the goals established
by the society/culture. The criminal culture, roles and behaviours, are
learnt in a concrete social environment. The opposition to the
dominant class, the acceptance of their position and the underground
values.

5. Functionalist theories.

Deviation is associated to the socialization process.

Deviation depends on personal situations, the norms and social
context:
- Only when the population defines a behavior as deviated the
action is sanctioned.
- The ability to develop rules and to break them is not equally
distributed amongst the individuals.
Deviation is essential to maintain the social equilibrium:
- Consolidating norms and cultural values.
- Clarifying moral boundaries.

- Promoting social cohesion.

6. Strain theory: Merton.

Deviation has been recurrent in all western societies and is, to a

certain degree, a sign of a healthy society.
Deviation is defined by the (im)possibility to obtain the cultural goals
with the institutionalized mediums. Lack of accepted standards.
 Anomie: tension/strain between goals and mechanisms to achieve
those goals, a phenomena which is recurrent in western societies.

The pressure for succeeding in western societies.

APPROVED
TYPE OF DEVIATION APPROVED MEANS
VALUES/GOALS
Conformity. + +
Innovation. + -
Ritualism. - +
Retreatism. - -
Rebellion. Replacement. Replacement.

7. Labelling theory.

Deviation and conformity are defined by the responses from the social
environment (not the actions of the individuals), by their interaction.
The role of institutions in the definition of a deviant behaviour.
Stigmatization, self-fulfil prophecies and their repercussions (Thomas
theorem: if men define situations as real, they are real in their
consequences).
Primary and secondary deviation.

Labelling and the structure of power.

8. Social control.

Social control: those measures adopted to prevent, avoid or punish

crime.
Positive and negative, formal and informal sanctions.
Visible and invisible social control.
Institutionalization and modernization of social control. The new stage
in the social control: rationalism and the information society.
- Relevance of the state in social control.
- The classification of deviation and crime is more diverse.
- The segregation of the deviant individuals becomes
professionalized and rationalized (prisons, psychiatric hospitals,
asylums, etc).
- Physical punishment is almost eradicated.
Prisons: segregation, punishment or rehabilitation?
The problematic equilibrium between re-offense and the dissuasive
effect of the prisons.
Re-socialization in deviation and crime.
Are prisons necessary and positive to society? Is it possible to find
alternatives to the prison?
Crime and deviation in a multi-cultural society.
 TOPIC 8. RACE, ETHNICITY AND MIGRATION.

1. Race, ethnicity and migration.

The glass ceiling: invisible barrier that hinders the promotion of

qualified individuals in a work environment.
Visible obstacles and discrimination? Colorblind racism.
New (desired) values and social reality: social conflicts.
Current multicultural and ethnic conflicts:
- The globalization process and the current financial and political
crisis.
- Conflicts in multiculturalism.
- Ethnocentrism (judging another culture by the standards and
cultural patterns of the culture of reference) and cultural relativism
judging a culture by its own cultural patterns.
- The second generation of immigrants.
The relevance of the socialization process.
Prejudices: rigid and irrational generalizations about an entire group
of people. New and old set of prejudices.
Discrimination: refers to the actual behavior towards them, creating
unequal opportunities and rights amongst the population (labor
market, housing, education).
Domination, inequalities and social exclusion: us and them.
Race and ethnic groups.
Race is a concept that generally refers to a category of individuals
who share certain inherited (biological) features considered socially
meaningful or relevant by the members of a certain society.
Evolution of the scientific and sociological conception of race:
Gobineaus theories, pre and post WWII understanding of race and
the current consideration of race.
 The globalization and miscegenation processes allow a personal
identification with different ethnic and racial groups.
Former and present racism in western cultures: South Africa, USA,
Europe (Spain).
New racism:
- Scientification of the race.
- Cultural hierarchies: exploitative relations from western to non-
western groups.
- Ideological: Migration to western countries and the fight for jobs,
houses, etc.
Racial distinctions are also important factors in reproduction of
patterns of power and inequality within western societies.
Ethnicity: people who share a cultural heritage. Key elements to
differentiate ethnic groups: national identity, language, history, styles
of dress or adornment, ancestry and religion.
Identity: members of ethnic groups see themselves as culturally
distinct from other groups and are seen by them, in return, as
different.
- Cohesion and solidarity amongst its members.
- Differences with other groups (dominant and minority groups)
(wealth, power and prestige).

- Formal and informal processes for the (re)production of ethnic

groups: socialization and segregation. i.e: the ghettos.

2. Migration.

Intra-national and international migrations.

Migrations in the XX and XXI centuries: push and pull theory and
multiple-factor theories.
Migrations in modernity:
- Classic model (USA, Canada, Australia).
- The colonial model (U.K, France).
- Guest workers model (Germany, Switzerland, Belgium).
- Illegal model (USA, EU).
175 million people (3% of the world population) reside in countries
other than where they were born.
Four primary models of multiculturality:
Assimilation: immigrants mold their behavior to the values and norms
of the majority. (A+B+C= A).
Melting pot: formation of new cultural patterns, hybrid and diverse.
(A+B+C=D).
Cultural pluralism: ethnic cultures are given full validity to exist
separately, yet participate in the larger societys economic and
political life. (A+B+C= A+B+C).

Segregation (A/B/C = A/B/C): physical separation of two groups of

people in terms of place of residence, place of work and social events;
no participation and/or integration which is often imposed by a
dominant group.
3. Sociological theories (interpretations) of race and ethnicity.

Conflict theories: a product of the capitalist system. Segregation and

exploitation.
Functionalism: Maintains the status quo, but does not use the
resources of the society, aggravates social problems such as poverty
and weakens the relationships amongst its members.
Labelling perspective: racial and ethnic classification is the result of
the power and authoritarian relationships of certain groups.
- Group closure: construction of social and cultural, visible and
invisible, boundaries.

TOPIC 9. SOCIAL CHANGE.

1. Social change.

Social responses and reactions against social change (i.e: technology:

technophobia, technological amish, luddites, apocalyptic).
W. F. Ogburn: Periods of adjustment when intangible culture is still
struggling to adapt to new material conditions (Internet).
Social change is the transformation of culture and social institutions
over time.
Characteristics of social change:
- In all (western) societies there has been social change (with
different rates of change).
- Social change is sometimes intentional but usually occurs
involuntarily.
- Social change generates disagreements and fears.
- Not all changes are equally important (micro and macro, short and
long term).
Variables and elements which provoke social change: internal and
external to society.
- Changes produced by biological, environmental or demographic
elements.
- Intentional or imposed changes: political, economic (i.e:
capitalism), legal (i.e: same sex marriage, smoking banning). Also
ideas (i.e: Webers The protestant ethic and the spirit of
capitalism).
 - Individual leaders.
- Unintentional changes: discovery, invention, diffusion. Also
collateral effects of external changes: (i.e. technology and
transitive memory).

- The tension and conflict within a society produces change.

2. Theories (interpretations) of social change.

Evolution: in all societies there is a direction of social change with a

series of stages (Comte and the theological, metaphysical and
positive stages).
Cyclical theories: in spite of the peaks and valleys, progress is the
path of western societies.
Functionalism: social change maintains the equilibrium in society.

Conflict theory: As the conflict amongst groups, individuals and

institutions is constant, social change is also constant.

3. Modernization.

Modernity refers to the social order created with the Enlightenment

and the idea of progress. With modernity arise the questioning of
traditional societies.
- Progress, development and innovation.
- Individualization (identities, responsibilities and merit).
- Community and society. The decline of small traditional
communities.
- Process of urbanization and new distribution of the geography and
demography (effects in politics, economy, social groups and daily
life).
- Differentiation: coexistence of diverse groups and beliefs.
- Rationalization: secularization, bureaucratization, efficiency and
science. The role of the experts.
- New needs and new economy: from a subsistence economy to
the economy of production, distribution and consumption.
- The relevance of time and space. The invention of the clock.

- Public and private spheres.

4. Postmodernity.

A dynamic and open concept. A new stage in modernity

(radicalization)?
- Modernity has failed (the promise of modernity was to enjoy a life
free from needs, eradication of poverty and more equality).
- Pessimism about the future.
- Science does not find an answer to all the problems and dilemmas
of our current historical moment.
- Development creates new problems. Crisis: labour, environment,
finances, politics, etc.
 - New conflicts and the impossibility of old institutions to solve new
problems (capitalism and institutions).

5. History of technology and social change.

From prehistory to the Enlightenment: from survival to the

improvement of the living conditions.
Enlightenment and believe in progress.
Industrial revolution and mechanization.
The information society- digitalization.
- From massive production to selective production.
- Production of small devices not based on efficiency and which are
difficult to understand.
- Communications and Internet.

- Fast development and innovation: from atoms to digital to virtual

(i.e. music, data, images).

6. History of technology and social change: present.

Google generation.
Trans-humanism- Beyond nature (i.e. Oscar Pistorius).
Genomic, DNA and embryo treatment- New ethical and moral
challenges.
Decrease of violence and increase of altruism.
Internet: innovation, activity, networks and social movements.
Awareness about the natural environment.

The relevance of collaboration and multidisciplinary tasks.

7. History of technology and social change: the future.

Predictions of the XX century: flying cars, encapsulated food, living in

the moon and an army of androids serving us.
Computers vs. Humans.

Singularity.

8. Social change and technology.

The influence of technology in the culture and society: i.e: education-

writing devices, Power Points and Aula Global.
Is society adapting to technology or technology adapting to society?
- Scientific knowledge Technology Social change.
- Social problem Technology Solution New needs New
technology New solutions.
Are our social needs culturally created?
Social changes provoked by digital technology:
- Work.
- Communication.
- Leisure time.
- Economy.
 - Politics (?).
- Relation with the natural environment.
- Social relations and identities.
- Space/time.

- Public/private life.

9. What is the effect of technology in the social structure of Western

societies?

Is the effect of technology in society and the social structure neutral?

(Dis)connection and the digital divide. New social structure:
information and education.
Gender and technology: Technofeminism.

TOPIC 10. SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES (I).

1. Sociological theories.

The importance of understanding theories and also their problematic

consequences.
- Good theories are important to understand societies and to
explain social changes.
- Are new social theories old theories dress up in a new language?

- The early sociologist tried to understand industrialism,

urbanization and capitalism, a new series of issues have to be
understood by the current sociologist: globalization,
multiculturalism, gender division and environmental degradation
are amongst the new central problems.

2. Sociological theories: Jeffrey Alexander.

 The importance of the historical context: from depression to euphoria.
Relationship with the ideologies of the societies in which they are
created.
Creation of models: Theories intend to be valid in different moments
and contexts - abstraction and generalization.
The social action can be understood as rational or irrational.
Ideas of order: individualism and collectivism.
- Collectivist patterns assume a prior order to the individual-
product of history (i.e: the economy).

- Individual patterns are the result of individual negotiation and

individual choice.

3. Functionalism.

Functionalism applied contributions of biology and medicine to the

study of society: Similar to a body: a system consisting of subsystems
(digestive system, nervous system, etc.).
Comte observed the science of sociology as essentially similar to
natural science.
- Positivism (direct observation and causal law).
- The final intention is to intervene and shape the social world.
Spencer: societies also experience evolution.
- Structural differentiation: from simple societies to a diverse
society with separate institutions.
- Functional adaptation to the environment.
- Survival of the fittest applied in social sciences.
Durkheim: Social institutions and social forms are beyond peoples
actions and interactions. Hence, Durkheim is interested in social facts
and not the psychology of individuals (i.e: suicide).
- Mechanical solidarity is found in less complex societies, when
individualism is minimized and the individual is subsumed within
the collectivity.
- Organic solidarity is found in large-scale, modern, industrial
societies. There is a better balance between individual differences
and collective purposes.
Social structure, according to Durkheim constrains our activities,
setting limits to what we can do as individuals (i.e: the monetary
system, marriage, language).
- The system is the ordered set of elements that tend to retain their
organization.
- The structures are systems of elements that have enough stability
to be considered independent of small fluctuations caused by
external factors.
- Equivalence or relationship refers to the function of the structures:
contribute to the maintenance and adaptability of the systems to
which they belong.
Talcott Parsons tried to explain how society can hold together when all
the individuals have different interests, desires and needs (the
problem of social order).
 Systemic functionalism:
- Systems only partially control the environments and other internal
and external elements.
- Consideration of the processes - change (i.e. the family).
- The importance of socialization to maintain the social order.
The AGIL paradigm:
- A-dapting function: Economic sub-system, adaptation to the
environment and the resources.
- G-oal attainment function. Political sub-system. Goals and
mechanisms for their achievement.
- I-ntegrative function: Community sub-system: Integration and
coordination of the subsystems.
- L-atency: Education/socialization subsystem: Preservation and
transmission of values to new generations.
Robert K. Merton introduced the middle-range theories which refer to
specific aspects of social life (instead of grand theories). They connect
the micro and the macro, allowing conflict and social change (i.e:
deviance).
Dysfunctions: (negative) effects which were granted to certain
institutions to maintain system stability (i.e: religion). Also, it is
important the concept of functional equivalence (i.e: religion and
football).
The distinction between manifest functions and latent functions (i.e:
hopi).
- Manifest functions are the conscious consequences of institutions
and social events.
- Latent functions are the consequences usually not known by the
participants in the social events.

Sociology of science: The Mathew effect.

4. Functionalism-Criticism.

Criticism to functionalism:
1) Functionalism is good at creating consensus but experience
problems explaining conflict and radical social change.
2) Does not allow enough room for the creative actions of individuals.

3) Tends to attribute purposes and needs to society itself.

5. Structuralism.

Language as a good illustration: it has to be socially structured, it has

to be respected, use and shared by users.
Signs and referents: Saussure, Levy-Strauss, Lacan, Baudrillard.
People have been created by the structures in which they are born
and socialized; we do not produce structures but we are a product of
them.
Marx and Marxism.
 Structuralism marxism: conflictual perspective instead of the
consensus perception of the system.
The structure of the society depends on the production system (the
relation with the means of production).
The values, beliefs and standards will be its superstructure (law or
religion).
Historical materialism, a scientific explanation of social change.
- Primitive communism: small-scale human groups with no
developed system of property ownership, no classes.
- Feudalism: Private property ownership. Class division between
landowners and peasants.
- Capitalist system: class division and antagonism, the property
owners and the workers.
- Communism: the class-consciousness will abolish private property
and communal social relations will be established.
Pierre Bourdieu: there are structures which are independent of the
consciousness and will of the agents.
"Habitus" is a relational concept, because the identity is defined
considering the differences with others (i.e: opera).
- Structuring structure" because it organizes practices and the
perception of those practices.
- Structured structures", the division into social classes reinforces
the different habitus.
Fields.
Lifetime choices:
- Economic capital: material goods, wealth and income.
- Cultural capital: education, appreciation of the arts, consumption
and leisure pursuits.
- Social capital: the network of friends and contacts.
- Symbolic capital: Reputation, similar to status.

TOPIC 11. SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES (II).

1. From macro to micro.

The actions and social events are created by individuals not

structures. More freedom?
 Max Weber acknowledged the existence of social structures (classes,
parties, status groups, etc.), but they are created by individuals.

The protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism: structures and

values. Calvinism: The vocation to work and predestination.

2. Phenomenology.

Phenomenology is the systematic study of social phenomena; the

social construction of reality.
Alfred Schtz- collection of capta instead of data. Understand and
explain instead of analyze.
The natural attitude: peoples experiences of everyday life and the
(trans)formation of their reality.
- Typifications: order the world using classifications according to
previous experiences (people, activities, institutions, etc.).
- The assumption that everyone thinks in similar ways.
Everyday Life-world. We create our reality in a intersubjective world
in which there are constrains generated by our predecessors (i.e:
money, bar).
- Personal, anonymous and distance relationships.
- The everyday life in a multicultural world (i.e: greetings).
Ethnometodology: Make sense of the world, not only analyze it. It is
important to consider the context in conversations and social
activities.

Criticism to phenomenology and social constructionism.

3. Phenomenology and social constructionism.

Berger and Lukmann defined the cultural dimension of

phenomenological sociology: The social construction of reality.
They explored the existence of a dialectic relationship: society is
created by men and man is a social product.
Key concepts: reality, language, knowledge and common sense.
The sociology of knowledge: the process of acquiring knowledge
about our society.
- Externalization: the social order is a human product.
- Objectification: humans products as something external to
humans (institutionalization and legitimation) (i.e: law).
- Internalization: assume cultural construction of others (i.e: taxes).

Socialization: primary and secondary.

4. Interactionism.

Symbolic Interactionism (Blumer): only individuals and their

interactions can be said to really exist at all (not structures).
Language and gestures, their meaning, are fundamental for the
interaction processes.
 G. M. Mead claims that language and symbols provides a mean to
become self-conscious beings, aware of our own individuality and able
to see ourselves from the outside as others see us (identity).
Gestures: signified and not signified.
The key element is the construction of symbols and the creation of a
universe of symbols which are shared (i.e: Traffic signs; Hoschchild
study of the emotional labor).
The construction of the self: I and me. (i.e: social conformity, football
or cinema). The socialization process: values, norms, etc.
Stages of the self-speculation or the generalize other: imitating and
internalizing and later, in more complex process, assuming rules
through playing games (games and sports).
The significant others.

Criticism.

5. Dramaturgical theory: E. Goffman.

Theatre as a metaphor to analyse social relations and the

presentation of the self in everyday life.
(Un)conscious process?
Role play: the individuals tries to control the impressions and feelings
that will produce in the others (the audience) (i.e: Preddy).
Roles are socially defined expectations that a person in a given status
or social position follows (set of status) (i.e: lecturer).
Acts/scenes, scenario and backstage (i.e: restaurant, University,
couples arguing in public, politicians in front of the camera).
Support and rehearsal of the performances.
The new virtual scenarios, cinema vs. theatre? Virtual other vs.
generalize other?
- Focused interaction: individuals directly attend to what others say
or do.
- Openings.
- Heart.
- End.
Civil inattention: recognition of the other persons presence, avoiding
any gesture that might be taken as too intrusive.- urban, modern and
efficient life.
Unfocused interaction takes places whenever individuals exhibit
mutual awareness of one anothers presence (theatre, street, etc).
Response cries.
Total institutions.
Criticism.
 TOPIC 12. SOCIOLOGICAL THEORIES (III).

1. Contextualizing the risk society.

Sociology and environment.

What is the meaning of natural nowadays? Natural habits and a
natural life-style? (medicine, clothes, food: eco and bio- cultural
constructions of the natural).
Also, what is the current relationship between human beings and the
natural environment? From protection to domestication.
The natural environment cannot be conceived without human
societies and the natural environment is now human: the artificial
forest and safaris.
Conflicts, dilemmas and ethical problems: productivity and genetic
modification of food. Also manipulation of embryos, clones, etc.
How do we connect the human social needs and the natural
environment? Relationship between development and the destruction
of the natural environment (economical and demographical).
Are developed societies more concern about the natural environment
than undeveloped societies? (Kutznet curve).
- Should undeveloped countries obtain the right to pollute the
environment on higher rates?
- Is the political system an element that influences the relationship
with the natural environment?
- If western societies grow at present rates, will there be enough
natural resources in the future?
Industrialized nations have 12% of the world's population but are
60% responsible of the pollution of the planet and consumption.
Manufacturing has moved to the periphery nations and semi-
periphery where greenhouse gas emissions are intensifying.

International inequalities: those who throw the rubbish and those

who suffer the rubbish of the others.

2. Society and environment.

Sustainable development: development which meets the needs of the

present generation without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs (UN, 1987).

An inconvenient truth.

3. Risk society.

What is the risk society? a systematic way of dealing with hazards

and insecurities induced and introduced by modernization.
Key element: manufactured risks.
The risk society in images and examples.
The risk society in sociology and society. A. Giddens and his concept
of trust.
 The risks do not refer to occurred damages: potential destruction and
real destruction.
Symbolic risks: the cultural perception and the definition constitute
the risks.
The importance of the image, the catastrophe.
The risks appear when the trust in our security ends and they
disappear with the catastrophe (or its absence).
Suspicion that those who threaten our welfare and those in charge of
protecting it might be the same individuals and corporations.
Modernity and the risk society:
- Synthesis of knowledge and unawareness: manufactured
uncertainties.
- Reflexivity: self-analytical society.
- Disappearance of the scientific authority and the scientific truth
(e.g.: global warming, wine).
- Intention to control everything.
Science creates new risks. The development of scientific knowledge is
the cause of new risks (e.g.: batteries, wireless communications,
genetically modified food). Also, the solutions to defend society and
culture from nature create new risks (e.g.: vaccines).
Are the risks more dangerous when they are invisible and their impact
is unknown?
Disconnection of the causes and effects, the origin and the symptoms
(e.g: mad cows disease).
The role of the experts: tolerable and regulated risks produce the
legitimization of risks (e.g.: mercury on Panga).
Differences in the production, definition and diffusion of the risks.
Taboos: certain fields and risks are not studied (e.g. petrol, batteries).
The world of opulence and overabundance becomes dark under the
power of the risks and proposes new challenges to democracy (e.g.:
Hurricane Katrina).
The social production of wealth is connected with the social
production of risks. Destruction and catastrophes are not exclusively
a natural issue and becomes a global issue (e.g. Chernobyl and
Fukushima).
The end of the others.
Glocal: Global hazards from local perspectives.
Responsibility.

Trust: the promises of security increase with the risks and it has to be
continually ratified to the public opinion.

4. Postmodernism.

Modernity has failed (the promise of modernity was to enjoy a life free
from needs, eradication of poverty and more equality).
Pessimism about the future.
Science does not find an answer to all the problems and dilemmas of
our current historical moment.
 Development creates new problems. Crisis: labour, environment,
finances, politics, etc.
New conflicts and the impossibility of old institutions to solve new
problems (capitalism and institutions).
Postmodernism and postmodern social theory: cultural products which
supersede the modern cultural products and a sociological theory
which observe modern social theory differently.
Jean Franois Lyotard: The postmodern Condition. Incredulity in grand
theories and metanarratives. The symbols and the construction of
reality.
Zygmunt Bauman: Liquid modernity. from postmodernity to fluid
modernity. Our society is fluid and surrounded by uncertainty in spite
of all the attempts to impose a modern order and stability into it.
Frederic Jameson: The cultural logic of late capitalism. The
transformation of culture with a similar structure.
Marx and the emerge of market capitalism; Lenin and global capitalist
network; today we are experiencing the expansion into new areas.
We live today in a global culture which is American
According to Jameson, postmodernity and its cultural products are
characterized by:
- Superficiality and lack of depth.
- Fading of emotions.
- There is a loss of historicity: Pastiche" or combinations of ideas
sometimes contradictory and confusing about the past and other
cultures.
- There is a new technology associated with the postmodern
society; instead of production we find re-production.
Jean Baudrillard: Media (values and ideas) and their representations.
The system of the objects: Objects and consumption, time as an
object.
Simulacra and simulation. Today the border between reality and
representations has collapsed (e.g. Princess Diana, the Gulf war,
9/11). The perfect crime.
Simulation is no longer that of a territory, a referential being, or a
substance. It is the generation by models of the real without origin or
reality: a hyperreal (...). It is no longer a question of imitation, nor
duplication, nor even parody. It is a question of substituting the reality
for the signs of the real.
From reality to hyperreality (i.e. Jorge Luis Borges on rigor in
science).

Hyperreality is constructed on simulacra, using images, consequently

it is not grounded in an external reality, (e.g.: Second Life, Matrix,
Dysneland, celebrities).

5. Structuration.

Anthony Giddens, The constitution of society.

Time and space are key concepts in his theory.
 Integration of actions, agents and structure (i.e: language and
Univeristy).
Duality of structure: Structure depends on the agents and the agents
on the structure (e.g. University).
Consequently the structure is external and also internal.
Memory traces are the vehicle used by social actions to be
perpetuated in society. The action and the memory is possible in the
processes of interaction and routinization.
- Domination (power).
- Legitimization (norms).
- Signification (meaning).
Actors are constrain but not impelled to (re)create the social action.
They have limited freedom (e.g: University)
Consciousness and reflexivity: actors are self-conscious about their
actions and the constrains of the structures.
- The actors can rationalize their actions.
- The actors have motivations (not always present in the final
actions).