End of the Year Reflection.

       Sociology is a very interesting subject which helped me understand society in a much deeper level. I learned more about things that I wouldn't have been interested in learning because they were so common to me, like family for example. To be honest though, I enjoyed psychology a lot more because to me individuals are more interesting than overall communities. There were some subjects, however, that I really loved such as economy and politics. I also liked the documentaries we watched. Overall, the class was very interesting but in the end psychology was more interesting for me.

How Facebook CHangesd the World: The Arab Spring

       The Arab Spring was a series of revolutions made possible by Facebook which started in Tunisia. It all started with a young fruit seller who had had enough of the government and the corrupt police. After an encounter with police brutality he set himself on fire as a form of protest. This event inspired a protest against the government and dictator Ben Ali. Once big crowds gathered the people lost their fear and started to spout their views openly. When the police arrived what started as a peaceful protest, became a street war. Yet almost everyone in the crowd had a cell phone and many recorded the riot. The police was trying to arrest people with cell phones but many were hidden in strategic places where they could film. These videos were uploaded via Facebook and went viral. In the end, Tunisia was able to get rid of their dictator and this inspired their nations to revolutionize. From Morocco to Yemen, the citizens were trying to overthrow their government. Another successful revolution was and Egypt and like Tunisia it was made possible because of the Internet. The Internet was the safest place to express their views because other than governmental WebPages, the leaders did not pay much attention to it. 

Countires 

       The series of revolutions in the Arab world known as “The Arab Spring” are examples of the contagion theory of collective behavior. This theory states that the hypnotic power of a crowd forces people to abandon their individuality to the stronger pull of the group. This can be seen in a smaller scale and in a larger scale. In Tunisia, for example, the people finally lost their fear of voicing their opinion when they were in the crowd. This is because the crowd gave them power and they weren’t individual people anymore, they were anonymous. One can also argue that the chain effect that this revolution had is part of collective behavior. When people in other countries saw how Tunisia got rid of their dictator it encouraged them to do the same thing.

       The cause of these particular social movements can be debatable. One is relative depravation theory. This could apply because the citizens of these nations felt deprived of rights. This may have triggered but the reason some of the revolutions were successful were due to resource-mobilization theory. Without the help of educated Tunisians, computer experts and the internet (Facebook), the Arab Spring would not have been as successful as it was. This is because the way the revolutionaries were able to operate was through the internet and they were able to show the rest of the world what was really going on.

       Social movements like these are the ones that usually bring the best for the people. Tunisia got rid of her oppressor in just a few days. This would have never been possible without the internet. One single event can inspire many people to fight for their rights but without the resources needed, even the noblest revolution will fail.

Chapter 18 Social Change and Modernization

For a society to progress it must bring social change to the malfunctioning of the society. Throughout history we have seen social change for the better like in the French Revolution or the Enlightenment. Because of changes like these we have the modern society we have now. But still we keep moving forward inventing new ways of progress.

Social change is defined as alterations in sections of society over time. A cynical theory of social change views change in a historical point of view. When a society arises, it goes through change as part of a natural development. According to Pitirim Sorokin all cultures fluctuate between two extreme forms of culture. Ideational culture which functions on a base of faith and religion and sensate culture where people knowledge seek through science. And idealistic culture is a mixture of the two. He referred to the natural tendency of social change as the principle of immanent change. Evolutionary theorists in the 1800’s believed that societies evolved through distinct stages of social development. Modern evolutionary theorists on the other hand believe that societies get more complex naturally. The equilibrium theory of social change compares society to a living organism and when it is disrupted, change will come. The conflict theory of social change states that when two or more opposing groups clash it will bring social change.

Core, Periphery and Semiperiphery nations

Modernization is when society’s institutions become more complex and it moves towards industrialization. The modernization theory states that more developed nations are modernized because they industrialized first. According to the world system theory, the world is composed of three types of countries. Core nations are developed nations such as the USA, Japan and Canada. Peripheral nations are poor countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia. Finally semiperipheral nations are between core and peripheral nations.

Our society naturally gets more complex and moves towards an even more modernized future. This is because all societies have change at some point and the old ways are replaced with new, more functional ways. We are all moving to an even more modernized future.

Chapter 17 Collective Behavior and Social Movement

In many places the people are upset with their government or the way their society works. Every once in a while, when the people cannot take it anymore, they try to change that part of society that they don’t like. Sometimes they are successful, other times they are not.

       Collective behavior is the relatively spontaneous social behavior that occurs when people try to develop common solutions to unclear situations. Groups that exhibit collective behavior are called collectives. Three factors distinguish these collectives and they are limited interaction (there is little to no interaction), unclear norms (behavior is unclear or unconventional), and limited unity. A collectivity is a gathering of people that barely interact and have unclear norms and unity. A crowd is a temporary gathering of people who are close enough proximity to interact. A mob is an emotionally charged collectivity whose members are united by a specific destructive or violent goal. A riot is a collection of people who erupt into generalized destructive behavior. A panic is a spontaneous an uncoordinated group action to escape a perceived threat. A moral panic occurs when people become fearful-often without a reason- about behavior that appears to threaten society’s core values. Fashions refer to enthusiastic attachments among large groups of people for particular styles. Fads are similar to fashions but last a short period of time. A rumor is an unverified piece of information that is spread rapidly. Urban legends are stories that teach a lesson and seem realistic but are not. Propaganda is an organized and deliberate attempt to shape public opinion. Contagion theory states that the hypnotic power of a crowd forces people to give up their individuality to strengthen the group.

"Liberty Guiding the People" by Eugene Delacroix depicts a revolutionary movement.

       Social movements are more deliberate and long lasting forms of collective behavior. Reactionary movements have the goal of reversing the current social trends. Conservative movements try to protect what they see as society’s prevailing values. Revisionary movements try to improve a part of society through social change and finally revolutionary movements are complete radical change of the existing social structure. The life cycle of social movements is agitation, legitimation, bureaucratization, and institutionalization. Relative depravation theory states that people join social groups because they feel deprived relative to other groups. Resource mobilization theory states that even the most ill-treated group with the most just cause will be able to bring social change without resources.

       Regimes are overthrown constantly, this is because the people are unsatisfied with their rules. Throughout history it has been common that groups are made to bring social change, the Magna Carta and the French Revolution are examples. When the people feel threatened or unsatisfied, they will do anything in their power to change it.

Chapter 16 Population and Urbanization

       A society is composed of a population. The amount of people living at the same place can greatly affect how a society works. An example is urbanization which is caused by people moving to cities and leaving the country. Great population increase or decrease affects the functioning society.

       A population is the number of people living in an area at a particular time. Demography is the area of sociology devoted to the study of human populations. The measure to describe the amount of births is the birthrate and its formula is Birthrate=live births/Total population X 1000. Fertility is used to describe the number of women of child bearing age that are actually having children. Fecundity is the biological capability to bear children. The number of deaths within a society is the mortality. The measure to calculate the number of deaths in a population is the death rate. The infant mortality rate is the amount of children under the age of one year that die. Life expectancy is the amount of years a person is expected to live according to the year they were born. Migration is the movement of one specified area to another. The migration rate is calculated by the amount of immigration and emigration. The rate at which a countries population increases is called the growth rate. The Malthusian theory was developed by Thomas Malthus and it stated that population would grow to astronomical numbers and that there would be famine, war and conflict due to it. The demographic transition theory states that a country’s population depends on its technological development. Zero growth rate is the point where the birthrates almost match the death rates creating zero population growth.

One Child Policy in China 

       Urbanization is a concentration of the population in cities. A city is a permanent residence for a large number of people who do not engage in farming activities. The evolution of cities are the preindustrial cities to the industrial cities. Overurbanization happens when more people live in a city than the city can provide for in jobs or facilities. There are different types of city structures which are the concentric model, the sector model, the multiple nuclei model and the urban ecology model.

       People are always seeking a better life. Overpopulation is caused by people having children to take care of them. Under population is caused when having children brings economical problems. Urbanization happens when people decide to leave the country and move to the city.

Chapter 15 Science and the Mass Media

      Society seems to be advancing at the speed of light. It is said that one issue of the New York Times puts out more information than the entire Middle Ages did. One of the things we owe this too is the invention of modern science. Without science we wouldn’t have advanced in knowledge about us humans and about the world. Then we also have the mass media which allows people from all over the world to send and receive ideas and information from people they don’t even know.

       Science emerged in the 300s BCE in Greece, Babylon, India, China and Egypt. In ancient Greece the fields of mathematics, astronomy, biology, physics and medicine were explored by great thinkers such as Aristotle and Plato. However with the fall of the Roman Empire scientific advances slowed down and with the rise of the Catholic Church people turned towards philosophy and religion.

       The rebirth of science was due to four major factors which were the renaissance, the invention of the printing press, the age of exploration and the protestant reformation. Now rather than employing philosophical speculation, scientists used the scientific method which is an objective and systematic way to gather information and come to conclusions. Modern science however didn’t come to light until the 1800s and early 1900s.The norms of scientific research are universalism, organized skepticism, communalism, disinterestedness and counter-norms. Fraud is one of the realities of scientific research. A famous example was the “missing link” of human evolution which in this case was the skull of a human and the jaw of an orangutan. Another problem is competition which is one of the principal causes of norm violation in the scientific field.

      The mass media are instruments of communication that reach a large audience without having a personal relationship between the people sending it and the people receiving it. The instutionalization of the mass media includes writing and paper, the printing press, the industrial age and the computer and the information society. A few examples of mass media are print media (books, newspapers and magazines), audio media (music, audio books), visual media (television, movies, DVDs), online media (the internet) and convergence which is integration of two different medias such as a news paper with a web page. From the functionalist perspective, the mass media perform functions that support the stability of society. From a conflict perspective the purpose is to maintain social order. Some issues with mass media are what the media exposes to children, effects on civic and social life and the power that it holds.

Different types of Mass Media

       Thanks to the mass media and the scientific institution, we are able to enjoy many luxuries in the modern world. Yet science is advancing so fast that in a few years what we consider modern will be obsolete.

Chapter 13 Economy and Politics

       Societies need someone to run them and make their money flow. This is why societies develop economic systems according to their specific needs. They also need a ruler or leader to ensure that these systems run smoothly. Societies have different economic systems and different ways of choosing their leaders, these systems can be very complicated.

       To satisfy people's needs and wants, every society develops a system of roles and norms that governs the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. This is called the economic institution. The factors of production are resources needed to produce goods and services which include the land, labor, capital, and entrepreneurship. The primary sector deals with the extraction of raw materials from the environment.  The secondary sector concentrates on the use of raw materials to manufacture goods.  The tertiary sector shifts to providing services. In Preindustrial societies, there is very little technological development.  In Industrial societies, the main emphasis in the economy shifts from the primary sector to secondary. The Postindustrial societies or tertiary sector is the most important. In capitalism the factors of production are owned by the individuals rather than by the government. The Law of supply states that producers will supply more products when they can charge higher prices and fewer products when they must charge lower prices. The Law of demand states that consumers will demand more of a product as the price of the product decreases.   If government interference is kept to a minimum and if competition is restricted, the invisible hand of market forces will keep the economy in balance, sometimes known as laissez-faire capitalism. The commitment to limited government control of business operations has resulted in the labeling of capitalist economies as free-enterprise systems.

        In socialism, the factors of production are owned by the government, which regulates economic activity. Communism is a political and economic system in which property is communally owned. Totalitarianism: those in power exercise complete authority over the lives of individual citizens. A Corporation is a business organization that is owned by stockholders and is treated by law as if it were an individual person. An Oligopoly is the market situation in which a few large companies control an industry. Protectionism is the use of trade barriers to protect domestic manufacturers from foreign competition. Free-trade is trade that is not restricted by trade barriers between countries. Multinational is any corporation that has factories and offices in several countries. The nature of work has shifted from an industrial base to a service base. E-commerce is business conducted over the internet. Recently in the USA the economy has gone down considerably, the national debt is worse than it has ever been in the past and this is because of the current president. 

       Power is the ability to control the behavior of others with or without their consent. State is the primarily political authority in society. Political Institution is the system of roles and norms that govern the distribution and exercise the power of society. Functionalist view is to analyze political institutions in terms of functions of the state, creation of laws, settling conflicts with individuals and relations with other countries. Conflict theorist view is how the political institution brings social change. Different groups in society compete for power. Legitimacy is whether those in power have the right to govern others. Max Weber referred to legitimate power as authority. Coercion is power that is considered illegitimate by the people governed. Traditional authority is power based on a long standing custom. Rational legal authorities are rules and regulations that outline the rights and obligations of those in power. Charismatic authority is based on the personal characteristics of the individual in power. Political Parties are organizations that seek to gain power through legitimate means. Proportional representation ensures that minority parties receive a voice in the government. Interest Group is an organization that attempts to influence the political decision making process. Voter participation is the heart of the democratic process. Voter Participation varies among different groups of Americans. Race, education, employment and age are factors that affect voting. The Power-elite model was first presented by C. Wright Mills and states that political power is exercised by and for the privileged few in society. The Pluralist model states that the political process is controlled by interest groups that compete one another for power.

Political cartoon on monarchy

       People need to follow someone and they need norms and regulations to prosper. A leader is always needed to make sure that the economy and the well being of the people are in a good state. Some leaders though may not care about the economy or the people and only care for power and their personal economy. Whether it’s by democracy or absolutism, a leader is always needed in a larger society.