1.11 Glossary

Agency: having the freedom to make choices.

Algorithm: the set of rules used in computations associated with mathematics and computer software.

Ethnographic research: involves the researcher immersing themselves in the environment with their research participants to understand how people give meaning to their actions.

Gig economy: short-term, freelance work without benefits (e.g., paid sick leave, health insurance) and the obligations of permanent employment.

Intersectionality: A perspective that focuses on how sociodemographic categories (e.g., race, gender) cross-cut to produce different advantages and disadvantages depending on how these categories come together in one’s everyday life.

Macrosociological perspective: a framework used by sociologists that focuses on large scale social phenomena.

Mesosociological perspective: a framework used by sociologists focuses on the areas in between large scale social phenomena and interpersonal interaction.

Meta-analysis: summarizes the findings of the research on a topic to share the overall findings.

Microsociological perspective: a framework used by sociologists focuses on interpersonal interaction.

Private trouble: a problem experienced by the individual, which may be unique to the individual or shared with only a few others.

Public issue: social problems that effect many people and are outside a person’s control.

Social change: the process by which people transform the social structure, including social institutions and norms, through interaction.

Social construction of reality: a framework used by sociologists that focuses on explaining how people give meaning to things or ideas through social interaction.

Social institutions: groups and organizations that meet social needs and regulate norms.

Social media: a form of mass communication using online networks where users share information, typically to an audience of friends, family, acquaintances, and sometimes strangers.

Social reproduction: the process by which people maintain existing social arrangements and structures.

Social structure: the relationships and patterned interaction connecting different individuals, groups, and organizations that endure and shape behavior and attitudes.

Socialization: the process by which people learn about their culture

Sociological eye: questioning the taken-for-grantedness of human behavior and attitudes.

Sociological imagination: examines links between the lives of individuals and groups to the social forces beyond any individual’s control that contribute to socially patterned behavior and attitudes.

Sociological theory: testable explanations of social phenomena

Sociology: the scientific study of the behavior and attitudes of people and groups.

Stratification: the systematic and unequal distribution of power, status, and resources.

Technology: the use of scientific knowledge to create tools and materials to make life easier.