SOCIAL SCIENCE
cumulative reservoir containing both material and
SOCIOLOGY
is a scientific study of human society and its origins,
development, organizations, and institutions. It is
social science which uses various methods of
empirical investigation and critical analysis to
develop a body of knowledge about human social
activity, structures, and functions.
SOCIAL SCIENCE THEORIES
Macro-level theories- approaches to sociology that
focus primarily on society and/or other large social
units.
STRUCTURAL-FUNCTIONALISTS- usually more
optimistic and view society as a system of
differentiated, interrelated elements that tend to
move towards stability.
CONFLICT THEORISTS- more pessimistic and view
society as full of confliting elements that can play a
role in social change and even upheaval.
Micro-level theories- deal with individual
interactions within smaller social units.
ACCULTURATION/ ENCULTURATION
- is a process in which members of one cultural
group adopt the beliefs and behaviors of another
group.
EXAMPLES:
•Picking up a southern American accent within a
day or two
•Sushi becoming popular in the West
•The granddaughter of a Chinese immigrant has
gone to American schools and will now attend an
American college. She spends time primarily with
her American friends, dresses as they do and shares
their values and interests. She has become highly
acculturated into American culture.
CULTURE
-is the sum total of ideas, beliefs, values, material
cultural equipments and non-material aspects
which man makes a member of society. (E.B. Taylor
1860s)
-Culture can be conceived as a continuous,
non-material elements that are socially transmitted
from generation to generation.
COMPONENTS OF CULTURE
Material Culture- consists of all the physical
objects people have borrowed, discovered, or
invented and to which they have attached meaning.
(natural resources, trees, plants)
Non-material culture- consists of intangible
creations or things that we cannot identify directly
through the senses. (e.g. beliefs, values, norms,
folkways, and mores)
COMPONENTS OF NON-MATERIAL CULTURE
•Beliefs- first component of nonmaterial culture is
beliefs, conceptions that people accept as true,
concerning how the world operates and where the
individual fits in relationship with others. Can be
rooted in blind faith, experience, tradition or the
scientific method.
•Values- represent society’s stipulations about
what is acceptable in life.
•Norms- standards of behaviour governing social
situations that are established by a society’s values.
TYPES OF NORMS
1.Folkways- customary patterns of everyday life
that specify what is socially correct and proper in
everyday life.
2.Mores- Norms that are tied to a society’s core
values and to which people must adhere. Unlike
folkways, they are seen as forms of truth that all
people should understand and follow.
3.Taboos- is a norm that society holds so strongly
that violating it results in extreme disgust. Often
times the violator of the taboo is considered unfit to
live in that society.
INCEST- sex between close relatives
4. Laws- norms that are enforced formally by a
special organization.
-SANCTION - a threatened penalty for disobeying a
law or rule.
5. Language- system of symbols that have specific
and arbitrary meaning in a given society.
CHARACTERISTICS OF CULTURE
1. ordered, systematic, and integrated
2.shared
3.Weakly Bounded
4.Learned
5.Symbolic and is Found in Our behaviour
6.Fluid and is Changing
7.Varied
8.Political
9.Corporate
SUB-CULTURE
•- refers to attitude of certain group
from the habitual practices of the majority.
(e.g. new styles of dressing, language and other
practices of a group of people
which are different from other majority)
STEREOTYPE
is any commonly known public belief
about a certain social group or a type of individual.
GENDER STEREOTYPES
SEXUAL ORIENTATION STEREOTYPES
Stereotypes are regarded as the most cognitive
component, prejudice as the affective and
discrimination as the behavioral
SOCIAL CHANGE
is a complex and multi-faceted phenomenon.
There are both endogenous (internal to the society
concerned) and exogenous (external to the society)
factors influencing social change.
•Many people interact initially with the stereotype
rather than with the true person.
SOCIAL STRATIFICATION
-is the socioeconomic layering of society's
members according to property, power, and
prestige.
SOCIALIZATION
is the lifelong process of learning how to become
functioning, contributing members of society.
It is through this mechanism that the heritage and
culture of a society can be passed on from
generation to generation. This allows society to
survive and even proliferate beyond the lifespan of
individual members.
OPEN CLASS SYSTEM
is an economic system that has upward and
downward mobility,
is achievement-based, and allows social relations
between the classes.
Industrialized nations tend to have open class
systems
.
CLOSED CLASS SYSTEM
have been confined to their ancestral occupations,
and their social status has mostly been prescribed
by birth.
Most closed class systems are found in less
industrialized countries.
An example of a closed class system with limited
social mobility is French society before the French
Revolution.
Under the Ancien Régime, French society was
divided between the first estate (clergy), second
estate (nobility), and third estate (commoners).
Members of each estate were likely to socialize only
with others in the same group.
ASCRIBED STATUS
The social status of a person that is given
from birth or assumed involuntarily later in life.
It is the social position one is born into and
personal characteristics beyond one's control, such
as race and gender.
A social status of a person that is acquired, such as
being an Olympic athlete, being a criminal, or being
a college professor. It is one's social standing that
depends on personal accomplishments.
ACHIEVED STATUS
In an open class system, people are ranked by
achieved status,whereas in a closed class system,
people are ranked by ascribed status.
STRUCTURAL MOBILITY It is unlikely that every member is aware of every
other member.
-Opportunity for movement in social class that The goal is to provide for the personal needs of the
is attributable to changes in the social structure of members.
a society, rather than to changes in an individual. TYPES OF INTERGROUP
INTERACTION
PRIMARY FUNCTION OF RELIGION IN HUMAN 1. ASSIMILATION
SOCIETY 2. PLURALISM
3. SEGREGATION
is to establish an orderly relationship between man 4. DOMINATION
and his surroundings. 5. POPULATION TRANSFER / EXPULSION
6. ANNIHILATION
CASTE SYSTEM

- is a form of social stratification characterized by MARXIST’S MODEL OF SOCIETY

endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life
which often includes an occupation, ritual status in is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and
a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and method of socioeconomic inquiry based upon a
exclusion based on cultural notions of purity and materialist interpretation of historical
pollution. development, a dialecticalview of social change, and
an analysis ofclass-relations within society and
CONFORMITY their applicationin the analysis and critique of the
is an individual’s adopting of attitude and development of capitalism.
behaviours of others because of pressure (real or The most valid criticism of Marxist’s model of
imagined) to do so. societyis the overemphasis on the importance of
Example, a cheerleader who wants to do an original economic class to explain historical trends.
routine but goes along with the majority of the BUREAUCRACY
squad in voting to do a stolen routine exhibits
conformity. - By Max Weber; A bureaucracy is a system of
organization noted for its size and complexity.
Conformity can be positive or negative. Everything within a bureaucracy —
responsibilities, jobs, and assignments — exists to
ROLE STRAIN
achieve some goal.
happens when contradicting roles for the same
status are both tried to be attained. A teacher very SIX CHARACTERISTICS OF BUREAUCRACY
friendly with her students but must grade them Hierarchy
objectively can succumb to role strain; although it is Rules
possible to maintain both role prescriptions, it can Function
also lead to psychological stress Focus
Impersonal
TWO ORDERS OF SOCIAL ORGANIZATION
Qualification
PRIMARY GROUP

SECONDARY GROUP THREE DIMENSIONS OF WEBER’S NOTION OF

SOCIAL CLASS:
SECONDARY GROUP
economic resources;
Relationships among members:
political power,
There is emphasis on the efficiency by which people
accomplish their jobs. social prestige
FASCISM
is a form of radical authoritarian nationalism.
Fascists seek to unify their nation through a
totalitarian state that seeks the mass mobilization
of the national community, relying on a vanguard
party to initiate a revolution to organize the nation
on fascist principles.
It promotes regulated private enterprise and
private property contingent whenever beneficial to
the nation and state enterprise and state property
where private enterprise and private property is
unable to meet the nation's needs.
COMMUNISM
- An equal society, without social classes or class
conflict, in which the means of production are the
common property of all.
CAPITALISTS
The social class of owners of the means of
production in industrial societies, whose primary
purpose is to make profits.
SOCIALISM
is an economic system characterized by social
ownership of the means of production and co-
operative management of the economy. "Social
ownership" may refer to cooperative enterprises,
common ownership, state ownership, or citizen
ownership of equity.
NEUROTRANSMITTER
are endogenous chemicals that transmit signals
from a neuron to a target cell across a synapse
acetylcholine
dopamine
serotonin
gamma aminobutyric acid (GABA)
glutamate
epinephrine and norepinephrine
endorphins
enkephalins
EXTRASENSORY PERCEPTION (ESP)
involves reception of information not gained
through the recognized physical senses but sensed
with the mind.
The term was adopted by Duke University
psychologist J. B. Rhine.
ESP is also sometimes casually referred to as a sixth
sense, gut instinct or hunch, intuition. The term
implies acquisition of information by means
external to the basic limiting assumptions of
science, such as that organisms can only receive
information from the past to the present.
TYPES OF EXTRASENSORY PERCEPTION
1. CLAIRVOYANCE- is used to refer to the ability to
gain information about an object, person, location
or physical event through means other than the
known human senses, a form of extra-sensory
perception.
2. TELEPATHY- is the transmission of information
from one person to another without using any of
our known sensory channels or physical
interaction.
3. Psychokinesis/telekinesis- "distant-movement"
with respect to strictly describing mental
movement or motion of solid matter, is a term
coined by publisher Henry Holt to refer to the
direct influence of mind on a physical system that
cannot be entirely accounted for by the mediation
of any known physical energy.
4. PRECOGNITION- precognition (from the Latin
præ-, “before,” + cognitio, “acquiring knowledge”),
also called future sight, and second sight, is a type
of extrasensory perception that would involve the
acquisition or effect of future information.
EGO DEFENSE MECHANISMS
1.Conversion: the expression of an intrapsychic
conflict as a physical symptom; some examples
include blindness, deafness, paralysis, or numbness.
2. Denial: Refusal to accept external reality
3. Displacement: Defense mechanism that shifts
sexual or aggressive impulses to a more acceptable
or less threatening target; redirecting emotion to a
safer outlet
4. Hypochondriasis: An excessive preoccupation or STAGES OF DEVELOPMENT BASED ON PIAGET’S
worry about having a serious illness. THEORY

5. Isolation: Separation of feelings from ideas and

events, for example, describing a murder with 1.SENSORIMOTOR STAGE (birth to 2 years)- an
graphic details with no emotional response infant's knowledge of the world is limited to his or
her sensory perceptions and motor activities.
6. Reaction formation: Converting unconscious
wishes or impulses that are perceived to be
dangerous into their opposites 2.PRE-OPERATIONAL STAGE (2 - 7 years)
Language development is one of the hallmarks of
7. Regression: Temporary reversion of the ego to an this period. Piaget noted that children in this stage
earlier stage of development rather than handling do not yet understand concrete logic, cannot
unacceptable impulses in a more adult way. mentally manipulate information, and are unable to
8.Repression: The process of attempting to repel take the point of view of other people, which he
desires towards pleasurable instincts, caused by a termed egocentrism.
threat of suffering if the desire is satisfied; the
desire is moved to the unconscious in the attempt 3.CONCRETE OPERATIONS (7 – 11 years old)
to prevent it from entering consciousness -elementary school years
9. Undoing: A person tries to 'undo' an unhealthy, - children gain a better understanding of mental
destructive or otherwise threatening thought by operations
acting out the reverse of unacceptable. -Children begin thinking logically about concrete
events, but have difficulty understanding abstract
10. Withdrawal: Withdrawal is a more severe form or hypothetical concepts.
of defence. It entails removing oneself from events,
stimuli, interactions, etc. under the fear of being
reminded of painful thoughts and feelings. 4.FORMAL OPERATIONS (11 to 16 years old)
-develops logical reasoning skills
11. Identification: The unconscious modelling of -decreases egocentricity
one's self upon another person's character and
behaviour.
PSYCHOSEXUAL DEVELOPMENT THEORY
12. Introjection: Identifying with some idea or (PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY)
object so deeply that it becomes a part of that According to Sigmund Freud (1856-1939),
person. personality is mostly established by the age of five.
Stages of Development Based on the Psychoanalytic
13. Sublimation: Transformation of negative Theory
emotions or instincts into positive actions, 1.Oral Stage
behaviour, or emotion. Age Range: Birth to 1 Year
Erogenous Zone: Mouth
14.Thought suppression: The conscious process of
2.Anal Stage
pushing thoughts into the preconscious; the
conscious decision to delay paying attention to an Age Range: 1 to 3 years
emotion or need in order to cope with the present Erogenous Zone: Bowel and Bladder Control
reality 3.Phallic Stage
Age Range: 3 to 6 Years
15.Somatization: The transformation of negative Erogenous Zone: Genitals
feelings towards others into negative feelings 4.Latency Stage
toward self, pain, illness, and anxiety. Age Range: 6 to Puberty (12 years old)
Erogenous Zone: Sexual Feelings Are Inactive
EGO DEFENSE MECHANISMS 5.Genital Stage
Age Range: Puberty to Death (12 yrs and above)
Erogenous Zone: Maturing Sexual Interests
PSYCHOANALYTIC THEORY introduced by Freud
tends to be the most pessimistic about human
nature.
Freud believed two basic drives guide and shape
HUMAN BEHAVIOR-EROS AND THANATOS. Eros
reflects the sexual drive and thanatos reflects the
aggressive survival instinct. Basically, this is a
reflection of the pleasure principle, which drives
people towards seeking pleasure and avoiding pain.
Trait theory and behavioural theory tend to be
neutral about human nature.
Humanistic theory and cognitive social learning
theory tend to be more optimistic about the nature
of people.
GESTALT PSYCHOLOGY’S PRINCIPLES
OF PERCEPTUAL ORGANIZATION
-the process whereby people categorize and
organize stimulus information into meaningful
units to make sense of the stimuli.
-The underlying idea is that stimuli are perceived as
an organized whole, not as unrelated or disjointed
pieces—“the whole is greater than the sum of the
parts.”-For instance, people recognize a familiar
tune but do not ordinarily hear each distinct note or
even every musical instrument playing the song.
They identify a person’s face but do not usually pay
attention to each eye, eyebrow, nostrils, etc.
Principles of Grouping
Grouping is a process whereby individuals are
inclined to perceive stimuli as groups or chunks of
information rather than as discrete bits of data.
similarity proximity continuity closure simplicity
SIMILARITY
things that are physically similar are perceived as
belonging together or as forming a whole figure
(gestalt). Therefore, “XXOO” is seen as two groups,
with the XX as one group and the OO as another
group.
Proximity/ contiguity
“group like with like,”suggests that things that are
in close proximity to one another are perceived as
belonging together or as forming a gestalt. In your
clothing drawers you probably put things together
that logically go together; undergarments in one
drawer, shirts or blouses in another, and so on. You
would not expect to find canned peas in someone’s
medicine cabinet but rather in the kitchen pantry.
CONTINUITY (LAW OF GOOD CONTINUATION)
holds that people categorize stimuli into smooth,
uninterrupted, continuous forms, rather than into
discontinuous patterns.
Simplicity- (pragnänz)
suggests that individuals opt for relatively simple
perceptions even when more complex perceptions
can be derived. That is, every stimulus pattern is
seen in such a way that the resulting structure is as
simple as possible.
CLOSURE (MENTAL COMPLETION) PRINCIPLE
states that people tend to perceive incomplete
patterns as being complete. We tend to “fill in the
blanks” based on prior experiences. A triangle with
a small part of its edge missing will still be seen as a
triangle. Consider the annoyance that arises from
having a missing element or two from a collection,
such as stamps, magazines, or CDs by a particular
musical group. And, soap operas keep viewers
hanging on with “cliffhanger” endings.
DEPTH PERCEPTION
The images we see appear on our retinas in 2-D
form, but we tend to perceive a 3-D world. We see
depth by using monocular and binocular cues.
Monocular cues
are depth cues based on each eye working
independently.
Binocular cues
rely on both eyes working together.
 Examples of monocular cues are
linear perspective, texture gradient, relative size,
and interposition.
Convergence, wherein the eyes turn inward as an
object comes closer, is actually an example of a
binocular cue, not a monocular cue.
Electronegativity values are useful in determining if
a bond is to be classified as nonpolar covalent, polar
covalent or ionic.
What you should do is look only at the two atoms in
a given bond. Calculate the difference between their
electronegativity values. Only the absolute
difference is important.
I. Nonpolar Covalent: This type of bond occurs
when there is equal sharing (between the two
atoms) of the electrons in the bond. Molecules such
as Cl2, H2 and F2 are the usual examples.
Textbooks typically use a maximum difference of
0.2 - 0.5 to indicate nonpolar covalent. Since
textbooks vary, make sure to check with your that NaBr has ionic bonds and that HF has a polar
teacher for the value he/she wants. The ChemTeam covalent bond in each HF molecule.
will use 0.5.

One interesting example molecule is CS2. This

molecule has nonpolar bonds. Sometimes a teacher
will only use diatomics as examples in lecture and
then spring CS2 as a test question. Since the
electronegativities of C and S are both 2.5, you have
a nonpolar bond.

II. Polar Covalent: This type of bond occurs when

there is unequal sharing (between the two atoms)
of the electrons in the bond. Molecules such as
NH3 and H2O are the usual examples.

The typical rule is that bonds with an

electronegativity difference less than 1.6 are
considered polar. (Some textbooks or web sites use
1.7.) Obviously there is a wide range in bond
polarity, with the difference in a C-Cl bond being 0.5
-- considered just barely polar -- to the difference
the H-O bonds in water being 1.4 and in H-F the
difference is 1.9. This last example is about as polar
as a bond can get.

III. Ionic: This type of bond occurs when there

is complete transfer (between the two atoms) of
the electrons in the bond. Substances such as NaCl
and MgCl2 are the usual examples.

The rule is that when the electronegativity

difference is greater than 2.0, the bond is
considered ionic.

So, let's review the rules:

1. If the electronegativity difference (usually called

ΔEN) is less than 0.5, then the bond is nonpolar
covalent.
2. If the ΔEN is between 0.5 and 1.6, the bond is
considered polar covalent
3. If the ΔEN is greater than 2.0, then the bond is
ionic.

That, of course, leaves us with a problem. What

about the gap between 1.6 and 2.0? So, rule #4 is:

4. If the ΔEN is between 1.6 and 2.0 and if a metal is

involved, then the bond is considered ionic. If only
nonmetals are involved, the bond is considered
polar covalent.

Here is an example: Sodium bromide (formula =

NaBr; ENNa = 0.9, ENBr = 2.8) has a ΔEN = 1.9.
Hydrogen fluoride (formula = HF; ENH = 2.1, ENF =
4.0) has the same ΔEN. We use rule #4 to decide