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SOC
BRIEF CONTENTS
2018 Edition

1 The Sociological 15 Social Change

Imagination
Glossary 400
2 Sociological References 411
Research Name Index 448
Subject Index 450
3 Culture
4 Socialization
5 Social Structure
and Interaction
6 Deviance
7 Families
8 Education and
Religion

©Duncan Walker/Getty Images RF

9 Economy and
Politics
10 Social Class
11 Global Inequality
12 Gender and
Sexuality
13 Race and
Ethnicity
14 Population,
Health, and
Environment

©Olivier Lantzendörffer/Getty Images RF

vii
 WHAT’S NEW IN
This edition includes new statistics and data
throughout to reflect 2016 research. Also, the
author has revised in response to student heat-
map data that pinpointed the topics and con-
cepts with which students struggled the most.
This heat-map-directed revision is reflected
primarily in ­Chapters 5 and 14. Other content
changes include the following:
> New/updated opening
vignettes:
> Chapter 1: Pulitzer Prize–
winning sociologist
Matthew Desmond’s
research on evictions and
homelessness in Milwaukee.
> Chapter 3: Improv Everywhere, the “prank
collective.”
> Chapter 6: The Orlando mass shooting at
the Pulse nightclub, as well as more recent
shootings and data.
> Chapter 7: Online dating apps and sites
with a focus on Jessica Carbino, Tinder’s
in-house sociologist.
> Chapter 9: The 2016 election and the role of
White working-class voters in Rust Belt states.
> Chapter 10: Research on people in the
United States living on less than $2.00 per
person per day.
> Chapter 11: Inequality in Mumbai, India.
Chapter 13: Cases of police killings of
African American males.
> Chapter 14: The Dakota Access Pipeline
protests.
> Chapter 15: Recent examples of student
activism.
> New topics woven into the chapter
narratives:
> Sociology as a science, including
the limits of common sense as a way
of knowing and the advantages of
sociology’s empirical approach to
explaining why we think and act as we do.
©Kim Kim Foster/The State/MCT/Getty Images
viii • SOC 2018
SOC
> A look at “us versus them,”
which connects ethnocentrism,
group membership, patriotism, and
prejudice.
> Henri Tajfel’s work on social identity
formation.
> Mass media as agents of socialization.
> The “broken window” hypothesis and its
consequences for policing.
> The 1967 Supreme Court ruling in Loving
v. Virginia.
> Research showing social and
psychological benefits of remaining single.
> the index of dissimilarity, a measure of
segregation.
> The “religiously unaffiliated,”
which includes atheists, agnostics,
and those who choose “nothing in
particular.”
> Research on changes in global income
distribution over time.
> The Bugis and their five genders as an
example of cross-cultural variation in
gender definitions.
> Cisgender, gender binary, and gender
spectrum as new key terms.
> The likelihood of children doing better
than their parents at age 30.
> The Paris Agreement regarding climate
change.
> Possible impacts of technological
innovation on future jobs.
> New Did You Know? topics: Making things
from scratch; concentration of the U.S.
population into a relatively small number of
counties; drug arrests in the United States;
favorable/unfavorable ratings of Hillary
Clinton and Donald Trump leading up to the
2016 presidential election; President George
Washington as a slave owner; the execution
of 38 Dakota Sioux men on a single day in
1862; the amount of Brazilian rain forest lost
each year.
 > New PopSOC topics: The constructed
language for the HBO series Game of
Thrones; roles for African Americans and
Hispanics in the top 100 films of the year.
> New SocThink: Implicit association
tests.
> New graphs: U.S.
Incarceration Rates,
1910–2014; Educational
Attainment in the
United States; College
Majors by Gender,
Percent Female; Net Price
Cost of College; Where in
the World the 767 Million People Below the
international Poverty Line Live; Labor Force
Participation Rates for Men and Women
over Time; Gender Wage Gap by Education;
Political Party Identification in the United
States over Time; Income Distribution in
the United States; Wealth Distribution in
the United States; U.S. Uninsured Rate,
1997–2016; Complementary and Alternative
Medicine Use.
©Trista Weibell/Getty Images RF
Reviewers
George Bradley, Montgomery Community College
Stacey Callaway, Rowan University
Annette Chamberlin, Virginia Western Community College
Lyle Foster, Missouri State University, Springfield
Ashley Leschyshyn, University of North Dakota
Shannon Little, Southwest Tennessee Community College,
Macon Campus
> New/revised Going Global topics: Conducting
research in difficult circumstances using the
annual national survey of Afghanistan as an
example; the region of origin of the world’s
living languages contrasted with the number of
speakers; time spent in unpaid labor.
> New and revised definitions for key terms to
reflect current scholarship.
> New digital assets:
> Concept Clips: Dynamic videos to help
students break down key concepts and
difficult themes in sociology. Assignable
and assessable! Examples: Research
Variables, Social Structure, Theories of
Political Power.
> Newsflash: Exercises that tie current
news stories to key sociological principles
and learning objectives, and assess
students on their ability to make the
connection between real life and research
findings. Examples: Mayor of Cannes
Bans Burkinis on Resort’s Beaches;
Finding Good Pain Treatment Is Hard. If
You’re Not White, It’s Even Harder.
Jonathan Lopez, Old Dominion University
Cosandra McNeal, Jackson State University
Kurt Olson, Modesto Junior College
Sammy Rastagh, Broward College South
What’s New in SOC • ix
 STEPS IN THE RESEARCH PROCESS 26
Defining the Problem 26
Reviewing the Literature 27
Formulating the Hypothesis 28
Collecting and Analyzing Data 29
Developing the Conclusion 30
In Summary: The Research Process 32

MAJOR RESEARCH DESIGNS 32

Surveys 32
Observation 35
Experiments 36
©Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock.comk RF Use of Existing Sources 38
Table of Contents

RESEARCH ETHICS 41
Confidentiality 41
Research Funding 41

1 > The Sociological Imagination 1

Value Neutrality 42
Feminist Methodology 43
WHAT IS SOCIOLOGY? 2
The Sociological Imagination 2
The Significance of Place 4
3 > Culture 47
A Hamburger Is a Miracle 5 CULTURE AND SOCIETY 48
Defining Sociology 6 CONSTRUCTING CULTURE 49
SOCIOLOGY’S ROOTS 8 Cultural Universals 49
A Science of Society 8 Innovation 50
Theory and Research 9 Diffusion 51

FIVE BIG QUESTIONS 12 THREE ELEMENTS OF CULTURE 52

How Is Social Order Maintained? 12 Material Culture 53
How Do Power and Inequality Shape Cognitive Culture 54
Outcomes? 13 Normative Culture 59
How Does Interaction Shape Our Worlds? 14
CULTURAL VARIATION 62
How Does Group Membership Influence
Opportunity? 14 Aspects of Cultural Variation 62
How Should Sociologists Respond? 15 Dominant Ideology 64
Attitudes Toward Cultural Variation 65
THREE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES 15

SOCIOLOGY IS A VERB 17
Personal Sociology 17
Academic Sociology 18
Applied and Clinical Sociology 19

2 > Sociological Research 23

SOCIOLOGY AS A SCIENCE 24
Sociology and Common Sense 24
Sociology and the Scientific Method 25 ©Michael Zak/123RF

x • SOC 2018
 5 > Social Structure and
Interaction 98
SOCIAL INTERACTION 99
Self and Society 99
Social Construction of Reality 100

ELEMENTS OF SOCIAL STRUCTURE 101

Statuses and Roles 101
Groups 105
Social Networks 108
Social Institutions 111

SOCIAL STRUCTURE IN GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE 113

©Rawpixel.com/Shutterstock.com RF
Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft 113
Mechanical and Organic Solidarity 114
Technology and Society 115
4 > Socialization 70 Postmodern Life 117

THE ROLE OF SOCIALIZATION 71 BUREAUCRACY 118

Internalizing Culture 71 Characteristics of a Bureaucracy 119
The Impact of Isolation 72 Bureaucratization as a Way of Life 121
Bureaucracy and Organizational Culture 123
THE SELF AND SOCIALIZATION 74
Sociological Approaches to the Self
Us versus Them 77
74
6 > Deviance 127
AGENTS OF SOCIALIZATION 79 SOCIAL CONTROL 128
Family 79 Conformity and Obedience 128
School 80 Informal and Formal Social Control 130
Peer Groups 81 Law and Society 131
Mass Media 82 DEVIANCE 132
The Workplace 85 What Behavior Is Deviant? 133
Religion and the State 86 Deviance and Social Stigma 134
SOCIALIZATION THROUGHOUT THE LIFE CRIME 135
COURSE 86 Official Crime Reports 135
The Life Course 87 White-Collar Crime 137
Anticipatory Socialization and Victimless Crimes 138
Resocialization 88
Role Transitions During the Life Course 89

AGING AND SOCIETY 90

Adjusting to Retirement 91

PERSPECTIVES ON AGING 91
Disengagement Theory 92
Activity Theory 92
Ageism and Discrimination 93
Death and Dying 94
©Rick Rycroft/AP Images

Table of Contents   •   xi
 Organized Crime 138
International Crime 139

SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON CRIME AND

DEVIANCE 141
Functions of Crime and Deviance 141
Interpersonal Interaction and Defining
Deviance 143
Conflict, Power, and Criminality 147

7 > Families
©Goodshoot/Alamy Stock Photo RF
152
GLOBAL VIEW OF THE FAMILY 153
8 > Education and Religion 176
Substance: What a Family Is 153 EDUCATION IN SOCIETY 177
Functions: What Families Do 156
SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON EDUCATION 179
Conflict: Who Rules? 158
Education and Social Order 179
MARRIAGE AND FAMILY 159 Education and Inequality 181
Courtship and Mate Selection 160
SCHOOLS AS FORMAL ORGANIZATIONS 187
Parenting Patterns and Practices 162
The Bureaucratization of Schools 187
DIVERSE LIFESTYLES 167 Teaching as a Profession 188
Cohabitation 168 Community Colleges 188
Remaining Single 168 Homeschooling 189
Remaining Child-Free 169
DEFINING RELIGION 190
Lesbian and Gay Relationships 169
Substance: What Religion Is 190
DIVORCE 170 Function: What Religions Do 191
Statistical Trends in Divorce 170
COMPONENTS OF RELIGION 192
Factors Associated with Divorce 171
Beliefs 192
Impact of Divorce on Children 172
Rituals 193
Experience 194
Community 194

WORLD RELIGIONS 197

SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON RELIGION 199

Integration 200
Social Change 200
Social Control 202

9 > Economy and Politics 207

ECONOMIC CHANGE 208
Economic Sectors 208
Deindustrialization 209
The Great Recession 210
The Changing Face of the Workforce 211

©Creatas/Getty Images RF POWER AND AUTHORITY 212

xii • SOC 2018

 10 > Social Class 234
LIFE CHANCES 235
Systems of Stratification 235
Social Mobility 238

SOCIAL CLASS IN THE UNITED STATES 239

Income and Wealth 240
Poverty 243
The American Dream 246

SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON
STRATIFICATION 250
Marx and Material Resources 250
Weber and Social Resources 252
Bourdieu and Cultural Resources 253
Material, Social, and Cultural Resources 254

©Chris Ryan/Getty Images RF

Power 212
Types of Authority 212
ECONOMIC SYSTEMS 214
Capitalism 214
Socialism 215
The Mixed Economy 216
The Informal Economy 217
POLITICAL SYSTEMS 218
Monarchy 218
Oligarchy 218
Dictatorship and Totalitarianism
Democracy 219
THE POWER STRUCTURE IN THE UNITED STATES 221
The Pluralist Model 221
Power Elite Models 222
11 > Global Inequality 258
THE GLOBAL DIVIDE 259
PERSPECTIVES ON GLOBAL STRATIFICATION 260
The Rise of Modernization 261
The Legacy of Colonialism 262
The Growth of Multinational Corporations 265
STRATIFICATION AROUND THE WORLD 268
Income and Wealth 268
Poverty 270
Social Mobility 271
Social Stratification in Mexico 273
UNIVERSAL HUMAN RIGHTS 276
219 Defining Human Rights 277
Principle and Practice 278
Human Rights Activism 279

POLITICAL PARTICIPATION IN THE UNITED

STATES 224
Voter Participation 224
Race and Gender in Politics 225

WAR AND PEACE 227

War 227
Terrorism 229
Peace 230

©Pavel Filatov/Alamy Stock Photo RF

Table of Contents   •   xiii
 PREJUDICE AND DISCRIMINATION 316
Prejudice 316
Discrimination 317

SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON RACE AND

ETHNICITY 322
Social Order and Inequality 322
The Contact Hypothesis 323
Patterns of Intergroup Relations 323
Privilege 327

RACE AND ETHNICITY IN THE UNITED

STATES 328
Racial Groups 328
Ethnic Groups 334
©The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images
IMMIGRATION 338
Immigration Trends 338
Immigration Policies 340

12 > Gender and Sexuality 283

14 > Population, Health, and
Environment 345
THE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF GENDER 284
Sex and Gender 284 POPULATION 346
Gender-Role Socialization 286 Birth 347
Gender Across Cultures 289 Death 348
Reimagining Sex and Gender 290 Migration 348
Demographic Transition 350
WORKING FOR CHANGE: WOMEN’S
MOVEMENTS 292
The First Wave 292
The Second Wave 292
The Third Wave 294

THE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF

SEXUALITY 295
Sexuality and Identity 295
Sexuality in Action 298

GENDER AND INEQUALITY 301

Sexism and Discrimination 301
Women in the United States 301
Women Around the World 306

13 > Race and Ethnicity 310

RACIAL AND ETHNIC GROUPS 311
Race 312
Ethnicity 314 ©Gavriel Jecan/The Image Bank/Getty Images

xiv • SOC 2018

SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON HEALTH
AND ILLNESS 353
Culture, Society, and Health 353
Illness and Social Order 355
Power, Resources, and Health 356
Negotiating Cures 358

SOCIAL EPIDEMIOLOGY 359

Social Class 360
Race and Ethnicity 361
Gender 362
Age 363

HEALTH CARE IN THE UNITED STATES 364

A Historical View 364
The Role of Government 365
Complementary and Alternative Medicine 366 ©David Crigger, Bristol Herald Courier/AP Images

SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON THE

ENVIRONMENT 367
Human Ecology 367
15 > Social Change 377
Power, Resources, and the Environment 368 SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES ON
Environmental Justice 369 SOCIAL CHANGE 378
The Evolution of Societies 379
ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS 370
Equilibrium and Social Order 380
Air Pollution 370
Resources, Power, and Change 381
Water Pollution 371
Global Climate Change 371 TECHNOLOGY AND THE FUTURE 382
The Global Response 373 Computer Technology 383
Privacy and Censorship in a Global Village 384
Biotechnology and the Gene Pool 386
Resistance to Technology 387

SOCIAL MOVEMENTS 389

Relative Deprivation 389
Resource Mobilization Approach 390
Gender and Social Movements 391
New Social Movements 392

SOCIOLOGY IS A VERB 393

Personal Sociology 394
Public Sociology: Tools for Change 394
Practicing Sociology 395
Glossary 400
References 411
Name Index 448
©Blend Images LLC/Getty Images RF
Subject Index 450

Table of Contents   •   xv

The Sociological
Imagination
NO PLACE LIKE HOME
On a January day, with wind chills threatening
to reach 40 below, Arleen Belle found herself
out on the streets of Milwaukee. She and her two
boys had just been evicted from their apartment due to a snowball-
throwing incident that spiraled out of control, and now they had
nowhere to go. They ended up staying the night at the local
Salvation Army homeless shelter. Despite repeated efforts, it took until
April for Arleen to find a place for her family to live. Their new rental,
a four-bedroom house, had peeling paint and frequently lacked
running water. They were there only a few weeks when the house
was ruled “unfit for human habitation.” They finally settled into
an apartment in one of the worst neighborhoods in Milwaukee.
The $550 they owed for rent each month took 88 percent of their
monthly cash income. Even though she tried to live by the creed
that, when it comes to paying the bills, “the rent eats first” (Desmond
1
©Diecra Laird, The Charlotte Observer/AP Images
2016:302), sometimes other expenses won out, as happened when
she helped pay for the funeral of a friend who was as close as a sister.
In a few months, as a result of their economic vulnerability, Arleen and
her boys found themselves out on the street again.
Evictions used to be rare. Now they are commonplace. Yet relatively
little is known about who gets evicted and why. Sociologist Matthew
Desmond (2016) set out to learn more. To do so, he moved into low-
income neighborhoods in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, first spending 5 months
in a mobile home park on the city’s mostly White south side, and then
10 months in a rooming house in a predominantly Black inner-city neigh-
borhood. He joined his neighbors in their everyday activities: p­ laying
cards with neighbors and attending eviction hearings, funerals, Alco-
holics Anonymous meetings, and more. To gather additional data, he
also spent time with landlords, conducted a citywide survey of renters,
reviewed court eviction records, and analyzed 911 calls. He learned that
Arleen’s story was not at all uncommon.
1
 Desmond also uncovered the stories of those who profited from the
people who lived in these communities. Tobin Charney, the owner of the
131-unit mobile home park where Desmond lived—which the city tried
to shut down as a hub for drugs, prostitution, and violence—took home
$447,000 per year after expenses. Sherrena Tarver, a landlord in the neigh-
borhood where Desmond stayed in the rooming house, drove a red Camaro
(though not when she was visiting her tenants), took vacations in Jamaica,
As You >> • What is sociology?
READ
• How do sociologists look at the world?
• How might someone practice sociology?
>> What Is Sociology?
We need one another. We may like to think that we can
make it on our own, but our individualism is made possi-
ble by our interdependence. We praise the Olympic gold
medalist for her impressive skill, dedicated training, and
single-minded determination. Yet, if it hadn’t been for
her mom driving her to the pool every day, for the build-
ing manager waking up at 4:00 a.m. to make sure the
pool is open, for the women working overnight to make
sure the locker room is clean and safe, and so many
others who fade into the background in such moments
of glory, she would never have had that chance to shine.
The people upon whom we depend are often
unknown and invisible to us. Even though we may never
meet them, we rely on farmers, truck drivers, secretar-
ies, store clerks, custodians, software engineers, scien-
tists, assembly-line workers, teachers, police officers,
inventors, politicians, CEOs, and a whole host of oth-
ers. Yet we mostly take their contributions for granted
without fully appreciating the degree to which they make
our lives possible. Sociologists seek to reveal the full
extent of our interdependence. They explore the intimate
connection between self and society, placing that rela-
tionship at the heart of sociology’s definition. Sociology
is the systematic study of the relationship between the
individual and society and of
Sociology The systematic study
of the relationship between the the consequences of differ-
individual and society and of the ence. We examine the various
consequences of difference. components of that defini-
Sociological imagination Our tion below, in the “Defining
recognition of the interdependent Sociology” section, after first
relationship between who we considering ways in which
are as individuals and the social the sociological imagination
forces that shape our lives.
shapes how we see the world.
2 • SOC 2018
and earned approximately $120,000 per year on 36 rental properties. As
Sherrena put it, “The ‘hood is good. There’s a lot of money there” (p. 152).
Through his research, Desmond demonstrated a fundamental socio-
logical truth. The positions we occupy—landlord or tenant, rich or poor—
shape how we think, act, and feel. In this chapter, we explore how
we can use the sociological imagination in order to better understand
ourselves and others.
THE SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION
American sociologist C. Wright Mills (1959) proposed
that we think of sociology as a tool that enables us
to better understand why we think the way we think
and act the way we act. He proposed we use our
sociological imagination to explore the interdepen-
dent relationship between who we are as individu-
als and the social forces that shape our lives. To put it
another way, practicing sociology involves recognizing
the powerful intersection between history and biog-
raphy. We are products of our times and places. Our
thoughts, actions, even our feelings are shaped by our
social contexts. For example, you chose to go to col-
lege, but you didn’t do so in isolation. Factors such as
your age, family background, geographical location,
friendship networks, and available income played a
role in your decision to go and what school you chose.
In addition to more immediate influences on our
choices, the sociological imagination calls us to also
consider the role larger social forces may play. Take
unemployment as an example. A person might lose his
job for a variety of reasons. A worker who is foolish,
selfish, and careless may get fired because he makes a
lousy employee. But it’s also possible for a worker to lose
her job due to factors beyond her control, regardless of
how effective she may be as a worker. Unemployment
levels rise and fall depending on what is happening in
the larger economy. For example, when the economy
nosedived in the late 2000s, unemployment rose from
4.8 percent in February 2008 to a peak of 10.1 percent in
October 2010. Many wise, generous, and careful work-
ers lost their jobs in the process.
Analyzing how rates change over time allows us
to see patterns we might miss when focusing only
 U.S. Employment
WA
MT VT ME
ND
OR NH
ID
WY
SD
MN
WI
MI
NY MA
RI
Trends
IA PA NJ CT
NV NE
UT IL IN OH DE
CA CO WV MD
KS MO VA
KY DC
TN NC
AZ OK AR
NM SC
MS AL GA 15
LA Unemployment
TX Rate by Gender
FL 10 Men
AK
HI 4.7%
Unemployment rate
5 Women
2.0–3.9% 4.6%
4.0–4.9%
5.0–5.9%
6.0–6.9%

06
07

08
09

10

11
12
13
14
15
16

17
20

20
20
20
20

20
20
20
20

20
20

20
Year
20 20
Unemployment Unemployment Rate
Rate by Age by Race and Ethnicity
15 16–24 years 15 Black
Hispanic
10 9.7% 10
25–54 years White 7.9%
5.5%
5 55 years and over 4% 5 4.1%
Asian 3.5%
3.4%
06
07

08
09

10

11
12
13
14
15
16

17
06
07

08
09

10

11
12
13
14
15
16

17

20
20

20
20
20
20

20

20
20
20
20

20
20

20
20
20

20
20

20
20

20
20
20

20

Year Year

Note: The unemployment rate includes people 16 years and older who are available for work but do not have a job and who have actively looked for work within
the previous four weeks.
Sources: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2016a and 2016b.

on individuals. Using the sociological imagination A singular or universal solution to such a problem
enables us to better recognize ways in which people in is unlikely to be effective in addressing the differing
similar positions experience similar outcomes. Stick- needs of the various groups.
ing with the unemployment example, as the accom- To assist us in understanding the role social forces
panying “U.S. Employment Trends” map and graphs can play, Mills distinguished between private troubles
demonstrate, a person’s likelihood of experiencing and public issues. Private troubles are problems we
unemployment varies by the person’s social loca- face in our immediate relationships with particular
tion, which includes geographic location, age, gender, individuals in our personal lives. Explanations for such
race, and ethnicity. So, as you can see, unemployment troubles are particular to the individuals involved. For
was more likely in the Southeast and West than in the example, you lose your job because you failed to show
Midwest. The level for young people was, and con- up for work, disobeyed direct
tinues to be, substantially higher than for those who orders from your boss, took Private troubles Problems
are older. Men experienced a more significant jump money from the cash regis- we face in our immediate
in joblessness than did women. Rates for African ter, and so forth. Public relationships with particular
Americans and Latinos were, and are, significantly issues are problems we face individuals in our personal lives.
higher than those for Whites. Sociology teaches us as a consequence of the posi- Public issues Problems we
that our social location matters. Understanding how tions we occupy within the face as a consequence of the
different groups are affected helps policy makers larger social structure. Pri- positions we occupy within the
larger social structure.
decide which actions to take to address the crisis. vate troubles are personal

Chapter 1 / The Sociological Imagination • 3

problems, but public issues are social prob-
lems. Analyzing data—such as unemployment

on THE SOCIOLOGICAL
IMAGINATION
rates, divorce rates, and poverty rates—enables 12 Years a Slave
us to see influences that might otherwise be An 1840s African
American man is
invisible to us.
kidnapped and
sold into slavery.
THE SIGNIFICANCE OF PLACE Children of Men
To put it simply, place matters. Our posi- A dystopian vision
tion relative to others shapes our access to of society where
humans can no
resources and influences the options available
longer reproduce.
to us. As individuals, we do have the power to
make our own choices, but we cannot sepa- Zootopia
rate our individual preferences from the influ- A struggle against

Movies
ence of parents, teachers, friends, coworkers, intolerance and
politicians, the media, and even total strangers discrimination
in an animated
whose decisions enable or constrain opportu-
animal kingdom.
nities for us. Where and when we were born; our
parents’ educational attainment, occupation, and Philomena
income; our nationality; and other such factors all A mother’s search for the child

5
play major roles in shaping who we become. she gave up for adoption.
The sociological imagination enables us to see The Pursuit of Happyness
the influence of social class, gender, and race, three An unemployed father who becomes
positional categories of particular interest to soci- homeless seeks to do right by his son.
ologists due to the significance each has in our
lives. Our social class position, for example, shapes
our access to material resources. Researchers asked
people how much they thought a chief executive officer
(CEO) and an unskilled factory worker should earn and
how much they thought they actually earned and then
compared these numbers. In the United States, respon-
dents said CEOs should earn about 7 times more than
an unskilled worker, but they guessed that the real gap
was 30 to 1. It turns out that the average yearly com-
pensation for a CEO at a Standard & Poor’s (S&P) 500
company was $12 million, approximately 354 times
the $35,000 an average worker receives (Kiatpongsan
and Norton 2014). This suggests that social class dif-
ferences, such as that between a CEO and an unskilled
worker, are even greater than we think.
Turning to gender, sociologists find a persistent
wage gap between men and women. For example,
when hackers attacked Sony Pictures and posted thou-
sands of company documents and emails, it turned out
that both Jennifer Lawrence (who had already won
an Academy Award for her role in Silver Linings Play-
book and had just starred in the blockbuster film The
Hunger Games: Catching Fire) and Amy Adams (who
had previously been nominated for four Academy
Awards) were being paid significantly less for their
roles in American Hustle than their three male coun-
terparts, Christian Bale, Jeremy Renner, and Bradley
Cooper, whose record of accomplishment was not as
great (Kohn 2014). This pattern of unequal pay mirrors
the overall wage gap in the United States. When com-
paring average earnings for full-time, year-round work- Actresses, such as Jennifer Lawrence, regularly receive less pay
than do their male counterparts. Francois Duhamel/©Columbia Pictures/
ers, women earn 80¢ for every $1 men earn (Proctor,
courtesy Everett Collection
Semega, and Kollar 2016:6). Race and ethnicity also

4 • SOC 2018
shape likely outcomes. Being born into a White family
in the United States significantly increases your odds
of having access to money. In a study on the distribu-
tion of wealth, researchers found that median wealth
of $141,900 for White households was 13 times greater
than the $11,000 for African American households and
10 times greater than the $13,700 for Hispanic house-
holds (Kochhar and Fry 2014).
Place is important because it shapes how we think,
act, and even feel. For example, when computer giant
Hewlett-Packard was trying to figure out ways to get
more women into upper-level management positions,
it found that women applied for promotion only when
they thought they met 100 percent of the qualifica-
tions for the position, whereas men applied when they
believed they met 60 percent (Kay and Shipman 2014).
When asked, at the end of his presidency, how Barack
Obama would go down in history, 75 percent of African
Americans said Obama would be remembered as out-
standing or above average, compared to 38 percent
among Whites (Pew Research Center 2016f). When it
comes to analyzing such patterns, our tendency is to
take sides, but the interesting sociological question is
why such significant differences form in the first place.
A HAMBURGER IS A MIRACLE
To more fully appreciate how dependent we are on
others, imagine that you have to make something com-
pletely from scratch but that you must do so without
relying on any knowledge, skills, tools, or resources
obtained from anyone else. How hard could that possi-
bly be? Let’s take a hamburger for example. First, you’ll
need beef to make the burger, which means you’ll need
to find a cow. But buying one from a farmer is off limits
because doing so means relying on the efforts and abili-
ties of others. So a wild cow it is. Assuming you can find
one roaming around somewhere, you need to kill
it, perhaps by bashing it over the head with a
large rock or running it off a cliff.
Once you’ve got yourself a dead cow, you
need to butcher it, but cowhide is tough.
Imagine what it takes to produce a metal
knife (finding ore, smelting, forging, tem-
pering, and so on). Perhaps a sharp rock will
do. Assuming you come up with a cutting
tool, you can carve out a chunk of raw meat.
Given that it’s hamburger you’re after (though
you might be ready to settle for steak at this
point), you’ll need to grind up the meat. You
might use a couple of those rocks to pulver-
ize it into something of a meat mash. A meat
grinder would work better, if only it weren’t
so hard to make one. In any event, at last you
have a raw hamburger patty.
To cook your burger, you will need fire. But
where does fire come from? Perhaps you could strike
two rocks together or rub two sticks together. After
trying this for a while, you may decide it would be eas-
ier to wait around for lightning to strike a nearby tree.
However you accomplish it, after you get fire, you still
have to cook the meat. No frying pans are available, so
either you make one or perhaps cook it on that handy
rock you used to kill the cow.
Assuming you are successful, you now have a cooked
hamburger patty. But you aren’t close to done. You still
need to complete many other steps. You need to bake a
bun, which involves figuring out how to come up with
flour, water, salt, oil, sugar, yeast, and an oven. What
about condiments such as ketchup, mustard, pickles,
and onions? What if at the end of all that you decide
to make it a cheeseburger? You killed the cow! Did you
remember to milk her first?
Making something that seems so simple—that we
can get for a dollar at McDonald’s—turns out to be
quite complicated. The resourcefulness necessary to
acquire and prepare all the ingredients in a hamburger
are beyond the capacity of most of us. Yet if we eat a
burger, we seldom consider its complexity. If, instead,
Did You Know?
. . . Andy George explores the intricacies of
the production process in his YouTube series
“How to Make Things” (www.makeeverything.
tv/). For example, he set out to make a grilled
chicken sandwich completely from scratch. He
grew his own wheat, milked a cow, evaporated
ocean water for salt, slaughtered a chicken, and
much more. It took him 6 months and cost him
$1,500. The taste-testing verdict? Meh. Other
products he makes using the raw ingredients he
tracks down include chocolate bars, coffee, glass
bottles, and a suit.
©G.K. & Vikki Hart/
Getty Images RF
Chapter 1 / The Sociological Imagination • 5
 we exercise the sociological imagination, we may come
to see that a hamburger is a miracle. Not literally, of
course, because nothing supernatural is happening,
but figuratively, as a symbolic representation of all the
knowledge and skill that come together in this one
meal. And it’s not just hamburgers. All the products
we make and use—veggie burgers, books, backpacks,
shirts, cars, houses, smartphones—point toward a
hidden infrastructure
comprising our collec-
tive wisdom and ability.
The irony of mod-
The function of sociology, as
ern society is that we of every science, is to reveal
depend on one another
now more than ever, that which is hidden.
but we realize it less.
We embrace individu- Pierre Bourdieu
alism, and think we
are masters of our own
fates. Yet we lack the basic skills necessary for self-
sufficiency. Sociology provides us with tools that
enable us to more fully understand and appreciate our
interdependence.
DEFINING SOCIOLOGY
Sociologists are committed to investigating, describ-
ing, and explaining such interrelationships. A more
detailed breakdown of the four components of the
definition of sociology helps reveal how they go about
doing so.
Systematic Study Sociologists are engaged with the
world, collecting empirical data through systematic
research. Relying on such data means that sociologists
draw their conclusions about
society based on experi-
Agency Our freedom as
ences or observations rather
individuals to think and act as we
choose. than beliefs or the author-
ity of others. If they want
to understand why the average age for first marriage
keeps rising or why people commit crimes, they must
gather data from those involved in these activities and
base their conclusions on that information.
SOC THINK
What do you see as your biggest accomplish-
ment in life so far? What people in your life were
most directly responsible for helping make it
happen? Given that we rely on others who are
often unknown and invisible to us, what other
people made indirect but essential contributions
to your success?
6 • SOC 2018
Sociological research historically has involved both
quantitative and qualitative approaches to data col-
lection. Quantitative approaches emphasize counting
things and analyzing them mathematically or statis-
tically to uncover relationships between variables.
The most common way to collect this type of data is
through surveys. In contrast, qualitative approaches
focus on listening to and observing people and allow-
ing them to interpret
what is happening in
their own lives. The
most common way to
collect this type of data
is through participant
observation, in which
the researcher inter-
acts with those she or
he studies. In practice,
sociologists often draw
on both techniques in conducting their research. We
investigate these research techniques, along with oth-
ers, in more detail in Chapter 2.
The Individual Although sociology is most com-
monly associated with the study of groups, there is no
such thing as a group apart from the individuals who
compose it. As individuals we are constantly choosing
what to do next. Most of the time, we follow guidelines
for behavior we have learned from others, but we have
the ability to reject those guidelines at any time. A term
sociologists use to describe this capacity is agency,
meaning our freedom as individuals to think and act
as we choose. In professional sports, for example, we
use the term free agent to describe a player who has
the power to negotiate with whatever team he or she
wishes. We, too, have such freedom. We could choose
not to go to class, not to go to work, not to get out of
bed in the morning, not to obey traffic signals, not to
respond when spoken to, not to read the next sentence
in this book, and on and on.
As we saw with the significance of place, the posi-
tions we occupy relative to others shape the choices we
make. In the NBA, LeBron James chose to leave the
Miami Heat, where he’d won back-to-back champion-
ships, to return to his home-state Cleveland Cavaliers
where he’d started his career. Signing with the NFL’s
Green Bay Packers or Major League Baseball’s Chicago
Cubs was not really an option because he lacked the
kinds of skills those organizations reward. Our choices
are constrained both by our abilities and by the oppor-
tunities available to us. We may have been born with
amazing basketball skills, but if we live in a time and
place where basketball doesn’t exist, they are of limited
value. We usually follow “paths of least resistance”—
the accepted and expected actions and beliefs—but the
choice of whether to continue to follow them is ours
every second of our lives (A. Johnson 1997).
As an NBA free agent, LeBron James moved from the Cleveland Cavaliers to the Miami Heat and back again. ©Christian Petersen/Getty Images

Society The study of society is at the heart of sociol- The Consequences of Difference The final part of
ogy. Although we will spend most of this book describ- the definition of sociology involves the consequences of
ing various aspects of society, we can begin by thinking difference. Sociology does more than just describe our
of it as our social environment. Society consists of the structure, culture, and interaction; it also analyzes how
structure of relationships within which culture is cre- economic, social, and cultural resources are allocated
ated and shared through regularized patterns of social and at the implications of these patterns in terms of the
interaction. The framework it provides is analogous to opportunities and obstacles they create for individuals
a building: The structure of a building both encour- and groups. Since the founding of sociology, sociologists
ages and discourages different activities in different have been concerned with the impact our social location
rooms (such as kitchens, bedrooms, and bathrooms), has on our opportunities or lack thereof. As noted ear-
and many of the most essential operations of a build- lier, differential outcomes that result from class, gender,
ing (such as heating and air conditioning) are mostly and race have been of particular interest to sociologists.
invisible to us. In the same way, the structure of our The analysis of social power deserves particular atten-
institutions—a term sociologists use to describe some tion because it shapes how and why we think and act
of the major components of social structure, including as we do. The simple fact is that those who have access
economy, family, education, government, and religion— to and control over valued material, social, and cul-
shapes what is expected of us. For example, the choices tural resources have different options available to them
that are available to us in the context of the modern than do those without such
Society The structure of
family, such as to go off and pursue our own education access and control. One of relationships within which culture
and career, are much different from the obligations we the main tasks of sociology is is created and shared through
would face in more traditional family contexts. Nested to investigate and reveal lev- regularized patterns of social
within institutions are the groups, subgroups, and sta- els of social inequality—a interaction.
tuses that we occupy. We look at the details of these condition in which mem- Social inequality A condition in
institutions in coming chapters, but it is helpful to bers of society have dif- which members of society have
remember that, in order to provide clear pathways for fering amounts of wealth, different amounts of wealth,
action, we construct culture and inhabit society. prestige, or power. That is prestige, or power.

Chapter 1 / The Sociological Imagination • 7

 why the defi- choosing to reject the authority of politicians, priests,
nition of soci- and philosophers, viewing them as insufficient sources
ology draws of truth. This sometimes got them in trouble, as Galileo
particular atten- learned in the 1600s. He claimed that observations
tion to the con- he’d made using his telescope, a recent invention,
sequences of supported Copernicus’s heliocentric theory that the
difference. earth revolved around the sun. However, because this
In combina- theory contradicted the Catholic Church’s geocentric
tion, these four teaching that the earth was the center of the universe,
aspects of sociol- he was charged with heresy and kept under house
ogy help us under- arrest until his death.
stand the things that Through meticulous observation and experimenta-
influence our beliefs tion, these and other early scientists uncovered funda-
and actions. Com- mental truths about the natural world. The scientific
ing to terms with the method they developed follows what we might now
reality that our choices call the Missouri principle: don’t just tell me, show me
are constrained by the (after Missouri’s nickname as the “show-me state”). In
positions we occupy can previous eras, it may have been sufficient to rely on
seem depressing, but soci- the authority of priests or philosophers who argued
Source: Library of Congress Prints and ology actually empowers that things happen due to other-worldly forces such as
Photographs Division [LC-DIG-fsa-8b29516]
us by providing a more God’s will or fate. The scientific method insists on this-
complete picture of the worldly, empirical investigation that can be measured
worlds within which we using our senses. If we can’t see it, touch it, smell it,
live. French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu (1998a) put it this or in some way measure it, we shouldn’t accept it as
way: “Sociology teaches how groups function and how to a fact. And even then we should engage in repeated
make use of the laws governing the way they function so as experiments to protect against the possibility that our
to try to circumvent them” (p. 57). In other words, under- senses are fooling us. The laws of nature that resulted
standing the ways in which our thoughts and actions are from these early scientific experiments, such as
determined enhances our freedom to make more effective Newton’s F = ma, held firm across time and place,
and informed choices. thus providing universally true explanations about
how nature operates.

>> Sociology’s Roots

Sociology, as a discipline, grew up in the midst of
significant social upheaval. The advent of the Indus-
trial Revolution and urbanization in the early 19th
century led to changes in patterns of government,
thought, work, and everyday life. Aristocracy was on
the decline while democracy was spreading; people
were moving from a primarily religious view of the
world and its phenomena to a more scientific one;
and life in the village and on the farm was rapidly giv- ©Jon Witt
ing way to life in the city and factory. The old rules
that provided for social order no longer applied. The The explanatory power of these laws of nature led
world seemed to be falling apart. Sociology arose as others to explore the possibility of uncovering equally
a means to understand and control the social forces powerful laws of society. It was in this context that
that shaped our lives. French sociologist and philosopher Auguste Comte
(1798–1857) set out to discover laws guiding what he
saw as the two most important societal forces: social
A SCIENCE OF SOCIETY stability and social change. He used the expressions
Science provided the foundation upon which sociol- “social statics” to refer to the principles by which
ogy was built. Early scientists, such as Francis Bacon, societies hold together and order is maintained and
Robert Boyle, and Isaac Newton, challenged conven- “social dynamics” to describe the factors that bring
tional ideas about how the world worked. They didn’t about change and shape the nature and direction of
accept something as fact simply because others said so, that change. Knowledge produced by these laws could

8 • SOC 2018
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and Dutch capital and enterprise ever ventured upon, and has been brought
into contact and acquaintance—not unfrequently into intimacy—with a number
of the remarkable men of his time. Seldom, either in print or in the flesh, have
we fallen in with so restless, versatile and excursive a genius as Vincent
Nolte, Esq., of Europe and America—no more limited address will sufficiently
express his cosmopolitan domicile.—Blackwood’s Magazine.
As a reflection of real life, a book stamped with a strong personal character,
and filled with unique details of a large experience of private and public
interest, we unhesitatingly call attention to it as one of the most note-worthy
productions of the day.—New York Churchman.
Our old merchants and politicians will find it very amusing, and it will excite
vivid reminiscences of men and things forty years ago. We might criticise the
hap-hazard and dare-devil spirit of the author, but the raciness of his
anecdotes is the result of these very defects.—Boston Transcript.
His autobiography presents a spicy variety of incident and adventure, and a
great deal of really useful and interesting information, all the more acceptable
for the profusion of anecdote and piquant scandal with which it is
interspersed.—N. Y. Jour. of Commerce.
Not the least interesting portion of the work, to us here, is the narration of
Nolte’s intercourse with our great men, and his piquant and occasionally ill-
natured notice of their faults and foibles.—N. Y. Herald.
It is a vivid chronicle of varied and remarkable experiences, and will serve to
rectify the errors which too often pass among men as veritable history.—
Evening Post.
The anecdotes, declamations, sentiments, descriptions, and whole tone of the
book, are vivacious and genuine, and, making allowance for obvious
prejudices, graphic and reliable. To the old it will be wonderfully suggestive, to
the young curiously informing, and to both rich in entertainment.—Boston
Atlas.
As an amusing narrative, it would be difficult to find its superior; but the book
has peculiar interest from the freedom with which the author shows up our
American notorieties of the past forty years.—Courier.

THE UNITED STATES JAPAN

EXPEDITION.
An Account of Three Visits to the Japanese
Empire, with Sketches of Madeira, St. Helena, Cape of Good Hope,
Mauritius, Ceylon, Singapore, China, and Loo-Choo. By Col. J. W.
Spalding, of the United States Steam Frigate Mississippi, Flag-ship of
the Expedition, with eight Illustrations in Tint. 12mo., cloth, $1 25.
The book embraces a novel field in “Japan,” and a wide one in the world, but
the author has made a long voyage seem a short one, in the interest which
his graphic and instructive pen has thrown about every league of his progress.
The style is flowing and animated—Japan and the Japanese are dashed off in
life-like pictures. We advise all who have the slightest curiosity to become
acquainted with that secluded and remarkable people, and to obtain a
connected and spirited account of the great American Expedition to Japan, to
purchase the admirable work of Col. Spalding.—Rich. Dispatch.
Col. Spalding is a man whose character in the community in which he has
heretofore resided places him above suspicion, so that his narrative may be
implicitly trusted. He is withal a racy writer, and a person gifted with very
uncommon powers of observation.—Baltimore Patriot.
It describes all that the intelligent author saw, in a clear and very agreeable
manner, and mentions many things of a personal character, which, of course,
would form no part of an official report.—Baltimore American.
There is a freshness and vividness in his descriptions which makes the book
more than commonly attractive.—Puritan Recorder.
Mr. Spalding writes with great ease and perspicuity. His powers of description
are fully adequate to any occasion which requires their exertion, as is
abundantly evidenced in the present work.—Petersburg Intelligencer.
A very readable journal of the Japan Expedition, by an officer which, though
aiming only at re-producing the impressions of the writer’s mind, gives a good
view of the strange scenes and characters which the opening of that country
disclosed.—N. Y. Evan.
Mr. Spalding’s work gives the results of his observations precisely as they
occurred to him at the time, his mind being singularly unbiassed by the
enthusiasm of those by whom he was surrounded. He looks upon things with
a cool, discriminating eye, neither over-estimating nor undervaluing the
advantages of our new relations.—N. Y. Herald.
It is the first account of Perry’s Expedition, and will always be more popular
than any government report.—St. Louis Leader.

“Every Inch a King.”—Harper’s Magazine.

The Private Life of an Eastern King, from the

MS. of a member of the household of his late Majesty, Nussir-u-Deen,
King of Oude. By Wm. Knighton, author of “Forest Life in Ceylon,”
&c. 12mo., cloth, 75 cents.
The whole story reads like a lost chapter from the Arabian Nights.—Lon.
Athenæum.
Gives a better insight into purely eastern manners than any work we know of.
—London News of the World.
 This amusing volume lets the reader very much behind the scenes, as
regards haut ton in Asia. Since the appearance of the Arabian Nights, there
has been no such exposition of the sayings and doings of eastern royalty.—N.
Y. Daily Times.
Lucknow, the capital, is noted for its extraordinary menagerie of wild animals,
and one of the chief amusements of the court appears to have been to
witness them fight. Some very exciting contests are narrated, and the book
contains much of interest to the sportsman. It also conveys a vivid picture of
eastern manners, as seen in all their familiarity; and some of the adventures
recorded are scarcely less wonderful than those of Hajji Baba.—Boston
Traveller.
The career of the cabin-boy barber, who exercised such great influence over
the crown, and so much to his own advantage, having amassed the sum of
£240,000 before he returned, is a very curious one, and well told. On the
whole, this is one of the most amusing books of the season.—Boston
Telegraph.
He lifts the curtain and unfolds the minutiæ of the daily life of an absolute
sovereign. We learn more of eastern manners and Hindoo peculiarities than
from stately historians or elaborate geographies. We can commend it as an
entertaining volume.—Religious Herald Richmond. Va.

Transcriber’s Notes:
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