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AQA A-LEVEL SOCIOLOGY KNOWLEDGE ORGANISERS
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• Theory and Methods • Family and Households • Sociology of Education • Beliefs in society • Crime and Deviance
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AQA A-LEVEL SOCIOLOGYKNOWLEDGE ORGANISERS
• Theory and Methods
• Family and Households
• Sociology of Education
• Beliefs in society
• Crime and Deviance
, What is Sociology?
Social sciences are a group of Sociological Perspectives
subjects which focus on society and Definition of Sociology.
how it functions as well as how the
Outline Key Thinkers
individuals within that society function
and behave. They include sociology,
Structural consensus approach to society. Believe Durkheim
Functionalism
Psychology and Politics. The systematic study of that the institutions of society work together in order Parsons
society and its institutions to maintain social cohesion and social order. They Merton
Social Institutions are the structures believe that society is similar to the human body –
Organic Analogy.
in society which influence how
society is structured and manage.
They include Family, Media, A structural conflict approach that believes that Marx
society is in conflict between the classes. They Engels
Marxism
Education and the Government.
believe that the Bourgeoisie oppress the Proletariat Althusser
through various social institutions without their full Gramsci
Sociological Imagination means the
knowledge.
ability to see things socially and how
they interact and influence each
A set of structural conflict approaches which see Oakley
other. To have a sociological Social Groups society as a conflict between men and women. They Firestone
Feminism
imagination, a person must be able to
look at ways that women are
pull away from the situation and think
oppressed/disadvantaged by various social
from an alternative point of view. C Class institutions and the means by which equality can be
achieved.
Values are the goals that society
tells us we should be aiming for in A Age A micro set of approaches which look at how the Goffman
Interactionism
order to be considered a success. individual influences their society through their Cooley
interactions with others and the social institutions. Weber
D Disability Interactionism includes Phenomenology,
Norms are the unwritten rules of
Ethnomethodology, Social Action theory and
behaviour within a society. The rules
G Gender Symbolic interactionism
which tells the difference between
right and wrong as well as rude and A broad approach which sees society in a more Lyotard
Postmodernism
polite. diverse and less structured way. They believe that Baudrillard
E Ethnicity
people have much more choice which means that Foucault
Socialisation means the process of they shape their reality and culture to their own Giddens
learning the norms and values of S Sexuality needs.
society. It happens in 2 stages:
Primary socialisation occurs n the
family or through the primary care
givers.
Secondary Socialisation reinforces Who is Auguste Comte?
primary socialisation through social August Comte is the father of modern sociology. He gave the science of
institutions such as education and sociology its name and applied the methods of the natural science to
the media. the study of society.
, Functionalism
Internal Criticisms of Functionalism External Criticisms of
What is the Organic Analogy and who used it? Functionalism
A consensus theory is one which
believes that the institutions of
Talcott Parsons Key Thinker
society are working together to • The theory is
maintain social cohesion and
Society acts in a similar way to the human Robert K. Merton teleological – a thing
body through the way that social institutions
stability. exists because of its
Logical Criticisms
interact in the same way as human organs. Three Main Criticisms of
Parson’s Assumptions function or effect.
Three similarities between society and • Contradictory – how
A structural theory is one which biological organisms. can something be both
Indispensability – not all social
looks at how the social institutions are functionally functional and
institutions influence the running System: Society and humans are systems of indispensable and that there are dysfunctional
of society and individuals 1 interconnected and inter-dependent parts which function 1 functional alternatives. For example • Unscientific – impossible
behaviours. for the good of the whole. the family are not the only to falsify or verify the
institution that can perform primary theory.
System needs: Organisms like the human body have socialisation.
Value Consensus means that a 2 needs that need to be met and so does society. Social
• Unable to explain
majority of society agree with institutions have evolved to meet society’s needs. Functional Unity – Not all social
Conflict Perspective
institutions are a tightly linked as
conflict and change in
the goals that society sets to
Functions: Just as the organs of the body function for the Parsons suggests. Some institutions society.
show success. 3 good of the whole so do social institutions, which have 2 are quite far removed form each • It is a conservative
evolved functions which benefit society as a whole. other. For example the rules of ideology that tries to
Anomie means a feeling of banking and Education. maintain the status quo.
normalessness where a person Two means of maintaining value consensus and social order
• Legitimises the position
doesn’t know what it means to Universal Functionalism – Not all the of the powerful.
Formal Social Control – Official groups who enforce
be normal within society. institutions of society perform a
1 societies laws, such as CJS and the Police. positive function for society, instead
What are Social Facts and who is
3 for some people they are
dysfunctional, for example • Wrong (1961) –
Informal Social Control – Other social groups such
Action Perspective
the key thinker? domestic abuse makes the family Functionalism is
2 as family and peers who keep us in line through dysfunctional for its members. deterministic
Durkheim punishment and ostracization. • Functionalism reifies
Social facts are things such as institutions, A Manifest Function is the intended society – treating it as a
norms and values which exist external to the The Four Basic needs of society function of a social institution. distinct ‘thing’
individual and constrain the individual.
Goal Attainment (Political Function) – Societies set goals
Durkheim’s Ideas of Society G and decisions about how power and economic resources An example of a manifest function is
are allocated. the rain dance performed by the
Hopi Indians with the intention of
Society shapes the Individual • Unable to explain
Adaption (Economic Function) – every society has to making it rain.
Postmodern Perspective
It is a top down theory where the diversity and instability
1 institutions of society influence the
A provide for the needs of its members in order of the
society survive. in society.
behaviour of the individual. A Latent Function is the unintended • Functionalism is
Integration (Social Harmony) – specialist institutions function of a social institution.
Social solidarity socialisation and outdated due to
anomie. Social solidarity and
I develop to reduce conflict in society. For example
being a meta-
education and media create sense of belonging.
cohesion is achieved and An example of a latent function is narrative.
2 maintained through socialisation Latency: The unstated consequences of actions – there also shown by the Hopi Indians, the
process and learning of norms and are 2 types of latency: Pattern Maintenance: Maintaining ran dance also helps to maintain
values. Without this society can fall L value consensus through socialisation and Tension social solidarity
into anomie (Normallessness) Management. Opportunities to release tension in a safe
way.
, Marxism
A conflict theory is a theory that
suggest that society is in conflict Marxist Structure of a Capitalist society. Evaluation of Marxism
between certain groups. In the case of
Marxism the conflict is between social Marx focuses solely on class divisions within society but Weber
classes.
suggest that inequality can be caused by power and status
Over Simplified
Superstructure: Ideologies independently of class structures. Feminists would also argue
Bourgeoisie means the owners of the
and structures of transfer that there is more inequality between genders then there is
means of production and the ruling
class.
between classes.
The two class system is also over simplistic – it is currently
Proletariat means the workers who are
the relations of production and are suggested that there are 7 different classes within British
oppressed by the bourgeoise. Means of Production: society.
Natural Resources, Land,
Alienation means the process whereby Technology
Marx’s whole system is based on economics, and the view
Economic Determinism
the worker is made to feel foreign to
the products of his/her own labor. that economic factors are the sole cause of everything in
society, from inequality to social change.
False Class Consciousness means the Relations of productions
way that the proletariat a led to Weber argues that Marxism completely ignores the role of
believe their oppression by the The people (workers v ideas in social change – e.g. Calvinism’s role in the rise of
bourgeoise is normal and that if they owners) capitalism.
work hard they can become the
bourgeoisie.
The features of Capitalist The features of Communist
Five Stages of society Society . Society . The biggest criticism of Marxism is that the revolution that he
according to Marx said would cause the development to a communist society
Lack of Revolution
has yet to occur and Marx was very vague on the conditions
Primitive communism The proletariat are Collective ownership
1 that would eventually lead to this revolution.
– Classless society legally free and of the means of
1
separated from the 1 production and Marx also suggested that revolution would occur in the most
Feudal Society – Landowners V means of production abolish of production
2 advance capitalist societies and yet it has been the most
Peasants for profit. backward countries (Russia and Cuba) that have seen
Competition Marxist revolutions.
Capitalist Society – Bourgeoisie V
3 between capitalists
Proletariat
lead to the means of Stateless and
2 production 2 Capitalism has become es exploitative then it was during the
Socialism – Government Owners Classless society -
4 industrial revolution. Keynesian Economics has led to more
V Workers becoming
concentrated. government oversight of businesses and the development of
Out of date
Communism – Classless Society welfare states.
5
The proletariat do not Reclaiming control
receive the value of over the workers A number of social institutions have become autonomous
their goods that their 3 labour and products from the bourgeoisie – e.g. the media have become critical
3 labour produces, but they create (end of the elite.
only the cost of alienation)
subsistence.
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