capitalism an economic system characterized by the private ownership of the means of production, the pursuit of profit, and market competition; the investment of capital with the goal of producing profits
capitalist one who owns a factory or other productive enterprise in pursuit of profits
capitalist class the wealthy who own the means of production and buy the labour of the working class
capitalist world economy the dominance of capitalism in the world along with the international interdependence that capitalism has created
caste system a form of social stratification in which one’s status is determined by birth and is lifelong
category people who have similar characteristics
causation if a change in one variable leads to a change in another variable, causation is said to exist
cause and effect a relationship in which we know that change in one (independent) variable causes change in another (dependent) variable
Census Agglomerations (CAs) towns and surrounding areas where more than 10 000 people live in the urban core
Census Metropolitan Areas (CMAs) cities and surrounding areas where more than 100 000 people live in the urban core
charisma extraordinary personal qualities that can turn an audience into followers
charismatic authority power legitimized through extraordinary personal abilities that inspire devotion and obedience
charismatic leader an individual who inspires people because he or she seems to have extraordinary qualities
church according to Durkheim, one of the three essential elements of religion — a moral community of believers or a large, highly organized group with formal, sedate worship services and little emphasis on personal conversion
citizenship the concept that birth (and residence) in a country impart basic rights
city a place in which a large number of people are permanently based and do not produce their own food
city-state an independent city whose power radiates outward, bringing the adjacent area under its rule
civil religion a quasi-religious loyalty binding individuals in a basically secular society
clan an extended network of relatives
clan system a form of social stratification in which individuals receive their social standing through belonging to an extended network of relatives
class conflict antagonism between entire classes over the distribution of wealth and power in society. Karl Marx’s term for the struggle between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie
class consciousness the recognition by workers of their unity as a social class in opposition to capitalists and, ultimately, to capitalism itself. Karl Marx’s term for awareness of a common identity based on one’s position in the means of production
class society a capitalist society with pronounced social stratification
class system social stratification based on both birth and individual achievement
clearance rates the rate at which police solve crimes
clique a cluster of people within a larger group who choose to interact with one another; an internal faction
closed-ended questions questions followed by a list of possible answers to be selected by the respondent
coalition government a government in which a country’s largest political party aligns itself with one or more smaller parties
coalition the alignment of some members of a group against others
coercion power that people do not accept as rightly exercised over them; also called illegitimate power
cohabitation the sharing of a household by an unmarried couple
cohort a category of people with a common characteristic, usually their age
collective behaviour extraordinary activities carried out by groups of people; includes lynchings, rumours, panics, urban legends, and fads and fashions, usually in violation of established norms
collective mind Gustave LeBon’s term for the tendency of people in a crowd to feel, think, and act in extraordinary ways
collectivity a large number of people whose minimal interaction occurs in the absence of well-defined, conventional norms
colonialism the process by which some nations enrich themselves through political and economic control of other nations
colonization the process by which one nation takes over another nation, usually for the purpose of exploiting its labour and natural resources
common sense those things that “everyone knows” to be true
communism a hypothetical economic and political system in which all members of society are socially equal
community a place people identify with, where they sense that they belong and that others care what happens to them
compartmentalize to separate acts from feelings or attitudes
concept an abstract idea that represents some aspect of the world, inevitably in a somewhat simplified form
concrete operational stage Piaget’s term for the level of development in which individuals perceive causal connections in their surroundings
confederal union system of government in which the provinces have most of the powers and the central government has little authority
conflict theory a theoretical framework in which society is viewed as composed of groups competing for scarce resources
conglomerates giant corporations composed of many smaller corporations
conservative bias the tendency of analysts to downplay evidence of historical change and to reject evidence of challenges to traditional social patterns
conspicuous consumption Thorstein Veblen’s term for a change from the Protestant ethic to an eagerness to show off wealth by the elaborate consumption of goods
contradictory class location Erik Wright’s term for a position in the class structure that generates contradictory interests
control holding constant all relevant variables except one in order to clearly see its effect
control group the group of subjects not exposed to the independent variable
convergence theory the view that as capitalist and socialist economic systems each adopt features of the other, a hybrid (or mixed) economic system will emerge
corporate capitalism the domination of the economic system by giant corporations
corporate crime the illegal actions of a corporation or people acting on its behalf
corporate culture the orientation that characterizes a corporate work setting
corporation an organization with a legal existence, including rights and liabilities, apart from those of its members
correlation a relationship by which two (or more) variables change together
correspondence principle the sociological principle that schools correspond to (or reflect) the social structure of society
cosmology teachings or ideas that provide a unified picture of the world
counterculture a group whose values, beliefs, and related behaviours place its members in opposition to the broader culture
credential society the use of diplomas and degrees to determine who is eligible for jobs, even though the diploma or degree may be irrelevant to the actual work
credentialism evaluating a person on the basis of educational degrees
credit card a device that allows its owner to purchase goods but to be billed later
crime the violation of norms a society formally enacts into criminal law
crimes against property (property crimes) crimes that involve theft of goods belonging to others
crimes against the person (violent crimes) crimes that involve violence or the threat of violence
criminal justice system the system of police, courts, and prisons set up to deal with people accused of having committed a crime
criminal recidivism subsequent offences committed by people previously convicted of crimes
critical sociology the study of society that focuses on the need for social change
crowd a temporary gathering of people who share a common focus of attention and who influence one another
crude birth rate the number of live births in a given year for every 1000 people in a population
crude death rate the number of deaths in a given year for every 1000 people in a population
cult a new or different religion, with few followers, whose teachings and practices put it at odds with the dominant culture and religion
cultural diffusion the spread of cultural characteristics from one group to another
cultural goals the legitimate objectives held out to the members of a society
cultural integration the close relationship among various elements of a cultural system
cultural lag the fact some cultural elements change more quickly than others, which may disrupt a cultural system
cultural levelling the process by which cultures become similar to one another, and especially by which Western industrial culture is imported and diffused into developing nations
cultural materialism (or cultural ecology) a theoretical paradigm that explores the relationship of human culture to the physical environment
cultural relativism the practice of evaluating any culture by its own standards
cultural transmission the process by which one generation passes culture on to the next
cultural universal a value, norm, or other cultural trait that is found in every group
culture the language, beliefs, values, norms, behaviours, and even material objects passed from one generation to the next
culture of poverty the assumption that the values and behaviours of the poor make them fundamentally different from other people, that these factors are largely responsible for their poverty, and that parents perpetuate poverty across generations by passing these characteristics on to their children
culture shock the personal disorientation accompanying exposure to an unfamiliar way of life
currency paper money
