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achieved status a social position a person takes on voluntarily that reflects personal ability and effort agrarian society the most technologically advanced form of preindustrial society. Members are engaged primarily in the production of food, but they increase their crop yields through technological innovations such as the plow alienation a condition of estrangement or dissociation from the surrounding society ascribed status a social position assigned to a person by society without regard for the person's unique talents or characteristics bureaucracy a component of formal organization, or social movement becomes increasinglly bureaucratic classical theory an approach to the study of formal organizations that views workers as being motivated almost entirely by economic rewards coalition a temporary or permanent alliance geared toward a common goal formal organization a group designed for a special purpose and structured for maximum efficiency gesellschaft a community, often urban, that is large and impersonal, with little commitment to the group or consensus on values gemeinschaft a close-knit community, often found in rural areas, in which strong personal bonds unite members goal displacement overzealous conformity to official regulations of a bureaucracy group any number of people with similar norms, values, and expectations who interact with one another on a regular basis horticultural society a preindustrial society in which people plant seeds and crops rather than merely subsist on available foods human relations approach An approach to the study of formal organizations that emphasizes the role of people, communication, and participation in a bureaucracy and tends to focus on the informal structure of the organization. ideal type A construct or model for evaluating specific cases. hunting-and-gathering society a preindustrial society in which people rely on whatever foods and fibers are readily available in order to survive industrial society A society that depends on mechanization to produce its goods and services. in-group any group or category to which people feel they belong iron law of oligarchy A principle of organizational life under which even a democratic organization will eventually develop into a bureaucracy ruled by a few individuals. labor union organized workers who share either the same skill or the same employer master status a status that dominates others and thereby determines a person's general position in society mechanical solidarity a collective consciousness that emphasizes group solidarity, characteristic of societies with minimal division of labor organic solidarity a collective consciousness that rests on mutual interdependence, characteristic of societies with a complex division of labor out-group a group or category to which people feel they do not belong peter principle a principle of organizational life according to which every employee within a hierarchy tends to rise to his or her level of incompetence postindustrial society a society whose economic system is engaged primarily in the processing and control of information postmodern society a technologically sophisticated society that is preoccupied with consumer goods and media images primary group A small group characterized by intimate, face-to-face association and cooperation reference group any group that individuals use as a standard for evaluating themselves and their own behavior role conflict the situation that occurs when incompatible expectations arise from two or more social positions held by the same person role exit the process of disengagement from a role that is central to one's self-identity in order to establish a new role and identity role strain the difficulty that arises when the same social position imposes conflicting demands and expectations scientific management approach another name for the classical theory of formal organizations secondary group a formal, impersonal group in which there is little social intimacy or mutual understanding. social institution an organized pattern of beliefs and behavior centered on basic social needs social interaction the ways in which people respond to one another social network a series of social relationships that links individuals directly to others, and through them indirectly to still more people social role a set of expectations for people who occupy a given social position or status social structure the way in which a society is organized into predictable relationships sociocultural evolution long-term trends in societies resulting from the interplay of continuity, innovation, and selection status A term used by sociologists to refer to any of the full range of socially defined positions within a large group or society. technology information about how to use the material resouces of the enviroment to satisfy humans needs and desires trained incapacity the tendency of workers in a bureaucracy to become so specialized that they develop blind spots and fail to notice potential problems cultural convergence the flow of content across multiple media, and the accompanying migration of media audiences digital divide The relative lack of access to the latest technologies among low-income groups, racial and ethnic minorities, rural residents, and the citizens of developing countries dominant ideology A set of cultural beliefs and practices that helps to maintain powerful social, economic, and political interests. gatekeeping the process by which a relatively small number of people in the media industry control what material eventually reaches the audience mass media print and electronic means of communication that carry messages to widespread audiences narcotizing dysfunction the phenomenon in which the media provide such massive amounts of coverage that the audience becomes numb and fails to act on the information, regardless of how compelling the issue opinion leader Someone who influences the opinions and decisions of others through day-to-day personal contact and communication. stereotype An unreliable generalization about all members of a group that does not recognize individual differences within the group. anomie Durkheim's term for the loss of direction felt in a society when social control of individual behavior has become ineffective. anomie theory of deviance Robert Merton's theory of deviance as an adaptation of socially prescribed goals or of the means governing their attainment, or both conformity going along with peers-individuals of our own status who have no special right to direct our behavior control theory a view of conformity and deviance that suggests that our connection to members of society leads us to systematically conform to society's norms crime A violation of criminal law for which some governmental authority applies formal penalties. cultural transmission A school of criminology that argues that criminal behavior is learned through social interactions deviance behavior that violates the standards of conduct or expectations of a group or society differential association a theory of deviance that holds that violation of rules results from exposure to attitudes favorable to criminal acts differential justice differences in the way social control is exercised over different groups formal social control Social control that is carried out by authorized agents, such as police officers, judges, school administrators, and employers index crimes the eight types of crime reported annually by the FBI in the Uniform Crime Reports: murder, forcible rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, larceny-theft, motor vehicle theft, and arson informal social control social control that is carried out casually by ordinary people through such means as laughter, smiles, and ridicule labeling theory an approach to deviance that attempts to explain why certain people are viewed as deviants while others engaged in the same behavior are not law Governmental social control obedience Compliance with higher authorities in a hierarchical structure organized crime The work of a group that regulates relations among criminal enterprises involved in illegal activities, including prostitution, gambling, and the smuggling and sale of illegal drugs. professional criminal A person who pursues crime as a day-to-day occupation, developing skilled techniques and enjoying a certain degree of status among other criminals. sanction A penalty or reward for conduct concerning a social norm social constructionist perspective the belief that human sexual identities are entirely socially constructed social control the techniques and strategies for preventing deviant human behavior in any society social disorganization theory the theory that crime and deviance are caused by the absence or breakdown of communal relationships and social institutions societal-reaction approach another name for labeling theory stigma a label used to devalue members of certain social groups transnational crime crime that occurs across multiple national borders victimization survey a questionnaire or interview given to a sample of the population to determine whether people have been victims of crime victimless crime A term used by sociologists to describe the willing exchange among adults of widely desired, but illegal, goods and services white-collar crime Illegal acts committed by affluent, "respectable" individuals in the course of business activities