- •I. Read and translate the text. Sociology
- •II. Answer the following questions:
- •VIII. Answer: What are the sociologists concerned with? Use the words in brackets.
- •IX. Translate the following sentences into Russian:
- •Unit II
- •I. Read and translate the text: Social Barometer
- •II. Answer the following questions:
- •Word study
- •IV. Complete the following sentences:
- •Unit III
- •I. Read and translate the text: The Origins of Sociology
- •II. Answer the following questions:
- •III. Complete the following sentences:
- •IV. Divide the text into logical parts and make up an outline of the text.
- •V. Speak on:
- •VI. Read the text and entitle it:
- •Word study
- •Unit IV
- •I. Read and translate the text: Sociological Theory
- •II. Answer the following questions:
- •III. Agree or disagree with the following:
- •IV. Divide the text into logical parts and make up a plan of the text.
- •VI. Contradict the following statements:
- •VII. Translate the text in writing: Social Change and the Development of Sociology
- •Word study
- •I. Find in the text «Sociological Theory» English equivalents for:
- •II. Find in the text antonyms for:
- •III. Fill in the blanks with the words given below in the brackets:
- •IV. Read and translate the following sentences taking into account different meanings of the word 'experience':
- •V. Role-play.
- •I. Read the text and answer the following questions:
- •Theoretical Paradigms
- •II. Be ready to speak on:
- •III. You have just heard three reports. What paper do you think to be the best one? Give your arguments. Use the following:
- •IV. Read and translate the text: The Methods of Sociological Research
- •Experiments.
- •Survey Research
- •Questionnaires and Interviews
- •V. Enumerate all methods of sociological research. What method do you consider to be the most productive? Give your reasons.
- •VI. Answer the following questions:
- •Word study
- •III. Translate the following sentences into Russian with:
- •V. Develop the following situations:
- •Unit VI
- •I. Read and translate the text: The Structure of Social Interaction
- •Social Structure and Individuality
- •II. Answer the following questions:
- •Summary
- •Word study
- •I. Find in the text “The Structure of Social Interactions” English equivalents for:
- •II. Arrange the following words into pairs of antonyms:
- •III. Make up sentences choosing an appropriate variant from 1) – 7):
- •IV. Make up dialogues according to the following situations:
- •Unit VII
- •I. Look through the text and find the definitions of:
- •II. Read and translate the text. Role
- •Figure 1. Status Set and Role Set
- •Strain and Conflict
- •Dramaturgical Analysis: “The Presentation of Self”
- •IX. Answer the questions:
- •Word study
- •I. Find in the texts English equivalents for:
- •III. Read and translate the following sentences:
- •IV. Make up questions and ask your friend on:
- •V. Complete the following sentences:
- •Unit VIII
- •Kinds of Groups
- •IV. Find the facts to prove that:
- •V. Divide the text into three logical parts.
- •VII. Discuss in the group the following problems:
- •The Nature of Group Cohesiveness
- •XIV. Read and translate the text. Primary and Secondary Groups
- •XV. Answer the following questions.
- •XVI. Contradict the following statements. Start your sentence with: “Quite on the contrary...”
- •XVII. Ask your friend:
- •Divide the text into logical parts and give a heading to each part.
- •Find a leading sentence in each paragraph of the text.
- •Primary Groups and Secondary Groups
- •Give examples of primary and secondary groups.
- •Characterize in brief:
- •XXIV. Read the text and say what new information is contained in it. Networks
- •Word study
- •I. Find in the text “Primary and Secondary Groups” English equivalents for:
- •II. Make up word-combinations and translate them into Russian.
- •IV. Make up your own sentences with — “to be of importance, to be of value” - and ask your partner to translate them.
- •Unit IX
- •I. Read and translate the text. Group Dynamics
- •Group Leadership
- •The Importance of Group Size
- •Figure 3. Group Size and Relationships
- •VII. Read the text again and note the difference between in-groups and out-groups.
- •VIII. Prepare a report on “Group Dynamics and Society.” unit X
- •I. Read and translate the text.
- •Deviance
- •Biological Explanations of Deviance
- •VII. Speak on:
- •VIII. Translate the text in writing. Deviance is a Product of Society?
V. Develop the following situations:
1. One day you were preparing for an experiment with a group of subjects. But suddenly you find out that your questionnaires disappeared. What is your reaction? In what way would you conduct an inquiry?
2. You are asked to carry out a public opinion poll. What would you start with?
3. What would you recommend to the beginners in carrying out an interview?
Unit VI
I. Read and translate the text: The Structure of Social Interaction
Because society is an organized system, it is not surprising that social interaction is patterned. Society is, after all, built on countless interactions among individual human beings, and human beings have the capacity to act with almost infinite variety. In the absence of social patterns, people would indeed find social life confusing. Culture provides guidelines for human behaviour in the form of values and norms.
To illustrate, consider the familiar setting of an American college classroom. Entering the classroom, students could do almost anything — begin to sing or throw a football around the room -- but, guided by the social norms that apply to that setting,
they routinely take their seats, perhaps talking quietly among themselves, and await the arrival of the professor. Even though professors are defined as being in charge of the class, they too are bound by cultural norms, so they begin to teach from a position at the front of the room while facing the class.
Certainly, the behaviour of each student and teacher is partly unique; yet social behaviour in one American classroom is remarkably like that in any other. In spite of personal differences, individuals who enter the classroom behave like «professors» or «students». This fact is clearly evident to people who return, after many years, to a school they once attended. The school is now filled with unfamiliar faces, but the social patterns remain much the same. In other words, even though different people come and go from this setting, the social structure of classroom behaviour persists over time. In the same way, although every family is composed of different individuals, the behaviour of “mothers”, “fathers”, “brothers”, and “sisters” is also largely patterned according to cultural norms.
Social Structure and Individuality
The assertion that human behaviour is socially patterned often provokes some initial resistance. Few human beings readily admit to being part of any kind of system, especially those who live in a culture that prizes individual autonomy. Americans, for instance, tend to emphasize individual responsibility for behaviour and highlight the unique elements of their personalities. Behaving in patterned ways, however, does not threaten our individuality. On the contrary, individuality is encouraged by social structure.
First, and more generally, our humanity involves much more than physical existence. The great potential of human beings develops only thorough interaction with others. Within social life, distinct personalities emerge as people blend their unique qualities with the values and norms of the large culture from freely expressing ourselvs. The social world can be disorienting, even frightening, to people who do not know the behaviour guidelines. Without this knowledge, people feel too uncomfortable to express their unique personalities with confidence.
To illustrate, you may recall going alone to a party given by people you did not know well. Entering such a setting — and not knowing quite what to expect — is likely to cause some anxiety. At such times you generally feel self-conscious, try to make a favorable impression, and look to others for clues about what sort of behaviour is expected of you. Once you understand the behavioral standards that apply to the setting, you are likely to feel comfortable enough to “act like yourself”.
Of course, social structure also places some constraints on human behaviour. By guiding behaviour within culturally approved bounds, established social patterns discourage behaviour that is culturally defined as unconventional. Traditional values and norms in the United States and Canada, for example, still reflect the expectation that males will be “masculine” (physically strong, self-assertive, and rational) and the females will be “feminine” (physically weak, self-effacing, and emotional). The structure of society exerts pressure on individuals to fit into one or the other of these categories, ignoring the fact that most people have both “masculine” and “feminine” qualities. In this and many other ways, social structure can limit any individual's freedom to think and act in ways that may be personally preferred. In addition, the failure to conform to established social patterns may lead to being defined by others as deviant.