Analysis of social life that focuses on board features of society, such as social class and the relationships of groups to one another; an approach usually by functionalist and conflict theorists
The framework that surrounds us, consisting of the relationships of people and groups to one another, which give direction to and sets limits on behavior.
According to Weber, a large group of people who rank close to one another in wealth, power, and prestige; according to Marx, one of two groups: capitalist who own the means of production or workers who sell their labor
ROLE PERFORMANCE: The ways in which someone performs a role within the limits that the role provides; showing a particular "style" or "personality"
ROLE CONFLICT: Conflicts that someone feels between roles because the expectations attached to one role are incompatible with the expectations of another role
ROLE STRAIN: Conflicts that someone feels with a role
THOMAS THEROREM: William and Dorothy Thomas' classic formulation of the definition of the situation: "If people define situation as real, they are real in their consequences. "
SOCIAL CONSTRUCT OF REALITY: The use of background assumptions and life experiences to define what is real