Refers to Marx's theory that in modern labour, the worker is increasingly cut off from aspects of the production of products. This includes issues such as not having any control over the design of the product, or the sale of it post-production. It also includes being a worker in a factory where you only have one task. Creating a mundane work environment.

Refers to the disconnection of the individual to the collective, and into a more isolated, individualised lifestyle.

A cognate discipline to sociology that seeks to understand culture within societies including artefacts, rituals, behaviours, actions, etc.

The term given to a distribution of scores in a sample that resembles the outline of a 'bell' where most people are located in the middle (mean or median) of the total in what is known as a normal distribution.

Refers to the increasing amount of data, variety of data, and velocity through which data is accumulated in the online space. Instead of small datasets being held such as in the past (as in a university study), massive data sets are being recorded and stored fed by our interactions in the online environment.

The model of medicine and science that strips away the traditional, superstitious or religious ways of knowing the body and health, to one grounded in the scientific method and which treats the body as something that can be healed through Western medicine and treatments.

The style of analysis that examines two variables and their relationship to one another. For instance, the relationship of income to happiness or education to income

The capitalist class (usually middle class) in Marx and Engel's analysis who owned the means of production.

Bureaucracy refers to organisations that have different levels of management, leadership and workers. Each person in a bureaucracy has roles, and in some of these roles, they have authority over others. Bureaucracies have a major influence over our everyday lives with many of them making decisions and implementing laws within a nation-state.

An economic system that dominates the world today in which society's economic activity is organised around trade for profit and private property.

Individuals whose gender identity matches the sex and gender they were assigned at birth.

The Cold War is a term used to describe the period of time of intense geopolitical tension between the United States of America and their allies and the United Soviet Socialist Republic and theirs. A significant growth in nuclear weaponry at this time left the world on the brink of nuclear war. To this day, some scholars argue that the Cold War has not ended and that we are still threatened with nuclear conflict.

A term from Emile Durkheim's work that reflects the broad norms and values that bind together a culture which enables but also constrains individual social action.

Material, product or other item that can be grown, manufactured or created and sold on the market. For instance, coffee is a commodity that is produced and then sold in cafes and other places.

A system of economics and politics through which all property is owned by the community, and the state attempts to enforce equality across society by providing equal resources according to needs and capacity.

The confidence interval refers to a set of values between which we are confident the true population average exists. This is often expressed as a percentage where the true value of the population average lies between an upper and lower range.

Conservatism is a political ideology that emphasises traditional ideas, values and authorities. Conservatism is largely sceptical of rapid social change and advocates for caution in this. However, early exponents of conservatism also called for strong communities and the ensuring of support for groups to keep society strong.

Social constructivism argues that the world is constantly made and remade through interactions with people and non-humans. It argues that our contemporary understanding of things as they currently are is largely dependent on processes of sharing meaning that is unique to our time, place and context.

A school of thought derived mostly from the scholarship of Marx and Engels that is critical especially of capitalism and the inequality that it produces.

Pierre Bourdieu's term for the accumulation of cultural knowledge that helps someone to succeed in particular cultural settings. Cultural capital takes the form of tastes, knowledge, dress, speaking patterns, etiquette, and so on.

A form of sociology that focusses on culture as a driving force for social change/transformation and/or cultural artefacts as a focus of research (eg., art).

Cultural transmission is how people come to learn the values, beliefs, and social norms of their culture.

Involves theory testing - where the researchers start with a theory or hypothesis on what we might predict will be the result of the research. Once data is gathered and analysed, the theory is either proven, disproven or refined.

Refers to a burgeoning field of research in sociology that seeks to understand the impacts and embeddedness of digital life into our everyday lives.

Discipline is a concept from Michel Foucault which identifies changes in state punishment from explicit forms of control through to a form of governance that encourages self-control.

Unequal treatment of people based on characteristics including race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, disability, age, religion, body type, appearance, and more.

The term used to denote the gradual adoption of scientific and other 'rational' means or knowledge to understand social life. In other words, the removal of myths and religion as the main driver for understanding our worlds.

Education is a social institution through which children are taught basic academic knowledge, learning skills, and cultural norms as deemed important to their society.

Elitist/elitism refers to the theory that only a small group of people make decisions in political and social life locking out others from decision-making. This concept is specifically targeted towards political and economic decision-making which for theorists of this approach, tend to be made by a few political or economically powerful people.

Emotional labour is a term that denotes the emotions that individuals have to maintain/sustain for their paid work. For instance, retail workers are required to maintain a happy helpful disposition for customers in their workplace. The jobs that require the most emotional labour, Hochschild argues, tend to be the jobs dominated by females (such as nursing).

A period of time in Europe where human reasoning was privileged in the pursuit of truth (for instance science) over other approaches (for instance religion/mythology)

The shared culture, practices, values, and beliefs of a group of people, which might include commonalities in language, religion, and traditions.

A social scientific research methodology that seeks to understand culture by observing people in their natural surrounds.

The inability of people to see the true conditions produced by capitalism of inequality, exploitation and oppression due to prevailing ideologies that legitimise social conditions.

A socially recognised group joined by bonds including blood relations, marriage, or adoption, that forms an emotional connection and serves as an economic unit of society.

A term from Bourdieu's analysis of capitalism that refers to different areas in our social lives that have distinct organisations, rules, hierarchies and knowledge. One can have authority and power in one field, but in another have none.

A style of research in qualitative methods where the researcher facilitates a conversation among a group of people to elicit data on a range of issues.

Formal education refers to the learning of academic facts and concepts through a formal curriculum.

A school of thought, based on the scholarship of Emile Durkheim, but operationalised by Talcott Parsons that aims to create theory/knowledge on how societies can best function as a whole with different roles.

The social and cultural distinction between behaviours and characteristics considered masculine and those considered feminine.

An individual’s sense of being either a man or a woman.

Society’s expectations and understandings of how men and women should behave.

Governmentality is a term that refers to the nature of contemporary governance which can be referred to as 'governing from a distance' through measures such as statistics and other data.

The way that individuals perceive and act within society through various habits, values and behaviours that they are predisposed to through socialisation.

pertains to the culture activities and artifacts that are usually aligned with the upper middle to upper classes. For instance, opera music or polo.

The historical view of Marx that focuses on the need for humans to secure materials for survival such as food, shelter and clothing. Marx argues that all of human history has been defined by this need and that in contemporary times, this has moved into class conflict within modernity.

A cognate discipline to sociology that focuses on understanding how social, political, economic and environmental surrounds impact how people live in places.

A concept from Ivan Illich that refers to the increasing number of side-effects that were clinical, social and structural produced by medical intervention in our lives.

A methodological term from Max Weber which is a concept for describing different changes in society which are not necessarily entirely correct on the ground. They are concepts that help us talk sensibly about changes in history.

Refers to the sociological and psychological make-up of who we are as people – both in how we identify ourselves, and how others identify us through different characteristics and roles.

Refers to a system or collective set of ideas, values, or principles through which form the basis for politics, economics, society and culture.

The development of theory from the ground up – which involves the researcher entering the field, gathering data and allowing understanding to emerge through the subsequent data analysis.

Informal education is the learning about cultural values, norms, and expected behaviours that occurs by participating in society.

An approach within social science theories that argues the social world cannot be understood through natural sciences. Rather, society is messy and complex and research can only obtain an understanding of how people interpret or perceive the world around them.

A research method within qualitative research that seeks to understand the views of people by talking one-on-one or in group settings with research participants.

This theory from Robert Michels argues that in any bureaucracy, including political, only a small handful of people have access to decision-making whereas others are locked out of this process.

Liberalism is a political ideology that emphasises the freedom and rights of individuals to act as long as they do not infringe on the freedoms and rights of others.

pertains to the cultural activities and artifacts that are usually aligned with lower middle and lower classes. For instance, football or rugby league.

A term synonymous with the critical theory of Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels which denotes the facilities, resources and systems which produce goods. For Marx and Engels, those who owned the means of production were known as the 'bourgeoisie'.

Denotes the smaller community-based society which has strong social ties, less diverse roles and a stronger relationship to community organisations like religion.

Term that refers to the ongoing medical process of diagnosis, intervention and procedure into the everyday ills of life.

The belief that success, talent and achievements (or, merit) are the reason some people succeed.

Refers to the data that presents information describing other data. Much of this is simply data that tells the user of times, interactions, and so on of different data engagements. For instance, metadata might describe when I made a phone call, how long the phone call went for, and what number was called, but does not include the actual conversation.

A branch of philosophy that deals with abstract concepts such as life, time, space and identity which stand outside of the material world.

An approach to research based on pragmatism, that aims to solve the research problem at hand using all available research data that will assist.

Refers to the time period where Europeans in particular began to dramatically and quickly change the organisation of society, culture and economy. This included the rise of the nation-state, rationalism, science, organised labour and the intensification of urbanisation and growth of cities. Sociological figures refer to modernity demarcate it from pre-modern times where societies were arranged far differently.

The style of analysis where you investigate multiple variables and their relationship with each other. For instance, you might be interested in whether income AND education produce higher scores in happiness combined.

A bounded geographical territory that is ruled over by a government in the name of a community or nation. For example, Australia is governed by the Australian Government that represents the will of the Australian community.

Neoliberalism is a political ideology, popular in contemporary Western countries such as the United States of America and Australia, which combines free market liberalism with values of conservatism. The ideology tends to support the idea of individualism in economics while also stripping back strong government (such as welfare support) to lower taxation. In addition to this, neoliberalism maintains support for traditional social institutions and rejects calls for rapid social change. Furthermore, neoliberalist governments tend to enforce responsibility onto individuals for their own welfare, and believe that social institutions (such as the church, non-government organisations, and society in general) will assist those who are struggling economically.

Non-institutionalised activity in which groups of people voluntarily engage.

Denotes the broader societal shift to societies that are large, have diverse roles and occupations, less social integration and less commitment to community institutions such as religion.

Refers to a prison architectural design by utilitarian philosopher Jeremy Bentham. The design of the building was such that the prisoners would never know if they were being surveilled or not. It consisted of a circle-shaped building with prisoners on the outside and a guard tower in the middle that prisoners were unable to see into. The argument from Foucault, who used this metaphor for governance, is that we now live in a similar situation in how we are governed by liberal democracies.

A research methodology based in ethnography that involves the researcher participating in the everyday life of the people that they are studying and making observations as they go.

Pluralists or pluralism refers to the political theory that argues all groups should have equal access to power in society and influence in the political setting. Theorists in this area argue that in democracies, all groups will be competing for attention equally and should have access to resources to assist.

Polarchy is a concept from Robert Dahl that argues that in democracy, there is the potential for rule by the many – but never rule by all.

A philosophical approach to understanding truth that focuses on logic and science and rejects alternative approaches such as metaphysics.

A critique of positivism that emphasises the potential bias that a researcher might have in their work, while also acknowledging that no 'truth' can be unequivocally universal and as such we need to be careful with our declarations of such especially in social science.

A group of people defined by their unstable employment, lack of paid insurance (for things like sick leave) and lack of ability to attain welfare. This growing class is mostly defined by those on short-term contract labour who cannot obtain ongoing stable employment. This type of labour is also known as the gig economy.

Beliefs, thoughts, feelings, and attitudes about a group of people. Prejudices are preconceived evaluations that may not be based on experience.

The term given to randomly selecting members of a population to conduct research with, that will allow us to generalise to the whole population we are studying.

The oppositive of the sacred. For Emile Durkheim, the profane is the everyday world which requires separation from sacred things.

Those identified by Marx and Engel's analysis as the 'working class' who, unlike the capitalist class, did not own private property, nor have access to the means of production other than through the selling of their labour.

Qualitative social science research tends to focus on the meaning of social life by seeking to understand how people think, feel and interpret their experiences. Qualitative research therefore gathers data that is textual, including interviews, ethnography, document analysis, and other approaches. Unlike quantitative research, it analyses this data in a more open approach that does not rely on mathematics

Quantitative research in social sciences tends to emphasise data as numerical or statistical and utilises methods such as survey research and demographic data. It utilises sophisticated mathematical analyses to test hypotheses and develop conclusions accordingly.

A classification system in which humans are categorised based on superficial physical differences considered significant in a particular social context. Race as a classification system is problematised by sociologists and should be considered a social construction.

The process through which race is given meaning through a process of social construction. Racialisation leads to different groups receiving unequal treatment based on perceived physiological differences.

Refers to a concept from Max Weber's sociology in reference to the style of authority in governance in contemporary modernity where people hold bureaucratic authority over others as opposed to authority on the basis of tradition or charisma.

Refers to the theory from Max Weber that the social and cultural worlds we live in are increasingly becoming rationalised – in other words, technically or scientifically explained. Weber also argued that this would increase until there were very few things left that could be explained without science (such as religion).

The idea that people take on information, process it through their own logic, reason and emotions, and make decisions accordingly. Reflexivity denotes a turn from premodern societies, where choices were limited, to one of late modernity where choices are abundant in life, but also require deep thinking and reflecting, and weighing up risks with benefits.

Refers to the process through which a researcher consistently reflects on their position in the research and their ability to potentially influence results via their own preconceived ideas, worldviews and theories.

A class of people within the propertied class that made their income/wealth from the income they derive through rent, etc.

Refers to objects, people, ideas or other things that are considered above the everyday and which need to be protected at all costs. Emile Durkeim argues that sacred things represent group identity - such as a cross at a Christian church.

Refers to the difference between mean values of the sample a researcher has collected and that of the mean values of the total population that the sample comes from.

An approach to research that involves making hypotheses or predictions, and then testing these via empirical work mostly via statistics, which then either prove or disprove the hypothesis.

The physical or physiological characteristics used to distinguish between males and females.

A person’s capacity for sexual feelings and their emotional and sexual attraction preferences.

A set of obligations and responsibilities detailed by Talcott Parsons in his functional sociology.

Relates to Baudrillard's theory of modern life – where copies of original things, become the 'real' for contemporary culture.

Refers to the social connections, networks and access to different people including those in positions of power or authority. For instance, you might be a newcomer to a town but have several friends who are politicians who oversee the area. That provides you with significant social capital

Social democracy is a system of governance existing within the socialist ideology that promotes social justice and intervention into inequality and promotes distribution of wealth across society. This includes advocating for a stronger welfare state, and public amenities (such as free health care, free education, etc). In doing so, social democrats argue for a stronger taxation system to provide more public funds to pay for these things. Socialism and social democracy tend to advocate for a measured approach to capitalism that provides more for society via taxation – which stands in opposition to a liberalist system that advocates for greater economic freedom for all individuals.

A term developed by Emile Durkheim which refers to all the rites, customs, norms and morals that exist within a society that act to constrain individuals. For instance, these could include things such as manners on one hand, and larger norms that become criminal law on the other.

Term that relates to the correlation between health outcomes and socio-economic position in society. In other words, the poorer an individual is, the worse off their health outcomes.

Social identity theory denotes a group of theories that contend that our identities are framed by who we belong to in terms of group membership, and importantly who we do not or distinguish ourselves. This process creates in and out-groups – or inclusion and exclusion depending on how strong the boundaries between groups are.

A purposeful, organised group working toward a common goal.

Refers to the organisation of society as theorised by Emile Durkheim. Durkheim argued that in simpler traditional societies, the world is organised around a limited division of labour and roles. He called this mechanical solidarity. Whereas the modern world is characterised by an organised division of labour that is complex, resulting in multiple roles and positions. Durkheim calls this organic solidarity.

Refers to a measure calculated on a range of factors inclusive of income, education and housing, and so on. Calculated by agencies such as the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The term created by American sociologist C. Wright Mills to define the task of sociology to look beyond the private troubles of individuals and widen the scope to the connectedness of their experiences to public issues. For example, homelessness is a private or individual issue, that we can look at individually – or we can broaden this out and examine the social conditions that create homelessness.

Classifying students based on academic merit or perceived potential, so that students considered most capable are placed in accelerated programs and students considered less capable are guided towards vocational training.

A sociological concept that emphasises esteem, honour or prestige that one receives in society due to sociological factors such as occupation, family, education, etc.

Groups of people organised in a hierarchical manner across society on the basis of sociological categories such as education, family, occupation, ethnicity, and background. Unlike class which is founded on economic standing, status groups are those which might have power and influence over others without holding greater economic wealth than others.

A generalisation about a group of people based on exaggerations or distortions. Stereotypes do not acknowledge individual variation.

Stigmas are labels or words that are successfully applied to an individual that actively work to degrade their social status in society.

A type of research that involves developing a set of questions with predefined answers that a participant selects that can be analysed later via statistics. Questions may also be open-ended to allow for qualitative analysis.

The accumulation of prestige, status or honour that an individual holds in society.

A school of thought largely constructed by the famed 'Chicago School' (Blumer, Goffman, Garfinkle, etc.) which focusses on the emerging nature of society through micro-interactions, group members and symbolism.

Individuals whose gender identity does not match the sex assigned to them at birth.

The style of analysis where you focus on one variable only.

People’s equal ability to participate in an education system.

Refers to a concept, element, characteristic or other category that can be measured and compared across other variables. For instance, variables can include categories such as sex, location, income, education, relationship status, age, and employment.

Roughly translated into an understanding of human behaviour.