📚 Sociology Key Terms Quick Memorisation Guide | 社会学关键术语速记指南
Mastering sociology starts with a solid grasp of its core vocabulary. This guide breaks down essential SQA-level terms into memorable clusters, with study tips to help you recall them quickly under exam pressure. Each section pairs a clear English definition with a Chinese explanation so you can build your understanding in both languages and remember key concepts with ease.
掌握社会学始于对其核心词汇的牢固掌握。本指南将 SQA 水准的关键术语分解为易于记忆的组块，并提供学习技巧，帮助你在考试压力下快速回忆。每个部分都将清晰的英文定义与中文解释配对，使你能够在双语环境下建立理解，轻松记住关键概念。
1. What is Culture? | 什么是文化？
Culture refers to the whole way of life of a particular society. It includes shared norms, values, beliefs, language, customs, and material objects that members of that society pass on from one generation to the next. In sociology, culture is not static — it evolves as people interact with each other and with external influences. The term "material culture" covers physical items like technology and clothing, while "non-material culture" refers to intangible elements such as speech, gestures, and moral codes.
文化是指一个特定社会的整个生活方式。它包括该社会成员代代相传的共享规范、价值观、信仰、语言、习俗和物质对象。在社会学中，文化不是静止不变的——它随着人们彼此互动和受外部影响而演变。"物质文化"一词涵盖技术和服装等实物，而"非物质文化"则指语言、手势和道德准则等非物质元素。
Tip: Think of culture as the "software" running society. Just as a computer program shapes what a machine does, culture shapes how people behave, think, and understand the world.
提示：把文化想象成运行社会的"软件"。正如计算机程序决定了机器的行为方式，文化也塑造了人们的行为、思维和对世界的理解方式。
2. Norms and Values | 规范与价值观
Norms are the unwritten rules that define acceptable and expected behaviour in a society. They can be formal, such as laws, or informal, like table manners. Values, on the other hand, are the deeply held principles that underpin norms — they represent what a society considers good, desirable, and important. While values are abstract (e.g., honesty, freedom), norms translate those values into everyday conduct. When norms are broken, formal or informal sanctions are applied.
规范是界定社会中可接受和预期行为的不成文规则。它们可以是正式的，如法律，也可以是非正式的，比如餐桌礼仪。另一方面，价值观是支撑规范的深度持有原则——它们代表了一个社会认为好、可取和重要的东西。虽然价值观是抽象的（例如诚实、自由），规范则将这些价值观转化为日常行为。当规范被打破时，就会有正式或非正式的制裁施加。
To remember the difference, link "norms" to "normal" — what most people do in a given situation. Values link to "valuable" — the ideals people hold dear. Sanctions link to "sanction" meaning penalty or reward.
要记住区别，把"规范"（norms）与"正常"（normal）联系起来——即大多数人在特定情境下所做的事。把价值观（values）与"有价值的"（valuable）联系起来——人们珍视的理想。制裁（sanctions）与"制裁"的字面意思惩罚或奖励联系起来。
3. Socialisation: Primary and Secondary | 社会化：初级与次级
Socialisation is the lifelong process through which individuals learn the culture of their society and develop a sense of self. Primary socialisation occurs in early childhood, mainly within the family. Here, children learn basic language, norms, and values. Secondary socialisation takes place later through institutions such as schools, peer groups, the media, and workplaces. These agents of socialisation reinforce and sometimes challenge the lessons learned at home.
社会化是一个贯穿终生的过程，个体通过它学习其社会的文化并形成自我意识。初级社会化发生在幼儿期，主要是在家庭内部。在这个阶段，儿童学习基本的语言、规范和价值观。次级社会化后来通过学校、同伴群体、媒体和工作场所等机构进行。这些社会化机构强化有时也挑战在家中学到的内容。
Think of the "P" in primary as "parental" — your first teachers. The "S" in secondary can stand for "society" beyond the family, or simply "second" stage. This mnemonic helps separate the two forms of learning.
把初级（Primary）中的"P"想成"父母的"（parental）——你的第一位老师。次级（Secondary）中的"S"可以代表家庭以外的"社会"（society）或者仅仅是"第二"阶段。这个助记符有助于区分这两种学习形式。
4. Status and Role | 地位与角色
In sociology, status refers to the social position a person holds, while role is the expected behaviour associated with that status. An individual can hold multiple statuses simultaneously — for example, one can be a daughter, a student, and an employee at the same time. Ascribed status is assigned at birth or involuntarily later in life (e.g., age, race), while achieved status is earned through personal effort (e.g., becoming a doctor). Role conflict occurs when the demands of different roles clash.
在社会学中，地位（status）指一个人所占的社会位置，而角色（role）则是与该地位相关的预期行为。一个人可以同时拥有多种地位——例如，一个人可以同时是女儿、学生和雇员。先赋地位是出生时被赋予的或生命后期非自愿获得的（如年龄、种族），而自致地位是通过个人努力获得的（如成为医生）。当不同角色的要求发生冲突时就会出现角色冲突。
A quick memory trick: think of a "status" as a label on a door (like "Manager") and the "role" as the job description that comes with that label. Status is the title; role is the script you are expected to follow.
一个快速的记忆技巧：把"地位"想成门上的标签（如"经理"），而"角色"则是附带该标签的职位描述。地位是头衔，角色是期望你遵循的剧本。
5. Social Stratification and Inequality | 社会分层与不平等
Social stratification describes the way society is organised into hierarchical layers based on factors such as class, gender, ethnicity, and age. It involves the unequal distribution of resources, power, and life chances. The term "life chances" was introduced by Max Weber to refer to an individual's opportunities to obtain desirable things like education, health, and income. Stratification systems can be open (allowing mobility) or closed (rigid, such as a caste system).
社会分层描述了社会如何根据阶级、性别、种族和年龄等因素组织成等级层次。它涉及资源、权力和生活机会的不平等分配。"生活机会"一词由马克斯·韦伯提出，指的是个人获得教育、健康和收入等理想事物的机会。分层体系可以是开放的（允许流动）或封闭的（僵化的，如种姓制度）。
Use the acronym "MEGAC" — Money, Education, Gender, Age, Class — to recall key dimensions of stratification. Remember that inequality is about the gaps, while stratification is about the structure that creates those gaps.
使用首字母缩略词"MEGAC"——金钱 (Money)、教育 (Education)、性别 (Gender)、年龄 (Age)、阶级 (Class) ——来回忆分层的核心维度。记住，不平等关乎差距，而分层关乎产生这些差距的结构。
6. Social Institutions | 社会制度
Social institutions are stable, organised patterns of behaviour that perform essential functions for society. Key institutions include the family, education system, legal system, and religion. Each institution meets a societal need: the family provides care and socialisation, education transmits knowledge and norms, religion offers meaning and cohesion, and the legal system maintains order. Sociologists study how these institutions interact and how they can reproduce inequality.
社会制度是稳定、有组织的行为模式，它们为社会履行基本功能。主要制度包括家庭、教育体系、法律体系和宗教。每一种制度满足一个社会需求：家庭提供照顾和社会化，教育传递知识和规范，宗教提供意义和凝聚力，法律体系维持秩序。社会学家研究这些制度如何相互作用以及如何再生产不平等。
To remember institutional functions, use the framework "FELR" — ion = knowledge, Law = order, Religion = meaning. This gives you a quick mental checklist.
要记住制度的功能，使用框架"FELR"——家庭 (Family)、教育 (Education)、法律 (Law)、宗教 (Religion)。为每一项想一个关键词：家庭=照顾，教育=知识，法律=秩序，宗教=意义。这为你提供了一个快速的心理检查清单。
7. Identity: Personal and Social | 身份：个人与社会
Identity refers to how we see ourselves and how others see us. Personal identity is our unique sense of self, shaped by biography and individual experiences. Social identity comes from group memberships — for example, identifying as a fan of a sports team, a member of an ethnic community, or a student of a particular school. Sociologists examine how identities are formed, maintained, and changed through social interaction. Key thinkers like Erving Goffman used the concept of "impression management" to describe how people present different identities in different settings.
身份指的是我们如何看待自己以及他人如何看待我们。个人身份是我们对自己独特的自我感觉，由个人经历和生平塑造。社会身份来自群体成员身份——例如，认同自己是一个体育队的球迷、一个族裔群体的成员或某个学校的学生。社会学家研究身份如何在社会互动中形成、维持和改变。像欧文·戈夫曼这样的主要思想家使用了"印象管理"的概念来描述人们如何在不同场合展示不同的身份。
Imagine a person holding several masks, each one used for a different stage — work, family, friendship. This image helps you recall that identity is not fixed but performed. The term "social identity" starts with "S" for "shared with others".
想象一个人拿着几个面具，每一个都用于不同的舞台——工作、家庭、友谊。这个意象能帮你想起身份不是固定的，而是被表演出来的。"社会身份"（social identity）一词以"S"开头，表示与"他人共享"（shared）。
8. Deviance and Social Control | 越轨与社会控制
Deviance refers to behaviour that violates significant social norms. What counts as deviant varies across cultures and time periods. Social control refers to the mechanisms society uses to regulate behaviour and enforce conformity. It can be formal (laws, police, rewards) or informal (gossip, praise, ostracism). Labelling theory, linked to Howard Becker, argues that deviance is not inherent in any act but is created by the labels society applies. A powerful phrase to remember is: "Deviance is in the eye of the beholder."
越轨行为指违反重要社会规范的行为。被视为越轨的行为因文化和时代而异。社会控制是指社会用来调节行为并强制遵从的机制。它可以是正式的（法律、警察、奖励）或非正式的（流言、表扬、排斥）。与霍华德·贝克尔相连的标签理论认为，越轨并不是任何行为本身固有的，而是由社会所贴的标签造成的。一个有力的记忆短语是："越轨是观察者眼中的现象"。
Link "deviance" to the word "divide" — it widens the gap between conformists and rule-breakers. Then add "label" as a sticky note placed on someone by society. This dual image brings the whole concept to life.
把"越轨"（deviance）与"分裂"（divide）这个词联系起来——它扩大了遵从者和违规者之间的鸿沟。然后加上"标签"（label），就像是社会贴在某人身上的便利贴。这个双重意象让整个概念鲜活起来。
9. Research Methods in Sociology | 社会学研究方法
Sociologists collect data using a range of methods, broadly divided into quantitative (numerical) and qualitative (non-numerical, in-depth) approaches. Quantitative methods include questionnaires and structured interviews, while qualitative methods include unstructured interviews, participant observation, and case studies. The choice of method depends on practical, ethical, and theoretical considerations. Important terms: validity (how true the findings are), reliability (consistency of results), representativeness (whether the sample reflects the wider population), and sampling (selecting participants).
社会学家使用一系列方法收集数据，大致分为定量（数值）和定性（非数值、深度）方法。定量方法包括问卷调查和结构式访谈，而定性方法包括非结构式访谈、参与观察和个案研究。方法的选择取决于实际、伦理和理论考量。重要术语：效度（研究结果有多真实）、信度（结果的一致性）、代表性（样本是否反映更广泛的总体）和抽样（选择参与者）。
Use "VRRS" — Validity, Reliability, Representativeness, Sampling — as a memory hook. When you see any research scenario, ask these four questions mentally to evaluate the study.
使用"VRRS"——效度 (Validity)、信度 (Reliability)、代表性 (Representativeness)、抽样 (Sampling) ——作为记忆钩子。每当你看到一个研究情境时，在心里问自己这四个问题来评估该研究。
10. Sociological Perspectives: Functionalism, Conflict, and Symbolic Interactionism | 社会学视角：功能论、冲突论与符号互动论
Functionalism views society as a system of interconnected parts that work together to maintain stability. It emphasises the functions that institutions perform. Conflict theory, inspired by Marx, sees society as characterised by power struggles over limited resources; it focuses on inequality and social change. Symbolic interactionism takes a micro-level view, studying how people create meaning through everyday interaction using symbols such as language and gestures. These three perspectives offer different lenses to examine the same social phenomenon.
功能论将社会视为一个由相互关联的部分组成的系统，这些部分共同作用以维持稳定。它强调制度所履行的功能。冲突论受马克思启发，认为社会的特征是围绕有限资源进行的权力斗争；它关注不平等和社会变迁。符号互动论采取微观视角，研究人们如何通过日常互动、使用语言和手势等符号来创造意义。这三种视角提供了考察同一社会现象的不同透镜。
To remember the three: think "FCS" — Function (stability), Conflict (power), Symbolic (meaning). Each word delivers the core idea. Functionalism wants to keep the machine running, conflict theory wants to fix the machine by altering power relations, and interactionism studies how people talk about the machine.
要记住这三者：想"FCS"——功能 (Function，稳定)、冲突 (Conflict，权力)、符号 (Symbolic，意义)。每个词都传达了核心思想。功能论想保持机器运转，冲突论想通过改变权力关系来修理机器，而互动论则研究人们如何谈论这台机器。
11. Power and Authority: Weber's Typology | 权力与权威：韦伯的类型学
Max Weber distinguished between power (the ability to achieve one's will despite resistance) and authority (legitimate power accepted by those it governs). He identified three pure types of authority: traditional authority (based on customs and long-established beliefs, e.g., monarchy), charismatic authority (rooted in the personal magnetism and heroism of a leader), and rational-legal authority (grounded in formal rules and laws, e.g., modern bureaucracies). These types help analyse how obedience is secured in different societies.
马克斯·韦伯区分了权力（不顾阻力实现自己意志的能力）和权威（被治理者接受的合法权力）。他确定了三种纯粹的权威类型：传统权威（基于习俗和长期存在的信念，如君主制）、魅力权威（源于领袖的个人魅力和英雄气质）以及法理权威（建立在正式规则和法律之上，如现代官僚机构）。这些类型有助于分析不同社会如何确保服从。
Link "traditional" to time-honoured habits, "charismatic" to the word "charm", and "rational-legal" to the rule of law. Visualise a king (tradition), a revolutionary speaker (charisma), and a judge in a courtroom (rational-legal). This visual shorthand can be quickly retrieved in an exam.
把"传统"与历史悠久的习惯联系起来，把"魅力"与"迷人"（charm）这个词联系起来，把"法理"与法治联系起来。想象一个国王（传统）、一个革命演说家（魅力）和一个法庭上的法官（法理）。这个视觉速记可以在考试中迅速提取。
12. Key Terms Quick Review and Exam Tips | 关键术语快速复习与考试建议
A final sweep of frequently tested concepts helps consolidate your memory. Familiarise yourself with the following linked pairs: consensus vs. conflict, meritocracy vs. inherited privilege, culture vs. subculture, formal vs. informal sanctions, and quantitative vs. qualitative data. In your SQA exam, always define the term explicitly before applying it to an example. Use the PEEL structure (Point, Evidence, Explanation, Link) when writing paragraphs that require you to discuss a sociological concept.
最后扫一遍常考概念有助于巩固记忆。熟悉以下关联对：共识 vs. 冲突、贤能政治 vs. 继承特权、文化 vs. 亚文化、正式制裁 vs. 非正式制裁、定量数据 vs. 定性数据。在 SQA 考试中，一定要在举例应用之前先明确地定义术语。当需要讨论某个社会学概念时，使用 PEEL 结构（论点、证据、解释、联系）来撰写段落。
Create a set of flashcards with the English term on one side and the definition plus Chinese meaning on the other. Test yourself regularly by picking a term and explaining it aloud in both languages. This active recall method is proven to strengthen long-term memory far better than simply rereading notes.
制作一套抽认卡，一面写英文术语，另一面写定义及中文含义。定期自我测试，抽选一个术语并用双语大声解释。这种主动回忆方法已被证明能远比简单重读笔记更有效地强化长期记忆。
Published by TutorHao | Sociology Revision Series | aleveler.com
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