Assam ASSEB Higher Secondary Sociology key terms

A group of people living together in an ordered community, sharing institutions, culture, and patterns of interaction that persist over time.

A group of people who share a common territory, identity, and social ties, often based on locality or shared interests, and interact face-to-face.

A formally organized group formed to pursue specific goals, with defined membership, rules, and procedures.

An established and enduring pattern of social norms, roles, and relationships organized around meeting basic societal needs, such as family, education, or religion.

Two or more people who interact regularly, share a sense of identity, and have patterned relationships based on shared expectations.

The social position an individual occupies within a group or society, which carries certain rights, duties, and expectations.

The set of behaviors, obligations, and privileges expected of a person occupying a particular social status.

The total way of life of a society, including its beliefs, values, norms, customs, knowledge, art, and material objects.

The lifelong process through which individuals learn and internalize the norms, values, beliefs, and behaviors of their society.

Shared rules and expectations that guide behavior in specific social situations, often backed by sanctions.

Culturally shared beliefs about what is desirable, good, and important, which serve as general standards for judging behavior.

The individuals, groups, and institutions-such as family, school, peers, and media-that transmit culture and teach social roles.

A socially recognized and approved group of people related by blood, marriage, or adoption, forming a basic unit of society.

A socially sanctioned union between two or more individuals that establishes rights and obligations between them and their children.

The network of social relationships based on blood, marriage, or adoption that defines rights, duties, and social connections among relatives.

A system of beliefs, practices, and rituals concerning sacred things that unites believers into a moral community.

The social institution through which knowledge, skills, values, and cultural norms are formally transmitted from one generation to the next.

The hierarchical arrangement of individuals and groups in society based on unequal access to valued resources, power, and prestige.

A hereditary, endogamous social group in traditional Indian society, ranked hierarchically and traditionally linked to occupation and ritual purity.

A social stratum based on economic position, income, occupation, and lifestyle, allowing relatively open movement between levels.

The socially constructed roles, behaviors, and expectations associated with being male or female in a given society.

The movement of individuals or groups between different social positions, either upward or downward, within a stratification system.

A process by which lower castes or tribal groups adopt the customs, rituals, and lifestyle of higher castes to improve their social status.

The adoption of Western cultural patterns, values, and institutions, such as education, technology, and dress, by non-Western societies.

A process of social change involving the adoption of modern values, technology, and institutions, often associated with industrialization and rationalization.

The process by which religious institutions, beliefs, and practices lose their influence over various spheres of social life.

Alterations in the social structure, institutions, and patterns of behavior of a society over time.

The coexistence of many cultural, linguistic, and religious groups within a single nation, held together by shared political and social bonds.

The distinctive arrangement of social institutions and groups in India, including caste, kinship, village community, and religious pluralism.

Behavior that violates significant social norms and evokes negative social reactions, though not all deviance is criminal.

An act that violates criminal law and is punishable by the state through formal sanctions.

The mechanisms, both formal and informal, through which society enforces norms and discourages deviant behavior.

A condition in which individuals or groups lack sufficient resources to maintain a minimum standard of living considered acceptable in their society.

A sociological perspective that views society as a system of interdependent parts, each contributing to the stability and functioning of the whole.

A perspective that emphasizes how social inequality and competition for scarce resources create conflict and drive social change.

A micro-level perspective focusing on how individuals create and interpret meanings through social interaction and symbols.

A research method in which the researcher systematically watches and records behavior in natural settings, either as a participant or non-participant.

A research technique involving direct verbal interaction between a researcher and respondent to gather information, either structured or unstructured.

A set of written questions used to collect standardized information from respondents, often administered without the researcher present.

A research method that collects data from a sample of respondents, often using questionnaires or interviews, to describe population characteristics.