Eduqas GCSE Sociology key terms

Bowles and Gintis’s argument that the social relationships and organisation of schooling mirror those of the capitalist workplace, preparing pupils for employment.

A pupil group's shared values and behaviour that reject school rules, authority and expectations about learning.

Observation in which the people being studied are unaware that the researcher is conducting research.

Research in which the people being studied are unaware that research is taking place.

Behaviour that breaks the law.

A recurring difference or distribution in crime data, such as differences between age groups or types of offence.

The number of offences or other specified events relative to the size of a population, usually expressed per fixed number of people.

A survey asking people resident in households in England and Wales about their experiences of crime, including experiences not reported to the police.

The direction of change in crime figures over time, such as an increase, decrease or relatively stable level.

The institutions responsible for enforcing criminal law and dealing with offenders, including the police, courts and prisons.

The legal process through which an alleged criminal offence is dealt with, potentially involving a trial and a sentence.

Crime-generating: describing conditions or a system that encourage criminal behaviour.

Uncertainty or anxiety experienced by some men about their identity and role as traditional expectations of men are challenged by social and economic change.

Knowledge, language, tastes and other cultural resources that can provide advantages in institutions such as schools.

The argument that some people lack the cultural attitudes, knowledge or skills valued by institutions such as schools. Cohen used this explanation for working-class boys’ educational difficulties.

Differences in family forms, relationships or practices associated with different cultural backgrounds, including ethnicity and religion.

A difference in how behaviour is defined or judged between societies or cultural groups.

The shared values, norms, beliefs and practices of a society or social group.

An explanation that poverty generates a distinctive set of values, attitudes and behaviours which can be passed on to children and help poverty persist.

The subjects, knowledge and skills taught in school.

A process through which disadvantages associated with poverty can reinforce one another and pass from parents to children across generations.

Crime that has occurred but does not appear in police-recorded crime statistics because it is undetected, unreported or unrecorded.

Harmful aspects of family relationships, including abuse, violence and unequal power, which challenge the idea that families are always safe and supportive.

Information collected and used as evidence in research into society.

An explanation given to participants after research, clarifying its real purpose and any deception used.

Intentionally misleading research participants about a key aspect of a study, including giving false information or concealing that research is taking place.

Giving up an immediate reward or pleasure in order to gain a greater benefit in the future.