A Guide to Memorising Key Sociological Terms for Pre-U Cambridge | Pre-U Cambridge 社会学：词汇术语速记指南

📚 A Guide to Memorising Key Sociological Terms for Pre-U Cambridge | Pre-U Cambridge 社会学：词汇术语速记指南

Mastering sociology at Pre-U level demands a firm grip on the discipline’s specialised vocabulary. This guide breaks down essential concepts into manageable categories, pairs them with vivid memory anchors, and offers clear definitions in both English and Chinese. Use it as a quick-reference companion to deepen your analysis and sharpen your exam responses.

掌握 Pre-U 阶段的社会学，离不开对学科特有术语的扎实掌握。本指南将核心概念分门别类，配上生动的记忆锚点，并用英中双语给出清晰定义。把它当作速查伙伴，来深化你的分析、打磨你的考试答案。

1. Socialization and the Self | 社会化与自我

Socialisation is the lifelong process through which individuals learn the norms, values, and behaviours expected in their society. Primary socialisation takes place in early childhood, usually within the family, while secondary socialisation occurs later through schools, peer groups, workplaces, and media. George Herbert Mead divided the self into the impulsive ‘I’ and the reflective ‘Me’, showing how we internalise the generalised other. Charles Cooley offered the ‘looking-glass self’: we imagine how we appear to others and develop self-feeling from that perception.

社会化是个体终其一生学习社会所期待的规范、价值观与行为的过程。初级社会化在幼儿期于家庭中完成，次级社会化则在学校、同辈群体、职场和媒体中展开。乔治·赫伯特·米德将自我分为冲动的“主我”与反思的“客我”，揭示我们如何内化“泛化他人”。查尔斯·库利提出了“镜中自我”：我们想象自己在他人眼里的样子，并由此形成自我感觉。

Memory tip: Think of socialisation as ‘social eyes’ watching you — you internalise the gaze of others. ‘I’ is the spontaneous ‘I want!’, while ‘Me’ is ‘Me as others see me’. The looking-glass self is like checking your reflection in a shop window and adjusting your hair.

记忆窍门：把“社会化”想象成“社会的眼睛”在注视你——你将他人的目光内化。“主我”是脱口而出的“我要！”，而“客我”是“别人眼里的我”。镜中自我就像在商店橱窗里看到自己的倒影，然后整理头发。

Primary socialisation — the first stage, family-centred. / 初级社会化——第一阶段，以家庭为中心。
Secondary socialisation — later learning from wider institutions. / 次级社会化——后续从更多制度中学习。
Agents of socialisation — family, education, peer group, mass media, religion, workplace. / 社会化媒介——家庭、教育、同辈群体、大众媒体、宗教、职场。
Generalised other — the organised community or social group that gives the individual a unity of self. / 泛化他人——赋予个体自我统一性的有组织的社群或社会群体。
Looking-glass self — self-concept shaped by perceived judgments of others. / 镜中自我——由感知到的他人评价所塑造的自我概念。

2. Culture, Norms, and Values | 文化、规范与价值观

Culture refers to the entire way of life of a society, including both material objects (technology, art, buildings) and non-material elements (beliefs, customs, language). Norms are the specific rules that guide behaviour in particular situations; they range from folkways (polite customs) to mores (morally significant norms) and laws (formally codified rules enforced by the state). Values are the broad, abstract principles that a society holds dear, such as honesty, freedom, or respect for authority. A value consensus, as functionalists argue, is essential for social order.

文化是指一个社会的整个生活方式，包括物质对象（科技、艺术、建筑）和非物质要素（信仰、习俗、语言）。规范是指导特定情境下行为的具体规则，范围从民俗习惯（礼貌习俗）到民德（具有道德分量的规范），再到法律（由国家强制执行、正式编纂的规则）。价值观是社会珍视的宽泛抽象原则，如诚实、自由或敬重权威。功能主义者认为，价值共识对社会秩序至关重要。

Memory tip: Folkways are ‘folk’ polite habits (say please), mores are ‘more’ serious moral rules (do not steal), and laws are legal boundaries you cannot cross. Think of culture as the ‘soup’ we all swim in — it surrounds and shapes us, even if we do not notice it.

记忆窍门：民俗是“民”（folk）的礼貌习惯（说请），民德是“更”（more）严肃的道德规则（勿偷盗），法律则是不可跨越的法定界线。把文化想象成我们共同浸泡的“汤”——它包围并塑造我们，即便我们浑然不觉。

Type of Norm	Definition	Example
Folkways	Everyday polite conventions	Covering your mouth when yawning
Mores	Norms with strong moral significance	Honesty, fidelity
Laws	Codified norms backed by state sanction	Theft, traffic regulations

Folkways → Mores → Laws = increasing severity and formalisation.

3. Roles and Status | 角色与地位

In sociology, status refers to a social position a person holds, while role denotes the behaviour expected of someone occupying that status. Status can be ascribed (assigned at birth, such as sex or royal titles) or achieved (earned through effort, such as becoming a doctor). Every status carries a role set — the array of roles attached to it. Role conflict occurs when the demands of two or more statuses clash (e.g., being a parent and a full-time employee), whereas role strain arises from contradictory expectations within a single role (e.g., a teacher must be both disciplinarian and nurturer). A master status is the one that overshadows all others in shaping a person’s identity.

在社会学中，地位指个人占据的社会位置，角色则指对占据该地位者所期望的行为。地位可分为先赋地位（出生时被赋予的，如性别或王室头衔）和自致地位（通过努力赢得的，如成为医生）。每个地位都携带着一个角色丛——与该地位相连的一系列角色。当两个或更多地位的要求相互冲突时（如为人父母又全职工作），便出现角色冲突；而单一角色内部相互矛盾的期望则引发角色紧张（如教师必须既是纪律维持者又是关怀者）。首要地位是那个在塑造个人身份时盖过所有其他地位的地位。

Memory tip: Picture a theatre — status is the ‘character’ you are cast as, and role is the ‘script’ you must perform. Role conflict is like being pulled in two directions on stage; role strain is struggling to deliver lines from a script that contradicts itself.

记忆窍门：想象一个剧场——地位是你被分配扮演的“角色人设”，而角色是你必须演出的“剧本”。角色冲突就像在舞台上被拉向两个方向；角色紧张则是费力演绎一份自相矛盾的剧本台词。

Ascribed status — received at birth or involuntarily later. / 先赋地位——出生时或日后非自愿获得的地位。
Achieved status — gained through choice and effort. / 自致地位——通过选择和努力赢得的地位。
Role set — Robert Merton’s term for all roles attached to a single status. / 角色丛——默顿提出的术语，指附属于一个地位的全部角色。
Master status — a status that dominates all others and defines a person’s social identity. / 首要地位——主导其他一切地位并界定个人社会身份的地位。

4. Social Stratification | 社会分层

Social stratification refers to the hierarchical arrangement of individuals and groups in a society based on unequal access to resources, power, and prestige. Major systems include slavery (ownership of people), caste (ascribed, closed, e.g., traditional India), estate (feudal layers), and class (open, economically based). Social class in modern industrial societies is often analysed through the lens of Karl Marx’s bourgeoisie (owners of the means of production) and proletariat (workers), or Max Weber’s multidimensional approach encompassing class, status, and party. Social mobility measures movement between strata; life chances, a term from Weber, describe opportunities for a high-quality life. Meritocracy, the idea that rewards are distributed solely by talent and effort, is widely debated.

社会分层指社会中个体和群体基于资源、权力与声望的不平等获取而形成的层级排列。主要分层体系包括奴隶制（对人身的占有）、种姓制（先赋性、封闭的，如传统印度）、等级制（封建层级）和阶级制（开放的、经济基础的）。现代社会中的社会阶级常通过卡尔·马克思的资产阶级（占有生产资料者）和无产阶级（劳动者）来分析，或采用马克斯·韦伯的多元进路，涵盖阶级、地位和政党。社会流动衡量阶层之间的移动；生活机遇是韦伯提出的术语，指获得优质生活的机会。贤能主义（奖赏仅凭才德和努力分配的观点）饱受争议。

Memory aid: Stratification is like geological layers — highest layers have the richest soil (resources). Remember ‘B and P’: Bourgeoisie own the big buildings (capital), Proletariat provide the power (labour). For meritocracy, ask: ‘Is the race truly merit-based if some start way ahead?’

记忆辅助：分层就像地质层——最上层拥有最肥沃的土壤（资源）。记住“B 和 P”：资产阶级拥有大厦（资本），无产阶级提供动力（劳动）。对于贤能主义，自问：“如果某些人起跑时就遥遥领先，这场竞赛真的唯才是举吗？”

Stratification dimension: Class (economic) + Status (prestige) + Party (power) = Weber’s trinity.

5. Deviance and Social Control | 偏差与社会控制

Deviance is behaviour that violates social norms and elicits a negative reaction. It is not inherently criminal; crime is a specific form of deviance that breaks formal legal codes. Labelling theory, associated with Howard Becker, argues that deviance is not a quality of the act but a label successfully applied by others. Social control consists of the mechanisms society uses to ensure conformity: formal control (police, courts, prisons) and informal control (family, peer pressure, gossip). Sanctions can be positive (rewards for conformity) or negative (punishments for deviance). Emile Durkheim introduced the concept of anomie — a state of normlessness that can arise when society fails to regulate individual aspirations, potentially leading to increased deviance and suicide.

偏差是指违反社会规范并引发负面反应的行为。偏差本质上未必是犯罪；犯罪是偏差中破坏正式法律典则的一种特定形式。与霍华德·贝克尔相联系的标签理论主张，偏差并非行为本身的属性，而是被他人成功贴上的一种标签。社会控制由社会用以确保顺从的机制构成：正式控制（警察、法院、监狱）和非正式控制（家庭、同辈压力、流言）。制裁可以是积极制裁（对顺从的奖励）或消极制裁（对偏差的惩罚）。埃米尔·涂尔干引入了失范概念——当社会未能调控个体抱负时可能出现的一种规范缺失状态，这可能导致偏差和自杀的增加。

Memory tip: Deviance is ‘deviation’ from the straight path. Think of labelling as a sticky nametag: once you are called a ‘troublemaker’, that tag sticks even if behaviour changes. Anomie sounds like ‘a no-me’ — when rules vanish, the self loses its boundaries.

记忆窍门：偏差就是从笔直道路上“偏”离。把标签想象成一张粘人的名字贴：一旦被称作“捣蛋鬼”，即便行为改变，标签仍粘在身。失范读起来像“a no-me”——当规则消失时，自我便失去边界。

Formal social control — official institutions that enforce rules. / 正式社会控制——执行规则的官方机构。
Informal social control — everyday norms enforced by groups and relationships. / 非正式社会控制——由群体和关系维系的日常规范。
Labelling theory — deviance is the consequence of the application of labels. / 标签理论——偏差是标签应用的结果。
Anomie — normlessness; weakens the collective conscience. / 失范——规范缺失；削弱集体意识。

6. Power and Authority | 权力与权威

Power is the ability to impose one’s will on others, even against resistance. Max Weber distinguished power from authority, defining authority as legitimate power — power that people accept as right. He identified three ideal types of authority: traditional (rooted in long-standing customs, e.g., monarchy), charismatic (based on the extraordinary personal qualities of a leader, e.g., revolutionary figures), and legal-rational (grounded in established laws and procedures, e.g., modern bureaucracy). Antonio Gramsci introduced the concept of hegemony — the ideological dominance of the ruling class, achieved through consent rather than force, shaping what is seen as common sense. Pluralist theories argue that power is dispersed among many competing interest groups, preventing any single elite from dominating.

权力是将自己的意志强加于他人，即使遭遇抵抗也不罢休的能力。马克斯·韦伯区分了权力与权威，将权威定义为正当的权力——人们承认其为正当的权力。他指出了三种理想类型的权威：传统型权威（植根于悠久习俗，如君主制）、魅力型权威（基于领袖超凡的个人品质，如革命人物）和法理型权威（立足于既定的法律与程序，如现代官僚制）。安东尼奥·葛兰西引入了霸权概念——统治阶级通过同意而非武力实现的意识形态支配，塑造了被视为常识的东西。多元主义理论则认为，权力分散于诸多相互竞争的利益集团，没有一个单一精英能够支配全局。

Memory technique: Power = ‘Can make you do it’; Authority = ‘You agree that it is right to do it’. For Weber’s three types, use ‘TLC’: Traditional (from customs), Legal-rational (from laws), Charismatic (from charm). Hegemony is ‘heg-em-one-y’ — one group’s ideology becomes the norm for all.

记忆技巧：权力 = “能让你去做”；权威 = “你同意这么做是正当的”。对韦伯的三种类型，用“TLC”助记：传统（来自习俗）、法理（来自法律）、魅力（来自魅力）。霸权就是“heg-em-one-y”——一个群体的意识形态成为所有人的常态。

Authority Type	Basis	Example
Traditional	Custom, hereditary rule	A tribal chief or monarch
Charismatic	Personal magnetism	Nelson Mandela
Legal-rational	Established laws and procedures	A prime minister elected under a constitution

7. Family and Household | 家庭与住户

A family is a group of people related by blood, marriage, or adoption, while a household refers to individuals who share a dwelling and common domestic arrangements, whether related or not. The nuclear family (parents and dependent children) has often been seen as the dominant form in modern industrial societies, though sociological evidence points to considerable diversity, including extended families (where relatives beyond the nuclear unit co-reside or maintain close ties), lone-parent families, and same-sex families. Functionalists like George Murdock argued that the family performs four essential functions: sexual, reproductive, economic, and educational. Marxist and feminist perspectives highlight patriarchy — a system where men hold disproportionate power and privilege — and the domestic division of labour, which often remains gendered despite the rise of the symmetrical family, a term Willmott and Young used for families where roles are more equal.

家庭是由血缘、婚姻或收养关系联结的一群人，而住户则指共享住所和共同家务安排的个体，不论是否具有亲属关系。核心家庭（父母与受扶养子女）常被视为现代工业社会中的主导形式，但社会学证据指向显著的家庭多样性，包括扩展家庭（核心单位以外的亲属同居或维系紧密联系）、单亲家庭和同性家庭。像乔治·默多克这样的功能主义者认为，家庭履行四项基本功能：性、生育、经济和教育。马克思主义和女性主义视角则强调父权制——男性掌握不成比例的权力和特权的制度——以及家庭内的家务分工，即便随着对称家庭的出现，这种分工依然常常带有性别色彩。对称家庭是威尔莫特和扬用于指称角色更趋平等的家庭的术语。

Memory shortcuts: Household = house + hold (those you hold keys with). Nuclear family = a small, tightly bound ‘nucleus’. For patriarchy, picture a ‘patri- arch’ — an arch built by fathers over mothers. Symmetrical family is like a see-saw balanced in the middle: roles are mirrored, not identical.

记忆捷径：住户 = 房子 + 同住（和你一起拿钥匙的人）。核心家庭 = 一个紧密的小“核心”。父权制，想象一个“父-拱门”——由父亲们为母亲们建起的拱门。对称家庭就像平衡的跷跷板：角色相互对称，而非雷同。

Nuclear family — two-generational unit of parents and children. / 核心家庭——父母与子女的两代单位。
Extended family — includes grandparents, aunts, uncles and beyond. / 扩展家庭——涵盖祖父母、姑姑舅舅等亲族。
Symmetrical family — roles become more similar, though not identical. / 对称家庭——角色趋于相似，但并不相同。
Domestic division of labour — how domestic tasks are allocated, often along gender lines. / 家务分工——家事如何分配，常沿性别划线。

8. Education and Society | 教育与社会

Education is the formal transmission of knowledge, skills, and cultural values from one generation to the next. Functionalists view it as a bridge between family and wider society, promoting social solidarity, meritocratic selection, and role allocation. However, conflict theorists highlight the hidden curriculum — the subtle, unspoken lessons about norms, values, and obedience that are transmitted alongside the official syllabus, often reinforcing social inequality. Pierre Bourdieu introduced the concept of cultural capital — non-economic assets such as education, intellect, style of speech, and taste, which give some students an advantage. Bowles and Gintis proposed the correspondence principle, arguing that the structure of schooling mirrors the capitalist workplace, preparing students for docile labour. Labelling in schools, as studied by interactionists, shows how teacher expectations can create self-fulfilling prophecies that affect pupil achievement.

教育是知识、技能和文化价值观从一代人向下一代人的正式传递。功能主义者将其视为家庭与更广阔社会之间的桥梁，促进社会团结、贤能选拔和角色分配。然而，冲突论者强调隐性课程——那些伴随正式课纲传递的、关于规范、价值观与服从的细微无言教训，往往强化了社会不平等。皮埃尔·布迪厄引入了文化资本概念——教育、智识、言谈风格和品味等非经济资产，这令某些学生拥有优势。鲍尔斯和金蒂斯提出了对应原则，认为学校教育的结构映射了资本主义职场，将学生预备为驯良的劳动力。互动论者研究的学校中的标签现象显示，教师期望能创造出影响学生成绩的自我实现预言。

Memory technique: Hidden curriculum is ‘hidden but taught’ — the lesson in punctuality and obedience that is never written on the board. Cultural capital = the ‘cultural wallet’: some students come to school with more ‘money’ in the form of books, language, and experiences. Correspondence principle is like a ‘mirror’ reflecting workplace hierarchy in classroom rows.

记忆技巧：隐性课程是“隐而授之”——关于守时与服从的课从未写在黑板上。文化资本 = “文化钱包”：有些学生带着更多的“钱”来上学，这些钱表现为书籍、语言和经历。对应原则就像一面“镜子”，在课堂的排排坐中映出职场等级。

Concept	Key idea
Hidden curriculum	Unofficial lessons about obedience, competition, and gender roles.
Cultural capital	Advantaged cultural knowledge that translates into educational success.
Correspondence principle	School structures mirror capitalist work relations.

9. Religion and Belief Systems | 宗教与信仰体系

Sociologists define religion as a unified system of beliefs and practices relative to sacred things, which unite adherents into a moral community. Emile Durkheim distinguished between the sacred (things set apart and forbidden) and the profane (ordinary, everyday elements of life). He argued that religious rituals reinforce collective conscience and social solidarity. The secularisation thesis claims that religion loses its social significance as societies modernise; however, critics point to religious resurgence, fundamentalism, and the continued influence of religion in many regions. Civil religion, a term developed by Robert Bellah, refers to a set of beliefs, symbols, and rituals that provide a sacred quality to a nation’s identity. Religious pluralism describes a condition where multiple religions coexist, which some see as weakening absolute truth claims and others as enriching spiritual choice. Peter Berger introduced the concept of theodicy — religious explanations that give meaning to suffering and injustice.

社会学家将宗教定义为与神圣事物相关的、统一的信仰和实践体系，它将信徒凝聚成一个道德共同体。埃米尔·涂尔干区分了神圣事物（被分隔和禁忌的事物）与世俗事物（生活中普通日常的要素）。他认为宗教仪式强化集体意识与社会团结。世俗化命题主张，随着社会现代化，宗教会丧失其社会重要性；然而批评者指出宗教复兴、原教旨主义以及宗教在许多地区的持续影响。公民宗教是罗伯特·贝拉提出的术语，指一套为国家身份赋予神圣特性的信仰、象征与仪式。宗教多元主义描述多种宗教共存的状况，有人认为这会削弱绝对真理主张，也有人认为它丰富了灵性选择。彼得·伯格引入了神义论概念——为苦难与不公赋予意义的宗教解释。

Memory keys: Sacred is ‘scared away from the ordinary’. Secularisation = ‘secular’ (worldly) taking over; think of Sunday shopping making the day ordinary. Theodicy sounds like ‘theo-justice’: a religious answer to why a good God allows suffering. Civil religion is ‘God bless our nation’ wrapped in a flag.

记忆钥匙：神圣就是“从世俗中被吓跑的东西”（sacred 与 scared 形似）。世俗化 = 世俗（worldly）占了上风；想想周日逛街让这一天变得普通。神义论听起来像“神-正义”：一个关于为何善神容许苦难的宗教回答。公民宗教就是裹在国旗里的“上帝保佑吾国”。

Sacred — set apart, inspiring awe. / 神圣——被分隔的、令人敬畏的事物。
Profane — ordinary, everyday aspects of existence. / 世俗——日常的、平凡的存在面向。
Secularisation — the process by which religion declines in influence. / 世俗化——宗教影响力下降的过程。
Fundamentalism — a return to literal scriptural truths, often in reaction to modernisation. / 原教旨主义——回归经文字面真理，常常是对现代化的反动。

10. Globalization and Social Change | 全球化与社会变迁

Globalisation refers to the increasing interconnectedness of societies across the globe, driven by advances in communication, transport, and trade. It encompasses economic, cultural, political, and technological dimensions. Cultural globalisation can lead to homogenisation, where local cultures become increasingly similar under Western or American influence, or to hybridity, where a blending of cultures creates new, distinctive forms. The concept of glocalisation captures how global products and ideas are adapted to fit local contexts (e.g., McDonald’s menus tailored to regional tastes). Ulrich Beck’s risk society thesis proposes that modernisation has generated manufactured risks — such as climate change and financial crises — that are global in scope, transcending national borders. Social movements, including global justice movements and environmental campaigns, have also become transnational, reflecting a global civil society. Manuel Castells highlighted the network society, where digital communication networks transform social organisation.

全球化指由于通讯、交通和贸易的进步，全球社会之间日益增强的相互联系。它涵盖经济、文化、政治和技术等多个维度。文化全球化可能导致同质化，即地方文化在西方或美国影响下变得越来越相似；也可能导致混生性，即不同文化的交融创造出崭新的独特形态。全球在地化这一概念则捕捉到全球产品和观念如何适应地方情境（例如，麦当劳根据地区口味调整菜单）。乌尔里希·贝克的风险社会命题认为，现代化产生了人造风险——如气候变化和金融危机——这些风险是全球范围的，超越国界。包括全球正义运动和环境运动在内的社会运动也已跨国化，反映出一个全球公民社会。曼纽尔·卡斯特尔则强调了网络社会，其中数字化通信网络正在重塑社会组织。

Memory triggers: Glocalisation = global + local; think of a global brand served with local spice. Homogenisation is like a ‘homogenised’ milkshake — everything blended into one same flavour. Risk society: imagine a world where the worst hazards are made by humans, not nature. To remember hybridity, picture a musical genre like reggaeton that fuses Caribbean rhythms with hip-hop.

记忆触发点：全球在地化 = 全球 + 地方；想象一个全球品牌添入本地香料。同质化就像“均质化

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A Guide to Memorising Key Sociological Terms for Pre-U Cambridge | Pre-U Cambridge 社会学：词汇术语速记指南