Core Concepts in SociologySociology, in a nutshell, is about why people behave in the ways that they do, and the key premise is that behavior is shaped by the contexts in which people live. This multi-segment program introduces the sociological concepts of personal, social, and role identity; of primary and secondary socialization; and of culture, with its associated concepts of learned norms and values, ethnocentrism, cultural diversity, and cultural change.