Introduction to Sociology: Key Concepts, Theories, and Research Methods

Social forces

A significant focus of sociology.

Auguste Comte

The sociologist who coined the term sociology.

Sociology

The study of social life and the social causes and consequences of human behavior.

Microsociologist study example

Assessing where people choose to sit on a bus.

Empirical investigation

An experiment comparing the success rate of third graders on spelling tests by looking at different reinforcement groups.

Sociological imagination

Recognizing how people in diverse countries greet one another in different ways and wondering why.

Purpose of studying social life

To understand the regular, recurrent patterns in social life.

Macrosociological analysis

Tries to understand large-scale structures and processes.

Microsociological analysis

Tries to understand small-scale structures in social interaction.

Influence on interactive processes

The influence of history and biography.

Role of social groups

Shape human behavior.

Difference between macrosociological and microsociological levels

Macrosociological analysis tries to understand large-scale structures and processes, and microsociological analysis tries to understand small-scale structures in social interaction.

Sociological premise

People can be understood through their social contexts.

Tables in sociological research

To present their findings

What a scientist should not do when reading a table

Attempt to disprove the data

Immigrant investment in business leads to

job creation

Rampage shooters according to the 2004 Safe School Initiative report

They usually have no mental health diagnosis

Effect of capital punishment on crime rates

It is not a deterrent in any situation

Suicide rates in the Eastern Mediterranean region and Central Asia

lower than anywhere else

True statement about poverty

Poverty is more an urban problem than a rural one

Fear of dying with age

A fear of dying decreases with age

Difference between sociology and political science

Its primary focus is power, government, and political processes

Characteristic of sociology

It combines both macrosociological and microsociological perspectives

Counseling victims of intimate partner violence

A topic of interest to a psychologist.

The disconnect between common wisdom and reality

A topic of interest to a psychologist.

Power in local governments

A topic of interest to a psychologist.

Solutions to the social problem of juvenile delinquency

A topic of interest to a psychologist.

Physics

Cannot be called a social science because it doesn't study the human social world.

Developing a program to help single parents find affordable housing for their children

A project of professional interest to a social worker.

Scientific methods

Used in all science, including sociology.

Sociology and social work

Sociology is usually a pure science, and social work is an applied science.

Cultural anthropology

Also known as social anthropology.

Social psychology

Studies how individuals influence their social interactions with other individuals or with groups.

Physical anthropology

Studies modern culture and traditional indigenous people.

Social workers

Primarily focus on applying the principles of the social sciences to social problems.

Physical geographer

Focuses on climate, agriculture, the distribution of plant species, and oceanography.

Social geographer

Focuses on distributions of people.

Historians

Focus on describing unique historical events.

Psychology

Primary focus is on individual mental processes and behavior.

Anthropology

Focuses on physical, biological, and cultural development of humans.

Political scientist

Focuses on governmental power.

Acquisition of knowledge

Primary goal of pure science.

Social institutions

Often the focus of cultural anthropology.

Economists

Study all except deviant behavior.

Physical sciences

All of the following are except sociology.

Social sciences

All of the following are except biology.

Pure science

Helps us discover general truths, propositions, or laws.

Sociology's focus

External factors.

Sociology studies

Groups and social systems.