Studied by 1 person
Why is there low interest in the sociology of emotions?
Reason over Emotions: Since the Enlightenment, intellectuals have emphasized the importance of reason, not emotions
Enlightenment; reason is important, makes us humans
Sociologists seek enlightened understandings through reason and focus on how reason affects how people act and interact
See emotions as irrational, preventing reasoned action
Egotism: Humans are obsessed with how smart we are and believe that we act according to our own free will
We are not driven by instincts
Creates focus on reason, not emotions
Emotions cloud reason; need to focus on reason and not on emotions
Values Causing Biases: Emotions are commonly ridiculed, viewed as undesirable and unworthy of our attention
Those who express them are labeled “babies” or “disturbed”
Triviality: Believe that emotions are unimportant, and sociologists focus on more “worthy” topics
Social Relations: Sociology focuses on social relations, not how the human brain works
Common idea is that that emotions are simply mental processes not linked to relations
Biology: Emotions viewed as biologically based, and sociologists avoid biology like the plague
Bias against it
Recognition that earlier attempts to bring biology into sociology were racist
BARBALET AND HARRIS READING
Scott Harris and Jack Barbalet note biases against emotions in sociology and suggest that they are wrong and harmful. They suggest that the reason for excluding emotions is erroneous.
Reason: Human reason is actually very dependent on emotions— can’t separate the two
Egotism: Emotions are complex and define us as humans
Triviality: Emotions are extremely influential and shape our understandings, identities, values, decision-making ability, etc.
Social Relations: Emotions shape our actions and interactions in a great variety of ways
Biology: Emotions are very social, as they are shaped by social relations
At the same time, they are possibly the main factor making us sociable
Society
“A group of people whose members interact, reside in a definable area, and share culture”
usually used to designate country-level groups (Canada, USA, France, etc.)
Also regional
Why is the definition of society a contested/problematic concept?
This definition suggest a concrete thing but are generally not so concrete since it limits groupness and cultural diversity.
The boundaries between societies are very blurry. This means that it is too abstract and unhelpful.
SOCIAL RELATIONS
Sociologists focus on points of interactions between people and the patterns of relations resulting from interactions, not the individual themselves.
Different from other social sciences because of breadth and focus.
_____ _______ embed us in and create structures.
SCIENCE
Science: system of acquiring knowledge through empirical observation and experimentation
Science is not based on a discipline; it is a method.
Scientific method
Some claim around 7 main components to make a study scientific:
Question: why is X the way it is
Review existing findings
Make hypotheses
Observation: collect information using senses
Analysis: use intellect and methods to interpret data
Report results
Testing: apply initial findings to additional situations to see if it holds
What is the goal of most sociologists?
Provide better understandings of the world.
rejecting hard-core positivism, but still accept the scientific method and believe we can get insight into how the social world work through empirical investigation
reflexibility: consider potential biases affecting research
SCIENTIFIC ASSUMPTIONS
Science is based on 3 main assumptions that we cannot prove:
We live in an external, objective world
We do not live in a dream state or matrix but what we are observing is real; shared reality
It is possible to gather accurate information about the world
Our senses allow us to gather this information
There is order and regularity in the world
Everything isn't random, there are causes
Positivism
View that we can apply science to the study social relations to better understand them.
Now, it has become a dirty word in sociology that is commonly used to insult people.
Postmodern Sociologists
Believe at least one of the scientific assumptions is faulty
We lack the capacity to gather accurate information about the social world
Discourse
Iara Lessa “systems of thoughts composed of ideas, attitudes, courses of action, beliefs and practices that systematically construct the subjects and the worlds of which they speak”
promote systematic ways to perceive aspects of the social world
Therefore, discourse bias perceptions & interpretations, so we cannot possibly interpret data accurately.
What is the origin of Sociology?
It was the first discipline within the social sciences. August Comte was credited with coining the term.
Emile Durkheim founded its first department at the University of Bordeaux.
Sociology
The scientific/systematic study of social relations, focusing on diverse types of social relations and the link between individuals and social structures.
It analyzes social patterns; the more finding patterns, the more sociology tries to explain them
Defining Emotions: ARLIE HOCHSCHILD
Founding figure of the sociology of emotion
Definition: A biological sense like sight, hearing, that prepares us for action
Ex. fear provides evidence of danger and prepares us to flee
Definition isn't that influential.
The information provided by emotions go through a filter, depending on our perspective, experiences, culture (Suggest that people don't experience the same emotion)
Strengths: recognizes emotion as reactions that prepare us to act in particular ways
Critique: emotions are very different from our senses
Emotions deal with how we react to the information that our senses give us
Defining Emotions: PEGGY THOITS
Provides well known definition seeing emotions as having 4 components:
Physical Changes: when we experience an emotion, we react physically
ex . our heart rate picks up, we sweat -Action (we jump back), hormonal (hormones released), neural (certain regions of the brain are activated)
Expressive Gestures and Communication: Physical reactions that express emotion
Allow others to see and interpret your emotions (ex. Facial expressions)
Makes emotions part of social relations
Many of these expressions are culturally based and not just innate like Darwin thought
Situational Cues: deals with what sparks emotions. Certain situations provoke emotional responses.
Ex. seeing a figure in a dark alley moving toward you sparks fear
Emotional Labels: we label our emotions in ways that give them meaning
Label "fear" as an emotion caused by some danger
How we label emotions affect how we experience them
once we understand what these emotions are, we label and give meaning to them
Thoits claims that all four shape one another and are interrelated
The Sociology and Biology of Peggy Thoits
Emotions are biological and social. They cannot be separated.
Physiological response: clear biological element of emotions
Suggests emotions are part of our biology
Sociological: social relations affect emotions; focuses largely on the social side of emotinos
Labeling: affect how we experience emotions (We are socialized to recognize certain emotions and give them certain meanings)
Expressive gestures: are a means of communication affecting social relations and are affected by socialization
Situational cues: our social relations/context shapes emotional reactions
Defining Emotions: TURNER AND STETS
They avoid the question of what an emotion actually is by saying there is disagreement but tat we all knwo what an emotion is
They lay out three main components
Social construction: sociology
BiologIcal: neuroscience
Cognition: psychology
Biology: The Neurological View (TURNER & STETS)
Recognizes that emotions always involve a physiological response that is rooted in neuro processes
Argues that these processes precede social influences on emotions
Therefore pay little attention to the social side
Emotions involve 4 types of physiological responses to outside stimuli:
Automatic nervous system: unconscious regulation of heart rate, breaking, digestion
Neurotransmitter and neuroactive peptide system: nervous system messengers that allows some stimulus to reach the brain
Hormonal system: emotions cause body to produce certain hormones
Musculoskeletal system: scared of a snake and jump back as a reaction
These physiological elements are vital to emotions
Neurology of Emotions (TURNER & STETS)
Recognizes that the brain has two main regions
Subcortical: evolutionarily, this is the earliest part of the brain, referred to sometimes as the reptilian brain
All sensory inputs first enter this part of the brain (specifically the thalamus)
This is the region where emotions are generated (Ex. amygdala activates fear (and pleasure), but most emotions involve several different regions of the subcortical region)
Usually promotes more unconscious, rapid actions (jumping at the sight of snake)
Neocortex: developed later, on top of and envelops subcortical region
Region of the brain associated with consciousness and human adaptability
For emotions to become conscious, the neocortex must be stimulated by neural pathways emanating from the subcortical areas
Part of the brain that is conscious of emotions, labels them, makes sense of them.
Differences: subcortical region promotes rapid responses, the neocortex promotes slower responses that we are conscious of
Through connections, both affect one another and work together
Emotions and Rationality
Reason separates humans from animals, emotions are primitive
emotions are irrational and do not support critical thinking
Neurological view: People with brain damage in precortical regions central to emotionality are horrible decision-makers.
We make decisions based on the strength of positive and negative emotions that we attach to each possible decision.
reason and emotions cannot and should not be separated.
Cognitive View: Psychology (TURNER & STETS)
Focuses on the role of cognition in emotions
Cognition: cognizant mental process involved in acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and then senses (conscious thinking)
Emphasizes the role of judgements in influencing emotions
Central idea is that emotions do not emerge until we are cognizant of them and appraise them/make sense of them
Authors disagree that cognition precedes physiological responses but not that cognition affects emotions in many ways
Psychological views offer insight when not taken to the extreme by changing the areas of the brain that are active
Helps link sociological and biological views
Social Construction: The Sociological View
Emotions are greatly shaped by culture and culture affects emotions through cognitive processes
social side: emotions are conditioned by how we are socialized
cultures construct emotions - gives labels for emotions, tells us what they mean and tell us when it’s legitimate to express these emotions
vocabulary of emotions allows us to make sense of and to control our emotional reactions
Implicit Model of Human Emotions (TURNER AND STETS)
Based on biology but linked to the social side through cognition.
Believe that emotions are "soft wired" in the human brain
Innate elements, but the neocortex shapes our emotions in ways that allow sociological to influence, potentially transforming biological responses
Neocortex is vital for making people aware of emotions
Allows us to label and make sense of emotions, which has a large effect on how we experience emotions and act according to them
Allows people to follow emotional norms and manage their emotions
Social Environment: Influences/teaches the neocortex by imparting norms, labels, understandings, meanings that affect how the neocortex mediates signals from the subcortical region
Can also affect our unconscious neocortical reactions through experience
Types of human emotions
Positive or Negative emotions: based on desirability
We appear to have more negative emotions that positive, suggests our behaviour is more influence by the negative (not all agree)
Primary emotions: universal emotions experienced by people in all cultures
Have clear physical markers that many believe are universal
there are disagreements as to which emotions are primary/universal. all reactions address certain situations in ways that promoted survival
Secondary Emotions: authors describe as combinations of primary emotions; more complex and less universal
Less universal physical markets, not all cultures recognize them, much more influenced by socialization
Pultchik: Result from the combination of different primary emotions
the brain combines different emotions in different ways, creating an infinite amount of different emotions that are possible
Hochschild and Types of Emotions
Suggests that emotions are socially determined
claims social relations/context have great influence on secondary emotions
The labelling or naming of emotions is very important on creating varieties of emotions and is influenced by the social side
We can experience a primary emotions but our cognitive focus and pre existing opinion/understanding shape how we hape and experience emotions
Suggest that how we think about and consider the situation causing emotions affects which emotions we have (that is, which parts of the brain are stimulated)
Very situational
Because out social relations affect our cognition, option and understandings Hochschild places more importance on the social influences of emotions
Hochschild: Types of Sadness
Our focus, opinions and views affect the particular type of sadness that we feel. Prior opinions and assumptions also affect emotions
Emotions depend on the situation and our views.
Nature vs. Nurture Debate
Coined by Sir Francis Galton
Took an extreme nature perspective based on eugenics (some races are superior than others, influenced Nazis)
Biology and sociology are commonly portrayed as opposing disciplines (Nature vs nurture)
But humans are BOTH biological creatures and social animals
Our biology makes us sociable and allows our social relations shape us
Although commonly disregard by sociology, biology is inherently part of what sociologists study and must inform sociology
unifying nature: human biology unites us. sociologists should use biological arguments to explain commonalities instead of differences.
interaction: nature and nurture affect one another, and neither has the upper hand
Biology of Sociology
Humans are biological creatures, and our biology shapes us. Biology does not have to be divisive.
Biology: natural science that studies life and living organisms, including their physical structure, chemina; processes, etc...
Neurobiology: focusing on the nervous system, with the brain ebing the focus
Main goals are nothing less than an understanding of the biological basis of learning, memory, behaviour, perception, and consciousness
Social Rules for Social Animals
Social animals require some way of coordinating actions to allow everyone to live together peacefully.
If not it hurts the chances of individual survival. Without constant interaction, we experience mental trauma.
Instinct
Action that is
Relatively complex
Unlearned
Species-wide
Manifest when maturity is reached
Triggered by a stimulus
Ex. bees hae extremely complex behaviour such as a waggle dance (they just know how to do it, dont have to learn)
Many argue that humans don't have instincts
Drive: genes that push human actions through urges for food, companionship, shelter, sex
Not as complex or controlling as instincts but also allow us to survive and push us to pursue certain needs
Suggest our genes do not control us as much as other animals
We have considerable control because we can pressure these drives in different ways by using our creative intelligence
Creative Intelligence
Humans view themselves as uniquely intelligent and we act based on reasoned calculation, not instincts.
Creative intelligence is based on biology
Humans are problem solvers with the capacity to create technology and communicate complex ideas
Creative intelligence allows us to adapt to diverse environments and survive by gaining the necessities for survive through our actions
Manipulate objects and our environment
communicate complex thoughts and transmit knowledge from generation to generation.
Our biology allows us to be influenced by our environment because we don't have these instincts and have creative intelligence
we create our own social rules through creative intelligence, which is biologically based.
Nurture reinforcing nature
Some sociologists think that our genres can affect our actions and interactions in additional ways
Nature promotes predispositions and nurture commonly reinforces their predispositions
Makes them stronger than they would be alone
Effect of Nature in Nurture in the Prefrontal Cortex
part of the neocortex
centrally involved in planning complex cognitive behavior, decision-making, personality expression, and regulating social behavior
PFC does not fully mature until 25 years old
social environment affects the development of the PVC until 25; physical change because of the amount of synapses.
Tuner and the Evolution of Human Emotions
Engages with biology and neurology and presents and evolutionary view of emotionality
Shares Darwin's view that human emotionality is based largely in our genes (many sociologists disagrees)
He still thinks social relations affect the brain and emotionality, as the model we went over previously shows
Emotions: commonly viewed as both primitive and advanced
Primitive: reason is viewed as most advanced and emotions behaviour is disregarded as a lack of control
Advanced: many separate humans from animals believing that most other animals dont experience emotions
Turner disagrees with both of these views
Human emotionality is very advanced and makes us who we are
Also notes that many other animals experience emotions
Humans, unlike other animals that feel emotions, experience more and more powerful emotions
Notes that the regions in the human brain that are involved emotional productions are twice as large as in other apes
We also experience many more emotions than apes
We are "the" emotional animal
Turners major research question is where this exceptional emotionality comes from
Believes it emerged to allow humans to survive once they left the trees (in the last 10 million years - recent)
Roughly 10 million years ago, climatic changes caused vast regions of Africa to transform from forest to savannahs.
Human ancestors lived in the trees and descended and successfully adapted to life on the savannah
This required considerable adaptation because out human ancestors were not prepared for this life
TURNER: Troubles adapting to life in the Savannah
All evidence suggests that our ancestors were mostly solitary loners when they descended from the trees
Life on the savannah for loner aos was not easy
We were slow and could not outrun the many predators
Weapons: our ancestors didn't have weapons to defend themselves and couldn't easily use them because they did not walk upright
Solitary animals cannot work as a group to defend themselves
Why social monkeys like baboons thrive on the savannah (even though they were slow and had no weapons)
Our human ancestors could not possibly become fast like antelopes given out basic anatomy, and it took million of years to develop upright walking and weapons
Our ancestors therefore needed to become sociable and emotions were key to this
TURNER: Danger of Being a Loner
Loners: all evidence suggest that our ancestors were mostly solitary animals when they left the trees
Cooperation: solitary animals cannot cooperate to defend themselves
Cooperation explains why baboons thrive on the savannah
Turner says humans couldn't evolve to be fast or strong quickly
Flight: our human ancestors could not possibly become fast like antelopes
Fight: it took millions of years for hominids to invent weapons
Turner argues that they therefore needed to become sociable to survive, and emotions were the key to this
TURNER: Developing emotions and becoming sociable
Two pre-existing aspects of the human brain allowed us to develop out emotionality:
Subcortical: we already had relatively large subcortical regions of the brain that dealt directly and indirectly with emotionality
Able to simply expand and increase ties between them
Neocortex: we already had a large neocortical regions of the brain
Dense ties between the subcortical and neocortical regions allowed for new and powerful emotions that play a central roles in social control and our social ability
Ex. shame and guilt depend on neocortex because they depend on norms of behaviour
Without these, you have a lot of psychopaths, and this is bad for social relations
TURNER: How emotions make us sociable
How emotions promote Sociability:
Sociable Drive: Emotions underlie our need for social relations -Negative emotions are key to having social relations (push us to be sociable)
Anxiety, sadness, depression when not interacting with others
We experience positive emotions when interacting with others in various ways
Those individual ancestors with mutations that promoted negative emotional responses to isolation and positive emotional responses to social interaction were more likely to be sociable and to survive
Group Behavior: Emotions also helped humans live together as a group, supporting one another and coordinating their actions to promote individual and group survival on the savannah (needed emotions linked to certain norms - developed through neocortex):
Equality and reciprocity: Already present in apes, and developed further in humans as mechanism to promote sharing resources and, thereby, survival
When these norms are broken there are negative consequences
People treated each other equally
Shame and Guilt: Promote behavior benefiting the collective without the use of extreme coercion (which limits social relations)
Coercion also makes people help group but increases antisocial behaviour
These emotions were much more powerful and intense than any other force driving sociability
TURNER: EMOTIONS AND THE COLLECTIVE
There is also evidence that emotions underlie collective self identification: allowing us to see ourselves as part of a larger collective
This increased our sociability and improved chances of survival
Our human ancestors appear to have gotten together in ritual like activities to express collective emotions that promote collective feelings of oneness
Ex. Chimps do this, and appears important in getting them to cooperate to defend and expand their territory against rivals—called carnival
This is necessary for chimps because they are less sociable and allows them to work together to defend their territory against other chimps
They are increasing their emotionality together, which increases their groupness
These aspects of the human brain were strengthened over time through evolutionary processes
We developed carnival like rituals for more common interactions
With the further development of the neocortex, able to use symbols to represent community in ritual
Example: national anthem, flag
Spark emotions that support collective self-identification with ease and regularity
Turner’s most significant claims
Turner agrees that socialization is important for some emotions, less so primary emotions but argues that emotionality is still in our genes and that its neurological traits that make emotional socialization and construction possible.
argues that humans are so emotional because it allowed us to become highly sociable
emotions are geared toward social behavior, which suggest that emotions shape how we interact with others
we cannot understand human relations much if we ignore the emotions that makes us sociable
The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment to the Scientific Revolution promoted sociology
Emphasized power of reason, humankind's dominance over nature
Romanticism was a reaction to the Enlightenment
Downplayed reason and emphasized emotionality and the splendor and power of nature
Early sociologists were influenced by both the Enlightenment and Romanticism
Considered rationality as well as emotions, even if rationality is the focus
Considered rationality as well as emotions, even if rationality was most emphasized
Barbalet
Discusses the dominating influence of the Enlightenment and the struggle to bring emotions back in
By the second generation sociologists, Romanticism had lost its influence and was rejected
As part of this rejection, emotions disappeared from sociological analysis
Cause of anti-emotionalism: similar processes in history, psychology, anthropology, nd other disciplines, so causes seem to be bigger than sociology
Some type of anti-emotional zeitgeist
Yet Max Weber and Talcott Parsons played important roles (most influential sociologist of the 2nd gen)
Weber & Rationality Focus
Much of Weber's work focused on how social relations had become increasingly rational over the past century or two
Superstition was declining, science strengthening (Ideas from science were increasing that needed to be believed)
People acted increasingly based on rational calculation instead of beliefs, urges and habit (We think rationality before we did something)
Bureaucracy was a rational form of organization that rose to dominance (Came from capitalism, which was also very rational)
Rule of Law was the rationalization of rules
Ultimately, Weber saw modernity as the rationalization of social relations
WEBERS MODERNITY AND RATIONALIZATION
Focus of American sociology was on industrialized society:
Saw as increasingly rationally organized
Saw science as the new religion
Viewed human behavior as dominated by rational action
Rational-Actor Model: Believed human behavior was influenced overwhelmingly by rational calculation of costs and benefits
We choose to act in a certain way because the overall benefits are greater and the overall costs are lower than other alternatives
Similarly, psychology, history, and philosophy largely disregarded emotions at this time
Talcott Parsons
Talcott Parsons: Very influential American sociologist from the 1930s to the 1970s and popularized a version of Weberian sociology that emphasized a meta-theory: Rationalization
Functionalist: Parson's viewed "societies" as a social body - pseudo living entities
Like a body, various functions need to be performed for the social body to survive
Political, economic, reproductive, educational, etc.
Parson's accepted the "modern" society was based on rationality
All major social institutions were rationally organized, allowed them to function collectively to allow social survival
Emotions: Parson's saw emotions as non-rational and therefore as disruptive to the functioning of social bodies
Bias: Modern institutions therefore suppresses emotions so society can function properly
Weberian Rationality
Rationalization: Process in which individual behavior and social relations become increasingly rational
4 types of social action:
instrumental-rational: maximize benefits, limits cost
value-rational: act rational to support values; rationally calculated to support values
traditional/habitual: people act because it is how things have always been done; by habit
Affective: emotional actions; pushing emotions to act;
Weber focused most on rational, the least on affective
Affective is purely emotional, and value rational is guided by emotions informed by values (ex. If should share my cookie with anne because she shared with me and if i don't I will feel bad)
Weber does not pay attention to this but mention it exists
Weber’s Protestant Ethnic and the Spirit of Capitalism
Calvinism, Emotions, and Action: The Protestant Ethnic and The Spirit of Capitalism is Weber's best know book
Argues that certain aspects of the Calvinist creed promoted certain actions that contributed to the rise of capitalism
Weber emphasizes that these aspects of the creed that promoted work hard, save, and reinvest profits for the sake of getting more and more money
All of these are irrational (money for moneys sake)
Theorizes of why this is done:
Because Calvinism believes that when you are born you already destined to go to heaven or hell (nothing you do on earth has an impact)
A way to distract themselves was hard work and to bring glory to God through this hard work
Idea that if they excelled in their jobs and worked hard, it would show that they are blessed and would go to heaven
Aesthetics: did not believe people should live lives of ease but should instead live simple lives
If they made a lot of money they could not spend that money to make their lives easier but instead had to work
Emotions also played a central role in this
Ex. Anxiety and fear of going to hell pushed people to work hard, be successful, and reinvest their profits (predestination, calling, aestheticism)
pride/shame: promoted successful calling
Calvinists also had strict norms or else they would be excommunicated from their group (lead to shame)
If they successed in their jobs they would feel pride, pushing them to work even harder
Bringing emotions back in
By 1970s, scholars in a variety of disciplines— became increasingly interested in emotions
Barbalet suggests that major historical events weakened rational-actor model and created more interest in emotions
Most influential include: Hippie/counter-cultural movement, anti-Vietnam movement, student movements, all of which criticized modernity and rationalization and emphasized emotions, which was vital to bring emotions back
all criticized modernity and raitonalization
Ironically, Weber feared this, referring to bureaucratization and hyper rational capitalism as "iron cages”
Weakening of the rational-actor model (and the historical events of the time) created a larger opening for studying emotions
Social systemic: social environment shaped our emotions in addition to our interests, opportunities, and outlooks
Social actor: focuses on how emotions shape human behavior and social interactions
Both reason and emotions shape how we act
Emotional Social Constructionism
Suggest that culture greatly shapes/determines emotions. It affects how we label, perceive, understand, and manage emotions.
Thus, there is great diversity by culture.
Barbalet does not like this when it is taken to an extreme because it reduces emotions to culture, and ignores the biological base, thus not considering how emotions shape social relations.
Barbalet suggests an alternative systematic approach that focuses on how certain social contexts provoke certain emotions. This view suggests that human emotionality is more universal and biologically based. Combined with the social actor perspective; emotions shape how we act.
RANDALL COLLIN’S Conflict Sociology
Argues that emotions play vital roles promoting the two things that sociologists focus on most:
Conflict: Since Marx, sociologists have focused on how conflict is a major determinant of social change
Results in us to focus on racial, gender, class, sexual and other inequalities which drive social changes
Collins argues that emotions play a major role pushing people to act on grievances
Ex. emotions drive Marx's class conflict because the workers are alienated, leading to fear, anger, anxiety, which leads them to want change and the owners are fearful that their workers will rise up
Yet also sees that social structures shape these emotions and promote them among many people
Consensus: Since Durkheim, sociologists have focused on the importance of consensus—the glue that holds society together, promotes peaceful relations
Collins notes that it is shared emotions focused on the collective that helps promote collective unity and that emotions help to enforce social rules that maintain consensus and limit conflict
Ex. Durkheim's collective consciousness
Pride of ingroup, fear of threat to ingroup vital for collective self-identification
Guilt/shame push people to follow social rules, anger if people break them
Observing deviant acts and punishing perpetrators promotes collective consciousness through emotions (so outrageous because they are acting against the collective and singling out the single person against the group)
Randall Collin’s Claims
conflict and consensus are dominant influences on social relations
we cannot understand conflict or consensus without considering emotions because emotionality underlies in both social conflict and consensus;
thus; emotions underlie our sociability
MARX: Dialectical (Historical Materialism)
At most basic, Marxist theory combines dialectic (historical) with materialism
Dialectic: a perspective used in philosophy to make sense of the world, focuses on contradictions and oppositions and how the world is full of them
Suggests there are opposing, contradictory forces, that these forces interact, and that this interaction creates a new force
Initial force (Thesis), opposing force (antithesis), and new force (synthesis) = cycle’’ continuing dialectic
Conflict Perspective: Belief that society is constantly changing due to conflict between forces and their antithetical counterparts
Underlying Assumption: humans are competitive and conflictual and these conflicts are the basis of society
Materialism: The economic system and its production is the basis of society Superstructure Base; fo all social relations
Economy determines all other social relations (politics, family, religion, education, etc.)
If you want to understand a society and social interaction, look at its economy
Individual: Suggests that material aspects of our lives affect our norms, interests, how we perceive the world
If you want to understand someone, look at the economy they participate in and their position in it
Forces (means) of Production: material technologies used to exploit the environment to make possible societies
Relations of Production: relations that govern the forces of production
How people interact to produce things using forces of production
Mode of Production: Combination of material technologies and the relations that governs the social relations in these forces of production
Claim: Dialectical conflict results from contradiction in the forces and relations of production and eventually promotes new mode and forces of production
MARX stages of social development
Marx claimed that conflict within the relations of production results in different economic stages/modes of production:
Hunter-Forager Society: we gathered and hunt to get the necessities of life using rudimentary technology
Don’t have different classes and thus not very much class conflict
Slave/Agrarian Society: new technologies and social relations that have the class of slave owners and class of slaves
Can control the labours of others to get them to do work
Very alienating and exploitative
Contradictions in the unequal work and continuing technology that weakened slavery
Feudal Society: lords and serfs
Capitalist society: exploitative that slave society but thought there were also contradiction and conflicts that would promote communism
Marx thought that this was an efficient way of production, but there was extreme inequalities
Communist Society: instead of having two classes with one dominant and one submissive, people in communism are all equal and can reap the benefits of their labour.
MARX: Class conflict
When talking about relations of production, Marx is referring to classes
Slave Owner/Slave
Lord/Serf
Bourgeoisie/Proletariat
These class divisions are based on who controls forces of production, which allows one class to dominate the other, usurp their labour
Owners of production dominate relations of production
This inequality is embedded in these modes of production that leads to the conflict that leads to a new mode of production
Historical Transformation: For Marx, history of social change is all about how productive technologies and class conflict interact to drive change
Views alienation and exploitation as cause of conflict
MARX: Human Nature and Alienation
Marx: Sees two elements of our nature:
We are sociable creatures shaped by our social environments
Humans are different because we knowingly control our labour and have a drive to control it (Marx’s focus)
Other Animals have instincts causing them to act in ways to get the necessities of life
We recognize that we can work to get what we need and want to retain this freedom and reap the benefits of our labor
If others control our labor instead of us, we are going to feel anxiety; negative emotions' recognizing we work for ourselves
Freedom to labor to get the benefits that we want
When we don’t control labor - we experience a neurological reaction
Other animals are different because they aren't conscious of what they are doing.
MARX: Labour and Alienation
Alienation occurs when humans lose control of their labor. Under capitalism, workers lose control of their labor.
Labour is commodified (monetary value) and bought and sold
Bourgeoisie buy and control the labour of workers
Workers are forced to do what the bourgeoisie tell them to because they own their work
Promotes strong grievances caused by alienation
Promotes Alienation in 4 ways:
Alienated from productive activity: don't get to choose what to produce and are just told
Alienated from product: working to produce a product but its not their product but the owners (bourgeoisie), don't control output/how it's sold
Alienated from workers: technologies isolate workers from one another
Alienated from human potential: "Instead of work being the transformation and fulfillment of our human nature, work is where we feel least human, least ourselves."
Because we have lost all control of it
MARX & Exploitation
Exploitation combine with alienation to promote class conflict
Marx's idea of capitalist exploitation is based on his labour-theory of value: argues that capitalism exploited because the value of the good is based on the amount of labour going into production; based on the labor-theory of value
Capitalism: Profits are made by paying workers for only part of the labour
Ex. the value of the produced item its 10$ but the worker only makes 3$
This is exploitation according to Marx: only paid partially of what their goods are worth
Necessary element of capitalism which causes grievances
Competition: Capitalists compete with one another to sell their goods, forces them to limit wages so that they have an edge over the competition
Workers become increasingly exploited, they get paid less and less the true value of their labour; extra money going to the bourgeoisie
Sees as contradiction of capitalism promoting eventual crisis
Not being paid the full value of labor: Exploitation
Marxism and Revolution
Marx thought capitalism was doomed because of the conflict resulting form alienation and exploitation
A revolution would eventually destroy it with Communism
Class Consciousness: Workers would realize that they are all being taken advantage of, being exploited, making very little and due to closer interactions of workers through urbanization and political organization, there would be a revolution.
MARXIST explanation for no revolution
False Consciousness: Capitalists create powerful ideology insisting that workers are free to choose what they want and that capitalism is the best
Promotes false consciousness whereby the objective (real interest of workers) and subjective interests (what they think their interests actually are) of workers don't align
capitalism created a hegemony that caused people to think that capitalists and workers are being alienated
Limits the realization that capitalism is alienating and exploitative
Nationalism: Although Marx ignored, but other Marxists note that it has trumped class consciousness and hid objective interests
Colonialism and Globalization: Lenin noted that colonialism helped to stave off the crisis because through colonialism the capitalist powers could get more profits/resources
Non-Marxists: simply claim that Marxist social theory is wrong.
Others note that globalization has similar effects
MARX and emotions
Grievances: heart of marxist theory and are based on emotional reactions to particular social situations
Pushing people to act due to their emotions and need to control labor
Alienation: Promotes angst, anger, for being unable to control labor & losing economic freedom.
linked to view of human nature which has a drive to maintain control of our labor; drive for freedom
Exploitation: promotes anger and resentment among workers for not getting their fair share
these emotions drive conflict behind social change
emotions determine class conflict.
emotional response is the most important.
Broad View (Breadth)
Other social sciences disciplines wear blinders limiting what they analyze, but sociology analyzes all types and aspects of social relations.
For instance, economics, political science and anthropology are subsumed by sociology.
Sociology Focus
Sociology _____ more on the relationship between individuals and social structures.
Sociologists see the individual and social structures as inseparable
Can’t have a dance without dancers, can’t have dancers without a dance
Benefit of Sociology
Gives a different perspective, able to see how all types of social relations are interrelated and influential. The ability to better consider the full picture.
Disadvantage of sociology
Sociology is more eclectic and divided than other social science. It is difficult to analyze everything at once.
Social Structure
Enduring patterns of social relations.
Linking individuals to a broader structure that cannot be separated.
We cannot understand individuals or social structures without looking both through social relations
Socialization
Affects how we perceive the social world
see the world based on how we socialize
biased'; see different things
senses can cause them to see things differently
no objective way to see the world
Why is sociology a problematic science?
Lack of controlled experiments: impossible; immoral
the change of focus is going to be the result of the manipulation of one characteristic
Extreme complexity: Multicausality, interpretation
researcher bias
Scientific Revolution
Event that pushed people to try to understand the world around them. Linked to the Enlightenment, which expanded interest in reason and knowledge.
Limit: This event promoted science but also needed something to apply science to social relations.
Industrial Revolution & French Revolution
Transformed several aspects of social relations and the creation of more ideological effects.
These social transformations caused people to pay attention to social relations, to be concerned about them, to want to try to control and change them to engineer better societies.
Humans
Most emotional animal, rooted in their brains. Focus is on the size of the cortex.
The Forms of Anti-Emotional Sociology
Barbalet described two general perspectives that dominates sociological analysis and notes how they ignored emotions
Social systemic: focuses on how the social environment shapes us, makes us who we are, determines our actions
Shape our expectations, opportunities, interests
Ignored how social environement shaped our emotionality
Social actor: sees human interactions as based on self-conscious, reflective decision-making-rational action
Focuses on calculation and ignores emotionality
Focuses on why individuals act the way that they do
And works that link the two didn't bring in emotions
Karl Marx
Influential founding figure of Sociology. Believed that we could analyze social relations to gain and understanding.
thought that we could manipulate laws and use sociology to make a better world
Marxist social theory: tries to explain nothing less than all major historical societal transformations
Evolutionary view of societies from simple to more complex
Combined the dialectic and materialism to come up with an elegant theory that lies at the heart of Marxist theory
Claims that the economy is the source & produces dialectical conflict (class conflict) that drives the evolution of human societies and social relations
Marxism focuses on conflict
For Marx, history of social change is all about how productive technologies and class conflict interact to drive change
Theory vs. Ideology
Social theory: Postulates about how the social world is; hypotheses
Theory should guide analysis so we can improve understandings
Goal: to help us better understand the social world
Ideology: claim about how things should be
Informed by morals and values, not empirical evidence
Goal: to inspire us to pursue ideology
Durkheim’s claims
To study Sociology, we must analyze the social facts and the patterned social relations they create
“the social structures and cultural norms and values that are external to, and coercive of, actors”
believes that societies are real; is something in of itself, runs through all of us and shapes us; focusing on the functional needs of societies
thinks that social facts are necessary for holding societies together
Durkheim and Functionalism
Durkheim first introduced the functionalist theory. This means that societies are viewed as real entities. Therefore, it focuses on the functional needs of societies.
Sources of Consensus
Social density and Moral Density makes societies different from one another because they promote facts, and this is what sociologists study.
Suicide is grealty shaped by social and moral density
Social Density
Physical Pattern of who is the presence of whom, for how long, and with how much space between them.
suggests the physicality of our relations is important
without it, we can’t have high levels of consensus
Moral Density
Results from Social Density.
involves shared norms, laws, values, ideas, understandings, beliefs, perspectives
collective conscience: a sense of belonging to a community, a feeling of obligation toward the collective
rituals: important source of collective Conscience.
Types of Suicide According to Durkheim
Egotistic
Altruistic
Anomic
Fatalistic
Egotistic Suicide
Results from individual not being integrated into society
lacks what social relations endow such as morality, values and sense of purposes.
only focuses on the individual interest, desires, and lack social ties
promotes emotions of: social Isolation=Loneliness
Altruistic Suicide
Occurs when social integration is too strong.
All powerful social facts cause people to sacrifice individual for well-being of collective (heroic act or shame and redemption)
So influential on you, individuals are willing to sacrifice themselves for the well-being of the community
One acts in a way that will shame or embarrass the collective; by suicide you make up for the damage done to the society
promotes emotions of:
Extreme Social Integration=Shame/honour
Anomic Suicide
occurs when regulative powers of society are disrupted, results in restlessness and normlessness and the insatiable race for gratification.
most influential
promotes emotions of:
Break down of social relations=Angst
Fatalistic Suicide
Occurs when negative regulative powers are too strong and oppressive
promotes lack of freedom and desperation
suicide as last option of escape
promotes emotions of:
Domination=Exhaustion, lack of hope
Division of Labor (DURKHEIM)
focuses on consensus
claims that it promoted a new and superior morality (moral density)
DIVISION OF LABOR IS BAD
Mechanical Solidarity
Traditional society + Mechanical Solidarity
Everyone is socialized to be exactly the same as everyone else - conformity is the basis of solidarity
Social rules: severe punishment for breaking particular social rules (retribution for not conforming)
Identity: one's personal identity is completely subsumed by the collective - little individualism
Religion: totem representing the community is worshipped
Organic Solidarity
Modern Society + Organic Society.
Interdependence is the basis of consensus.
you feel unity with people because you are interdependent
Punishment - little for failure to conform, much less severe for breaking social rules
Identity - individualism, collective based on respect for individual
Religion- universal instead of community specific
Durkheim thought the European society was moving from mechanical to organic solidarity.
favors organic solidarity
believes organic solidarity would limit the pressure for conformity and allow a place for difference as long as everyone held common general norm/values
Homo Duplex
Durkheim's work on social solidarity is based on particular theory of the brain, in which ritual plays important role
He believed that the brain had different levels of consciousness and switched from one to the other depending on the social context
Level 1: Individual level - concerned about individual gratification
Level 2: Group Level - perceive the world in terms of group, strong sentiments toward group
Helps curb insatiable drive for gratification, promotes morality
Rituals: saw rituals and symbols as means of switching to group consciousness from individual (from level 1 to level 2; frame of the collective)
Rituals promote “emotional effervescence” that promotes a strong collective consciousness
Religion very important, most present, as he noted in his last book
Totemism
Primitive religion hold animals and plants as sacred and use them to symbolize the community.
In effect, religion worships the community
Rituals core to this process
Totemistic religions; community accepted an object as a representative for the community; worship the community
Being used to create a strong collective consciousness
Largely supported by evolutionary psychologists today who see religion as a means of promoting a collective consciousness
Collective consciousness improves chances of survival, so all humans predisposed to religiosity because religion promotes a collective consciousness
Adam Smith
Argues that humans have a nature that has two opposing sides: Individual and social.
Wealth of Nations: focuses on the individual
The Theory of Moral Sentiments : focuses on social nature
argues that sympathy is a natural sentiment that underlies our social nature; now commonly refer to as empathy
argues that empathy forms the base of morality, or agreed upon norms of social behavior
morality allows social interactions
argues that humans are by nature emotional and that emotions make us moral, thereby sociable
empathy is key because it promotes morality
emphasizes emotions more than reason
Note
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