value freedom & objectvity

What are values & value freedom

Values - beliefs, experiences, & opinions that everyone holds and are influenced by

Value freedom - the ability of a researcher to keep their own values from interfering with the research process

Who are positivists

Durkheim

Comte

Positivists views

It’s possible & desirable for sociology to be a science & value free, the aim of sociology is to uncover social facts, laws of behaviour, and to help solve social problems

What is meant by ‘society is an objective reality’ & example

We all experience the same things as each other (social facts) which can be used to create laws of behaviour by finding cause & affect patterns

Using quantitative methods which can be generalised & being detached from research

E.g. suicide study - Durkheim

What is Comte’s inductive method

Accumulating data about the world through observation & measurement to find general patterns & if we can verify those patterns through testing then we prove its right

What are Marx’s views

He claimed to be scientific because he wanted to uncover the laws of capitalist society (like how the bourgeoisie exploit the proletariat)

But he clearly had a political goal to inspire revolution &bring about social change

Who would disagree with Marx & why

Karl Popper

Cannot be falsified - unscientific

E.g. when a revolution didnt happen as predicted Marxists reinterpreted the evidence rather than rejecting the theory - too ideological & doesn’t follow the open, critical spirit of science

Evaluations of positivists

Strength - gave sociology scientific credibility - claimed objective truth about how society functions helps inform & shape policy

Weakness - ignores that sociologists are shaped by their own values e.g. political aims

What is the middle ground & sociologist

Max Weber

Value relevance - sociology cannot be value free in topic choice because values influence what we research

Value neutrality - once research begins sociologists should strive for objectivity in methods & findings and when presenting the results

What is Weber’s work

The Protestant ethic and the spirit of capitalism

His values shapes the topic

His method aimed for objectivity;

Compared secondary sources of economic systems across different societies (historical documents)

Avoided moral judgements

Evaluations of Weber

Strength - offers a realistic perspective - values can guide research but don’t have to distort findings

Weakness - his own methods require interpretation which is guided by his own worldview & assumptions

Who are committed sociologist

Gouldner

Becker

Anne Oakley

What are Gouldner’s views

Sociologists shouldn’t pretend to be detached because they are hiding behind science & end up serving those in power

Instead sociologist should take responsibility for their values & stand up for justice - use their research to highlight inequalities and push for change

Example of value commitment

Paul Willis - learning to labour

He didn’t pretend to be neutral, he cared about class & education inequalities and used his research to highlight those issues

What are Becker’s views

All research involves values so pretending to be neutral is dishonest

Sociologists should take the side of the underdog (powerless, marginalised groups) to give voice to those who don’t usually have one which helps to reveal & challenge power imbalances

What is Becker’s work

Labelling theory

Studied how teachers label working class students & how that affects them

Deliberately took the pupils side to understand their experiences from their point of view

What are Anne Oakley’s views

Sociology has never been value free - it’s historically reflected men’s experiences & interests, ignoring or misrepresent in women’s lives(male stream)

Feminist sociology is value committed, openly aiming to challenge patriarchy & inequality

What is Anne Oakley’s work

The sociology of housework

Interviewed housewives to explore their experiences of domestic work

Showed that housework is real work & not a ‘labour of love’ as traditionally believed

Exposed how women’s unpaid work is invisible in official stats & undervalued in society

Evaluations of committed sociologists

Strength - shows how research gives voice to the powerless

Weakness - by romanticising the disadvantaged problems are not addressed properly because they aren’t taken seriously - justifies bad behaviour by placing the blame onto society

Postmodern views

There’s no such thing as absolute truth or total objectivity, all knowledge reflects a particular perspective or voice

Instead of pretending to be neutral sociologists should be reflexive (aware of whose vales shape their research)