Sociology

What is sociology?

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• Sociology is the systematic study of human society through groups,

  group interactions, societies, and social interactions at the micro and macro levels (individual)

  (trends).

• Society refers to people who live in a defined territory (geographical area) and a way of life, common culture

• Culture is group shared practices, values, and beliefs, groups way of life from routine to the most important part of a group member’s life, social rules 

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• Social construction

• We tend to think that things are natural and will not change

• We are freer than we think 

• Those things deemed as natural are socially constructed 

• Social order

• We develop an awareness of social norms through

•  Behavior in the classroom vs behavior at a concert or gathering

• Social change 

• Trends

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Three major theoretical perspectives

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• Functionalism

• The way each part of society functions together to contribute to the whole

• Macro level orientation

• Complex system parts working together to promote solidarity

• Social events can be explained in terms of the function (contribution to society) they perform

• How these events provide continuity to society and work in harmony with each other 

• Promotes sociology as a scientific process

• The social process has many functions 

  • Manifest functions: the recognized and intended functions (consequences) of any social pattern
  • Sought after or anticipated by participants
  • Latest functions: unrecognized, unaware, and unintended consequences of any social pattern. It can be beneficial, natural, or harmful
  • Dysfunctions: undesirable consequences that challenge the existing social pattern

• Weakness; it fails to address big chances in society and inequality

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• Conflict theory

• The way inequalities contribute to social differences & perpetuate differences in power

• Macro level orientation

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• Macro level orientation

• See society as an area of inequality that generates conflict and change (coercion and power)

• Competition for limited resources

• Sociologists look at the ongoing conflict between dominant and disadvantaged categories of people 

• Social conflict approach- race-conflict theory

• Point of view; focuses on inequality & conflict between people of different racial and ethnic categories

• People of color important to the development of sociology

• Social conflict theory; feminism and feminist theory

• A most prominent area of contemporary sociology and the most current movement

• Highlighted gender relations and gender inequality as not of nature but of social construction

• Currently focuses on the intersection of gender, race, and class

• Influenced new fields of study in men’s studies, sexuality, and LGBTQ

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• Symbolic interactionism

• 1 to 1 interactions and communications 

• Micro level orientation

• A micro-level orientation, a close-up focus on relationships among individuals within society

  • Views society as the product of everyday interactions of individuals 

• Key elements 

  • Communication: through the exchange of symbols and language - How we make sense of our world
  • Society is complex, people are active in shaping the social world

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Research method

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• ethnography (fieldwork)
• First-hand studies or observations
• Uses observations, interviews, immerses themselves in the group, community… it can provide rich information on the behavior of people in groups 
• Participant observation by direct involvement in an activity or observation at a distance
• Must gain and sustain the cooperation of the group they are observing
• Limited to small groups, findings limited to that group, not easy to generalize and possibly recreate
• Surveys (questionnaires)
• It can be administered over the phone, in person, by mail…
• Results are less detailed but they can be generalized to the specific population as a whole 
• Standard and open-ended questions
• Sampling; a small proportion of a large population
• The advantage is widely used as it is more easily quantified
• A disadvantage is not all respond to surveys
• Experiment
• Most used in natural science or psychology 
• People are randomly assigned to groups 
• The researcher controls the circumstances being studied
• The advantage is hypotheses can be tested under a highly controlled condition
• The disadvantage is hard to duplicate the study in a natural setting, it cannot always generalize results to the larger society
• Hawthorne effect (subject may modify their behavior)
• Comparative historical research
• Analysis of government data 
• Readily available previous research or sampling that assists in targeting interests 
• The disadvantage is that information may focus more on a purpose other than what you are hoping to research
• Data can be hard to find

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