Normal v. JUST PLAIN WEIRD Sociology Normal v. JUST PLAIN WEIRD

The Pledge of Allegiance

Body Painting at Sporting Events

Beauty Pageants for Toddlers

Embalming

Paparazzi

Family Planning

Awkward…in an Elevator

CHAPTER 1 CULTURE AND SOCIAL STRUCTURE Sociology CHAPTER 1 CULTURE AND SOCIAL STRUCTURE

Sociology IS the systematic, scientific study of social behavior in human groups. It seeks to document: Trends and patterns in human behavior How people relate to each other and influence each other’s behavior.

Sociology ISN’T: Psychology (focuses on Individuals) Social Work (application) Common Sense (assessments without evidence)

Sociologists use the Scientific Method to study What is Sociology? Sociology Study of human behavior in groups What people do? Why they do it? Sociologists use the Scientific Method to study Politics, race, location, gender, culture, socioeconomic issues, etc All interact with each other – causing group behavior We all belong to many groups; you’re a member of your sociology class, and you're a member of your family; you may belong to a political party, sports team, or the crowd watching a sporting event; you’re a citizen of your country, and you're a part of a generation. You may have a somewhat different role in each group and feel differently in each. At a rock concert, for example, some may enjoy singing along, others prefer to sit and observe, while still others may join in a mosh pit or try crowd surfing. Why do we feel and act differently in different types of social situations? Why might people of a single group exhibit different behaviors in the same situation? Why might people acting similarly not feel connected to others exhibiting the same behavior? These are some of the many questions sociologists ask as they study people and societies.

What is your sociological identity What is your sociological identity? The collection of group memberships that determine your identity Volunteer Musician Dancer Writer Mathematician Friend Colleague Neighbor….. Student Daughter Son Sister Brother Employee Sociologists working from the micro-level study small groups and individual interactions, while those using macro-level analysis look at trends among and between large groups and societies. For example, a micro-level study might look at the accepted rules of conversation in various groups such as among teenagers or business professionals. In contrast, a macro-level analysis might research the ways that language use has changed over time or in social media outlets. All sociologists are interested in the experiences of individuals and how those experiences are shaped by interactions with social groups and society as a whole. To a sociologist, the personal decisions an individual makes do not exist in a vacuum. Cultural patterns and social forces put pressure on people to select one choice over another. Sociologists try to identify these general patterns by examining the behavior of large groups of people living in the same society and experiencing the same societal pressures.

What is a Sociological Perspective? Sociology seeks to see how society “is”, not what it should be Studying groups without attributing your own opinions or values A key basis of the sociological perspective is the concept that the individual and society are inseparable. It is impossible to study one without the other.

What is Sociological Imagination? The ability to see a connection Between you And the larger world View the world through other’s eyes Look beyond commonly held beliefs to hidden meanings Look at Correlations: Ex. There is a distinct connection between hospitalization and death Causation: Smoking has been linked as a cause of cancer through research

How is Sociology Scientific? Ask a question (hypothesis) Create a way to collect data for an answer Observe Carefully Analyze your observations to see what answers they provide It is NOT common sense even though it may seem that way….appearances are often deceiving!

What do sociologists look at? Politics, race, gender, economics, religion, psychology, anthropology, cultural studies, gender studies, etc. All interact with each other. Studying one in isolation misses important information on how social groups work

Turn To Your Neighbor and Ask… What is Sociology? What is sociological identity Give an example of a sociological question. How do sociologists measure society? What is sociological perspective? What is sociological imagination? What kinds of topics do sociologists discuss? Name ten fast food restaurants.

Original Sociologists First philosophers/scientists to study how society works and how human beings function within and because of that society

Auguste Comte (1798-1857) French Philosopher- Founding Father of Sociology Tried to apply scientific thinking to the study of social life. (seeing society as it is not how we would like it to be ideally) Focused on two basic ideas: Social order (social statics that hold society together) Social Change (or the process by which society changes)

Herbert Spencer (1820-1903) His views become known as Social Darwinism Did not wish to correct or improve society but to understand it. Applied Darwin’s theory of survival of the fittest to society, considering social change and unrest to be natural occurrences on a society’s evolution toward stability and perfection Advocated that NO steps be taken to correct social ills because society would evolve on its own over time and only the fittest societies would survive

3 Major Sociological Perspectives Functionalism Conflict Perspective Interactionism (Symbolic Interactionist)

Hold Up! What kind of car do you want? Why? What are your plans for the prom? (Where will you get your clothes? How will you get there? Are you going to the hair salon, nail salon?)

Functionalism There are positive functions and negative functions Comte, Spencer, Durkheim, Merton Society a set of interrelated parts that work together to produce a stable society Consensus Not all elements run smoothly DYSFUNCTION: negative consequence for the lack of stability in society Example: Crime – disrupts – not stabilizes There are positive functions and negative functions Each can be either MANIFEST or LATENT Manifest: intended consequence Latent: unintended consequence In education, examples of dysfunction include getting bad grades truancy, dropping out, not graduating, and not finding suitable employment.

With a Partner List 5 elements of society and their manifest and latent functions

Hold Up! Did you greet anyone yet today in the hallway? Describe three people you greeted and how you greeted them. How would you greet someone: You see every day You work with You haven’t seen in a long time

Interactionist Theory Weber, Mead Functionalists and Conflict Theorists focus on society in general or groups Interactionists focus on individuals and their interaction with each other Role of symbols in life Symbol: anything that represents something else Example: objects, words, gestures American flag, salute, a high five, slang How people use symbols is symbolic interaction

What do these mean?

Conflict Perspective Karl Marx People in society who possess more power in society control others with less power Study various groups: women and men, race, family, employers and employees, etc. Competition over scarce resources (power, wealth) Group gains control of it – establish rules and procedures to keep it Protect their interests at expense of other groups Leads to social conflict – social change – inevitable in society

Institutions and relationships that are inherently in conflict Employee/Boss Teacher/Student Principal/Student College Prof./Student Coach/Player Landlord/Tenant Police/Citizen Shopkeeper/Customer Parent/child Wealthy/poor Name some relationships in which you are in conflict with each day – whether or not you are the controller…or controlled.

Sociological Issues of Interest to Researchers Structure and function of groups Group organization Effect of group actions on society How often behaviors occur under certain conditions Why do certain elements of society remain stable over time while others change?

Sociological Research Methods Historical Method (good for studying trends) Content Analysis (easy & cheap) Survey Method (collects data on attitudes and opinions) Observation (can be affected by presence of researcher) Case Study (very intense focus on a single subject or group) Statistical Analysis (determines strength of relationship that exists between variables)