Chapter One: Discovering Sociology Chapter Two: Doing Sociology

The Sociological Perspective 22 ChapterOverview What is Sociology? The Origins of Sociology First Sociologists Sexism in Early Sociology What is Sociology? The Origins of Sociology First Sociologists Sexism in Early Sociology Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology

The Sociological Perspective The scientific study of human behavior, groups, and society Sociologists as Scientist Examine how social groups influence people’s lives Examines how people are influenced by their social setting.  Small group social settings  Large group social settings

The Sociological Perspective 44 Social Location - Corners in Life  Gender  Age  Race/Ethnicity  Gender  Age  Race/Ethnicity  Jobs  Income  Education  Jobs  Income  Education

The Sociological Perspective 55 C. Wright Mills  connect biography & history  personal trouble or public issue? C. Wright Mills  connect biography & history  personal trouble or public issue?

The Sociological PerspectiveGLOBALIZATION Global Village  The interconnectedness among people around the world Social change Global Awareness

The Sociological Perspective Influence of Media Mass media oversimplify and dramatize social issues. What about the technomedia? Technomedia newer individualized forms: Internet PCs iPods Smart phones Mass Media traditional media forms: Books Magazines Newspapers Radio Television Movies Copyright (c) 2011 Pearson Education, Inc. All rights reserved.

The Sociological Perspective 88 88 Development of Sociology 1.Major Social Changes in 19th Century a.industrialization, urbanization, social disorganization b.sociology arose to understand changes 2.Intellectual Climate of Historical Period a.age of reason/enlightenment b.explanations shifted from religious to scientific

The Sociological Perspective Lived in France Positivism  Sociology a new science Coined the term “Sociology” (the study of society) Advocate of social reform 99 Auguste Comte: Founder of Sociology

The Sociological Perspective Lived in England Disagreed with Comte that Sociology should guide reform Societies are evolutionary  Evolve from lower to higher forms  Social Reform interferes with natural process of selection Social Philosopher  Did not conduct scientific studies  Only developed ideas about society  10 Herbert Spencer: Social Darwinism

The Sociological Perspective Human history  Created by class conflict  Economics is central force for social change Class Conflict  Proletariat vs. the Bourgeoisie Marx’ predictions Marxism is not the same as Communism  11 Karl Marx: Class Conflict

The Sociological Perspective Lived in Germany Disagreed with Marx The Protestant Ethic is tied to the rise of capitalism  Religion was a key factor to the rise of capitalism  12 Max Weber: Religion

The Sociological Perspective First to establish sociology as a separate academic discipline; a social science Sociological ideas could be tested and published Theory: Social forces shape human behavior Studied suicide rates in several European countries  13 Emile Durkheim: Social Integration

The Sociological Perspective Agricultural life Smaller population City life Larger population Rural Areas vs. Urban Areas Compared suicide rates of various groups SOCIAL FACTORS underlie suicide Social Integration Compared suicide rates of various groups SOCIAL FACTORS underlie suicide Social Integration

The Sociological Perspective Egotistic  Low social integration/weak bonds  Individualistic Altruistic  High social integration/strong bonds  Willing to die to accomplish group’s goals Anomic Suicide  No integration  Can not pursue society’s goals; no sense of norms (rules) Fatalistic Suicide  No integration  Results from strict regulation of norms(rules)

The Sociological Perspective  Attitudes of the Time  1800s Sex Roles Rigidly Defined  Higher education reserved for men and the wealthy  Harriet Martineau  Published Society in America Before Durkheim and Weber Were Born  Known for translating Comte’s works from French to English  16 Sexism in Early Sociology Harriet Martineau

The Sociological Perspective  Came from a background of privilege  Social reformer  Advocate for social justice  Co-founded the Hull House in 1889  Campaigned for laws against child labor  Leader of women’s rights and peace movement of World War I  Co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1931  Jane Addams

The Sociological Perspective 1 st African American to earn a doctorate at Harvard Grew up within a very racist society Every year between 1896 and 1914 he published a book on race relations between African Americans and Whites He became active in social reform after years of collecting and interpreting data Founded the N.A.A.C.P  18 W.E.B. Du Bois and Race Relations

The Sociological Perspective Theory-a general statement about how some parts of the world fit together and how they work Sociologists use theories to conduct sociological research Allows Sociologists to view a social problem from many different perspectives Symbolic Interactionist Functional Analysis Conflict Theory  19 Three Theoretical Perspectives Perspectives

The Sociological Perspective Each theoretical perspective looks at statistical data in a different light, i.e. marriage and divorce rates  20

The Sociological Perspective Symbolic Interactionists believe that individuals evaluate their own conduct by comparing themselves with others Symbolic Interactionists study:  How people interpret symbols  How people interact one on one  How people behave according to how they define themselves and others  Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2009  21 Symbolic Interactionism

The Sociological Perspective The Functional Analysis perspective views society as a whole unit, made up of interrelated parts that work together. Functional Analysists study:  The structure of society  How each part of society has certain functions that must be fulfilled  What happens to society when dysfunctions occur  22 Functional Analysis

The Sociological Perspective Founded by Karl Marx Groups competing for scarce resources Groups competing for power and authority Conflict can be positive as it can bring about positive change  23

The Sociological Perspective Macro Level - Large Scale Patterns in Society  Functional Analysis and Conflict Theory Micro Level-Social interactions on a small scale  Symbolic Interactionism Which level of analysis is best?  24 Two Levels of Sociological Analysis

The Sociological Perspective  Copyright © Allyn & Bacon 2009  25