Chapter 1 The Study of Society

Chapter Outline  What Is Sociology?  The Emergence of Sociology  Current Perspectives in Sociology  The Science of Society  Strategies for Gathering Data  Sociologists: What Do They Do?

Sociology  The study of human social interaction.  Concepts of role and social structure allow sociologists to analyze human drama.  Sociological imagination is the ability to see personal experience in the context of social-structural forces

The Founders of Sociology  August Comte - studied social order (statics) and social change (dynamics).  Harriet Martineau - employed sociological insight to advocate women’s rights and oppose slavery.

The Founders of Sociology  Herbert Spencer - saw the parts of a complex social order as functioning like organs in the human body.  Karl Marx - developed the concepts and cornerstones of conflict theory.

The Dialect  George Hegel suggested that for every idea a counter idea develops to challenge it.  As a result of conflict between the two ideas, a new idea is produced.  Dialectic philosophy views change as a product of contradictions and conflict between the parts of society.

The Dialectic  Change occurs through conflict and resolution rather than evolution.

Sociology in the United States Three features:  Concern with social problems.  Reforming rather than a radical approach to problems.  Emphasis on the scientific method.

Three Dominant Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology  Structural functionalism  Conflict theory  Symbolic interactionism

Assumptions of Structural- functional Theory  Stability. How does a social structure contribute to the maintenance of society?  Harmony. How do the parts of a society work for the good of the whole?  Evolution. Social structures evolve and adapt to new needs and demands.

Structural-functional Analysis Two important steps:  Determine the nature of the over-all social structure.  Assess the consequences of various parts of the social structure for the social entity as a whole.

Assumptions of Conflict Theory  Competition. Competition over resources is characteristic of all human relationships.  Structured Inequality. Those who benefit strive to maintain their advantage.  Revolution. The process of change may be abrupt and revolutionary.

Conflict Analysis Two basic questions:  Who benefits from structural inequality?  How do they maintain their advantage?

Assumptions of Symbolic Interaction Theory  Symbolic meanings are important.  Meanings grow out of relationships.  Meanings are negotiated.

Symbolic Interaction Analysis  Individuals derive their habits and their sense of self through interactions with others.  Interested in how individuals negotiate their way through relationships.

Sociological Research 1. State the problem. 2. Gather data. 3. Find patterns. 4. Generate theories.

The Wheel of Science

Strategies for Gathering Data  Experiment - variables are manipulated to test theories of cause and effect.  Survey research - asking a large number of people a set of standardized questions  Participant observation - examines the context of human interaction.

Sociologists: What Do They Do?  Most are employed in college and university settings where they teach and do research.  Applied sociology seeks to provide immediate practical answers to problems.  Sociologists also work in government, business and non-profit organizations.