1. The Sociological Perspective & Research Process
Sociology 101
Chapter 1
The Sociological Perspective & Research Process

2. What Is Sociology? It is one of the Social Sciences along with:
Psychology, Anthropology, Criminology, Economics, Political Science, and History
The study of social life and the social causes and consequences of human behavior
Sociologists look for the social causes/influences of human behavior
Looks beyond psychology
Sociologists rely on “The Sociological Imagination”

3. The Sociological Imagination is the Ability to See the Relationship Between Individual Experiences and the Larger Society in Which They Occur.

4. Want to “peel” back the layers of reality
Sociologists try not to take anything for granted or accept anything at face value
Want to “peel” back the layers of reality
Are generally skeptical of explanations about human behavior or situations until proven to be true
Always ask “why?” and “how?”

5. Why ????

6. Because not everything is what it seems...

7. Also, We Sometimes Rely On Common Sense To Explain Human Behavior And Other Situations

8. Examples
Those who suffered from child abuse are more likely to abuse their children
Those who live together before marriage have a better chance of a successful marriage than those who did not live together
Couples with children are happier than those who do not have children
The majority of those on welfare are lazy and really don’t want to work

9. Why Study Sociology?
Helps us determine why people do the things that they do
E.g. Why do some people grow up to be child abusers, alcoholics, poor, etc.?
Allows us to make important decisions regarding policies, laws, etc. that effect society
Example: What is the best way to treat poverty

10. How And Why Did Sociology Emerge?
Sociology is the direct product of 19th century humanism and skepticism
Humanism- The study of thought based upon human interests
“Humans are the measure of all things”
Skepticism- A philosophical term that means to suspend belief in God and/or the supernatural

11. Several philosophical and social changes contributed to the emergence of sociology
Philosophical change
The emergence of humanism & skepticism
The Enlightenment ( )
Humanism & Skepticism
The rise of empiricism (positivism)
Social Changes
The growth of science
Revolutions
American (1775 – 1783)
French (1789 – 1799)
Auguste Comte’s goal was to rebuild France
Industrialization & urbanization
Created several “social problems” that needed to be solved

12. Suicide As A “Social Problem”
19th Century governments began collecting statistics on:
Criminal activity
Birth and death rates
Suicide rates

13. The Result:
Social scientists discovered patterns that seemed contradictory to common sense
Noticed that these patterns remained consistent, again defying common sense

14. Suicide As An Example
Common sense suggested suicide was an individualistic, random action
Yet, if this were true, we would expect to see fluctuations, not stable patterns
Yet 3 patterns emerged
Rates were extremely stable from year to year
Rates often varied greatly from one place to another
Suicide rates were rising all over Europe

15. Emile Durkheim’s Study of Suicide
Durkheim challenged purely psychological explanations for suicide
Noticed that suicide was more than just an individual act, social forces played a role
He found that two things determine who is at risk for suicide
Social integration (How imbedded in a social network are you?)
Social regulation (How tightly does the society or reference group regulate you?)
Found that there were four types of suicide, each of which corresponded to the two variables above

16. Integration Regulation
High
Low
High
Low

17. Durkheim’s 4 Types of Suicide
Altruistic (extreme social integration)
Found that those who were extremely integrated in groups had high suicide rates
E.g. Military personal
Egoistic (lack of social integration)
Found that people with few family and friendship ties had higher suicide rates
Fatalistic (extreme social regulation)
Found that those whose lives were excessively ordered by agents over whom they have no control had higher suicide rates
E.g. prisoners and mental patients

18. Anomic (lack of social regulation)
Found that those whose lives were loosely regulated had higher suicide rates
E.g. Individuals with a lot of power, rock stars (Kurt Cobain)

19. Conclusions
Psychological explanations cannot fully explain why people commit suicide
Social integration and regulation help determine who is more at risk for suicide
In short, social relationships (or lack thereof) shape the decision to commit suicide

20. The Four Sociological Perspectives
Functionalism
Conflict
Interactionist
Postmodern

21. The Conflict Perspective
Several types of conflict theory
The Marxist & Neo-Marxist approach
Focuses on conflict between economic classes
The Critical approach
Focuses on conflict between races and ethnic groups
The Feminist approach
Focuses on conflict between the sexes

22. The Conflict Perspective
Major theorists
Karl Marx
Max Weber
C. Wright Mills

23. The Conflict Perspective
Society is diverse; everyone is competing for resources
Power is unequally distributed
Marxists suggests that capitalistic societies consist of 2 classes:
Bourgeoisie: those who own the means of production
Proletariat: those who sell their labor
Feminists argue that men generally have more power than women
The powerful oppress the powerless
The powerful create self-serving social policies
There are always winners and losers
Conflict theory challenges the status quo

24. The Functionalist Perspective
Emile Durkheim, Talcott Parsons, Robert Merton
Major Assumptions
Society is a system of highly integrated parts
Each part works to maintain the whole
Each part has a function
Manifest, latent, dysfunction
There is value consensus
Rapid change is not desirable
Typically supports the status quo

25. The Interpretive Perspective
Max Weber, Georg Simmel, George Herbert Mead, Herbert Blumer
The world is socially created through the use of mutually understood symbols
Signs, gestures, language, shared values
Reality is based on subjective interpretation, not objective fact
What is defined as real is real in its consequence (W.I. Thomas)
There is not one reality; rather there are multiple realties
Reality is relative to time, place, and person
E.g. Smoking as a deviant activity

26. The Postmodern Perspective
Roland Barthes, Jean-Francois Lyotard, Jean Baudrillard, Jacques Derrida
Postmodern Society is characterized by:
An Information explosion
A rise in consumerism
Contributions to a global village
Emphasis on communication technology
Has shrunk the world and changed the way we view “reality”
Time (History) and space (geography) are no longer viewed as unified and coherent in the postmodern world

27. Anti-foundational
Rejects the “grand narratives” of previous theories
There are no absolutes
All truth is relative
All meaning is a social construction (we make it up)
Religion, Science, History, Ethics, etc.
A-historical
History is constructed by those in power
History is not a record of objective facts
History is constructed by those who successfully “defeat” others who are writing opposing views of history

28. Research Methods Two Types Quantitative (Deductive)
You start with a theory, and then collect data to test the theory
Qualitative (Inductive)
You collect data and then develop (induce) a theory that explains the data you collected

29. Two Types of Reasoning Specifics Inductive Generalization Ways of
Deductive
Specifics
Generalization

30. Select and Define the Research Problem
DEDUCTIVE METHOD
(Classic)
INDUCTIVE METHOD
(Inclusive
Select and Define the Research Problem
Review the Literature
Review the Literature
Develop the
Research Design
Formulate the Hypothesis
Develop the Research Design
Collect/Analyze the Data
Develop the Research Design
Collect/Analyze the Data
Review the Literature
Collect/Analyze the Data
Generate Hypotheses for Theory Construction; Draw Conclusions; Report Findings
Draw Conclusion; Report Findings

31. Ways To Gather Data Surveys Semi Structured Interviews
Questionnaires
Structured Interviews
Semi Structured Interviews
Secondary Analysis of Existing Data
Field Research
Participant Observation
Ethnography
Experiments

32. Two Types of Samples Non-Probability Samples Probability Samples
Cannot generalize findings
Probability Samples
Can generalize findings

33. Variables
Independent Variable
Dependent Variable

34. Identifying Independent and Dependent Variables
Kids who have a delinquent record are more likely to come from single parent homes
Women are more likely than men to cheat in a marriage relationship
Rebellious kids are more likely to listen to at least one of the following musical styles: hip-hop, heavy metal, industrial, and/or goth
Freshman students who join fraternities or sororities will adjust easier to college life than those who live in dorms
Lawyers are more likely to commit murder than accountants

35. 4 Levels of Measurement Qualitative Nominal (Categorical) Quantiative
Ordinal
Interval
Ratio

36. Three Criteria For Determining Causation
Correlation (association)
Time Order
Non-Spuriousness

37. Correlation
Positive
Negative
None

38. Correlation Of Variables
B. Positive Correlation #2
As depression decreases, suicide decreases
Depression
Suicide Rate
As Depression Increases, Suicide Increases
Depression
Suicide
Rate
A. Positive Correlation #1
Social
Integration
Suicide
Rate
C. Negative Correlation #1
As Social Integration Decreases
Suicide Increases
D. Negative Correlation #2
As social integration increases suicide decreases
Social Integration
Suicide Rate

39. As income increases crime decreases Religiosity decreases with income
Political conservatism increases with religiosity
Individuals with large noses have a better sense of smell than individuals with smaller noses
Pipe smokers are more likely to live longer than non-smokers
The faster one drives the greater the risk of getting into an accident
Athletes will score higher on the history 101 exam than non-athletes