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Sociology as a Science
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Natural Sciences Biology and Chemistry are probably the first subjects which spring to mind when considering “what is science” Natural sciences such as these aim to base laws and theories on objective facts These facts are obtained by investigating observable phenomena Natural sciences also depend on empiricism and objectivity, using experiments and statistics to test the relationship between variables
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Sociology as a Science Sociology is known as a social science Some sociologists argue that society can be studied in an objective and empirical way Early Positivists argued that the study of society could lead to the control and improvement of society Comte argued that Sociology could be based on the methodology of the Natural Sciences This would result in a “positive science of society” revealing “invariable laws”
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Positivism Comte referred to Sociology as the “queen of sciences” and the most complex form of science to develop Durkheim argued that Sociology could be as objective as the natural sciences Durkheim proposed the study of “social facts” – social phenomenon that are external, objective and constraining
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Positivism An example would be law as it exists independently of an individual and yet shapes their actions Durkheim argued that Sociologists should “treat social facts as things” and deal with them as if they were actually real They should be regarded as having an objective existence, constructing concepts such as “anomie” that represent social things
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Karl Popper - Falsification Rather than the emphasis on proving hypotheses in science, Popper proposed the concept of “falsification” Scientists are human beings and there is a temptation to find support for their hypotheses and ignore results that disprove it Valid science must aim to refute hypotheses and therefore assume that theories are generally true until disproved Popper believed that through falsification, Sociology could be accepted as a science
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According to Popper, Sociologists must use testable hypotheses Popper rejects Marxism because of concepts such as “false consciousness” that cannot be tested or falsified He claimed that Marxism was a “pseudo science” Popper takes a DEDUCTIVE approach Positivists use an INDUCTIVE approach Jot down what each phrase means
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Evaluation Popper’s views could be criticised as Scientists would argue that hypotheses can be verified with evidence rather than refuted Science works on particular assumptions that cannot be falsified, e.g. cause and effect Popper and positivist thinkers may be criticised as having an idealised view of scientific enquiry, e.g. can true objectivity ever be achieved when studying society? Being a member of a society must bring subjectivity Can social facts be studied as external forces? Interpretivists would argue that humans are not passive subjects of external forces – they interact with and shape their society To compare Sociology with natural sciences may be innappropriate as the subject matter is very different
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