2. What Is Sociology?
.The systematic study of human society
and social behavior
âą Systematic
ï Scientific
discipline that focuses attention on
patterns of behavior
âą Human society
ï Group
behavior is primary focus; how groups
influence individuals and vice versa
âą At the âheart of sociologyâ
ï The
sociological perspective which offers a unique
view of society
3. During class, carefully observe the
interaction and behavior of the
instructor and the other students.
ïWhat patterns do you see in who speaks?
ïWhat about how people use space?
ïWhat categories of people are taking the
class in the first placeâŠ
ïThink: race, social class, and gender, age.
4.
5.
6. âąWhat was the reason for such a
massacre? (how could society have
contributed?)
âąWhen did it become a societal issue
versus a personal issue?
(Sociological V. Psychological)
âąWhat was the response to the
shootings?
âąCould Columbine/Va Tech/etc. have had
an effect?
9. Keep in mind, that the perspective you
take influences what you see
ïOne perspective emphasizes certain aspects
of an event
ïAnother perspective accepts different
aspects of the same event
ïSame event â seen in different ways.
13. Benefits of the Sociological
Perspective
1. Helps us assess the truth of
common sense
2. Helps us assess both opportunities
and constraints in our lives
3. Empowers us to be active
participants in our society
4. Helps us live in a diverse world
14. Importance of Global
Perspective
(as a sociological perspective )
ïWhere we live makes a great difference in
shaping our lives
ïSocieties throughout the world are increasingly
interconnected through technology and
economics
ïMany problems that we faced in the United States
are more serious elsewhere
ïThinking globally is a good way to learn more
about ourselves
15. The Sociological Perspective:
Peter Berger (1963)
ïSeeing the general in the particular
ïSociologists identify general social patterns in
the behavior of particular individuals
ïIndividuals are unique but, societyâs social
forces shape us into âkindsâ of people (e.g.
Women, Catholics, Hispanics)
ïSeeing the strange in the familiar
ïGiving
up the idea that human behavior is
simply a matter of what individuals decide to
do (e.g. who is more likely to divorce?)
ïUnderstanding that society shapes our lives
16. Sociological Perspective
ïPeople are influenced by their
society
ïAn individualâs identity is socially
bestowed
ï(who we are â and how people treat us
are usually consequences of our social
location in society)
ïOur personalities are shaped by the
way we are accepted, rejected, and
defined by other people.
ï(e.g. are we worthy â depends on the
values of the groups in which we are
17. âąPerspective: What the âBlurred Linesâ being described in
the song? This was a #1 SongâŠ. Controversial? Why?
âąSociology is about Asking the right
questions
âąSeeing a different
perspective â what if
we flip the script?
18. Applying the Sociological Perspective
ïPeriods of crisis or social change prompt
people to think sociologically:
ï(e.g. Great Depression: Something is wrong with
me, I canât find a job! (personal)
ïThinking
sociologically : The economy has
collapsed there are few jobs to be found â
t isnât just me
ïI
22. C. Wright Millsâ Sociological
Imagination
ïThe power of the sociological perspective
lies not just in changing individual lives but
in transforming society
ïSociety, (not personal failings) is a root
cause of social problems
ïThe sociological imagination transforms
personal problems into public issues
23. Mills: Sociological Imagination
ïâŠ.enables
us to grasp the connection
between history and biography
ïTurns personal problems into public issues
ïThe Society in which we grow up, and our
particular location in that society, lie at the
center of what we do and what we think.
ïTo understand others issues â think of the
social forces that are affecting their lives.
24. Mills Basic Assumptions
ïHuman beings cannot be understood
apart from the social and historical
structures in which they are formed
and in which they interact
ïThe sociological imagination is simply
a âquality of mindâ that allows us to
grasp âhistoryâ and biographyâ and the
relations between the two within
society.
26. All the Discussion about Perspective â Leads
to âThe Big Threeâ
ïStructural-Functional - Macro
ïSocial Conflict - Macro
ïSymbolic Interactionism -
Micro
27. Sociological Theory
ïTheory: a statement of how and why
facts are related
ïExplains social behavior to the real
world
ïTheoretical paradigm: a set of
fundamental assumptions that guides
theory
28. THE ORIGINS OF SOCIOLOGY
One of the youngest of academic disciplines,
sociology has it origins in powerful social forces:
ïSocial Change
ïIndustrialization, urbanization, political revolution, and
a new awareness of society
ïScience
ï3-Stages: Theological, Metaphysical & Scientific
ïPositivism â a way of understanding based on science
ïGender & Race
ïThese important contributions have been pushed to the
margins of society
29. Durkheimâs Study of
Suicide
ïEmile Durkheimâs research showed that society
affects even our most personal choices.
ïMore likely to commit suicide : Male Protestants who
were wealthy and unmarried
ïLess likely to commit: Male Jews and Catholics who
were poor and married
ïOne of the basic findings: Why?
ïThe differences between these groups had to do with
âsocial integrationâ
ïThose with strong social ties had less of a chance of
COMMITING suicide
33. Structural âFunctional
Paradigm
ïThe Basics
ïA macro-level orientation, concerned with
broad patterns that shape society as a whole
ïViews society as a complex system whose parts
work together to promote solidarity and stability
ïKey Eelements:
ïSocial structure refers to any relatively stable
patterns of social behavior found in social
institutions
ïSocial function refers to the consequences for
the operation of society as a whole
34. Whoâs Who in Structural-Functional Paradigm
ïAuguste Comte
ïImportance of social integration during
times of rapid change
ïEmile Durkheim
ïHelped establish sociology as a
university discipline/Major study of
suicide
ïHerbert Spencer
ïCompared society to the human body,
35. Social-Conflict Paradigm
ïThe Basics:
ïA macro-oriented paradigm
ïViews society as an arena of inequality that
generates conflict and social change
ïKey elements:
ïSociety is structured in ways to benefit a few at
the expense of the majority
ïFactors such as race, sex, class, and age are
linked to social inequality
ïDominant group vs. Minority group relations
ïIncompatible interests and major differences
36. Whoâs Who in Social-Conflict Paradigm
ïKarl Marx
Society is a complex system
characterized by inequality and
conflict that generate social change
ïW.E.B. DuBois
Race as the major problem facing the
United States in the twentieth century
37. Whoâs Who in Social-Conflict Paradigm
ïJane Adams
Although trained at the University of
Chicago â was not considered a serious
Sociologist because she was female
ïHarriet Martineau
First female Sociologist and fought for
changes in educational policy â so women
could have choices other than home
38. Symbolic Interaction
Paradigm
ïThe Basics:
ïA micro-level orientation, a close-up
focus on social interactions in specific
situations
ïViews society as the product of everyday
interactions of individuals
ïKey Elements:
ïSociety is nothing more than the shared
reality that people construct as they
interact with one another
ïSociety is a complex, ever-changing
mosaic of subjective meanings
39. Whoâs Who in Symbolic-Interaction Paradigm
ïMax Weber
ïUnderstanding a setting from the
people in it
ïGeorge Herbert Mead
ïHow we build personalities from
social experience
ïErving Goffman
ïDramaturgical analysis
ïGeorge Homans & Peter Blau
ïSocial-exchange analysis
40. Critical Evaluation
ïStructural-Functional
ïToo broad, ignores inequalities of social class,
race & gender, focuses on stability at the
expense of conflict
ïSocial-Conflict
ïToo broad, ignores how shared values and
mutual interdependence unify society, pursues
political goals
ïSymbolic-Interaction
ïIgnores larger social structures, effects of
culture, factors such as class, gender & race