Early Contributors to Sociology

Auguste Comte (1798-1857)

• coined term “sociology”

• positive philosophy==>positivism

• evolution of social thought from religion to natural law to a reliance on observations on the five senses

Theories of SocietyThe Typology Tradition

– Toennies: Gemeinschaft & Gesellschaft– Durkheim: Mechanical & Organic Solidarity– Weber: Traditional & Rational Society– Marx:Feudalism, Capitalism, & Socialism

Ferdinand Toennies (1855-1936)Social Relationships

• Gemeinschaft (community)– interaction based

upon tradition and loyalty

– ascribed order– undifferentiated

society and labor– family like groups

bounded by localities

• Gesellschaft (Society)– interaction based on

ration weighing of ends and means

– achieved status– impersonal– complex division of

labor– meritocracy and

bureaucracy

Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)

• Mechanical Solidarity– similarity in local

beliefs and activities (usually agriculture)

– Collective Conscious– individualism is

curbed

• Organic Solidarity – Complex division of

labor in the economy and society

– interdependence of individuals and institutions

– organic model

Max Weber (1864-1920)

• Traditional Society– based upon tradition

authority– close family-like

relationships– religion– common symbols and

activities

• Rational Society– based upon rational-

legal authority– efficiency over custom– scientific– impersonal and

bureaucratic

Karl Marx (1818-1883)

• Stages of history

• Feudalism Serfs and Lords

• Capitalism Proletariat and Bourgeoises

• Class Conflict and Exploitation and class consciousness

• Power Analyses and Hegemonic Control

Social Darwinism

•Evolved from Darwin’s theory of evolution (1858)

•Herbert Spencer (1820-1903)

•survival of the fittest

•society is evolving and getting better

•hunter-gatherers to modern society

Contemporary Theory, and Research

Macrotheory

•aggregates or large groups

•entire societiesMicrotheory

•diads, triads, families

•social life of small groups

Cutting across all social paradigms:

Structural Functionalism

•social systems theory

•components of society arise from structure and function

•functions reaffirm society and societal values

•manifest and latent functions

Structural Functionalism

What are the Manifest and Latent Functions of the York Galleria Mall?

Conflict Paradigm

•Karl Marx (1818-1883)

•social behavior is seen as attempts to dominate or avoid domination

•Class Conflict -- Proletariat Vs. Bourgeoisie

•Utopian Society

Role Theory

•Ralph Linton (1895-1953)

•Status

•Roles

•Role Conflict

•Role Strain

Symbolic Interaction

•Simmel, Mead, and Cooley

•Primary Group

•Looking-Glass Self

•Taking The Role of the Other

•Common understanding of symbols

•Interpreting symbols in context

1863-1931

1864-1929

1858-1918

Exchange Paradigm

•human behavior is seen through the evaluation of relative costs and benefits

•rewards lead to actions

•more value increases likelihood of action

•high frequency of rewards diminishes the worth of the reward

Ethnomethodology

•reality is tentative

•actors try to anticipate behavior on the basis of roles -- but social reality is continually being constructed when “rules” are broken

•establish expectations -- rule breaking experiments

Feminist Paradigm

•gender differences in social organization

•men control and dominate social processes to their advantage

What’s Really Real?

Views on Reality

• Pre-modern View

• Modern View

• Postmodern View

Major Theoretical Perspectives

Theory

Abstract statement explaining how and why some sets of concepts arelinked.

Helps interpret data

Helps show us what questions to ask

Helps generate. . . . hypotheses

Sociological Research

Ordinary Human Inquiry

• Causal and Probabilistic

• Tradition

• Authority

Sociological Research

Sources of Errors in Inquiry

• Inaccurate Observation

• Overgeneralization

• Selective Observation

• Illogical Reasoning

Sociological Research

Types of Research

•Quantitative

•Qualitative

Sociological Research

The Conventional Research Model

•Selecting and defining the problem

•Reviewing previous research

•Formulating Hypothesis (if appropriate)

•Developing the research design

•Collecting and analyzing the data

•Drawing conclusions and reporting the findings

The Wheel of Science

•Nomothetic

•Idiographic

•Quantitative

•Qualitative

•Deductive

•Inductive

Sociological Research

Data Collection and Analysis Techniques

•Surveys

•Questionnaire

•Interview

•Secondary data

•Field Research

•Participant Observation

•Ethnography

•Experiments

Sociological ResearchEthics in Social Research

1. NO HARM TO SUBJECTS

2. INFORMED CONSENT