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It‟s a way of knowing. Examples:
◦ Religion◦ Positivism (aka Science)◦ Sociological Perspective (details to come!)◦ Others?
In this class, we will learn how to think and view the world like sociologists.
Upon completion of this course, you should have a new way of knowing to go along with the many that you already have.
It‟s fascinating!
And it is excellent preparation for the world of work, including:◦ Teaching◦ Research◦ Clinical Sociology◦ Criminal Justice◦ Health Care◦ Others: advertising, banking, business, government,
journalism, law, PR and social work
ASA Resources◦ Sociology Major – Prep for Careers◦ Careers in Sociology
The systematic study of human society.◦ Systematic Scientific discipline that focuses attention on patterns of
behavior.
◦ Human Society Group behavior is the primary focus; how groups influence
individuals and vice versa.
◦ At the “heart of sociology” is the sociological perspective, which offers a unique view of society.
1. Seeing the general in the particular.◦ Looking for general patterns in the behavior of
particular people.
◦ Society shapes our life experiences, so we can learn something about society (the general) in behavior (the particular).
2. Seeing the strange in the familiar.◦ Looking for oddities and studying exceptions.
◦ Not taking for granted that which normally is taken for granted.
3. Seeing personal choice in social context.◦ People don‟t simply just decide to do things.
◦ Ex: Durkheim‟s 1897 Suicide Study
Men, Protestants, Unmarried, Wealthy High Suicide Rates
Why?
Explained differences in suicide rates based on social integration and social ties.
Similar to the SP. Term coined by C. Wright Mills. Transforms personal problems into public
issues. A critical quality of mind that helps people “to
use information and to develop reason in order to achieve lucid summations of what is going on in the world and of what may be happening within themselves” (Mills).
The understanding that social outcomes are shaped by social context, social actors, and social actions.
Agency - the capacity of individual humans to act independently and to make their own free choices
Structure - those factors such as social class, religion, gender, ethnicity, customs, etc. which seem to limit or influence the opportunities that individuals have
How is this related to the sociological perspective and/or the sociological imagination?
One of the youngest academic disciplines.◦ Comte coined the term in 1838.
Three Important Changes: (p. 10)◦ Industrialization◦ Urbanization◦ Political Revolution
These changes made people more aware of, and interested in, their surroundings.
Early Goal: Understand how society operates.
Early Beliefs:◦ Society operates according to its own laws.◦ Society is a system we can study scientifically.◦ We can act intentionally to change our lives.
(Optimists! Revolutionaries!)
Comte‟s major contribution was to apply the scientific approach to the study of society. (Positivism)
Studying human behavior is far more complex and difficult than the study of other things because we are creatures of imagination and spontaneity.◦ Human behavior can never be fully explained by the
rigid laws of society.
Weber‟s Verstehen (German for Understanding)
◦ Sociologists are the only scientists who totally understand – have first-person knowledge of – their subject matter.
Ex: Cell vs. People – Why do they behave a certain way?
Theory - a statement of how and why facts are related Sociological theory explains social behavior in the real
world. Theories are tested by gathering evidence. 2 Fundamental Questions in Theory Building:
◦ What issues should we study?◦ How should we connect the facts?
Sociologists look to one or more theoreticalapproaches to formulate theory.◦ Theoretical Approach (or Paradigm) - a set of fundamental
assumptions that guides thinking◦ 3 Major Sociological Paradigms Structural-Functional Social-Conflict Symbolic-Interaction
S-F Approach – a framework for building theory that sees society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability
Points to social structure, any relatively stable pattern of social behavior. Shape our lives!
Examples: Families, the Workplace, Education
Looks for each SS‟s social functions, the consequences of a social pattern for the operation of society as a whole. All social patterns function to tie people together and to keep
society going in its present form.
Macro-Level Orientation – a broad focus on social structures that shape society a whole
Auguste Comte◦ Pointed out the need to keep society unified when traditions were
breaking down rapidly.
Emile Durkheim◦ Helped establish sociology as a university discipline.
Herbert Spencer◦ Compared society to the human body (the organic approach).
Talcott Parsons◦ Sought to identify tasks that every society must perform.
Robert K. Merton◦ Pointed out that social structures all have many functions, some
more obvious than others.◦ Distinguished between:
◦ Manifest & Latent Functions
◦ Eufunctions (+) & Dysfunctions (-)
Manifest Functions – the recognized and intended consequences of any social pattern
Latent Functions – the unrecognized and unintended consequences of any social pattern
Example: Higher Education Manifest Functions? Provide information and skills people need to hold jobs.
Latent Functions? Marriage Brokering
Limiting Unemployment
But not all the effects of social structure are good…
Social Dysfunction – any social pattern that may disrupt the operation of society Examples? Rising Immigration
Increasing Income Inequality
Social-Conflict Approach – a framework for building theory that sees society as an arena of inequality that generates conflict and change
Highlights how factors such as class, race, ethnicity, gender, and age are linked to inequality in terms of money, power, education, and social prestige.
Rejects the S-F idea that social structure promotes the operation of society as a whole, focusing instead on how any social pattern benefits some people while hurting others.
S-C theorists look at ongoing conflict between dominant and disadvantaged categories of people. People on top try to protect their privileges while the
disadvantaged try to gain more for themselves.
Example: Higher Education Schooling reproduces class inequality from one generation to the
next by “tracking” students into either college prep or vocational courses.
Many sociologists use S-C analysis to help reduce inequality.
Macro-Level Orientation
Who‟s Who?: Karl Marx - Emphasized the importance of social class in inequality and social conflict.
Gender-Conflict Approach – a point of view that focuses on inequality and conflict between women and men
Closely linked to feminism, support for social equality for women and men.
Importance lies in making us aware of how society places men in positions of power over women. Examples:
Home Men = Head of Household
Workplace Men = More Income & Powerful Positions
Mass Media Women = Sexualized & Victimized
Also makes us aware of the importance of women in the development of sociology.
Race-Conflict Approach – a point of view that focuses on inequality and conflict between people of different racial and ethnic categories
Importance lies in making us aware of how society places whites in positions of power over minorities.
Also makes us aware of the importance of people of color in the development of sociology.
Symbolic-Interaction Approach – a framework for building theory that sees society as the product of the everyday interactions of individuals
Micro-Level Orientation – a close-up focus on social interaction in specific situations Examples: Studying how children invent games on a playground
or observing how pedestrians respond to homeless people.
Sees society as nothing more than the reality that people construct for themselves as they interact with one another. We live in a word of symbols and we attach meaning to virtually
all of these. Example: Words, Wink, Flag
Therefore we create reality as we define our surroundings, decide what we think of others, and shape our own identities.
Max Weber (Doesn‟t really fit in any one paradigm.)
◦ Taught us to understand a setting from the POV of the people in it.
George Herbert Mead◦ Examined how personalities develop from social
experience.
Erving Goffman◦ Creator of dramaturgical analysis, which describes how we
resemble actors on a stage as we play out our various roles.
George Homans & Peter Blau◦ Creators of social-exchange analysis, the idea that
interaction is guided be what each person stands to gain and lose from others. (Ex: Courtship)
Structural-Functional◦ Too broad.◦ Ignores inequalities of social class, race & gender.◦ Focuses on stability at the expense of conflict.
Social-Conflict◦ Too broad.◦ Ignores how shared values and mutual interdependence
unify society.◦ Pursues political goals.
Symbolic-Interaction◦ Ignores larger social structures.◦ Ignores the effects of culture.◦ Ignores factors such as class, gender & race
This is a false division.
The fullest understanding of our social world comes from using all the paradigms.
Sociologists rarely identify with just one paradigm.◦ May change from project-to-project.
◦ May change over the course of their career.
◦ May combine multiple paradigms.
Functions of Sports◦ S-F approach looks at the ways in which sports help
society operate.
◦ What are the functions of sports?
Manifest – providing recreation, a means of getting in physical shape, harmless way to let off steam
Latent – building social relationships, creating jobs, encouraging competition and the pursuit of success (both American ideals)
Dysfunctional – recruiting to college based on athletic ability instead of academic prowess
Sports and Conflict◦ S-C analysis of sports points out that the games people
play reflect their social standing. Income, Gender, Race
◦ Also points out that sports are a big business that provides big profits for a small number of people.
◦ Sports as Interaction◦ Views sporting events as complex, face-to-face
interactions. Guided by Rules But people are still spontaneous and unpredictable.
◦ Sports are seen as an ongoing process rather than a system.
◦ Each player understands and interprets the game a little differently.
◦ The behavior of any single player may change overtime.
Society: The Basics, 10th Edition by John
Macionis
Copyright 2009 by Pearson Education,
Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All
rights reserved.
Belief or Faith
Expert Testimony
Simple Agreement
Science - a logical system that bases knowledge on direct systematic observation◦ Relies on evidence.
◦ Most widely accepted way of knowing.
◦ This is where sociology falls.
“Poor people are far more likely than rich people to break the law.”
“The United States is a middle-class society in which most people are more or less equal.”
“Most poor people don‟t want to work.”
“Differences in the behavior of females and males are just „human nature.‟ ”
“Most people marry because they are in love.”
Others?
All of these are disputed by sociological evidence!
What do Sociologists study?◦ Anything and everything!
Where do Sociologists study?◦ Anywhere there are people!
There is a “Sociology of ________” almost everything!◦ Music
◦ Food
◦ Sports
Examples of Sociological Studies:◦ Fackler‟s Latino Music Project
◦ Trautner Strip Club Project
Scientific/Positivist Sociology: the study of society based on scientific observation of social behavior◦ Relies on empirical evidence, which is information we can
verify with our senses.
Interpretive Sociology: the study of society that focuses on the meanings people attach to their social world
Critical Sociology: the study of society that focuses on the need for change
Do you think these are associated with the 3 major theoretical paradigms? If so, how?
Positivist Sociology - the study of society based on scientific observation of social behavior◦ Main Question: How does society work?
Concepts, Variables, and Measurement◦ Concept – a mental construct that represents some aspect of the
world in a simplified form
Examples: Family, Economy, Social Class, Gender◦ Variable – a concept whose values change from case to case
Examples: Height, Social Class◦ Measurement - a procedure for determining the value of a variable
in a specific case
Some variables are really easy to measure. Ex: Blood Pressure
Others, particularly sociological variables, are more difficult. Ex: Social Class
Researchers have to make decisions about how to operationalize a variable, stating exactly what they are measuring.
Statistics◦ Sociologists often deal with and study large numbers of
people.◦ How can we easily report income for thousands or even
millions of people? List of Everyone
Statistics◦ Descriptive Statistics – state what is “average” for a
large population
Most Common? Mean – the arithmetic average of all measures
Median – the score at the halfway point in an ascending series of numbers
Mode – the score that occurs most often
Reliability & Validity◦ Measurements must be both reliable and valid.◦ Reliability – consistency in measurement Do repeated measurements give the same result each time?
Hitting the same spot on the dartboard every time.
◦ Validity – actually measuring what you intend to measure Is your measure actually gathering data on what you are
interested in?
Hitting the bull‟s-eye on the dartboard.
Objectivity◦ PS calls for researchers to be neutral, objective and
value-free.
Correlation & Cause◦ Correlation – a relationship in which two or more variables change
together◦ Cause & Effect – a relationship in which change in one variable
causes change in another Ex: ↓ Social Integration ↑ Suicide Rates (Durkheim 1897)
◦ Correlation ≠ Causation Just because two variables change together does NOT mean that they
have a cause and effect relationship.
When two variables change together, but neither one causes the other, sociologists describe the relationship as spurious. It is usually the result of some third factor.
Ex: ↑ Ice Cream Sales ↑ Sexual Assaults Spurious Variable? HEAT!
◦ Requirements for Causality: 1. Correlation – The variables change together.
2. Time-Order - The cause occurs before the effect.
3. Non-Spuriousness – No other variables are responsible for the changes.
Human behavior is too complex to predict precisely any individual‟s actions.◦ Findings represent how categories of people typically act.
The mere presence of the researcher may affect the behavior being studied.◦ Hawthorne Effect
Social patterns change across time & place.
Sociologists are part of the world they study, making value-free research difficult.
Interpretive Sociology - the study of society that focuses on the meanings people attach to their social world
Major Q: How do people attach meaning to their actions?
PS holds close to science and is well-suited for lab research whereas IS does not hold as close to science and is better suited for fieldwork.
Quantitative Data – numerical measurements of outward behavior
Qualitative Data – researchers‟ perceptions of how people understand their world
Positivist Sociology Interpretive Sociology
Focus: Observable Action Focus: Meaning of Action
Reality: Exists “Out There” Reality: Socially Constructed
Data: Quantitative Data: Qualitative
Critical Sociology - the study of society that focuses on the need for social change
The Importance of Change◦ Main Q: Should society exist in its present form?◦ Makes value judgments about how society should be
changed and seeks to improve society.◦ Often CS is used to provide a voice for less powerful
people and to advance the goal of a more equal society.
Sociologists Should…◦ Strive to be technically competent & fair-minded.◦ Disclose findings in full without omitting significant data
& be willing to share their data.◦ Protect the safety, rights and privacy of subjects.◦ Obtain informed consent (IC). IC – subjects are aware of the risks and responsibilities and
agree to participate
◦ Disclose all sources of funding and avoid conflicts of interest.
◦ Demonstrate cultural sensitivity.◦ Submit to IRB review.◦ Examples of Violations: Zimbardo‟s Prison Experiment
Tuskegee Syphilis Studies
Research Method – a systematic plan for doing research
4 Common Methods:◦ Experiments◦ Surveys ◦ Participant Observation◦ Secondary Data
Experiments – a research method for investigating cause and effect under highly controlled conditions
Explanatory (asks why) Tests Hypotheses
Hypothesis - a statement of possible relationship between 2 or more variables; if-then statements
Ideal Experiment has 4 Steps: Specify the IV and DV. (Conceptualization & Operationalization) Measure the initial value of the DV. (Pre-Test) Expose the DV to the IV. (Stimulus) Measure the DV again. (Post-Test)
Sometimes use Experimental and Control Groups Experimental: Receives IV Control: Receives Nothing or Placebo
Examples? 2 Plants in Sunlight vs. Darkness – Which plant grows taller? Hawthorne Lighting Experiments Zimbardo‟s Prison Experiment
Survey – a research method in which subjects respond to a series of statements or questions in a questionnaire or an interview
Descriptive; good for studying attitudes.
Population vs. Sample Population - the people who are the focus of the research
Sample - the part of the population that represents the whole
Random vs. Non-Random
Random All Subjects Have Equal Chance of Selection
Two Types of Surveys: Questionnaire – a series of written questions a researcher
presents to subjects
Open-Ended vs. Close-Ended – Examples?
Administration – Self vs. Interviewer; Phone vs. Mail
Interviews - a series of questions a researcher administers in person to respondents Rapport, Probing, Influence
Piloting – testing the survey on a small group before launching it fully; ensures that a survey is understandable
Participant Observation - a research method in which investigators systematically observe people while joining in their routine activities AKA fieldwork, ethnography, case study Exploratory & Descriptive Entrée, Key Informant
Secondary Analysis - a research method in which a researcher uses data collected by others Examples? Census & GSS Houston Area Survey
Two Ways:◦ Inductive Logic - reasoning that transforms specific
observations into general theory
Induction “increases” from specific to general.
“Grounded Theory”
◦ Deductive Logic - reasoning that transforms general theory into specific hypotheses suitable for testing
Deduction “decreases” from general to specific.
1. Select and define a topic.◦ What is your topic?
2. Review the literature.◦ What have others already learned?
3. Develop key questions to ask.◦ What, exactly, are your questions?
4. Assess requirements for study.◦ What will you need to carry out research?
5. Consider ethical issues.◦ Are there ethical concerns?
6. Select a research methodology.◦ What method will you use?
7. Collect the data.◦ How will you record the data?
8. Interpret the findings.◦ What do the data tell you?
9. State conclusions.◦ What are your conclusions?
10. Publish the findings.◦ How can you share what you have learned?
People select their data… may not be the whole story!
People interpret their data.
People use graphs to “spin” the truth. Manipulating Timeframes Manipulating Scale Ex: Al Gore‟s An Inconvenient Truth
Since all research is interpreted and reported, it amounts to spinning reality in one way or another.
It‟s important to remember that this is true even about “facts.”
Video Clip: Daily Show‟s Poll-Bearers
Chron Article: How Wording Skews Results
Sociology is simply a new way of knowing that can benefit you in many ways.
Studying sociology requires:◦ The Sociological Perspective
◦ The Sociological Imagination
Sociologists build theory and gather evidence because sociology is a science.
There are three major theoretical paradigms in sociology:◦ Structural-Functional
◦ Symbolic-Interaction
◦ Social-Conflict
“Common sense” about the social world is often inaccurate.
There are three major methods of sociological inquiry: Scientific Sociology Interpretive Sociology Critical Sociology
There are four major methods of sociological investigation: Experiments Surveys Participant Observation Secondary Analysis
There are two ways to build theory: inductive & deductive.
However, sociology – like all sciences – involves several steps including interpretation and presentation which can “spin” reality.
