Unit 1 Approaches to sociology

Contents

Preface ……………………………………………………………………………………… 2

The sociological perspective …………………………………………… 5

Unit 1 Approaches to sociology…………………………………………………………… 5

Assignments ………………………………………………………………………………… 9

Unit 2 Methods of sociological research …………………………………………………… 11

Assignments …………………………….………………………………………………….. 13

Unit 3 Basic designs in sociology ………………………………………………………….. 14

Assignments ………………………………………………………………………………... 17

Unit 4 Social interaction…………………………………………………………………... 19

Assignments ………………………………………………………………………………… 22

Unit 5 Interaction and social structure …………………………………………………….. 24

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 28

The individual and society ……………………………………………………... 31

Unit 6 Culture and its elements…………………………………………………………….. 31

Assignments ………………………………………………………………………………... 34

Unit 7 Types of culture ……………………………………………………………………. 36

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 39

Unit 8 Individualism in American culture…………………………………………………. 41

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 44

Unit 9 Socialisation...………………………………………………………………………. 46

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 49

Unit 10 Social classes in the process of socialisation and its agents ……………………… 51

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 54

Unit 11 The life course…………………………………………………………………….. 56

Assignments ………………………………………………………………………………... 59

Unit 12 Adulthood and the last stage in the life course……………………………………. 61

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 64

Unit 13 Deviant behaviour………………………………………………………………… 66

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 69

Unit 14 Differences in explanations of deviant behaviour in functional perspectives, labelling theory, and Marxist perspectives……………………………………………………………. 71

Assignments………………………………………………………………………………… 73

Unit 15 Types of social control and deviance……………………. ………………………... 76

Assignments…………………………………………………………………………………. 79

Social groupings …………...………………………………………………………… 81

Unit 16 Social groups……………………………………………………………………….. 81

Assignments …………………………………………………………………………………. 84

Unit 17 Types of social groups ……………..……………………………………………….. 85

Assignments …………………………………………………………………………………. 88

Unit 18 Formal organisations……………………………………………………………….. 89

Assignments ………………………………………………………………………………… 92

Unit 19 Communities and cities …………………………………………………………… 94

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 97

Unit 20 Urbanisation and its influence…………………..………………………………….. 99

Assignments ………………………………………………………………………………… 102

Unit 21 The future of urbanisation ………………………………………………………… 105

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 107

Unit 22 Population…..……………………………………………………………………. 109

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 111

Unit 23 Changes of population growth ……………………………………………………. 113

Assignments ……………………………………………………………………………….. 116

Bibliography ………………………………………………………………………………. 119

The sociological perspective

Unit 1 Approaches to sociology

1. What is sociology?

Sociology is the study of human societies and human behaviour in social settings. Sociologists look beyond individualistic and psychological explanations for behaviour to the predictable broad patterns and regular occurrences of social life that influence individual attitudes and behaviours. Sociologists answer " Why? " questions. They are not interested in highly personal reasons for events; instead they employ the sociological imagination to examine personal experiences in the context of the larger social structure. They focus on recurring events and relationships and seek to develop explanations for these patterns of interaction.

Sociologists strive to establish social facts, which are properties of group life that cannot be explained by the actions, feelings, or characteristics of individual persons. They examine such social facts as falling in love, crime rates, and prejudice. Sociologists also uncover the social forces that determine particular social facts.

This emphasis on social facts and social causes distinguishes sociology from other social sciences. Economics examines the production and exchange of goods and services. Psychology studies primarily the individual. Political science studies government, public administration, and the exercise of power.

The ability to adopt the sociological perspective is sometimes labelled " the sociological imagina­tion." C. Wright Mills, who coined the term, stressed the connection between history and biography; that is, individuals can understand their personal experiences more clearly by locating themselves within a particular historical period.

The scientific method employed by sociologists began to emerge in the seventeenth century. Sociologists first gather data carefully. Then they analyse these data within the framework of a theory--a systematic and formal explanation of how two or more phenomena are related to each other. Local theories are very narrow and focus on only one small aspect of social life. At the other extreme, general theories attempt to explain how a considerable number of social factors fit together. Middle-range theories fall between these two types. Scientific inquiry generates knowledge that sometimes differs from common sense, which, derives in turn from personal experiences. Common-sense explanations are somewhat limited. Science goes beyond common sense by collecting data and examining plausible explanations.

There are two major levels of sociological analysis. Microsociology focuses on everyday patterns of behaviour and face-to-face interactions. Macrosociology focuses on overall social arrangements, how they are structured, and their long-term effects. Although these two levels are small scale and large scale respectively, micro-level and macro-level analyses often work together to provide a more complete picture of a particular social phenomenon.

2. What are the basic sociological questions?

Sociologists address two basic questions: " What holds society together? " and " What is the relation­ship between the individual and society? " There are two basic perspectives for answering the first question. The functional perspective emphasizes that society is bound together by an unconscious process of self-regulation in which many different parts, all serving different functions, evolve and work together in an integrated fashion. Although conflicts arise, they represent temporary periods of readjustment. Functionalists believe that society has a natural tendency to evolve toward a state of functional integration, in which the various pieces fit together in a smoothly operating whole.

The power perspective sees conflict as the natural and inevitable state of affairs in society as different people, groups, and organisations struggle to gain the upper hand. Those who control key resources are most likely to win in any particular conflict; they may even shape society to their own advantage.

Those examining the relationship between the individual and society typically take either a structural perspective or an action perspective. Social structure is the way in which people, groups, and institutions are organised. According to the structural perspective, individual choices can be explained by social forces that emerge from the ways in which society is organised. These forces exist outside individuals, endure longer than individuals, and are extremely difficult for individuals to change. Those who follow an action perspective, on the other hand, stress that individual action constantly creates the many social arrangements that constitute society. Human behaviour then becomes a creative process based on how people interpret and redirect social forces.

3. How did sociology emerge as a discipline?

Sociology emerged as a discipline in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, a period of sweeping social changes. Four major changes spurred the development of sociology. First, political philoso­phies and governments were undergoing major transformation. As the kings of Europe extended their rule over larger and larger territories, they began to create bureaucracies to administer their realms. As a result, the common people began to feel more distanced from their rulers. Hence popular support for monarchies began to weaken. Early sociologists strove to understand these major changes and their implications.

Second, economic transformations occurred. European economies grew very rapidly; as a result, rural residents who were no longer needed on the farm flocked to the cities, where factories were appearing rapidly. Early sociologists helped explain this transition from a very localized farm economy to a much larger-scale factory economy.

Third, sociologists examined the wide diversity of human customs and values. As a result, people began to see that the European way of life was not shared by everyone and was not necessarily the best way. Europeans wanted to learn from people in other cultures.

Fourth, early sociologists helped people understand how citizens were beginning to think about themselves and their world. A rational view of human beings became more predominant. In general, the major social changes of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries provided much of the push that led to the creation of sociology.

Rational-choice theory was an important framework for many of the early social sciences. According to this approach, people weigh the gains and the costs involved in making decisions. Prominent among the" founders of rational-choice theory were Adam Smith and Jeremy Bentham. Smith emphasized the cost/benefit calculations in decision making. He viewed society as a self-regulating system, in which many different parts act in their own interest but are meshed together through market forces to form a whole which operates for the common good. Bentham stressed that people are motivated to obtain pleasure and avoid pain. He disagreed with Smith's view that the sum of individual decisions, made on the basis of self-interest, automatically yields the greatest good for society as a whole. Bentham believed that scientifically planned government action would contribute to the public good. Rational-choice theory is still influential in several areas of sociology.

Karl Marx (1818-1883) contributed much to sociology and economics. He believed that the most significant feature of industrial societies was their capitalistic bent; the means of production were owned privately and were used to maximise profits. This system generated conflict between the capitalists (the owners of the land, factories, and machines) and the proletariat (the workers who actually produced the economic goods). Marx believed that the interests of the two groups were inherently contradictory. Over time the workers would develop class consciousness, a sense of their shared interests and plight. This consciousness would result eventually in the overthrow of the capitalist system and the establishment of a classless society in which wealth would be distributed equally. Regarding the question of what holds society together, Marx's approach is power-oriented. Regarding the relationship between the individual and society, Marx's approach incorporates both structure and action.

Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) was concerned with social solidarity, the underlying social forces that bind people together. He conceptualised two basic forms of social solidarity: mechanical solidarity is based on a strong sharing of beliefs, values, and customs; organic solidarity is based on a complex division of labour and characterises modern societies. Durkheim stressed that the study of society takes place at a very different level from the study of individuals. Regarding what holds society together, Durkheim's perspective was highly functional. Regarding the relationship between the individual and society, his perspective was highly structural.

Max Weber (1864-1920) believed that sociological explanations must derive from an understand­ing of why people choose the actions they do; accordingly he studied people's subjective beliefs, attitudes, values, and motives. He believed that sociologists must study and interpret such behaviours and attitudes from the perspective of the actor, an approach he called verstehen. Weber also believed that the most fundamental trend in modern society was an increasing rationalisation of social action and social institutions. Such an increase could be seen in the rise of science, the growth of government bureaucracies, and the development of capitalism. Weber also employed a model called an ideal type to facilitate his analyses; analysts use an ideal type to examine the most important characteristic of a phenomenon. Regarding the individual's relationship to society, Weber took an action perspective. Regarding what holds society together, he believed that people compete for power. He believed, however, that political groupings and views do not always reflect people's economic interests. Membership in a particular economic class is only one of several social iden­tities on the basis of which people join forces. Class-based groups (such as labour unions) are found more typically at the lower end of the social hierarchy. Status groups, however, are identified by a certain accent, education at certain schools, or having certain friends.

Phenomenology is another early school of philosophy that helped foster the development of sociology. Phenomenologists study how people subjectively experience and understand their social

world; they examine how individuals construct their own social realities. Like the phenomenologists, symbolic interactionists focus on language and communication. A leading proponent, George Herbert Mead (1863-1931), believed that we learn our places in the world through social interac­tions; that is, we come to know ourselves by seeing how others react to us. Communication Clearly plays a key role in this process. The interactionist perspective emphasizes how people respond to others, depending on how they interpret the particular social situation.

These five founding theories-rational-choice theory, interactionism, and the views of Marx, Durkheim, and Weber-helped launch sociology as a discipline. They are still relevant to sociological analysis today. A sociologist's particular theoretical perspective substantially influences the research questions addressed.