key points

I. The Sociological Perspective

A. This perspective is important because it provides a unique way of looking at the human experience. It allows us to gain a new and comprehensive vision of day-to-day social life.
B. This perspective stresses the broader social context of behaviour by looking at an individual's social location (employment, income, education, gender, age, and race) and by considering external influences and personal experiences, which are internalized and become part of a person's thinking and motivations. We are then able to see the links between what people do and the social settings that shape their behaviour. C. Wright Mills referred to this approach as revealing the intersection between biography (the individual's experiences) and history (social factors and societal patterns).
C. This perspective enables us to analyze and understand both the larger forces and patterns that are contributing to the emergence and growth of a "global village," and the unique circumstances in our own small corner of this village.

II. Sociology and the Other Sciences

A. Sociology is defined as "the scientific study of society and human social behaviour." It is derived from the Greek word logos, meaning "study of," as well as the socius, Latin for "being with others."
1. Science is the use of systematic methods to obtain objective and accurate knowledge, including controlled observation and the first-hand collection of data and evidence. Its goals are to explain, to generalize, and to predict the relationship between different properties or phenomena.
2. Science can be divided into the natural sciences and the social sciences.
B. The natural sciences attempt to comprehend and forecast events in the physical environment.
C. Similarly, the social sciences attempt to objectively study the social world. The human social world has even been termed a 'second nature.' Like the natural sciences, the social sciences are divided into specialized fields based on their subject matter and particular focus.
1. Political science focuses on systems of decision-making and governance within a society, and their relation to other societal institutions. It considers the manner in which political structures emerge, and tackles topics such as patterns of voting.
2. Economics analyzes systems of trade, the organization and structure of the marketplace and issues of money and resources within a society. It deals with the production, distribution, and allocation of the material goods and services of a society.
3. Anthropology has attempted to understand human culture (a people's total way of life) and social relationships by focusing primarily on preliterate people, their origins, adaptation to the environment and the development of their civilizations.
4. Psychology concentrates on the internal processes that serve to motivate and shape the behaviour of the individual, such as cognition and memory.
5. Sociology shares many similarities with the other social sciences, but remains distinctive because it explores all social institutions in an integrated fashion. The discipline focuses on industrialized societies, and looks at the network of external factors and patterns that influence people's thoughts, motives, and behaviours within their social settings.

III. The Development of Sociology

A. The field of sociology developed in the middle of the 19th century as European social philosophers began to use scientific methods to test their ideas. At least three key factors led to its development:
1. the social upheaval in Europe as a result of the Industrial Revolution and the political and intellectual revolutions in America and France;
2. the nature of imperialist activities had the result that, as European nations conquered other nations, they came in contact with different peoples and began to ponder why cultures varied; and
3. the success of and growing popular interest in the natural sciences created the desire to utilize and apply scientific methods in the quest to find answers to questions being raised about the social world.
B. Auguste Comte coined the term "sociology"; he suggested the use of positivism (applying the scientific approach to the social world), though he did not develop this approach himself.
C. Karl Marx, a principal founder of the conflict perspective, believed that conflict and inequality (specifically represented by the modern class struggle between the proletariat and the bourgeoisie), were central issues in society and the human social experience.
D. While Marx believed that revolutionary means were necessary for the betterment of modern society, communism is not synonymous with Marxism, and this political system cannot be accurately attributed to the writings of Marx himself.
E. Emile Durkheim played a vital role in the development of sociology, and is widely considered one of its most important classical theorists.
1. One of his primary goals was to get sociology recognized as a separate academic discipline, not simply a sub-discipline of another branch of the social sciences.
2. He was interested in understanding the social factors and larger patterns that influence individual behaviour. He studied suicide rates among different groups and concluded that social integration, the degree to which people are tied to their social group, was a key social factor in influencing an individual's risk of suicide.
3. Durkheim's third concern was that social research be practical and relevant; sociologists should not only diagnose the causes of social problems, but should also develop solutions to alleviate them.
F. Max Weber defined religion as a central force in social change (e.g., he argued that Protestantism encouraged greater economic development and was the central factor in the rise of capitalism in some countries).

IV. The Role of Values in Social Research

A. Max Weber advocated that sociological research should be value free (personal values or biases should not influence or taint social research) and objective (totally neutral, without personal agendas).
1. Sociologists tend to agree that objectivity is the ideal researchers should strive to achieve, but acknowledge that, as social beings themselves, no one can escape values entirely.
2. Replication (repeating a study to see if the same results are found) is one means used to avoid the distortions that individual bias can cause.
B. The "proper" purposes and uses of sociology have long been argued among sociologists.
1. Some take the position that the proper role of sociology is purely to advance understanding of social life, whereas others believe that it is the responsibility of sociologists to explore harmful social arrangements of society.
2. Some feel that the knowledge gained by social research is important for its own sake, and belongs to the scientific community and the world, to be used by anyone for any purpose. However, others feel that the knowledge should be used to reform society.

V. Verstehen and Social Facts

A. Weber argued that sociologists should be empathetic and use Verstehen ("to grasp by insight") in order to see beyond the more abstract social facts to the meanings that people attach to their own behaviour.
B. Durkheim believed that social facts, patterns of behaviour and interaction that characterize a social group, reflect underlying conditions of society and can be used to interpret other social facts and phenomena.
C. Social facts and Verstehen fit together because they reinforce each other; sociologists use Verstehen in order to interpret social facts. Conversely, social facts lend structure and a larger sense of significance to individual meanings and experiences.

VI. Sexism in Early Sociology

A. Throughout the early years of sociology, the field was dominated by men because rigidly defined social roles and the realities of economic life prevented most women from pursuing a higher education.
1. Women were supposed to devote themselves to the four Ks: "Kirche, Kuchen, Kinder, und Kleider" (church, cooking, children, and clothes).
2. At the same time, a few women from wealthy families managed to get an education. A few even studied sociology, although the sexism in the universities usually stopped them from earning advanced degrees, becoming professors, or having their research recognized.
B. For instance, Harriet Martineau studied social life in both Great Britain and the United States, publishing Society in America decades before Durkheim and Weber were even born. However, her own original research has been largely ignored in the discipline; rather, she is known mainly for her translations of Comte's ideas into English.

VII. Sociology in Canada and the United States

A. Sociology in Canada was influenced by both the British and American traditions. The first program in sociology in Canada was at McGill University (1922).
1. American sociologists at the University of Chicago influenced the development of sociology at McGill, under the direction of Carl Dawson.
2. The other predominant approach to the development of sociology in Canada was the British tradition, which influenced sociology at the University of Toronto.
3. At the University of Toronto, Harold Innis and Samuel Clark studied the economic history of Canada and illustrated the ways in which Canada developed as a distinct economy and society, impacted by its natural resources. Another of the most significant Canadian sociologists, John Porter, was based at Carleton University. His book The Vertical Mosaic, remains extremely influential today.
4. Contemporary feminist scholars such as Margrit Eichler and Dorothy Smith are widely recognized for their work in non-sexist research methods and studies related to feminist theory.
B. The first departments of sociology in the US were established at the University of Kansas (1889) and the University of Chicago (1892).
1. Albion Small, founder of the Department of Sociology at the University of Chicago, also established the American Journal of Sociology.
2. Other early sociologists from the University of Chicago were Robert E. Park, Ernest Burgess, and George Herbert Mead
C. The situation of scholarly women in North America was similar to that of European women and their contributions to sociology met a similar fate. Denied a role in the universities, many turned to social activism, including working with the poor, and as such, they were regarded primarily as social workers, rather than sociologists.
1. Jane Addams is an example of an activist scholar; she founded Hull House, a settlement house for the poor, and worked to bridge the gap between the powerful and the powerless.
2. She invited sociologists from the nearby University of Chicago to visit.
3. She is the only sociologist to have won the Nobel Peace Prize, having been awarded this in 1931.
D. African American professionals also faced problems of exclusion and lack of recognition.
1. W.E.B. Du Bois conducted extensive research on race relations in the US, publishing a book a year on this subject between 1896 and 1914.
2. He helped found the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). Despite his accomplishments he encountered prejudice and discrimination in both his professional and personal life.
3. Until recently, his contributions to sociology have been overlooked.
E. Many early North American sociologists combined the role of sociologist with that of social reformer. For example, University of Chicago sociologists Park and Burgess explored many urban problems and offered suggestions on how to alleviate them.
F. In the 1940s, as sociologists became more focused on establishing sociology as an academic discipline, the emphasis shifted from social reform to social theory.
1. Accordingly, Talcott Parsons developed abstract models of society to show how the parts of society harmoniously work together.
2. Countering this development was C. Wright Mills, who urged sociologists to get back to social reform.
3. Robert K. Merton stressed the development of middle-range theories-explanations of human behaviour that go beyond particular observations or research or minutae, but avoid sweeping generalizations that attempt to explain everything.
G. Sociology in North America today is not dominated by any one theoretical orientation or single concern.
1. Social activism remains an active option.
2. Sociologists are employed in teaching, in government, in the private sector, in management, consulting and planning positions, and in a number of other fields, including research and the social services.

VIII. Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology

A. Theory is a general statement or set of statements about how some parts of the world fit together and how they work; it is an explanation of how two or more facts or phenomena are related to one another. Sociologists use at least five major different theoretical perspectives to understand social behaviour.
B. Symbolic Interactionism views communication and symbols, things to which we attach meaning, as the bases of social life.
1. Through the use of symbols people are able to define relationships to others, to coordinate actions with others, making social life possible, and to develop a sense of themselves.
2. A symbolic interactionist studying divorce would focus on how the changing meanings surrounding gender, marriage, family, and divorce have all contributed to the increase in the rate of divorce in Western society.
C. The central idea of functional analysis is that society is a whole unit or social organism, made up of interrelated parts that work together.
1. In order to understand society, we must look at both structure, how the parts of society are organized and fit together to make up the whole, and function, the way each part contributes to the working of society.
2. Robert Merton used the term "function" to refer to the beneficial consequences of people's actions to keep society stable and dysfunction to refer to consequences that undermine stability. Functions can be either manifest (actions that result in intended consequences) or latent (unintended consequences).
3. In trying to explain divorce, a functionalist would look at how industrialization and urbanization have both contributed to the changing function of marriage and the family.

D. According to conflict theories, society is viewed as being composed of groups competing for scarce resources, and subject to inequalities of power and resources.
1. Karl Marx focused on class struggles between the bourgeoisie, the small group of capitalists who own the means of production, and the proletariat, the masses made up of workers exploited by the capitalists.
2. Contemporary conflict theorists have expanded this perspective to include conflict in all relations of power and authority.
3. Divorce is seen as the outcome of the shifting balance of power within the family; for instance, as women have gained power and influence, and try to address decision-making and inequalities in their relationships, men resist that power and influence.
E. Feminist theories study the social, historical, and cultural aspects of gender and gender relations. Each branch of feminism explores the gendered nature of power in society, as well as the gender socialization of all individuals. Feminist theories particularly focus on the task of bringing proper attention to female social experiences, and providing a forum for those who may have previously been overlooked.
1. Marxist-feminist theories relate gender inequalities in society to economic inequities, specifically stemming from the exploitative property relations of capitalism.
2. Liberal feminists claim that legal restraints and outdated customs are at the root of the subservience of women in society. This approach indicates that the solution for gender inequality lies in the provision of increased opportunities for women.
3. Radical feminist theories focus on the ways in which women are oppressed by patriarchy, a system of power, dominance, hierarchy, and competition.
F. Postmodernism emphasizes and analyzes the complex patterns of social and cultural difference in contemporary societies, as well as issues of power, inequality and the assumptions underlying dominant societal structures and cultural traditions.
1. Postmodernism views present-day society as a cultural collage where people can live in their own cultural and social spaces of meaning and experience.
2. Jean Baudrillard studies the ways in which symbols have become detached, or autonomous, from the real world in postmodernity.
G. Queer theory, associated with gay and lesbian studies, is a recent addition to social scientific endeavour, developing particularly in the 1990s and continuing today. It tackles the fluid, dynamic and complex nature of sex, gender and sexual identity, challenging fixed societal notions, norms and dominant cultural assumptions. Queer theorists contend with the social reality of discrimination against gay and lesbians, and the hostility towards sexual "difference" overall.
H. Critical race theory is another emerging theoretical area within the discipline, developing in the 1970s and linked to the development of African American legal thought. Current critical race scholarship uses an interdisciplinary approach, fusing sociology with anthropology, history, philosophy and politics. Its focus is addressing the socially constructed nature of race and racial identities, and the reality of discrimination and inequality in society.
Levels of Analysis: Micro & Macro-Sociology
The theoretical perspectives differ in their approach and level of analysis. Functionalists, conflict, and critical race theorists provide macro-level analysis because they examine the larger-scale patterns of society. Symbolic interactionists carry out micro-level analysis because they focus on the small-scale patterns of social life including social interaction, communication and the formation of meaning and roles. Postmodernists, as well as feminist and queer theorists may take either a micro- or macro-sociological approach.
Each perspective provides a different and often sharply contrasting picture of the world. However, sociologists often use all five major perspectives (or more) due to the belief that no one theory or level of analysis can represent all of reality.

IX. Applied and Clinical Sociology

A. Sociologists Paul Lazarsfeld and Jeffrey Reitz divide sociology into three phases.
1. In the first phase, the primary concern of sociologists was making the world a better place.
2. During the second phase, sociologists sought to establish sociology as a respected field of knowledge and scientific discovery.
3. In the third (current) phase there has been an attempt to merge sociological knowledge and practical work.
B. Applied sociology is the attempt to blend sociological knowledge and practical results. It refers to the use of sociology to solve real-world problems. Applied sociologists recommend practical and concrete changes to solve social problems.
C. Clinical sociologists become directly involved in bringing about social change through work in various social settings (e.g., workplace consulting, governmental agencies, commissions or counseling).
D. In the future, it is likely that applied sociology will grow, as more departments of sociology offer courses, specialties, and even internships in applied sociology.