Marie Callinan What is positivism? Positivism is a well established philosophy within the natural sciences. In the early nineteenth century it became an integral aspect of social science methodology. In Baconian tradition‚ positivism is the precise and objective observation of an object from a scientifically detached position. Though its definition is broad‚ there are fundamentally six assumptions in positivistic philosophy and three distinct generations that negotiate with these assumptions
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development of sociology as a distinct academic discipline in the middle of the nineteenth century. 7. Identify and critique the sociological contributions of the following mid-to-late nineteenth and early twentieth century European thinkers: Auguste Comte‚ Herbert Spencer‚ Karl Marx‚ Emile Durkheim‚ and Max Weber. 8. Understand how and why levels of social integration affect rates of suicide and how Emile Durkheim’s nineteenth century study of suicide helped to demonstrate the ways in which
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of the relationship between an individual & the wider society; key element to sociological imagination is the ability to view one’s society as an outsider would. **Society influences: culture‚ gender identity‚ religion & social class. August Comte- (1798-1857) French philosopher during the Enlightenment; “father of Sociology”. Systematic investigation of behavior needed to improve society‚ (Sociology). Favored Positivism- a way of understanding based on science: research methods & statistics
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"Positivists view the use of scientific methods of research as desirable or preferable and are critical sociologists that use subjective or unobservable mental states." The positivist methodology came from the early sociologist‚ Auguste Comte. He maintained that the application of the methods and assumptions of the natural sciences of the "positive sciences" of society. From this rational came the tenants of positivism or the positivist perspective. Some characteristics of this type of methodology
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1. BIRTH OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY It rises in the second half of the XIX Century‚ in some European countries‚ and a little later in the United States and other countries. For some‚ Social Psychology appeared in 1859‚ along with the revised edition of "Great Soviet Encyclopedia" by Steintahl and Lazarus. This magazine puts Social Psychology as a branch of psychology bourgeois. For others‚ the social psychology emerged in recent years in the 9th century‚ with
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people’s actions - Studied through 3 paradigms: Functionalism Conflict Theory Symbolic Interactionism A paradigm is a theoretical framework through which scientists study the world. Founders of the Discipline of Sociology Functionalists: Auguste Comte (1798-1859) - Wanted to build better societies Recognized 2 equal yet opposing forces in society: Social Statics (Tries to keep things the same) & Social Dynamics (force for change & conflict) Founders Continued:- Herbert Spencer-Social Darwinism
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sciences like physics and chemistry. “It therefore involves applying the methods and principles of the natural science to the study of society” (Nasser Mustapha). Positivists believe that society should be measure with the use of quantitative data. Auguste Comte‚ the founding father of sociology was also a positivist. Interpretivists‚ argue the opposite view. They believed scientific methods are inappropriate for the study of society. “They view people as living in a world of meaningful objects” (Nasser
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of understanding life and society‚ Roots of social theorizing (places)‚ Most important historical event that created sociological thought and practice‚ Focus of early sociology‚ Importance of the “Age of Reason” & “The Enlightenment Period”‚ Auguste Comte/Importance to sociology‚ Positivism‚ Social statics/dynamics‚ Harriet Martineau and sociology‚ Herbert Spencer and sociology- The Organic Analogy- Social Darwinism‚ Karl Marx and the nature of society and action‚ Emile Durkheim and Social Order
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Definition and Subject Matter of Sociology The first social scientist to use the term sociology was a Frenchman by the name of Auguste Comte. As coined by Comte‚ the term sociology is a combination of two words. The first part of the term is a Latin‚ socius- that may variously mean society‚ association‚ togetherness or companionship. The other word‚ logos‚ is of Greek origin. Sociology is the scientific or methodical study of society. It is a social science which studies the processes and
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Chapter 1: Sociology: Perspective‚ Theory‚ and Method What is the Sociological Perspective? Reveals the power of society to shape individual lives. C. Wright Mills called this point of view the “sociological imagination‚” which transforms personal troubles into public issues. Being an outsider or experiencing a social crisis encourages the sociological perspective. The Importance of a Global Perspective Global awareness is an important part of the sociological perspective because: Where we live
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