What is Sociology?

Introduction

Outline What does society look like? What is sociology? Levels of Analysis The Sociological Perspective

Insights from Sociology Humans cannot be understood apart from

social context (i.e. society) Society makes us who we are by creating

structure for our interactions Society is a social construction, that is, it

is an idea created by humans (i.e. doesn’t exist in the biological world but only in the social world) through social interaction

Society Influences You Death…

and its relationship with society

Baby Names

What Does Society Look Like? While the idea of society is familiar,

describing it can be difficult. Ultimately society is made up of many different components, such as culture, family, education, social class, and individual and collective action.

People who share a culture and territory

Meaning through Interaction People actively and collectively shape

their own lives, organizing their social interactions and relationships into a meaningful world.

Sociologists study this social behavior by seeking out its patterns.

Patterns are crucial to our understanding of society

Society Society is a group of people who

shape their lives according to patterns or behaviours that distinguish their group from other groups.

The Social Sciences Social Sciences are the disciplines

that use the scientific method to examine the social world, in contrast to the natural sciences, which examine the physical world.

Examples of social sciences include economics, psychology, geography, communication studies, anthropology, history, and political science.

How Sociology fits in

What is Sociology?

Sociology is the systematic or scientific study of human society and social behavior, from large-scale institutions and mass culture to small groups and individual interactions.

Sociology is also the study of social constructions.

Sociology Society and the individual are

inherently connected, and each depends on the other.

Sociologists study this link: how society affects the individual and how the individual affects society.

Levels of Analysis Microsociology is the level of analysis that

studies face-to-face and small-group interactions in order to understand how they affect the larger patterns and institutions of society.

Microsociology focuses on small-scale issues. Example: Symbolic Interactionism

Levels of Analysis (cont) Macrosociology is the level of

analysis that studies large-scale social structures in order to determine how they affect the lives of groups and individuals.

Macrosociology focuses on large-scale issues. Example: Functionalism

Using the Levels of Analysis Pam Fishman took a micro-level approach

to studying issues of power in male–female relationships.

She found that in conversation, women ask nearly three times as many questions as men do, perhaps because a speaker is much more likely to ask a question if he or she does not expect to get a response by simply making a statement.

How We Use Levels of Analysis Christine Williams took a macro-level

approach to studying women in male-dominated occupations and men in female-dominated occupations.

She found that women in male-dominated positions faced limits on their advancement (the glass ceiling), while men in female-dominated positions experienced rapid rates of advancement in the workplace (the glass escalator).

Types of Research When conducting research, methodology

involves the process by which one gathers and analyzes data.

Quantitative research translates the social world into numbers that can be treated mathematically; this type of research often tries to find cause-and-effect relationships.

Any type of social statistic is an example of quantitative research.

Levels of Analysis (cont) Qualitative research works with non-

numerical data such as texts, fieldnotes, interview transcripts, photographs, and tape recordings; this type of research often tries to understand how people make sense of their world.

Participant observation, in which the researcher actually takes part in the social world he or she studies, is an example of qualitative research.

The Sociological Imagination C. Wright Mills used the term

sociological imagination to describe the ability to look at issues from a sociological perspective.

Personal troubles versus public issues Ex: unemployment, obesity

The Sociological Perspective Incorporates Mills’ notion of the

sociological imagination The sociological perspective is a

quality of the mind that allows us to understand the relationship between our particular situation in life and what is happening at a social level.

The Sociological Perspective When using a sociological

perspective, one focuses on the social context in which people live and how that social context has an impact on individuals’ lives.

This is the essence of sociology.

Key Points Humans cannot be understood apart from

the social context they live in (society, culture and time + place)

The world around us profoundly shapes and influences who we are, how we behave and even how/what we think.

It is the job of the sociologist to understand how this process works and to what effect.

Adapted from Robert Wonser

Using the Sociological Perspective How would you explain the following social

problems using the sociological imagination/perspective? Obesity Homelessness/Poverty Unemployment Marriage War