Chapter 1 Whats sociology and how did it develop 09 09 2008 07 32 00 Critical Thinking to go through the cognitive process both to analyze a situation or information and to arrive at careful precise judgements o doubt whatever anyone says produce knowledge contribute something new Have questions disagree doubt what anyone says Sociological Imagination Social Network how you are connected to others the ability to use sociological perspective o i e community gender race ethnicity symbolic values social class crime etc Sociological Perspective way to recognize patterns in social events and view personal experiments in the light of these patterns o Perspective also entails efforts to see beyond individual experiences the sociologist tries to interpret patterns the regular recurrent aspects of social life Ex 1 The story of the little league pitcher Danny Almonte issues with race poverty immigration etc Ex 2 Katrina Affected social networks no where to go pattern of Affected poverty rate New Orleans poverty dissipated evacuation to other places Empirical based on observation or experiences in the light of these patterns sociological perspective Common Sense some things are common sense but some assumed logic is false o Crime is actually lower o Divorce rate is lower etc What is sociology The scientific study of social relationships social institutions and society o Social relationships individual relationships o Social Institutions formal groups School family gov largest scale o Society The sociological perspective operates at two levels 1 Macrosociology o Deals with large scale structures and process Broad social categories institutions and social systems War unemployment rates divorce rates 2 Microsociology o How individuals behave in social situations Social problems of a veteran and unemployed worker or a divorcee would be subjects Solutions would be sought at the personal or interpersonal level Social institutions vs interactions Principle of least interest you can get a good deal by showing the least interest Sociology and other social sciences 1 Economics study of how goods services and wealth are produced consumed and distributed within societies o Money other resources exchange o The effects of supply and demand on prices and the distribution and consumption of material goods serve as indicators of social exchange 2 Political Science studies power governments and political processes o Conflict theory theoretical perspective that views conflict as inevitable and natural and as a significant cause of social action and social change 3 Anthropology includes physical anthropology archaeology cultural history social linguistics and social and cultural anthropology o Family comparative functionalism exchange 4 Psychology concerned primarily with human mental processes and individual human behavior o Social psychology symbolic interactionism Symbolic interactionism is the major sociological perspective stressing interactions between people and the social processes that occur within the individual that are made possible by language and internalized meanings 5 Social Work the field in which the principles of the social sciences especially sociology are applied to actual social problems in the same way that the principles of physiology are applied in medicine and the principles of economics are applied in business o Basic vs applied science 1 Applied those that directly use these principles those that seek knowledge for its own sake 2 Basic Exchange Theory theoretical perspective that social action is a result of continuous exchange of resources between individuals based on rational exchange between love and labor friendship trust and power o can be between societies symbolic importance to keep peace o has to be fair for both parties or relationship wont work Fairness Functionalism everybody working together for function of society to keep calculation of exchange going Sociology 09 09 2008 07 32 00 Other social sciences we borrow ideas from them 1 Political science Social order how we keep society in check o Political sociology chpt 14 cross b t sociology and political science Big Issue Conflict o Conflict b t money countries individuals o Conflict theory theoretical perspective that views conflict as inevitable and natural and as a significant cause of social action and social change 2 Psychology Looks at ourselves two personal relationships o In sociology also looks at two personal relationships Exchange theory Social psychology cross b t psych And socl Symbolic interactions Our everyday life our interaction based on symbols Something that is used to rep something else such as a word gesture or object used to rep some aspect of the world o e g cup means a cup to us or CUP to others o Language is most complicated symbol Symbolic interactionism the social theory stressing interactions b t people and the social processes that occur within the individual that are made possible by language and internalized meanings o E g communication Symbol for money is diff o Usual error occurs in the participant of the symbol Completed applied science no basic 3 Social Work Most sciences have two parts basic applied o They borrow the basic science from other sciences Development of Sociology 2 founders of sociology 1 Comte AKA father of sociology Best known for his law of human progress states that each of our leading conceptions each branch f our knowledge all human intellectual development passes successively through 3 different theoretical conditions theological or fictitious metaphysical or abstract 1 2 3 scientific or positive o coined the term sociology o came up with idea we analyzed society like we analyzed the stucture of the organism things are going well machines concept of physics o social statics o Social dynamics o good idea but didn t work o start primitive and become more complicated things begin to go through change 2 Spencer came up with the survival of the fittest Attributed to Darwin but Spencer applied it to socl Only rules and laws that make sense will survive Society with a wrong rule idea custom will extinct Only society with the fittest structure component will survive Spencer Darwin learned from each other Theory of social evolution simple complex Societies evolved from relative homogeneity and simplicity to heterogeneity and complexity as simple societies progress they become increasingly complex and differentiated He viewed societies not simply as collections of individuals