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Sociology- Scientific study of human society. Attempting to apply scientific method to humans. - A group is two or more. The more # of people, the more complex the group.- “The function of sociology, as of every science is to reveal that which is hidden.” – Pierre Bourdieu- Hidden = difficult patterns that we cant always see- Hidden = things people don’t want others to knowSocial Structure - larger than the individual, but made up of individuals (systems, concepts). o ex: mother: social structure - Social structure is both abstract and concrete. o Mothers loving their child is abstract. The description of a mother is abstract. The description of a mother is abstract.o Post Partum depression= abstract.o Giving birth= concrete- Varies in structure, relevance, and influence- Social Institution- particular type of structureo Networks of structures in society that socialize groups of people within them- Shapes our behavior- Structures change over timeTwo levels of Sociology: Micro: Individuals and Families, Households and Neighborhoods Macro: National, Societies and Cultures, GlobalI. Macro-objective: Examples- society, law, bureaucracy, architecture, technology, and language.II. Macro-subjective: Examples- culture, norms, and values.III. Micro-objective: Examples- patterns of behavior, action and interaction.IV. Micro-subjective: examples- perceptions, beliefs, and the various facets of the social construction of reality. Founding Sociologists: I. Aguste Comtea. Positivism or social physics: idea that society can be studied scientifically and logicallyi. Needed to make moral sense of society as religious authority declined. b. Comte’s 3 Historical Epistemological Stages i. Theological Stage1. Society is the result of divine willii. Metaphysical Stage1. Human Behavior governed by natural, biological instincts. iii. Scientific Stage1. Develop a social physics to understand human behaviorII. Harriet Martineau a. Authored How to Observe Morals and Manners.i. First sociology methods book Sociological Imagination III. Wright Millsa. Historical context: connecting biology and history b. Using your sociological imaginationi. Make the familiar strangeii. Question habits or customs that seem ‘natural’. Social TheorySubjective Sociologists. Founding Fathers. Theorists. I. Karl Marxa. Historical materialism i. Conflict drives social change through history1. Humans dominate environment2. Humans dominate other humansb. Critic of capitalism II. Max Weber- interpretive sociologist a. Verstenhen: “understanding” in Germani. Understanding why people do things they dob. Emphasis on subjectivity became a foundation of interpretive sociology III. Emile Durkeima. ´Considered founding practitioner of positivist sociology b. Division of labor helps to determine how social cohesion is (or is not) maintained. c. Looked at how religions held people togetherTheoriesI. Functionalisma. Identifies the roles phenomena play in keeping society working b. Society is a living organism and institutions are like vital organsc. Emphasizes the role of consensus in maintaining orderd. There is a reason why things happenII. Conflict theorya. Identifies power relationship that create different phenomena in societyb. Social inequality results from power struggles between groupsIII. Symbolic Interactionisma. Focuses on how face-to-face interactions create the social worldb. Individuals act based on symbolic meanings attached to objects and peopleTheories in action - Lets see how the sociological theories would all tackle the same questiono Why does inequality exist?Functionalism and Inequality o Inequality is necessary for a society. o Its sets the mark for possible outcomes  Examples of success and failure o Eases the division of neighbor  Not everyone is capable of being a surgeon or pilot  Rewards match the skill required for the job (Davis and Moore). - Conflict Theory and Inequality o Inequality is a sign that there is exploitation within a society and is unjust. o Furthermore, inequality perpetuates itself in many elements of out social structure. - Symbolic Interactionism and Inequality o Inequality is the end result of several social processes that are rooted in individual interactionChapter 2: Methods Expanding the Imagination- Sociological research can o Explore Social Environment Poverty in the Delta - Empirically Test Hypotheses and Theories o Do children of single mothers have lower graduation rates?- Evaluate Social Phenomenono Disaster recovery Public Sociology - Using sociology to influence social change- Social research mostly read by sociologistso But can benefit public Research Methods - Standard rules to find a casual relationship between social elements. Pg 59o Correlation: when two factors change togethero Causation: when a change in one factor causes a change in another factor o Establishing causation:  Correlation  Time order Nonspurious (reasonable) explanationo Spurious explanations are false assumptions about a correlation American Sociological Association Code of Ethics1. “Do no harm”2. Informed consent 3. Voluntary participation 4. Protected populations. ex: minors, elderly, pregnant women Quantitative - Data in numeric format - Surveys, statistical analysisQualitative - Data communicates meaning in text, graphic, or other media form- Interviews, observations A. Interviews (Qualitative) - Can be structured o Set questions - Or conversational o Loose structure o “Probe” for incomplete response B. Survey research - Questionnaireo Phone, mail, door-to-door, Internet - The cellular effect C. Participant observation- Seeks to observe social actions in practice- Not easily generalizable - Should a sociologist reveal their purpose to a group? D. Content analysis - Performed on media: books, document, video, and paintings.E. Experiments- Use highly controlled settings- Test fundamental elements of social psychologyF. When it goes wrong - Carolyn Ellis - Lived with fishermen of the Chesapeake without informed consent - Wrote about their lives negativelyChapter 3 – Defining CultureCulture= Humans-Nature - Culture – a set of beliefs, traditions, and practices o Technology by which humans dominate nature o Ideologies and symbolic representations Culture= Superior Man- Inferior Man - Ethnocentrismo Believing your own culture is superior o Viewing all cultures from your own culture’s perspective Culture= Man –


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LSU SOCL 2001 - Sociology

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