The Sociological Perspective



The Sociological Perspective

Sociological Perspective

Peter Berger: “seeing the general in the particular”

possible to identify general patterns in the behavior of particular people

C. Wright Mills: “sociological imagination”

understand the connection between “history” and “biography”

awareness of the relationship between private experience and (external influences in the) wider society

our experiences in group interactions influence our perceptions of social reality and our reaction to it (social behavior)

Benefits of the Sociological Perspective

helps us assess the truth of “common sense” assumptions

prompts us to assess both the opportunities and constraints that characterize our lives

empowers us to participate actively in our society

helps us recognize human variety and confront the challenges of living in a diverse world

Importance of a Global Perspective

societies are increasingly interconnected

many problems we face are more serious elsewhere

thinking globally is a good way to learn more about ourselves

Development of Sociology

origins in Europe during mid-1800s

Industrial Revolution (urbanization, rapid social change)

colonization

success of natural sciences (positivism)

expansion in America at the turn of the century

immigration

emphasis on social reform

applied sociology

public policy

evaluation research

Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology

sociology is a multiple paradigm science

a paradigm is a perspective or basic image of society that guides thinking and research

functional perspective (focuses on macro level)

sees society as complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability; maintain equilibrium

conflict perspective (focuses on macro level)

sees society as arena of inequality that generates conflict and change; groups competing for scarce resources

symbolic interaction perspective (micro level)

sees society as product of the everyday interactions between individuals; how people use symbols to develop and share views of the world

Sociological Investigation

How do we “know” what is “truth”?

ways of knowing or “kinds of truth”

faith

wisdom of experts

general agreement among people

empirical evidence (information we can verify with our senses)

Science is a logical system based on direct, systematic observations.

Research Model

selecting a topic

defining the problem

reviewing the literature

formulating a hypothesis

choosing a research method

collecting the data

analyzing the data

drawing conclusions

sharing the results

Research Methods

Henslin (text)

surveys

participant observation

secondary analysis

documents

unobtrusive measures

experiments

another method of categorization

experiments

laboratory

field

surveys

interviews

questionnaires

observational studies

participant

detached

secondary analysis

govt. statistics

previous research data

Important Concepts in Research

variable: a concept whose value changes from case to case

measurement: the process of determining the value of a variable in a specific case

operational definitions of variables specify exactly what will be measured in assigning a value to a variable

reliability: consistency in measurement

validity: measuring precisely what one intends to measure

relationships among variables

cause & effect: change in one variable causes change in another (independent, dependent)

correlation: two or more variables change together

controlling for intervening variables

population: people who are the focus of the research (target group you wish to study)

sample: part of the population that represents the whole

random sample, stratified random sample

questionnaire: series of written questions that a researcher presents to subjects

closed-ended, open-ended

interview: series of questions a researcher administers in person to respondents

rapport

Research Ethics

use of data

openness

honesty

no invasion of privacy

informed consent

no harm to participants

avoid deception

Interplay of Theory and Research

Theory and research are interdependent.

Inductive reasoning transforms specific observations into general theory.

Theory is used to interpret research data and research data is used to generate theory .

Deductive reasoning transforms general theory into specific hypotheses suitable for scientific research.

Theory generates questions which need to be answered.

Objectivity vs. Subjectivity

These concepts are best understood as points on a continuum, not mutually exclusive categories.

Sociologists minimize bias and personal value judgments in the collection and analysis of data by:

adhering to the scientific method

openly stating their perspective (and sources of research funding)

reliance on replication or repetition of research by others

A.S.A. code of ethics

critical review by peers

Limitations of Sociological Research

Human behavior is too complex to allow sociologists to predict precisely any individual’s actions.

Because humans respond to their surroundings, the mere presence of a researcher may affect the behavior being studied.

Hawthorne effect

Social patterns change constantly; what is true in one time or place may not hold true in another.

Because sociologists are part of the social world they study, being value free when conducting social research is difficult.

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