The Sociological Perspective - Introduction to Sociology - Lecture Notes, Study notes of Introduction to Sociology

Download The Sociological Perspective - Introduction to Sociology - Lecture Notes and more Study notes Introduction to Sociology in PDF only on Docsity! 1 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 Docsity.com 2 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 Docsity.com