Sociology: Study of Groups and Societies

The scientific and systematic study of groups and group interactions, societies and social interactions, from small and personal groups to very large groups.

A group of people who live in a defined geographic area, who interact with one another, and who share a common culture.

Small groups and individual interactions.

The group’s shared practices, values, and beliefs.

By examining the influence of society and history on individuals' lives and experiences.

Treating an abstract concept as though it has a real, material existence.

Sociologists view personal decisions as not existing in a vacuum, but as influenced by cultural patterns, social forces, and societal pressures.

Examples include the 'Stop and Frisk' policy, emergence of new political factions, and the influence of Twitter on everyday communication.

The wider culture influences a person's decision to marry by affecting the social acceptability of marriage relative to the person's circumstances.

Sociologists focus on studying the ways children influence and are influenced by new family patterns, as well as the changing needs for education, housing, and healthcare.

The 'typical' family in past decades consisted of married parents living with their unmarried children. Today, there is an increase in unmarried couples, same-sex couples, single-parent and single-adult households, as well as expanded households with extended family members living together.

Cultural patterns refer to the ways in which social forces and influences put pressure on people to select one choice over another.

Studying the behavior of large groups of people helps sociologists identify general patterns and societal pressures that influence individual choices.

Employment and economic conditions play a role in families by influencing their views on marriage and family, as well as affecting their living arrangements and child-rearing choices.

The awareness described by Wright Mills is an understanding of the relationship between a person's behavior and experience and the wider culture that shaped the person's choices and perceptions.