Fathers or the Pioneering Sociologists PDF

Founders or the Pioneering Sociologist  Auguste Comte Considered the “Father of Sociology” Positivism: a way of understanding society based on Science Society operates in its own laws, much like the physical world Knowledge is...

Founders or the Pioneering Sociologist  Auguste Comte Considered the “Father of Sociology” Positivism: a way of understanding society based on Science Society operates in its own laws, much like the physical world Knowledge is what we can know for sure or of which we can be “positive” Social Dynamics/Static ; Study of how a society changes and stays the same Fathers or the Pioneering  Karl Marx Social Conflict : Struggle between segments of the society over valued resources Class Conflict Struggle between the “proletariat” (workers selling their labor for wages”) and the “bourgeoise” (owners of the means of production) Believed that the proletariat would eventually rise up and overthrow the bourgeoisie Rejected the idea of Individualism False Consciousness: False explanation of social problems as the shortcomings of individuals rather than as the flaws of the society (the system creates problems , not individuals the Fathers or the Pioneering  Emile Durkheim He was the most influential scholar in the academic and theoretical development of sociology. He laid down some of the fundamental principles, methods, concepts and theories of sociology; he defined sociology as the study of social facts. By social facts, he meant the patterns of behavior that characterize a social group in a given society. They should be studied objectively. The job of a sociologist, therefore, is to uncover social facts and then to explain them using other social facts. Some regard Durkheim as the first sociologist to apply statistical methods to the study of social phenomena. Fathers or the Pioneering  Max Weber Weber was another prominent social scientist. According to him, sociology is the scientific study of human social action. Social action refers to any “action oriented to influence or influenced by another person or persons. It is not necessary for more than one person to be physically present for action to be regarded as social action….” He argued that a sociologist must aim at what are called subjective meanings, the ways in which people interpret their own behavior or the meanings people attach their own behavior Fathers or the Pioneering  Herbert Spencer English Sociologist Society is like the human body-parts make up the whole Just as a heart and eyes help body function, social institutions(religion, education etc.) help society function Social Darwinism “Survival of the fittest” The “strongest” members of the society should not help the “weaker” members Rich deserve to be rich, poor deserve to be poor – creates a stronger society Fathers or the Pioneering  Harriet Martineau At a time when women were greatly stereotyped and denied access to influential socio-political and academic arena, it is interesting to ha a female academic to be numbered among the pioneering sociologists. Harriet was interested in social issues and studied both in the United States and England. She came across with the writings of Comte and read them. She was an active advocate of the abolition of slavery and she wrote on many crosscutting issues such as racial and gender relations, and she traveled widely. She helped popularize the ideas and writings of Comte by translating them into English Fathers or the Pioneering Branches of Sociology  Theoretical Sociology Macro deals with a larger aspect of life whereas micro deals with minute aspects of life. They are complementary to each other. Functional: This perspective accounts for maximum harmony among the people so that our society does not lie in chaos. Interaction: Is a way of social communication through ideas, perceptions, dressing etc. Through social interaction, a society is a frame in groups. People go with their intuition regarding another person behavior which solely depends on their interaction. Conflict: Whenever more than one person’s perception is involved, the conflict will take place. Human beings cannot agree with another person every time. They will have a different approach and ideas to a particular thing. Branches of Sociology  Historical Sociology This branch of sociology studies about every historical aspect of any event. A new civilization or any war has some effects on human beings and society. It is the study of ancient, medieval and modern historical aspects related to Sociology Branches of Sociology  Sociology A person’s knowledge is shaped and affected by the environment, thus the society plays an important role in mending ideologies of a person. A person is under the influence of culture, social and political norms. Branches of Sociology  Sociology A crime can be stopped if someone knows how a criminal’s mind works. There is a basic trait in every criminal which is studied under this branch of sociology. It accounts for the government, polices, crime branches, criminal records, and their punishments. What kind of crime, how that crime and why that crime occurred are fundamental things which we need to study under this branch. Branches of Sociology  Religion Sociology Sections or subgroups of society follow a particular religion which imparts an effect on them. For example, a Hindu person does not touch non-veg during Durga Pooja but a Muslim person celebrates Bakrid by meat cutting. Society is governed by the religion they follow. Branches of Sociology  Economy Sociology Every person has a different economic status in society. Due to the different economy, consumption of any product differs. This studies the rate of production of any product or growth rate of any product. Many factors are there to affect the Economy of a society like the need of a product among communities. Branches of Sociology  Rural Sociology Rural setup is more prominent than urban. It is obtained from researchers that the population of rural areas is more than urban areas. Their way of living, ideologies, beliefs, way of tackling problems is studied under this branch. Branches of Sociology  Urban Sociology Just like Rural Sociology, Urban Sociology is also studied as a branch. It is equally important to learn urban people lifestyle, values, and habits. There are many things which are occurring in urban areas at a rapid rate like robbery, corruption, unemployment. Branches of Sociology  Political Sociology The political scenario of any place determines growth at present and in the coming years. A country’s situation can be changed according to the ruling party motives and work (either productive or destructive). This branch deals with political party summits, new rules, and their effect on society. Branches of Sociology  Demography Sociology Sociology is a study of society and society is made up of a population. Demography determines the population rate. It deals with every aspect related to the population like the number of people residing in a particular area, increment or decrement of the population in past years. Branches of Sociology  Industrial Sociology People’s employment is directly related to industries. Thus, it becomes important to have information about industries relation with employees, industrial output, the interaction between employees and managers. Branches of Sociology  Family Sociology Families are the basic structure of society. Different families offer different values and upbringing to their child. In this branch, we study different methods of parenting found in families. How different families can bring different changes in a child is studied under this branch. Branches of Sociology  Education Sociology Education brings out the best in a human being. This branch studies different educational institutions in various places. It studies how education changes a person’s perspective towards his/ her life. Also, it studies how much employment rate is increased after educational activities. Branches of Sociology Methods used in Research  Quantitative methods focus on measuring quantity of information: terms such as prevalence, scope, percentage, frequency, magnitude, etc. are very important. Qualitative methods focus on depth and quality of information. The complex, detailed and sensitive aspects; belief, attitudinal and knowledge dimensions etc. are usually studied by qualitative methods. Primary data are firsthand and original information; the researcher firsthand collects them. They are collected by the sociology themselves during their own research using research tools such as experiment, survey, questionnaire, interviews and observation (Chapman, 2000). Methods used in Research Secondary data are those which are already collected by someone else found in various sources as documents or archives. They include official statistical documents, mass media sources (such as electronic media – radio, television, films, etc.; and print media such as newspapers, magazines, journals, posters, brochures, leaflets, sign broads, etc.) Inductive method is a method by which the scientist first makes observation and collects data, based on which he or she formulates hypothesis and theories. In deductive approach, the researcher attempts to derive specific assertions and claims from a general theoretical principle. Methods used in Research  Methods of Data Collection in Sociology  Surveys: This involves sampling, impersonal data collections, and sophisticated statistical analysis. There are three types of survey research: Cross sectional survey, which aims to find out what opinions research participants across sections of society have about a certain phenomena at a given point of time his survey represents fixed reflections of one moment in time. Longitudinal survey is conducted on the same type of people over long period of time, as long as sometimes 20 to 30 years. This type provides us with a moving picture of the changes over time in each area. The third type is called Panel surveys, which are alternative versions of longitudinal surveys. It usually lasts shorter period of time and asks questions of panel members on a frequent basis. Methods of Data Collection in  Experimentation: This quantitative method is sometimes used in sociology. Sociologists conduct experimental studies, following the procedures and principles of experimentation. This is done usually to explore cause and effect relationship between one and the other social phenomena. What causes what? What is the effect of one social phenomenon on the other? Key Informant Interview: This is a qualitative method in which a knowledgeable person in study site or community is contacted and interviewed by the researcher or data collector. Methods of Data Collection in  Focus Group Discussion: This is a form of qualitative data collection method in which intends to make use of the explicit interaction dynamic among group members which may yield important information on certain topic. Case Study: This method involves investigating a certain issue as a case taking longer time and investigating the phenomenon in depth. Observation: This qualitative method involves collecting data on social phenomena by carefully observing the social processes, events, activities, behaviors, actions, etc., they take place. One of the key procedures in these techniques is called participant observation, the active involvement in community life while studying it. A variant of this method is non-participant observation – collecting data without participating in what the informants or the subjects do. Methods of Data Collection in