Lesson 1 Flashcards
(16 cards)
Definition of sociology
The scientific study of society and human behavior through a broader social context
How did the American and French revolutions give way to sociology
The abandonment of monotheistic gov and the concepts of inalienable rights and the scientific method led people to ask “why?” Much more
Who suggested the scientific method be applied to the social world and defined sociology?
A guste comte
Positivism
The scientific method plus the study of the social world
Who believed sociologists should NOT guide social reform due to the natural “survival of the fittest” principle (believed society would naturally get rid of those who slow it down)
Herbert Spencer
Who believed that the 2 conflicting classes were the central force of social change (economic struggle)
Karl marx
Bourgeoisie
Owns the means of production (the rich)
Proletariat
Does not own the means of production (working class/poor/average people)
Who coined social integration and wanted to show how outside forces affect people’s behavior through studying suicide demographics
Emile Durkheim
Social integration
The degree to which people are tied to social groups ( think: single, Protestant, male. Very little ties to social groups)
Who saw religion to be the central force of social change (not the economy)
Max Weber (vey-ber)
Verstehen
To understand. Putting yourself in another person’s shoes
Symbolic interactionism
Society is composed of symbols with attached meaning
Replication
The need to repeat studies to compare changes
What did Weber believe about personal values + sociology
He believed that the values of sociologists must remain separate from their research
Social facts
Recurring behavior of a social group makes a social fact
