Sociology Unit 1 Flashcards
(24 cards)
Emmanuel-Joseph Sieyes
First coined the term sociology but did not create the discipline
August Comte
- considered the Father of Sociology
- he called the scientific study of social patterns positivism
Karl Marx
- conflict theory
- coauthored the communist manifesto
- DISAGREED with positivism
Emilie Durkheim
- FOUNDER of Structural Functionalism
- established the first European department of sociology
- believed that sociologists could study objective “social facts”
Sociology Definition
the systematic study of society and social patterns
Social Imagination
the ability to understand how your own past relates to that of other people, as well auto history in general and societal structures in particular
Figuration
the idea that the individual and society are inseparable
Positivism
the scientific study of social patterns (this system prefers quantitative research methods)
Quantitative Sociology
uses statistical methods such as surveys with large numbers of participants. Researchers analyze data using statistical techniques to see if they can uncover patterns of human behaviour.
Antipositivism
the view that social researchers should strive for subjectivity as they worked to represent social processes, culture norms, and societal values.
Antipositivism led to research methods whose aim was not to generalize of predict, but to systematically gain an in-depth understanding of social worlds (this system prefers qualitative methods)
Qualitative Sociology
seeks to understand human behaviour by learning about it through in-depth interviews, focus groups, and analysis of content sources (books, journals, popular media, etc.)
Macro-Level Theories (aka Grand Level)
attempts to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental questions such as why societies form and why they change
Functionalism and Conflict Theory are macro-level theories
Micro-level Theories
the study of specific relationships between individuals or small groups
symbolic interactionism
Paradigms
philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them
Structural Functionalism
a theoretical approach that sees society as a structure with interrelated parts designed to meet the biological and social needs of individuals that make up society
DURKHEIM
Social Facts
the laws, morals, values, religious beliefs, customs, fashions, rituals and all of the cultural rules that govern life
Function
the part a recurrent activity plays in the social life as a whole and the contribution it makes to the structural community
Manifest Function
the intended consequences (outcome) of a social process
Latent Function
the unintended (but not negative) outcome of a social process
Dysfunction
social patterns that have undesirable consequences for the operation of society
Conflict Theory
a theory that looks at society as a competition for limited resources
MARX/WEBER
Symbolic Interactionism Theory
a theoretical perspective through which scholars examine the relationship of individuals within their society by studying their communication (language and symbols)
GEORGE MEAD
what’s the german word for “deep understanding” and who is associated with it
verstehen
max weber
who is associated with conflict theory
karl marx
