foundations of sociological thought what is sociology? comte (1798-1857) – knowledge of society...
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FOUNDATIONS OF SOCIOLOGICAL
THOUGHT
FOUNDATIONS OF SOCIOLOGICAL
THOUGHT
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What is Sociology?
• Comte (1798-1857) – Knowledge of society
• Browne (1992) – Developing a critical
understanding of society; understanding social
relations; understanding our social world
• Scientific study of human behaviour in groups
• Giddens (2001) – study of human social life,
groups and societies
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What is Sociology?
Generally therefore Sociology is seen as the
study of human behaviour in society.
There is ongoing debate as to whether Sociology
can be defined as a science – i.e. meeting the
rigid requirements of science.
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What is society?
• Society is defined as one type of social
organisation;
• Society is a social organisation in which
individuals interact with each other and in the
process patterns of behaviour become
acceptable and sustainable among them
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What is society?
• Society is a social system comprising
interconnected and interrelated parts (sub systems)
• Some suggest that society is a social organism
similar to a biological organism in that there is a
whole made up of different yet interconnected
parts all working for the benefit of the whole.
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What is society?
• Linton, quoted in Chinoy (1954) – defined
society as ‘any group of people who have
worked together long enough to get themselves
organised and think of themselves as a social
unit with well-defined limits’.
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What are beliefs?
• Beliefs are systems of meaning around which
culture is organised
• Beliefs are practical
• Statements that are held to be true
• Beliefs motivate behaviour
• Beliefs may integrate of divide societies
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What are values?
• Values are behaviours that the society considers
valuable or important enough to hold dear
• Talcott Parsons defined values as behaviours that
society considers desirable and worthwhile;
• Values influence the social conduct of members of
society
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What are norms?
• Norms are behaviours that govern social action
and which the majority of the members of
society regards as proper, right and expected.
• Norms lead to the standardisation of behaviour
within any given society
• Norms are an important form of social control
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Norms
• There are four types of norms:
- Mores
- Folkways
- Taboos
- Laws
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What are mores?
• Mores are norms that society considers vital
for its survival; what is right and wrong, moral
and immoral
• Strongly sanctioned by society. Eg. Society
insists on respect for human life. Therefore
murder is harshly punished.
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What are folkways?
• Folkways are norms governing behaviour
which the society considers acceptable but does
not insist upon. Eg Using a spoon instead of a
knife and fork at table; picking one’s nose in
public
• Folkways are relatively weak norms
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What are taboos?
• Taboos are behaviours that society finds
revolting. Eg Incest;
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What are laws?
• Laws are norms that society considers
sufficiently valuable that they are
codified/formalised through the legislative
process with specific formal sanctions/penalties
to be imposed on those who break them. Eg
Praedial larceny
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What are social institutions?
• Parsons: Social Institutions are ‘normative
patterns which define what are felt to be proper,
legitimate or expected modes of action of social
relationships’
• Eg. Family, religion, education, economy,
political subsystem, legal subsystem, mass media.
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What is social structure?
• Social structure refers to the framework of a
society
• The patterns around which society is organised
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What is culture?
• ‘The culture of a society is the way of life of
its members; the collection of ideas and habits
which they learn, share and transmit from
generation to generation’ – Ralph Linton
(1954)
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What is culture?
• ‘Culture is that complex whole which includes
knowledge, art, belief, morals, law, custom and
any other capabilities acquired by man as a
member of society’ – Tylor (1954)
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What is culture?
• Culture is learnt
• Culture is intangible
• Culture is shared
• Culture is transmitted through successive generations
• Culture is symbolic
• Culture changes over time and place
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What is a sub culture?
• A sub culture is the way of life of a segment of society that differs from that of the majority of the members of the society.
• Sub cultures are a reality in any given society
• Eg. The Rastafarians constitute a sub culture in Jamaican society. The seek to live in a manner that distinguishes them from the rest of the society. They have their own beliefs, values and norms.
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What is socialisation?
• Socialisation is the process by which the
culture of a society are transmitted through to
successive generations
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The agents of socialisation?
• The Agents of Socialisation are:
- Family
- Peer Group
- School
- Religion/Church
- Mass Media
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Types of socialisation?
• Formal socialisation – deliberate
• Informal socialisation – unconscious
• Primary socialisation – the individual and primary
relations – Family
• Secondary socialisation - the individual and
secondary relations – the school; peer group
• Tertiary socialisation – the work force and tertiary education
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Status
• Status refers to the social honour/social respect
accorded to an individual in society.
Ascribed status – allocated at birth; has nothing
to do with the individual per se
Achieved status – allocated based on the
performance/achievement of the individual
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Roles
• Roles are the behaviours, obligations and
privileges associated with a status essentially
defining the way an individual is expected to
behave in given situations.
• Father, mother, teacher, preacher are some
of the roles in society
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Roles
• Role Conflict refers to situations where an
individual having more than one status in
society finds him/herself performing
different roles.
• Role Strain refers to situations where an
individual comes under pressure because of the
demands of different roles attached to one status
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Groups
• Groups are ‘two or more persons linked by ties
of mutual dependence and by a set of norms
prescribing expected ways of behaving toward
each other’ Study Guide
• Groups are individuals who share a sense of
common identity and belonging
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Types of Groups
• Primary Group – ‘we’ - Family, close friends, peer
group
• Secondary Group – larger, anonymous, impersonal
• In-Group – Members have strong sense of loyalty
• Out-Group – A group to which one feels a sense of
antagonism
• Reference Group –used as a standard for comparison
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Community
• Community refers to a cluster of people –
individuals, homes, places of work.
• A set of primary and secondary groups
responding to the basic needs of its members
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Gemeinschaft (Community)
• Ferdinand Tonnies defined Gemeinschaft as a
society in which the majority of social
relationships established are based on personal
ties of friendship and kinship
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Gesellschaft (Association)
• Tonnies defined Gesellschaft as a society where
the dominant social relationships are based on
formal, impersonal and specialised
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Sociology and Psychology
• Psychology deals with the individual
personality – how the mind is shaped and
works.
• It offers explanations of emotions, thoughts,
beliefs and actions from the vantage point of
the individual
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Sociology and Political Science
• Political science deals with the allocation of resources
in society – who gets what;
• Political science relates to the power relations in
society; what kinds of power ; how it is distributed
• Sociology investigates the relationship between
political structure and social life/behaviour
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Sociology and History
• History focuses on individual contributions
and causes of events within specific social
context
• Sociology seeks explanations for the way social
life has changed through time
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Sociology and Economics
• Economics examines production, distribution,
trade, consumption patterns and the social
institutions that organise these in society
• Addresses wealth creation; poverty
• Sociology examines the impact of the economy
on social behaviour in society
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Sociology and Social Work
• Social Work focuses on micro issues – how
one individual relates to another;
• Focuses on resolving social problems –
behavioural change; social reform
• Sociology provides the information – causes of
behaviour – that is used by social workers
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Sociology and Anthropology
• Anthropology focuses on simpler societies;
adopts a holistic view as opposed to
sociology’s focus on social institutions
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Sociology and Demography
• Demography refers to the study of population;
its movement; trends etc
• Sociology utilises the data to determine the
causes of the relationships established in the
society
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Sociological Imagination
C Wright Mills coined the concept of the
Sociological Imagination
• Historical Sensibility – reviewing what has
gone before; reviewing the changes in society
through the ages
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Sociological Imagination
• Anthropological Insight – reviewing our
perception of life today as being superior to
what obtained before;
• Realisation of the diversity of human behaviour
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Sociological Imagination
• Critical of the present – ‘be conscious of
alternative futures that are potentially open to
us’
•