Gain's course 4 Cadi Ayyad

The Sociological Theory

Prof. Gain

Introduction to Humanities. Prof. Gain

ReminderThe Sociological Perspective:

Sociology is the systematic study of human society; its point of view is

Howard Becker defined sociology as the study of people “doing things together.”

This reminds us that society and the individual are inherently connected, and each depends on the other.

Sociologists study this link: how society affects the individual and how the individual affects society.


◦Sociologists identify general social patterns in the behaviour of particular individuals.

◦ Individuals are unique, but◦Society acts differently on various categories

of people. (Cont’d)


to see the particular in the

general

◦Giving up the idea that human behaviour is simply a matter of what people decide to do.

◦Understanding that society shapes our lives.

(Cont’d)


to see the strange in the

familiar

to see the personal choice in the social

context

◦Emile Durkheim’s research on suicide showed that some categories are more likely to commit suicide than others. Society affects even our most personal choices.

◦More likely to commit suicide: males, Protestants, wealthy, and unmarried.

◦Less likely to commit suicide: females, Jews, Catholics, the poor, and married.


Benefits of the Sociological Perspective

1. Helps us assess the truth of “common sense”

2. Helps us assess both opportunities and constraints in our lives

3. Empowers us to be active participants in our society

4. Helps us to recognize diversity and live in a diverse world


Sociological TheoryTheory: a statement of how and

why facts are relatedTheoretical paradigm: a set of

fundamental assumptions that guides thinking and research◦Structural-functionalist◦Social-conflict◦Symbolic-interactionist


Structural Functionalism

The functionalist perspective has two primary components.

First all of society’s social institutions (parts) are interrelated and are designed to maintain stability in society (the whole) in order to meet systems needs.

If society is to function smoothly, its various parts must work together in harmony.

Structural Functionalism

Second key element of functionalism centers on the belief that there exists a general consensus on values (among society’s members).

Thus, in order for any social system (society, organization, family, or personal relationship with others) to remain intact, there must be some commitment to general values, issues of morality, and goals.

Types of functions:Manifest functions are intended and recognized.

One of the manifest functions of schools to teach math skills.

Latent functions are unintended and unrecognized. A latent function of schools is the development of close friendships.

Dysfunctions are the elements that have negative consequences. Dysfunction may threaten the capacity of a society to adapt and survive. Examples of dysfunctions of education in the United States are bullying, gangs and violence.

How does Structural functionalism explain social change?

Functionalists see the parts of society as a integrated whole. A change in one part of a society leads to changes in other parts.

Functionalism assumes that societies tend to return to a state of stability after some upheaval has occurred.

A society may change over time, but functionalists believe that it will be return to a stable state. It will do this by changing in such a way that society will be similar what it was before.

Social-Conflict PerspectiveThe conflict perspective recognizes that

society is comprised of many different parts but insists that these parts are in competition with each other over scarce resources.

Conflict theories emphasize the role of power and the inequality found systematically throughout society.

Conflict theorists argue that there is no true consensus and that instead, society’s norms and values are those of the dominant group.

Social-Conflict Perspective

The power (dominant) groups, because of their greater resources, are able to dictate the manner in which society is run and maintained.

The people who lack power become disenchanted and seek change.

The power group seeks to maintain its power (the status quo) which inevitably results in social conflict.

How does the social-conflict perspective explain social change?

Many conflicting groups exist in society. As the balance of power among these groups shifts, change occurs.

For example, the women’s movement is attempting to change the balance of power between men and women.

Symbolic Interactionism

Is essentially a social-psychological perspective that forces primarily on the issue of self, self-esteem, and small group interactions.

Among the primary tenets of symbolic Interactionism is the core belief that individuals, who are capable of communicating with each other through the use of symbols (e.g. language and gestures), are affected by language and that language helps to shape their perceptions of events.

Symbolic Interactionism It is primarily concerned with the development

of the self and the presentation of the self.Once we learn the meanings of symbols, we

base our behavior (interaction) on them.

If people in a group do not share the same meanings for a given symbol, confusion results.


Symbolic Interactionism

We use the meanings of symbols to imagine how others will respond to our behavior. Through this capability, we can have “internal conversations” with ourselves. These conversations enable us to visualize- how other will respond to us before we act. This is crucial because we guide our interactions with people according to the behavior we think others expect of us and we expect-of others. Meanwhile, these others are also having internal conversations. The interaction (action on each other) that follows is therefore symbolic interaction.

the meanings of symbols

“internal conversations”

guide our interactions

Critical Evaluation of Paradigms

Structural-functional◦ Assumes “natural” order, ignores inequalities of

social class, race and gender, focuses on stability at the expense of conflict

Social-conflict◦ Ignores how shared values and mutual

interdependence unify society ◦ If it pursues political goals, it cannot be scientific

Symbolic-interaction◦ Ignores larger social structures, effects of culture,

factors such as class, gender, ethnicity, and race


Three scholars responsible for shaping sociology into

relatively coherent discipline

Karl Marx (1818-1883)

Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)

Max Weber (1864-1920)

Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)

Believed individuals were exclusively the products of their social environment and that society shapes people in every possible way

Focused on forces that hold society together-functions of different parts.

FunctionalistStudied suicide

◦ People committed suicide because they were members of different social groups that were influenced by a variety of social factors

Karl Marx (1818-1883)

Looked for ways to improve human condition

History of societies could be seen in class conflict◦Bourgeoisie-owners and controllers of the

means of production (capitalists)◦Proletariat-makes up the mass of workers

Developed the conflict theory

Max Weber (1864-1920)

Studied social actions.Believed that conflict between social

classes determined many things in society.Focused on individual meaning people

attached to the world around them.Viewed capitalism as the source of control,

exploitation, and alienation of human beings

Recent ParadigmsFeminist paradigm: The study of

women’s lives◦Micro: reproduction of gender through

language and emotion management◦Macro: constraints and forms of

resistance in women’s livesPostmordernist paradigm: Anti-

theory and –methods◦Deconstructs and demystifies

assumptions, hierarchies of knowledge and ideological motivation


Levels of AnalysisWe can study society from different

levels:Microsociology is the level of analysis

that studies face-to-face and small-group interactions in order to understand how they affect the larger patterns and institutions of society.

Microsociology focuses on small-scale issues.◦ Ex: Symbolic Interactionism

Introduction to Sociology: What is Sociology? 24

Levels of Analysis (cont)Macrosociology is the level of

analysis that studies large-scale social structures in order to determine how they affect the lives of groups and individuals.

Macrosociology focuses on large-scale issues.◦Ex: Functionalism, Conflict Theory


How We Use Levels of Analysis

Pam Fishman took a micro-level approach to studying issues of power in male–female relationships.

She found that in conversation, women ask nearly three times as many questions as men do, perhaps because a speaker is much more likely to ask a question if he or she does not expect to get a response by simply making a statement.


How We Use Levels of Analysis

Christine Williams took a macro-level approach to studying women in male-dominated occupations and men in female-dominated occupations.

She found that women in male-dominated positions faced limits on their advancement (the glass ceiling), while men in female-dominated positions experienced rapid rates of advancement (the glass escalator).


Levels of Analysis (cont)When conducting research,

methodology involves the process by which one gathers and analyzes data.

Quantitative research translates the social world into numbers that can be treated mathematically; this type of research often tries to find cause-and-effect relationships.

Any type of social statistic is an example of quantitative research.


Levels of Analysis (cont)Qualitative research works with non-

numerical data such as texts, fieldnotes, interview transcripts, photographs, and tape recordings; this type of research often tries to understand how people make sense of their world.

Participant observation, in which the researcher actually takes part in the social world he or she studies, is an example of qualitative research.


One way to gain a sociological perspective is to attempt to create in ourselves a sense of culture shock, which is a sense of disorientation that occurs when one enters a radically new social or cultural environment.


culture shock

beginner’s mind

Bernard McGrane suggests that people wanting to use a sociological perspective should utilize a beginner’s mind, which means approaching the world without preconceptions in order to see things in a new way.


Starting Your Sociological Journey

An important distinction can be made between the everyday actor, who has the practical knowledge needed to get through daily life, but not necessarily the scientific or technical knowledge of how things work,


Starting Your Sociological Journey

and the social analyst, who studies the social world in a systematic, comprehensive, coherent, clear, and consistent manner in the pursuit of scientific knowledge.

Both approaches have strengths and weaknesses.


Take Away PointsHumans cannot be understood apart

from the social context they live in (society, culture and time + place)

The world around us profoundly shapes and influences who we are, how we behave and even how/what we think.

It is the job of the sociologist to understand how this process works and to what effect.


Lesson Quiz

1. Which of the following is NOT an example of a social science?a. biologyb. political sciencec. psychologyd. economics


Lesson Quiz2. Sociology is defined as:

a. the scientific study of humans.b. the study of ancient cultures and

behavior.c. the study of how the brain works.d. the study of human society and

social behavior.


Lesson Quiz3. __________ is the level of analysis that

studies face-to-face and small-group interactions in order to understand how those interactions affect the larger patterns and institutions of society.

a. Microsociologyb. Macrosociologyc. Sociologyd. Social science


Lesson Quiz

5. A sense of disorientation that occurs when you enter a radically new social or cultural environment is called:a. cultural mind.b. culture shakes.c. cultural fear.d. culture shock.


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