Introduction to Sociology
Chapter 1
what is sociology?
Sociology can be simply defined as ‘the scientific study of
human life, social groups, whole societies, and the human
world as such… Its subject matter is our own behavior as
social beings in relationships with many other people. The
scope of sociology is extremely wide, ranging from the
analysis of passing encounters between individuals on the
street to the investigation of crime, international relations,
and global forms of terrorism.
Sociological Imagination
• The application of imaginative thought to the asking and answering of
sociological questions. Someone using the sociological imagination “thinks
himself away” from the familiar routines of daily life.
• Sociological imagination is a concept coined by sociologist C. Wright Mills in
1959. It refers to the ability to understand the connection between personal
experiences and larger social forces. Essentially, it is the ability to see how
individual lives are shaped by societal structures, historical contexts, and
cultural influences.
Basic concepts
Social Construction: An idea or practice that a group
of people agree exists. It is maintained over time by
people taking its existence for granted.
Social Order: Self-interest, norms, beliefs & values
Agency & structure: free will and determinism
Social Change: how industrialization and urbanization has
specified individual’s role in society (Durkheim), Economic
transformation (Marx),
Influence of massive scale organization (Weber)
AUGUSTE COMTE
• Auguste Comte (1798–1857):
• French philosopher
• Scientific methods could be applied to
the study of human behavior and society,
and this new field could produce
knowledge of society based on scientific
evidence. His view is called Positivism.
• Social physics.
Emile Durkheim
• Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) is known as one of the
"fathers" of sociology for his attempts to differentiate
sociology from philosophy and psychology.
• This initiative is seen in the two key themes that run
through Durkheim's work: the importance of the social
over the person, and the notion that culture can be
observed scientifically.
• Especially Durkheim's definition of social facts
distinguishes sociology from philosophy and psychology.
• To have a scientific basis, sociologists must develop
methodological principles to guide their research.
Emile Durkheim
• Social change is the basis of the division of labor.
• Social Solidarity: Durkheim refers Social
Solidarity as the intensity of the cohesion of
attachments which link the individuals to their
society.
• Mechanical solidarity: Mechanical solidarity is
found in traditional, simpler societies where
shared beliefs, values, and experiences create
social cohesion.
• Organic Solidarity: According to Durkheim, the
social cohesion that results from the various
parts of a society functioning as an integrated
Durkheim’s view on Anomie
• Anomie: According to Durkheim, refers to the loss of
direction felt in a society when social control of
individual behavior has become ineffective. Often,
the state of anomie occurs during a time of
profound social change, when people have lost
their sense of purpose or direction. In a period of
anomie, people are so confused and unable to
cope with the new social environment that they
may resort to suicide.
Division of Labor and Social Change
• Durkheim’s analysis of social change was based on the
development of the division of labor; he saw it as gradually
replacing religion as the basis of social cohesion and
providing organic solidarity to modern societies. He argued
that as the division of labor expands, people become more
dependent on one another because each person needs goods
and services that those in other occupations supply.
• It is defined as the specialization of work tasks by means of
which different occupations are combined within a production
system.
Division of labor Social Change
Karl Marx
• The materialist conception of history: social
change is prompted by economic influence.
• Capitalism is the main reason for class different
between the bourgeoisie class (ruling class)
and the proletariat (working class).
• Communal ownership and a more equal society.
• Class consciousness and false consciousness.
• Communism
Max weber
• German Sociologist Max Weber believed economic
factor is important, but ideas and values influence
social change.
• The main dynamic of modern development is the
rationalization of social and economic life.
• Weber focused on why Western societies developed so
differently from other societies. He also emphasized
the importance of cultural ideas and values on social
change.
• Bureaucracy: A type of organization marked by a
clear hierarchy of authority and the existence of
written rules of procedure and staffed by full-time,
Max weber
• In his “Protestant Ethics and Spirit of Capitalism” he argued argued that
religion was not necessarily a conservative force; on the contrary,
religiously inspired movements have often produced dramatic social
transformations. Thus, Protestantism, particularly Puritanism, according
to Weber, was the source of the capitalist outlook found in the modern
West. Their drive to succeed, which helped initiate Western economic
development, was originally prompted by a desire to serve God. Material
success was considered a sign of divine favor.
• They invest and reinvest their wealth in their enterprises, rather than
spend it on personal consumption. Such “worldly asceticism,” as Weber
called it, resulted in capital accumulation— the hallmark of a successful
capitalist system.