Chapter01 Review

The Sociological Perspective
The systematic study of human society
Sociology, 12th Edition by John Macionis Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
What Is Sociology?
...The systematic study of human society
Systematic
Scientific discipline that focuses attention on patterns of behavior
Human society
Group behavior is primary focus; how groups influence individuals and vice versa
At the heart of sociology

The sociological perspective which offers a unique view of society
Why Take Sociology?

Education and liberal arts
Well-rounded as a person Social expectations
More appreciation for diversity

The global village Domestic social marginality
Enhanced life chances

Micro and macro understanding Increase social potentials
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 live in a diverse world
Importance of Global Perspective

Where we live makes a great difference in shaping our lives Societies throughout the world are increasingly interconnected through technology and economics. Many problems that we face in the United States are more serious elsewhere. Thinking globally is a good way to learn more about ourselves.
Global Map 1.1 Womens Childbearing in Global Perspective Is childbearing simply a matter of personal choice? A look around the world shows that it is not. In general, women living in poor countries have many more children than women in rich nations. Can you point to some of the reasons for this global disparity? In simple terms, such differences mean that if you had been born into another society (whether you are female or male), your life might be quite different from what it is now.
Source: Data from Hamilton, Martin, & Ventura (2006). Map projection from Peters Atlas of the World (1990).
The Sociological Perspective

Peter Berger
Seeing the general in the particular
Sociologists identify general social patterns in the behavior of particular individuals.
Seeing the strange in the familiar

Giving up the idea that human behavior is simply a matter of what people decide to do Understanding that society shapes our lives
Durkheims Study of Suicide

Emile Durkheims research showed that society affects even our most personal choices.
More likely to commit: male Protestants who were wealthy and unmarried Less likely to commit: male Jews and Catholics who were poor and married
One of the basic findings: Why?

The differences between these groups had to do with social integration. Those with strong social ties had less of a chance of committing suicide.
National Map 1.1 Suicide rates across the United States This map shows which states have high, average, and low suicide rates. Look for patterns. By and large, high suicide rates occur where people live far apart from one another. More densely populated states have low suicide rates. Do these data support or contradict Durkheims theory of suicide? Why?
Source: Hoyert et al. (2006).
Figure 1.1 Rate of Death by Suicide, by Race and Sex, for the United States. Suicide rates are higher for white people than for black people and higher for men than for women. Rates indicate the number of deaths by suicide for every 100,000 people in each category for 2003.
Source: Youert et al. (2006).
C. Wright Mills Sociological Imagination

The power of the sociological perspective lies not just in changing individual lives but in transforming society. Society, not peoples personal failings, is the cause of social problems. The sociological imagination transforms personal problems into public issues.
The Origins of Sociology

One of the youngest of academic disciplines, sociology has its origins in powerful social forces. Social Change
Industrialization, urbanization, political revolution, and a new awareness of society
Science
3-Stages: Theological, Metaphysical & Scientific PositivismA way of understanding based on science
Gender & Race

These important contributions have been pushed to the margins of society.
Sociological Theory
Theory: a statement of how and why facts are related
Explains social behavior to the real world
Theoretical paradigm: A set of fundamental assumptions that guides thinking

Structural-functional Social-conflict Symbolic-interaction
Structural-Functional Paradigm
The basics
A macro-level orientation, concerned with broad patterns that shape society as a whole Views society as a complex system whose parts work together to promote solidarity and stability
Key elements:
Social structure refers to any relatively stable patterns of social behavior found in social institutions. Social function refers to the consequences for the operation of society as a whole.
Whos Who in the StructuralFunctional Paradigm

Auguste Comte Emile Durkheim
Importance of social integration during times of rapid change Helped establish sociology as a discipline Compared society to the human body Manifest functions are recognized and intended consequences. Latent functions are unrecognized and unintended consequences. Social dysfunctions are undesirable consequences.
Herbert Spencer
Robert K. Merton
Social-Conflict Paradigm
The basics:
A macro-oriented paradigm Views society as an arena of inequality that generates conflict and social change
Key elements:
Society is structured in ways to benefit a few at the expense of the majority. Factors such as race, sex, class, and age are linked to social inequality. Dominant group vs. disadvantaged group relations
Whos Who in the Social-Conflict Paradigm

Karl Marx
The importance of social class in inequality and social conflict
W.E.B. Du Bois
Race as the major problem facing the United States in the 20th century
Feminism and the Gender-Conflict Approach

A point of view that focuses on inequality and conflict between women and men Closely linked to feminism, the advocacy of social equality for women and men Women important to the development of sociology: Harriet Martineau and Jane Addams Sociology, 12 Edition by John Macionis
th
Copyright 2008 Prentice Hall, a division of Pearson Education. All rights reserved.
The Race-Conflict Approach

A point of view that focuses on inequality and conflict between people of different racial and ethnic categories People of color important to the development of sociology: Ida Wells Barnett and W.E.B. Du Bois
Symbolic-Interaction Paradigm
The basics
A micro-level orientation, a close-up focus on social interactions in specific situations Views society as the product of everyday interactions of individuals Society is nothing more than the shared reality that people construct as they interact with one another. Society is a complex, ever-changing mosaic of subjective meanings.
Key elements
Whos Who in the Symbolic-Interaction Paradigm

Max Weber
Understanding a setting from the people in it
George Herbert Mead

How we build personalities from social experience
Erving Goffman
Dramaturgical analysis
George Homans & Peter Blau

Social-exchange analysis
Critical Evaluation
Structural-Functional
Too broad, ignores inequalities of social class, race & gender, focuses on stability at the expense of conflict
Social-Conflict
Too broad, ignores how shared values and mutual interdependence unify society, pursues political goals
Symbolic-Interaction
Ignores larger social structures, effects of culture, factors such as class, gender & race
Applying Theory Major Theoretical Approaches

Applying the Approaches: The Sociology of Sports

The Functions of Sports
A structural-functional approach directs our attention to the ways in which sports help society operate Sports have functional and dysfunctional consequences
Sports and Conflict

Social-conflict analysis points out that games people play reflect their social standing. Sports have been oriented mostly toward males. Big league sports excluded people of color for decades. Sports in the United States are bound up with inequalities based on gender, race, and economic power.
Figure 1.2 Stacking in Professional Football Does race play a part in professional sports? Looking at the various positions in professional football, we see that white players are more likely to play the central and offensive positions. What do you make of this pattern?
Source: Lapchick (2006).
Sports as Interaction
Following the symbolic-interaction approach, sports are less a system than an ongoing process. All three theoretical approaches structural-functional, social-conflict, and symbolic-interactionprovide different insights into sports. None is more correct than the others.

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Chapter01 Review

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The Sociological Perspective

The systematic study of human society

At the heart of sociology

Why Take Sociology?

More appreciation for diversity

Enhanced life chances

Benefits of the Sociological Perspective

Importance of Global Perspective

The Sociological Perspective

Seeing the strange in the familiar

Durkheims Study of Suicide

One of the basic findings: Why?

C. Wright Mills Sociological Imagination

The Origins of Sociology

Gender & Race

Theoretical paradigm: A set of fundamental assumptions that guides thinking

Whos Who in the StructuralFunctional Paradigm

Whos Who in the Social-Conflict Paradigm

Feminism and the Gender-Conflict Approach

The Race-Conflict Approach

Whos Who in the Symbolic-Interaction Paradigm

George Herbert Mead

George Homans & Peter Blau

Applying Theory Major Theoretical Approaches

Applying the Approaches: The Sociology of Sports

Sports and Conflict

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