THE NATUR OF SOCIOLOG WHAT IS SOCIOLOGY? The Sociological Imagination Sociology and the Social Sciences Sociology and Common Sense WHAT IS SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY? ORIGINS OF SOCIOLOGY Early Thinkers: Comte, Martineau, and Spencer Emile Durkheim Max Weber Karl Marx ‘Twentieth-Century Sociology MAJOR THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES Functionalist Perspective Mr, ‘Manifest and Latent Functions Dysfunctions, Conflict Perspective Interactionist Perspective ‘The Sociological Approach APPLIED AND CLINICAL SOCIOLOGY SOCIOLOGY AND SOCIAL POLICY APPENDIX: CAREERS IN SOCIOLOGY BOXES 141 Everyday Behavior: Functionalist, Conflict, and Interactionist Views of Sports L2 Everyday Behavior: A Feminist View of Public PlacesLOOKING AHEAD + How does the sociological imagination, as a unique feature of sociology, distinguish sociology from the other social sciences? * Why is sociology more than a collection of commonsense observations? * Why do sociologists regard suicide as a social as well as an individual act? + How did Emile Durkheim, Max Weber, and Karl Marx contribute to the development of sociological thought? + How can the sociological perspectives of functionalism, conflict theory, and interaetionism be used to better understand the world of sports? * What career options are available to sociologists? I, 1992, sociologist David Miller spent a cold and ‘wet Saturday afternoon transporting donated food items from the parking lot of a Jocal supermarket in Macomb, Illinois, to the basement food pantry of his local church, Miller was impressed by the sub- stantial amount of food that had been donated, and soon learned that the church’s pantry was an im- portant source of food for some of his neighbors. ‘This church regularly distributes canned and boxed food products to any needy person in the commu- nity. Miller was curious as to what the source of these food products was and how widespread such panties were, Pare ont: 4 THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE Since that day, Miller and Richard Schaefer (this textbook’s senior author) have joined forces to. study the food bank system of the United States, which distributes food to hungry individuals and families. As part of their research, they have exam- ed government documents and other reference materials in libraries; they have conducted phone. interviews with food bank directors in Illinois, Towa, Oregon, and California; and they have observed the distribution of food at various churches and Salva- tion Army facilities. Miller and Schaefer learned that more than one! out of four children in the United States are hun- gry. Oneshird of the nation’s homeless people report eating one meal per day or less, With these disturbing realities in mind, charities are redistrib- uting food to pantries and shelters that just a decade ago was destined for landfills. In fact, the fourth-largest charity in the United States, Second Harvest, is a food distribution organization with annual revenue of more than half a billion dollars, In 1991, Second Harvest distributed 500 million pounds of food from hundreds of individual corporate donors to more than 43,000 food panties, soup kitchens, and social service agencic In writing about hunger in the United States, newspaper reporter might look for exposés or usual human interest stories. However, as 50 gists, Miller and Schaefer (1993) focus on bro social meanings evident in the nation’s food bution system. For example, they note the judgments made in determining which food iten are “proper” to distribute to hungry people. Ahol and tobacco products are banned from the “food pipeline,” but it is literally crammed full of ‘junk food” such as candy and ice erean Many observers would uncritically applaud the distribution of tons of food to the needy. While sup: nd personally involved in such efforts, Schaefer nevertheless draw on the in- sights of sociology to offer a more probing view of these activities. They note that powerful forces in ‘our society—such as the federal government, ma- jor food retailers, and other large corporations— have joined in charitable food distribution arrange- ments. Perhaps as a result, the focus of such relief programs is specific and limited. The homeless are to be fed, not housed; the unemployed are to be given meals, not jobs. Relief efforts assist hungry in- dividuals and families without challenging the ex- isting social order (for example, by demanding a redistribution of wealth). Miller and Schaefer add that without these limited successes in distributing food, hoards of starving people might assault pa- irons of restaurants, loot grocery stores, or literally die of starvation on the steps of city halls and across from the White House. Such critical thinking is yp ical of the theoretical and research efforts of soci- ologists in studying a social issue such as hunger Gee also Cohn et al., 199 $ The Unite States has an extensive food ‘bank system which distributes food to ‘hungry individuals and families. WHAT IS SOCIOLOGY? As we have seen, the sociologist has a distinctive way of examining human interactions. Seciology is the systematic study of social behavior and human ‘groups. It focuses primarily on the influence of so- Gial relationships upon people’s attitudes havior and on how societies are established and As a field of study, sociology has an ex- broad scope. Therefore, this textbook deals lies, gangs, business firms, political partie schools, religions, and labor unions. Itis concerned with love, poverty, conformity, discrimination, ill ness, alienation, overpopulation, and community In the United States, newspapers, television, and radio are the usual sources of information about such groups and problems. However, while the basic function of journalists is to report the news, sociologists bring a different type of understanding to such issues. ,The vision of sociology involv seeing through the outside appearances of people’s actions and organizations (Berger, 1963:31-37). One major goal of sociology is to identify w derlying, recurring patterns of and influences on social behavior. For example, sociologists study the passionate desire of movie or rock music fans to see in person, (0 talk with, even to grab the clothing of HAPTER 1 « THe NATURE OF SOOLOGYa star. Why do people feel this n To what extent does participation in a crowd of fans ow individuals to act more boldly than they oth- cenwise might? Will people gain greater respect from family members or friends if they have shaken hands with Madonna and exchanged three sen- \ces of conversation Sociology goes beyond identifying patterns of so- jor; it also attempts to provide explana- so powerfully? societal forces becomes a central consideration of sociology. Sociologists are not content to look at the individual fan's personality or “unique” reasons for wanting to meet Tom Cruise, Julia Roberts, or Denzel Washington. Rather, they recognize that millions of people want to meet celebrities, and they examine the shared feelings and behavior of fans within the larger social context of the culture of the United States. The Sociological Imagination In attempting to understand social behavior, soci- ologists rely on an unusual type of creative think- Wright Mills (1959) described such think- ing as the sociological imagination—an awareness of the relationship between an individual and the wider society. ‘This awareness allows people (not iply sociologists) to comprehend the links be- tween their immediate, personal social settings and the remote, impersonal social world that surrounds them and helps to shape them, A key element in the sociological imagination is, the ability to view one’s own society as an outsid would, rather than from the limited perspective of personal experiences and cultural biases. Thus, in- stead of simply accepting the fact that movie stars and rock stars are the “royalty” of our society, we could ask, in a more critical sense, why this is the case. Conceivably, an outsider unfamiliar with the United States might wonder why we are not as in- terested in meeting outstanding scientists, clemen- tary school teachers, or architects. As was true of the study of hunger and food dis- tribution by Miller and Schaefer, the sociological imagination allows us to go beyond personal expe- riences and observations to understand broader public issues. Unemployment, for example, is un- PART ONE © THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE questionably a personal hardship for a man. or woman without a job, However, C. Wright Mills pointed out that when unemployment is a social problem shared by millions of people, it is appro- priate to question the way that a society is struc- tured, Similarly, Mills advocated use of the socio- logical imagination to view divorce not simply as the personal problem of a particular man and) woman, but rather asa structural problem, since it was the outcome of so many marriages. And he was writing this in the 1950s, when the divorce rate was but a fraction of what it is today (I. Horowitz, 1983:87-108). Sociological imagination can bring new under standing to daily life around us. Sociologist Murray Melbin (1978, 1987) has likened the social life in cities of the United States during late nighttime hours to social life on frontiers of the old west, In his view, there are many similarities in the social and behavioral patterns of people in cities at night and on the frontier, among them the following: (1), the population tends to be sparse and homoge- neous, (2) there is a welcome solitude with fewer social constraints, (3) there is more lawlessness and violence, and (4) interest groups emerge which have concerns specific to the night or the frontier, One of Melbin's most surprising assertions is that both in the city at night and on the frontier, there: is more helpfulness and friendliness than in other times and places. He attempted to substantiate this view by conducting four tests of Boston residents! helpfulness and friendliness at various times du ing the 24-hour eycle. Melbin found that between midnight and 7 A.m.—as compared with other times) during the day—people were more likely to give di- rections, to consent to an interview, and to be so- ciable with a stranger. Apparently, when aware that they are out in a dangerous environment (the night or the frontier), people identify with the vulnera- bility of others and become more outgoing, By drawing on the sociological imagination, Melbin’s: intriguing study helps us to view nighttime social activity as different from—and not necessarily more threatening than—activity during “normal hours.” Sociologists put their imagination to work in variety of areas, Table 1-1 presents a partial list the specializations within contemporary sociology. ‘Throughout this textbook, the sociological ima 6