Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Income
Education
Gender
Age
Race
Copyright Allyn & Bacon 2005
C. Wright MillsConnection
Between History and Biography
HistoryLocation in Broad Stream of Events
BiographyIndividuals Specific Experiences
Origins of Sociology
Tradition vs. Science
Emerged mid-1800s
Grew Out of Social Upheaval
Armchair Philosophy
Copyright Allyn & Bacon 2005
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Social Integration
Durkheim believed that modern societies produce feelings of isolation, much of which comes
from the division of labor. In contrast, members of traditional societies, who work alongside
family and neighbors and participate in similar activities, experience a high degree of social
integration. The photo contrast a U.S. office with nomads in Mongolia who are shearing
cashmere off their goats.
Copyright Allyn & Bacon 2005
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Critical Thinking!
What sort of social and cultural capital do you
possess?
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Harriet Martineau
Published Society in America Before Durkheim
and Weber Were Born
Her Work was Ignored
Copyright Allyn & Bacon 2005
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Neglected Founders
Harriet Martineau was a scholar and
activist who introduced sociology to
England. Among other things, she
insisted on the significance of
studying domestic life to better
understand a society.
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Neglected Founders
W.E.B. Du Bois was the first significant
African American sociologist. He made
many contributions to the field,
including the notion of the double
consciousness experienced by all
American blacks. Du Bois was also a
founding member of the National
Association for the Advancement of
Colored People (NAACP).
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Levels of Analysis
Microsociology is the study of everyday, face-to-face
interaction. Symbolic interactionists study primarily at this
level of analysis.
Macrosociology is the analysis of large social systems and
institutions. Functionalists and Marxists fall largely under this
heading.
In practice, these two levels of analysis work best when
applied in concert.
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Theoretical Perspectives
Symbolic Interactionism
Functional Analysis
Marxism
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Symbolic Interactionism
Symbolic InteractionismHow People Use
Symbols
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Symbolic Interactionism
All social interaction involves an exchange of
information via symbols.
This exchange may be through language, but may
also be non-verbal or may be conveyed by setting.
We learn about ourselves and the world through
this meaningful interaction.
Key figure: George Herbert Mead
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Functional Analysis
Society is a Whole Unit Made Up of Interrelated
Parts that Work Together
Functionalism, Structural Functionalism
Robert MertonFunctions and Dysfunctions
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Functionalism
This perspective is derived from Comte and Durkheim
and emphasizes large-scale social institutions and
processes.
Functionalist approaches are focus on understanding
the role or contribution of some event, activity, or
institution to the workings of society as a whole.
Modern figures: Talcott Parsons, Robert K. Merton
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Marxism
Those working under this approach derive their
approach from Marx, most significantly as regards
concerns about power, conflict, and ideology.
This perspective is most commonly applied to
capitalism and economic systems.
Marxist thinkers tend to take on an activist stance in
addition to a scholarly one.
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Definition of Sociology
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Research Methods
Ethnography, or participant observation, is a
method frequently used to study people in
their own settings (ethnos = folks, people,
nature; grapho = I write)
Surveys are a more structured research
method where specific, carefully constructed
questions are asked to specific, carefully
selected individuals.
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Research Methods
Sociologists occasionally use experimental
designs when highly controlled conditions are
necessary to answer research questions.
Comparative and historical research are
approaches that allow researchers to
understand variations in social phenomena
across both time and space.
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