Lecture 2

Sociology
• Individual and society are inseparable.

• The word “sociology” is derived from the Latin

word socius (companion) and the Greek word
logos (study of) meaning “the study of
companionship.”
 How Sociologists View Society
• All sociologists are interested in the experiences
of individuals and how those experiences are
shaped by interactions with social groups and
society as a whole.

• To a sociologist, the personal decisions an

individual makes do not exist in a vacuum.

• Sociologists identify and study patterns related to

all kinds of contemporary social issues.
 Reading 1

The Importance of Sociology to Society

http://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/sociolo
gy/the-importance-of-sociology-to-society-
1219-words/8490
 Key points
• Science of human relationships.
• Promotion of human welfare.
• Study of social phenomena.
• Formulation of social policy.
• Method of scientific research.
 Sociology in Workplace

• Employers continue to seek people with what

are called “Transferable Skills”.

• Want to hire people whose knowledge can be

applied in variety of settings.
The Continuing Tension: Basic,
Applied, and
Public Sociology
 1. Basic or Pure Sociology
• Research for the purpose of making
discoveries about life.

• Analyzing some aspects of society.

• No change application.

• Academics use basic sociology to study society

and construct theories.
 2. Applied Sociology

• Using sociology for Problem solving

• To address a specific social issue for a specific group

of people

• Micro level

• Macro level
 3. Public Sociology
• Middle ground between research and reform

• Focus on public good

• Use sociological research to contribute and

influence policy and social movements

• Guidance to politicians and policy makers

Origin of Sociology
 Auguste Comte (1798 – 1857)
• Began to analyze the basis of the social order.

• Comte started to wonder what holds society

together. Why do we have social order instead
of chaos?

• When society becomes set on a particular

course, what causes it to change?
• Comte decided that the scientific method held
the key to answering them. Just as the
scientific method had revealed the law of
gravity, so, too, it would uncover the laws that
underlie society.

• Comte called this new science sociology

—“the study of society” (from the Greek
logos, “study of,” and the Latin socius,
“companion,” or “being with others”).
 Concept of Positivism
• The purpose of this new science would not
only be to discover social principles but also to
apply them to social reform.

• Comte developed a view: Sociologists would

reform society, making it a better place to live.
 Herbert Spencer (1820 – 1903)
• Second founder of sociology.

• Spencer disagreed sharply with Comte.

• Sociologists should NOT guide social reform.

Why?
 Social Darwinism
(Survival of the fittest)
• Leads to interference with natural process.

• Societies are evolving from a lower form to higher

(“civilized”) forms.

• As generations pass, a society’s most capable and

intelligent members (“the fittest”) survive, while the
less capable die out.

• These fittest members produce a more advanced

society.
 Karl Marx (1818 – 1883)
• Concept of class conflict.

• Marx believed that the engine of human history is class

conflict.

• Society is made up of two social classes, capitalists, and

the exploited workers,

• Eventually, the workers will unite and break their chains

of bondage..
• Societies grew and changed as a result of the
struggles of different social classes over the
means of production.

Like Comte, Marx thought that people

should try to change society.
 Emile Durkheim (1858 – 1917)
• Rigorous research on suicide rates

• Different suicide rates in countries

• Stability over the period of time

• Goal was to show how social forces affect people’s
behavior

• Social integration is the degree to which people are

tied to their social groups.

• Weak and Strong ties

 Durkheim
concluded that suicide is not what it appears—
simply a matter of individuals
here and there deciding to take their lives for
personal reasons.

Instead, social factors underlie suicide, which is

why a group’s rate remains fairly constant
year after year.
Latest Research in Harvard
University!
 Assignment 1 (Do visit your library)

• Identify one social issue that has impacted behavior and attitude
(positively or negatively) of Asian people in the recent few years.

1. Title page (names, registration no, assignment no, date).

2. Introduce and justify this issue (When you describe the social
problem, you must specify the geographical setting).
3. Provide two examples on how this issue has impacted people’s
behavior over time. Also discuss how this issue has impacted you
and your group.
4. Provide two specific recommendations for resolving this issue.

Deadline: Upload on Google Classroom till Tuesday (Initial 10

minutes of the class)
 Link of the assignment 1
• https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLS
cNtZqm1Zjlz_KP3K5YLSCP_c64U6oOZZ1n1nqV
w3aNmZ5FVw/viewform?usp=sf_link

Deadline: Upload on Google Classroom till

Tuesday (Initial 10 minutes of the class)
 Practice question
• The accumulation of wealth in multinational
corporations has caused a sharp rise in wealth
inequality on the global scale. However, it also
encourages the collective efforts to help save
the drowning economy of the weak with the
help of foreign aid, loans and investments.
• Discuss the social consequences of the above
situation in light of the contributions of Karl
Marx and Herbert Spencer.