Starter: Which of the following statement is a

sociological explanation? 1 answer

“Binge drinkers are a menace and cause anti social

behaviour by not drinking sensibly. We all suffer as a
result”

“Young people spend too much time on their phones.

They should be reading more books!”

“If you work hard at something then you’ll be

successful in life. It all depends on how much effort you
put in.”

“Most working class Scots backed independence

because they saw the UK as offering no solutions to
their social problems. Wealthier Scots saw little
benefit.”
Which of the following statements are
sociological explanations? 2 answers

“The man who burgled our house was selfish

and had no morals”

“The cycle of poverty, unemployment, low

educational attainment and lack of role
models, have lead to an increase in crime.”

“It is only natural that she would go for

promotion, it’s the next step”

“We live in a capitalist society where job titles

and wealth are valued. Therefore people crave
higher status”
HUMAN SOCIETY
1.1
Common Sense
vs. Sociology
Learning Intentions:
 To understand the difference between common sense
assumptions and sociological explanations.

Success Criteria:
 Explain the difference between common sense assumptions of
society and sociological explanations of society.
 Apply sociological explanations to “it’s just common sense
scenarios”
Common Sense Understanding &
Sociological Explanations

What is your definition of common

sense? What does it mean?
 Common Sense

Common Sense

Naturalistic Explanations Individualistic Explanations

There are ‘natural’ reasons Situations are explained

for behaviour. e.g. ‘it is only solely in terms of a persons
natural that two people to involvement. e.g. ‘people
fall in love and get married’ are poor because they are
lazy’
 Common Sense
Naturalistic Explanations:
 These explanations assume that ‘natural’ (and sometimes God-given)
reasons for behaviour can be identified.
 One example would be ‘it is only “natural” that two people should fall in
love, get married, live together and raise a family’.

Individualistic Explanations:
 An explanation that tries to explain a situation solely in terms of the
individual or persons involved in it. There is no attempt to understand the
situation in terms of wider social forces.
 An example might be “my grandad smoked 20 a day his whole life and he
lived until he was 90 so smoking’s not all that bad”.
 Examples…
• “ All teenagers are lazy" 
• “I know all models have an eating disorder.”
• “ all drug users are criminals.”
• “I know immigrants are stealing our jobs.”
• “I know all Muslim women wear burkas.”
• “I know all Scots wear kilts and drink irn-bru.”
• “I know someone who had a child and got a
house.”
Sociological
Explanations:
Explanations that attempt to
explain social behaviour in
terms of wider social forces,
processes and structures.

These use evidence from

objective research to support
the explanations. So what
would the sociological
explanation be for the concept
of love and marriage?
 Unemployment

We probably all know someone

who is unemployed, or we may
have been in that situation
ourselves.

If there are only a few people in

society who are unemployed then
we may explain this by saying a
particular person lacked a specific
skill, or that they were not really
trying to find a job, or that they
preferred to stay on benefit
because it paid more than working.
 Unemployment

However, if in society two million

people are unemployed, these
individual factors are not sufficient
to explain why unemployment is
occurring on such a scale.

In other words, unemployment is a

‘public issue’ and sociologists must
look at other explanations, such as
the changing structure of
employment, the downturn in
manufacturing jobs and increased
competition with developing
economies.
It is only by examining the wider
aspects of society that we can
give a sociological analysis of a
phenomenon such as
unemployment.
Marriage & Divorce

You may know someone who is

divorced. If so you may consider the
reasons for that person divorcing to
be personal. For example, perhaps
they did not like their partner or
perhaps they wanted different things
in life from their spouse.

This may be the case but in itself it does not explain

marriage and divorce as a ‘public issue’. The reason
that it is a public issue is that divorce statistics now
indicate that more marriages end in divorce in the UK
than in most other European countries.
 Marriage & Divorce
This would suggest that divorce is not just something ‘personal’, but in
fact is a much wider issue in society. If this is the case, then other
factors need to be considered, such as change in divorce laws, attitudes
of society and increasing economic independence for women.

Again, it is only by examining

the wider aspects of society
that we can give a
sociological analysis of a
phenomenon such as
unemployment.
 Marriage & Divorce
This would suggest that divorce is not just something ‘personal’, but in
fact is a much wider issue in society. If this is the case, then other
factors need to be considered, such as change in divorce laws, attitudes
of society and increasing economic independence for women.

Again, it is only by examining

the wider aspects of society
that we can give a
sociological analysis of a
phenomenon such as
unemployment.
 Comparing The Two (p7)
Sociology Common Sense
Based on theories tested through  Based on personal opinions and
research anecdotes 

Challenges ‘taken for granted’ May be individualistic or

assumptions. naturalistic

Attempts to be objective and see Is subjective and only from

the whole picture personal point of view

Sees bias and attempts to be free Does not acknowledge bias –

from it explaining thought to be factual and true
 Task (p10)
Identify whether the following statements are naturalistic,
individualistic or sociological statements by putting the statements in
the right boxes.

Naturalistic Individualistic Sociological

• People get divorced because they fall out of love.

• Gay people should not be allowed to get married because it’s
unnatural. 
• Unemployed people are lazy and refuse to look for work.
• Research shows that the divorce rate has stabilised.
• Immigrants are coming here and taking all our jobs.
• Black people are better at athletics than whites because they
have the right genes.
• Official statistics show that violent crime is decreasing this
century.
• Computer hackers are people who did not make it in computing
jobs
• Research shows that Facebook makes teenagers depressed.
 Task (p10)
Identify whether the following statements are naturalistic,
individualistic or sociological statements by putting the statements in
the right boxes.

Naturalistic Individualistic Sociological

• People get divorced because they fall out of love. N

• Gay people should not be allowed to get married because it’s
unnatural. N
• Unemployed people are lazy and refuse to look for work. I
• Research shows that the divorce rate has stabilised. S
• Immigrants are coming here and taking all our jobs. I
• Black people are better at athletics than whites because they
have the right genes. N
• Official statistics show that violent crime is decreasing this
century. S
• Computer hackers are people who did not make it in computing
jobs.I
• Research shows that Facebook makes teenagers depressed. S
TASK: copy & complete the following
statements…(p10)
1. A common sense view would claim that women wear
make-up to look pretty. Sociologists would look at….
2. A common sense view would be that it is in men’s nature
to love football. A sociologist would look at…
3. A common sense view would be that teenage mothers
have had bad parents themselves. A sociologist would
look at…
4. A common sense view would be that immigrants have
changed the UK beyond recognition. A sociologist would
look at…
5. A common sense view would be that teenagers are too
fixated on drugs, alcohol, violence and sex. They were
much better behaved ‘back in the day’. A sociologist
would look at…
TASK: copy & complete the following
statements…(p10)
1. A common sense view would claim that women wear
make-up to look pretty. Sociologists would look at the
beauty standards of society and expectations/gender
norms that women are pressured to adhere to. This is
portrayed via the media, for example films, music videos
and Instagram.
2. A common sense view would be that it is in men’s nature
to love football. A sociologist would look at masculine
expectations/norms within society and studies on sport
and class. They would also look at campaigning targets
and the media’s portrayal of a ‘man’ being sporty.
3. A common sense view would be that teenage mothers
have had bad parents themselves. A sociologist would
look at social explanations for teenage pregnancies. For
example lack of sex education in school & availability of
contraception.
TASK: copy & complete the following
statements…(p10)
1. A common sense view would be that immigrants have
changed the UK beyond recognition. A sociologist would
look at research about the impact of immigrants on
institutions. For example the impact of migrant doctors
in healthcare and the economy.
2. A common sense view would be that teenagers are too
fixated on drugs, alcohol, violence and sex. They were
much better behaved ‘back in the day’. A sociologist
would look at national teenage crime statistics and crime
reporting. They would also look at the portrayal of young
in the media and the media’s influence. They may also
look at the accessibility of drugs etc. in that area.
 Pair Task
• With your partner you will be given ‘common sense’
assumptions. You are to turn them into sociological
explanations.
• There are 18 statements in total. Be prepared to
share your answers to the rest of the class.

When doing this task, think about the following institutions:

• Media
• Education
• Family (this is linked with gender expectations/norms that are
socially constructed
• Economy (including people’s access to money)
• The government (think power)
• Healthcare
• Religion (including lack of religion)
• Criminal justice system and crime
 Task:
Put the following sentences under ‘sociology’ or
‘common sense’ and match it with the correct
comparison (p11)

• Attempts to be objective.
• Based on particular theories which have been tested
through research.
• Does not acknowledge bias and carries notions of
being factual and true.
• Acknowledges bias and attempts to be value free
when formulating theories.
• May be individualistic or naturalistic.
• Challenges taken for granted assumptions.
• Is subjective/lacks objectivity .
• Based on opinion.
 Task:
Put the following sentences under ‘sociology’ or
‘common sense’ and match it with the correct
comparison (p11)

• Attempts to be objective S
• Based on particular theories which have been tested
through research. S
• Does not acknowledge bias and carries notions of
being factual and true. CS
• Acknowledges bias and attempts to be value free
when formulating theories. S
• May be individualistic or naturalistic. CS
• Challenges taken for granted assumptions. S
• Is subjective/lacks objectivity . CS
• Based on opinion. CS
 PLENARY

How has your

understanding changed,
this lesson?
 First Exam Task
Questions on common sense vs. Sociological
explanation questions are common in the exam; you
have to write about it in your assignment; and it is a
helpful foundation to the Sociology course.

Choose two differences and write out the answer in full.

As in other social subjects, you should use ‘Point

Explain Example’ to structure your answers in
Sociology.

Describe two differences between

sociological and common sense
explanations of human society. 6 Marks
Describe two differences between sociological and common sense
explanations of human society.
You should use examples in your answer. 6

P: One difference between sociological and common sense explanations

is that sociologists use theory backed up with evidence where as
common sense uses opinion and anecdotes.

E: This means that sociologists are able to research, test and provide
evidence that looks at society as a whole, the history of a society, and
differences across different places. Common sense only looks at
personalised views of the world.

E: For example, common sense might see girls as naturally wanting to

be pretty and beautiful like glamour models. Sociologists would look at
the influence of the media as well as whether the “ideal woman” has
changed over time, and also if this is the same across the world.
Describe two differences between sociological and common sense
explanations of human society.
You should use examples in your answer. 6

P: The second difference between sociological and common sense

explanations is that sociologists attempt to be objective and see the
whole picture while common sense explanations are subjective
and only from personal points of view.

E: This means that sociologists are able to look at society at the ‘macro’
whole level, as opposed to one individual situation or experience.

E: For example, a common sense explanation would say that drug

addicts only have themselves to blame for getting themselves into
certain situations. Meanwhile, sociologists would look at institutions
that affect the individuals, such as flaws of the criminal justice system,
healthcare and drug education.
 PLENARY

If you were going to teach this

lesson to younger students, what
would you identify as the key
things they would need to know?