1: What is sociology? Flashcards
Sociology definition Giddens
Sociology is about the study of the societies in which we live today
Sociology definition Jenkins
The study of recurrent or regular aspects of human behaviour
What do sociologists study?
All things human from the interaction between two people to the complex relationships between nations or multinational corporations
Term sociology
First used by Auguste Comte
Sociology focuses on the study of society
Comte’s interest
Social phenomena and laws of ‘the social’
Gender norms and structure Simone de Beauvoir
Gender is made - constructed, not natural category
Goffman sociology
Acting out ourselves; performing; understanding interaction
Garfinkel sociology
Breaching normality to reveal what lies behind and questioning what is taken for granted
Levels of sociological analysis
Zooming out + zooming in
Zooming out
Give a general overview of how structures and people interact in a complex society
Zooming in
How individuals and smaller units operate and interact with each other - sub-cultures
Sociology and social/political movements
Class theory and ‘class politics’
Ethnic/racial studies and anti-racism
Gender studies and feminism
Not a one-way influence
Studying human action
Sociologists are interested in the ways in which our actions are influenced by our interactions with other people and the wider social context and how the same action can have many implications or aspects
Studying social patterns and social structures
Regularities in our actions and interactions
Systems of interaction between people that have a continuing influence on us all
Historical change
