Durkheim Suicide Study (Positivists Vs Internationalists)

Question 1

What type of theory is Positivist?

Answer 1

Structuralists.

Question 2

What do positivists believe that sociology is?

Answer 2

A science that is:

• Quantifiable
• Collaboration
• Observable fact

Question 3

What type of theory is a Interactionalist?

Answer 3

It is based on social interaction.

• Focus on how humans interact with each other
• How they make sense of social reality
• How do we perceive ourselves.

Question 4

What did Emile Durkhiem believe would come from his study of sucide?

Answer 4

That is had social causes and he did it to prove the usefulness of sociology as a genuine scientific discipline.

But, he rejects the psychology factors, that explain differences in society.

Question 5

What Emile Durkhiem believe that social facts had?

Answer 5

1. External to the individual
2. They constrain individuals, shaping their behaviors.
3. They are greater than individuals - they exist on a different ‘level’ from the individuals.

Question 6

What 4 patterns did Durkhiem notice?

Answer 6

1. Sucide rates for any society remained constant over time
2. When rates changed, they linked with other changes e.g during economic crysis.
3. Different societies have different rates.
4. Within, societies rates varied between different social groups.

Question 7

What were limited impact factors on sucide (according to Durkhiem)?

Answer 7

1. Climate
2. Psychological Explanation
3. Accepted some more predisposed e.g depression

Question 8

What were factors with greater imapct?

Answer 8

1. Communities varied rates
2. Religion varied rates
3. Family situation e.g married impacted rates

Question 9

What were the two main factors that influenced sucide?

Answer 9

1. Social Integration - extent to which someone experiences sense of belonging.
2. Moral Regulation - extent to which individuals actions and desires are kept in check by norms and value.

Question 10

What was his 4 types of classification system?

Answer 10

1. Egotistical Suicide: Someone feels executive individualism and few ties to society or obligations to others.
2. Altruistic Suicide: It may be form of scientific or the good of the ‘group’.
3. Anomic Suicide: Occurs when people are controlled by norms, people may not know what is expected of them.
4. Fatalistic Suicide: Occurs when people feel powerless due to regulated society, and have no choices or freedom and feel oppressed.

Question 11

What did Halbwachs (1930) note later?

Answer 11

Agreed mostly with Durkheim and found that country suicide was low and city suicide was higher and found that Durkheim over emphasis religion.

Question 12

What did Gibbs and Martin (1994) note?

Answer 12

Agreed with Durkheim but criticized that not everything Durkheim did was scientific and not fully positivist.

Question 13

What were some criticisms of Durkheim?

Answer 13

• Issue with the reliability and validity of stats in 19th Century.
• Internationalists suggest that taking away context from the suicides.