Is sociology a science?

Question 1

What are the features of natural and physical science? (5)

Answer 1

Provisional
Objective
Empirical
Theoretical
Systematic

Question 2

What does Provisional mean?

Answer 2

The results of scientific investigations are seen as open to questioning and possible rejection. Results are subject to change.

Question 3

What does Objective mean?

Answer 3

The absence of bias through use of particular methods that keeps researchers detached from the research.

Question 4

What does Empirical mean?

Answer 4

Knowledge comes from observable evidence or sensory experiences (seeing, hearing, touching)

Question 5

What does Theoretical mean?

Answer 5

Scientists seek to uncover causal relationships between variables. This helps scientists make generalisations

Question 6

What does Systematic mean?

Answer 6

Research should follow methodological and accepted procedures. This allows others to replicate the work.

Question 7

Do positivists think sociology is a science?

Answer 7

Yes.

Question 8

What did Durkheim argue that humans had? (3)

Answer 8

Humans are influenced by social facts which are external to us and constrain what we do.
They are already in existence when we are born.
In some ways we are determined by society so people perform in a predictable, conformist manner.

Question 9

What happens if social facts cause humans to act in a certain way? (2)

Answer 9

The best ways of studying society would be to copy the methods of natural science.
Through careful observations and measurements, the laws of society can be discovered in the same way as the laws of nature. (Inductive reasoning)

Question 10

What is verification?

Answer 10

After many observations confirmed the theory one can claim to have discovered the truth.

Question 11

What was Durkheim’s study of suicide? (5)

Answer 11

He was interested in investigating the structural reasons for suicide and he observed 11 European countries.
He found that suicide was higher in Protestant countries than in Catholic ones.
He noticed that suicide rates were lower among married couples and people with children.
One social cause of suicide was a lack of integration.
Catholic and Jewish religions were more integrative that Protestant religions which explain lower suicide rates.

Question 12

What did Halbwachs say about Durkheim’s study of suicide?

Answer 12

Durkheim overestimated the importance of religion.
Halbwachs found that urbanisation was the key variable in determining social integration because city life was characterised by isolation and a lack of integration.

Question 13

Do Interpretivists think sociology should be a science?

Answer 13

No.

Question 14

What do Interpretivists argue humans have? (4)

Answer 14

Humans have consciousness and can exercise choice wheras science has no consciousness.
Humans can interpret and give meaning to a situation before responding to it.
Behaviour is not entirely patterned , people may react to the same circumstanceson different occasions.
They argue that the social world is socially constructed and contains subjective values allowing researchers to gain verstehen.

Question 15

What are the three types of Interpretivist sociologists?

Answer 15

Interactionist
Phenomenologist
Ethnomethodologist

Question 16

What are interactionists?

Answer 16

They take a bottom-up approach and accept the influence of the social structure. But, they argue that individuals make their own choice and engage in interpretation and negotiation with each other.

Question 17

What are phenomenologists?

Answer 17

They believe that all information about the social world is socially contructed. There are no hard facts and individuals organise the world into phenomena (things that have characteristics in common)

Question 18

What are ethnomethodologists?

Answer 18

They focus on the methods used by people to make sense of the social world. They are more interested in how people arrive at shared meanings.

Question 19

What type of sociologist is Douglas and what did he argue? (4)

Answer 19

Phenomenologist.
He argued that Durkhei’s study did not reveal the real rate of suicide and they lack validity.
Suicide verdicts may be influenced by factors such as relatives not wanting a suicide verdict to bring shame on their family.
Douglas argues that it is more interesting to examine the meaning of deaths through unstructured interviews and suicide notes with relatives.
Douglas ignored the meaning attached to the act of suicide for individual people.

Question 20

What type of sociologist is Atkinson and what did he argue? (3)

Answer 20

Ethnomethodologist.
His study makes no attempt to find a more accurate rate of suicide and he does not focus upon the meanings of the dead because it is impossible to know for sure what meanings the dead gave to their deaths.
He asked how do deaths come to be constructed as suicide in the coroners’ proceedings?
Coroners use primary and secondary cues to help them decide if a death is a suicide or not.

Question 21

What alternative views are there of sociology being a science?

Answer 21

Popper - falsification
Kuhn - paradigms

Question 22

What did Popper argue? (4)

Answer 22

He disagrees with Durkheim’s view of what science is. He uses the example of swans to illustrate his view.
Through many observations, all swans can appear to be white but however many swans are observed we can’t say all swans are white. This is because if one black swan is observed then the theory will be destroyed.
He introduces the principle of falsification which is where scientific knowledge is capable of being falsified.
A good theory is one that can withstand attempts to falsify it.

Question 23

What did Kuhn argue? (4)

Answer 23

He questions whether scientists really do practice set out to collect evidence with the aim of trying to falsify their hypothesis.
Scientists work wothin a paradigm - frameworks of scientific lawns, concepts, theories, methods and assumptions which are shared by the scientific community.
A science cannot exist without a shared paradigm, the paradigm acts like blinkers which encourages scientists to try to fit observation into the paradigm, rather than actually attempting to falsify their hypotheses.
They engage in puzzle solving which is where the paradigm defines the questions and scientists are left to fill in the detail.
Any attempt to step outside the accepted convention is usually ignored or rejected.

Question 24

What is the Postmodernist view of sociology as a science?

Answer 24

Sociology cannot and should not try to be scientific.
Theories claim to be scientific are metanarratives which are big stories with no validity.
They reject the view that science produces absolute truths.
Scientific knowledge is not objective, it is subjective as it represents the views of the most powerful in society.

Question 25

What would Feminists argue about sociology being a science?

Answer 25

Science is male dominated and patriarchal, so it is another way to exercis emale control.