Lecture 1: Overview of Sociology Flashcards
What is Sociology?
Sociology is the study of: (LCCC)
- social life
- social change
- social causes and
- consequences of human behaviour.
What are the roles of Sociologists?
Sociologists investigate:
- the structure of groups, organisations and societies;
- how people interact within these contexts
How do you define “Socialisation”?
Socialisation is a process by which people learn to become members of society by internalising norms and values of that society in order to play their social role effectively.
How do you define “Sociological Enquiry”?
A systematic way of analysing the motivation and behaviour of individuals within a group. The goal is to gain an insight into the observable social world.
It helps us to:
a) understand how social structures shape individual experiences
b) understand the individuals through exploring their individual experiences based on their social interactions with others
c) explain social relationships and interpretations of social situations
Define ‘Socialisation’ and its relationship with “Social Structure”
Socialisation is a process by which people learn to become members of society both by internalising the norms and values of that society, and by learning to perform their social roles.
Social Structure refers to the patterns formed by relationships among people and groups.
A “Family Structure” is one Social Structure.
Socialisation “teaches” the father, mother and child how to behave and relate to one another as learnt from society. Socialisation helps to maintain social structure by teaching each individual what to do and what not to do in the group.
Compare and contrast Sociology and other disciplines such as History and Psychology.
Contrast between Sociology and PSYCHOLOGY.
- The first difference is that Sociology studies INTERRELATIONSHIPS and INTERACTIONS of the groups, while psychology examines more of the workings of the human mind, why people think and behave as they do.
- The second difference is that Sociology studies the GROUP and not the individual, while Psychology studies INDIVIDUALS or small groups.
Contrast between Sociology and HISTORY.
- While Sociology concerns itself with the PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE, History is concerned with PAST events ONLY.
- Next, Sociology studies man as a SOCIAL BEING in past and present contexts, but History is a SYSTEMATIC RECORD of the story of mankind.
Identify the benefits of studying sociology.
The first benefit to studying Sociology:
- it helps social workers understand the circumstances around how societies and people derive their norms which are reflected in their actions
- enables social workers to advocate for adjustments in policies that discriminates certain groups.
The second benefit to studying Sociology:
- it helps us to reflect on the evolvement of social work
- therefore we can appreciate the opportunities we have today and understand existing constraints.
Define ‘Sociological Imagination’
‘Sociological Imagination’ is a unique way of looking at the social world that enables us to see the connection between private experiences and broad social and historical forces.
Define ‘Social Issues’
A Social Issue or Problem is some aspect of society that large numbers of people are concerned about and would like to change.
What is the relationship between ‘Sociological Imagination’ and ‘Social Issues’
It looks at the relationship between individual and society - individual can’t act the way they want and have to act as per norm defined by society. However, changes happen when a group of people band together and create a movement.
A personal decision is shaped by the broader social forces (has to consider what the broader social forces are like that forms her decisions).
We are not actually free people but constrained by society’s views.
