sociology and science

Question 1

What two things make something scientific when it uses them?

Answer 1

• empiricism
• objectivity

Question 2

What is empiricism?

Answer 2

• knowledge gained from actually experiencing/observing something

Question 3

What is objectivity?

Answer 3

• where the research does not involve opinions, bias or prejudice

Question 4

What is the scientific method?

Answer 4

• state the problem
• gather info
• form a hypothesis
• test the hypothesis
• record and analyse data
• state conclusion
• repeat the work

Question 5

Why does Comte believe sociology is a science?

Answer 5

• it’s possible to discover the laws that control and shape the behaviour of people in society
• science isnt there to tell us why something came into being only how it relates to other things using laws. (asian lads and the police dont mix cos of a social fact called racism

Question 6

What is inductive logic?

Answer 6

• type of reasoning that involves moving from a set of specific facts to a general conclusion

Question 7

Why does Durkheim believe sociology is a science?

Answer 7

• sociology should study social facts as things to observe and measure like suicide rates

Question 8

Why does Popper believe sociology isn’t a science?

Answer 8

• all sciences should undergo falsification
• sociology must come up with testable hypotheses
• rejected marxism as a science as its concepts were too abstract to be seen and measured

Question 9

What is the deductive method?

Answer 9

• starts with a theory that is bombarded with challenges to see if it stands up to its claims

Question 10

Why does Weber believe sociology isn’t a science?

Answer 10

• science is strongly objective therefore sociology cannot be a science

Question 11

What does Kuhn believe about sociology and science?

Answer 11

• on the fence
• paradigm shifts
• prescience – period of discovery where there was no central paradigm
• normal science – where scientists used an established paradigm, like the theory of evolution to support theories
• revolutionary science – where the paradigms are challenged
• sociollogy behaves like it is in the pre-science stage. Its a young science that needs to find its unifying theory

Question 12

Which two sociologists believe sociology is a science?

Answer 12

• comte
• Durkheim

Question 13

Which two sociologists don’t believe sociology is a science

Answer 13

• popper
• weber