Sociology and Science Flashcards
1
Q
what do positivists believe in terms of science and sociology
A
- positivists believe it’s desirable to apply logic + methods of science to sociology
- doing so will bring objective, true knowledge
- this will be the basis of solving social problems + progress
2
Q
what is a key feature of the positivist approach
A
- reality exists outside and independently of the human mind
- nature is made up of physical observable facts such as cells and stars which are external to our minds and exist
- similarly, society is an objective factual reality made up of social facts that exists independently from inds
3
Q
what is reality for positivists
A
- reality isn’t random but is patterned and we can observe these empirical (factual) patterns through science
4
Q
outline the inductive apparoach
A
- induction involves accumulating data through careful observation
- through this we can find patterns
5
Q
outline verificationism
A
- from this, we can develop a theory
- after several verifications / confirmations of the theory, we can claim to have found the truth in the form of a general law
6
Q
what do positivists favour in research
A
- Positivists favour finding patterns, producing a general law, value free research and macro/structural explanations
7
Q
outline Positivists use of quantitative data
A
- Ps use quant data to uncover + measure behavioural patterns and their cause + effect
- this allows them to produce precise statements
7
Q
why do Positivists favour value free research
A
- researchers shouldn’t let their own subjective prejudices influence conduct of research/ analysis
8
Q
which methods do Positivists favour
A
- Ps employ methods that allow for maximum objectivity – e.g. quant methods like questionnaires, structured interviews + official stats
- these methods also produce reliable data that can be repeated
9
Q
outline Durkheim’s study of suicide
A
- he used quant data from official stats and observed there were patterns in the suicide rate
- e.g. rates for Protestants were higher than for Catholics
- these were social facts, not the product of motives from individuals. thus, suicide is caused by other social facts; forces acting upon members of society to determine their behaviour
- D claims that social facts can be explained scientifically and so is scientific
9
Q
outline natural science
A
- studies matter, which has no consciousness
- behaviour can be explained by an external stimulus
10
Q
what do interpretivist sociologists think
A
- Interpretivist sociologists critique Positivist’s scientific approach as irrelevant to the study of human beings
11
Q
what do Interpretivists say about the subject matter of sociology
A
- the subject matter of sociology is meaningful social action
- we can only understand it by interpreting the meaning + motives of individuals
- there is a fundamental difference between the subject matter of natural science + sociology
11
Q
outline sociology
A
- studies people, who have consciousness
- people make sense of the world by attaching meaning to it
12
Q
outline Int’s view of individuals
A
- individuals are not puppets on a string, manipulated by external ‘social facts’ (as Ps think), but are autonomous (independent) beings who construct their world through meanings they attach
- the job of a sociologist is to uncover these meanings
13
Q
(Interpretivists) outline verstehen and qualitative research
A
- ints argue that to discover the meanings people give to their actions, we need to take their view (verstehen/ empathetic understanding)
- thus, ints prefer qualitative methods – e.g. participant obs, personal documents + unstructured interviews, which produce valid, more personal data
14
Q
list the 2 types of interpretivism
A
- interactionists
- phenomenologists + ethnomethodologists
15
Q
outline interactionists as a type of interpretivism
A
- the believe we can have casual explanations
- rejects the P view that we should enter research with a fixed hypothesis and favours a bottom up approach of a developing hypothesis throughout observations
16
Q
outline phenomenologists + ethnomethodologists as a type of interpretivism
A
- society isn’t a real thing determining our behaviour, but social reality is simply the shared meanings/ knowledge of its members and thus exists only in people’s consciousness
- therefore, the subject matter of sociology can only be of interpretive procedure that people use to make sense of the world
17
Q
outline Douglas’ study of suicide
A
- Douglas, an interactionist, rejects the positivist idea of external social facts determining behaviour. Inds have free will and choose how to act through meaning
- to understand suicide, we must uncover its meanings for people involved, instead of imposing our meaning
- D prefers the use of qual data from suicide case studies to reveal the meanings + give a better idea of meanings behind suicide
18
Q
outline Atkinsons view of suicide
A
- like Douglas, Atkinson, a ethnomethodologist, rejects the idea that external social facts determine behaviour
- however, A argues that we can never know the real rate of suicide, since we can never know what meanings the deceased held
- the only thing we can study in suicide is the way that the living makes sense of deaths (the interpretive methods coroners use to classify deaths)
18
Q
what is the postmodernist view of scientific sociology
A
- PMs argue against the idea of sociology as a science, as science is a meta narrative – just another big story – the scientific account of the world is no more valid than others and so there is no reason to adopt science as a model for sociology
- due to the several views within society, a scientific approach is dangerous as it excludes other views. Thus, scientific sociology makes false claims about the truth + is a form of domination
19
Q
what is the poststructuralist feminist view of scientific sociology
A
- PSFs agree with PMs in that scientific sociology in its quest for a single feminist theory is a form of domination as it covertly excludes different types of women
19
Q
outline Popper’s fallacy of induction
A
- we should reject verificationism due to ‘the fallacy (error) of induction’
- induction is the process of moving from the observation of something to arrive at a general statement/ law
20
Q
outline Popper’s view of falsificationism
A
- falsificationism is a principle; ‘a scientific statement is capable of being falsified by evidence
21
Q
what 2 features should a good theory have in Popper’s opinion
A
- it is falsifiable in principle, but when tested, it stands all attempts to disprove it
- it is bold and makes big generalisations that can be possibly falsified
21
Q
outline Popper’s view of truth
A
- Popper: all knowledge is provisional, temporary + capable of refutation at any moment
- there can never be absolute proof that any knowledge is true
- a good theory isn’t necessarily a true theory, but one that has withstood attempts to falsify it so far
22
Q
outline Popper’s concept of criticism and the open society
A
- for a theory to be falsifiable, it must be open to criticism by other theorists
- P views science as a public activity which is why scientific knowledge grows so rapidly
- science thrives in open societies - ones that believe in free speech + the right to challenge accepted ideas
- in contrast, closed societies are dominated by an official belief system which stifles the growth of science as they cant be falsified
23
Q
outline Popper’s implications for sociology
A
- Popper believes that sociology is unscientific because its theories cannot be falsified
- e.g. Marxism predicts a revolution, and that it hasn’t happened yet bc of the false class consciousness. this prediction cant be falsified - Marxism is correct whether a revolution happens or not
- however, P believes sociology can be scientific because it produces hypotheses that in principle can be falsified
24
Q
outline kuhn’s concept of paradigms
A
- it provides a basic framework of assumptions, principles, methods and techniques – it is a set of norms/ a culture as it tells scientists + their scientific communities how they should act
- scientists’ conformity to the paradigms is rewarded with publication of their research/ career success, whilst non- conformity may result in a lack of career success
- Kuhn believes science cannot exist without shared paradigms
25
Q
outline Kuhn’s concept of normal science
A
- most of the time, paradigms go unquestioned and scientists do ‘normal science’
- in normal science, scientists do puzzle solving (filling in the missing details from the paradigms defined broad terms)
- scientists know what the end point should be + their job is to obtain the known to fit the narrative
26
Q
outline scientific revolutions
A
- not all puzzle solving is successful and occasionally, scientists discover things that go against the accepted narrative of paradigms
- as these anomalies grow, confidence in paradigms decreases, leading to a crisis – previous foundations are now in question
- scientists begin to form rival paradigms (the start of a scientific revolution). Eventually one adapted paradigm becomes the most accepted by the science community, allowing normal science to resume
- in Kuhns view, scientists are conformists who unquestionably accept paradigms – apart from during scientific revolutions
27
Q
outline the implications for sociology in terms of paradigms
A
- sociology is pre-paradigmatic/ pre-scientific as its divided into competing perspectives; there is no shared paradigm
- Kuhn believes sociology can only be a science if they resolve disagreements; although many argue this would be impossible for sociology
28
Q
what do Postmodernists think about paradigms in sociology
A
- PMs argue a paradigm wouldn’t be desirable in sociology as its very similar to a meta-narrative which silences minority voices
29
Q
outline the realist view of science
A
- realists like Keat and Urry stress the similarities between sociology and kinds of science in terms of the degree of control the researcher has over the variables
30
Q
outline the realist concept of a closed system
A
- a system where the researcher can control/ measure all relevant variables and so can make precise predictions
- the typical research method for this is lab experiments
30
Q
outline the realist concept of a closed system
A
- systems where the researcher cant control + measure all relevant variables and so cant make precise predictions
- realists argue sociologists study open systems where the processes are too complex to completely predict. E.g. we cant predict crime rates as there are too many variables involved
31
Q
outline the realist concept of underlying structures
A
- realists reject the positivist view that science is only concerned with observable phenomena
- it also means interpretivists are incorrect in assuming that sociology cant be scientific as Rs think sociology can be studied scientifically – which interpretivists think is the barrier to scientific sociology
- Rs think both natural + social science attempt to explain the causes of events in terms of underlying structures + processes, thus realists believe sociology is scientific
