Sociology and science Flashcards
1
Q
What is positivism and what is its approach to sociology?
A
- Comte & Durkheim > positivists
- sociological approach that applies the methods of natural sciences to studying society
- they believe reality exists independently of the human mind & is governed by observable social facts
- argue that objective knowledge can only be obtained through systematic observation & measurement
2
Q
How do positivists argue that sociologists can discover laws that determine how society works?
A
- this is done through a method known as induction
- involves accumulating data about the world through observation and then derive theories based on observed patterns
3
Q
From inductive reasoning what can scientists develop?
A
- a theory that explains all observations that have been made so far
- after many more observations have confirmed or verified the theory we can claim to have discovered the truth in the form of a general law
- This approach is known as verificationism
4
Q
How does verificationism link to sociology?
A
- for positivists patterns observed in society can be explained in the same way by finding the facts that cause them
- e.g. a social fact of educational failure may be explained in terms of another social fact maternal deprivation
5
Q
What type of data do positivists prefer and why?
A
- positivists advocate for the use of quantitative data to measure & predict social behaviour > they prefer structured methods that allow for replication ensuring reliability in order to identify general patterns
6
Q
How did Durkheim illustrate the positivists view of science and methods?
A
- chose to study suicide to show how sociology is a science
- using quantitative data from OS Durkheim observed that there was patterns in the suicide rate
- rates for protestants were higher than those of Catholics >
- social facts responsible for determining the suicide rate was level of integration > social structures shape individual choice
- able to create own real law
7
Q
Evaluation of the positivists view
A
- Popper > science should focus on falsification not just verification as repeatedly confirmed observations do not guarantee truth
- human behaviour is not always predictable and cannot be reduced to general laws
- interpretivists e.g. Weber argue that sociology should focus on Verstehen to explore subjective meanings > cannot be captured through scientific methods alone
- Douglas & Atkinson> rejects Durkheim use of OS as social constructions, resulting from the way coroners label certain deaths as suicides, proposes use of qualitative data from case studies of suicide
8
Q
According to Popper what makes science a unique form of knowledge?
A
- because it can undergo falsification > proven wrong by evidence
- e.g. a test would disprove the law of gravity if when we let go of an object it did not fall
9
Q
What does popper argue about sociology being a science?
A
- sociology can be scientific because it is capable of producing hypotheses that can in principle be testified
- Popper argues if sociology adopts the principles of falsifiability & critical testing it can be a science
- e.g. Ford >hypothesised that comprehensive schooling would produce social mixing of pupils from different social classes
> she was able to testify and falsify this hypothesis through her research
10
Q
Evaluation of Poppers view
A
- sociology studies human behaviour which is influenced by culture, emotions etc > difficult to create falsifiable hypotheses due to complexity of social life
- many sociological theories are unfalsifiable e.g. Marxism deals with abstract concepts such as class struggle & ideology > difficult to operationalize & falsify - makes sociology unscientific
11
Q
What do interpretivists believe about the study of society?
A
- that we can only undertsand society by interpreting the meanings and motives of the actors involved
- reject use of scientific method as sociology is the study of people with consciousness thus their actions can only be understood in terms of meanings which are internal to peoples consciousness
- individuals are autonomous beings that construct their own social world
- job of the sociologist is to uncover these meanings
12
Q
What Weber argue we should use to grasp meanings?
A
- verstehen
- abandon the detachment & objectivity favored by positivists
13
Q
Why do interpretivists favour qualitative methods?
A
- these produce much richer more person, high in validity data
- give sociologists a subjective understanding of actors meanings
14
Q
Evaluation of interpretivism
A
- focusing too much on individual meanings they risks producing non-generalizable insights which undermines sociology’s ability to explain larger societal trends
- modern sociology uses mixed methods> sociology does not need to abandon the scientific methods to understand subjective meanings
- ignoring structural factors makes it harder to identify systematic patterns
15
Q
What do Postmodernist believe about the study of natural science and sociology?
A
- argue against the idea of a scientific sociology
- natural science is a meta narrative, an account for the world that is no more valid than any other > no reason why science should be adopted as model for sociology
16
Q
Why is a scientific approach dangerous for sociology according to postmodernists?
A
- it claims a monopoly of the truth and therefore excludes other points of view
- a scientific sociology not only makes false claims but is also a form of domination e.g. in the former soviet union Marxism which claimed to have discovered the truth about an ideal society was used to justify coercion & oppression
17
Q
How do poststructuralists feminist support the postmodern view?
A
- they argue that the quest for a single scientific feminist theory is a form of domination as it covertly excludes many groups of women
- quantitative methods also do not capture the reality of women’s experiences
18
Q
Evaluation of the postmodern view on sociology as a science
A
- postmodernist contradict themselves by claiming there are no universal truths while presenting their own perspective as uniquely valid > if all knowledge is subjective then the PM claim that sociology cannot be a science is itself a subjective view & not universally true
- extreme relativism undermines sociologies ability to critique injustice or propose solutions to social problems e.g. racism cannot be addressed if all views are treated as equally valid
