theories and methods: sociology and science Flashcards
positivism
a philosophy that emphasizes objective observation and scientific methods to understand social phenomena
positivists
believe that society can be studied logically using the methods of the natural sciences
why do positivists believe so?
doing so will bring us true, objective knowledge which will provide the basis for solving social problems and progressing
explain a key belief of the positivist approach
society is an objective factual reality since it is composed of social facts (e.g. values, norms, institutions) which shape people’s behaviour
according to positivists, explain the characteristic of reality?
- reality is patterned not random, so sociologists can observe these empirical patterns and accumulate data
-this enables sociologists to discover social laws through inductive reasoning
inductive reasoning
the process of accumulating systematic data through careful observation and measurement to conclude social laws
why does this characteristic of reality enable sociology to be viewed as a science
- it is the job of science to observe, identify, measure and record patterns systematically
- since positivists believe reality consists of observable patterns, sociology can be studied scientifically, thereby making it a science
verificationism
the process of determining whether a theory is true or not
-this makes sociology a science because it emphasizes that theories must be tested and confirmed through empirical evidence
what can patterns be explained by?
social laws
-e.g. sociology can explain that educational failure is caused by material deprivation (a social fact)
why do positivists believe sociology should take the experimental method
it allows the researcher to test a hypothesis in the most systematic way
what are social laws
generalizations that govern human behaviour and social interactions
what qualities should researchers have?
-researchers must be detached and objective
objectivity
the practice of being impartial, ensuring that personal biases do not influence research to maximize the reliability of research data
what was Durkheim’s aim?
aimed to demonstrate that highly personal acts such as suicide are influenced by social factors
what did Durkheim use in his study?
quantitative data from official statistics
what did Durkheim find?
suicide rates were higher among Protestants compared to Catholics
what social facts were responsible for this, explain how it led to the difference in suicide rates
- the levels of integration and regulation
-the disparity was explained by the communal nature of the Catholic church which emphasized community and tradition thereby cultivating a stronger sense of social cohesion
how did Durkheim’s study establish sociology’s status as a scientific discipline?
by using empirical data to analyse the correlations between suicide rates and social factors, he demonstrated that social behaviour can be studied systematically like the natural sciences
evaluate Durkheim’s stance/study
-interpretivist sociologists argue human action is imbued with meaning
-this cannot be fully understood through objective observation
-Durkheim’s methods oversimplify complex individual’s experiences
-thereby reducing the insight and leading us to question whether sociology can actually be studied scientifically
interpretivism and how do interpretivists view humans?
-a research approach that emphasizes understanding the meanings and interpretations that people give to their social world
-they are autonomous beings who construct their own social world
what do interpretivists belief the study of sociology is?
studies people who have consciousness, unlike matter
what did Mead argue
people have free will: rather than responding to external stimuli, human beings interpret the meaning of a stimulus and choose how to respond
why methods do interpretivists use and why
-qualitative methods
-enables verstehen so sociologists can gain more insight behind human behaviour
what methods do interactionists prefer and why?
-grounded theory as explained by Glaser and Strauss
-the researchers ideas’ can emerge during the course of the research and can focus on the participants’ subjective meanings than their hypothesis
