Topic 6- Theory And Methods Flashcards
What is the difference between social problems and sociological problems?
Worsley- a social problem is social behaviour that causes publica friction or private misery and calls for collective action to resolve it
A sociological problem is any pattern of relationships that calls for an explanation. Including looking at problematic and non problematic behaviour.
What are the factors that impact whether sociological research impacts social policy?
1) electoral policy- research findings could be found which are unpopular with voters
2) ideological and policy reference governments- if the researchers perspective is similar to the political ideology of the government they may be more successful
3) globalisation- international organisations nay influence social polices, such as European union
4) critical sociology- sociologists who are critical of the state such as marxists, are unlikely to influence
5) cost- state have to spend money on implementing sociologists research so may not
6) funding- sociologists have to fit with the views of the funders
What is a criticism of how social problem and sociological problem is defined?
The definition relies on who has the power to define it. Policy is the result of political decisions from those in power.
Burden- states ‘ what counts as a problem is a matter of political debate’
Explain how positivism and functionalism links to social policy?
They believe sociology is a science and the state is something that serves the interest of society.
They believe the role of the sociologist is to provide the state with objective scientific information to help shape policies.
They favour ‘piecemeal social engineering’ which is a cautious approach taken to tackle one problem at a time
What is a criticism of functionalists perspective on social policy?
Marxists argue the piecemeal approach neglects the wider issues of structural inequality
Explain the social democratic
An approach that favours policies that redistribute wealth from the rich to the poor.
Townsend- argues sociologists should be involved in social problems and making policy recommendations to solve them
The black report; made 37 recommendations to reduce inequality, the Labour government commissioned it in 1977 but released it in 1980, when the conservative government where in charge. They refused the recommendations due to cost and released it on a bank holiday to minimise press.
Explain how marxism links to social policy
They believe social policy interests the ruling class and capitalism. This through:
1) policies provide ideological legitimation- masks capitalist exploitation.
2)they maintain the labour force - they further exploit workers
3) they are means of preventing revolution- when something threatens capitalism they create policies to protect capitalism
They recognise there are good policies that benefit the working class, they put profit over human needs
What are feminist perspectives on social policy? What impacts have they made?
They see social policy has been patriarchal and believe the state perpetuate women subordination.
They have impacted policies such as learning materials in schools to promote positive images of females.
Radical feminists have been successful in campaigning for refuges for women from domestic violence
What are the new right perspective on social policy?
The state should have a minimal role in social life and they are ideologically opposed to the use of social policies to resolve social problems. They take the freedom from people to make their own choices.
They advocate for policies such as marriage prep, parenting classes, support from tax and benefit system. The role of social policy should be to enable people to help themselves rather than act as a ‘nanny’.
