Introduction to Sociology

SOC 1010, Introduction to Sociology 1 Cou rse Learning Outcomes for Unit I Upon completion of this unit, students should be able to: 1. Analyze the ideas of sociological theorists in terms of their historical, economic, and social contexts. 1.1 Examine the three primary perspectives of sociology: functionalist, conflict, and interactionist. 2. Analyze the relationship between one’s beliefs and one’s group memberships. 2.1 Use the steps of scientific research to examine beliefs about a current event. 2.2 Predict how membership to certain groups affects belief 4. Evaluate patterns of behavior through sociological skills and theory. 4.1 Apply sociological imagination to determine ho w group membership shapes how we perceive world events. Reading Assignment Chapter 1: The Sociological Imagination Chapter 2: Sociological Research Unit Lesson On the one hand, sociology is a noun: it is defined as a body of knowledge about society that is based on rigorous, scientific research. On the other hand, sociology is a verb: “a way of engaging with the world around us and understanding its complexity an d interconn ections in new ways” (Witt, 2015 , p. 20). In this unit, you will learn about and practice the sociological imagination that is needed to study, recognize, and understand the relationship between individuals and society. C. Wright Mills (1959) used the concept of sociological imagination to explain the relationship between the larger society and ourselves. Here, imagination does NOT mean make -believe. W hen Mills coined the term sociological imagination , he encouraged us to look outside ourselve s and to recognize that society shapes who we are, what we think, and how we feel. Ask yourself about your beliefs in the afterlife . If you grew up in a Hindu household, you might believe that the afterlife includes reincarnation into another person. If yo u grew up in a Christian household, you might believe the after life is in heaven. Using this same way of thinking, if you grew up in a Chinese American household, you may be likely to speak Mandarin or Cantonese in addition to English. However, if you gr ew up in a French American household, you are less likely to speak Mandarin or Cantonese. Rather, you are likely to speak French and English. If we stretch our imaginations even further, we can see that a person raised in a U .S. city is less likely to be able to grow his/her own food or drive a tractor than someone raised on a farm. Moreover, a person raised in the U .S. is more likely to believe women are equal to men than someone raised in a more patriarchal society. Finally, yo u are more likely to be friends with people from the same social class, race, and age group as you. Therefore, you are more likely to marry someone who is from the same social class, race, and age group as you. This is not to say you must do this. Rather, you are encouraged to do this by social institutions such as the family, education system, and religion. These are just some of the ways in which society tends to shape individual lives and choices. UNIT I STUDY GUIDE The Science of Sociology SOC 1010, Introduction to Sociology 2 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title Three perspectives dominate sociological thought and pr actice: structural -functionalism (SF), conflict approach (C), and symbolic interactionism (SI). Two of these perspectives, SF and C, study society and the individual in macro terms. When we study macro interactions, we study broad patterns of behavior, suc h as unemployment rates, immigration patterns, and even purchasing behaviors. SI, on the other hand, studies the micro aspects of self and society. When we study micro interactions, we study behavior on a smaller scale, such as the effects of losing one’ s job or self -identity, or the significance of the goodbye kiss to one’s relationship. Theories and theoretical perspectives help us understand our behaviors. Theory should not seem abstract to you; you use theory every day. For example, if you are on th e third floor of a building, and need to get out of it fast, the quickest way to the ground floor is to jump out of the window. However, you theorize that doing this would hurt — a lot. You “know ” this, not from personal experience, but from theory. Theori es are not simply opinions. Sociologists use hypotheses to create theory. They test these hypotheses to find support. Sociologists test and retest hypotheses so that we might use theory to explain the social world. Early Sociological Thinkers As with al l theoretical sociologists, the early thinkers were motivated to study conditions of their time. For example, Emile Durkheim, one of the most prominent sociologists of the 19 th century, and arguably the father of structural functionalism, noticed that suic ide rates in Denmark were twice that of England. To better understand this difference in suicide rates, Durkheim performed a review of the literature. He knew psychologists explained suicide in micro psychological terms, such as depressive disorder or othe r psychoses. However, given the facts on Denmark and England, Durkheim did not think psychology explained much about the rate (macro) of suicide. For Durkheim, a better answer had to do with group life rather than individual psychology. What he discovere d was that Protestants had higher rates of suicide than Catholics, and unmarried people had higher rates than married people did. He concluded that Catholic families lived in close proximity to their relatives (often in the same domicile), while Protestant s lived in individual nuclear homes. Thus, Catholics had more loved ones at the ready to rely upon. This makes for a handy tight -knit support group for life’s difficulties. Another important sociologist during the late 19 th century and early 20 th century was Max W eber. Unlike Durkheim, who studied patterns of behavior, Weber was more interested in the subjective meanings people attach to their behavior. In this way, symbolic interactionism attaches itself to W eber’s ideas. One of Weber’s contributions to sociology is the concept of Verstehen — understanding or insight. Rather than a sociologist using his/her own society as a measuring tool, Weber taught us to understand social phenomena within the context of the society under investigation. For example, in America, cricket eating might seem revolting. However, in many cultures, eating crickets is as “normal” as Americans eating hamburger on the Fourth of July. Another key concept attributed to Weber is ideal type . Ideal type is a model we use as a measuring rod against which actual cases are measured. For example, if you think of the construct mother , chances are murderer does not come to mind. That is because the American mother ideal type includes traits such as caring and nurturing. Keep in mind, ideal does not mean positive . For example, we have an ideal type for serial killer too (cloaked, dark, and introverted). This should also point out that the ideal type does not always describe the reality (for example, Ted Bundy was handsome and sociable). Nonetheless, an ideal type is important because it suggests what we collectively think of when we think of a social construct. Finally, Karl Marx, a social philosopher of the 19 th century , lived during a time of turm oil when people were either very wealthy or very poor. He noticed that among the poor, many groups competed for the few resources that trickled down from the wealthy. Marx witnessed the tension between these groups and worked toward a theory to explain why the wealthy rule and the poor fight among themselves. By controlling the means of production in a society, the wealthy controlled the society. The poor only controlled their own labor and were unable to leverage this labor in a way that gained control of other things beyond a paycheck dictated by the wealthy. Marx’s work led to what we now know as the conflict -perspective . SOC 1010, Introduction to Sociology 3 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title As with any science, sociologists use the scientific steps to research (see page 26 of the textbook).

Sociologists begin by defining the problem that they wish to investigate. For example, suppose that we wish to know if there is a relationship between poverty and mental health. We will need to check the literature for past research on the relationship. The literature informs us of the common measures used for the various variables in our study. Operationalizing poverty could be a simple income amount or a more complex measure of family wealth over time. To operationalize mental health, we might use the criteria found in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders for depression or generalized anxiety disorder. In addition to our primary variables, sociologists also include a number of demographic questions such as race, class, and gender in order to investigate group diff erences in belief and behavior. Quantitative sociologists primarily use surveys to answer the questions they have about the social world.

Surveys use a series of self -report questions with predetermined answers on a Likert scale to gather data from many respondents. Perhaps our hypothesis is that race or gender moderates the relationship. To determine this, we will need to ask our respondents their gender and race. By measuring these, we can then test and see if one’s gender or race changes the strength o f the relationship between poverty and mental health. Qualitative sociologists are interested in describing and understanding social phenomena. These sociologists tend to use methods such as participant observation and long in -depth interviews to tease o ut information otherwise overlooked. For example, we may want to understand the day -to-day lives of Walmart employees. We could choose to get a job at Walmart and observe those around us. Alternatively, we may want to understand how W almart employees manag e to survive on the paychecks they receive. We could continue with the observations, or we could choose to interview people and even follow them as they manage their survival during a typical week. Think about the different types of data each of these meth ods would bring. Chapters 1 and 2 in Witt’s SOC 2014 set the stage for future units. Remember, you will revisit both the theories and methods learned here. Unit II uses theory and method to understand the importance of culture in our everyday lives, beli efs, and behaviors. References Mills, C. W. (1959). The sociological imagination . New York, NY: Oxford Press . Witt, J. (201 5). SOC 2014 (3rd ed. update). New York, NY: McGraw -Hill Education. Suggested Reading Find out more about this week’s topics by researching, both in the CSU Online Library and elsewhere. For example, the following book was published a while ago, but it will provides valuable information today: Mills, C. W. (1959). The Sociological Imagination . New York, NY: Oxford Press. While the following article is a bit dated, it provides a good example of the sociological perspective in action. It can be found in the General OneFile database of the CSU Online Library: Misztal, B. A. (1993). Understanding political change in Eastern Europe : A sociological perspective. Sociology, 27 (3), 451 -551. SOC 1010, Introduction to Sociology 4 UNIT x STUDY GUIDE Title Learning Activities (Non -Graded) SocThink Your textbook provides several opportunities for you to explore relevant topics, from personal self -exploration to challenging questions concerning topic s being studied in this unit. Taking the time to read and respond to these opportunities will help you learn and apply the information being studied. These opportunities can be found on the following pages:  Chapter 1 o Page 5 o Page 12 o Page 17 o Page 19 o Page 20  Chapter 2 o Page 31 o Page 32 o Page 36 o Page 42 Check Your Learning Quizzes are a way to self -test to see if you understand what you are studying. The textbook provides a brief “Pop Quiz” for each chapter. Take advantage of this learning tool to enrich your learning experience! The answers are provided, so you can check and see how well you did. For this unit, the quizzes are available on the following pages:  Chapter 1 Pop Quiz, Page 23  Chapter 2 Pop Quiz, Page 45 Capitalism Crises Video Go to the website Sociological Images and search for “David Harvey’s Marxist Analysis of the Global Recession.” Watch “Crises of Capitalism,” an engaging 11 -minute animated video t hat is embedded in the article. It provides a Marxist understanding of capitalism, creatively illustrated as the speaker presents the information. Harvey gives a brilliant conflict explanation for the economic crisis of 2010, 2011, 2012… (Video courtesy of RSA Events, www.theRSA.org , in accordance with Creative Commons License CC BY -NC -ND 2.0 UK) These are non -graded activities , so you do not have to submit them . However, if you have difficulty with any concepts, contact your instructor for additional discussion and/or explanation.