Reading: Introduction to Sociology Part 2 Slides

Introduction to Sociology Part 2

Henry Reyenga

What is Sociology?

Sociology is the study of human social life.

Acts 17:28 ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ 

Post Modern - Verstehen

The goal of verstehen is less to predict behavior than it is to understand behavior. Outside observers of a culture relate to an indigenous people on both the observer's and the observeds' own terms in order to comprehend the cultural conditions. While arriving at a verstehen-like understanding of a culture employs systematic methodologies like the positivistic approach of predicting human behavior, it is often a more subjective process.

Post Modern Reactions

Verstehen 

The term is closely associated with the work of the German sociologist, Max Weber, whose antipositivism established an alternative to prior sociological positivism and economic determinism, rooted in the analysis of social action.

Weber advocated democracy as a means for selecting strong leaders. He viewed democracy as a form of charismatic leadership where the "demagogue imposes his will on the masses." For this reason, the European left is often critical of Weber for, albeit unwittingly, "preparing the intellectual groundwork for the leadership position of Adolf Hitler.”

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weber_and_German_politics

Verstehen

The goal is to identify human actions and interpreting them as observable events leading us to believe that it not only provides for a good explanation for individual actions but also for group interactions. The meaning attached needs to include constraints and limitations and analyze the motivation for action. Weber believed that this gives the sociologist an advantage over a natural scientist because "We can accomplish something which is never attainable in the natural sciences, namely the subjective understanding of the action of the component individuals" (Weber, Economy and Society, p. 15). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verstehen

More “Subjective”

Verstehen roughly translates to "meaningful understanding" or "putting yourself in the shoes of others to see things from their perspective." Interpretive sociology differs from positivist sociology in three ways:

Interpretive sociology deals with the meaning attached to behavior, unlike positivist sociology which focuses on action.

Interpretive sociology sees reality as being constructed by people, unlike positivist sociology which sees an objective reality "out there".

Interpretive sociology relies on qualitative data, unlike positivist sociology which tends to make use of quantitative data.^[6]

Quantitative Sociology 

Quantitative sociology is generally a numerical approach to understanding human behavior. Surveys with large numbers of participants are aggregated into data sets and analyzed using statistics, allowing researchers to discern patterns in human behavior. 

Qualitative Sociology 

Qualitative sociology generally opts for depth over breadth. The qualitative approach uses in-depth interviews, focus groups, or analysis of content sources (books, magazines, journals, TV shows, etc.) as the data source. These sources are then analyzed systematically to discern patterns and to arrive at a better understanding of human behavior.

The Glasses of General Western Culture

Although sociology emerged from Comte's vision of a discipline that would subsume all other areas of scientific inquiry, that was not to be the future of sociology. Far from replacing the other sciences, sociology has taken its place as a particular perspective for investigating human social life. 

Comprehensive Topics

In the past, sociological research focused on the organization of complex, industrial societies and their influence on individuals. Today, sociologists study a broad range of topics. For instance, some sociologists research macro-structures that organize society, such as race or ethnicity, social class, gender, and institutions such as the family. Other sociologists study social processes that represent the breakdown of macro-structures, including deviance, crime, and divorce. Additionally, some sociologists study micro-processes such as interpersonal interactions and the socialization of individuals.