What is Sociology?

Sociology is the scientific study of human groups. It provides tools for understanding
how and why our society functions, impact of social intuitions on individual lives, and the
challenges of social interaction between individuals and society. Through teaching,
research, and service learning, the Sociology program provides critical understanding of
ways people relate to one another through the organization of society and how its
structures and cultures influence our lives. Subject matters of sociology ranges from
family life to organizations, from crime to education, from the divisions of race and social
class to the shared beliefs of a common culture, from poverty to wealth. ew fields have
such a broad and e!citing scope.
Sociology enables you to see the world in a new light. In a country li"e the #nited States
where individualism is celebrated, it is very easy to forget that the way we behave and
feel is socially produced. Whether they be friendships, families, church groups,
socioeconomic classes, comple! organizations, or nations, much of our lives are socially
constructed. This is the basic premise of sociology.
Sociology also helps people liberate themselves. In his Invitation to Sociology, $eter
%erger stated that &sociology can help people to ta"e charge of their lives by ma"ing
them aware of their situation in society and the forces acting upon them'%y discovering
the wor"ings of society, they gain an understanding of how this process ta"es place.(
The wisdom of sociology is the discovery that things are not what they seem.
%ut sociology offers more. When people see things, they as" what they are. Sociologists
as" what they are not.
)ature of Sociology
Sociology is the branch of "nowledge and it has its own characteristics. Sociology has
different nature in society. It is different from other sciences in certain respects. The
following are the main characteristics of sociology as enlisted by *obert %ierstedt in his
boo" + The Social ,rder+ and they are as follows-.
Sociology is an independent science -. It is not treated and studies as a branch
of any other science li"e philosophy or political philosophy or history.
Sociology is the social science and not a physical science -. /s a social
science it concentrates its attention on man, his social behaviour, social activities
and social life.
Sociology is the categorical and not a normative discipline -. Sociology
+0onfines itself to statement about what is, not what should be or ought to be+.
/s a social science sociology is necessarily silent about 1uestions of value and it
is ethically neutral.
Sociology is the pure science and not an applied science -. The main aim of
pure science is the ac1uisition of "nowledge and it is not bothered weather the
ac1uired "nowledge is useful or can be put to use.
Sociology is the relatively an abstract science and not a concrete science -.
Sociology does not confine itself to the study of this society of that particular
society or social organization, or marriage, or religion, or group and so on. It is in
this simple sense that sociology is an abstract nor a concrete science.
Sociology is the generalizing and not a particularizing or individualizing
science -. Sociology tries to find out the general laws or principles about human
interaction and association, about the nature, from, content and the structure of
human groups and societies. It tries to ma"e generalisations on the basis of the
study of some selected events.
Sociology is the general science not a special science -. The area of in1uiry of
sociology is general not specialised. It is concerned with human interaction and
human life in general. It only studies human activities in a general way.
/nthropology and social psychology often claim themselves to be general social
science.
Sociology is both rational and an empirical science -. There are two broad
ways of approach to scientific "nowledge. 2mpiricism is the approach that
emphasis e!perience and the facts that result from observation and
e!perimentation. *ationalism is stresses reason and the theories that result from
logical inference.
$ioneers of Sociology
/uguste 0omte
The rench philosopher /uguste 0omte 3456784795:;often called the &father of
sociology(;first used the term &sociology( in 47<7 to refer to the scientific study of
society. =e believed that all societies develop and progress through the following stages-
religious, metaphysical, and scientific. 0omte argued that society needs scientific
"nowledge based on facts and evidence to solve its problems;not speculation and
superstition, which characterize the religious and metaphysical stages of social
development. 0omte viewed the science of sociology as consisting of two branches-
dynamics, or the study of the processes by which societies change> and statics, or the
study of the processes by which societies endure. =e also envisioned sociologists as
eventually developing a base of scientific social "nowledge that would guide society into
positive directions.
=erbert Spencer
The 46thcentury 2nglishman =erbert Spencer 347?@846@<: compared society to
a living organism with interdependent parts. 0hange in one part of society causes
change in the other parts, so that every part contributes to the stability and survival of
society as a whole. If one part of society malfunctions, the other parts must adjust to the
crisis and contribute even more to preserve society. amily, education, government,
industry, and religion comprise just a few of the parts of the &organism( of society.
Spencer suggested that society will correct its own defects through the natural process
of &survival of the fittest.( The societal &organism( naturally leans toward homeostasis, or
balance and stability. Social problems wor" themselves out when the government leaves
society alone. The &fittest(;the rich, powerful, and successful;enjoy their status
because nature has &selected( them to do so. In contrast, nature has doomed the
&unfit(;the poor, wea", and unsuccessful;to failure. They must fend for themselves
without social assistance if society is to remain healthy and even progress to higher
levels. Aovernmental interference in the &natural( order of society wea"ens society by
wasting the efforts of its leadership in trying to defy the laws of nature.
Barl Car!
)ot everyone has shared SpencerDs vision of societal harmony and stability.
0hief among those who disagreed was the Aerman political philosopher and economist
Barl Car! 347478477<:, who observed societyDs e!ploitation of the poor by the rich and
powerful. Car! argued that SpencerDs healthy societal &organism( was a falsehood.
*ather than interdependence and stability, Car! claimed that social conflict, especially
class conflict, and competition mar" all societies.
The class of capitalists that Car! called the bourgeoisie particularly enraged him.
Cembers of the bourgeoisie own the means of production and e!ploit the class of
laborers, called the proletariat, who do not own the means of production. Car! believed
that the very natures of the bourgeoisie and the proletariat inescapably loc" the two
classes in conflict. %ut he then too" his ideas of class conflict one step further- =e
predicted that the laborers are not selectively &unfit,( but are destined to overthrow the
capitalists. Such a class revolution would establish a &classfree( society in which all
people wor" according to their abilities and receive according to their needs.
#nli"e Spencer, Car! believed that economics, not natural selection, determines the
differences between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. =e further claimed that a
societyDs economic system decides peoplesD norms, values, mores, and religious beliefs,
as well as the nature of the societyDs political, governmental, and educational systems.
/lso unli"e Spencer, Car! urged people to ta"e an active role in changing society rather
than simply trusting it to evolve positively on its own.
2mile Eur"heim
Eespite their differences, Car!, Spencer, and 0omte all ac"nowledged the
importance of using science to study society, although none actually used scientific
methods. )ot until 2mile Eur"heim 3479784645: did a person systematically apply
scientific methods to sociology as a discipline. / rench philosopher and sociologist,
Eur"heim stressed the importance of studying social facts, or patterns of behavior
characteristic of a particular group. The phenomenon of suicide especially interested
Eur"heim. %ut he did not limit his ideas on the topic to mere speculation. Eur"heim
formulated his conclusions about the causes of suicide based on the analysis of large
amounts of statistical data collected from various 2uropean countries.
Eur"heim certainly advocated the use of systematic observation to study sociological
events, but he also recommended that sociologists avoid considering peopleDs attitudes
when e!plaining society. Sociologists should only consider as objective &evidence( what
they themselves can directly observe. In other words, they must not concern themselves
with peopleDs subjective e!periences.
Max Weber
The Aerman sociologist Ca! Weber 347FG846?@: disagreed with the &objective
evidence only( position of Eur"heim. =e argued that sociologists must also consider
peopleDs interpretations of events;not just the events themselves. Weber believed that
individualsD behaviors cannot e!ist apart from their interpretations of the meaning of their
own behaviors, and that people tend to act according to these interpretations. %ecause
of the ties between objective behavior and subjective interpretation, Weber believed that
sociologists must in1uire into peopleDs thoughts, feelings, and perceptions regarding their
own behaviors. Weber recommended that sociologists adopt his method of Herstehen
3vIrst e hen:, or empathetic understanding. Herstehen allows sociologists to mentally put
themselves into &the other personDs shoes( and thus obtain an &interpretive
understanding( of the meanings of individualsD behaviors.