1 An Introduction to Sociology
Learning Objectives
1.1. What Is Sociology?
- Explain the concepts central to sociology.
- Describe the different levels of analysis in sociology: micro-level sociology, macro-level sociology, and global-level sociology.
- Define the sociological imagination.
1.2. Theoretical Perspectives
- Explain what sociological theories and paradigms are and how they are used.
- Describe sociology as a multi-perspectival social science divided into positivist, interpretive and critical paradigms.
- Define the similarities and differences between quantitative sociology, structural functionalism, historical materialism, feminism, and symbolic interactionism.
1.3. Why Study Sociology?
- Explain why it is worthwhile to study sociology.
- Identify ways sociology is applied in the real world.
Introduction to Sociology
Concerts, sporting matches and political rallies can have very large crowds. At such an event, you may feel connected to the group. You are one of the crowd. You boo and yell with them. You move out of the way when someone needs to get by. You know how to behave in this kind of crowd.
It can be a very different in an unfamiliar situation. For example, imagine that you are travelling in a foreign country and find yourself in a crowd. You may have trouble figuring out what’s happening. Is the crowd the usual morning rush? Is it a political protest? Perhaps there was an accident or disaster. Is it safe in this crowd, or should you try to get away? How can you find out what is going on? Although you are in it, you may not feel like you are part of this crowd. You may not know what to do.
Even within one type of crowd, different groups and behaviours exist. Others join a mosh pit or try crowd-surfing. On February 28, 2010, Team Canada won the gold medal hockey at the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Two hundred thousand happy people filled downtown Vancouver streets to celebrate. Just over a year later, on June 5, 2011, the Vancouver Canucks lost the Stanley Cup to the Boston Bruins. Many people had been watching the game on outdoor screens. Eventually 155,000 people filled the downtown streets. Rioting and looting led to hundreds of injuries, burnt cars, trashed stores. Property damage totaled $4.2 million. Why was the crowd response to the two events so different?
Sociology understands that being in a group changes behaviour. The group is more than the sum of its parts. Why do we feel and act differently in different types of groups? Why might people in a group behave differently in the same situation? These are some questions sociologists ask.
1.1. What Is Sociology?
Sociology is one of the social sciences. Just as natural sciences such as chemistry and geology study the natural world, social sciences study the social world. Other examples of social sciences include economics, political science and anthropology. Sociology studies all aspects of social life using scientific methods.
Sociology is the systematic study of society