1.2 What Is Sociology?
Sociology is one of many social sciences that is interested in studying society. In this text, we define sociology as the scientific and systematic study of groups and group interactions, and societies and social interactions, from small and personal groups to very large groups and mass culture. Another way to think of sociology is as the systematic study of human society and interactions. Society refers to a group of people who live in a defined geographic area, interact with one another, and share a common culture. All of these definitions emphasize the way that humans are social beings; society and the individual cannot exist without each other.
Sociologists identify and study patterns related to all kinds of contemporary social issues. Examples of topics sociologists might explore include the emergence of new political factions, how X influences everyday communication, the lack of racial and gender diversity in media portrayals of rodeo, and the stop-and-frisk policy. If you want to learn more, you have the option to read about the stop-and-frisk policy [Website].
These practices exist outside of us as individuals, but they still act to constrain our behavior. Social facts make it possible to move beyond studying individuals so we can learn about behavior of entire societies. Social theorist Émile Durkheim (1895) suggested that social facts are concrete ideas that influence the daily life of individuals. Durkheim discussed social facts within the context of kinship and marriage, language, and religion. Another well-known example of Durkheim’s study of social facts examines suicide rates. Using police suicide statistics from different districts, he found patterns that suggest suicide is not solely something that occurs at the level of the individual.
Social facts can refer to material and non-material items (figure 1.4). Material social facts include norms and laws in society that are often observable, such as legal systems. Non-material social facts refer to codes of conduct or best practices. An example of a non-material social fact could be morality or institutionalized religion.
| Examples of Social Facts | |
|---|---|
| Material | Non-material |
| Laws | Norms |
| Art | Values |
| Technology | Practices |
Sociological Perspective
How do sociologists “do” sociology? The first step is to develop your sociological perspective so that you can examine the world around you in a new way. Making the familiar strange enables you to think sociologically. The sociological perspective is a lens that allows you to view society and social structures through multiple perspectives simultaneously. Individuals can act independently within social institutions, but they are also bound by social structures that shape their lives. By becoming a skilled user of the sociological perspective, you will be able to see beyond the outside appearances of the actions of individuals and organizations (Berger 1963).
To develop our perspectives, we