Understanding the Social Word

Understanding the Social Word There's no one single theory of social life Comte- one more time  Sociology as 'positive' science  Social physics (statics and dynamics) all sciences follow basic procedures, metaphors electric kettle society  Sociological method  Law of the 3 stages Thorny questions - wallpaper of sociology life, doesn't matter What is sociology? Is sociology a science ? What is society? What is social theory? Sociology defined - Durkheim 'sociology can..be defined as the science of institutions of their genesis and of their functioning' Durkheim 1962 structure and function analysis, (what's the structure of suicide, what's the function of suicide) Sociology defines - Weber 'Sociology is a science concerning itself with the interpretive understanding of social action and thereby with a causal explanation of its course and consequences' - man chopping a tree down at 6am, we can talk to him, wouldn’t know this if wasn’t for language - social action theory Durkheim and weber compared Different definition of the 'object of study' '' views on 'unit of analysis' ''methodological approaches '' interpretation of social change ''of social action ''social structure Imitations of sociological 'dualisms' Individual/society Agency/structure Macro/micro Objective/subjective Order/conflict The practise of the sociologist simplified Social life as an object of study Study social life in a rigorous and systematic way Undertake detailed empirical social research on specific areas of social life From data collected, they develop concepts and theoretical statements in order to cerate new knowledge of social life Sociological 'division of labour Inc specialize had produced Number crunching empiricists Methodological magicians Speculative theorists Theory- a working definition A theory is a set of linked, interrelated propositions that attempt to explain the origin, motivation and purpose of a particular phenomenon, such as religious practice or patterns of employment. Prefixing the word 'theory' with the word 'social' indicates what type of theory it is - Pryke 2002 Dimensions of theory and theorizing Cognitive, affective, reflective, normative dimension Classic social theories - key elements Social change, social action, social structure Research without theory is blind, and theory without research is empty - Bourdeiu 1992 Theories are nets to catch what we call the world, to rationalize, to explain and to master it. We endeavour to make the mesh ever finer and finer - Popper 1959