...C. Wright Mills' Sociological Imagination Works Cited Not Included In 1959, C. Wright Mills released a book entitled ‘The sociological Imagination’. It was in this book that he laid out a set of guidelines of how to carry out social analysis. But for a layman, what does the term ‘sociological imagination’ actually mean? In his own words, Mills claimed “it is the capacity to shift from one perspective to another…the capacity to range from the most impersonal and remote transformations to the most intimate features of the human self – and to see the relations between the two of them.” . Mills believed that being able to see the relationship between the ordinary lives of people and the wider social forces was the key to the sociological imagination. Fundamental to Mills’ theory is the idea of ‘public issues’ and ‘private troubles’. An individual’s troubles are personal when they occur because of the person’s character. Public issues, however, are a direct result of the problems within society, they affect people hugely but often the individual will assign the problem as their own personal downfall rather than as a societal problem. An ordinary man may get depressed about being unemployed and automatically accept it as his own personal trouble. He will be condemned as being ‘lazy’ or ‘work-shy’ and labelled simply as a ‘scrounger’. However, if there are thousands of other individuals also unemployed, Mills argues...
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...[pic] |Syllabus College of Social Sciences SOC/120 Version 4 Introduction to Sociology | |Copyright © 2011, 2009, 2007, 2006 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Course Description This course is a foundation for studies of sociology. In this course, students gain an understanding of the sociological perspective, theories, and research methods. Students also explore culture, race, ethnicity, socialization, social interaction, deviance, social control, groups, organizations, social and gender stratification, population, and social change. Policies Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents: • University policies: You must be logged into the student website to view this document. • Instructor policies: This document is posted in the Course Materials forum. University policies are subject to change. Be sure to read the policies at the beginning of each class. Policies may be slightly different depending on the modality in which you attend class. If you have recently changed modalities, read the policies governing your current class modality. Course Materials Macionis, J. J. (2011). Society: The basics (11th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Recommended Websites: The following are suggested websites that can be used as additional resources for researching information for your CheckPoints and Assignments. U.S. Census...
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...Functionalism is one of the earliest sociological theories; it was a development from the first sociological theories developed by Auguste Comte in the early part of the 19thC. Comte developed sociology as ‘the Queen of the Sciences’ in order to use a scientific approach to understanding society. In addition to this scientific approach, he believed that society had a structure and each element of the structure played a particular role in the functioning of society. Emile Durkheim developed these ideas into a sociological perspective which we now call Functionalism. This perspective continued to be modified and developed until the middle of the 20thC when other perspectives gained importance. Functionalists believe that society is a social system made up of interrelated parts, which have specific functions to perform. Durkheim’s organic analogy suggests that society is like a living organism, just like the human body it is made up of organs which have specific functions to perform to keep the body alive, so society has institutions which have specific functions to perform which keep society in a state of equilibrium. Functionalism is therefore a Structuralist theory, examining the structures or institutions of society to see how they work to benefit society. Durkheim believed that society existed external to the individual and controlled the actions of individuals through social integration and regulation. In his study of the individual act of suicide/culture, he attempted to show...
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...Sociological Research Methods Shevonicha Hayes Soc/120 February 24,2012 Michelle March The article I read was about a 18 year old girl who took her life. In this article the case study conducted was to determine why this young girl took her own life. The research included interviews, documents and other artifacts including a video that had events about the subject’s life. The research used in this study case was Positivist Sociology. With this type of research there is an objective that is trying to be found. In this case the objective was to figure out why this young girl took her own life. The researcher in this case had to observe the behaviors of the young lady through the videos presented about the subject and answers form other people that were close to this girl. The survey research method was also used because there were questions that had to be answered by people who knew her because the participant was not available. “Research on suicide has concentrated mostly on the incidence of suicide in the general population” (Berman & Jobes,1991; Maris, Berman & Silverman, 2000; Maris, Canetto, McIntosh, & Silverman, 2000). Finding a reason why suicide happens is very important and can help prevent it from happening in the future. “Research is needed to better understand and respond effectively to people who are suicidal” (International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, 2009 Feb; 18(1): 10-7). The methodological approach that was used...
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...Is Sociology a Science? Intro: What is Science vs. what is Sociology? The term “science” refers the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behaviour of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment. Objectivity is seen as an important part of the scientific process, and involves value freedom and open-mindedness. Sociology may want to be a science due to modernity and the rise of technology. Scientists may be interested in how individual’s actions are influenced by the rise of technology and the secularisation of religion. Thus they may conclude that the only way in which they can be studied is through observations and experiments, such as lab experiments; which take place in controlled factors with controlled factors, as Popper suggests, science involves the hypothetico-deductive method to test through research. Also positivists argue that it should be a science when studying social facts. Arguably, Sociology wouldn’t want to be seen as a science, as the association with science connotes that we are dealing with emotionless electrons and atoms, as opposed to people with feelings and emotions. Thus some would disagree with the idea that objectivity that is associated with studying people within society, which science influences, as we are people and we cannot disconnect ourselves from society. For example, it is not simple to disconnect yourself when studying a rape or murder case. Positivism is the...
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...chapter one Sociology: Perspective, Theory, and Method What sets human beings apart from all other forms of life? Why is sociology an important tool for your future? How should you respond to people whose way of life differs from your own? ISBN: 0-536-12116-8 Societ y: The Basics, Eighth Ed itio n by Jo hn J. Ma cio nis. Published b y Prentice -Hall. Co pyright © 2006 by Pear son Edu cation, In c. ISBN: 0-536-12116-8 L The sociological perspective shows us patterns of behavior common within a society. Here, a member of Brazil’s Pataxo tribe offers a traditional greeting to a visitor. Societ y: The Basics, Eighth Ed itio n by Jo hn J. Ma cio nis. Published b y Prentice -Hall. Co pyright © 2006 by Pear son Edu cation, In c. I f you were to ask 100 people, “Why do couples marry?” it is a safe bet that at least ninety would reply, “People marry because they fall in love.” Indeed, it is hard for us to imagine a happy marriage without love; likewise, when people fall in love, we expect them to think about marriage. But is the decision about whom to marry really so simple and so personal? There is plenty of evidence that if love is the key to marriage, Cupid’s arrow is carefully aimed by the society around us. In short, society has a number of “rules” about whom we should marry. What are they? Right off the bat, society rules out half the population because U.S. laws (despite recent actions in cities such as San Francisco and likely...
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...body, celebrating, changing residences, listening to songs, traveling, burying the dead, and so on. These activities may involve just one or two people or billions of people. Social forces – Anything human create that influence or pressure people to interact, behave respond or think in certain way. Study sociology to avoid conflict, predict behaviors. Sociology covers different areas (Family, education, migration, population, gender and etc) and aspects of life. Thus the sociological perspective offers useful work that can be applied to work related issue and tasks and career oriented skills. Sociology studies through a global perspective A global perspective assumes that the force of globalization touch virtually every aspect of our daily lives. Globalization – Ever increasing flow or good, services, money, people, technology, information, and other cultural items across national borders. Ultimately globalization is experiences locality. Glocalization – The process by which a locality embraces, adapts to, or resists a product, an idea, a way of behaving that has come to them in the cross national flow. It is also when something unique to locality is launches on a path toward glocalizations. The sociological imagination A point of view that allows us to identity seemingly remote and a personal social force and connect them to our biogeographic. It is the...
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...The removal of the word “nude” eliminates any racial implications corresponding to white privileges, whilst re-establishing a sense of equality. The biological fact of life and of gender is simple, yet not without its social implications. Society today is governed by the ideologies portrayed through social constructivism; the sociological theory of knowledge and the creation of a culture with shared meanings. It is this theory that determines what ‘gender’ is, and as such, delineates the limitations and heterosexual ‘norms’. “The health of GLBTI is poorer than their heterosexual counterparts on a number of different measures.” (Willis and Elmer, 2010, p. 137) Those who identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex undergo different life experiences which impact detrimentally upon their mental health. There is limited availability of mental health services that are able to respond to their needs when combating the difficulties in today’s homophobic society. There is growing evidence to support that those who identify as GLBTI suffer from increased anxiety and depression, and are therefore at greater risks of self-harm and...
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...the economic system of a society. He theorized this relationship as a dialectic between thebase and superstructure of society. Some of his notable works, like "The Manifesto of the Communist Party," were co-written with Friedrich Engels. Much of his theory is contained in the series of volumes titledCapital. Marx has been described as one of the most influential figures in human history, and in a 1999 BBC poll was voted the "thinker of the millennium" by people from around the world. | 1858 - 1917 | Durkheim, Émile | Social Fact, AnomieEmile Durkheim is knows as the "father of sociology" and is a founding figure in the field of sociology. He is credited with making sociology a science. One of his most famous pieces of work includes Suicide: A Study In Sociology, and another important work of his that focuses on how society functions and regulates itself is The Division of Labor in Society. | 1863 - 1931 | Mead, George Herbert | George Herbert Mead is well-know for his theory of the social self, which is based on the central argument that the self is a social emergent. He pioneered the development of symbolic interaction perspective and developed the concept of the "I" and "Me." He...
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...Deviant Behavior Social disorganization BIBLIOGRAPHY Both “deviant behavior” and “social disorganization” have been variously defined, but there have been few efforts to distinguish between the two concepts. In fact, it has been suggested that they are not different, that along with “social problems*’ and the somewhat outmoded “social pathology,” they signify only a potpourri of conditions that are considered undesirable from the standpoint of the observer’s values, conditions that vary at different times and with different observers. According to this view, these terms have no scientific value and no legitimate status as sociological concepts. Such nihilism and counsel of despair are not justified. True, there is no consensus on the meaning of these terms, and they are, indeed, burdened with value connotations. However, they point to a number of distinctions that sociology must take into account. Concept of deviance. Turning first to the concept of deviant behavior, we must distinguish among the several definitions of the term, which are discussed below. Behavior that violates norms. Deviant behavior is behavior that violates the normative rules, understandings, or expectations of social systems. This is the most common usage of the term and the sense in which it will be used here. Crime is the prototype of deviance in this sense, and theory and research in deviant behavior have been concerned overwhelmingly with crime. However, normative rules are inherent in...
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... A. B. C. D. Psychology Economics History Sociology 3. By saying that the sociological perspective shows us “the strange in the familiar,” the text argues that this point of view: A. Rejects the familiar idea that people simply decide how to act in favor of the initially strange idea that society shapes our lives. B. Shows that common sense is a good guide to understanding human behavior C. Shows that people often behave in strange ways D. Focuses on the bizarre elements of society 4. From a sociological perspective, patterns of childbearing around the world suggest that the number of children born to a woman reflects: A. B. C. D. Whether she lives in a poor or rich society How many children she can afford Her personal choice The desires of her husband 5. Three roommates are in their dorm room sharing a late-night discussion about why they are in college. A sociological point of view would point to the importance of: A. The desires of her husband B. Which country we live in, because going to college is far more common in higher-income nations. C. Class, because college students tend to come from families with aboveaverage incomes D. Age, because college students tend to be young adults. 6. The pioneering sociologist who studied patterns of suicide in Europe was: A. B. C. D. Emile Durkheim Margaret Mead Auguste Comte Karl Marx 7. Suicide rates are generally higher among: A. B. C. D....
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...Crime and Deviance Revision SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Sociology Department Greenhead College SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Remember: You have to revise everything, because you have no choice on the exam paper. The specification 1 Different theories of crime, deviance, social order and social control * Different definitions of crime, deviance, social order and social control * The distinction between sociological theories of crime and other theories (eg biological, psychological); crime and deviance as socially constructed * Functionalist theories of crime: Durkheim, anomie, collective conscience; Merton’s strain theory; manifest and latent functions; functionalist subcultural theories * Marxist and neo-Marxist theories of crime: classical Marxism, laws reflecting class interests; Neo-Marxism, hegemony, the CCCS studies, critical and new criminology * Interactionist theories of crime: labelling theory, the self-fulfilling prophecy * Feminist theories of crime: patriarchy, male control of women’s lives * Control theory and other contemporary approaches to crime: social bonds, communitarianism, situational prevention; postmodern theories; Foucault on individualisation and surveillance * Realist theories: New Left Realism and Right Realism * The relevance of the various theories to understanding different types of crime, and their implications for social policy. 2 The social distribution...
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...Crime and Deviance Revision SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Sociology Department Greenhead College SCLY 4: Crime and Deviance with Methods in Context Remember: You have to revise everything, because you have no choice on the exam paper. The specification 1 Different theories of crime, deviance, social order and social control * Different definitions of crime, deviance, social order and social control * The distinction between sociological theories of crime and other theories (eg biological, psychological); crime and deviance as socially constructed * Functionalist theories of crime: Durkheim, anomie, collective conscience; Merton’s strain theory; manifest and latent functions; functionalist subcultural theories * Marxist and neo-Marxist theories of crime: classical Marxism, laws reflecting class interests; Neo-Marxism, hegemony, the CCCS studies, critical and new criminology * Interactionist theories of crime: labelling theory, the self-fulfilling prophecy * Feminist theories of crime: patriarchy, male control of women’s lives * Control theory and other contemporary approaches to crime: social bonds, communitarianism, situational prevention; postmodern theories; Foucault on individualisation and surveillance * Realist theories: New Left Realism and Right Realism * The relevance of the various theories to understanding different types of crime, and their implications for social policy. 2 The social distribution...
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...patterns within society as they can then make general statements about society works. Comte believed that sociology was a science as it shared the same basics with sociology of trying to find cause and effects, and that by applying these scientific methods true objectivity would be able to attained. The view a positivist would take is that reality is not random but is made up of patterns allowing us to research it quantifiably. And that this quantifiable data would allow for sociologists to discover things which would give an understanding and insight into the ways in which society operated. Durkheim believed this and his study of suicide main aim was to show that this individual act had social causes it would show sociology to be a science. He used quantativew data from official statistics to show that more protestants committed suicide compared to catholics and that...
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...rules created by the society. Positive being praise, wealth and power for abiding by the laws of a given society. Negative enforcers are disgrace, negative praise etc ... and other forms of deterrence that are created by society. These levels of punishment equal the importance of the laws that they enforce in the eyes of the society. Laws against criminal behavior has the criminal justice system in place to enforce and act as a form of social control. “A formal system that responds to the alleged violations of laws using police, courts and punishments …” Therefore although society as a whole sees crime as a personal failure and a choice of the individual to act upon. Society is the anvil on which ideas of good and evil are wrought and the individuals are hammered into conformity with applied force that is physical and personality shaping. This act is an integral part of becoming a social organization, which is defining of its own nature. Until recent years, there have been many sociological theories to try and explain the appearance of violent crime in society. In 1876, Cesare Lombroso put forth the idea that stated that there were biological features that would allow to pick out individuals that would be more prone to commit...
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