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Advanced sociological theoryFormat of lecture:
1. Structuring and explanation of readings
2. Some new material, not covered in readings
3. Review some technical details with pre-recorded videos/knowledge clips
College 1: The structure of sociological explanation
Sociology = research on social phenomena and their social conditions (‘causes’)
Problems as the starting point for theory formation and empirical research:
- Problem theory empirical research new problem …
- A problem can also be just a question we ask ourselves
Inequality problem = openness/closure of educational/health systems
Cohesion problem = amount of contact between members of a religious group
Cultural problem = use of online resources and networks
Openness of the educational system
Some types of problems:
1. Descriptive problems = Trends over time. Difference between countries, cities/rural
areas
2. Explanatory problems = What are the effects of early tracking on educational
opportunities for different groups? What are the mechanisms behind different
educational opportunities? Where do the differences come from?
3. Problems of institutional design = How to reduce or mitigate unequal opportunities
in education and school segregation?
4. Normative problems = What kind of inequality in educational outcomes is
acceptable? How much can you restrict freedom of choice of parents to prevent
inequalities?
Common sense
Common sense argumentation:
- The routine knowledge we have of our everyday world and activities
- Non-formal, unstructured, practical
- ‘Gezond verstand’
People say sociology is mostly common sense, but this is not always the case says Duncan J.
Watts. You have common sense arguments for both hypothesis in a finding:
- Example: ‘’Soldiers from rural backgrounds were usually in better spirits during their army
life than soldier from city backgrounds’’. This is false but you can support both sides
Explanations
You need tools and skills for the theoretical part of sociological thinking:
- Blueprints = type of explanations (covering-law explanations, syllogisms, coleman’s
diagram)
Types of explanations:
1. Covering law explanations = the phenomenon is explained by a causal law
, - Example: if a fire starts in a crowded room, many people will panic leading to many
fatalities
Different models:
Hedström’s objections against covering law explanations:
- There seem to be no real ‘laws’ in social science at the social level
- Causal mechanism remains unclear
2. Statistical explanations = the phenomenon is explained by a statistical relationship
- Example: the smaller the door in a room the more fatalities when a fire starts
3. Mechanism explanations = the phenomenon is explained by means of an action-
based explanation incorporating social restrictions/opportunities and the aggregation
process
Coleman’s diagram
1. Bridge assumptions
2. Behavioural theory
3. Transformation rules
What does the lower arrow stand for in Coleman’s diagram?
- Behavioural theory = How do the people go from the choices they have to the behaviour
Statements that are true about the diagram
- It is a thinking framework for sociological theories
- It clearly distinguishes between micro and macro level
- Transformation rules link the micro-level to the macro-level
Example:
, Macro versus micro level
In more abstract theory formation:
- Macro can refer to any group etc. that brings together lower-level units
- Micro = individual, macro = group of two, three, or more people
- Micro = organization, macro = industry
In more applied contexts, these labels have often a more substantive interpretation
- Macro = countries, societies, micro = individuals, meso = organizations, groups
Important definitions
Theory = a set of verbal or formal assumptions and propositions on the question at hand
including causal relations that lead to testable hypotheses about the question
Model = formalized version of a theory in which all conditions, actors, possible actions,
preferences, implications of behaviour for everyone and relations between these elements are
made very precise such that logical implications and hypotheses can be derived
Syllogism = building block of a theory or model
Conceptual model = an overview of concepts and arrows that summarize the hypothesis
following from a theory or model
Five important aspects of theory building
1. Be precise make things less ambiguous, clear concepts, formalization
2. Avoid black boxes thinking about plausible mechanisms often opens black boxes
Example:
‘’Do you really understand what cohesion is doing to the people?’’
3. Include micro level in the example: how does cohesion affect individual suicide?
4. Model the micro-macro transformation think carefully about the transformation rules
5. Behavioural theory what do you assume as individual level? As simple as possible,
as complex as necessary
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