- Individual perspective: Type of explanation of human behaviour which focuses on
individual causes.
- Sociological perspective: Type of explanation of human behaviour which focuses on
social causes, in the social context. It also considers collective outcomes. Sociologists
don’t aim to understand the behaviour of each individual, but instead examine social
phenomena (E.g. Do countries play a role in understanding obesity?)
Social contexts change (e.g. people move to another country) → Sociologists study the
human consequences of such changes. Sociology is the scientific study of social phenomena.
Relations between the sociological perspective and individual perspective: The sociological
perspective supplements the individual perspective. The individual perspective is the
proximate cause (e.g. negative self-concept → obesity), the sociological perspective is the
ultimate cause (e.g. being bullied → negative self-concept).
Proximate causes: Factors that are close to the phenomena to be explained.
Ultimate causes: Factors that underlie proximate causes.
Examples of social contexts: Countries, families, schools, organizations and neighbourhoods
(can be on micro, meso or macro level).
,Social problems
Social problem: A problem that goes beyond the individual (affects many people) about
which many people are concerned (in conflict with certain values). They vary from time to
time and from context to context.
→ The reason for investigation in social phenomena.
Three aims of sociology
Governments often develop policy measures and interventions to solve public issues.
However, in order to come up with effective interventions, an insight into the nature and
causes of the problem is needed.
Problems that people/politicians/organizations want to solve by various measures: Social
problem.
Social problems that are studied as a scientific phenomenon: Social phenomena.
1. Describe the problem (Sociological description).
2. Explain the problem.
3. Apply.
Societal relevance: Relevance of sociological work for the understanding of social problems.
Three types of sociological questions
1. Normative question: Entails value judgements.
2. Scientific question: Doesn’t entail value judgements.
- Descriptive : How high is the crime rate in Brazil and Canada?
- Theoretical: Why is the crime rate higher in Brazil than in Canada?
- Application: How will the crime rate develop in Brazil?
Theoretical question: type of scientific question targeted towards understanding
phenomena.
Application question: type of scientific question targeted towards applying scientific
knowledge.
The art of asking good sociological questions
Elements for asking a good sociological question:
1. Precision: Reformulate ill-defined (vague) questions into precise questions, with clear
interpretation.
2. Relevance. The sociological work has to be relevant for the accumulation of sociological
knowledge or relatable to problems in society.
Before asking a sociological question, do a literature review. This to make sure your study
still is relevant.
False theoretical question: Theoretical question which aims to explain something that does
not exist/isn’t true.
Comparative-case question: Question which includes some comparison of cases, such as
multiple social contexts, multiple moments in time and/or multiple populations.
, Sociology and common sense
- Common sense: Everyday thinking, intuitions, beliefs and perceptions. All people are
private sociologists, because we engage in social life and develop beliefs about social
phenomena.
- Academic sociology: The way academic institutions describe and explain the social
world. Characteristics are the systematic way of gathering knowledge, making
explanations public and subject to criticism, the development of coherent theories and
rigorous testing.
In sociology, explanations are seen as possible explanations. Sociologists pay much attention
to the systematic testing of these explanations. They are made explicit, precise, coherent
and subject to critique.
Sociology as cumulative science
Cumulative science: The practice that theories and observations of earlier studies are
incorporated in the work of successive studies.
Example: Study 1 including Q(d)1 and O1 → becomes background knowledge → Study 2
including Q(t)1 and T1 → becomes background knowledge → Study 3 doesn’t believe T1 →
O2 and T2.
Chapter 2: Theories
Theories and explanations
Theories are answers to theoretical questions. What are they? What makes them useful and
what tools use sociologists to represent theories.
Theories are needed when you want an explanation for social phenomena.
Proposition: Universal statement about de
causal relations between two or more
concepts.
Condition: Assumption about the specific
setting which relates propositions to
observations and hypotheses.
Theory schema: Type of theory tool in which propositions, conditions, hypotheses and
observations are written out as a coherent set of verbal statements.
Deductive-nomological explanation (O→P): Form of explanation of phenomena using
propositions and conditions.
H (Hypothesis) works in the opposite direction (P→O)
Modus Tollens: If it is hypothesized that A leads to B, and B is not true, A cannot be true
either.
Aspects of a theory: Coherence between P and C + It explains and predicts phenomena.
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