Basic sociology course! Not may major just need to complete my courses

What is sociology?

Sociology refers to the study of the human social relationships or connection as well as

institutions. Besides, one can also define it as the scientific study of the community including the

patterns of social relationships, social interaction as well as culture. Therefore, it is an exciting

field of study which focuses on analyzing and explaining vita aspects in our lives, our societies

as well as the entire universe. Personally, I believe that sociology usually research or investigates

the social causes together with the effects of the various phenomenon such as the romantic love,

racial jointly with the gender identity, family conflict, deviant conduct, aging as well as the

religious faith among others.

Explain the difference between sociology and psychology?

Many people including students considering a major in the fields of social sciences question

what the primary differences are between psychology and sociology since they look so similar.

In some manners, these two fields of study go hand in hand to expose the scientific reality

concerning the humans. Besides, they both have the general goal of assisting individuals to better

understand the complex dynamics of the mental procedures, emotions, conducts as well as the

social relationships. However, there are important unique attributes which make the two fields of

study to be different from one another. For instance, psychology seeks to examine the individual

conducts or behaviors as well its causes while the sociology focuses on studying the group

dynamics as well as behaviors (Ozeren et al., 2007). .

What is sociological perspective?

The sociological perspective is frequently used by sociologists to analyze the social phenomena

at various levels and from different angles. The sociological perspectives define the three basic

categories in which individuals might go about to select how to approach a particular topic and

the methods people might use include the structural functionalism, conflict theory as well as the

symbolic interactionist perspectives. These social perspectives are critical in assisting individuals

to connect their issues with the public problems as well as their history. Moreover, the

sociological perspectives will also attempt to come up with the effects of particular social trends

and also provide a structure for knowing the social world in which we live in.

What is sociological imagination?

The sociological imagination refers to the practice of having the capacity to think ourselves away

from the common routines of our daily lives to view them with fresh and critical eyes. It is also a

vivid knowledge and awareness of the relationship which exists between experience and the

broader community. The sociological imagination is the capability to view things socially and

how they relate and influence one another. Therefore, the sociological imagination by Mills

gives a framework for understanding our social world which by far surpasses any common sense

perception we might derive from the limited social experiences.

What is the three major sociological perspective/paradigm?

The today’s sociologists will integrate three primary theoretical perspectives including the

symbolic interactionist perspective, the functionalist perspective as well as the conflict

perspective. The three perspectives are known for offering sociologists with the theoretical

paradigms for discussing how the society influences individuals and how the people also affect

the community. Every perspective exclusively conceptualizes the society, the social forces as

well as the human conducts. The symbolic interactionism in the micro level analysis focuses on

the use of symbols and face to face interactions while the functionalism in the macro level

analysis, emphasizes the relationship or connection between the parts of the community and how

the different aspects of the society are functional. However, the conflict theory focuses on the

competition for the limited resources as well as how the elite manages and controls the poor and

the vulnerable in the society (Thompso et al., 2016)

What is the fundamental reason for doing sociological research?

The sociological research will be critical in providing solutions to the different questions

regarding the social life as well as the social world by developing theories which are an overall

clarification of how and why the social life follows the pattern it does.

Identify the sociologist that you are interested in studying and why?

I am hiring interested in studying August Comte who also the founder of positivism and known

for the coining the term sociology. I will consider Comte because it was at the forefront in

shaping and expanding the field of sociology and also placed a large amount of focus on his

work on the systematic observation as well as the social order. Additionally, I am also fascinated

of studying positivism in sociology which explains a method to the investigations of the society

that purposely uses the scientific evidence like an experiment, statistics as well as the qualitative

outcomes to determine the truth concerning the way the community operates and functions. I

also believe that it is likely to observe social life and also develop reliable, valid knowledge

concerning how it works, an assumption which is shared the positivist theory.

What were the results of Emile Durkheim’s study on suicide? When analyzing suicide cases

today, it is safe to say that Durkheim’s explanation on the causes of suicide can be used to

explain suicide cases today. To prove that statement, summarize current event on suicide.

Emile Durkheim’s study on suicide proved that there is a lower rate of suicide among the

Catholics than the Protestants and he theorized that it was due to solid forms of social control

together with cohesion among the Catholics. Moreover, he also found that suicide cases were

less common among women as compared to men and also more frequent among single

individuals compared to those who are romantically married or partnered and also less frequent

among individuals who have children. Furthermore, he also realized that soldiers committed

suicide more often than the civilians and the rate was higher in peacetime than during wars. The

current event on suicide which left everybody talking including president Obama indicates that

social factors and individual psychological factors, which were also mentioned by Emile

Durkheim are the leading causes of suicide. Clementi committed suicide after being devastated

upon realizing that his new college roommate had been broadcasting his sexual activities with

another man over the web.

Identify research methods used in sociological research.

The various research methods which can be used in sociological research include the social

surveys, experiments, interviews (structured, unstructured, and semi structured), participation

observations, ethnographies and case studies. The social surveys refer to the classically

structured questionnaires which are designed to collect data and information from a large number

of participants of the study. On the other hand experiments are meant to determine the impact

that one variable has on another with the aim of establishing the cause and impact of

relationships between variables. Interviews are ways of collecting information through asking

questions orally or through telephone while participant observations entails the researcher

joining a group of individuals who take an active part in their day to day lives (Bryman, 2016).

References

Goldthorpe, J. E. (1985). An introduction to sociology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Ozeren, S., Gunes, I. D., & Al-Badayneh, D. M. (2007). Understanding Terrorism: Analysis of

Sociological and Psychological Aspects. Amsterdam: IOS Press.

Thompson, W. E., Hickey, J. V., & Thompson, M. L. (2016). Society in focus: An introduction to

sociology.

Maskill, C., New Zealand., & Wellington School of Medicine and Health Sciences.

(2005). Explaining patterns of suicide: A selective review of studies examining social,

economic, cultural and other population-level influences. Wellington, N.Z: Ministry of

Health.

Bryman, A. (2016). Social research methods. Oxford University Press.