1. Chapter 1: Sociology: A Unique Way to View the World

2. Why is the social world important?
Shared expectations help create order
Individuals and the social world mutually influence one another
Humans are fundamentally social beings

3. What is sociology?
The scientific study of social life, social change, and the social causes and consequences of human behavior
Essentially—why and how people and groups interact with one another, are organized, and deal with conflict and change

4. Sociologists study groups of all sizes
Dyads
Small groups
Large groups
Nations
The global society

5. The underlying assumptions of sociology
People are social
People spend most of their lives in groups
Interactions between people and groups are reciprocal
Conflict and change are inevitable
All groups have certain organizing characteristics

6. Groups are characterized by:
Recurrent social patterns
Ordered behavior
Shared experiences among members
Common understandings

7. True or False?
Because of the rapid rise in divorce and unwed childbearing, more American children live in single parent households than ever before

8. FALSE
Actually, roughly the same numbers live in single parent households today because more parents were widowed in the past

9. Sociology vs. Common Sense
We all have reasonable assumptions (common sense ideas) based on logical deduction, past experiences, and stereotypes
However, sociologists intentionally set up scientific studies to disprove common sense assumptions

10. The sociological perspective
Personal experiences can be best understood by examining them in the broader social context
E.G., Why do some individuals get punished more harshly for the same crimes than others do?
What social factors might be related to other issues like teenage pregnancy or later age at marriage?

11. The sociological imagination
C. Wright Mills
A willingness to recognize the relationship between individual experiences and public issues

12. Questions sociologists ask
Sociologists ask questions that can be measured objectively and scientifically
They do not study philosophical or moral issues
They do not make moral judgments about social issues
Applied sociologists perform research to help solve social problems

13. A comparison of the social sciences
Cultural Anthropology
Psychology
Political Science
Economics
Sociology
How are they similar?
How are they different?

14. Why study sociology?
Better understand social situations and diverse perspectives
Be able to collect data and evaluate problems
Understand the intended and unintended consequences of social policies
Reveal the complexities of social life
Learn more about ourselves and our biases
Develop useful job skills

15. The social world model
Social units—interconnected parts of the social world
Social structure—people and groups that bring order to our lives and hold social units together
Social institutions—provide the rules, roles, and relationships to direct and control human behavior
All are interconnected

16. The social world model (con’t)
Social processes—the actions taken by people in social units
Process of socialization—how we learn the social expectations for members of society
Process of change—every social unit is continually changing
The environment—the setting surrounding each social unit

18. Levels of analysis
The social world can be studied from a variety of levels
Micro-level (individuals and small groups)
Importance: micro interactions form the basis of all social organizations
Meso-level (intermediate sized units)
Importance: helps explain the processes and institutions in a society

19. Levels of analysis (con’t)
Macro-level (focus on entire nations, global forces, and international trends)
Importance: Helps understand how larger social forces shape everyday life
Each level adds depth to a topic

20. Which level (micro, meso, or macro) would you use to examine each of the following questions?
How do couples divide housework responsibilities?
Which factors determine the percentage of women in political power in a certain country?
Does the size of the sports stadium matter for students who are choosing a college?

21. Answer: All three questions could be studies from each of the three levels
The three levels are not truly distinct

22. Summary
Sociologists use research methods to objectively study social interactions and organizations
The sociological perspective and sociological imagination allow us to understand individual situations in the context of broader social forces
All social units are held together by a social structure, which is connected to social institutions. These factors mutually influence one another in a linked system
Social phenomena can be examined from multiple levels of analysis