People
Comte
earliest
french
founding modern sociology
Epistemology
a branch of philosophy that studies the nature and source of knowledge
non sequitur
the conclusion does not follow from the premise
All people from Africa are black-everybody in Africa is black (not true)
agency
the ability of individuals and groups to exercise free will and to make social changes on a small or large scale
positivist
science based on facts alone
reason and logic
Durkheim
french
social theorist
social facts, social solidarity, collective conscience
Subject/object
entity that has a relationship with another entity that exists outside itself
object: anything not the subject
genetic fallacy
argument asserts that a given claim is true or false on the basis of its origins
(I reject science because it comes from the elite)
structure
patterned social arrangements that have effects on agency and are in turn, affected by agency
experiments
study cause and effect in investigation, can be controlled
variable: possible values or objects
independent: not affected by outside factors
dependent: affected by outside factors
random sampling: random group, equal likelihood
Marx
German
philosophy, economist, historian, sociologist, journalist, etc.
class conflict: competition between social classes over the distribution of wealth, power, and other valued resources in society
social darwinism
natural selection, survival of the fittest to sociology and politics
straw argument
deliberate misrepresents an opposing position in order to attack that position more easily
Harriet Martineau
english, deaf, social and historical writer
spurious relationship
weber
german, protestanism
verstehn: interpretive understanding, how the subjects feel about being studied
Logical fallacy
an error in the logic of an argument that prevents it from being logically valid but does not prevent it from swaying peoples minds
ad hominem
personal attack
theory
general statements about how some portion of the world works, can be tested
sociological theory: specific questions about the social world
theoretical approach: basic image of society that guides theory and research
correlation
positive: same consequence
negative: opposite consequences
w.e.b. du bois
black, civil rights leader
double consciousness: both American and black never free of racial stigma
Critical Thinking
the ability to evaluate claims about truth by using reason and evidence
sociology
scientific study of human social relations, groups, and societies
inductive/deductive
deductive: starts big breaks down
inductive: starts small gets big
guide to beginning research
1. frame question
2. review existing knowledge
3. select method
4. weigh ethical implications
5. collect and analyze data
6. share