What Is Sociology?

1. How Do We Define Sociology as Discipline?

1. Gladwell's "Food Fight":

   • Main points and arguments:

     1. Budget allocation -> tradeoffs

     2. Food at Bowdoin College is a moral problem

     3. Financial aid vs. other aspects of spending

     4. Vassar -> What's more important?

   • Things You Didn't know before: Universities do not need to pay taxes.

     Why?

     1. Universities are non-profit organizations. Some universities buy lots of expensive properties to increase their endorsement, such as NYU.

        1. Universities are providing a public good, so they ought to receive some bonus from society. However, they also need to pay back society with high-quality and fair education. Privilege leads to responsibilities.

     2. This podcast is NOT sociology. Instead, it provides some sociological perspectives. This podcast is not objection:

        1. It adds a moral opinion.

           1. It lacks sufficient evidence:

              a) it only interviewed one student, and

              b) it only picks "food" as the topic.

2. Sociology as a discipline:

   • Definition of Sociology:

     Sociology is the systematic study and explanations of :

     1. Social behavior,
     2. Social groups, and
     3. society.

   • Sociology is also interested in following contexts:

     Sociology Definition - Extended:

     Sociology is also interested in how social forces influence or shape our individual behavior.

3. Sociology and other disciplines: Nature vs. Nurture debate

   • In Biology, we use Biology/genes to explain human behavior.
   • In Psychology, we use mental process to explain human behavior. It focuses on explanations WHIHIN individuals.
   • In Sociology, we use social interactions and environment to explain human behavior. It focuses on explanations in the EXTERNAL social realm.

Connecting Society and the Individual: Fundamental Theorem of Sociology

1. Social context shapes human behavior. Social context = Environment

2. Individual behavior is deeply shaped (but not determined) by social forces (social systems).

3. Thinking "sociologically":

   • See beyond merely the individual.

   • See behind assumptions of everyday life.

   • Begin to think about the way society is structured.

     Example: a Question for Thinking Sociologcially

     • "How are relationships organized?
     • "How are relationships between professors and students organized? "

4. A summary of Sociology as a Discipline: Summary: Sociology as a discipline:

   • Sociology recognizes the importance of individuals and the importance of biological and psychological factors.
   • But, this is NOT ALL that is needed to explain human behavior.
   • Social Context (Environment) is an inescapable factor in human life.
   • Biology and Environment are inseparable.

Sociology is a Social Science

1. Social science or "common sense?"

   • Common sense:

     Common Sense: Common science is sound judgment not based on specialized knowledge.

   • Science:

     Science: Science is a system of knowledge covering the operation of general laws, obtained and tested through scientific method.

2. Scientific method:

   • Scientific Method:

     Scientific method refers to systematic pursuit of knowledge involving the recognition and formulation of a problem, the collection of data through observation and experiment, and the formulation and testing of hypotheses

   • Why do we need scientific methods? We what to make sure that our study and research is replicable.

3. Sociology:

   • Sociology - Refined Definition:

     Sociology is the systematic study, using the scientific method, to test hypotheses/questions about social institutions, social interactions, and social relationships.

   • Note on the Definition of Sociology:

     As indicated by the definition, sociology only focus on people as a group; sociology never studies individuals and individual behaviors.

4. Anecdote V.S. Empirical Evidence:

   • Anecdote:

     Anecdote is a usually short narrative of an interesting, amusing, or biographical incident.

   • Evidence:

     Evidence is something that furnishes proof.

   • Empirical:

     The word "empirical" means "based on observation; capable of being verified or disproved by observation or experiment. "

5. Social science and generalizations:

   • Category:

     Category means to distinguish one thing from another; how we make distinctions between things.

   • Generalization:

     Generalization means the characteristic of objects within a category; defines similarities and differences with other categories.

   • Stereotype:

     Stereotype is an exaggerated description applied to every person in some category.

   • The purpose of social science is to develop accurate categorizations and generalizations about humans.

   • Sociology can predict:

     1. Which groups will be more likely to engage in certain types of behavior.
     2. But, not which particular person in the group will conduct certain types of behavior. - Sociology only studies humans as a group not human as an individual.
     3. Sociology predicts categories (and generalizations about them), but not a precise individual's behavior.