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Sociology

<OpenstaxParagraph>
	By the end of this section you should be able to:
</OpenstaxParagraph>
<OpenstaxUl>
	<OpenstaxLi>
		Describe the ways that sociological theories are used to explain social institutions.
	</OpenstaxLi>
	<OpenstaxLi>
		Differentiate between functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism.
	</OpenstaxLi>
</OpenstaxUl>
<OpenstaxFigure id="import-auto-id1463947" src="https://openstax.org/apps/archive/20240226.174525/resources/af42b92c6af0d195a55b6f55477c8d8181851cd2" alt="A person stands at a protest holding a large sign. The sign reads “Jobs, Education, Healthcare.”" mediaType="Soc3e_01_03_01.jpg" width="900" height="616" />
<OpenstaxFigureText width="900">
	<strong>Figure 1.7</strong> Sociologists develop theories to explain social occurrences such as protest rallies. (Credit: David Shankbone/flickr)
</OpenstaxFigureText>
<OpenstaxParagraph>
	Sociologists study social events, interactions, and patterns, and they develop theories to explain why things work as they do. In sociology, a theory is a way to explain different aspects of social interactions and to create a testable proposition, called a <OpenstaxTerm>hypothesis</OpenstaxTerm>, about society (Allan 2006).
</OpenstaxParagraph>
<OpenstaxParagraph>
	For example, although suicide is generally considered an individual phenomenon, Émile Durkheim was interested in studying the social factors that affect it. He studied <OpenstaxTerm>social solidarity</OpenstaxTerm>, social ties within a group, and hypothesized that differences in suicide rates might be explained by religious differences. Durkheim gathered a large amount of data about Europeans and found that Protestants were more likely to commit suicide than Catholics. His work supports the utility of theory in sociological research.
</OpenstaxParagraph>
<OpenstaxParagraph>
	Theories vary in scope depending on the scale of the issues that they are meant to explain. Macro-level theories relate to large-scale issues and large groups of people, while micro-level theories look at very specific relationships between individuals or small groups. <OpenstaxTerm>Grand theories</OpenstaxTerm> attempt to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental questions such as why societies form and why they change. Sociological theory is constantly evolving and should never be considered complete. Classic sociological theories are still considered important and current, but new sociological theories build upon the work of their predecessors and add to them (Calhoun, 2002).
</OpenstaxParagraph>
<OpenstaxParagraph>
	In sociology, a few theories provide broad perspectives that help explain many different aspects of social life, and these are called <OpenstaxTerm>paradigms</OpenstaxTerm>. Paradigms are philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them. Three paradigms have come to dominate sociological thinking because they provide useful explanations: structural functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism.
</OpenstaxParagraph>
<OpenstaxTable id="import-auto-id2268979">
	<OpenstaxThead>
		 
		<OpenstaxTr>
			 
			<OpenstaxTh>
				Sociological Theories/Paradigms
			</OpenstaxTh> 
			<OpenstaxTh>
				Level of Analysis
			</OpenstaxTh> 
			<OpenstaxTh>
				Focus
			</OpenstaxTh> 
			<OpenstaxTh>
				Analogies
			</OpenstaxTh> 
			<OpenstaxTh>
				Questions that might be asked
			</OpenstaxTh> 
		</OpenstaxTr> 
	</OpenstaxThead>
	<OpenstaxTbody>
		 
		<OpenstaxTr>
			 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				Structural Functionalism
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				Macro or Mid
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				The way each part of society functions together to contribute to the functioning of the whole.
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				How each organ works to keep your body healthy (or not.)
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				How does education work to transmit culture?
			</OpenstaxTd> 
		</OpenstaxTr> 
		<OpenstaxTr>
			 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				Conflict Theory
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				Macro
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				The way inequities and inequalities contribute to social, political, and power differences and how they perpetuate power.
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				The ones with the most toys wins and they will change the rules to the games to keep winning.
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				Does education transmit only the values of the most dominant groups?
			</OpenstaxTd> 
		</OpenstaxTr> 
		<OpenstaxTr>
			 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				Symbolic Interactionism
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				Micro
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				The way one-on-one interactions and communications behave.
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				What’s it mean to be an X?
			</OpenstaxTd> 
			<OpenstaxTd>
				How do students react to cultural messages in school?
			</OpenstaxTd> 
		</OpenstaxTr> 
	</OpenstaxTbody>
</OpenstaxTable>
<OpenstaxTableTitle>
	<strong>Table 1.1</strong> Sociological Theories or Perspectives - Different sociological perspectives enable sociologists to view social issues through a variety of useful lenses.
</OpenstaxTableTitle>

1.3 Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology

1 An Introduction to Sociology

1.1 What Is Sociology?

1.1.1 What Are Society and Culture?

1.1.2 Studying Patterns: How Sociologists View Society

1.1.3 Studying Part and Whole: How Sociologists View Social Structures

1.2 The History of Sociology

1.2.1 Creating a Discipline: European Theorists

1.2.2 Applying the Discipline: American Theorists and Practitioners

1.3.1 Functionalism

1.3.2 Conflict Theory

1.3.3 Symbolic Interactionist Theory

1.3.4 Sociological Theory Today

1.4 Why Study Sociology?

1.4.1 Sociology and a Better Society

1.4.2 Sociology in the Workplace

2 Sociological Research

2.1 Approaches to Sociological Research

2.1.1 The Scientific Method

2.1.2 Interpretive Framework

2.1.3 Critical Sociology

2.2 Research Methods

2.2.1 Surveys

2.2.2 Field Research

2.2.3 Experiments

2.2.4 Secondary Data Analysis

2.3 Ethical Concerns

3 Culture

3.1 What Is Culture?

3.1.1 Cultural Universals

3.1.2 Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism

3.2 Elements of Culture

3.2.1 Values and Beliefs

3.2.2 Norms

3.2.3 Symbols and Culture

3.2.4 Language and Symbols

3.2.5 Language and Culture

3.3 High, Low, Pop, Sub, Counter-culture and Cultural Change

3.3.1 High, Low, and Popular Culture

3.3.2 Subculture and Counterculture

3.3.3 Cultural Change

3.4 Theoretical Perspectives on Culture

4 Society and Social Interaction

4.1 Types of Societies

4.1.1 Preindustrial Societies

4.1.2 Industrial Society

4.1.3 Postindustrial Society

4.2 Theoretical Perspectives on Society

4.2.1 Émile Durkheim and Functionalism

4.2.2 Karl Marx and Conflict Theory

4.2.3 Max Weber and Symbolic Interactionism

4.3 Social Constructions of Reality

4.3.1 Roles and Status

4.3.2 Presentation of Self

5 Socialization

5.1 Theories of Self-Development

5.1.1 Psychological Perspectives on Self-Development

5.1.2 Sociological Theories of Self-Development

5.2 Why Socialization Matters

5.2.1 Nature versus Nurture

5.3 Agents of Socialization

5.3.1 Social Group Agents

5.3.2 Institutional Agents

5.4 Socialization Across the Life Course

5.4.1 Resocialization

6 Groups and Organization

6.1 Types of Groups

6.1.1 Defining a Group

6.1.2 Types of Groups

6.1.3 In-Groups and Out-Groups

6.1.4 Reference Groups

6.2 Group Size and Structure

6.2.1 Dyads, Triads, and Large Groups

6.2.2 Group Leadership

6.2.3 Conformity

6.2.4 The Bystander Effect and Diffusion of Responsibility

6.3 Formal Organizations

6.3.1 Types of Formal Organizations

6.3.2 The McDonaldization of Society

7 Deviance, Crime, and Social Control

7.1 Deviance and Control

7.1.1 Deviance, Crime, and Society

7.1.2 Social Control

7.2 Theoretical Perspectives on Deviance and Crime

7.2.1 Functionalism

7.2.2 Conflict Theory

7.2.3 Symbolic Interactionism

7.3 Crime and the Law

7.3.1 Types of Crimes

7.3.2 Crime Statistics

7.3.3 Public Perception of Crime

7.3.4 The U.S. Criminal Justice System

8 Media and Technology

8.1 Technology Today

8.1.1 What Is Technology?

8.2 Media and Technology in Society

8.2.1 Categorizing Technology

8.2.2 Types of Media and Technology

8.2.3 Product Advertising and the Attention Economy

8.2.4 Homogenization and Fragmentation

Question	Answer
an attempt to explain large-scale relationships and answer fundamental questions such as why societies form and why they change	grand theories
a testable proposition	hypothesis
philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the experiments performed in support of them	paradigms
the social ties that bind a group of people together such as kinship, shared location, and religion	social solidarity