Introduction to Sociology

(Ref: Richard T. Schaefer, Sociology, 10th Ed., McGraw Hills Online

Resources, http://www.mhhe.com/schaefer10)

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 Basic Terms
• Sociology: “Scientific study of social behavior and human
groups”

• Sociological imagination: Awareness of the relationship

b/w an individual and the wider society

• Sociological theory: A set of statements that seeks to

explain problems, actions, or behavior. It may have both
explanatory and predictive power

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 Early thinkers

• Auguste Comte (1798-1857)

• Harriet Martineau (1802-1876)
• Herbert Spencer (1820-1903)
• Emile Durkheim (1858-1917)
• Max Weber (1864-1920)
• Karl Marx (1818-1883)
• Charles Horton Cooley (1864-1929)
• Jane Addams (1860-1935)
• Robert Merton (1910-2003)

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 Sociologists view society in different ways!
(Major theoretical perspectives)

• Functionalist perspective

• Conflict perspective

• Interactionist perspective

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 Functionalist perspective
“Society is like a living organism in which each part of the
organism contributes to its survival”
Parts are structured to maintain stability

• Functions of a society
– Manifest functions
– Latent functions
– Dysfunctions

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 Functionalist perspective
– Manifest functions: Declared functions of an
institution (producing good quality graduates)

– Latent functions: Undeclared functions being done

(delay entry into the job market)

– Dysfunctions: Element or process of a society that

may actually disrupt the social system or reduce its
stability (gangs of students, workers,…)

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 Conflict perspective
“Social behavior is best understood in terms of conflict or
tension between competing groups”
 Conflict need not be violent, e.g; labor negotiations,
party politics, competition b/w religious groups for new
members, or disputes over revenue sharing
• Various views:
– The Marxist View
– An African American View
– The Feminist View

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 The Marxist View (Karl Marx)
• Emphasis on social change & redistribution of
resources
• Struggle b/w social classes is inevitable
• Conflict is seen as part of everyday life
• Sociologists want to know who benefits, who suffers,
and who dominates at the expense of others
• Conflicts b/w men/women, parents/children,
cities/suburbs, employers/employees,…
• Sociologists want to investigate how different
institutions (family, government, religion, education,
media,…) benefit one class while depriving others

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 An African American View (W. E. B. Du Bois)
• Emphasis on viewing society through the eyes of those
segments who rarely influence decision making, e.g;
White/Black, Arab/Non-Arab, Faculty/Student,…

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 The Feminist View (Ida Wells Barnett)
• Views inequality in gender as central to all behavior and
organization

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 Sociological Imagination

Ex: Discusss the following with conflict perspective. What

would be your comments if you took functionalist and
feminist perspective?
1.How would you interpret the practice of getting university
education?
2.How would you interpret the practice of plagiarism?

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 Interactionist Perspective

• Explains society as a whole by generalizing everyday

forms of social interaction
– Verbal communication
– Non-verbal communication
– Dramaturgical approach

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• Social inequality: Condition in which members of society
have differing amounts of wealth, prestige and power

• Applied sociology: Use of the discipline of sociology with

the specific intent of yielding practical applications for
human behavior and organization

• Clinical sociology: Dedicated to facilitating change by

altering social relationships or restructuring social
institutions

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 Culture and society

• “Culture is the totality of learned, socially transmitted

customs, knowledge, material objects, and behavior”
• “Society is constituted by a fairly large number of people
when they live in the same territory, are relatively
independent of people outside their area, and participate
in a common culture”
• Cultural universals are common practices and beliefs
developed by society ,e.g; common practices and beliefs
for athletic sports, cooking, funeral ceremonies,
medicine, marriage, and hedonistic restrictions

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 Culture and society

• Innovation: The process of introducing a new idea or

object to a culture
– Discovery: Making known or sharing the existence of an aspect
of reality
– Invention: Existing cultural items are combined into a form that
did not exist before

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 Globalization

• Involves the diffusion of ideas, practices and

technologies [http://www.infed.org/biblio/globalization.htm]
• Intensification of worldwide social relations which link
distant localities in such a way that local happenings are
shaped by events occurring many miles away and vice
versa [Anthony Giddens (1990: 64)]
• Globalization of the 'brand' Coca Cola, Nike, Sony,
McDonaldization

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 Globalization

• Diffusion: Process by which a cultural item spreads from

group to group or society to society
 Means of diffusion: Exploration, military conquest,
missionary work, influence of the mass media, tourism,
internet
• Technology: “Cultural information about how to use the
material resources of the environment to satisfy human
needs and desires”

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 Culture
• Material culture: Physical or technological aspects of our
daily lives, including food, houses, factories and raw
materials
• Non-material culture: Ways of using material objects,
customs, beliefs, philosophies, governments and
patterns of communication
 Non-material culture is more resistant to change than
material culture
• Culture lag: Period of maladjustment when the non-
material culture is still struggling to adopt to new material
conditions
• Sociobiology: Systematic study of how biology affects
human social behavior
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 Major elements of culture

• Language
• Norms
• Sanctions
• Values

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 Language

• Conceptualization is represented through language

• Language precedes thought
• Language shapes the reality of a culture

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 Language

“An abstract system of word meanings and symbols for all

aspects of culture” – Foundation of every culture
• Speech
• Written characters
• Numerals
• Symbols
• Non-verbal gestures and expressions

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 Norms

“Established standards of behavior maintained by a

society”
Types of norms w.r.t. level of control:
• Formal
• Informal

Types of norms w.r.t. relative importance to society

• Mores
• Folkways

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 Norms w.r.t. level of control

• Formal norms (written down and specify strict

punishments for violators)
– Laws (governmental social control) - formal norms enforced by the state
– Requirements for a college major
– Rules of a card game
• Informal norms (generally understood but not precisely
recorded)
– Standards of proper dress
– Manners of eating

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 Norms w.r.t. relative importance to society

• Mores (deemed highly necessary to the welfare of a

society)
– Mores against murder, treason, bank fraud
=> Institutionalized into formal norms
• Folkways (norms governing everyday behavior)
– Walking up / down an escalator
– Eating while working

 Acceptance of norms: Subject to change as political,

economic and social conditions of a culture are
transformed

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• Ex: You are boss in your IT-based environment. What
norms would you want to govern the junior staff (w.r.t.
job title) behavior? How might these norms differ from
those appropriate for senior staff (w.r.t. job title)
behavior?
• What are the norms for communication using mobile
telephony, fixed phone, video conferencing, email, sms?
• What are the norms for car driving, going to a park,
going to mosque, …

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 Groups for exercises

Student(s) Activities

Going to park
Car driving
Going to mosque
Fixed telephony
Mobile telephony
SMS interaction
Video conferencing using skype
Email communication

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 Sanctions

“Penalties and rewards for conduct concerning a social

norm”
Norms Rewards Penalties
Formal Salary bonus Demotion
Testimonial dinner Firing from a job
Medal Jail sentence
Diploma Expulsion

Informal Smile Frown

Compliment Humiliation
Cheers Belittling

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 Values

“Collective conception of what is considered good,

desirable and proper – or bad, undesirable and improper in
a culture”
• Values widely shared across nations:
– Benevolence, truthfulness, hard work,…
• Values less widely shared across nations:
– Power, right to privacy, developing a meaningful philosophy of
life,…

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• Basic values in U.S.:
– Achievement, efficiency, material comfort, nationalism, equality,
supremacy of science and reason over faith
• Basic values in Pakistan?
• Basic values in other societies?

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