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Feb 20, 2021 · Sociological science is both different and similar to other scientific principles. It differs from Chemistry, Biology, and Physics in that sociology does not manipulate the physical environment using established natural science theories and principles.
- Positivism and Value Freedom
- ‘Right Wing’ Perspectives on Value Freedom and Sociology
- Feminism – Sociology Is Biased Against Women
- Interpretivism – Sociology Cannot and Should Not Be Value Free
- Signposting and Related Posts
In the late 19thand early 20thcenturies Positivist Sociologists such as August Comte and Emile Durkheimregarded Sociology as a science and thus thought that social research could and should be value free, or scientific. As illustrated in Durkheim’s study of Suicide (1899) – by doing quantitative researchand uncovering macro-level social trends Soci...
The New Right argue that sociology is not value free but rather left-wing propaganda. In the 1970’s and 1980’s, Sociology came under attack for its ‘left-wing’ bias. Originally criticized for its inclusion in teacher training programmes, it was further suggested that teachers were indoctrinating their students with Marxist propaganda. David Marslan...
Feminists are critical of the ‘value-free’ scientific claims of ‘malestream’ Sociology, arguing that it is at best sex blind and at worst sexist, serving as an ideological justification for the subordination of women. Anne Oakley (1974)claims that ‘Sociology reduces women to a side issue from the start.’While Sociology claims to put forward a detac...
There are three main Interpretivist Criticisms of ‘Positivist’ Sociology – from Gomm, Becker and Gouldner: Gommargues that ‘a value free Sociology is impossible… the very idea is unsociological’. He argues that Sociologists react to political, economic and social events – and what is seen as a political or social ‘issue’, a social ‘problem’ is depe...
This topic is a core aspect of the social theoriespart of ‘theory and methods’ within A-level sociology. Personally I tend to think of this topic as an extension of the Positivsm-Interpretivismdebate within Sociology. ‘Is Sociology a Science?’ also overlaps with this topic. Please click here to return to the homepage – ReviseSociology.com
A sociological theory seeks to explain social phenomena. Theories can be used to create a testable proposition, called a hypothesis, about society (Allan 2006). Theories vary in scope depending on the scale of the issues that they are meant to explain.
In the social sciences a broader definition of culture developed, where culture was understood as a “People’s entire way of life.” This emerged from 19th Century anthropology and emphasized lived experience. In this tradition, there is not one culture, but multiple cultures.
Feb 20, 2021 · Key Points. Nature refers to innate qualities like human nature or genetics. Nurture refers to care given to children by parents or, more broadly, to environmental influences such as media and marketing. The nature versus nurture debate raises philosophical questions about determinism and free will.
Jul 3, 2021 · Sociological approaches that are objective in nature adopt a viewpoint that is external or transcendent to individual experience. Examples include Marxism, Functionalism, Critical Theory, and Structuralism. The actor’s motives, choices, and reasoning are not of importance.
Oct 20, 2024 · natural attitude. In the phenomenological sociology of Schutz, our routine frame of mind in the ‘taken-for granted world of everyday life’ where we bracket out the critical attitude, suspending any philosophical doubts about reality. Synonymous with his phrases ‘common-sense thinking’ and ‘the attitude of everyday life’.
