Introduction to

Sociology
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY

• Module 1: What is Sociology?

• Module 2: The Development of Sociology
• Module 3: Major Theoretical Perspectives
A Look Ahead
█ How did sociology develop?
█ How does it differ from
other social sciences?
█ Who are the pioneers and what
are their theoretical perspectives?
█ How does sociology help us
develop a sociological imagination?
Questions

- Are you influenced by what you see on television?

- Do you use the Internet?
- Did you vote in the last election?
- Are you familiar with binge drinking on campus?
=) Sociology looks at large social issues.
Module 1

What is Sociology?
█ Sociology: Scientific study of social
behavior and human groups
█ Focus on:
– How relationships
influence people’s
attitudes and behavior
– How societies
develop and change
Sociology vs Psychology

- psychology : the personality of individuals :

◦ example : relation with his parents
◦ =) so psychology analyses ONE person.

- sociology, (socio logos)

◦ understand INDIVIDUALS, in a group for example, and their relation with
family, state, in school for example.
◦ Sociology is the science which analyses social group.
◦ Sociology tries to analyze the society and individuals.
Module 1

The Sociological Imagination

█ C. Wright Mills describes
sociological imagination as:

An awareness of the Ability to view

relationship between one’s society as
an individual and the an outsider would
wider society
Sociological Imagination
Mills defined sociological imagination as how individuals
understand their own and others’ pasts in relation to history and
social structure (1959).
It is the capacity to see an individual’s private troubles in the
context of the broader social processes that structure them.
This enables the sociologist to examine what Mills called “personal
troubles of milieu” as “public issues of social structure,” and vice
versa
The Sociological Imagination
A key element in the sociological imagination is the ability to
view one’s own society as an outsider would, rather than
only from the perspective of personal experiences and
cultural biases.

=) importance of objectivity.
Mills reasoned that private troubles like being overweight, being unemployed, having marital
difficulties, or feeling purposeless or depressed can be purely personal in nature.
 It is possible for them to be addressed and understood in terms of personal, psychological, or
moral attributes, either one’s own or those of the people in one’s immediate milieu.
In an individualistic society, this is in fact the most likely way that people will regard the issues
they confront: “I have an addictive personality;” “I can’t get a break in the job market;” “My
husband is unsupportive;” etc.
However, if private troubles are widely shared with others, they indicate that there is a common
social problem that has its source in the way social life is structured.
At this level, the issues are not adequately understood as simply private troubles. They are best
addressed as public issues that require a collective response to resolve
 The Sociological Imagination
Obesity:
It has been increasingly recognized as a growing problem for both children and adults in North America.
With Sociological Imagination:
 Obesity is not simply a private trouble concerning the medical issues, dietary practices, or exercise habits of specific
individuals.

 It is a widely shared social issue that puts people at risk for chronic diseases like hypertension, diabetes, and
cardiovascular disease. It also creates significant social costs for the medical system.
Pollan argues that obesity is in part a product of the increasingly sedentary and stressful lifestyle of modern,
capitalist society, but more importantly it is a product of the industrialization of the food chain.
The sociological imagination in this example involves linking personal issues like being overweight to larger
societal factors.
It highlights how changes in the food industry have influenced our eating habits and the environment, making it a
broader social concern
Sociology and the Social Sciences
Is sociology a science?

Science: Refers to the body of knowledge obtained by methods based on

systematic observation.
Sociology: involves the organized, systematic study of phenomena.

=) All scientists attempt to collect precise information through methods of study.

They rely on careful recording of observations and accumulation of data.
Module 1

Sociology and the Social Sciences

█ Science: Body of knowledge obtained by
methods based on systematic observation

– Natural science: – Social science:

Study of physical Study of social
features of nature features of humans
and the ways they and the ways they
interact and change interact and change
Social Sciences
Anthropology: study past cultures and preindustrial societies that continue
today., as well as the origin of humans.
Economists: explore the ways in which people produce and exchange goods and
services.
Historians: are concerned with the peoples and events of the past and their
significance for us today.
Political Scientists: study international relations, governments.
Psychologists: investigate personality and indivudal behavior.
Sociology: the influence that society has on people’s attitudes and behavior and
the ways in which people interact and shape society.
 Study impact of earthquake that hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Let’s consider how different social scientists would study the impact
of the earthquake that hit Port-au-Prince in 2010.
Economists: would discuss ways to rebuild Haiti’s economy, perhaps
by diversifying it.
Psychologists: would study individual cases of emotional stress
caused by the traumatic event.
Sociologists: they might study the use of new media, such as Twitter,
to funnel donations. They migt conduct research on the adoption of
Haitian orphans.
Sociology and Common Sense
Sociology focuses on the study of human behaviour. Yet we
all have experience with human behavior and at least some
knowledge of it.
All of us might well have theories about why people become
homeless, for example.
=) our theories and opinions typically come from common
sense.
(from conversations and experiences).
Sociology and Common Sense

However, this common sense knowledge, while

sometimes accurate. It is not always reliable.
=) because it rests on commonly held beliefs rather
than on systematic analysis of facts.
Module 1

Sociology and Common Sense

█ Sociologists do not accept something as
fact because “everyone knows it”
– Each piece of information must
be tested, recorded, and analyzed

Women tend to be chattier than men

Sociology and Common Sense

Contrary to the common notion that women tend to be

chatty compared to men, researchers have found little
difference between the sexes in terms of their
talkativeness.
=) they found that men and women spoke about 16.000
words per day (Melh et al. 2007).
=) sociologists do not accept something as a fact because
«everyone knows it».
THE ORIGINS OF SOCIOLOGY
Change, transformation and
sociology
The Enlightenment – (1750-1800)
- Science, Reason / tradition and believes
- Reason became a way of organising
knowledge.
- Empiricism : Science is important.
Change, transformation and sociology

- A new industrial economy : the growth of

modern capitalism
Industrial Revolution

- 18th century :
- new sources of energy : steam power, crop rotation.
- transformation in agriculture
- Factories
- England : home of Industrial Revolution.
- New cities were built.
Farmers =) workers in factories.
Industrial Revolution (2)

Consequences : this system of production generated huge poverty

and mass suffering.
Slums, bad conditions of life…
It weakened families and social relations : « anonymous
societies ».

Definition of anonymous : impersonal, no particularity.

you don’t know your neighbour.
Industrial Revolution (3)
Change in social relations : it eroded traditions that guided
members of small communities.
Urban growth dramatically changed people’s lives.
Cities churned with strangers (anonymous).
Overcrowded cities.
Housing problem
Social problems : poverty, disease, pollution, crime,
homelessness.
City Life

Cities grew around factories

These cities grew rapidly, without planning
Working people lived in slums
The lack of planning meant that there was no
running water, or sanitation system

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Working Life in Factories
Factory work was difficult and dangerous
Typical shifts lasted 12 to 16 hours
If you complained, you were fired.
If you got sick, you were fired.
If you got hurt and could no longer work, you were
fired.

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Industrial revolution
These revolutions have dissolved the forms of social organisation.
Traditions were crumbling.
1- Scientific discoveries and technological advances that produced a
factory based industrial economy.
2- Factories drew millions of people from countryside, causing an
explosive growth of cities.
3- People in these burgeoning industrial cities soon entertained new
ideas about democracy and political rights.
4- The stable communities in which most people had lived for
centuries started to decline. (ex. Family)
=) The Industrial Revolution led to heavy mechanization of
traditional work.
=) Transportation is improved as steam locomotives was
developed, new agricultural tools, urbanization,
improvements in the printing press and the introduction of
the factory system.
This meant: RAPID SOCIAL CHANGE.
AUGUSTE COMTE
(1798-1857)
AUGUSTE COMTE
He is the father of sociology.
Tried to understand the society.
Using Science to understand society.
He wanted sociology to apply the same rigorous
scientific methods to the study of society that
physists and chemists use to study physical world.
Universal laws.
AUGUSTE COMTE

No intuition but experiment : Positivism

Definition of positivism : knowledge is based on natural
phenomena and their properties and relations as verified by
the empirical sciences . Observation, comparison and
experimentation.
By understanding the causal relationships between events,
scientists can predict how future events will occur.
AUGUSTE COMTE
Comte wanted to understand :
- how human society could be improved;
- how society operates.
=) for Comte, to achieve this objective : develop a
scientific approach to society.
History and evolution of society.
AUGUSTE COMTE

From the Greek and Latin words meaning the study

of society, Comte came to describe his work as
“Sociology” (Socio-Logos).
How human society could be improved?
How society actually operates ?
 3 stages theory

AUGUSTE COMTE
His main sociological theory was the law of three stages, which held that all human societies
and all forms of human knowledge evolve through three distinct stages from primitive to
advanced:
◦ the theological stage
◦ the metaphysical stage
◦ the positive stage

The key variable in defining these stages was the way a people understand the concept of
causation or think about their place in the world.
Comte’s Theory :
Law of three Stages

1- Theological Stage :
 In the theological stage, humans explain causes in terms of the will of
anthropocentric gods (the gods cause things to happen).
 Thoughts about the world were guided by religion : society is an expression of God’s
will. Divine plan
In other words, ancient people believed that everything around them was a sign of
active gods influencing their lives
- Involve a vast range of human societies from the simplest tribal societies to more
complex kingdoms.
- This stage lasted from the 14th until about 18th.
Comte’s Theory :
Law of three Stages

2-Metaphysical Stage : Society: not God’s will.

Militarists and feudal societies
Analysing society by looking
 Humans explain causes in terms of abstract,
“speculative” ideas like nature, natural rights, or
at human.
“self-evident” truths.
Ex : selfishness, competition,
In this stage, phenomena are explained by
abstract forces, such as social order, human rights, selfish human nature.
law, equality, intelligence of nature.
There is no God involved; instead, a set of
abstract forces governs societal matters.
Comte's metaphysical stage is considered as
part of the development of scientific thinking
and social evolution.
Comte’s Theory :
Law of three Stages

3) Scientific Stage
- Corresponds to what Comte called industrial
society.
-Understand the society by using science.
-Positivism : a mean to understand the world
based on science.
 Society as a system

AUGUSTE COMTE
System
His key insight was that societies had to be understood as complex
systems.
They are organic wholes with a unity similar to that of biological
organisms.
The human body is a biological system of parts that are connected
together into a living whole.
Similarly: Society may be seen as a cohesive and integrated whole.
Society as a system
The parts of the society are not simply individuals, but social
institutions.
Def institutions
A society consist of family and kinship institutions, political inst,
economic inst., religious ...
These do not exist in isolation but are interdependent parts of the
whole social system.
Change in any one institution is likely to have consequences for the
other institutions to which it is connected.
Auguste Comte
Comte identified two broad branches of sociology,
corresponding to two ways in which social systems
could be studied :
-social statics : the study of the coexistence of
institutions in a system, their structures and their
functions;
=) how society is held together.
Auguste Comte
-Social dynamics : the study of change in institutions
and systems over time, their development and
progress.
Module 2

Early Thinkers
█ Auguste Comte (1798–1857)
– Systematic investigation of behavior
needed to improve society
– Coined term “sociology”
2- HERBERT SPENCER

( 1820-1903)
HERBERT SPENCER

He is an early important contributer to the discipline of Sociology.

• He tried to understand the society just like Auguste

Comte.

• He didn’t try to correct or improve society. He hoped to understand it

better

• Spencer was a student of both the human body and society.

• Drawing on Charles Darwin’s study On the Origin of Species,
Spencer applied the concept of evolution of the species to
societies in order to explain how they change or develop
over time.-

• Spencer’s approach on societal change gained significant

popularity.
• Unlike Comte, Spencer suggested that since societies are to
be bound eventually, one need not be highly critical of
present social arrangements or work actively for social
change.
3- émile Durkheim

( 1858-1917)
Keywords:
1. Social Facts
2. Types of Solidarity
3. Anomie
4. Types of Suicide
 3 – Emile Durkheim
• Durkeim insisted that behavior must be understood within a larger social context, not just in individualistic terms.

• He developed a basic thesis to to help explain all forms of society.

• A social fact can only be explained by a social fact. Anti-psychologism

• Durkheim always conceived of societies as subject to conditions of moral "health" or "illness," and the
sociologist as a kind of "physician"....

• According to him, like other forms of group behavior, religion makes strong a group’s cooperation or
solidarity.

• Durkheim’s main interests was the consequences of work in modern societies in the post-industrial
society.
Types of solidarity
Primitive societies were held together because most people performed similar
tasks and shared values, language, and symbols.
Low division of labor.
mechanical solidarity: a shared collective consciousness with harsh
punishment for deviation from the norms.
Modern societies: People served many different functions in society and their
ability to carry out their function depended upon others being able to carry out
theirs.
 organic solidarity: a complex system of interrelated parts, working together to
maintain stability, i.e., an organism. Different specializations tied to each other.
Durkheim
• According to his view, the growing separation of work force in industrial societies,
as workers became much more specialized in their tasks, led to what he called
Anomie.

• Anomie refers to the loss of direction felt in a society when social control of
individual behavior has become ineffective. Often, the state of anomie occurs
during a time of deep social change, when people have lost their sense of
purpose or direction. In a period of anomie, people are so confused and unable
to cope with the new social environment that they resort to suicide.

• He was worried about the dangers that loneliness and isolation might
present a problem for modern industrial society.
Types of suicide
Egoistic suicide relates to the person being alone or an outsider and subsequently they see
themselves alone within the world. This type of person has a low social interaction with others.
Altruistic suicide is when social group involvement is too high, expectation from a group is being
met at a very high level such as a sacrifice for a cult or religion. Another example would be a
Marta or a suicide bomber.
Anomic suicide relates to a low degree of regulation and this kind of suicide is carried out during
periods of considerable stress and frustration. A good example would be great financial loss or
when the financial market that person controls collapses with severe consequences for many
involved.
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
4- MAX WEBER

(1864-1920)
4-MAX WEBER
• Max Weber was another important early theorist.
• He was born in Germany.
• Weber studied legal and economic history, but gradually
developed an interest in sociology. He was a proffessor at
various German universities.
• According to Weber, there was a key conceptual
tool: The ideal type.
UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
• An ideal type is a construct or model for evaluating specific
cases.
• In his works, Weber identified various characteristics of
Bureaucracy(authorities) as an ideal type.
• In presenting this model of bureaucracy, Weber was not describing
any particular organization, nor was he using the term ideal in a way
that suggested a positive evaluation.
• Instead, his purpose was to provide a useful standard for measuring
how bureaucratic an actual organization is
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
5- KARL MARX

( 1818-1883)
5- KARL MARX

 Karl Marx shared with Durkheim and Weber a dual interest in

abstract philosophical issues and the concrete reality of
everyday life.
 Marx and his friends Friedrich Engels prepared a platform
called The Communist Manifesto in which they argued that the
masses of people (working class) with no resources other than
their labor (whom they referred to as the proletariat ) should
unite to fight for the overthrow of capitalist societies.
In Marx’s analysis, society was fundamentally divided between two
classes that clashed in pursuit of their own interests.
When he examined the industrial societies of his time, such as
Germany, England, and the United States, he saw the factory as the
center of conflict between the exploiters (the owners of the means of
production) and the exploited (the workers).
Marx argued that the working class should destroy the existing
class system.Also, he emphasized the group identifications and
associations that infulence an individual’s place in society.
Module 3

Major Theoretical Perspectives

█ Functionalist perspective
█ Conflict perspective
█ Interactionist perspective

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Theory and Perspective
A theory is a way to explain different aspects of social interactions and create
testable propositions about society.
Durkheim’s proposition that differences in suicide rate can be explained by
differences in the degree of social integration in different communities is a
theory.
 What is Sociological Theory?

Why do people commit suicide?

One traditional common sense answer is that people inherit the
desire to kill themselves.
Another view is that sunspots drive people to take their lives.
Sociologists are not particularly interested in why any one
individual commits suicide: they are more concerned with
identifying the social forces that systematically cause some
people to take their own life.

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Emile Durkheim

The World Health Organization: estimates that 1 million

people die from suicide every year.
Emile D. Dev a theory about the relationship between
suicide and social factors.
Durkheim was not interested with the personnalities of
individual suicide victims, but rather with suicide rates.

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Durkheim – Suicide- Theory

Nothing to do with sun or inherited tendencies.

=) he focused on social factors such as the cohesiveness or lack of cohesiveness of religious,
social and occupational groups.
=) for Durk, suicide is related to group life (although it is a solitary act).
◦ People without religious affiliation;
◦ The unmarried;
◦ Soldiers
Had a higher rates of suicide.

=) Durk. Concluded that the suicide rates of a society reflected the extend to which people
were or were not integrated into the group life of the society.

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Durkheim – Suicide- Theory
Durk offered a more scientific explanation for the causes of suicide than that of
inherited tendencies or the sunspots.
Of course, a theory is not a final statement about human behavior.
=) Researchers have suggested that Las Vegas’s rapid growth and constant influx
of tourists have undermined the community’s sense of permanence.

Although gambling and losing while gambling may seem a likely precipitating factor
in suicides there, careful study of the data has allowed researchers to dismiss that
explanation.
=) the sense of community cohesiveness is lacking.

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Perspectives
Sociology is a multi-perspectival science: a number of distinct perspectives or
paradigms offer competing explanations of social phenomena.
Paradigms are philosophical and theoretical frameworks used within a
discipline to formulate theories, generalizations, and the research performed in
support of them.
Underlying organizing principles that guide research.
Is multi-perspectivality a sign of underdeveloped science?
Natural sciences: Consensus because of the objects (indiffferent to observ.)
Social sciences: Perspectival because of its object (humans, sensitive to )
The functionalist perspective
Functionalism is a framework for building theory that
envisages society as a complex system whose parts work
together to promote solidarity and stability.

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 The functionalist perspective
 Think of society as a living organism in which each part of
the organism contributes to its survival.
 This view is the functionalist perspective, which emphasizes
the way in which the parts of a society are structured to
protect its determination(stability).
 This perspective begins by recognising that our lives are
guided by social structure.
The functionalist perspective
Social structure: relatively stable patterns of social behaviour.
EX : Social structure is what gives shape to the family, directs people
to exchange greetings on the street...
Second, this perspective leads us to understand social structure in
terms of its social functions, or consequences for the operation of
society.

=) Emphasizes the way parts of a society are structured to maintain

its stability

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Herbert Spencer (1820–1903)

Spencer was a student

of both the human
body and society, and
he came to see that the
two have much in
common.

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Herbert Spencer
The structural parts of the human
body include the skeleton,muscles
and various internal organs.
These elements are
interdependent, each contributing
to the survival of the entire
organism.

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Herbert Spencer
In the same way, reasoned Spencer, various social structures are
interdependent, working in concert to preserve society.
The functional perspective, then, organises sociological observations
by identifying various structures of society and investigating the
function of each one.
Ex: family, social classes, institutions...
=) We can analyse the religious beliefs and customs of a society, for
example, by showing how they relate to other institutions within it, for
the different parts of a society develop in close relation to one another.

73
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
Social structure is a relatively stable type
of social behavior.
Talcott Parsons (1902-1979), a Harvard
University sociologist, was a key figure in the
development of functionalist theory.
Parsons was greatly infulenced
by the work of Emile Durkheim ,
Max Weber, and other European
sociologists.
Robert Merton

MANIFEST AND LATENT FUNCTIONS:

•Robert Merton(1968) made an important distinction between
manifest(clear) and latent (hidden) functions. MANIFEST
FUNCTIONS
• According to Robert Merton, Manifest funtions of
institutions are open, stated, and concious functions.
• They involve the intended, recognized consequences of an
aspect of society, such as an university’s role in certifying
academic competence and excellence.
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
LATENT FUNCTIONS
Latent functions are unconscious or unintended
functions that may reflect hidden purposes of an
institution.
To illustrate this distinction between manifest and latent
functions, Merton used the example of a rain dance
performed by the Hopi Tribe of Arizona and New Mexico. The
Hopi believe that the ceremony will bring the rain they need
for their crops (manifest function). This is why they organize
and participate in it. But the rain dance, Merton argued, using
Durkheim's theory of religion, also has the effect of promoting
the cohesion(loyalty) of the Hopi society (Latent funtion).
Example

A college catalog typically states various functions of the institutions.

It may inform you, for ex., that the university intends to «offers each
student a broad education in classical and contemporary thought, in
the humanities ad in sciences».
However, it would be quite a surprise to find a catalog that declared «
this university was founded to assist people in finding a marriage
partner.»
=) no catalog will declare this as the purpose of the university.
=) yet, societal institutions serve many functions, some of them subtle:
The university in fact does facilitate mate selection.

77
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
DYSFUNCTIONS:
 Merton also distinguished between functions and
dysfunctions(abnormality in the function of a specified bodily
system.)
 Dysfunctional aspects of social behavior means focusing on
features of social life that challenge the existing order of things.
 The evaluation of a dysfunction depends on one’s own
values.
 Dysfunctional (not operating properly) to describe the
effects of social elements on society,
 For example, crime is dysfunctional in that it is associated
with physical violence, loss of property, and fear.
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
According to Durkheim and other functionalists, crime is also functional
for society because it leads to heightened(increase) awareness of shared
moral connection and increased social cohesion(loyalty).
For example, it is mistaken to suppose that religion is always functional - that it
contributes only to social cohesion. When two groups support different religions
or even different versions of the same religion, the result can be major social
conflicts, causing widespread social disruption. Thus, wars have often been
fought between religious communities - as can be seen in the struggles between
Protestants and Catholics in European history.
The conflict perspective
The conflict perspective Assumes social
behavior best understood in terms of
conflict or tension between competing
groups
Conflict theorists highlight the importance
of divisions in society.
In doing so, they concentrate on issues of
power, inequality and struggle.

80
The conflict perspective
Guided by this perspective, sociologists investigate how
factors such as social class, race,ethnicity, sex and age are
linked to unequal distribution of money, power, education
and social prestige.
A conflict analysis points out that, rather than promoting
the operation of society as a whole, social structure typically
benefits some people while depriving others.

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The conflict perspective

conflict between dominant and disadvantaged categories

of people – the rich in relation to the poor, men versus
women.
Typically, those on top strive to protect their privileges; the
disadvantaged counter by attempting to gain more
resources for themselves.

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CONFLICT PERSPECTIVE

Like functionalists, sociologists employing conflict theories

emphasize the importance of structures within societies.
They also advance a comprehensive 'model' to explain how society
works. However, conflict theorists reject functionalism's emphasis on
consensus(general agreement). Instead, they highlight the importance of
divisions in society.
They concentrate on issues of power, inequality and struggle.
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY

Conflict theorists examine the tensions(stress) between dominant and

disadvantaged groups within society and seek to understand how
relationships of control are established and
perpetuated(continued).
An influential approach within conflict theory is Marxism,
named after Karl Marx, whose work emphasized class
conflict.
there are today schools of Marxist thought that take very different
theoretical positions. In all of its versions, Marxism differs from most
other traditions of sociology in that its authors see it as a
combination of sociological analysis and political reform.
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
KARL MARX

Marxism is supposed to generate a programme of

radical political change.
INTERACTIONIST PERSPECTIVE
Interactionism Meaning: the theory that there are two circumstances,mind and body,
each of which can have an effect on the other.
Functionalist and Conflict theorists both analyze large- scale, society-wide patterns
of behavior, but theorists who take the interactionist perspective, generalize
about everyday forms of social interaction in order to explain society as a
whole.
Interactionism, also referred to as Symbolic Interactionism, is a sociological
framework in which human beings are viewed as living in a world of meaningful
objects.
Objects may include material things, actions, other people, relationships, and
even symbols.
Interactionist Perspective

Interactionisms see symbols as an especially important part of human

communication.

Symbols: have a shared social meaning that is understood by all members of

a society.
Ex: man / woman in toilets
Ex: green you can pass / red you have to stop
Ex: the symbol of heart =) universal.
Ex: but some symbols are not universal : fingers to show one, two, three.

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Interactionist Perspective

If you smile : you are happy.

Another culture might have use different gestures to convey
a feeling of respect or defiance.
=) in another culture : smiling means I feel unconfortable.
=) these types of interactions are classified as forms of
nonverbal communication. It can includes many other
gestures, facial expressions and postures.

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 Interactionist Perspective

Workers interacting on the job, encounters in public places like bus stops and parks, behavior in small
groups...
=) all these aspects of microsociology catch the attention of interactionists.
=) theorists who take the interactionist perspective generalize about everyday forms of social
interaction in order to explain society as a whole.
Symbolic interaction theory analyzes society by addressing the subjective meanings that people
impose on objects, events, and behaviors.
For example, why would young people smoke cigarettes even when all objective medical evidence
points to the dangers of doing so?

Symbolic meanings of smoking?

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Blumer’s definition
Humans act toward things on the basis of the meanings they ascribe to those
things.
The meaning of such things is derived from, or arises out of, the social
interaction that one has with others and the society.
These meanings are handled in, and modified through, an interpretative
process used by the person in dealing with the things he or she encounters
(Blumer 1969).
Think about a restaurant and somebody is coming towards your table. What if
the person is a waitress? What if she is not?
UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
George Herbert Mead (1863-1931)
 He is the founder of the interactionist
perspective.
 Mead claims that language allows us to become self-conscious beings -
aware of our own individuality and able to see ourselves from the
outside as others see us. The key element in this process is the
symbol.
 A symbol is something that stands for something else.
 Non-verbal gestures or forms of communication are also
symbols.For example, making a rude gesture has symbolic value.
 UNDERSTANDING SOCIOLOGY
Mead argued that humans rely on shared symbols and understandings in
their interactions with one another. Because human beings live in a
richly symbolic universe, virtually all interactions between human
individuals involve an exchange of symbols.
Comparison
 Levels of analysis: microsociology and
macrosociology

Microsociology:The study of everyday behavior in situations of face- to-face

interaction is usually called microsociology.

Macrosociology: Macrosociology is the analysis of large-scale

social systems, like the political system or the economic order.
It also includes the analysis of long term processes of change, such as the
development of industrialism.
 MACROANALYSIS
Macroanalysis is essential if we are to understand the
institutional background of daily life.
The ways in which people live their everyday lives are
greatly affected by the broader institutional framework,
For example, the daily cycle of activities of a culture like that of the
medieval(Middle Ages) period is compared with life in an industrialized
urban(city) environment.
 MICRO-STUDIES
Micro-studies are in turn necessary for lightening broad
institutional patterns,
Face-to-face interaction is clearly the main basis of all
forms of social organization, no matter how large scale.
We could analyze, for example, the interaction of directors in the
boardroom, people working in the various offices, or the workers on the
factory floor. We would not build up a picture of the whole corporation in
this way, since some of its business is transacted through printed
materials, letters, the telephone and computers.