There is increasing interest in something called "phenomenological sociology." If this interest is to be sustained, indeed if this sub-discipline is to contribute to our knowledge of the social world, we must become clear on what phenomenological sociology is and can become. At present serious problems exist in the writings of many sociologists who have contributed to, and implicitly defined, this approach to sociology. In general, they display only a metaphorical understanding of phenomenology as a philosophy and as a set of methods. In addition, and partly as a result, they fail to understand the relationship between sociology and phenomenology.
The sociological theory upholds that, people are not instinctively good or bad, happy or depressed, and intelligent or ignorant, but are rather shaped into their own individuality over time by the interactions, connections and relations that one endures along with the situations and circumstances which are undergone throughout a lifetime. First off what is sociology? Well it is the study of the development, structure, and functioning of human society, or to put it more simply it is the scientific study of social structure. With that is where the understanding of the sociological perspective comes into play. There are two major aspects in regards to the sociological perspective, the first being interaction between social structure and an individual and the idea of two levels of analysis.
3 Major Theoretical Approaches to Sociology Functionalism (a.k.a. Structural Functionalism, Functional Analysis, Positivism): Until relatively modern times the prevalent sociological perspective was Functionalism, a paradigm which analyzes social structures (such as religion, schooling, or race relations) to deduce what social functions (such as marriage conventions, college attendance, or hiring practices) derive from them. This theoretical approach views society as a system of inter-dependent social functions each working to maintain equilibrium and stability within the whole. The social function of marriage, for instance, might be seen to derive from a religious structure. The values, norms, and behaviors surrounding marriage (such as age limits, ‘showers’, and marriage licenses), and the ways in which these aspects of the function benefit the participants, is the ‘society’ which rises from the initial structure.
In the position as a student of sociology, I believe the Functionalist theory best describes society. The functionalist theory is viewed to sociologist as society to a living organism. Each part serves an important role in keeping society together. Many sociologist classify this theory as macro-level; large in scale. Including social institutions, a system of behavioral and relationship patterns, having specific roles to perform to make society.
Or we can say that conflict theory deals with the incompatible aspects of human society. Conflict theory emerged out of the sociology of conflict, crisis and social change. Consensus theory, on the other hand, is a sociological perspective or collection of theories, in which social order and stability/social regulation forms the base of emphasis. In other words consensus theory is concerned with the maintenance or continuation of social order in society; in relation to accepted norms, values, rules and regulations as widely accepted or collectively by the society-or within a particular society- itself. It Emerged out of the sociology of social order and social stability/social regulation.
SOCIOLOGY A First Look at Sociology What is Sociology? Sociology is the scientific study of human behaviour in groups and of the social forces that influence that behaviour. Sociology focuses on the belief that a scientific analysis of the factors in the social world is one of the most effective and interesting ways to understand human behaviour. Sociology can examine any social issues involving groups of all sizes as well as all phases of people’s lives. Sociologists do not simply declare their beliefs indisputable truths – they do research to determine whether those beliefs are correct.
Sociology is a social science that seeks to understand complexities of human society. Sociological theories are ideas that seek to explain how society works. There is a wide range of sociological theories in terms of their priorities, perspectives and the data that exist or encompass the endless ways of viewing reality. In order to determine the nature of man, to be outside the knowledge of his experience, ambition, qualifications of values refer to the community in which he grew up and is shaped. The impact on the personality of the individual, it has the characteristics of participation in the life of the community.
Browne once said "sociological perspectives centre on how much freedom or control the individual had to influence society" He goes on to comment on the two main approaches "structuralism is concerned with the overall structure of society and the way social institutions act as a constraint, or limit and control individual behaviour". Structuralism offers a view of the individual being controlled by the society they live in, Marx and Durkheim are similar in that they can both be described as structuralists, however their individual ideas are somewhat different. Functionalism was developed by Emile Durkheim, he believed like Comte that sociology should be viewed as a precise science and that society should be studied objectively. Durkheim placed an enormous amount of emphasis on social facts which he saw as ways of acting, thinking or feeling that are external to individuals and have their own reality outside the lives and perceptions of individual people. This is known as the macro approach, which places a great emphasis on the structure of society and how an individual operates with that society.
Berger and Luckmann (1967:15-22) argue that social relativity is inherent in reality and knowledge, hence, its collection is defined by social contexts imperative for sociological analysis. They contend that analysis should be conscious of varieties of knowledge in human societies to maintain their position on the social construction of reality. For them, there is a relationship between human thoughts, history and social context. They draw on Mannheim’s work that society is imperative for the content of human ideas to argue that knowledge is always from a particular position. The influence of ideology can only be mitigated by the analysis of diverse socially
In contrast, sociology arose in the context of political, economic, and social philosophy and from intellectual giants such as Emile Durkheim, Karl Marx, and Max Weber. However, perhaps paradoxically, one significant, if inadvertent, contributor to the discipline of sociology was Sigmund Freud, a pioneering psychologist with broad interests. His diverse writings, including Civilization and Its Discontents, offer insights into social life. This fact highlights the thin boundary between psychology and social psychology, a major area of modern sociology. In Assignment 2, “Culture,” you’ll explore the concept of culture—the set of norms (customs), beliefs, attitudes, values, and physical artifacts that give a social world its shape and character.