Chapter 1: The Nature of Sociological Perspectives

People have different coping mechanisms, some are positive, while others are negative.
Depression

A negative coping mechanism that affects the mind of the individual, which may eventually result to
losing control of ones impulses.
Very emotional and it will only take a very small thing to trigger the impulse.
A common mental health illness
Became only manifest when the victim is already doing actions indicative of losing ones impulse.

Personal action is rooted from ones personal experience and circumstances.

Sociology

A discipline of social sciences that attempt to explain human behavior in the context of the social
environment.
The systematic study of social behavior and human groups and focuses primarily on the influence of
social relationships upon peoples attitudes and behavior and on how societies are established and
change.
2 General Classifications:
o Macrosociology focuses more on the society as a whole; analyzes social systems and
populations on a large scale, at the level of social structure, and often at a necessarily high
level of theoretical abstraction.
o Microsociology focuses on the individual social agency; analyzes issues such as
socialization process, the role of women, the nature of the family & immigration; more
considered as a study of human behavior.
Sub-fields
o Social organization the study of the various social institutions and groups as well as its
social stratification and mobility. As such, the analysis on this aspect covers more on the
bureaucracy, ethnic groups & relations, and other similar subjects like family, education,
politics, religion, & economy.
o Social psychology the study of human nature as an outcome of group life, social attitudes,
collective behavior, and personality formation; deals with group life and the individuals traits,
attitudes, beliefs as influenced by group life, and it views man with reference to group life.
o Social change & disorganization the study of the change in culture and social relations
and the disruption that may occur in society, and it deals with the study of such current
problems in society (juvenile delinquency, criminality, drug addiction, family conflicts, divorce,
population problems, etc.)
o Human ecology deals with the nature and behavior of a given population and its
relationships to the groups present social institutions.
o Population of demography the study of population number, composition, change, and
quality as they influenced the economic, political, and social system.
o Sociological theory and method concerned with the applicability and usefulness of the
principles and theories of group life as bases for the regulation of mans environment, and
includes theory building and testing as bases for the prediction and control of mans social
environment.
o Applied sociology utilizes the findings of pure sociological research in various fields such
as criminology, social work, community development, education, industrial relations, marriage,
ethnic relations, family counseling, and other aspects and problems of daily life.

Sociological Perspectives

The way how the sociologists look at the social behavior and how they contextualize the same into
the social environment.
Looking at a general characteristic of a certain group of people and how a pattern of behavior
becomes apparent among its members.
Involves seeing through the outside appearances of peoples actions and organization.
2 Goals:
o Identify the prevailing patterns of and influences on social behavior.
This is important b/c the first task of the sociologist is to obtain factual information
about the society and different aspects of the social life.
The knowledge about the peoples lives and their society will make everyone fully
aware of who they really are and what kind of society they have.
Through scientific research, one is informed of the changes that are taking place in the
society.
o Provide explanations for such patterns.
Government official, policy-makers, and program managers will be enlightened on how
to formulate policy intervention in such pattern of behavior, if such needs immediate
action.

Sociology in Relation to Other Perspectives

Sociologist attempts to explain human behavior and phenomenon in groups.

o Ones behavior is always perceived in relation to other members of the social group.
o Everyone belongs in a group.
o This is true not only with respect to the prevalence, but also with respect to the explanation of
such behavior or phenomenon.
o The explanation extends not only in group level but further on the community and societal
level.
Anthropology the study of man in relation to his physical, social, cultural, political, and economic
environment; delves to discover when, where and why humans appeared on the earth; how and why
they have changed since then, and how and why modern human populations vary in certain physical
features.
Both sociologist and anthropologist view human behavior in the group or societal level.
o Sociologist: limits his explanation on human behavior in the modern society; supplies the
data needed by the anthropologist with respect to a particular period.
He needs to know the dynamics of social interaction in a social group that makes up
the social behavior.
o Anthropologists: complements this by investigating the possible remote beginning of this
behavior and the modification thereof from one period of time; adds meaning and significance
of such behavior in the context of socio-cultural, political, economic and geographic
dimensions.
It relies heavily on what has been studied so far by the sociologists, and in case of an
absence of data, it tries to gather pieces of evidence that would explain human
behavior such as relics, ancient tools, and traditional practices.
Economics a social science that deals with the study of the allocation of scarce resources among
competing users in order to satisfy human needs.
o How limited resources could satisfies unlimited human needs and wants.
Political Science the branch of social science that deals with the real nature, practice and theory of
politics, as well as the analysis of various political systems and behaviors; centers on human
behavior, the emphasis is more on who, when and how one gets the power and control in the society,
or how is leadership acquired and exercised.

History a field of social science which investigates significant events of people or nation and how
such events form part in the making of the society as a whole; a study of human behavior and social
organization in reflection of the entire nation, tribe, or state as a whole.
Psychology closest resemblance to sociology; a social science discipline that studies mental
processes and behavior, and further explains certain phenomena such as perception, cognition,
emotion, personality, behavior and interpersonal relationships; attempts to look at human behavior in
a more personal and individual manner rather than on social or societal context.
o Psychologist: endeavors to explain is ones own feeling in relation to his thinking and his
perception to the outside world.
Geography an applied field of social science, which concerns on the study of geographic
characteristics such as resources and physical environment in relation to animal and human
habitation; studies human behavior in the context of his physical environment.

Development of the Sociological Perspectives

Sociological Perspectives born at the time people started to have a growing concern to elevate
the social status they are in. It is a byproduct of political, economic, and social and philosophical
conditions which cumulated from one period of time to another.
3 leading factors:
o The rise of imperialism
Belief: There was only one set of cultural belief system.
o Increasing social upheaval in Europe
During the late 18th century, there was a declining popularity of monarchy.
Participative government by John Locke, Voltaire and Jean Jacques Rousseau
Industrial revolution
Transportation & communication
o Success of the natural sciences
Galileo: theory of the solar system which contradicted the medieval doctrine that the
earth is the center of the universe.
Charles Darwin: human beings evolved from the man-like animals that instinctively
altered some of their behaviors to adapt to the changing conditions of the environment.

Pioneers in the Study of Society

2 founding fathers:
o Saint Simon
Made an observation that like living things, society and everything within the society
can be the subject of scientific investigation because like an organism, it also grows
and develops.
Divided the period of society on the basis of the progress and development, and stated
that these stages include polythelstic or primitive stage, theological or feudal stage,
and modern stage of science and technology.
Present society belongs to the 3rd period, the industrial period.
Science would replace religious and metaphysical knowledge of the immediately
preceding period.
o Auguste Comte
Former student of Saint Simon
Identified the 3 stages of the society
Theological stage: the stage of religious explanation of the society
Metaphysical: the natural rather than the supernatural understanding of the
world
Scientific stage: the empirical explanation of the phenomenon in the society
Human behavior as an essential make-up of the culture of the society.
Human behavior, as the behavior of matter, can be objectively measured.

Through observation, it is possible to produce cause and effect relationships of human

behavior that are measurable.
The credit of being the father of sociology was given.
Espoused the idea of positivism, a way of understanding that is based on
science.
Coined the term sociology, which means the science of the society.
Divided the study of society into:
o Social statistics: how apparent is a particular human behavior in the
society.
o Social dynamics: how the society changes over time.
Herbert Spencer
o Expounded the idea that the society is a system or a whole that is made up of interrelated
parts like that of a living organism.
o Set forth the evolutionary theory of the societal development by coining the term Social
Darwinism, the social version of Charles Darwins principle of natural selection.
The principle of the natural selection, particularly the survival of the fittest, also
happens in the society.
This evolutionary character of the society is best manifested in the social dynamics.
Social dynamics
An interplay of different societal forces that pave the way for social change.
Inevitable because the apparently changing needs and expanding human
wants unavoidably create a gradual yet substantial modification in the personal
and social lifestyle of the people.
Individuals may have the options of retaining the traits and being left out of its
place in the society, or alter their behavior and survive the standards of the
modern times.
o Because of social dynamics, societies are not stagnant; rather, they evolve depending on their
ability to adapt.
Harriet Martineau
o A prominent pioneer in the area of making sociology an empirical science of the society.
o As a methodologist, she wrote the first book on social research methods and was among the
first to do systematic, scientifically-based social research.
o Professional advocacies:
Make sociology a true science of society that is systematic and grounded on empirical
observation.
Sociology should not only be a mere discovery of the society. It must have policy
implications.
o By making sociological findings more accessible to a general readership, people would be
able make personal and political decisions guided by scientific understanding of the principles
governing social life.
o Comparative analysis on slavery and position of women in the western world.
The first scholarly work for gender equality
o First woman sociologist
o Mother of sociology
3 of the most significant personalities who shaped the future of sociology
o Karl Marx
o Emile Durkheim
o Max Weber

Importance of Studying Sociology

Part of the liberal education

o Liberal comes from the Latin word libre which means free.
o Liberal education
An education that liberates (or frees) oneself from ignorance and prejudices.
Pertains to all general education subjects primarily intended for individuals in order to
have a broader understanding about himself, the people around him, his environment,
and the world.
Students to have well-rounded personality, to be more tolerant of diversity, and to be
less hasty of the unfamiliar.
o Students will be made aware of the society he is in, the existence of other societies as well as
the diversity of culture among these societies and even in the complexity of the relationship of
the various social environment and phenomena to the mysterious human behavior.
o Be applied in the real life situation
o Provide means or suggest solutions on how to solve the problems in the society or on how to
better the welfare of the people or to improve the situation of the society in general.