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The Literacy Practices of Sociologists:

Is There a Method to The Madness?

Emma Barthel

WRIT2: Academic Writing

26 April 2020
Sociology is a “true” science deserving of the intellectual respect given to chemistry,

biology, biochemistry, and all of the other areas of discovery that the scientific community labels

“hard” sciences. Studies are conducted in a scientific manner, avoiding subjective components

such as anecdotes. Similarly, sociologists report the findings of their studies in peer-reviewed

journals. Moreover, just as with any “hard” science, reports are presented utilizing the

hypotheses, the methodology of the study, and results/discussion. As will be demonstrated by my

review of 2 academic articles, “Social Media Effects on Young Women’s Body Image Concerns:

Theoretical Perspectives and an Agenda for Research”1 and “The civic-social media disconnect:

exploring perceptions of social media for engagement in the daily life of college students”2, the

primary difference between sociology and other sciences, hard and soft, is the topic being

addressed.

The scientist in the hard sciences has beakers, Bunson burners, and the like. Likewise,

the sociologist has lab tools: surveys, statistics, and censuses. Rather than anecdotal evidence,

all rely on empirical evidence gained through observation and experimentation, an important

aspect of the scientific process. Scientists of all persuasions rely on evidence that is reproducible:

hard facts. Information collected second hand via hearsay or stories that cannot be weighed,

measured, or otherwise quantitatively analyzed is worthless to scientists.

As is true of the hard sciences, while there is some variation in the manner in which

sociologists apply the conventions of their discipline, there are certain methods that all

sociologists use. For instance, the first thing the scientist does is to identify his/her unit of

analysis. Given that sociology studies the entire world of human and group interaction, the

sociologist must narrow down his/her topic of study considerably. This is essential so as to
1 Perloff, R.M. “Social Media Effects on Young Women’s Body Image Concerns: Theoretical Perspectives and an
Agenda for Research”. Sex Roles. Accessed June 7, 2020.
2 Paul Mihailidis (2014) “The civic-social media disconnect: exploring perceptions of social media for engagement
in the daily life of college students”, Information, Communication & Society. Accessed June 7, 2020.
permit the sociologist to publish his/her findings in a manner that is not too extensive. For

example, rather than studying large groups in general (something that would require an entire

library), the sociologist might study the response of a large group of fans when their baseball

team suffers a terrible loss while "on the road" (a topic that is sufficiently contained). This is to

help the sociologist emphasize and focus on his/her topic of interest.

The similarities between sociology and hard sciences are nowhere better demonstrated

than by the reporting of their respective research projects. There are generally accepted

methodologies for conducting soft and hard science studies, as well as reporting on them. Once

the study is completed, it is reported in a journal for review by fellow scientists and students of

the particular discipline.

All research study reports are given a name that provides the reader a hint of what they

can expect to find should they decide to peruse the entire article. For example, the article (put

title here) makes clear that the it discusses something related to (fill in the blank what's the

article about?)

After the title, sociological reports provide a detailed abstract. This summarizes the

hypotheses, method of study, results, and conclusion. The abstract's objective is to give the

reader an opportunity to understand the basic premise of the article, which is typically no more

than three hundred words. For example, the abstract for, “Social Media Effects on Young

Women’s Body Image Concerns: Theoretical Perspectives and an Agenda for Research'', makes

clear that its goal is to create a “framework to guide research on social media effects on body

image concerns of young adult women.” It proposes a model that, “emphasizes the impact of

predisposing individual vulnerability characteristics, social media uses, and mediating


psychological processes on body dissatisfaction and eating disorders.” By quickly reviewing this

short abstract, the reader is able to determine whether it is relevant to their inquiry.

The abstract is followed by “Keywords.” These terms are identified as being central to

the paper’s premise. They are used as an index. For example, in Perloff’s article, “Social Media

Effects on Young Women’s Body Image Concerns: Theoretical Perspectives and an Agenda for

Research”, the “Keywords” listed include, “Social media” and “Mass media.” Hard sciences

similarly list keywords. The reason? Listed in an index elsewhere, the reader can search for all

articles that include “keywords” relevant to their inquiry.

In terms of length, the first substantial portion of the study is the “Introduction.” This

section includes a review of relevant research and studies. It is used as a primer and will provide

the reader with the essence of the current state of knowledge regarding the study’s topic. The

introduction also discusses the manner in which the authors will present their methodologies and

conclusions.

Where necessary, the introduction may include a subheading: “Review of Recent

Research”. This involves a discussion of the literature upon which the authors will directly rely

for their study. Authors often employ figures and diagrams to illustrate how this more recent

research interconnects.

If the paper is reporting an actual study as opposed to merely being a review of

applicable literature, there will be a detailed section outlining the manner in which the study was

performed. This section is entitled “Method”, “Methodology”, or some other synonym. In “The

civic-social media disconnect: exploring perceptions of social media for engagement in the daily

life of college students”, for example, the “Methods” section explains that the study sampled
873 college students across nine universities, all of whom answered a 57-question survey that

was disseminated during the 2010–2011 academic year.

The remainder of the body of the report outlines, tests and renders conclusions regarding

the authors’ hypothesis. This may be in multiple subsections. For example, in (citation), the

article first outlines “ways that social comparisons mediate social networking site effects. The

second section “articulates the hypothesized impacts of transportation (cites omitted),

identification (cites omitted) and the normative considerations set in motion by presumed media

influence.”

The foregoing is followed by a “discussion” of what has been learned. It often also

includes a recitation of the possible implications of the study’s results and states what can

possibly be concluded. In order to lead future lines of inquiry, the discussion portion suggests

what further studies should take place. This basically acts as a “passing of the baton” to future

sociological studies.

A scientific study of any kind ends its report in the same manner found in any well

written nonfiction book: with acknowledgements and references. The former is self-explanatory.

Any researcher who hopes to obtain additional assistance in the future is well-advised to be

generous when handing out praise. The latter lists in alphabetical order all studies and research

relied upon throughout the paper. In addition to avoiding accusations of plagiarism, this list

provides handy reference for the reader who seeks to review the original study.

One last common trait shared by all scientists, including sociologists, is the fact that,

generally speaking, their work is intended for other scientists. It is not aimed at the general

public and, thus, is not written like an article you would find in the L.A. Times. Given that the

writer and his/her readers are generally coming from the same school of thought, more precise
terminology and jargon can be used.3 The scientists' work focuses on a specific social context.

The purpose is to have a strong, insightful, sociologically relevant argument. The body of the

research often presents dense paragraphs supported by many citations. Although the length of the

article is not essential, they tend to be longer so as to ensure that they are thorough.

Finally, it is both the hard and soft scientists’ literary practice to use an expository writing

style and maintain a formal tone throughout the document. The sociologist is no exception. Until

I took this class, I did not know what “expository” writing really meant. I have now learned that I

have been writing in this manner for much of my educational career. Expository writing starts

with an “introductory paragraph”. This is a discussion of the topic or topics to be addressed.

After stating the thesis, multiple paragraphs follow. It is the objective of these paragraphs to

explain and prove the introduction/hypothesis. This is followed by a final paragraph that acts as a

summary. In high school I was often instructed that short papers should include: a) introduction,

b) three paragraphs of explanation, and c) a concluding paragraph.4 As I have reviewed more

and more sociological research papers, I have learned that the foregoing is a perfect example of

the observation that “everything [I] learned in high school is dog shit”.5 To quote Paul Simon:

When I think back


On all the crap I learned in high school
It's a wonder
I can think at all6

That is, while the expository method of writing is a nice way of clearly hypothesizing, explaining

and summarizing a basic concept with five simple paragraphs, the world is rarely that simple.

This is certainly true of any kind of scientific writing. As suggested above, the scientist does use

3 Jargon involves terms more readily understood by those specializing in the discipline. For example, Anti
Naturalism” is understood by sociologists as meaning the social and natural world are different.
4 “What Is Expository Writing?” STUDY.COM. Accessed April 27, 2020. https://study.com/academy/lesson/what-
is-expository-writing-definition-examples.html.
5 Joshua Smith. “Lecture”. WRIT2: Academic Writing. April 23, 2020
6 Paul Simon. “Kodachrome”. There Goes Rhymin’ Simon. Released April 22, 2013. Accessed April 27, 2020.
expository writing to help clarify items of interest, but this is not the only way the scientist

communicates with his/her particular scientific community. A quick review of a study in a

sociology journal makes that clear. For example, the journal may include a single paragraph

under the heading “hypotheses” that includes an introduction, a description, method, results, and

a summary. Similarly, a single sentence may make up an entire paragraph.

Sociology differs in its area of study from other sciences, but it has the same conventional

requirements, as well as many other similarities. Just as with other sciences (hard and soft),

sociologists report the findings of their studies in peer reviewed journals. The structure of their

articles follow a pattern much like those found in journals including “hard” science studies. It

makes sense that there are so many similarities given that sociology is as much a science as

biology or chemistry. They share a common objective: further human knowledge.

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