Sociology is the scientific study of human society and social interactions. It emerged in the 19th century due to factors like the industrial revolution and philosophical inquiry. Auguste Comte coined the term sociology and is considered the father of the discipline. Sociology studies societies and social phenomena like institutions, communities, and social groups. It has many branches that look at topics such as religion, the economy, urban and rural areas, politics, law, and more. Sociology uses both empirical observation and rational theories to understand social dynamics.
2. Learning Objective:
Upon completion of the topic, the student will be
able to appreciate the importance of sociology.
Contents of the Unit:
Introduction
Definitions
Nature of sociology
Branches of sociology
Factors of origin of sociology
Importance of sociology
Significance of sociology in Nursing
3. Introduction
Sociology is the study of groups and group
interactions, societies and social interactions, from
small and personal groups to very large groups.
A group of people who live in a defined geographic
area, who interact with one another, and who share a
common culture is what sociologists call a society.
Sociologists study all aspects and levels of society.
Sociologists working from the micro-level study
small groups and individual interactions, while those
using macro-level analysis look at trends among
and between large groups and societies.
4. It is a social science that help us to understand the
world we live in. The key idea of Sociology is that the
lives of individuals cannot be understood apart from
social context in which they live. It focuses on:
1. Understanding the world and our place in that
world.
2. Understanding ourselves and use that self-
understanding to free ourselves.
6. FATHEROFSOCIOLOGY:AUGUSTECOMTE
Sociology emerged in Europe in the early
1800s. French
Philosopher
TermSociology was coined by
August Comte.
His Contributions:
1. GaveSociology its name.
2. Divided Sociology in to two parts : Social
Statics and SocialDynamics.
3. Emphasized on the scientific instead of
religious, philosophical and moral analysis
of society.
4. Discovered Laws to understand Society,
known asLaw of ThreeStages
1798 - 1857
7. Definition
sociology, is a social science that studies human
societies, their interactions, and the processes that
preserve and change them.
It does this by examining
the dynamics of constituent parts of societies such
as institutions, communities, populations, and
gender, racial, or age groups.
Sociology also studies social status or
stratification, social movements, and social
change, as well as societal disorder in the form of
crime, deviance, and revolution.
8. “Sociology” comes from the Latin word Socius
(companion) and the ending –ology from the Greek
logos (word).
Sociology is the study of human interactions and
interrelations, their conditions and consequences.
- H Ginsberg
Sociology is the science which attempts the interpretive
understanding of social action.
– Max Weber
Sociology in its broadest sense may be said to be the
study of interactions arising from the association of
living beings. - Gillin and Gillin
9. “The science of social phenomena subjected to
natural laws, the discovery of which is the objective of
investigations” -August Comte
“The study of relationship between man and his
environment” -H.P
.Fair Child
10. ASSUMPTIONSUNDERLYINGT
H
E
S
EDEFINITIONS…
1. Human beings have a capacity to organise their
behaviour in groups in order to satisfy their needs
and wants to fulfillnecessary social function.
2. Human beings have the capacity to know how to
organise their behaviour in groups in order to satisfy
their needs and wants to fulfill necessary social
function.
3. The behaviours, thoughts and attitudes of human
beings are determined to a large extent by the
quality of learned ways of interacting in groups.
11. 4. The social interactions in which one person
influence the attitudes, thoughts, opinions and
behaviour of oneanother.
5. Interaction pattern occurs within the large social
systems in societies, groups, crowds, social classes,
social institutions, neighbourhood and community.
13. Nature of Sociology
Sociology, as a branch of knowledge, has its own
unique characteristics.
It is different from other science in certain respects.
An analysis of its internal logical characteristics
helps one to understand what kind of science it is.
The following are the main characteristics of
sociology as enlisted by Robert Bierstedt in his book,
" The social order".
14. Sociology is an Independent Science.
Sociology is a Social Science and not a physical Science.
Sociology is a categorical and not a Normative
Discipline.
Sociology is relatively and Abstract Science and not a
concrete Science.
Sociology is pure science and not an Applied Science.
Sociology is a General Science not a special Science.
Sociology is a Generalizing and not a particularizing or
Individualizing science.
Sociology is Both a Rational and Empirical Science.
15. Sociology is an independent science:
Sociology has now emerged into an independent
science. It is not treated and studied as a branch of
any other science like philosophy or political
philosophy or history. As an independent science it
has its own field of study, boundary and method.
16. Sociology is a social science and not a
physical science.
Sociology belongs to the family of social sciences and
not to the family of physical sciences. As a social
science, it concentrates its attention on man, his
social behaviour, social activities and social life. As a
member of the family of social science it is intimately
related to other social sciences like history, political
sciences, economics, psychology, anthropology etc.
17. Sociology is a categorical and not a
normative discipline:
Sociology 'confines itself to statements about what is,
not what should be or ought to be'. As a science,
sociology is necessarily silent about questions of
value. It does not make any kind of value-
judgements. Its approach is neither moral nor
immoral but amoral. It is ethically neutral. It cannot
decide the directions in which sociology ought to go.
18. Sociology is a Pure Science and not an
Applied Science:
A distinction is often made between Pure Sciences and
applied sciences. The main aim of pure sciences is the
acquisition of knowledge and it is not bothered whether
the acquired knowledge is useful or can be put to use. On
the other hand, the aim of applied science is to apply the
acquired knowledge into life and to put to use. Each pure
science may have its own applied field.
Sociology is a pure science, because the immediate aim of
sociology is the acquisition of knowledge about human
society, not the utilization of knowledge.
19. Sociology is relatively an abstract science
and not a concrete science:
This does not mean sociology is an art and not a
science. It is more concerned with the form of
human events and their patterns. Sociology does
confine itself to the study of this society or that
particular society or social organization, or marriage,
or religion, or group and so on. It is in this simple
sense that sociology is an abstract not a concrete
science.
20. Sociology is a Generalizing and not a
particularizing or Individualizing science:
Sociology tried to find out the general laws or
principles about human interaction and association,
about the nature, form, content and structure of
human groups and societies. It tries to make
generalizations on the basis of the study of some
selected events.
21. Sociology is a General Science and not a
special social science:
The area of inquiry of sociology is general and not
specialized. It is concerned with human interaction
and human life in general. Other social sciences like
political science, history, economics, etc., also study
man and human interaction, but not all about
human interaction. Sociology does not investigate
economic, religious, political, legal, moral or any
other special kind of phenomenon in relation to
human life and activities as such. It only studies
human activities in a general way.
22. Finally, Sociology is both a Rational and
an Empirical Science.
There are two broad ways of approach to scientific
knowledge. One, known as empiricism, is, the approach
that emphasizes experience and the facts that result from
observation and experimentation. The other, known as
rationalism, stresses reason and the theories that result
from logical inference.
The empiricist collects facts; the rationalist co-ordinates
and arranges them. Theories and facts are required in the
construction of knowledge. In sociological inquiry both
are significant. A theory unsubstantiated by hard, solid
facts is nothing more than an opinion.
23. Nature of Sociology……
Since the subject matter of Sociology are human beings who are
subjects to themselves. Social realities are constantly undergoing
change. Therefore, the ontological position of Sociology is different
from other natural
sciences.
Sociology is aScience
Sociology is not a
Science
• Scientific
Methods
• Concepts
• Theories
• Variables
• Research
• Lackof
Experimentation
• Lackof validity
• Lackof Reliability
• Unable to Study
Casual Behaviour
• Lackof prediction and
objectivit
yy
24. Scope of Sociology
Scope means the subject matter or the areas of study.
Every science has its own field of inquiry. It becomes
difficult to study a science systematically unless its
boundary or scope is determined precisely. Sociology
as a social science has its own scope or boundaries.
But there is no one opinion about the scope of
Sociology.
25. there are two main schools of thought regarding the
scope of Sociology:
(1) The Specialist or Formalistic school and
(2) the Synthetic school.
There is a good deal of controversy about the scope
of Sociology between the two schools. The supporter
of first school believe that Sociology is a specific
science and the scope should be limited whereas
others believe that it is a general science and its
scope is very vast
26. (1) Specialistic school:
The supporters of this school of thought are George Simmel,
Vierkandt, Max Weber, Vonwise, and F. Tonnies. The main
views of the school regarding the scope of Sociology are –
(i) Sociology is a specific, pure and independent social science.
(ii) Sociology studies the various forms of social relationships.
(iii) Scope of Sociology is very narrow and limited.
(iv) Sociology deals with specific form of human relationship.
(v) Sociology need not study all the events connected with
social science.
(vi) Simmel believes that it is a specific social science and it
should deal with social relationships from different angles.
27. (2) Synthetic school:
The supporters of synthetic school are the
sociologists like Ginsberg, Durkheim, Comte,
Sorokin, Spencer, F. Ward, and L.T. Hobhouse.
According to this school-
(i) Sociology is a general and systematic social
science.
(ii) Scope of Sociology is very vast.
(iii) Sociology needs help from other social sciences.
(iv) It is a synthesis of social science.
(v) Sociology is closely related with other social
sciences.
28. Branches of Sociology
The main branches of sociology are as follows:
Theoretical Sociology. It includes micro theory or small/middle/large theory.
The theories of Karl Marx, August Cimte, Max Wever, Emmile Durkhaim, Sorokin,
etc are studied under the theories of sociology. Eg. The theories of “Economic
determinism” and the theory of “Class Struggle” of Karl Marx. Eg. “Theory of
Suicide” by Emmile Durkhaim.
Historical Sociology It is the study of social facts and social groups. It studies the
background of any social event. How and when different social groups or
organizations originated? Eg. The history of Hindu, Roman, Greek, etc. and other
major civilizations were studied by P.A. Sorkin.
Sociology of Knowledge The newly emerged branch of sociology indicates that
our knowledge is the product of social phenomena. This means our knowledge is
always influenced by society. The economic religious political and other interests
save human belief and ideas.
Criminology This branch of sociology studies the criminal behavior of individuals
or groups. Origin of crime its types of nature, causes as well as law, punishment,
police, etc. come under this study, The efforts for the improvement is also studied.
Different organizations establish to control the crime as well as their role also come
under its study.
30. Sociology of Religion This branch studies the structure of the religion in
the social system as no society is free from the influence of it. It analyses
the social behavior of human beings. It also studies the religious
constitutions and their role in the society. Augste Comte, Emmile
Durkheim, Herbet Spencer did the study of elementary forms of religious
life.
Sociology of Economy This branch of sociology studies production,
distribution, consumption and exchange of goods and services. This branch
also studies the economic activities of the society in which the focus is given
about the socio-cultural factors. The access in production, the mode of
distribution, the real consumers, the role of culture in such activities are
studied under it. Eg. “Why Hindus don’t eat Cow?”
Rural Sociology This branch of sociology studies the way of life of rural
people as the rural population is higher than the urban. The patterns of life
such as behavior, belief, culture, tradition norms, values, etc. are totally
different than of urban people. So, it studies the rural society in scientific
way. It also studies rural life, social institutions, social structure, social
processes, etc. of the rural society.
31. Urban Sociology This branch of sociology studies the way of life of urban
people. It gives information about the social organizations and instution of
urban society as well as social structure and social interaction. It also
studies the social pathology of urban society such as discrimination) crime,
corruption, robbery, beggary, loot, theft, unemployment, prostitution,
environmental pollution, etc.
Political Sociology This branch of sociology studies different political
moments of society. It includes the study of different political ideology
(view), their origin, development and functions. In this study, different
political parties are considered as social institutions. Various activities and
behavior of political parties are studied in this branch. As they are the part
of the social system.
Sociology of Demography Demography of scientific mathematical and
statically study of population. It studies about the size, situation,
composition, density, distribution, and measurement etc. of the population.
In this branch of sociology, we study the distribution of human population
with the analysis of population change in sociological perspectives. It also
finds out the determining factors of population change and its trend.
32. Sociology of Law Sociology of law and legal system are
considered as the part of society, as social institution. Law is one of
the very important means of social control. Law is related with other
different social sub systems. Such as economy, nature of
distribution, authority, structure of family kinship relationships, etc.
So, this branch of sociology is related to moral order for the society
as formulation and implementation of rules and regulations, law
and order come under this.
Industrial Sociology This branch of sociology is concerned with
the industrial relationship of the human beings. It studies the
different industrial organizations and institutions. As well as their
interrelationship and links with other various institutions of society.
It also studies the inter-relationships of industrial institutions with
various aspects of human life such as culture, beliefs, customs,
religion or the way of life.
33. Other branches include;
Sociology of Family
Sociology of Race
Sociology of Occupation
Sociology of Art
Sociology of literature
Sociology of Peace
Sociology of Development
Sociology of Military
Sociology of Culture
Sociology of Planning
Sociology of Moment
Sociology of Psychology
Sociology of Differentiation
Sociology of Stratification, etc.
34. The factors of origin of Sociology
The term sociology was coined by French philosopher
Auguste Comte in 1838, who for this reason is known as
the “Father of Sociology.”
Comte felt that science could be used to study the social
world. Other events of that time period
also influenced the development of sociology.
sociology is the scientific study of human social life,
groups and societies.
There was no sociology as a distinct discipline before the
advent of 19th century. As a distinct discipline it
emerged about the middle of the 19th century when
European social observers began to use scientific
methods to test their ideas.
35. It looks that three factors led to the origins of
sociology.
The first was the Industrial revolution.
The second factor that stimulated the d
The third impetus for the development of
sociology was the success of the natural
science development of sociology was
imperialism.
36. Importance of Sociology.
'Sociology tells us how to become what we want to be.'
Sociology studies society in a scientific way
Sociology throws more light on the social
nature of man
Sociology increases the power of social action
Sociology studies role of the institutions in the
development of the individuals
Study of sociology is indispensable for
understanding and planning of society
Sociology is of great importance in the solution
of social problems
37. Sociology has drawn our attention to the
intrinsic worth and dignity of man
Sociology has changed our outlook with regard
to the problems of crime
Sociology has made great contribution to
enrich human culture
Sociology is of great importance in the solution
of international problems
The value of sociology lies in the fact that it
keeps us update on modern situations
Study of society has helped governments to
promote the welfare of the tribal and
marginalized communities
Sociology is useful as a teaching subject
38. Significance of Sociology in nursing
Sociology is a field in science that concerns itself
with social behavior. The origins and the
development of a particular society takes its cue from
the study of sociology.
Sociology of nursing concentrates on the sociological
factors that evolve in the practice of nursing.
Sociology plays an important role in the area of
health sciences medicine and nursing with the
common goal of preventing illness and restoration of
health.
39.
40. The study of sociology is important for nurses due to
the following reasons;
Sociology is needed in general to all the medical
professions and especially nursing because social
conditions are sometimes responsible for health
problems.
Sociology helps to understand the relationship
between disease and social condition.
Helps to understand those forces and pressures
which affect patient adversely.
41. It helps the nurses to understand the behaviour,
conflicts, Inter Personal Relationship (IPR), hierarchy,
groups and adaptation of different people working in
hospitals.
Through sociology, the nurse gets information about the
socio cultural life of the patient.
To study the structure of family, community and society.
To understand the characteristics of social relationship,
its complexities, and its impact on health care.
Helps in the understanding and eradication of social
problems.
42. Thus Sociology enables nurses to understand their
social responsibility as agents of change. When the
nurse has the capacity to heal or make patients feel
better, they are not only treating their illnesses; they
are also improving the quality of their lives.
43. References
Elias, Norbert. 1978. What Is Sociology? New York:
Columbia University Press.
CN Shankar Rao. Sociology. S. Chand Publishing,
2012 ISBN. 8121910366, 9788121910361
https://openstax.org/books/introduction-sociology-
2e/pages/1-introduction-to-sociology
