Paradigms, Theory, and Research

Macrotheory

•aggregates or large groups

•entire societies

Microtheory

•diads, triads, families

•social life of small groups

Cutting across all social paradigms:

Early Positivism

•Auguste Comte (1798-1857)

•coined term “sociology”

•positive philosophy==>positivism

•evolution of social thought from religion to natural law to a reliance on observations on the five senses

Conflict Paradigm

•Karl Marx (1818-1883)

•social behavior is seen as attempts to dominate or avoid domination

•Class Conflict -- Proletariat Vs. Bourgeoisie

•Utopian Society

Symbolic Interaction•Simmel, Mead, and Cooley

•Primary Group•Looking-Glass Self•Taking The Role of the Other•Common understanding of symbols

•interpreting symbols in context

Ethnomethodology

•reality is tentative

•actors try to anticipate behavior on the basis of roles -- but social reality is continually being constructed when “rules” are broken

•establish expectations -- rule breaking experiments

Structural Functionalism

•social systems theory

•components of society arise from structure and function

•functions reaffirm society and societal values

Feminist Paradigm

•gender differences in social organization

•men control and dominate social processes to their advantage

Threats to Rational Objectivity

•internal frame of reference

•peer pressure or group norming

•agreement reality

Two Logical Systems• Deductive Theory

• theory• hypotheses• observations• empirical generalizations

• Inductive Theory• observations• empirical generalizations • theory• hypotheses