Theories within sociology for year 12 students studies theories and methods in context

1. 1. State the key features of a structuralist theory
2. Explain the difference between phenomenology and
ethnomethodology.
3. According to Giddens, structures make social action
possible and he refers to this as ‘duality of structure’.
Explain how this is illustrated in language.
Do Now

2. 1. State the key features of a structuralist theory
• Macro approach, positivists, deterministic & either consensus or conflict
2. Explain the difference between phenomenology and
ethnomethodology
• P: the organisation of categories (made by using our common-sense
knowledge) to understand phenomena in the social world, therefore society is
socially constructed. a fact or situation that is observed to exist or happen,
especially one whose cause or explanation is in question.
• E: argue that sociologists study the methods that are used to produce
meanings in the first place. E.g. coroners using their common-sense
knowledge to determine the cause of a death
3. According to Giddens, structures make social action possible and he refers to
this as ‘duality of structure’. Explain how this is illustrated in language.
• Grammar is the structure of language but individuals create structure by
talking and writing in ways that follow grammatical rules. If we start to use
language in a different way, the rules of grammar will change.

3. Learning objectives:
• To be able to recap on structuralist and social action theories
Unit: Theories & Methods
Title: Recap Lesson

4. Who argues what?
• Organic analogy
• Parsons
• Socialisation and social solidarity
• Durkheim
• Manifest and latent function
• Merton
• 2 functions
• Parsons
• Alienation
• Marx
MWB

5. Who argues what?
• Symbolic interactionism
• Mead
• Labelling
• Becker
• ISA and RSA
• Althusser
• Typification in phenomenology
• Schutz
• Philosopher behind phenomenology
• Husserl
MWB

6. Who argues what?
• Hegemony
• Gramsci
• 4 types of actions and discusses social change
• Weber
• Verstehen - Verstehen is the German for "to understand" but has come to
mean a particular form of deep, emphatic understanding
• Weber
• Impression management
• Goffman
• Looking-glass self
• Cooley
MWB

7. Ansley Oakley Sharpe Marx
Becker Durkheim Goffman Althusser
Gramsci Blumer Bowles & Gintis Heidensohn
Mead Davis & Moore Parsons Merton

8. Functionalist sociologists
Ansley Oakley Sharpe Marx
Becker Durkheim Goffman Althusser
Gramsci Blumer Bowles & Gintis Heidensohn
Mead Davis & Moore Parsons Merton

9. Marxist sociologists
Ansley Oakley Sharpe Marx
Becker Durkheim Goffman Althusser
Gramsci Blumer Bowles & Gintis Heidensohn
Mead Davis & Moore Parsons Merton

10. Feminist sociologists
Ansley Oakley Sharpe Marx
Becker Durkheim Goffman Althusser
Gramsci Blumer Bowles & Gintis Heidensohn
Mead Davis & Moore Parsons Merton

11. Interactionist sociologists
Ansley Oakley Sharpe Marx
Becker Durkheim Goffman Althusser
Gramsci Blumer Bowles & Gintis Heidensohn
Mead Davis & Moore Parsons Merton

12. Structural Theories Social Action Theories Structuration
1) Reflexivity 2) Duality of structure 3) Positivism
4) Indexicality 5) Meta narratives 6) Role of socialisation
7) Impression management 8) Ethnomethodology
Match up the
descriptions with the
correct perspective
Meta narratives are ‘big stories’
the main theories in sociology
that try to explain society.

13. Structural Theories Social Action Theories Structuration
1) Reflexivity 2) Duality of structure 3) Positivism
4) Indexicality 5) Meta narratives 6) Role of socialisation
7) Impression management 8) Ethnomethodology

14. Structural Theories Social Action Theories Structuration
6) Role of
socialisation
7) Impression
management
2) Duality of
structure
5) Meta narratives 1) Reflexivity
3) Positivism
4) Indexicality
8) Ethnomethodology

15. • Read over handout and
answer the concept check
questions in your books
Ethnomethodology

16. Ethnomethodology - Breaching
Experiments
https://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=Qmj0o
_A14BM

17. Read over the newspaper
article.

18. Identify the social issue:
What would the
Marxist perspective
on this issue be?
What would
functionalists
argue?
What would Social
Action theorists
argue?
Challenge: What
would the
integrated approach
argue?
Key words to
include in your
arguments:
Alienation
Surplus Value
Ruling Class
Subject Class
Exploitation
Capitalism
Communism
Key words:
Socialisation
Social Solidarity
Organic analogy
Manifest and latent
functions
Key words:
Choice
Free will
Meanings
Looking-glass self
Labelling
Role/actors
Based on what
we’ve read and
what you know
about each
theory. Complete
this table in your
books

19. 1. Create revision material on the integrated approach by
Giddens.
2. Outline and explain two arguments that suggest the Marxist
perspective may have little to contribute to an understanding
of society today [10 marks]
3. Pre-learning: read and make notes on the feminist perspective
Homework