Sociology in comparison with other social sciences

Sociology In Comparison With Other Social Sciences
Sociology In Comparison
With Other Social Sciences
History, Anthropology, Psychology and
Economics

Contents
Introduction.............................................................................................................................................................................................4
Comparison of Sociology with History:.........................................................................................................................................7
Comparison of Sociology with Anthropology............................................................................................................................10
Comparison of Sociology with Psychology................................................................................................................................13
Comparison of Sociology with Economics.................................................................................................................................16
Table 1: Sociology VS History...........................................................................................................................................................................9
Table 2: Sociology VS Anthropology...............................................................................................................................................................12
Table 3: Sociology VS Psychology...................................................................................................................................................................15
Table 4: Sociology VS Economics....................................................................................................................................................................18

Sociology
Introduction
‘‘Sociology is the study of society, human social behavior, patterns of
social and relationships, social interaction, and culture that surrounds
everyday life’’.
Sociology studied organized, unorganized and disorganized society and
studies the social activities of man. Sociology analyses both conscious
and unconscious activities of man. Sociology studies both formal and
informal relations. Sociology is considered as a mother of social
sciences. The simplest reason for the subject being the mother is
that sociology studies on the society and humans living in it. Society is

the main laboratory where all other subjects like economics,
political science etc relays.
Comparison of Sociology with
Other Social Sciences (History,
Anthropology, Psychology, and
Economics):
Sociology differs from other social sciences in that it is more general
and covers human interaction from a broad dimension whereas
the other social sciences are specific which studies a particular aspect of
society. Sociology understands human social life by taking help
from other social sciences such as History, Economics, Anthropology

and Psychology. The other social sciences study other aspects of human
behavior.
History: Study of past.
Anthropology: Study of culture (past and present).
Psychology: Study of mind and human behavior.
Economics: Study of economic systems.

Comparison of Sociology with History:
It is the social science which deals with past events and studies the past
social, political and economic aspects of the country. Sociology depends
Sociology
History
Psychology
Anthropology
Economics

upon history in order to study past events and situations. According to
Gettle;
“History is the record of the past events and movements, their causes
and inter-relations”.
It not only studies the past but also establishes relations with present
and future. That is why it is said that “History is the microscope of the
past, the horoscope of the present and telescope of the future’’.
However, both the sciences are closely inter-related and inter-
dependent on each other. Both study the same human society. Their
mutual dependence led G.H. Howard to remark that, “History is past
Sociology and Sociology is present history.” Both takes help from each
other. At the same time one depends on the other for its own
comprehension.

History helps and enriches Sociology. History is the store house of
knowledge from which Sociology gained a lot. History provides
materials sociologists use. Books written by historians like A. Toynbee
are of great use for Sociologists. To know the impact of a particular past
event sociology depends on history. Attitude of sociology and history
differ from each other.
Table 1: Sociology VS History
Sociology History
Sociology is an analytical science. History is a descriptive science.
Sociology studies a particular event
as a social phenomenon.
History studies a particular event
in its entirety.
Sociology is a general science. History is a special science.

Sociology is a modern or new
subject.
History is an older social science.
Sociology is abstract in nature. History is concrete in nature.
Comparison of Sociology with
Anthropology
Anthropology is derived from two Greek words ‘Anthropos’ meaning
‘man’ and ‘Logos’ is meaning ‘study’. Thus according to its etymological
meaning, Anthropology is the study of man as such that is a study of the
development of human race. Anthropology has thus a very wide field of
study. Anthropology has been divided into three divisions:

1.Physical Anthropology: Deals with bodily characteristics of early
man and our primitive contemporaries.
2.Cultural Anthropology: Investigates the cultural remains of early
man and of the living cultures of some of the primitive
contemporaries.
3.Social Anthropology: Deals with the institutions and human
relationships of primitive, of the past and present.
‘‘Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with
human behavior, human biology, and societies, in both the present
and past, including past human species’’.
Sociology and anthropology involve the systematic study of social life
and culture in order to understand the causes and consequences of
human action. Sociologists and anthropologists study the structure and
processes of traditional cultures and modern, industrial societies in both

Western and non-Western cultures. Sociology and
anthropology combine scientific and humanistic perspectives in the
study of society.
Table 2: Sociology VS Anthropology
Sociology Anthropology
Mainly a study of modern
communities.
Mainly a study of ancient
communities.
Sociology is the study of modern
civilized and complex societies.
Anthropology concerns with
uncivilized or primitive and non
literate societies.
Sociology studies only its particular
aspects like institutions, marriage,
family or processes such as change,
Anthropology study human
primitive cultures. It studies the
whole society, its political and legal
problems, family organization,

social mobility. religion, art, industries and
occupations etc.
Sociologist studies small as well as
large societies.
Anthropologists usually
concentrate on small societies.
Sociology makes use of
observation, interview, social
survey, questionnaires and other
method of techniques in its
investigations.
Anthropologists directly go and live
in the communities they study.
They make use of direct
observations and interviews.
Comparison of Sociology with Psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behavior. It analyses
attitudes, emotions, perception, process of learning and values of

individuals and process of personality formation in society. According to
the American Psychological Association;
‘‘Psychology is a multifaceted discipline and includes many sub-fields
of study such areas as human development, sports, health, clinical,
social behavior and cognitive processes’’.
According to Thouless;
‘‘Psychology is the positive science of human experience and
behavior’’.
But both the sciences are closely related to each other. Psychologists
and sociologists both study people, but while psychologists delve into
the mind of an individual or small group to understand human behavior
and social and emotional reactions, sociologists look beyond individuals

to examine society through specific associations such as the family, race
or religion – to understand current issues.
Table 3: Sociology VS Psychology
Sociology Psychology
Society is the unit of study in
sociology.
Individual is the unit of study in
Psychology.
Sociology studies social processes. Psychology studies mental
processes.
Sociology studies and analyses
human behavior from Sociological
angle.
Psychology studies and analyses
human behavior from
Psychological angles.

It used questionnaire methods. It used experimental method.
It is young but general science. It is older than sociology but
special science.
Comparison of Sociology with Economics
Adam Smith was an 18th-century Scottish economist, philosopher, and
author, and is considered the father of modern economics. Smith is
most famous for his 1776 book, "The Wealth of Nations." Economics is
a social science concerned with the production, distribution, and
consumption of goods and services. Economics can generally be broken
down into

1.Macroeconomics: Concentrates on the behavior of the economy as
a whole.
2.Microeconomics: Focuses on individual people and businesses.
Economics is all about the economic life of human beings whereas
sociology studies society as a whole with the inclusion of economic life
of man as a part of this wide branch of new social science such as the
belief system of a particular society, the cultures and traditions, political
and legal matters concerned and many other knowledge dealing with
the social aspect.
The fact that society is influenced by economic factors while economic
processes are largely determined by the social environments clearly
proves that the relation between Sociology and Economics is very
intimate. Economics is defined as:

‘‘Study of mankind in ordinary business of life or to be more exact, it is
the science of wealth in its three phases of production, distribution
and consumption’’.
Table 4: Sociology VS Economics
Sociology Economics
Sociology studies all kinds of social
relationships.
Economics deals with only those
relationships which are economic
in character.
Sociology is a general social
science.
Economics is a special social
science.
Scope of sociology seems to be
wider. It has a comprehensive view
point.
The scope of economics is
narrower. It does not have a
comprehensive view point.
Sociology is a science of recent
emergence.
Economics has attained an
advanced degree of maturity.

Sociologist, on the other hand, is
primarily interested in the social
aspects of economic activities
rather than in the mechanism of
production and distribution
An economist’s primary concern is
with all that is directly or indirectly
related to the increase of material
happiness of man, with the
methods and techniques of
production, distribution and
consumption.
Sociology is abstract in nature and
less precise also.
Economics is a concrete in nature
and more precise.

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Sociology in comparison with other social sciences

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