Introduction to Sciology

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Assignment
Submitted to: Ma’am SAEEDA SHAH
NAME: WAQAR MEHMOOD KALHORO
ROLL: 2K19/AA/43
Department of ANTHROPOLOGY&ARCHAEOLOGY
Topics: 01: introduction of sociology nature scope and subject matter of
sociology?
02: Relationship with other social science

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Topic No:
Index Page No:
01
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06
Introduction to Sociology
Subject Matter of Sociology
Nature and Scope of Sociology
Relationship with other Social Science
Conclusion
Reference
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04
05
06
13
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Introduction To Sociology
Sociology is the study of society, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and culture
that surrounds everyday life. It is a social science that uses various methods of empirical
investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about order and social change.
Sociology can also be defined as the general science of society. While some sociologists conduct
research that may be applied directly to social policy and welfare, others focus primarily on
refining the theoretical understanding of social processes. Subject matter can range from micro-
level analyses of society (i.e., of individual interaction and agency) to macro-level analyses (i.e.,
of systems and the social structure) Sociology studies and analyses human behavior on the
personal, tribal, national and international level. Sociologists try to describe and understand
human behavior from a variety of perspectives. Commonly used perspectives from the last 200
years include those of Marx, Durkheim, Weber, et al, who can be extensively researched using
standard internet searches if greater understanding is sought.
It is always useful to remember that the perceived (sociological) world will vary wildly
according to the perspectives, prejudices and circumstances of the observer. As an example of
which I have experience, homeless people can be viewed in a whole variety of ways. At the most
simple, are they deserving (unfortunate), or parasitic and lazy? Reams have been written on the
subject and all (sociologists) views on the issue will inevitably be through the lens of their
particular prejudices and perspectives (beliefs).
There are no easy conclusions to be made to any of the many complex sociological issues. Those
who pretend there are (like vote hungry politicians or people with vested interests in the social
sectors) should be treated with great caution, even skepticism.
I started out in my career thinking that many of life’s problems could be solved with approaches
to social issues based on help and support for people who most needed it. I retired in later life
having realised that often such support risks and often becomes part of the problem, (such as by
dis-empowerment) and can often run counter to the original good intentions. When my
interventions did achieve good outcomes it was usually with people with pre-existing strong
intentions to move on and overcome their particular issues at the time.
Sociology is the scientific study of the individual and group behavior within society. A standard
textbook approach emphasizes several theoretical approaches to understanding human behavior;

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however, there are four main approaches: Structural-Functionalism, Social-Conflict, Symbolic-
Internationalism and Feminism. Post- Modernism is also a theoretical perspective characteristic
of Sociology, though not often deemed a major perspective is nonetheless a field of study of
concentration, with extensive roots in the sociological tradition of research and understanding
human behavior.
Sociology is the study of human life is complex and encompasses many facts of human
experiences, because of its complexity the discipline of sociology has been subdivided including
an introduction to discipline relevant study methodologies and dominant theoretical perspective.
What is sociology? Contrary to what is often thought that is not such a difficult question.
Although its easy to assemble hundred of definitions and make it all seem extremely complicated
sociology is the science that has as its subject matter, human societies. For the time being it’s
enough to say that sociologists are interested in the history and the structure of the large
configurations that are formed by human being. The scientific study of human societies become
an institutionalized displace told at universities at the end of 19th
century and that implies that
some of the classical sociologist that we discuss here were not university professors at all some
of them never called themselves sociologists. The classical sociologist were not just interested in
human societies, They were focusing on problems attending the fundamental social change that
took place in Europe at the time of the industrial Revolution. They studies what has been called
the great transformation. The first sociogocial theories were proposed by intellectual who were
struck by those brand new development that they witnessed for the very first time history of the
human species.
Ginsberg: Sociology is the study of human interaction and interrelation their condition and
conseques.
Max weber: Sociology is the science which attempted the interpretative under sting of social
action.
Subject Matter Of Sociology
The subject matter of Sociology is diverse as it study diverse social phenomena ranging from
friendship, online conversations and families to neighbourhoods, governments and global
markets. Sociology study cities and communities, inequality, social mobility and social class,
patterns of population change and migration, social identities such as race, class and gender,
ethnic relations and social conflicts, social media and digital interaction, and social dimensions
of sex, health, business, education, law, politics, religion and science. The subject matter of
sociology is dressed up socialism. Sociology denigrates the individual; thus it must denigrate
capitalism which is the only way an advanced socio economic system based division of labor can
advance. Sociology promotes tribalism and mediocrity. Sociology is the academic, theoretically
informed study of society(s), applied through appropriate methodologies and done according to
accepted ethical practice.

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It includes everything from identity to power, gender to diaspora, globalisation to politics,
violence to religion, sexuality to ethnicity. In fact, anything which humans do, think, say, or
believe is potential meat for the sociological grinder. In a nutshell, sociology is the study of
people and groups. In contrast to psychology, which focuses more on individual function and
processes, sociology examines how people interact and function in society. There are several
different types of groups that are examined in sociology, ranging from high school cliques to
immigrant groups to whole nations. By studying how and why these groups form and interact,
we may better understand how social systems function in society as a whole.
Sociology is
▪ The study of society.
▪ The science of social life
▪ The study of social relationships
▪ The study of human behaviour in Group
▪ The study of forms of socal relationships
▪ The srudy of social action
▪ The study of social groups and social system.
Nature and Scope Of Sociology
The nature of Sociology can be methodological, empirical, interactive, analytical, dialectical or
phenomenological depending on the orientation of the sociologist or thinker. The nature of
sociology is also evolving and as a discipline sociology has interacted and been influenced by
other subjects like anthropology, philosophy, Political Science, Economics and Law. A
fundamental difference is that sociology is concerned chiefly with the society or sections of the
society as opposed to psychology for example which is concerned with the individual. A
sociologist is concerned with establishing the patterns or tendencies which seemingly influence
routine or abnormal social behaviour. The presence of matrilineal societies or the concept of
“avoidance relationships in human societies” or the stereotyping and targeting of black youth in
some societies for criminal or deviant behaviour are all examples of classic sociological inquiry.
Sociology largely relies on data collection, case studies, participant or non participant
observation and other methods to establish certain generalizations. The challenge for any
sociologist is not to find new avenues for exploration but be aware of the surroundings or
neighbourhood and open your vision to unlearn a few things. Sociology is the study of the
society that we live in. It analyzes the various kinds of behaviours under various patterns and
under sociological influences. How do the findings of sociology help us in our day to day lives?
It helps us to a great deal because when we know what sociological factors are affecting us in a
negative way, then we can minimize the damage by adapting to an alternative lifestyle. All
humans in the current day world live under extremely pressurizing circumstances. So, sociology

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studies the social rules, and the role that humans play by living these rules. It also studies why
human beings bind by these rules. Also, how does human social life impact their behaviour in
general is studied by sociology. In fact, whether we realize it or not, most of the problems that
are caused in the society are due to human beings only. There are criminals, convicts, rapists, and
murders. However, somewhere society has played an important and distinguishing role to have
caused such psychological behaviors in people. Sociology also sheds light on how people should
behave in a responsible way with others in the society.
(1) Sociology is an independent science: Sociology is not treated and studied as a branch of any
other science like philosophy, history. Now it has emerged into an independent science. As an
independent science it has its own field of study.
(2) Sociology is a social science and not a physical science: All the sciences are divided into two
categories: natural sciences and social sciences. Natural sciences study physical phenomena
where as social sciences study social phenomena. Social sciences include Economics, Political
Science, and Anthropology etc. Sociology belongs to the family of social sciences. As a social
science it concentrates its attention on man, his social behaviour, activities and social life. In
other words, it studies man as a social being.
(3) Sociology is a pure science and not an applied science: The aim of applied science is to apply
the acquired knowledge into life and to put it to use. But the 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. Sociology is a pure science, because it aims at the acquisition of knowledge about
human society, hot the utilisation of the knowledge.
(4) Sociology is an abstract science and not a concrete science: This doesn't mean that Sociology,
is an art and not a science. It only refers that Sociology is not interested in concrete
manifestations of human events. It is more concerned with the form of human events and their
patterns. Similarly, Sociology does not confine itself to the study of this society or that particular
society. It simply means that Sociology is an abstract science, not a concrete science.
(5) Sociology is a categorical and not a normative discipline: Sociology "confines itself about
what is, not what should be or ought to be." As a science it is silent about questions of value. It
does not make any kind of value judgment. It only means Sociology as a discipline cannot deal
with problems of good and evil, right and wrong.
(6) Sociology is a generalising and not a particularising science: Sociology does not study each
and every event that takes place in society. It makes generalization on the basis of some selected
events. For example, not by studying or examining all the secondary groups but by observing a
few secondary groups, a sociologist makes generalization of secondary groups.
(7) Sociology is a general science and not a special social science: The area of inquiry of
Sociology is general and not specialised. Social sciences like Political Science, History,

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Economics, etc. study human interaction but not all about human interactions. But Sociology
does not investigate special kind of phenomena in relation to human life, and activities but it
only studies human activities in a general way.
(8) Sociology is both a rational and empirical science: Empiricism is the approach that
emphasizes experiences and the facts that result from observation and experimentation. On the
other hand, rationalism stresses reason and theories that result from logical inference. The
empiricist collects facts, the rationalist co-ordinates and arranges them. In sociological theory
both are significant. Thus, Sociology is both a rational and empirical science.
Scope of Sociology:
There are two different views about the scope of sociology.
There is no one opinion about the scope of sociology. In the broadest sense sociology is studying
human interaction their condition and consequences.
There are two main schools of thought among sociologist on the issue,
-Specialist of formalistic school
-Synthetic school
Specialist or Formalistic School
*In this group of sociologist demarcates sociology clearly form other branches of social study
and confines it to the “enquiry into certain defined aspects of human relationship” or “Sociology
as pure and independent”
* Sociology has a limited field of enquiry and deals that problem which is not dealt with other
social science.
-Specialist or Formalistic School
Synthetic School
*The other group maintains that the field of social investigation is too wide for any other social
science and “Sociology as special social science” Such as Economics, Anthropology, History,
etc there is also consider of a “Sociology is a general science”.
* Sociology studies everything and anything under the Sun
-Synthetic School

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Topic# 2
Relationship with Other Social Science
What is it that you want to do? Do you want to study the insides of animals? Then study
veterinary medicine or animal science. Do you want to build bridges? Then you should probably
look into structural engineering. What if your desire is to organize the word pictures in your head
into something the entire world can enjoy? How about creative writing? However, if you want to
understand people as social animals and why society functions the way it does, then you need to
take courses in sociology. Why? Because sociology is the study of how society has developed,
how it is arranged and how it functions. This definition is what sets sociology apart from the
other social sciences. Social sciences concern people’s relationships and interactions with one
another. Sociology, with its emphasis on social life, falls into this category. A multidisciplinary
field, sociology draws from a variety of other social sciences, including anthropology, political
science, psychology, and economics.
Sociology and Anthropology:
Sociology and Anthropology lie so close together that they often appear as two names for the
same field of enquiry.

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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:
(i) Physical anthropology which deals with bodily characteristics of early man and our primitive
contemporaries, (ii) Cultural Anthropology which investigates the cultural remains of early man
and of the living cultures of some of the primitive contemporaries, (iii) Social Anthropology
which deals with the institutions and human relationships of primitive, of the past and present.
Anthropology thus devotes its attention entirely to the study of man and his culture as they
developed in times long past. Sociology, on the other hand, studies the same phenomena as they
exist at present. According to Kluckhon, “The sociological attitude has tended towards the
practical and present, the anthropological towards pure understanding and the past.”Sociology
depends very much on the material supplied by Anthropology. In fact the historical part of
Sociology is identical with Cultural Anthropology. Anthropology has contributed substantially to
the study of Sociology. Sociology has to depend upon Anthropology to understand the present
day social phenomena from our knowledge of the past. Sociology has borrowed cultural area,
cultural traits, interdependent traits, cultural lag and other conceptions from social anthropology
on whose basis cultural sociology has developed. The discoveries of Linton and Kardiner have
influenced sociology in no small degree. From their researches it is evident that each society has
its own culture and the personality of its members is moulded according to it in their infancy.
Likewise the research done by Malinowski has proved valuable to sociology. He has given a
functional view point to the study of culture. The researches of Franz Boas and Otto Kineberg
have proved that there is no co-relation between anatomical characteristics and mental
superiority. The concept of racial superiority has been disproved by anthropology. According to
Hoebel, “Sociology and Social Anthropology are, in their broadest sense, one and the same.” A.
L. Karoeber has called sociology and anthropology twin sisters. Evans Pritchard considers social
anthropology to be a branch of sociology. In the same way, some of the conclusions drawn by
sociologists have also helped the anthropologists. For example, anthropologists like Morgan and
his followers have come to the conclusion regarding the existence of primitive communism from
the conception of private property in our modern society.
Robert Redfield writes, “Viewing the whole United States, one sees that the social relations
between Sociology and Anthropology are closer than those between Anthropology and Political
Science.”

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In spite of the interdependence of these two sciences the field of the study of each is quite
distinct. Keesing writes. “But the two academic disciplines have grown up independently, and
handle quite different types of problems, using markedly different research methods.”
Firstly, anthropology is the study of the whole society. It studies its political and legal problems,
family organization, religion, art, industries and occupations etc. Sociology studies only its
particular aspects.
The focus of sociologist is social interaction. Secondly, Anthropology studies cultures which are
small and static while Sociology studies civilizations which are vast and dynamic. That is’ why
Anthropology has developed faster and better than Sociology.
Thirdly, Anthropology and Sociology are separate sciences as the former is the study of man and
his culture as they developed in times long past; while the latter studies the same phenomena as
they are at present.
According to Kluckhohn “the sociological attitude has tended towards the practical and present,
the anthropological towards pure understanding and the past.” Lastly, sociology is concerned
with both social philosophy and social planning whereas anthropology is not concerned with
social planning. It does not make any suggestions for the future.
Anthropology concerns individual cultures in a society, rather than the society as a whole.
Traditionally, it focuses on what might be termed “primitive” cultures, such as the Yanomamo
people of the South American jungle, who live much the same way they did hundreds of years
ago. Anthropologists place special emphasis on language, kinship patterns, and cultural artifacts.
Political Science
Political science concerns the governments of various societies. It considers what kind of
government a society has, how it formed, and how individuals attain positions of power within a
particular government. Political science also concerns the relation of people in a society to
whatever form of government they have.
Psychology
Psychology takes the individual out of his or her social circumstances and examines the mental
processes that occur within that person. Psychologists study the human brain and how it
functions, considering issues such as memory, dreams, learning, and perception.
Economics

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Economics focuses on the production and distribution of society’s goods and services.
Economists study why a society chooses to produce what it does, how money is exchanged, and
how people interact and cooperate to produce goods.
Social Sciences:
Anthropology—archaeology. cultural. linguistics.
Economics—microeconomics, macroeconomics.
Geography—human. integrative.
History—cultural.
economic. military.
Law.—jurisprudence. legal history. legal systems.
Political science—international relations. psychology.
Sociology—criminology.
demography. economic.
environmental. institutions
Spirituality—biological.
dysfunctional. physiological. psychological
The concise definition of Sociology includes the science of society, social institutions, and social
relationships; specifically; the systematic study of the development, structure, interaction, and
collective behaviour of organized groups of human beings.
Sociology's subject matter is diverse, ranging from crime to religion, the family to the state, the
divisions of race and social class to the shared beliefs of a common culture, and from social
stability to radical change in whole societies and the environment and the juxtaposition of
humanity on the environment and—plants, animals and all living things.
Sociology provides a distinctive and enlightening methodology of seeing and understanding the
world in which we live and which shapes our lives. Sociology looks beyond the indoctrinated
and conditioned take-it-for-granted views of facts, to provide deeper, more illuminating and
challenging understandings of the juxtapositions of life on this planet and the entire constellation
of planets, star, sun and moon. Through its particular analytical perspective, social ideology, and

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research methods, Sociology is a discipline that expands our awareness and analysis of the
human social relationships, cultures, and institutions that profoundly shape both our lives and
history.
The in depth definition of Sociology includes all social sciences. Sociological research focuses
on only one aspect of the Social Sciences and its impact on and within all Social Sciences.
Sociology research/study often brings up the dilemma of ‘Which came first the chicken or the
egg.’ And therein lies the confusion and over simplification of the vastness of life in the 3rd, 4th,
5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, and 9th dimension.
The first sociological dilemma was in the beginning. “In the beginning, that which Is is all there
was, and there was nothing else. Yet, all That IS could not know itself—because All That Is is all
there was, and there was nothing else. And so All That is…was not. For in the absence of
something else. All That Is, is not.” 1
“This is the great Is/Not Is to which mystics have referred from the beginning of time.” 2
“All That Is knew that It was all there was—but this was not enough for It could only know its
utter magnificence conceptually, not experientially. Yet the experience of itself is that for which
it longed, for it wanted to know what it felt like to be so magnificent. Still, this was impossible,
because the term “magnificent” is a relative term. All That Is could not know what it felt like to
be magnificent unless that which is not showed up. In the absence of that which is not, that
which is, is not?” 3
“The one thing that All That Is knew is that there was nothing else. And so it could, and would,
never know itself from a reference point outside of itself. Such a point did not exist. Only one
reference point existed and that was the single place within. The ‘Is-Not-Is.’ The Am-Not Am.”
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“Still, the all of Everything chose to know Itself experientially.” 5
“This energy—this pure, unseen, unheard, unobserved, and therefore unknown-by-anyone-else
vibration—chose to experience Itself as the utter magnificence It was. In order to do this, It
realized It would need to use a reference point within.”6
“It reasoned, quite correctly, that any portion of Itself would necessarily need to be less than the
whole, and that if It, thus simply divided Itself into portions, each portion, being less than the
whole, could look back on the rest of Itself and see magnificence.” 7
“And so All That Is divided Itself—becoming, in one magnificent moment, that And so All
That Is divided Itself—becoming, in one magnificent moment, that which is this, and that which
is that. For the first time, this and that existed, quite apart from each other. And still, both existed
simultaneously. As did all that was neither.” 8

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“Thus, three elements suddenly existed: that which is here. That which is there. And that which
is neither here nor there—but which must exit for here and there to exist.” 9
“It is the nothing which holds the everything, It is the non-space which holds the space. It is the
all which holds the parts.” 10
Thus, the construct of Sociology existed in one glorious millisecond—the science of society,
social institutions, and social relationships; specifically; the systematic study of the development,
structure, interaction, and collective behaviour of organized groups of human beings.
Everything in the Universe is connected to the one source…The All That Is that created
everything. Everything impacts everything at the microscopic level.
Conclusion
Nowadays Sociology becomes a very famous subject. Because of its scope many
people wish to study this.
Sociology is study of human social relationship and institution. It offers a
distinctive and enlightening way of seeing and understanding the social world.
Students who have been well trained in sociology knows how to think cer
To conclude, sociological perspectives are used to understand human behavior
while seeing the broader social context. Each theoretical perspective serves to
explain human behavior within its own category.
Which perspective to use to explain behavior is typically based on the guiding
question(s) used. For example, How does a teacher behave in class? One might
best adopt the Symbolic Interactionism perspective because Erving Goffman
addressed how we present ourselves to others within the context of public
behavior. However, if one wanted to study the social institution of a business or

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how a school functions once would be best to adopt the Structural functionalist
perspective.
One can use sociology as a basis for understanding human behavior in everyday
life whether it be on an individual basis or group. As John Donne is quoted as
saying "No man is an island unto himself," individual behaviors cannot be
separated from group behavior because we carry society within us. But, one can
concentrate on one aspect more than the other
Thus, from the above discussion we come to know that the nature of Sociology is
independent, social, a categorical, pure, abstract, and generalizing; both are a
rational and an empirical social science.
Reference
www.wikipedia.com
https://www.britannica.com/topic/sociology
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sociology
www.YouTube.com
www.Coursera.com

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