Be Realistic. Why do we study sociology? The Sociology Program prepares one for a lifetime of change by developing one's appreciation of diversity, love of learning, writing and study skills, and knowledge base about human behavior, social organization, culture, and social change.
Sociology helps us look more objectively at our society and other societies. What is the highest paying job with a sociology degree?
Below are 10 of the highest paying jobs for sociology grads. Guidance Counselors. Human Resources Representative. Policy Analysts. Public Relations Specialist. What jobs can you get with a sociology GCSE?
Jobs directly related to your degree include:. Advice worker. Community development worker. Further education teacher. Higher education lecturer. Policy officer.
Secondary school teacher. Social researcher. Sociologists emphasize the careful gathering and analysis of evidence about social life to develop and enrich our understanding of key social processes.
The research methods sociologists use are varied. Sociologists observe the everyday life of groups, conduct large-scale surveys, interpret historical documents, analyze census data, study video-taped interactions, interview participants of groups, and conduct laboratory experiments. The research methods and theories of sociology yield powerful insights into the social processes shaping human lives and social problems and prospects in the contemporary world.
By better understanding those social processes, we also come to understand more clearly the forces shaping the personal experiences and outcomes of our own lives. The Sociology Program prepares one for a lifetime of change by developing one's appreciation of diversity, love of learning, writing and study skills, and knowledge base about human behavior, social organization, culture, and social change.
If you are the type of person who does not necessarily follow the crowds but are fascinated by their behavior , the type who is truly interested in what is going on in the world, then sociology should interest you. Sociology helps us look more objectively at our society and other societies.
It directs attention to how the parts of society fit together and change, as well as makes us aware of the consequences of that social change. Weber believed that it was difficult, if not impossible, to use standard scientific methods to accurately predict the behavior of groups as people hoped to do. They argued that the influence of culture on human behavior had to be taken into account.
This even applied to the researchers themselves, who, they believed, should be aware of how their own cultural biases could influence their research.
To deal with this problem, Weber and Dilthey introduced the concept of verstehen , a German word that means to understand in a deep way. This approach led to some research methods whose aim was not to generalize or predict traditional in science , but to systematically gain an in-depth understanding of social worlds. The different approaches to research based on positivism or antipositivism are often considered the foundation for the differences found today between quantitative sociology and qualitative sociology.
Quantitative sociology uses statistical methods such as surveys with large numbers of participants. Researchers analyze data using statistical techniques to see if they can uncover patterns of human behavior. Qualitative sociology seeks to understand human behavior by learning about it through in-depth interviews, focus groups, and analysis of content sources like books, magazines, journals, and popular media. In the State of the Union Address, President Obama called on Congress to raise the national minimum wage, and he signed an executive order putting this into effect for individuals working on new federal service contracts.
Congress did not pass legislation to change the national minimum wage more broadly. The result has become a national controversy, with various economists taking different sides on the issue, and public protests being staged by several groups of minimum-wage workers. Opponents of raising the minimum wage argue that some workers would get larger paychecks while others would lose their jobs, and companies would be less likely to hire new workers because of the increased cost of paying them Bernstein ; cited in CNN.
Proponents of raising the minimum wage contend that some job loss would be greatly offset by the positive effects on the economy of low-wage workers having more income Hassett ; cited in CNN.
Sociologists may consider the minimum wage issue from differing perspectives as well. How much of an impact would a minimum wage raise have for a single mother? Some might study the economic effects, such as her ability to pay bills and keep food on the table. Others might look at how reduced economic stress could improve family relationships.
Some sociologists might research the impact on the status of small business owners. These could all be examples of public sociology, a branch of sociology that strives to bring sociological dialogue to public forums. The goals of public sociology are to increase understanding of the social factors that underlie social problems and assist in finding solutions.
According to Michael Burawoy , the challenge of public sociology is to engage multiple publics in multiple ways. Sociology was developed as a way to study and try to understand the changes to society brought on by the Industrial Revolution in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Those perspectives continue to be represented within sociology today.
Which founder of sociology believed societies changed due to class struggle? Weber believed humans could not be studied purely objectively because they were influenced by:. What perceptions of Marx have you been exposed to in your society, and how do those perceptions influence your views? Do you tend to place more value on qualitative or quantitative research?
Does it matter what topic you are studying? Many sociologists helped shape the discipline. The Penguin Dictionary of Sociology.
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