SOCIOLOGY
Meaning , Nature and Scope of Sociology
EMERGENCE
Father of Sociology
AUGUSTE COMTE , a French Philosopher , is traditionally known as the ‘ Father of Sociology’ . COMTE , who coined the term ‘Sociology’ , distinguished the subject matter from all the other social sciences. He introduced the word ‘Sociology’ for the first time in his famous work ‘ Positive Philosophy’ in 1839.
Meaning
The term Sociology is derived from Latin word ‘ Socius’ , which means society and the Greek word ‘Logos’ , meaning study. Thus, the etymological meaning of Sociology is ‘Study of Society’ .
Some Definitions
Quoted Definitions
“ Sociology is a scientific study of social life .”
“ Sociology is a general science of society.”
“ Sociology is the science of collective behaviour.”
NATURE
Sociology as a branch of knowledge, has its own unique characteristics. It is different from other sciences in certain respects. The following are the main characteristics of Sociology as enlisted by Robert Bierstedt in his book “ The Social Order”.
Sociology has now emerged into an independent science . It is not treated and studied as a branch of any other social science like Philosophy or Political Philosophy or History. As an independent science it has its own field of study, boundary and method.
2. Sociology is a Social Science not a Physical Science
Sociology belongs to the family of social sciences and not to the family of physical sciences. As a Social Science it concentrates its attention on man, his social behaviour , social activities and social life. As a member of the family of Social Sciences it is intimately related to other social sciences like History, Political Science, Economics, Psychology , Anthropology etc. The fact that Sociology deals with the Social Universe distinguishes it from Astronomy, Physics, Chemistry, Geology , Mathematics and other Physical Sciences.
3. Sociology is a Categorical not a Normative Discipline
Sociology “confines itself to statements about what is, not what should be or ought to be” . As a science , Sociology is necessarily silent about questions of value. It does not make any kind of value judgements. Its approach is neither moral nor immoral but amoral. It is ethically neutral. It cannot decide the directions in which Sociology ought to go. It makes no recommendations on matters of social policy or legislation or programme. But it does not mean that sociological knowledge is useless and serves no purpose. It only means that Sociology as a discipline cannot deal with problems of good and evil, right and wrong, and moral and immoral.
4. Sociology is a Pure Science not an Applied Science
Sociology as a pure science has its applied field such as administration, diplomacy, social work etc. Each pure science may have more than one application. Sociology is a pure science, because the immediate aim of Sociology is the acquisition of knowledge about human society, not the utilisation of knowledge. The knowledge acquired by a Sociologist is of great help to the administrator, the legislature, the diplomat, the teacher, the foreman, the supervisor, the social worker and the citizen. Sociologists themselves don’t apply the knowledge to life and use, as a matter of their duty and profession.
5. Sociology is relatively an Abstract Science not a Concrete Science
Sociology is not interested in concrete manifestations of human events. It is more concerned with the form of human events and their patterns. Sociology does not confine itself to the study of this society or that particular society or social organisation, or marriage, or religion, or group, and so on. It is in the simple sense that Sociology is an abstract not a concrete science.
6. Sociology is a Generalising not a Particularising or Individualising Science
Sociology tries to find out the general laws or principles about human interaction a d association, about the nature, form, content and structure of human groups and societies. It does not only study each and every event that takes place in society. It tries to make generalisations on the basis of the study of some selected events.
7. Sociology is a General Science not a Specific Social Science
The area of inquiry of Sociology is general and not specialised. It is concerned with human interaction and human life in general. Other social sciences also study man and human interactions, but not all about human interaction. They concentrate their attention on certain aspects of human interaction and activities and just specialise themselves in those fields. Accordingly, Economics specialises itself in study of economic activities, Political Science concentrates itself on political activities and so on.
8. Sociology is both a Rational and an Empirical Science
There are two broad ways to approach to scientific knowledge. One, known as Empiricism, is the approach that emphasises experience and facts that result from observation and experimentation. The other, known as Rationalism, stresses reason and the theories that result from logical interference. In sociological inquiry, both are significant. The Empiricist collects facts; the Rationalist co-ordinates and arranges them.
SCOPE
Schools of Sociology
Formalistic School
This school of thought is led by the German sociologist George Simmel. The other main advocates of this school are Vierkandt , Max Weber , Small , Von Wiese and Tonnies.
Opinions
Synthetic School
This school conceives of Sociology as a synthesis of the social sciences. It wants to make Sociology a general social science. It has made Sociology synoptic or encyclopedic in character. Durkheim, Hob House, Ginsberg and Sorokin have been the chief exponents of this school.
Opinions