Download Brittney Berkley 800780538 Sociology 1101 The main goal of

Brittney Berkley 800780538
Sociology 1101
The main goal of Chapter 2 of our Intro to Sociology book is, asking and answering
sociological questions. Seeing past ore overlooking the base of something simple to notice the
bigger picture is exactly what sociologists do. They may use different techniques such as,
theoretical thinking or simple research.
When asked if sociology is a science there may be split opinions or definitions but the
fact of the matter is, it is qualified as a science. At the University of Chicago in 1920
sociologists like William Ogburn and Robert Park, wanted to investigate and prove that
sociology was a scientific study. With guided research like the scientific method it is easy to see
why sociology could be considered a science. Although sociology is considered a science, it is
not in the same category as a natural science. The study of objects of nature is vastly different
than the study of humans because they are self-aware.
The research process should start the same with all sociologists. They ask an eyeopening question and follow the research process. The first step is reviewing the evidence and
forming a stable hypothesis. Following they would work out a design figuring out how they
want to collect data. After that, the researchers move to step five which is carrying out the
research. Post analysis, the researchers must interpret the results which can be tedious and often
don’t come out as planned, and they must report the findings.
Sociologists also believe that every cause has an effect that follows. Everything happens
for a reason. The researchers study what goes into the causation and the correlation, which is
another way of saying cause and effect. The correlation is in the middle of variables. There are
a few types of variables, independent and dependent. These are like relationships that can add to
the cause or the effect. To test the causal side of these variables researchers will look at the
control.
As you can see sociologists have many steps in their research. Asking and answering
sociological questions are more than just asking and answering the questions, it’s about the
“why.” Looking deeper into everything and being more realistic is sociology. It is a science of
the people and society that we are in today.
Citations:
Giddens, A. (1996). Introduction to sociology. (8th ed.). New York City:
Kippner, G. (n.d.). Helping to orient students to a new field. Retrieved from
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