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INTRODUCTION TO:
Is the scientific study of human group behavior .
- Uses evidence
- Looks at how groups, societies and social conditions
shape the way people act.
- compares/ contrasts one society with another- same
issues in different cultures
**While personality is important, it also matters what
environment you’re in
Shared symbols- How we can identify in a culture through
the use of images
Learned Behaviours-
Values: shared/ acceptable ideas. For
example, equality
Norms: how people act in certain situations.
For example, at a concert you are expected
to cheer loud but in a library you are
expected to be quiet
Roles: individuals’ expected behaviour in
role. For example, a dentist should look at
your teeth
Gender Roles/Sexuality
What impact does gender have on society? What are acceptable
behaviours for certain genders?
Family structure
What impact does divorce have on children? How does society treat same
sex parents?
Criminal/Deviant behaviour
What is acceptable? How do we punish those who don’t conform? Do we
believe in rehabilitation?
Social institutions- Schools, government, courts
Ethnicity- How does cultural background affect groups/ role in
society?
Complex job- need to be objective and set aside own beliefs on
every issue if you are going to examine it properly.
Sociologists are interested in what things form us into
who we are. These are called “agents”. Some of
these could be:
 Family
 School
 Peers
 Religion
 Media
Sociologists believe in scientific, measurable
results- data
Observe and conduct research into specific
areas to explain why a society functions as it
does. For example, a survey
Macrosociology:
- large social institutions that
individuals belong to (country, religion)
Microsociology:
-interaction of individual members
and their place in society- small groups of
people interacting in a larger society
Both want to explain human behavior .
Psychology usually looks at forces internal to the
individual & how they affect behavior.
Sociology looks at external forces to the individual &
how they affect behavior.