CBSE Class 11 Sociology Sociology and Society Notes

Sociology was born in 19^th century Western Europe. Auguste Comte, the French scholar (1789–1857) considered to be the founder of sociology. Sociology is the systematic study of society. Auguste Comte (Founder of Sociology) believed that Sociology would contribute to the welfare of the humanity.

I. C. Wright Mills: The Sociological Imagination
The concept of Sociological Imagination was coined by American Sociologist C. Wright Mills. Here he talks about how the personal problem and public issues are related. It also enables us to understand the relations between history and biography within society. The life of an individual and the history of a society can be understood with the understanding both.

II. Sociology and Common Sense Knowledge
The common sense explanations are generally based on naturalistic and individualistic explanation. Common sense is unreflective since it does not question its own origins. Sociology thus breaks away from both common sense observations and ideas as well as from philosophical thought. Sociology has a body of concepts, methods and data. This cannot be substituted by common sense. The systematic and questioning approach of sociology is derived from a broader tradition of scientific investigation. Sociology was greatly influenced by the great developments in modern science.

III. THE SCOPE OF SOCIOLOGY
The scope of sociological study is extremely wide.
1. It focuses its analysis of interactions between individuals.
Eg. Interaction between shopkeeper with a customer, between teachers and students, between two friends or family members.
2. It focuses on national issues.
Eg., Unemployment, Caste conflict, the effect of state policies on forest rights of the tribal population, rural indebtedness.
3. It examines global social processes.
Eg., the impact of new flexible labour regulations on the working class; or that of the electronic media on the young; or the entry of foreign universities on the education system of the country.
– What defines the discipline of sociology is therefore not just what it studies but how it studies a chosen field.

IV. Sociology’s Relationship to other Social Science Disciplines
The divisions among the various social sciences are not clear-cut, and all share a certain range of common interests, concepts and methods. To differentiate the social sciences would be to exaggerate the differences and gloss over the similarities. Furthermore feminist theories have also shown the greater need of interdisciplinary approach.

(1). Sociology and Psychology
Psychology is the science of behavior. It involves itself primarily with the individual. Example: learning, intelligence, motivations, memory, nervous system, reaction time, hopes and fears. Social psychology, which serves as a bridge between psychology and sociology. Social psychology maintains a primary interest in the individual but concerns itself with the way in which the individual behaves in social groups, collectively with other individuals.

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(2). Sociology and Social Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of all aspects of life in simple Societies. Branches- Archaeology, Physical Anthropology, Social Anthropology, Cultural Anthropology. There have been fruitful interchanges between Sociology and Anthropology and today often methods and techniques are drawn from both. There have been anthropological studies of the state and globalisation, which are very different from the traditional subject matter of social anthropology. Sociology too has been using quantitative and qualitative techniques, macro and micro approaches for studying the complexities of modern societies. In India, sociology and social anthropology have had a very close relationship.

Differences