SOCIOLOGY Summary for Chapter 1 Sociology is a subject of enormous scale and scope. The use of the sociological imagination enables us to move beyond the assumption that our own experiences are the whole story about social life. For example, this chapter points to five ways in which coffee drinking can be viewed afresh if we ‘think ourselves away’ from the ‘immediacy of personal circumstances’. C. Wright Mills coined the terms ‘public issues’ and ‘private troubles’ to illustrate the connection between the freely willed actions of the individual and the patterning effects of social structure. The chapter emphasizes the interrelationship between individual behaviour and the patterning effects of social institutions, and introduces the term ‘structuration’ to describe this continuous process of reconstruction. Sociology relies on a canon of key ‘classical’ thinkers and some common themes which link contemporary sociology with its roots in the twin revolutions of the revolutions century. Three basic questions are: (a) what is human nature? (b) why is society structured as it is? and (c) how and why do societies change? Auguste Comte is known for inventing the term ‘sociology’ and wanted the discipline to be scientific, concerned only with ‘observable entities that are known directly to experience’, an idea now associated with the term ‘positivism’. Emile Durkheim went further with his emphasis on social facts and the application of natural science methods to social inquiry. Durkheim saw that increasing complexity of the division of labour threatened social cohesion and produced feelings of deep uncertainty for individuals, which he termed ‘anomie’. Karl Marx’s main focus was on capitalist economies and the separation of society into capital owners and wage labourers – two groups whose interests were inherently in conflict. This analysis was grounded in his broader ‘materialist conception of history’ and the view that class struggle was the main motive force in history. Max Weber’s work can be seen as in debate with Marx, with a greater emphasis on the role of ideas and beliefs in producing social change and less reliance on class conflicts. In Weber’s work, capitalism was just one amongst many forces shaping social change. His primary concept is rationalization: a blend of science, technology and bureaucratic organization, all directed towards the achievement of greater efficiency. More recent developments stemming from the work of Durkheim, Marx and Weber are functionalism, conflict theories and symbolic interactionism, respectively. Functionalism and conflict theories tend towards macrosociological analysis whilst symbolic interactionism favours microsociological studies. Functionalism is traced through Comte and Durkheim and presented in terms of its use of an organic analogy, an emphasis on moral consensus and its dominance during the careers of Talcott Parsons and Robert Merton. Conflict theories take a similarly systemic overview of social life but pay more attention to issues of power and inequality. Symbolic interactionism concentrates attention on the meaningful character of social life and is concerned with the production of meaning in social interactions. The chapter focuses on Mead’s interest in the role of the symbol in language use. It is the sharing of this symbolism that shapes interactions. Sociology offers the following benefits. First,; its comparative approach encourages greater awareness of cultural differences and a better understanding of the specific problems of others. Second,; a sensitivity to the intended and unintended consequences of social action is an aid to better evaluation of policy initiatives and the formation of more effective policy. Third,; it offers self-enlightenment: it is not just policy-makers who have the right and ability to make decisions about people’s lives.