Sociology

THE NATURE OF SOCIOLOGY

Sociology is scientific. In other words, sociology tries to make a scientific study regarding social actions or social events. Sociology is the branch of knowledge, and it has its characteristics. Sociology has different nature in society. 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,” and they are as follows: -

1. Sociology is an independent science: 

It is not treated and studied as a branch of any other sciences like philosophy or political philosophy or history.

2. Sociology is a social science and not a physical science: 

As a social science, it concentrates its attention on man, social behaviour, social activities, and social life.

3. Sociology is a categorical and not a normative discipline: 

Sociology “Confines itself to statements about what is, not what should be or ought to be.” As a social science, sociology is necessarily silent about questions of value, and it is ethically neutral.

4. Sociology is pure science and not an applied science: 

The main aim of pure science is to acquire knowledge, and it is not bothered whether the acquired knowledge is useful or can be put to use.

5. Sociology is a relatively abstract science and not a concrete science: 

Sociology does not confine itself to the study of this society of that particular society or social organization, or marriage, or religion, or group and so on. It is in this simple sense that sociology is an abstract nor a concrete science.

6. Sociology is the generalizing and not a particularizing or individualizing science: 

Sociology tries to find out the general laws or principles about human interaction and association, about nature, from content, and the structure of social groups and societies. It tries to make generalizations based on the study of some selected events.

7. Sociology is a general science and not a unique science: 

The area of inquiry of sociology in general, not specialized; it is concerned with human interaction and human life in general. It only studies human activities in a general way. Anthropology and social psychology often claim themselves to be a broad social science.

8. Sociology is both rational and empirical science: 

There are two broad ways of approaches to scientific knowledge. Empiricism is the approach that emphasis experience and the facts that result from observation and experimentation. Rationalism is stresses reason and the theories that result from logical inference.

The empiricist collects facts; the rationalist coordinates and arranges them. Theories and attributes are required in the construction of knowledge. In the sociological inquiry, both are significant. All modern sciences, therefore, avail themselves of both empirical and rational resources. Sociology is not an exception.

From the above, it is clear that sociology helps us know about its field’s sociological characteristics and, as an independent, social, categorical, pure, abstract, generalizing, rational, and empirical and general science.

SCOPE OF SOCIOLOGY

Scope means an area of study or field of inquiry or the subject matter. Every science has its lot of research or field of investigation, so also sociology. The study of sociology is organized within a specific boundary known as the scope of Sociology. Similarly, every science has its demarcated boundary, without which it is challenging to study a subject systematically.

Hence it is necessary to demarcate the boundary and delimit the scope of a subject. But Sociologists are not unanimous about the scope of Sociology. Some Sociologists opines sociology studies everything and anything under the Sun. Sociologist V. F. Calverton writes, “Since Sociology is so elastic a science, it is difficult to determine just where its boundaries begin and end, where sociology becomes social psychology and where social psychology becomes sociology or where economic theory becomes sociological doctrine or biological theory becomes a sociological theory, something which is impossible to decide.”

But this view makes the scope of sociology too broad. Hence an attempt has been made to restrict the scope of Sociology.

However, there are two leading schools of thought among sociologists about the scope and subject matter of sociology, such as (1) the Formalistic or Specialist School of thought and (2) The Synthetic School of thought.

1. FORMALISTIC SCHOOL OR SPECIALISTIC

German Sociologist George Simmel heads this school of thought. The other prominent supporters of this school of thought are Alfred Vierkandt, Leopold Vonwiese, Max Weber Albion Small, and Ferdinand Tonnies.

According to them, Sociology cannot study social life as a whole. Hence the scope of Sociology is minimal. According to this School of thought, the scope of Sociology consists of forms of social relationships. These Sociologists want to keep the scope of Sociology distinct from other social sciences. This school of thought considers sociology as a pure and independent science. However, the views of the supporters of this school of thought are as follows:

1. George Simmel: 

Simmel agrees with the formalistic view that Sociology is pure and independent science. According to him, Sociology is a specific social science that should describe, classify, analyze, and delineate the forms of social relationships, the process of socialization, and social organization. Sociology should confine itself to studying formal behaviour instead of studying actual conduct.

Simmel distinguishes the forms of social relationships and their contents and opines that sociology should confine itself in explaining different ways of social relationships and study them in abstraction. In contrast, their contents are dealt with by other social sciences. Hence Sociology is the science of the forms of social relationships. Because it comprehends the forms of social relationships and activities, not the relationships themselves. Co-operation, competition, sub-ordination, division of labour, etc. are different social relationships or behaviour forms. Thus, according to Simmel, the scope of Sociology is very limited.

2. Alfred Vierkandt:

Another leading advocate of formalistic school, Vierkandt opines that Sociology is a particular branch of knowledge that deals with the ultimate forms of mental or psychic relationships that link men to one another in society. These mental relationships consist of love, hate, co-operation, etc. shaping particular types of social relationships. He further maintains that Sociology can be a definite science only when it abstains from a historical study of concrete societies. Thus, in Vierkandt’s opinion, sociology’s scope is minimal as it deals with the ultimate forms of mental or psychic relationships.

3. Leopold Vonwiese: 

Another advocate of the formalistic school Vonwiese opines that the scope of Sociology is minimal because it only studies the forms of social relationships and forms of social processes.

He has divided these social relationships and social processes into many types. According to Vonwiese, there are two social processes in a society: associative and dissociative social processes. Co-operation, accommodation, assimilation, etc. are an example of the associative process. At the same time, competition and conflict are an example of the dissociative process. Accordingly, he has identified more than 650 forms of human relationships.

4. Max Weber: 

Another supporter of the formalistic school, Max Weber, agrees with the formalistic view that the scope of Sociology is minimal. Sociology attempts to make an interpretative understanding of social action and social behaviour. It should confine itself in the analysis and classification of social activity and social behaviour. Social behaviour is that which is related to the conduct of others. Sociology studies this behaviour only.

5. Albion Small: 

Another advocate of formalistic school Small opines that sociology's scope is minimal because it does not study all society’s activities. It only confines itself to learning the genetic forms of social relationships, behaviour, and actions.

6. Ferdinand Tonnies: 

Tonnies strongly support the formalistic school of thought and opine that Sociology is pure and independent science. Based on forms of social relationships, Tonnies differentiated between ‘Gemeinschaft’ and ‘Gesellschaft,’ i.e., society and community, and opines that sociology’s main aim is to study the different forms of social relationship that comes under these two categories.

Thus, according to this school of thought, sociology studies a particular aspect of social relationships in their abstract nature and not in any concrete situation.

2. SYNTHETIC SCHOOL

The Synthetic School of thought is another important school of thought of the scope of Sociology. It arises in reaction to the formalistic school of thought. The synthetic school of thought wants to make sociology a synthesis of social sciences. According to this school of thought, the scope of sociology is extensive.

It wants to make sociology a general science and comprehensive or all-inclusive. This school opines that different aspects of social life are interrelated. Hence, we can’t understand society with the study of only one factor; that is why Sociology should attempt to study social life as a whole. As sociology studies social life as a whole; hence it is evident that the scope of sociology is extensive. The foremost advocates of this school of thought are Emile Durkheim, L. T. Hobhouse, P. A. Sorokin, Morris Ginsberg, Karl Mannheim, and Alex Inkles. Opinions of these scholars about the scope of sociology are described below:

1. Emile Durkheim: 

The chief exponent of the synthetic school of thought, Emile Durkheim opines that the scope of sociology has three main divisions or fields of study such as:

1. Social Morphology includes all those fundamentally geographic areas such as population, size, density, distribution, mobility, etc. It analyses the size and quality of the people in as much as it affects the rates of social relationships and social groups.

2. Social physiology includes all subjects studied by particular social sciences such as religion, language, economy, law, etc. Social physiology has different branches such as sociology of law, sociology of religion, etc. which are regarded as special sociologies. These branches deal with a set of social facts related to different social groups.

3. General Sociology is the philosophical part of Sociology. It aims at discovering the general character of social facts and formulating general social laws.

2. L. T. Hobhouse: 

Famous English Sociologist L.T. Hobhouse holds a similar view as Durkheim about the scope of Sociology. According to him, Sociology is a synthesis of social sciences, but the immediate task of a Sociologist is threefold such as

1. One must pursue his studies in his particular part of the social field.

2. Keeping in mind the interconnections of social relations, one should try to interconnect the results arrived at by different social sciences.

3. A sociologist should interpret social life as a whole.

3. P.A. Sorokin: 

Sorokin opines sociology studies various aspects of social relationships hence cannot as a special science. According to him, the scope of Sociology includes –

1. The study of the relationship between the different aspects of social phenomena;

2. The study of the relationship between the social and non-social;

3. The study of general features of social phenomena.

4. Morris Ginsberg: 

Another exponent of synthetic school Ginsberg opines that Sociology studies and classifies all forms of social relationships studies the relationship between individual and society, and the relationship among different aspects of social life such as economic, political, religious, etc. However, Ginsberg divides the scope of Sociology into four main divisions –

1. Social Morphology studies the quality and quantity of population, social group, social structure, and social institutions.

2. Social control studies the mechanisms, i.e., formal and informal, by which society controls its members’ behaviour.

3. The social process studies different types of interactions like cooperation, competition, and conflict.

4. Social Pathology studies social problems of poverty, population, crime, etc.

5. Karl Mannheim: 

Another exponent of the synthetic school of thought Karl Mannheim divides Sociology into two main sections:

1. Systematic and General Sociology: Systematic and General Sociology explain the main factors of living together.

2. Historical Sociology: Historical sociology deals with the historical variety and actuality of society’s general forms. Historical Sociology falls into two main sections:

Comparative Sociology deals mainly with the historical variations of the same phenomenon and tries to find general comparison features as separated from industrial components. Social dynamics deals with the interrelations between the various social factors and institutions in a particular society, for instance, in a primitive society.

6. Alex Inkles: 

Another modern exponent of synthetic school Alex Inkles opines that the scope of sociology includes social analysis, primary concepts of social life, basic social institutions, and social processes.

Thus, the scope of sociology is vast. It is both social science and special science. It synthesizes all special sciences. Society is the subject matter of all social sciences. But there is no conflict between the two schools of thought. One studies the part and the other studies the whole. Both parts and the whole are interrelated. We can’t study the part without examining the complete and vice-versa. Hence the scope of sociology must be comprehensive.

Or

Every subject has its scope and subject matter. Sociologists differ among themselves regarding the scope of sociology. As a result, there is no unanimity of opinion amongst scholars about the scope of sociology. Some sociologists opine that sociology studies everything and anything under the sun. In contrast, others opine that sociology’s scope is minimal as it studies only those not reviewed by other social sciences. V. F. Calverton opines, “since sociology is so elastic a science, it is difficult to determine just where its boundaries begin and end, where sociology becomes social psychology and where social psychology becomes sociology or where economic theory becomes a sociological theory, something which is impossible to decide.” However, an attempt has been made to restrict the exact scope of sociology.

There are two schools of thought with different viewpoints regarding the scope and subject matter of sociology- the formal school and the synthetic school. According to the formal school, sociology was conceived to be a social science with a precisely defined field. This school had George Simmel, Ferdinand Tonnies, Alfred Vierkandt, and Leopold von Wiese as its leading advocates. On the other hand, the synthetic school with Emile Durkheim, L. T Hobhouse, and Pitirim Sorokin advocated a synthesis in coordination among all social sciences.

1. Formal School of Sociology

The formal school of Sociology argued in favour of giving sociology a definite subject matter to make it a distinct discipline. It emphasized the study of forms of social relationships and regarded sociology as an independent discipline.

1. According to Simmel, sociology is a specific social science that describes, classifies, analyses. It delineates the forms of social relationships or, in other words, social interactions should be classified into various forms or types and analyzed.

2. Simmel argued that social interactions have various forms. He carried out studies of such formal relationships as cooperation, competition, sub, and super-ordinate relationships and so forth.

3. Vierkandt maintained that sociology should be concerned with the ultimate forms of mental or psychic relationship which knit the people together in a society.

4. According to Max Weber, sociology aims to interpret or understand social behaviour. But social behaviour does not cover the whole field of human relations. Indeed, not all human interactions are social. Sociology is concerned with the analysis and classification of types of social relationships.

2. Synthetic School of Sociology

The Synthetic school of Sociology wanted sociology to be a synthesis of the social sciences and, thus, wanted to widen its scope. According to Durkheim, sociology has three principal divisions, namely Social morphology, Social Physiology, and General Sociology.

1. Social morphology is concerned with the geographical or territorial basis of people’s lives, such as population, size, density, distribution, etc.

2. Social physiology deals with various social institutions’ genesis and nature, namely religion, morals, law, economic institutions, etc.

3. In general sociology, the main aim is to formulate general social laws.

Hobhouse perceived sociology as a science that has the whole social life of man as its sphere. Its relations with the other social sciences are considered to be one of mutual exchange and mutual stimulation.

Karl Mannheim divides sociology into two main sections, i.e., systematic and Historical Sociology.

1. Systematic sociology describes one of the main factors of living together as far as they may be found in every society.

2. Historical sociology deals with the historical variety and actuality of the general forms of society.

Ginsberg has summed up the chief functions of sociology. It seeks to classify types and forms of social relationships, especially those that have come to be defined as institutions and associations. It tries to determine the relationship between different parts of social life, such as the economic and political, the moral and the legal, the intellectual, and the social elements. It endeavours to disentangle the fundamental conditions of social change and persistence and to discover sociological principles governing social life.

From the above discussion, we may conclude that sociology's subject matter is social life as a whole, and it deals with the more general principles underlying all social phenomena. Thus, the scope of sociology is vast. It is an available science, but it is also a special science.