C273 Introduction to Sociology STUDY GUIDE
COMPLETE SOLUTION 2025 Western Governors
University
,UNIT 1
Module 1
Sociological Imagination: C. Wright Mills. A way of understanding the world that
involves thinking about things from different perspectives & putting personal
circumstances into a wider context
Sociology: the study of social behavior using empirical investigation & analysis to
draw conclusions about social order, disorder, & change
Social Facts: types of behavior & thinking external to the individual
Key Figures in the Development of Sociology
• Comte: the founder of sociology & positivism who wanted to develop a systematic
study of society
• Martineu: the person who brought sociology to England & furthered it by focusing
on issues in the domestic sphere
• Marx: a central figure in sociology who pioneered the conflict approach to
sociology which understands social groups as competing with one another
• Spencer: a hands-off theorist who applied Darwin's theory of social evolution to
society
• Durkeheim: a key figure who advocated studying social facts the way
scientists study physical facts
• Addams: an activist who promoted sympathetic knowledge, knowledge that
comes from identifying with others
• Weber: a key figure who studied modernization in society, the movement from
traditional to capitalist societies
• DuBois: 'double-consciousness,' for du Bois, focuses on a feeling of 'twoness'
where the experience of one's identity is fragmented into several contradictory
facets; in this case, it is the identities of African Americans being Black & being
American.
Module 2
Functionalist: perspective will look at how the division of resources helps a society
maintain itself
Conflict Perspective: focuses on how groups compete for social prestige & resources
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective: focuses attention on the way meaning is
communicated in society through symbols, gestures, writing, & language
***The combination of these 3 creates a rich understanding of society***
Theory: refers to a set of logically interrelated statements that attempts to describe,
explain, & sometimes predict social events
• Functionalism: focuses on the functions & dysfunctions of social structures;
functions & dysfunctions can be both manifest & latent
, • Manifest functions: stated intentions or purposes of an institution
• Latent functions: results of an institution that were not intended
• Conflict perspective: the idea, based on the work of Karl Marx, that groups
compete in society
• Symbolic interactionist perspective: a focus on how the everyday interactions
among people create meaning
• Feminist perspective: a perspective that considers the role gender plays in
social power dynamics
Term Definition
conflict
Philosopher Karl Marx was a proponent of the
perspecti
.
ve
conflict The believes that social
perspecti classes and social inequality will inevitably
ve lead to struggles for power.
functional ist
The studies two different
perspecti sorts of outcomes: one is intended by the
ve institution or social group; the other is
unintended or unrecognized.
functional ist
The negative impact that dysfunction has on the
perspecti
balance of a society is related to the
ve
.
symbolic
Including a facial expression or object
interactio
nist emoticon in a text message or email
perspecti exemplifies the .
ve
symbolic
The
interactio places emphasis on
nist symbols and how they influence social
perspecti interactions and, in turn, society.
ve
, Applied Sociology: is the use of the discipline with the intent of yielding practical
applications to solve the problems we face
Clinical Sociology: which is dedicated to changing social relationships through means
such as therapy or restructuring a social institution to better serve the needs of the
people using it
Key Concepts:
• Applied sociology is the use of the discipline with the intent of yielding
practical applications to solve problems
• Clinical sociology is the subfield of applied sociology which is dedicated to
changing social relationships through therapy or restructuring social
institutions
• Sociology can be applied to real-life situations in the areas of education,
health care, social services & community programs
Module 3
Types of Research used in Sociology:
Descriptive Research: describes social phenomena, such as the characteristics of a
nation, the values of affluent rural households, or the behavior of shoplifters
Explanatory Research: explains how or why some social phenomena occur- why
women earn less than men or how people self-segregate in neighborhoods
• Research provides evidence for sociological theories
• Descriptive research describes more fully a social phenomenon
• Explanatory research seeks to explain a social phenomenon
Quantitative & Qualitative Research
Quantitative Research: research contains factors that are measured in numbers
Qualitative Research: offers characterizations & descriptions of the studied
phenomena Research Process
• Define the question
• Do background research by reviewing what has been written about the topic
• Create a hypothesis with variables and operational definitions
• Have a method for gathering data: experiments, field research,
surveys, content analysis, or analyzing existing data
• Recognize that sometimes sociologists are both participants & observers as
they gather data, which can create problems
• Analyze data with independent & dependent variables
• Identify methodological questions & issues that might compromise the
work, such as missing data, bias, or a small sample size
Hypothesis: a tentative answer to the question that is being asked
Variables: factors that can vary or change given different conditions
COMPLETE SOLUTION 2025 Western Governors
University
,UNIT 1
Module 1
Sociological Imagination: C. Wright Mills. A way of understanding the world that
involves thinking about things from different perspectives & putting personal
circumstances into a wider context
Sociology: the study of social behavior using empirical investigation & analysis to
draw conclusions about social order, disorder, & change
Social Facts: types of behavior & thinking external to the individual
Key Figures in the Development of Sociology
• Comte: the founder of sociology & positivism who wanted to develop a systematic
study of society
• Martineu: the person who brought sociology to England & furthered it by focusing
on issues in the domestic sphere
• Marx: a central figure in sociology who pioneered the conflict approach to
sociology which understands social groups as competing with one another
• Spencer: a hands-off theorist who applied Darwin's theory of social evolution to
society
• Durkeheim: a key figure who advocated studying social facts the way
scientists study physical facts
• Addams: an activist who promoted sympathetic knowledge, knowledge that
comes from identifying with others
• Weber: a key figure who studied modernization in society, the movement from
traditional to capitalist societies
• DuBois: 'double-consciousness,' for du Bois, focuses on a feeling of 'twoness'
where the experience of one's identity is fragmented into several contradictory
facets; in this case, it is the identities of African Americans being Black & being
American.
Module 2
Functionalist: perspective will look at how the division of resources helps a society
maintain itself
Conflict Perspective: focuses on how groups compete for social prestige & resources
Symbolic Interactionist Perspective: focuses attention on the way meaning is
communicated in society through symbols, gestures, writing, & language
***The combination of these 3 creates a rich understanding of society***
Theory: refers to a set of logically interrelated statements that attempts to describe,
explain, & sometimes predict social events
• Functionalism: focuses on the functions & dysfunctions of social structures;
functions & dysfunctions can be both manifest & latent
, • Manifest functions: stated intentions or purposes of an institution
• Latent functions: results of an institution that were not intended
• Conflict perspective: the idea, based on the work of Karl Marx, that groups
compete in society
• Symbolic interactionist perspective: a focus on how the everyday interactions
among people create meaning
• Feminist perspective: a perspective that considers the role gender plays in
social power dynamics
Term Definition
conflict
Philosopher Karl Marx was a proponent of the
perspecti
.
ve
conflict The believes that social
perspecti classes and social inequality will inevitably
ve lead to struggles for power.
functional ist
The studies two different
perspecti sorts of outcomes: one is intended by the
ve institution or social group; the other is
unintended or unrecognized.
functional ist
The negative impact that dysfunction has on the
perspecti
balance of a society is related to the
ve
.
symbolic
Including a facial expression or object
interactio
nist emoticon in a text message or email
perspecti exemplifies the .
ve
symbolic
The
interactio places emphasis on
nist symbols and how they influence social
perspecti interactions and, in turn, society.
ve
, Applied Sociology: is the use of the discipline with the intent of yielding practical
applications to solve the problems we face
Clinical Sociology: which is dedicated to changing social relationships through means
such as therapy or restructuring a social institution to better serve the needs of the
people using it
Key Concepts:
• Applied sociology is the use of the discipline with the intent of yielding
practical applications to solve problems
• Clinical sociology is the subfield of applied sociology which is dedicated to
changing social relationships through therapy or restructuring social
institutions
• Sociology can be applied to real-life situations in the areas of education,
health care, social services & community programs
Module 3
Types of Research used in Sociology:
Descriptive Research: describes social phenomena, such as the characteristics of a
nation, the values of affluent rural households, or the behavior of shoplifters
Explanatory Research: explains how or why some social phenomena occur- why
women earn less than men or how people self-segregate in neighborhoods
• Research provides evidence for sociological theories
• Descriptive research describes more fully a social phenomenon
• Explanatory research seeks to explain a social phenomenon
Quantitative & Qualitative Research
Quantitative Research: research contains factors that are measured in numbers
Qualitative Research: offers characterizations & descriptions of the studied
phenomena Research Process
• Define the question
• Do background research by reviewing what has been written about the topic
• Create a hypothesis with variables and operational definitions
• Have a method for gathering data: experiments, field research,
surveys, content analysis, or analyzing existing data
• Recognize that sometimes sociologists are both participants & observers as
they gather data, which can create problems
• Analyze data with independent & dependent variables
• Identify methodological questions & issues that might compromise the
work, such as missing data, bias, or a small sample size
Hypothesis: a tentative answer to the question that is being asked
Variables: factors that can vary or change given different conditions
