The History of Sociology and Sociological Theory

Lecture Notes: Introduction to Sociology and Key
Theorists
Overview of Sociology
• Sociology studies social facts, actions, and relationships.
• Focus is on how individual actions are influenced by larger societal forces.
• Aims to provide a deeper understanding of the world and avoid biases.

Key Theorists and Their Contributions
Émile Durkheim

• Focus: Social Facts
• Study things outside the individual that influence them, such as social
facts.
• Example: Suicide rates as a sociological fact showing social patterns.
• Importance of studying macro-level social indicators like crime rates.

Max Weber

• Focus: Social Actions
• Study specific social actions to understand motivations and contexts.
• Emphasizes understanding social relationships and values.
• Importance of micro-level analysis.

Albion Small

• Focus: Social Relationships
• Study how people connect and co-construct social reality.
• Focus at a meso-level between macro and micro.

C. Wright Mills

• Sociological Imagination:
• Connects personal troubles to societal issues.
• Helps recognize traps set by societal structures.
• Encourages understanding the intersection of biography and history.