The Impact of Sociology of the Social Divisions Examine critically some of the ways in which the sociology of the
social divisions have impacted on your own personal and family
history, and assess the implications for your professional practice as
a social worker.
There are many social divisions that we encounter during our life
course, some may have a direct influence in shaping who we are, what
we think and what attitudes we hold. Social divisions can affect how
we interact with each other and how we see ourselves as individual
members of society. In this assignment I will examine some of the
social divisions that have had a direct influence on my own personal
and family history and assess the implications this may have on my
professional practice as a social worker.
Social divisions refer to the social differences that are constructed
between different groups or members of society society. These can
range in the influence they may have on an individual from a person
being disabled or able bodied, smoker or non-smoker and male or
female. This means that it is impossible for people not to come into
contact with social divisions at some stage during the life course and
also means that people may experience social divisions within social
divisions for example a disabled smoker in a workforce dominated by
able-bodied non-smokers.
The first social division I became aware was that of gender. I am one
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...nd metalwork and in the school
playground the girls were not allowed on the football side. I found
this very hard to accept as I enjoyed playing football but disliked
domestic tasks and could not understand why I was not allowed to do
the same things the boys did. When I complained about this to my
mother I was always told that women just had to accept their lot in
life and not complain. My grandmother was more severe in her attitude
and often stated that the war had taught women to disrespect their
husbands role as the provider. The older females in my family
appeared to support the idea that women should be the carer and the
men the breadwinner. In contemporary society, although women are now
involved in the labour market, the employment tends to mirror their
domestic role in jobs such as nursing, teaching etc.
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The definition of Sociology can be defined in numerous ways there is not right or wrong answer with it, I have chosen the simplest explanation I can find which is “Sociology is the study of human social life, groups and societies. It is a dazzling and compelling enterprise, having as it’s a subject matter our own behaviour as social beings. The scope of sociology is extremely wide, ranging from analysis of passing encounters between individuals in the street up to investigation of world-wide social processes” (Giddens “ Sociology”, 1...
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There are three main theories of sociology; functionalism, conflict theory and symbolic interactionism. This paper will focus on two of those theories, functionalism and conflict theory. The objective is to delineate the assumptions of two out of the three theoretical perspectives and apply these assumptions to an analysis of social stratification. How this will be accomplished will be by comparing and contrasting their assumptions and by analyzing the two theories affect on social stratification. Then I will state my opinion on which of the two better fits my personal sociological views. Functionalism is many people's way to view the world sociologically. It states clearly that the objectivity of the researcher is necessary and can be accomplished. There are three main points, which make up a functionalist theory on sociological expression. The first point is that culture is made up of interacting, interdependent parts. Each of these parts has a function in maintaining the society as a system on the whole. The second point states that shared values and expectations(or beliefs) among the members of the society help hold the society together. The third point states that these systems have a need for stability and a need to try to keep all the parts working together congruously in a sort of system. Social change in this system is uncommon, and when it does happen, it is a very gradual change. Conflict theory is centered on the tension, or struggle that goes on in everyday life. There are many different parts, which make up the conflict theorist's view on the sociological perspective. The first main part is that society promotes general differences in wealth, power, and prestige. Wealth...
Before commencing a discussion on analyzing the article “What makes sociology a different discipline” from the other sciences we should have the know-how about sociology. In the words of modern thinkers of sociology namely Karl Marx, Max Weber and Emile Durkheim “Social fact should be the subject matter for the study of social life and can provide explanations for human thinking and behavior (p19)”. What we infer from the above definition is that man is born as a social animal. Man cannot live alone. He prefers to live in groups and his behavior that is actions and deeds are well governed and regulated by certain rules and laws of conduct that comprises of moral ethics and civic standards. His standard of living is said to be within the norms and standards of the society, if he strictly adheres to the laws and regulations prescribed by the government and the society where he dwells in.
One aspect of sociology is social structure. Social structures are everywhere and basically make up how our society functions. The decisions made by individuals on a daily basis are limited and influenced by their position in the social structure. There are many positives and negatives to observe when discussing social structure. On a positive note social life is not possible without structure. These structures give individuals order and rhythm to everyday life. Without them one would probably be lost, so it is useful in the sense that it is a guide. However there are negative aspects as well. When social hierarchi...
Theories in sociology sometime provide us with the different perspectives with which to view our social...
Before I started taking the course of sociology I wasn’t really expecting to learn anything, it was just supposed to be an easy online class. However, that was not the case. It challenged my mind. I started to see sociology all around me, starting with family, then friends, and how I see things overall in general. The fact that we have an everyday life in which there are patterns in ways of living is what sets a platform for a sociological breakdown and for being a part in what we do. A better way of understanding ourselves. We use sociology in many ways every day. One central and important study of sociology is the study of everyday social life. Everyday life and sociology are definitely two different words and situations, but they tend to hold a close relationship. While sociology is the study of the human interaction, everyday life consists of everyday human interaction. Everyday life is filled by human beings interacting with one another, ideas, and emotions. Sociology studies the interactions with all of these and shows how mere interaction resulted in things such as ideas. For an example, race and ethnicity are important concepts in the field of sociology and are ones that are studied a great deal. Race plays a large role in everyday human interactions and sociologists want to study how, why, and what the outcomes are of these interactions. Current sociological theories focus mainly on how there are many different factors in our everyday items of life, like movies. We were assigned a final to write a review for a movie in sociological form. The movie that was on the list that also happened to be one of my favorite movies, Toy Story. When we were assigned the assignment, I never thought about how in-depth it was with sociol...
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To Quote Anthony Giddens: "Sociology is the study of human social life, groups and societies. It is a dazzling and compelling enterprise, having as its subject matter our own behaviour as social beings. The scope of sociology is extremely wide, ranging from the analysis of passing encounters between individuals in the street up to the investigation of world-wide social processes“(1989). Gidden’s statement describes sociology as a study that helps us understand our own behaviour as human beings in a social word. Sociologist study everything from the interaction between people in the street to the interaction between different countries. Sociologists aim to study how societies have changed over, how societies are structured and organized, the norms of society. It’s also important to understand that not all sociologists agree with each other, Sociologists often debate with one another to prove/disprove certain theories and concepts. By studying Sociology is it helps us analyze social conflicts on a micro and macro scope. Through a macro level, we can study large-scale social organization and large social categories it also examinees social processes and patterns society as a whole. We can analyze individuals much deeper on a micro level. This way we study a human by face-to face interactions. Its important as humans to understand the way our society came together and the reasons to how elements work and function together. Sociology gives us a deeper
The early developments of sociology date back to the late eighteen hundreds and early nineteen hundreds. Sociology’s development was driven by a shift in three main factors; social, economics and politics. All the major philosophers in the early years of sociology thought about the great transformation from “simple, preliterate societies to massive, complex, industrial societies” (Asanet.org, 2014). This paper will discuss and evaluate how the Industrial revolution, French revolution and the dissolution of feudal social order to influenced the creation of sociology as an academic discipline.