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emile durkheim theory summary
which sociological perspective is durkheim describeed as laying the foundations for
sociological theory and suicide
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Durkheim's Work in Sociology
"Some studies maybe more recent, but Durkheim's work remains the most
significant Sociological analysis of Suicide in modern societies"
Assess the extent to which Sociological arguments and evidence support
this claim.
In regards to Suicide it would seem perhaps more realistic to consider
the subject as an individual and personal act, a job which might seem
more suitable for Psychologists to explain, it may not seem an obvious
subject for a Sociologist to study. In the past it has been more
commonly thought that Suicide was a result of a person's mental state,
however suicide was given an all new perspective once Durkheim in 1897
used Positivist methods to study the subject. Durkheim chose this
subject in attempts to illustrate the potential of society to help
understand complex social processes. Since this time other
Socioligists have followed in Durkheim's footsteps in the study of
suicide but it is questionable whether or not other Socioligists have
made quite an impact as he did.
In Durkheim's work 'Suicide: A study in Sociology' he used statistics
from varying European countries to compare the suicide rate, Durkheim
referred to these statistics as 'Social Facts'. He found consistency
in the suicide rate in particular societies in particular times, thus
making him sure that the statistics could be used as strong evidence
in which to find trends and patterns. Durkheim himself said "The
suicide rate is therefore a factual order, unified and definite, as is
shown by both its permanence and it's variability". The trends that
Durkheim found in these statitics and social facts were such as that
...
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... types of
suicide, it is not so easy to pigeon hole somebody like that
especially in regards to such a serious topic. A suicide may fall into
more than one of these categories, For example, Bobby Sands (IRA
hunger striker) falls into all 4 categories. Where does the point of
balance fall? Although argued that Durkheim's study is dated,
Sainsbury used some of Durkheim's methods and theories in his own
study. By using a combination of both qualitative and quantitative
methods Sainsbury identified several Social Factors and emphasized the
effect of Social Integration. Therefore, although dated by todays
standards Durkheim's ideas still hold relevance and significance in
todays society, but still, in order to use Durkheim's ideas
effectively then the problems in his theories must be solved as
Sainsbury attempted to do.
Durkheim’s concept of social integration refers to social groups with well-defined values, traditions, norms, and goals. These groups will differ in the degree to which individuals are part of the collective body, also to the extent to which the group is emphasized over the individual, and lastly the level to which the group is unified versus fragmented. Durkheim believed that two types of suicide, Egoistic and Altruistic, could stem from social integration. Egoistic suicide resulted from too little social integration. Those people who were not sufficiently bound to a social group would be left with little or no social support in times of crisis. This caused them to commit suicide more often. An example Durkheim discovered was that of unmarried people, especially males, who, with less to connect them to stable social groups, committed suicide at higher rates than married people. Altruistic suicide is a result of too much integration. It occurs at the opposite end of the social integration scale as egoistic suicide. Self sacrifice appears to be the driving force, where people are so involved with a social group that they lose sight of themselves and become more willing to take one for the team, even if this causes them to die. The most common cases of altruistic suicide occur to soldiers during times of war. Religious cults have also been a major source of altruistic suicide.
According to Durkheim, two types of suicide arise from the different levels social integration. One cause of suicide is extremely low social integration, which is referred to as egoistic suicide. Durkheim argues that this is the case because others give the individual’s life meaning, so without this support from the group the person may feel hopeless (Conley 188). The other type of suicide, altruistic suicide, reflects the opposite situation: when an individual is too socially integrated (Conley 189). This type of suicide occurs when members of a group or community become so totally engrossed by the group tha...
SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY Take Home Exam One Questions 5 and 6 By Shylynn E. Calbert MW 5:45-7pm DR. FORD 5. Discuss abortion using applications of Durkheim?s conception of social facts. How would Durkheim research the issue and explain it in sociological terms?
According to Durkheim, studying individual reasons for an action is psychology’s concern, not sociology (Durkheim, Suicide, 35). Weber would argue that the individuals are what make up a society, and thus, they should be the ones to be studied since their meaningful social actions are the ones that impact the society as a whole. Weber states, “Action in the sense of subjectively understandable orientation of behavior exists only as the behavior of one or more individual human beings” (Weber, Basic Sociological Terms, 3). In the case of suicide, Weber would argue that we must take the generalities within Durkheim’s theory into consideration, but then go beyond that. It would be more thorough to analyze the individual cases within different societies to derive a clear understanding of the motives people have behind the act of suicide. Weber would also utilize his concept of verstehen, to gain an explanatory understanding of the subjective
“The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings. The inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries.” (Winston Churchill??). Despite the differences between the two types of societies, they both concern the sharing of wealth and the circumstances under which it is acquired. They also deal with class conflict and ways in which it could be resolved. Theorist’s Durkheim and Marx approach this matter differently. Durkheim, employed a functionalist approach on class conflict believing that it was generated by anomie and modern society could only function if every part of the society worked cohesively. Contrarily, Marx uses a materialist approach to understand class conflict by arguing that humans were heavily
The following essay will critically appraise two aspects of the method sections of two published research articles, the first article is quantitative is titled, Suicides not in contact with mental health services: Risk indicators and determinants of referrals. The second article which is qualitative is titled, Suicide in northern Sweden: an interview study of investigating police officers. The two aspects that will be critically appraised will be sampling and the ethics aspects of the articles. The two articles were selected due to the rate of suicide in Kent been 10.3/100.000 and Sweden having one of the highest rates of suicide for much of the 20thcentury a rate of 17.5/100.000 people. With individuals aged 15-35 year of age likely to take their own lives (WHO, 2011) and 50% of suicides not been in contact with mental health services, it’s interesting to find out if these people where accidentally over looked by the mental health services or if they had no mental health issues was there was not enough information available for them to seek help.
... the evidence changed in his later works). He has been widely criticised for his use of official statistics, which are open to interpretation and subject to possibly systematic misreporting, and therefore may not represent the true pattern or rates of suicide. It is also argued that he was confused between the distinction between egoism and anomie, and that he failed to substantiate his claims of the existence of altruism and fatalism; this is argued to such an extent that it has even been suggested that there is only one cause of suicide (egoism) that Durkheim could claim to be true. However, whilst acknowledging some of Durkheim’s own contradictions or confusions, some sociologists have gone on to develop and substantiate the ideas that he developed, and there is no denying that his study of suicide is a far-reaching and legacy-building work of substantial value.
In a study released by Brown University, their psychology department shed some light on common myths and facts surrounded suicide. These m...
Karl Marx (1818-1883) and Émile Durkheim (1858-1917) were sociologists who both existed throughout similar time periods of the 19th and early 20th centuries, resulting in both Marx, and Durkheim to be concerned about similar effects and impacts among society (Appelrouth and Edles: 20, 77). Marx’s main focus was on class distinctions among the bourgeoisie and proletariat, forces and relations of production, capital, surplus value, alienation, labour theory of value, exploitation and class consciousness (Appelrouth and Edles: 20). Whereas Durkheim’s main focus was on social facts, social solidarity – mechanical solidarity and organic solidarity, anomie, collective conscience, ritual, symbol, and collective representations (Appelrouth and Edles: 77). For the purpose of this essay, we will be focusing on the concerns that arised among Karl Marx and Émile Durkheim towards the benefits and dangers of modern capitalism. Marx and Durkheim’s concepts are comparable in the sense that Marx focuses on alienation and classes, which is similar to Durkheim’s concepts of anomie and the division of labour. The beginning of the Industrial Revolution and technological advances can be seen as a key factor that gave emergence to modern capitalism, as the economic system was based on private ownership, mass production, and increased profits, resulting in people to be separated based on class and the division of labour, later giving rise to alienation and anomie. In this essay, I will explore Karl Marx’s and Émile Durkheim’s evaluation of the benefits and dangers that came about with the rise of modern capitalism. Through these two theorists and sociologists, we can analyze, discuss, compare, critique, and come to understand how modern cap...
In 1897, Emile Durkheim (1997) showed that the suicide – perhaps the most personal of all decisions – could be analysed through the conceptual lenses of sociology.
A Study of Suicide: An overview of the famous work by Emile Durkheim, Ashley Crossman, 2009, http://sociology.about.com/od/Works/a/Suicide.htm, 25/12/2013
Social inequality is characterized by the existence of unequal opportunity for various social positions or statuses within a given group or society. It is a phenomenon that has a long history as social inequalities has a wide range of varieties. From economic, gender, racial, status, and prestige, social inequality is a topic often disputed by classical theorists. Sociologists Karl Marx, Max Weber, W.I. Thomas, and Frederic M. Thrasher have formed varying thoughts on this recurring phenomenon. Marx believed that social inequality synthesized through conflicts within classes and in modern society those two classes were the bourgeoisie and the proletariat. In contrast, Weber disputes Marx’s simplistic view of the conflict and theorizes that social
Comparing Weber's and Durkheim's Methodological Contributions to Sociology This essay will be examining the methodological contributions both Durkheim and Weber have provided to sociology. It will briefly observe what Positivists are and how their methodologies influence and affect their research. It will also consider what interpretative sociology is, and why their type of methodology is used when carrying out research. It will analyse both Durkheim's study of Suicide and also Webers study of The Protestant work ethic, and hopefully establish how each methodology was used for each particular piece of research, and why. Emile Durkhiem, in sociology terminology is considered to be a Functionalist, in addition to also being a Positivist, however, strictly speaking, Durkheim was not a Positivist.
He then goes on to show his findings on the effect that religion had on insanity suicides. The table shows that insanity among those who are insane are more likely to be found in Jews than in Protestants and Catholics. Also that it more likely for someone of mature age rather than adolescent to commit suicide. Most of the case studies were from European countries. Among Durkheim theories he also used other researcher’s data like Henery Morselli. Durkheim and Morselli data had different conclusions because Morselli combined the insane and idiots under alienated. Unlike Durkheim finding Morselli mentions that suicides are more likely to be found in the country than in the
This essay will explore Marx’s theory of alienation and Durkheim’s theory of anomie. I will compare and contrast both theories and discuss which theory is more applicable to the discontent of the modern world.