Research in Sociology

Exploring the facts is called research. The method which is used for exploring the facts is called the Scientific Method.

Science is an organization of facts which is the result of hard work for long period of research. Man has been trying to search out the secrets of this universe. The concept of curiosity is natural in man. He thinks on the events and their causes happening around him. He has been thinking to control the causes of the events. By this way, he has been trying to control the events. It was all due to the store of knowledge available to him. By the application of the scientific method and theoretical knowledge, he was able to find out causes of the phenomena and then control the events. He was able to predict for the future events.

The only method of exploring facts is the method of scientific observation. Thus he collected information and found relationship among them. He came to a conclusion as why such a phenomemon occurs and in what conditions? The experiements made man, in this way, provided him theoretical knowledge which became theories and laws of science.

We see that the slum areas and the dirty houses are the origion of tuberclosis along with insufficient and impure food available to them. Worries and tensions added being the major factors of the phenomenon (T.B.). These factors are responsible for occurrence of this phenomenon (T.B.). It was all due to the exploration of facts.

The facts which we collect after research are inter-related togeth at a certain point. The Inductive method of logic provides us these facts after research. Relationship among them provides knowledge to the scientist which becomes a part of Science.

It means that organization among facts is called theory and hence, theory is a scientific knowledge.

The man is researcher who tries to discover facts after research. Research is done in a laboratory. In Sociology, social group is our laboratory in which we study the phenomenon. For example we study illiteracy in a village. Then village is our laboratory and Illiteracy is our phenomenon. The man who conducts research is a researcher. The method applied during research is called the Scientific Method. It includes deductive and inductive methods of logic. The researcher is a person who is neutral in his study and free from his personal values. He is expert in applying the Scientific Method. He is unbiased in the study of the problem.

Western Thinker:Max Weber

MAX WEBER

Max Weber was a theorist of early 20th century. He was a German thinker. During his time Pareto was a thinker in Italy and Thomas was a great philosopher in America. They were the three thinkers of the same time.

In Germany, the thoughts of Karl Marx were getting popularity about Socialism. His thoughts were being appreciated by the laboring class of the industrial areas of Europe that is why he was holding great position in Great Britain. Kant was another philosopher who was growing popular in Germany. Besides the theories of these two philosophers, Max Weber put his own ideas in the form of theories being important today. He joined the material and spiritual ideas together. He became popular not only in Germany but in the whole of Western Europe.

Social Explanation of Religion by Durkheim

EMILE DURKHEIM
Social Explanation of Religion

According to Durkheim, religion creates group life. It is origin of human society. Religious thoughts and actions construct social group. Religious thoughts and actions construct social group. Sacred and profane things have been differentiated by the religion which affect the total social life of man.

Durkheim has said that man has placed sacred things separate from other things. Religious belief and ceremonies are such things which have fixed with distinction by the society. Man has maintained a difference between sacred and profane objects. When a person participates in sacred ceremonies his position in society is elevated. Durkheim has defined religion in the manner, "It is a unified system of belief and practices relating to sacred things."

The sacred belief and actions unite the people in a chain of morality. We can give example of Kaabah, Church, Temple, Bible, Holy Quran as sacred things of different religions.

According to Durkheim, the origin of collective life is religion. Sanctity is a physical body in the bed of society. He says that major function of religion is to create social solidarity and enhance its forces. Religion will remain till the society exists.

According to the theory of Durkheim, the collective force and the group solidarity in society is only due to religion. Had there been no religion there would have not been a society. Individuals would have been separated from one another. There would have been no social life, no culture and no social norms. The organization in the actions and the belief of the people is the name of religion. While these beliefs and actions are related to sacred things.

It is religion which presents the concept of pure and impure. A difference between good and bad, true and false, and right and wrong, is due to religion.

This explanation of religion by Durkheim reveals that our beliefs and actions are related together in a system. If we have a belief about one thing and do not act accordingly it will disappear with the passage of time. On the other hand, If we act and do not hold belief on the action, the action will disappear after sometime. It is because both the belief and actions exist in unified system.

Theory of Suicide

EMILE DURKHEIM
Theory of Suicide

c) Altruistic Suicide

This is the type of suicide in which group solidarity is at the highest in society. The people do not think beyond group. The individual's life and ideas do not hold importance. Those societies which hold such traditions get into such type of suicide. For example there was a ritual of Sati in the Hindu Society where a wife used to get herself burnt alive with the dead body of her husband. Similarly the old people in the northern cold regions of Tundra kill themselves for want of food and shelter. In modern society the people are forced to face war. The soldiers die while fighting against enemy. Phenomena of suicide attack by the terrorist is also an act of altruistic suicide. This type of death he said is Altruistic Suicide. Death is welcomed for the sake of social solidarity and defense of the country. Old and traditional societies have such cases.

In Muslim Society, the soldiers who die while fighting for the defense of their country and people are called martyr. They are prepared to sacrifice their lives for the nation and for the land of their country according to the will of Allah. This spirit of fighting, killing and being killed is not called suicide but is called Martyrdom in Islam.

Theory of Suicide

EMILE DURKHEIM
THEORY OF SUICIDE

b) Anomic Suicide

This type of suicide occurs when the norms and the manners in the people are suddenly broken. There are sudden changes which are unexpected. The individual cannot adjust himself in the new condition which leads to normative gap. For him the social laws become weak which fail to control his behavior. The unexpected failure of laws makes the individual unable to think for the future. He fails to control his actions. In this situationhe commits suicide which is called Anomic Suicide. The anomic suicide happens in such condition when the response for the norms has vanished. The laws of the government are not respected by the people and a state of lawlessness prevails. The people are worried for the future to say what will happen tomorrow? The social norms are shattered. The life of the people ends in despair. The business slows down and the interest of the people becomes limited. The marriages are postponed. The projects of the future are rejected or postponed. People do no take interest in work. The weak hearted people get heart attach and some loose balance of their mind. These are the conditions which lead to suicide called Anomic by Durkheim. At this stage, conditions of social disorganization prevail in society.

Emile Durkheim:Theory of Suicide

EMILE DURKHEIM
Theory of Suicide

The theory of suicide is very famous in which he describes its three types. This theory circulates round social solidarity. Durkheim explained suicide as "Any deliberate act which causes death and actor knows the consequence of his act before committing is called suicide."

a) Egoistic Suicide

When the group solidarity grows weak in society this type of suicide occurs. The bonds of society get loose. This type of suicide grows in this condition. Such events happen in unmarried persons and protestant followers of the church. These conditions happen when the individual stops taking interest in his family affairs.  He does not care for the primary and secondary group. The other people of the society also do not take interest in his matters. The individual feels himself isolated from society. He feels that life for him is charmless and useless for him. In this condition he commits suicide which is called Egoistic Suicide. Such condition develops in the society where social solidarity is shattered and the bonds of social norms fail in laying pressure on its members.

In this suicide the individual leaves his social group in which he was trained and socialized. He leaves the group norms and does not participate in group behaviors. The marriage, death or birth in his relations or neighbors have no effect upon him. Moreover he does not participate in functions of this nature. Neither he helps others nor wants from anyone. He remains alone in society and mostly lives separately from other members of his family. Such events happen in our society which can be explained on the study of their condition and the environment.

This type of suicide is found more in organic society(urban) than in mechanical society.

Emile Durkheim:Theory of Social Solidarity

EMILE DURKHEIM

Theory of Social Solidarity

On the basis of division of labor social events occur in society. Durkheim said that a traditional society is Mechanical and an advanced or modern society is Organic in nature. Traditional society has Mechanical solidarity where there is similarity and sharing of common values, cultures and homogeneity in their social life. There is Organic Solidarity in the society, where there is social differentiation in its principles. Mechanical is the solidarity where similar traits are found in society. The society having mechanical solidarity can have traits like those of rural society. Similarity in social life is mostly found in such society, where professions of most of the people are similar. The standard of living is similar and people follow similar traditional customs and rituals. The people in mechanical society have similar attitudes, beliefs and thoughts. On the basis of this similarity, solidarity among the people is found very high.

The society with organic solidarity can be compared with urban society. In urban societies, new customs and fashions are popular. The pace of Social change is fast. The patterns of social interaction differ from group to group. Here the groups are formed on give and take and high level of division of labor and specialization of profession is found. Brotherhood on the basis of mutual help is the main soul of solidarity. The forces of collective conscience are strong in the mechanical society. Organic solidarity is found like urban society. The forces of collective conscience are weak in such society.

This theory of social solidarity is similar to the theory of Al-Asabiya by Ibn-i-Khaldoon. Common things in both the theories is the uniting force found in the group.

Social Thinkers of the Western World:Emile Durkheim

Emile Durkheim

Emile Durkheim was a Philosopher of France. He was Physics professor. As he was follower of August Comte, he invented a new science named as Social Physics. Durkheim's study focused on Social Solidarity and Social Facts. He is considered by many to be the father of Sociology.



Some of Durkheim's theories are described below.

Theory of Social Facts:-

Durkheim does not focus on individual, as a point of study he takes group as a social fact. He says the existence of group is reality. Its existence is inevitable in human society. No society can come into existence without group life.

If we consider question what is social fact? Durkheim said that the reply is within the society. According to him there are certain facts in social life of man which neither can be described nor can be measured. These are the forces which influence the individual from external to bring internal change. The moral principles, the ways of family and religious ceremonies and the methods of professions are included in the social fact. The study of these facts is an important part of sociology. These facts exist like social currents in the society which are like waves of anger and emotions affecting the individual in crowd.

The pressure of social facts is every time present on the individual till he is a member of the society. It does not influence him from inside but is from outside and forms his morals and etiquette's. The individual lives in society under the pressure of these social facts. Social facts come into existence in the individual. They become patterns of culture and get the shape of a body. Durkheim has called sociology, the study of social facts. He said that social facts are like things.

By this explanation, Durkheim means that individual is a part of society, group and the organization. He is influenced by the cultural norms and morals, conduct and principles which are internalized by him from the society. He is directed by the social facts in his thoughts, works, actions, and other professional techniques. This pressure forces the individual to follow these patterns in life and not to deviate from them. The importance of social facts is clear from this explanation that the cultural, norms and other manners of group life are the guiding principles of the individual and these principles stand like social facts.