Social Problems, Fourth Edition by John J. MacionisCopyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper...

Social Problems, Fourth Edition by John J. Macionis Copyright © 2010 Pearson Education, Inc., Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved.

Chapter 1

Sociology: Studying Social Problems

Chapter 1:

Sociology: Studying Social Problems


Seeing Patterns: The Sociological Perspective

• Sociology is the systematic study of human societies.

• Society is a term referring to people who live within a territory and share many patterns of behaviors.

• Culture refers to a way of life including widespread values, beliefs, and behavior.


Further:

– People experience social problems in very personal ways

– Sociology shows that the problems we face are not only the results of personal choices but reflect the operation of society itself

– C. Wright Mills used the sociological imagination to show that our personal troubles are really social issues that affect many people – ourselves included


Defining Social Problems

• A social problem – is a condition that undermines the well-being of

some or all members of society– is usually a matter of public controversy

• Determining social problems can be controversial– subjective and objective realities may – actually end up being quite different– what people identify as the most serious – social problems varies over time


Table 1-1


Social Constructionist Approach

• Social problems arise as people define conditions:– As undesirable– In need of change


Claims Making

• Process of convincing the public that a particular issue or situation should be defined as a social problem

• Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD)


Figure 1-1The Objective and Subjective Assessment of Social Issues


Defining Social Problems

• One indication that people recognize an issue as a social problem is the formation of a social movement – an organized effort at claims

making that tries to shape the way people think about an issue in order to encourage or discourage social change


Stages in Social Movements

• Social movements progress through four distinct stages:– Emergence– Coalescence– Formalization– Decline


Eight assertions that form the foundation for the analysis of social problems:

1. Social problems result from the ways in which society operates.

2. Social problems are not caused by bad people.

3. Social problems are socially constructed as people define a condition as harmful and in need of change.

4. People see problems differently.


Further:

5.Definitions of problems change over time.

6.Problems involve subjective values as well as objective facts.

7.Many – but not all – problems can be solved.

8.Various social problems are related.


Figure 1-2Four Stages in the Life Course of a Social Movement`


Looking Beyond Ourselves: A Global Perspective

• A global outlook shows– Harmful conditions often cross

national boundaries– Many of the problems that we in

the U.S. face are more serious elsewhere


Analyzing Social Problems:The Role of Theory

Theory: A statement of how and why specific

facts are related

Theoretical Approach: A basic image of society that guides thinking and research


The Structural-Functional Approach

• A theoretical framework that sees society as

a system of many interrelated parts• Social Institutions: the main parts of this

system (organized to meet basic human needs)– education– family– economics– politics– religion


Global Map 1-1Women’s Childbearing around the World


The Structural-Functional Approach

• Early Functionalism: Problems as Social Pathology

• The “Chicago School”: Problems as Disorganization

• More Recent Functionalism: Problems as Dysfunctions– Manifest versus Latent Functions– Eufunctions versus Dysfunctions


The Social Conflict Approach

• A theoretical framework that sees society as divided by inequality and conflict

• Social problems arise because our society is divided into “haves” and “have nots”


The Social Conflict Approach

• Marxism: Problems and Class Conflict– Capitalists– Proletarians

• Multiculturalism: Problems of Racial

and Ethnic Inequality• Feminism: Problems and Gender

Conflict


The Symbolic-Interaction Approach

• A theoretical framework that sees society as the product of individuals interacting with one another


The Symbolic-Interaction Approach

• Learning Theory: – Problems and the Social

Environment

• Labeling Theory: – Problems and Social Definitions


A researcher asks subjects to respond to items

in a questionnaire or interview.• A questionnaire is a series of items a

researcher presents to subjects for their response

• In an interview, the researcher meets face to face with respondents to discuss a particular issue

• While questionnaires offer a chance for greater breadth of opinion, interviews can provide greater depth of understanding

Survey Research: Asking Questions


Field Research: Joining In

• Also called participant observation

• Involves researchers observing people while joining in their everyday activities


Experimental Research: Looking For Causes

• Experiment: a method by which a researcher investigates cause-and-

effect relationships under highly controlled conditions

• Most experiments are carried out in specially designed laboratories


Secondary Analysis: Using Available Data

• A common major research method that is based on collection of data originally collected by others


Truth, Science, and Politics

• Max Weber’s “value-free” approach• The “value commitment” approach• Is “objective” research even

possible?


Truth and Statistics

• Check how terms are defined• Numbers are subject to error• People often “spin” their statistics


Figure 1-3Do Statistics Lie?


Responding to Social Problems: Social Policy

• Social policy refers to formal strategies to affect how society operates.


Responding to Social Problems: Social Policy

• The evaluation of social policy:– How is success defined? – What are the costs? – Whom should get the help?


Policy and Culture

• Social policy tends to be shaped by existing cultural values


Policy and Politics

• Conservatives: seek to limit the scope of societal change (focus is on shortcomings of individuals, not society)

• Liberals: favor more sweeping change in society (see problems in the organization of society)

• Radicals: support policies that go beyond mere reform – can be either ultra liberal or ultra

conservative


Table 1-2


Politics: Constructing Problems and Defining Solutions

• The Political Spectrum: a continuum representing a range of political attitudes from “left” to “right”

• Social Issues: political debates involving moral judgments about how people should live

• Economic Issues: political debates about how a society should distribute material resources


Who Thinks What?

• Two good predictors of political attitudes are education and wealth – both of which are elements of social class

• The fact that social class affects social and economic attitudes differently means that most people have some combination of liberal and conservative attitudes

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