Sociology

SOCIOLOGY:

Sociology: the word was lined by Auguste Comte (1798-1857). From two Greek root words, namely socio which means 'society' and logos which means 'knowledge'. Literally translated, it means knowledge of society.

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 behavior 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 global social processes.

Sociology is the study of individuals in groups in a systematic way, which grew out of the search for understanding associated with the industrial and scientific revolutions of the 18th and 19th centuries.

Sociologists believe human behavior is patterned and repetitive, thus we can predict with reasonable accuracy what each of us will do generally under given conditions. In this respect, the focus of the sociologist's attention is group behavior. People may be born into a group such as the family, or may join a group at work or for leisure. The sociologist is interested in the effect that membership in a group has on people's social behavior.

Whether we like it or not, we are born into groups and spend most of our social lives in those same groups. Sometimes we are not even aware of it, but everything we do- including our private thoughts and fantasies - grows out of it, or is shaped through our interactions with others, especially those close to us. All of us, at least in part assimilate the perspectives of the groups to which we belong and thereby acquire our language, values, attitudes, beliefs and sense of identity.

Basic sociological premise would be therefore that humans are social beings, shaped in many ways by the groups to which we belong. Whether they are our families, athletic teams, clubs, religious groups, worker organizations or schools, much of human life is guided by...