What factors affect
- Created by: MaddyM03
- Created on: 17-10-19 14:58
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- What factors affect each stage?
- The relationshp between sociology and social factors
- 2 types of social phenomena
- Social Problems
- Aspects of social life that cause isery and anxiety to private individuals and society in general
- Crime, child abuse, domestic violence, suicide
- Sponsored by those in power eg: governments
- EXAMPLE: surveys of Townsend and Breadline Britain survey of Mack and Lansley influenced Labour social policies on benefit systems and child poverty
- Sociological Problems
- Any aspect of social life, either normal or deviant
- Functions to increase knowledge on how society works and say why social insitutions/ individuals/ social groups behave in set ways
- May encourage social policy makers to change or make social policies
- Social Problems
- 3 Types of focus
- Descrptive: To describe a certain situaton or set of facts
- Explanitory: To explain a particular social phenomenon, may encourage change in social policy
- Evaluative: To monitor and assess effect of social policy
- EXAMPLE: Sociologists were asked to evaluate the Labour Pary's Surestart centres
- 2 types of social phenomena
- Interests and Values of the Researcher
- Sociologists may feel strongly attracted to some areas
- Eg: Feminists, Marxists or Socialists
- Poverty Researcher Peter Townsend wanted to get rid of poverty and his studies fof the elderly and poor were result of commitment
- Does not mean sociologists are biased
- Must conduct fair and balaned enquires and must not be biased in personal and political ways
- Values may influence choice of topic chosen but methods used should be free from bias
- Sociologists may feel strongly attracted to some areas
- Current debates and funding
- May be influenced by what is fashionable in academic world
- 1970's Womens position on society became a hot topic
- 1980s Conservatives focused on crime, riots, prisions
- 1990s Rise in postmodernism and identity politics and consumption
- Funding
- Values of those funding the research may affect direction/tone of research
- Most universities and Social Research Council (ESRC) fund neutral social research
- Charities and Think tanks may commision research in a particular field
- Runnymede Trust - ethnic minorities
- Sutton Trust - educational matters
- May be influenced by what is fashionable in academic world
- Access to Research subjects
- Group may not always be happy to be interviewed
- Depends how much power that group has
- Pupils, poor pople, state schools more likey to be interviewed
- Closed insitiutions may be hard to access
- prisons, mental hospitals, women;s refuges
- Joining exclsuive or devient groups needs to be ethically and sensitivly thought out
- Using a 'gate-keeper'
- Very important
- Can vouch for the researcher
- Can negotiate on sociologists behalf
- The relationshp between sociology and social factors
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