POSITIVISM

POSITIVISM

1. Scientific

2. Quantitative

3. "Social Facts" - Durkheim

4. HYPOTHETICO-DEDUCTIVE Approach

   • Observation > Hypothesis > Research

5. "Society shapes the individual"

   • People are puppets of society ∴ individual behaviour is the product of social forces
     • POSITIVISTS ARGUE THAT THE SOCIOLOGICAL RESEARCH METHODS USED TO TEST HYPOTHESES SHOULD EXHIBIT THE FOLLOWING FEATURES IN ORDER TO BE SCIENTIFIC:
       • Should follow SYSTEMATIC and LOGICAL procedures so that it can be REPLICATED
         • REPLICATION ensures RELIABILITY of the research process - another sociologist should be able to repeat the process and get similar results
           • OBJECTIVE, the sociologist should be neutral and bias free
             • REPRESENTATIVENESS: it is impossible to study an entire population thus a representative sample is required. Participants should have the characteristics that are typical of the larger population
               • This then justifies the sociologist making GENERALISATIONS based on the data from the sample
                 • QUANTITATIVE, in order to identify patterns and trends to uncover cause and effect relationships which can establish "social truths"
             • POSITIVISM HAS BEEN HIGHLY INFLUENTIAL AND HAS DOMINATED SOCIAL RESEARCH FOR 3 REASONS:
               • 1) BSA ethical guidelines implicitly encourage the type of quantitative research associated with positivism. The BSA stresses the need for "INFORMED CONSENT" and for sociologists to be clear about their "DETACHMENT FROM their areas of STUDY". Both of these aims are easier to achieve when using positivist methods.
               • 2) The government tends to favour positivist research because it often involves numerical data which is easer to use to make generalisations, thus the gov fund more positivist research
               • 3) Science has great status in society and therefore it's no surprise that techniques that claim to be scientific attract prestige.

6. Macro