Introduction to Sociology

Yanıt Açıklaması: Although the knowledge of the main concepts like the numbers or shapes depends on observations, the relationship among these concepts is based on some presuppositions. For example, the triangle concept, a shape consisting of three intersecting lines, is based on observations. But the presupposition that the sum of the interior angles of a triangle is 180 degrees, has no concern with observations.

Yanıt Açıklaması: University professors, who have rational-legal authority because of the nature of their positions in, and the rules of, the university. They can demand from students to fulfil the assignments of any course they’re lecturing. Therefore, the correct answer is D.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Max Weber , unlike positivism, places social action into the center of sociology and sociological analysis. From this point of view, Weber’s ideas are associated with a general theoretical perspective in sociology called interactionism. The correct answer is E.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Postmodernism, like feminism, is critical to other approaches. Postmodernism is not only effective in sociology but also in art, music, literature, culture and social sciences. Postmodernism has developed as an opposition to modernism, which emerged in the 18th century during the enlightenment period and consists of ideas, values, and hypotheses that rely on technology, knowledge, and progress. Postmodernism has led to intellectual transformation in sociology and in the western thought as a whole. Giddens (2009: 98) argues that postmodernism has recently lost its importance, especially in the face of globalization theories, and that globalization theories are more explanatory in understanding the direction of social change in today’s 21st century societies.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Like Saint-Simon, Comte also tries to understand society from an evolutionary point of view. Comte summarizes his ideas about this point of view in his well-known evolution theory known as “law of the three stages”, which he developed under the influence of the studies by Saint-Simon. Accordingly, human thought and societies evolve through three basic stages: a) Theological stage: In this stage, the human mind tries to explain everything through supernatural forces. b) Metaphysical stage: In this stage, the human mind tries to explain all social and physical phenomena and events through abstract forces. c) Positive stage: In this stage, the human mind finally tries to explain all phenomena and events scientifically (based on universal laws). According to Comte, in this stage, the human mind rejects supernatural and abstract forces due to positive sciences and tries to reveal existing relationships among observable phenomena and systematize these relationships within universal laws. Therefore, the correct option is B.

Yanıt Açıklaması: When European Union emerged only as an economic alliance at the beginning, namely European Economic Community, in 1958 and aimed to create a common market among member states. Thus, D is the correct answer.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Weber only analyses the actions that are based on cultural motives and tries to understand societies by looking at these action types. He categorizes social actions in four classes as purpose-motivated rational action, value-motivated rational action, traditional actions, and emotional actions. According to Weber, industrial societies are the models in which rational action templates are common. Producing, ruling and social life of a capitalist society are built on rationality.

Yanıt Açıklaması: While state is analysed according to itsfunctions by liberal theorists, class based explanations are made by Marxist theorists for Marxist theorists’ class based explanations are made to understand state. Both approaches explain rising of state, in an evolutionary understanding, transition to hunter-gatherer societies to agricultural societies and with the emergence of kinship causing more complex social relations. The correct answer is A.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Except D, the choices are examples for rational needs which do not include any cultural or social values.

Yanıt Açıklaması: The most significant contribution of Saint-Simon to the development of sociology is the term industrial society, which successfully influenced both the radicals like Marx and conservative theoreticians like Comte at same time by reflecting both socialist and conservative point of views. Therefore, the correct option is C.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Social stratification means people’s difference and hierarchical positioning based on some inequalities like income, prosperity, power, prestige, status, age, gender, race, ethnicity etc. India's caste system places people into social groups at birth, based on their heirarchical positioning in society and does not allow for upward mobility within society.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Functionalism has an important place in modern sociology and was initially influenced by Durkheim’s works in sociology in the s19th century. In other words, functionalism adopted a positivist social science mentality while examining social life. Developed in the 20th century in social anthropology by A.R. Radcliffe-Brown (18811955) and Bronislaw Malinowski (1884-1942), functionalism was later improved in American sociology especially by Talcott Parsons and Robert K. Merton. Functionalism deals with society as a system consisting of interrelated pieces. At this point, we should remember that Durkheim also explained society through its similarities to a biological entity. Functionalism in modern sociology deals with society as a system based on self-regulation, which implies that society has a natural intuition to protect itself and have a balance. In other words, self-regulation enables societies to maintain its balance and operations by regulating its institutions in response to changes in the environment. Therefore, the correct option is D.

Yanıt Açıklaması: there are important differences between commonsense and sociology. These can be summarized in four points: • The first difference is related to the responsible speech. Unlike people depending on commonsense while talking, sociologists make effort to follow the rules of responsible speech. • The second difference is related to the size of the field from which the material is drawn. • The third difference is related to how we understand events. • The last difference is related to dogmas. In everyday life, repeated actions become habitual and commonsense does not ask critical questions. Therefore, the correct option is D.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Positive sciences split up to physical sciences and social sciences. Physical sciences are the sciences which study animated and unanimated substances and material facts. Some of the physical sciences are astronomy, physics, chemistry, biology and zoology. Social sciences are the sciences which study social world and the relations among people. Sociology, anthropology, psychology, economics and political science are some of the social sciences. Therefore, the correct option is A.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Karl Marx developed a theory called historical materialism, which had a great influence in the field.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Democracy is a political system which is most able to ensure political equality, protect liberty and freedom, defend the common interest, meet citizens’ needs, promote moral self-development and enable effective decision-making which takes everyone’s interests into account. The correct answer is C.

Yanıt Açıklaması: C

Yanıt Açıklaması: Functionalism has an important place in modern sociology and was initially influenced by Durkheim’s works in sociology in the 19th century. Hence, C is the correct answer.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Sense of discipline is one of the personals reasons of poverty while informal employment, population pressure, family structure and gender discriminations are structural reasons. The correct answer is B.

Yanıt Açıklaması: Durkheim explains suicide through two independent variable; namely integration and regulation. The extreme or insufficient presence of these two variables in a society leads to suicides.