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Three Major Sociological Theories

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Major Sociological Theories

For centuries Sociologist that provided their differing positions in regards to different social and cultural phenomena. Fascinated by how things relate, philosophers have come up with many arguments supporting the changes in society. To provide a healthier explanation for their positions they create theories backed by studies and observation. A theory is essential as it is a composition of 2 or more concepts. Essential to the world the sociology, Karl Marx has played an instrumental role in the study of society. He believed capitalism would lead to alienation with a sense of false consciousness. He saw competition as negative …show more content…

As with any argument the need to compare and contrast is a necessity. To fully understand ones position, as there is a vast spectrum of theories on any given topic related to society there must be opinions to weigh. As we learned in the text, theories in sociology can vary with respect to their methodologies. Earlier Sociologist such as Marx, whom teachings are still referenced today leans more towards a scientific methodology. Before society began to tilt more individualistic, norms were more primitive. For example, although they may have looked like minimalistic societies, hunter-gatherers were important to the compare and contrast argument of anthropologist Marshall Sahlins theory opposing capitalism.

In chapter 1.3 of the text we are introduced to the three major theoretical sociological paradigms, their level of analysis, and their main focus. The scope to which we explain theories can depend on the varying issues they cover. The three social paradigms range from macro/mid, macro, or micro. To better understand the difference between macro and micro, macro theories cover a great amount of issues amongst a large group of people. To the adverse, micro theories are more concentrated on a small group of people or …show more content…

Considered a micro level theory, the concentration is more on the relationships of individuals rather than the analysis of the group as a whole. Viewed as a more symbolic theory, each individual can interpret differently based on their own symbolic interactions they may have had in the past. The main objective for a social scientist who relates symbolic-interactionalist to the communication between individuals is to understand the worlds they live in. Overall, between the three varying paradigm’s we can see there are many gauges to explain the way people

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