Sociology and Social Science

Sociology and Social Science

It’s general truth that sociology is the scientific study of the structure and development of society. It is a very broad science through which people can understand how to interact with each other and their environments. Sociologists are interested in how individuals and groups can affect society as well as how society affects them.

As far as I know, sociology unofficially began with ancient civilizations. The scientific approach to sociology came about in the mid-1800s. Like many philosophies, sociology emerged from a state of social turbulence. It began when the Industrial Revolution was well under way. People worked ridiculously long hours under awful conditions for minimal wages. These major changes caused many people to rethink the concept of society and then, there appear sociology.

Over the years there have been many people who have influenced sociology. But the most famous person in sociology was Auguste Comte who considered by many as the father of sociology. Although he never conducted any formal research,but it was he who came up with the idea to study society using the scientific method. This approach is known as positivism. It was Comte who named the social science "sociology" and he intended to use his findings to help improve the society.

The second important person was co-founder Herbert Spencer, who did not agree with Comte's intention to use sociological principles to bring about social reform. He was a believer in social Darwinism. He believed that society would evolve and ultimately improve on its own. He felt that the most intelligent members of society would reproduce and continue the species while the less capable people would die out; over time, society would improve through evolution.

Third was Karl Marx, who created the theory of class conflict. He felt that the root of all problems in society was the difference in economic classes. He claimed that an economic revolution was inevitable and would begin with the exploited working class (the proletariat) fight against the upper class (the bourgeoisie). According to Marx, the result of this revolution would be a classless society characterized by government control of property and even distribution of finances.

To conclude, I want to say, that sociology, probably, is the most important science nowadays. Because it helps us to understand, how we live and how we can improve our society relation, to live better.