Different Sociological Perspectives - Assignment Example

SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

In accordance with Peter Berger (1963), the sociological perspective could be described as the seeing of what is general to people in a way. From this, it could be deduced that sociology seeks to know how society shapes the lives of people. In sociology, people in society get studied in a number of ways. The perspective from which sociology views society is quite different from the way a normal person could view it. Sociology the help of the sociological perspective achieves viewing society from another angle. It is by the use of the sociological perspective that sociologists are able to come to terms with what is happening in real society (Macionis, 2005).

By using a sociological perspective, one could be able to see strange things in things that one commonly sees as familiar. A sociological perspective could be quite beneficial in studying sociology since it views individuality from the social context. It can help understand how an individual’s behavior gets shaped by the society in which he or she lives (Macionis, 2005). The sociological perspective provides a third eye at looking at society in general. Sociology often tries to view society from a different perspective and uses its findings in deducing the behavior of people.

A global perspective is a form of sociological perspective where society gets viewed as one global village. A global perspective is hence a representative picture of social perspective at a global level, but it entails a lot of things. In this, a lot is learned regarding the many societies in the world and how each influences the people living in and around those societies. The sociological perspective hence offers a wide point of view at looking at society. Sociology there benefits a lot from using this perspective at looking at different aspects of society, and moreover to get more information regarding people in a given society (Macionis, 2005).

SOCIOLOGICAL METHODS

In sociology, there are a number of research methods that become employed to collect the rightful information from individuals. A research method is a systemic way that sociologists use in research. The survey research method is one of the methods employed by sociologists in research. This method employs the use of statements or questionnaires to derive information from respondents. Survey research methods ought to be used in studying attitudes, causes, and effects. A survey often takes a sample of people (Macionis, 2005). Questionnaires have been the commonest research method used in research. Questionnaires often provide a fixed way for respondents to answer their questions and are direct in nature. When compared to methods of research like interviews and participant observation, the researcher can cover a lot of people within a short time. Just like research methods, like interviews and secondary sources, it gets subjected to some errors in the collection of information as some respondents may cheat or write mischievous information (Macionis, 2005).

Interviews can also be used as a research method by sociologists in the quest for acquiring information. Interviews are a set of questions asked by the researcher to the respondent. Interviews often become used when the researcher wishes to gauge the responses and get first-hand information. In addition, the researcher could be able to use both open-ended and closed-ended questions during the interview in order to get clarification of certain information. Interviews have also been used when the researchers are after meeting the respondents and getting to know some of their feelings about certain things. When one compares survey methods and interviews, they are similar in some ways. In contrast, one can get more information from interviews than the use of questionnaires. In addition, interviews are more prone to bias than the use of questionnaires. By the use of questionnaires, a large number of respondents could be reached within a limited time compared to interviews. Before one could conduct research, one has always to consider the differences above (Macionis, 2005).

Another research method employed by sociologists is participant observation. Here, the researchers observe the participants as they conduct their routine activities. This method often allows researchers to know what happens in society. This method often consumes a lot of time as the researcher tries to fit into the social life of the participant. Just like the rest of the research methods, this method has its advantages and disadvantages (Macionis, 2005).

In regard to secondary and historical research methods, here, the researcher uses data already collected by others. Compared to interviews, questionnaires, and participant observation where they are able to get first-hand information, here the researcher relies on work that had already been done. Researchers can use this when they become limited in resources or when it is not necessary to go to the field. The researcher faces issues of getting information that is not representative of the given society from other sources (Macionis, 2005). When using secondary and historical research methods, it is often advisable to use the latest sources. Secondary research methods get used when one does not intend to come to contact with the respondent or when the secondary source is legit (Macionis, 2005).

In conclusion, the uses of survey methods, interviews, questionnaires, and secondary research methods have their advantages and disadvantages. When sociologists intend to go and conduct research, they often choose a research method to use. It always takes a lot of thinking to come up with a research method. Furthermore, more than one research method can be used while carrying out research, for example, the use of questionnaires, interviews, and secondary research methods. All in all, research methods are vital in the collection of information to be used by sociologists in their research regarding certain aspects of society (Macionis, 2005).