What is Sociology - The development of sociological thinking - Emile Durkheim

5 important questions on What is Sociology - The development of sociological thinking - Emile Durkheim

Emile Durkheim (1858-1917) famously said that the idea of sociology is to "study the social facts as things."
What did he mean with "social facts?"

  • All those institutions and rules of action which constrain or chanel human behaviour.
  • Social facts exist independently of the individual and shape their choices and actions.

In his book, The Division of Labour in Society (1893), Emile Durkheim argued that the advent of the industrial age also led to a new type of solidarity.
Which type is that and which type of solidarity did it replace?

  • Before industrialization societies had mechanical solidarity.
    • Most people are involved in similar occuptatuons and bound together by common experiences and shared beliefs.
  • Because of the division in labour expanded due to the industrialization, organic solidarity was created.
    • Like the organs in the human body, people became increasingly dependent upon one another, because each person needs goods and services that those in other occupations supply.

Emile Durkheim stated that rapid changes in society cause anomie.
What does anomie mean?

  • When society changes rapidly, old values lose their grip on people, without establishing new values.
  • This gives anomie:
    • Deep feelings of aimlessness, dread and despair.
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How is solidarity maintained, according to Emile Durkheim?

When individuals are integrated into social groups and regulated by a set of shared values and customs.

Since the publication of Suicide: A study in sociology (1897) by Emile Durkheim, some objections have been raised to this study.
What were the main three critiques?

  • The dismissal of non-social influences.
  • Insistence in classifying all types of suicide together.
  • The data used for the study.
    • It's important to know when a death is categorized as a suicide by the authority at hand.

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