Introduction to Social Science
Part 1
Essentialism
Essentialism is the ideologies that people who belong to specific collectives have consistent attributes, also known as essence, which primarily defines their identity, thereby, influencing visible appearance and behavior. And this is important to social science because behavior relates to daily life experiences impacted by societal components such as politics, family, and nature. As essentialist idea which refers to gender would be: males and females are differentiated by inherent individualistic features. In line with social science aspects, essentialist norms are usually very controversial. In other words, essentialism reduces the contingent effect of individualistic character traits, especially when addressing issues that involve gender, ethnicity, and racial background. As a result, scholars who are against essentialism insist on the importance of social, environmental, and structural factors. Racial differences indicate the limitations of essentialism.
Even though the race is a component of essentialism, social scientists insist that race has no essence. In other words, the natural features which indicate differences (such as type of hair or skin color) do not match perfectly into racial categories. What is more, elements that can be observed physically cannot be grouped into correlated factors. For instance, the color of the skin cannot indicate another potential feature other than skin color. In summary, there is no genetic for racial difference. That aside, essentialism poses a challenge to social science since it supports stereotypical norms based on gender, race, or ethnicity. On the contrary, it promotes artificial factors such as social class as natural and unavoidable. Concerning the ontological perspective, the essence of anything is defined by the primary properties. It is relatable to the concept of necessity; as a result, something is essential to an object or a person if the person cannot lack the property.
Social constructivism
Social constructivism is a distinctive theoretical approach to social science, which mostly differs from popular social ideologies. It is majorly based on three assumptions. First of all, the ontological idea that everything that seems to exist naturally comes from a collection of social processes and activities. Secondly, social constructivism is based on the epistemological assumption that knowledge that is primarily relatable to social factors are produced socially. Constructivism is found in a wide range of social thoughts; first of all, culture. To be more precise, cultural factors challenge natural aspects by outlining how social interactions are culturally developed, organized, and re-constructed. Despite that, social constructivism has significantly impacted factors such as cultural backgrounds and race to the discourse of racial discrimination and inequalities.
In other words, throughout the history of sociology and racism, these factors have developed in specific ways, which are fundamental in illustrating how ethnic and racial differences have been designed to support particular systems of domination. Racial discrimination is an act of violence that can be inflicted on society by social factors. In other words, every norm that promotes the fact that a particular group of people is inferior, in line with their character traits; it is a whole process of socially developed domination. As a result, social constructivism has provided vast viewpoints in line with racism studies. What is more, it has led to the development of new explanations concerning racial difference, discrimination, and stereotyping. One example of socially-developed relations is the difference and divisions of populations based on racial lines or gender differences.
Part 2
- In what important ways does ‘social science’ differ from ‘natural science?
Social science-primarily involves the study of human beings’ behaviour; while natural science is the study of the universe and its functionality, and they have differences. Social science includes psychology, political science, and anthropology, to name a few. That aside, there are various factors social factors that implement human behaviour. First of all, abilities, these are traits which are easily learnable from the environment. They include self-awareness, intellectual capability, and physical skills. And all these are important because they foster verbal comprehension, reasoning abilities, physical strength, and motor skills. Another major social factor that influences behaviour is gender. Generally, men and women have the same capabilities in terms of productivity; however, society emphasizes on restricting behaviour and even roles in line with gender differences.
The natural sciences play a unique role in modern society. That is, extensive scientific knowledge defines cultural notions that relate to natural factors. Natural science deals with the physical world and involves prediction and explanation of natural phenomena in line with social inter-relationships. Natural science involves two main sub-divisions; that is, biological science and material science. And they are concerned with living organisms and physical attributes to life, respectively. And this is important to social science because natural science enables a sufficient understanding of its behaviour and how it relates to daily life experiences impacted by societal components such as politics, family, and nature.
- Discuss the concepts of ‘society,’ state, and civil society as ‘social entities.’ How do they differ, and what is their relevance in everyday life?
The state forms the political organizations of the society, which are primarily controlled by governmental institutions. The country is a social institution that involves human association. The state is essential for daily life processes because it serves various functions; for instance, law enforcement and maintenance of order and security. All in all, the state serves the purpose of promoting the social well-being of every citizen. Families, communities, and individual people expect so much from the country in line with their social welfare. Therefore, the state can satisfy these expectations by ensuring that employment opportunities are equally and readily available. Secondly, the state could develop and regenerate the physical environment to ensure people can benefit extensively. For instance, environmental conservation to ensure people cannot suffer the adverse impacts of environmental degradation. All in all, the state should provide support and access to vital resources in ways are support financial, material, and psycho-social well-being.
Civil society is the ecosystem that influences social change outside the government and family level. And it is relevant to daily life because it provides the platform for people to act for the common good. In other words, society’s primary role is to foster the well-being of the marginalized populations by connecting them to groups or institutions that can quickly mobilize social help. There a wide range of civil society organizations; for instance, churches, non-governmental institutions, and social media communities. Given the complexity of the current world, societal aspects are continually changing due to events, technology, or even economic forces. Civil society provides various means of engagement with the new developmental process for the common good. One significant role of these societies is social accountability. And here, they hold organizations accountable for their actions, to ensure transparency and honesty, which are equally promoted for every participant.
- Consider the relevance of Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft to contemporary social practice. Provide at least two empirical examples.
Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft theories were introduced by Early German sociologist Ferdinand Tönnies to study the social aspects of the rural communities that were being replaced by the rapid development of modern industries all over Europe. Concerning Gemeinschaft, it means city in German, and it made of social connections and interpersonal relations, which are guided by traditional rules while sticking to specific frameworks. Gemeinschaft primarily appreciates individualistic ties; as a result, interactive relationships are usually personal. During the development of Gemeinschaft, Ferdinand Tönnies believed that emotional and sentimental reactions mainly influenced the prevalent social interactions. This was due to the sense of moral obligation to other people, which was popular among small-scale homogenous communities. Today, Gemeinschaft is still applicable since most people are part of specific communities in which a set of rules guides interaction, and they living in complex post-industrial society.
That aside, Gesellschaft stands for society. And it involves indirect, impersonal relations that are not conducted face to face. As a result, they can be carried out via a chain of command or through other communication tools like mobile phones and letters. The interactions within the Gesellschaft are usually supported by a set of ideologies and beliefs in line with rationality and proficiency. What is more, these beliefs are generally in line with economic, political, and self-interest aspects of life. Due to the complexity of Gesellschaft, this form of interaction is usually applicable to large scale and modern organizations, which are mostly found within bureaucratic governments and private institutions. Within these organizations, the social order is controlled by a complex structural framework of responsibilities and labor. Today, Gesellschaft is still applicable since most people are part of specific communities in which a set of rules guides interaction, and they living in complex post-industrial society.
- Recall a social experience (or an event) and reflect on its ontological and epistemological dimensions.
Ontology means the factors that exist in the social world and the assumptions that tend to explain social reality. It illustrates whether or not practical social aspects exist solely based on human understanding and interpretations. One ontological experience is the argument concerning the existence of God. On the one hand, non-ontological scholars insist that God is Supreme Being whose life cannot be explained. On the other hand, ontological arguments insist that the existence of God comes from social interaction, intending to justify natural occurrences. Ontological illustrates the building blocks that define the social aspects of life. For instance, some theorists argue that social aspects of life are constructed on individualistic psychological states. Similarly, other arguments indicate that social entities of life are built on actions. On the other hand, others outline that social aspects are built on consistent habits and practices.
That aside, epistemology generally involves the study of knowledge acquisition. It ensures awareness of certain realities by discovering the source of specific knowledge and method of discovery. Epistemology addresses scientific and cultural history. What is more, it outlines how social reality is relatable to mental dimensions. Epistemology is vital since it helps differentiate the truth from false information, thus ensuring a better understanding of the world. It is usually supported by a set of ideologies and beliefs in line with rationality and proficiency.
What is more, these beliefs are usually in line with economic, political and self-interest aspects of life. However, the main question is often where the common knowledge is coming from; and epistemology scholars insist that knowledge comes from interactive reasoning. All in all, without epistemology, human beings would have no reason to believe in their thoughts and actions.
References
Bolisani, Ettore. 2018. The Elusive Definition of Knowledge. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318235014_
Lawson, Tony. 2019. The Nature of Social Reality Issues in Social Ontology [ROR]https://www.researchgate.net/publication/335911696_
Mulnix, Jennifer Wilson. 2013. Thinking Critically about Critical Thinking [SOR]https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1469-5812.2010.00673.x
Paul, Richard, and Elder, Linda. 2006. Critical Thinking CONCEPTS AND TOOLS [ROR]
Social Ontology. 2018. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. (ROR)https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/social-ontology/
Social Epistemology. 2015. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. (ROR)https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/epistemology-social/
Tang, Shiping. 2010. Foundational Paradigms of Social Sciences [ROR] https://www.researchgate.net/publication/249678327_