Section A: Theory and Method

What makes Sociology a scientific study?

The scientific method is a systematic, organized series of steps that ensures maximum objectivity
and consistency in researching a problem. Sociology has a commitment to the use of the
scientific method in studying society.
Explain the following Perspectives in Sociology
Functionalist perspective:
This emphasizes the way that parts of a society are structured to maintain its stability.
Conflict perspective:
This perspective assumes that social behavior is best understood in terms of conflict or tension
between competing groups.
Interactionist perspective:
This perspective is primarily concerned with fundamental or everyday forms of interaction,
including symbols and other types of nonverbal communication.
Feminist perspective:
This perspective views inequity in gender as central to all behavior and organization.
What is meant by the following terms?
(i) Interview- A face-to-face or telephone questioning of a respondent to obtain desired
information
(ii) Observation- A research technique in which an investigator collects information through
direct participation and/or closely watching a group or community.
(iii) Experiment- It is an artificially created situation that allows the researcher to manipulate
variables.
(iv) Trends: Identifying the increases, decreases in the amount of social behavior or if it stays
the same.
(v) Quantitative data- Data gained from large scale studies that can be analyzed, codified and
measured.
(vi) Qualitative research- Research that relies on what is seen in field or naturalistic settings
more than on statistical data.
(vii) Quantitative research- Research that collects and reports data primarily in numerical
form.
(viii) Survey population- The whole population that could be investigated from which a sample
is selected.
 (ix) Survey- A study, generally in the form of interviews or questionnaires, that provides
researchers with information concerning how people think and act.
(x) Reliability- The extent to which a measure provides consistent results.
(xi) Research design- A detailed plan or method for obtaining data scientifically.
(xii) Research bias- The error of importing one’s culture over the studying society or people.
(xiii) Validity- The degree to which a scale or measure truly reflects the phenomenon under
study.
(xiv) Random Sample- A sample for which every member of the entire population has the same
chance of being selected.
(xv) Questionnaire- A printed or written form used to obtain desired information from a
respondent.
(xvi) Sample- A selection from a larger population that is statistically representative of that
What are the main steps in devising and implementing a research survey?
● Define the problem
● Review the literature
● Formulate a testable hypothesis
● Select research design
● Collect and analyze data
● Develop conclusion
The two principal forms of Survey research are;
● Interview
● Question
The two types of research methods are;
● Qualitative
● Quantitative
Explain two reasons why positivists prefer using large-scale surveys
● The practical advantages of this method,
● Ability to make generalizations,
● Give quantitative data,
● Objective means of study
Describe two different methods of carrying out a social survey.
● Questionnaires
● Interviews
● Social networking sites
● E-mail
Describe one strength and one limitation of positivist methods
Strengths:
● Likely examples will be cheap (if justified),
● Quantitative,
● Easy to repeat,
● Ability to generalize,
● Data can be analyzed easily,
● Less chance of researcher bias and any other valid example.
Limitations:
● Lack insights,
● Cannot follow up new ideas or
● Any other valid example.
Describe one strength and one limitation of small-scale studies.
Strengths:
● Knowledge about the meaning of social situations,
● In depth understanding of social behavior,
● Insightful and any other valid example.
Limitations:
● Individual,
● Difficult to make generalizations,
● Problems of researcher effect
● Any other valid reason.
Describe two strengths and two limitations of participant observation.
Strengths:
● Quality of the information is likely to be detailed,
● Useful insights gained into individuals’ behavior
● Any other valid example.
Limitations:
● Frequently costly to undertake,
● Can be subject to interviewer bias and interviewer effect,
● Difficulty in interpreting results,
● Threat to the researcher
● Any other valid example.
NB: Participant can be either overt or covert in respect of this question and candidates do not
need to specify which they are referring to
Describe two strengths of using questionnaires for sociological research.
· Cheap to produce
· Quick to administer
· Easy to use
· Reach a large research population
· Cover a large geographical area
· Answers from closed questions are easily quantifiable
· Useful for asking personal/embarrassing questions if not administered face to face
· Any other reasonable response.
Describe two strengths and two limitations of using official statistics in sociological research.
Strengths
• Cheap or free to access
• Easy to access
• Available on internet
• Usually cover large population
• Usually well planned and professionally conducted
• Can be used to identify long term trends
• Current and up-to-date
• High reliability.
Limitations
• May not measure exactly what the sociologist wants
• May not use the same terminology
• May have been manipulated for political reasons (e.g. definitions used of crime,
unemployment, poverty may have been changed)
• There may be problems with how data was collected (e.g. iceberg theory/dark figure of crime)
• Not up-to-date
• Quantitative data doesn’t provide views or opinions
• Lacks validity
To what extent do quantitative research methods lack validity?
what is meant by the concept of validity i.e. research that represents what it claims to represent
and the debate about the value of quantitative versus qualitative data. the strengths and
limitations of various methods but this must be in the context of validity. Methods that could be
discussed to demonstrate lack of validity include e.g. official statistics, closed
questions/questionnaires, surveys. Methods discussed to demonstrate validity could include e.g.
open questions/questionnaires, semi- and unstructured interviews, observations.
For
• Quantitative research is not value free
• The methods make it difficult to examine complex social issues
• Lack the ability to establish Verstehen (German word for ‘understanding’ or ‘insight’)
• Interpretionist view of quantitative methods
• Scientific paradigm
• Doesn’t provide opinions or views
• Data interpretation requires subjective judgment
Against
• Qualitative research is also not value free
• Positivist views linked to need for a scientific approach
• Higher validity as not face-to-face (less embarrassing, no researcher effect)
 Section C: Social inequality
What is social inequality?
A condition in which members of society have differing amounts of wealth, prestige, and power.
The term describes a condition in which members of a society have different amounts of wealth,
prestige, or power.
Define the following terms;
(i) Stratification- The term refers to a structured ranking of entire groups of people that
perpetuates unequal economic rewards and power in a society. These unequal rewards are
evident not only in the distribution of wealth and income, but even in the distressing mortality
rates of impoverished communities. Stratification involves the ways in which one generation
passes on social inequalities to the next, thereby producing groups of people arranged in rank
order from low to high.
(ii) Income- This refers to salaries and wages.
(iii) Wealth- This is an inclusive term encompassing all of a person’s material assets, including
land, stocks, and other types of property.
(iv) Ascribed status- This is a social position “assigned” to a person without regard for that
person’s unique characteristics or talents.
(v) Achieved status- This is a social position attained by a person largely through his or her
own effort.
(vi) Bourgeoisie- The capitalist class owns the means of production, such as factories and
machinery.
(vii) Proletariat- This is the working class.
(viii) Status group- The term refers to people who rank the same in prestige or lifestyle.
(ix) Power- This is the ability to exercise one’s will over others.
(x) Class- The term refers to people who have a similar level of wealth and income.
(xi) Capitalism- This is an economic system in which the means of production are largely
in private hands and the main incentive for economic activity is the accumulation of profits.
(xii) Prestige- The term refers to the respect and admiration that an occupation holds in a
society.
(xiii) Esteem- This refers to the reputation that a specific person has earned within an
occupation.
(xiv) Underclass- This term describes the long-term poor who lack training and skills.
(xv) Social Mobility- The term social mobility refers to movement of individuals or groups
from one position of a society’s stratification system to another.
(xvi) Modernization- The term describes the far-reaching process by which peripheral
nations move from traditional or less developed institutions to those characteristic of more
developed societies.
 (xvii) Dependency theory- According to this theory, even as developing countries make
economic advances, they remain weak and subservient to core nations and corporations within an
increasingly intertwined global economy.
(xviii) Colonialism- This occurs when a foreign power maintains political, social, economic,
and cultural domination over a people for an extended period of time.
(xix) Multinational corporations- The term refers to commercial organizations that are
headquartered in one country but do business throughout the world.
(xx) Modernization theory- A functionalist approach that proposes that modernization and
development will gradually improve the lives of people in peripheral nations.
(xxi) Objective method- A technique for measuring social class that assigns individuals to
classes on the basis of criteria such as occupation, education, income, and place of residence.
Describe Absolute poverty.
The term absolute poverty refers to a minimum level of subsistence that no family should be
expected to live below. Policies concerning minimum wages, housing standards, or school lunch
programs for the poor imply a need to bring citizens up to some predetermined level of
existence.
What is relative poverty? Describe it.
This type of poverty is a floating standard of deprivation by which people at the bottom of a
society, whatever their lifestyles, are judged to be disadvantaged in comparison with the nation
as a whole.
What are the forms/systems of Social inequality/stratification?
● Slavery – this is the most extreme form of legalized social inequality for individuals or
groups. What distinguishes this oppressive system of stratification is that enslaved
individuals are owned by other people. They treat these human beings as property, just as
if they were household pets or appliances.
● Castes – castes are hereditary systems of rank, usually religiously dictated, that tend to be
fixed and immobile. The caste system is generally associated with Hinduism in India and
other countries. In India there are four major castes, called varnas. A fifth category of
outcasts, referred to as untouchables, is considered to be as lowly and unclean as to have
no place within this system of stratification.
● Social classes – A class system is a social ranking based primarily on economic position
in which achieved characteristics can influence social mobility.
What are the types of Social mobility?
● Horizontal mobility – this is the movement of people from ones social position to another
of the same rank. E.g. An airline pilot who becomes a police officer.
● Vertical mobility – this is the movement of people from one social position to another of
a different rank. E.g. An airline pilot who becomes a lawyer.
Others
● Intergenerational mobility – this involves changes in the social position of children
relative to their parents. E.g. a plumber whose father was a physician provides an
 example of a downward intergenerational mobility. A film star whose parents were both
factory workers illustrates upward intergenerational mobility.
● Intra-generational mobility – this involves changes in social position within a person’s
adult life. E.g. A woman who enters the paid labor force as a teacher’s aide and
eventually becomes superintendent of the school district experiences upward intra-
generational mobility. A man who becomes a taxicab driver after his accounting firm
goes bankrupt undergoes downward intra-generational mobility.
What is meant by the term gendered division of labor?
When employment is divided along gender lines with some jobs considered suitable for only one
sex or only done by men or women. Or this may also be applied to positions in hierarchies.
Describe two benefits of patriarchy for men.
● Any valid example, such as
● Access to better resources,
● Education,
● Jobs,
● The services of women and
● Levels of respect in society,
● Pay/status
Explain how females may be discriminated against in paid employmentAnswers are more
likely to be based on sociological knowledge and include such concepts as the glass ceiling, dual
burden, levels of pay and status in employment in the workplace, the effects of stereotyping,
traditional expectations as well as the types of jobs undertaken by men and women.NB: answers
which describe how women can be successful are not answering the question as set.
To what extent is patriarchy the main cause of gender divisions?
At this level answers will focus directly on the question and provide some form of assessment,
although this may be basic, by perhaps referring to matriarchal societies. Not only should there
be reference made to the changing nature of female status in some societies and equal
opportunities legislation, but also changing social expectations within different societies.
Answers which consider that the status of women is always below men when other factors are
equalized or that compare gender divisions between different societies will probably be worth 8
marks.
What is meant by the term underclass?
Those to be found at the bottom of the stratification system, they have few life chances and a low
economic situation.
Describe two reasons why the underclass may experience difficulties in gaining paid
employment.
● Lack of education,
● Poor health,
 ● Undernourished,
● Wrong address,
● Discrimination,
● Seen as bad,
● Effects of long term unemployment,
● Dependency culture.
How far can the underclass be blamed for their low social position?
At this level answers will focus directly on the question and provide some form of assessment
although this may be basic. Both the view of an underclass trapped by their own actions and that
of one trapped by the structure of society will be considered.
Answers that refute the concept of an underclass and justify this award full marks.
What is meant by the term ‘poverty line’?
A level of income below which a person is said to be in poverty.
(b) Describe one example of absolute poverty and one example of relative poverty.
Absolute poverty: Not having the basics necessary for survival e.g. sufficient food or shelter.
Relative poverty: Not having what is generally believed essential to life in a society, e.g.
carpets, central heating etc. NB: things like mobile phones or internet access are acceptable as
examples if justified with reference to social exclusion.
Explain what measures governments have taken to reduce the extent of poverty
How government policy can be used to reduce poverty. Examples from the UK would include
free school meal, milk for under-fives, minimum wage and family tax credits.
Possible answers:
• Use of taxation
• Through legislation
• Through education
• Through the/a benefit systems
• Any other reasonable response.
Explain why sociologists have found it difficult to define and measure poverty.
Candidates need to show an awareness of the different measures of poverty and an understanding
of the link between definition and measurement.
Possible answers:
• Discussion of various types of poverty index
• Various measures e.g. relative, absolute etc.
• Work of various research groups like the Rowntree foundation
• Peter Townshend’s definition
• Other reasonable responses.
To what extent will children born into poor households never escape poverty?
Debate over the life chances of those born into poverty.
Possible answers:
For
• The impact of poverty on health and life expectancy
• Impact on educational achievement
• Chances of upward social mobility
• The cycle of deprivation
• The culture of poverty
• Cultural and structural explanation of poverty
• Other reasonable responses.
Against
• Meritocratic education system offering opportunity to gain good qualifications
• Democratic freedoms
• Market opportunities in capitalist system
• Any other reasonable response.
What are life chances and why do they differ?
Life chances are described as people’s opportunities to provide themselves with material goods,
positive living conditions, and favorable life experiences. Life chances are reflected in such
measures as housing, education and health. Occupying a higher position in a society improves
your life chances and brings greater access to social rewards. By contrast, people in the lower
social classes are forced to devote a larger proportion of their limited resources to the necessities
of life.
In times of danger, the affluent and powerful have a better chance of surviving than people of
ordinary means. When the supposedly unsinkable British oceanliner Titanic hit an iceberg in
1912, it was not carrying enough lifeboats to accommodate all its passengers. Plans had been
made to evacuate only first-and second-class passengers.
Class position also affects health in important ways. In fact, class is increasingly being viewed as
an important predictor of health. The affluent avail themselves of improved health services while
such advances bypass poor people. The chances of a child’s dying during the first year of life are
much higher in poor families than among the middle class.
Like disease, crime can be particularly devastating when it attacks the poor. According to some
surveys in the world, people in low-income families were more likely to be assaulted, raped, or
robbed than were the most affluent people.
What is deskilling? Describe three ways companies deskill their staff.

Family
Sociological approaches to family:
Functionalists: See family as positive for society. They believe that the nuclear family is
beneficial to society as it provides functions such as reproduction, primary socialisation and
economic support. 
New Right: See the family as negative for society, if not nuclear. They say children from
Nuclear families do better at school, get better jobs and do not turn to crime. 
Marxism: See the family as negative. Marxists believe society is based upon conflict between
classes. They believe the family helps to maintain class differences in society as the rich can give
children a better start than the poor. They believe the family socialises the working class to
accept it is fair that classes are unequal. 
Feminists: See the family as negative; they believe the family is bad for women as family
teaches patriarchal values through the teaching of gender roles during socialisation.
Changes in families in modern societies: 
1. More people living together without being married: Religion isn't so influential nowadays
so it isn't considered a sin any more to have children without being married. Divorce rates
are rising and nowadays many people decide not to remarry with their new partner. Same sex
couples were unable to marry until very recently and people are likely to trial living together
before marriage. These are all factors influencing these changes. Feminists say this is a good
thing as marriage is a patriarchal institution. Functionalists and New Right disagree as they
believe the nuclear family is the only family type that can do the job properly. 
2. More single parent families: The divorce act in 1960's made it easier to get a divorce.
There are more teenage pregnancies than in the past. The availability of in vitro fertilisation
are all factors behind these families. Functionalists are completely against these families,
they do not think a single parent can perform all the important functions of the family. 
3. More same sex families: More socially acceptable due to campaigns by gay right groups.
Gay couples are now allowed to adopt. 

Roles within the family: 

● Segregated conjugal roles: When Husband and Wife do not share household
responsibilities and childcare. They do not partake in the same leisure activities. 
● Integrated conjugal roles: Partners share common friends, leisure activity and decision
making as well as household jobs. 
Domestic division of labour: The amount of housework carried out by men and women is
referred to as domestic labour. Traditionally women were responsibly for housework and the
man was the bread winner however it is argued that times have changed and the division of
labour is symmetrical. 
Young and Willmott: argued men and women are sharing housework and childcare more
equally. The symmetrical family according to the two is...
● nuclear
● privatised
● equal
Ann Oakley; a feminist, criticised Young and Willmotts findings arguing they were
exaggerated. She believed there is no equality when it comes to conjugal roles and that females
work much harder. 
Monogamy: When someone is married to one person at a time (Main form of marriage)
Polygamy: When someone is married to more than one person.
Polygyny: When a man has several wives.
Polyandry: When a female has several husbands.

Why are families more child centred? 

● Smaller families mean more care and attention can be devoted to child
● parents work shorter hours therefore have more time to spend with children
● welfare benefits
● parents concerned about the safety of children. 
Functions of the family: 
1. Emotional support 
2. Economic support
3. physical care
4. reproduction
5. socialisation
6. social control
To what extent is there equality of roles in the family between males and females? 
Yes: joint conjugal roles
joint decision making
equal involvement in childcare/housework
No: Segregated conjugal roles
women at home
domestic violence and abuse
EXAM QUESTION: Is the family in decline? 
Yes it is: 
● Around 40% of marriage in the early 2000's will end in divorce
● In Britain today, about a quarter of families with dependent children just one one parent.
● About 40% of births are outside marriage, and the proportion in growing every year. 
● There are well over a million cohabiting couples (couple living together when they aren't
married) who have refused to get married. 
● Rising rates of divorce, cohabitation, lone parent and reconstituted families show a picture
that family is in decline. This has been blamed for a wide range of social problems such as
social disorder and crime. 
No it's not: 
● The rising divorce rate is caused by easier divorce laws, more sympathetic public attitudes,
rather than marriage breakdowns.
● Lone parenthood arises from a variety of reasons and lone parents are able to provide care
and security for children as two-parent families.
● Despite the record number of children being born outside of marriage, nearly 80% of those
births are registered jointly by parents with the same address. 
● Many of those who cohabit eventually marry - about 60% of first time cohabitations turn into
marriages. 
● The causes of these social problems all too often are blamed on the family. Those whole
blame the family are often looking for a simple solution. 
Different family types
1. Single parent families: One parent and there dependent children. 
2. Nuclear: Two parents and their dependent children. 
3. Extended: Nuclear family with additional family members such as grandparents, aunts,
uncles, etc. 
4. Blended/Reconstituted: Families with step parents and children. 
5. Empty nest: Two parents living together - child left home. 
6. Households: Group of people living together in the same place.