Introduction to sociology – Frank van Tubergen
Part 1 Thinking like a sociologist
Chapter 1 - Questions
Sociology looks at how people’s behavior is shaped by the social groups and
environments they live in. This is different from only looking at one person on their
own.
The sociological view can add to, replace, or explain deeper causes than the
individual view.
People live in shared social settings, for example:
o Micro level: individuals
o Meso level: families, schools, neighborhoods
o Macro level: countries, cultures, societies
Social problems are problems that affect many people, not just one person.
Sociologists study these problems in a scientific way, they look at patterns and causes
instead of opinions.
Instead of asking “What is right or wrong?”, sociologists ask scientific questions like:
o Descriptive: What is happening?
o Theoretical: Why is it happening?
o Application: How can we use this knowledge?
If a question is unclear, sociologists make it more specific by breaking it down.
A question becomes more important if it connects to society (real-world impact)
or science (adds to research).
There are private sociologists (who use sociology in jobs or organizations)
and academic sociologists (who do research and teach).
Sociology builds on earlier studies, every new study adds to what is already known.
Key concepts
1. Individual perspective: Looking at behavior by focusing only on one person — their
choices, personality, or feelings.
2. Social context: The environment around people — like their family, school, culture, or
society — that influences what they do.
3. Sociological imagination: The ability to see how personal problems are connected to
bigger social issues.
(Example: Losing your job may not be just your fault — it could be because of the economy.)
4. Sociological perspective: Seeing the world by understanding how society shapes people’s
actions and beliefs.
5. Social phenomenon: Any pattern in society that can be studied — like crime, poverty, or
education.
,6. Proximate causes: The direct or immediate reasons something happens.
(Example: You skipped breakfast → you’re hungry.)
7. Ultimate causes: The deeper or underlying reasons behind something.
(Example: You skip breakfast because you have no time — maybe society values busyness too
much.)
8. Micro, meso, macro level
Micro: individuals (e.g., one person’s behavior)
Meso: small groups (e.g., families, schools, communities)
Macro: large systems (e.g., countries, cultures, economy)
9. Social problem: A situation that affects many people and society wants to change — like
inequality or pollution.
10. Public issue: A problem that affects many people in society.
(Example: high unemployment rate.)
11. Personal trouble: A problem that affects one person.
(Example: one person losing their job.)
12. Social intervention: An action or program designed to solve or improve a social problem.
(Example: anti-bullying projects in schools.)
13. Societal relevance: When research or a question is important for society — it helps solve
real-life problems.
14. Normative question: A question about what is good, bad, or should be done.
(Example: Should the government help poor people?)
15. Scientific question: A question that can be answered with facts, data, and research — not
opinions. (Example: How many people live in poverty?)
16. Descriptive question: Asks what is happening.
(Example: What is the unemployment rate?)
17. Theoretical question: Asks why something is happening.
(Example: Why are more young people unemployed?)
18. Application question: Asks how we can use sociological knowledge.
(Example: How can we reduce youth unemployment?)
19. Precise question: A clear and specific question that is easy to study and measure.
20. Ill-defined question: A vague question that is too broad or unclear.
(Example: Why is society bad? → too unclear.)
21. Question ingredients: Parts that make a good research question, such as: who, what,
when, where, and why.
,22. Scientific relevance: When a question or study adds new knowledge to science — helps
researchers learn more.
23. Literature review: A summary of what other researchers have already found about your
topic.
24. False theoretical question: A question that sounds like theory but can’t really be tested or
explained scientifically.
25. Comparative-case question: A question that compares two or more groups, countries, or
cases. (Example: Why is crime higher in country A than in country B?)
26. Common sense: Everyday knowledge or beliefs that people think are true — but not
always based on facts.
27. Private sociologists: People who use sociology in jobs or organizations (e.g., policy
advisors, consultants).
28. Academic sociology: Sociologists who work at universities — they teach and do research.
29. Cumulative science: A science that builds on earlier studies — each study adds new
knowledge to what we already know.
30. Background knowledge: What you already know about a topic before you start studying
it — helps you understand new information.
, Chapter 2 - Theories
Why do sociologists use theories?
Sociologists make theories to explain why something happens in society (social phenomena).
A theory is a group of connected ideas and assumptions that explain how certain things in
society work and can predict what might happen in the future.
How do we know if a theory is useful? There are two main things to look at:
Truth (empirical success): How well does the theory match real facts or data?
Information (information content): How much does the theory help us understand
or explain?
The more true and informative a theory is, the more useful it is.
What makes a theory strong? A theory is stronger when:
It is precise (clear and detailed), and
It has a broad scope (it can explain many different things).
A deeper or more general theory can explain smaller theories by showing when and where
they apply.
What are concepts? Concepts are the basic building blocks of a theory.
They are ideas or categories we use to describe something — for example, “social class,”
“integration,” or “education.”
There’s a difference between:
Theoretical variables: the idea (like “social status”), and
Measurement variables: how we measure it (like “income in euros per month”).
What is causality (cause and effect)? If we want to say that X causes Y, we must show three
things:
1. Connection: X and Y change together.
2. Time order: X happens before Y.
3. No other cause: The change in Y is really because of X, not something else (non-
spuriousness).
(Example: If we think studying more (X) causes higher grades (Y), we must show that
studying comes first and not that both are caused by something else like motivation.)
A conceptual model shows how different ideas or variables are connected.
There are different types of relationships:
Direct: X → Y
Mediation: X affects Y through another variable (X → Z → Y)
Moderation/Interaction: The effect of X on Y depends on another variable.
Bidirectional/Feedback: X and Y influence each other.
Part 1 Thinking like a sociologist
Chapter 1 - Questions
Sociology looks at how people’s behavior is shaped by the social groups and
environments they live in. This is different from only looking at one person on their
own.
The sociological view can add to, replace, or explain deeper causes than the
individual view.
People live in shared social settings, for example:
o Micro level: individuals
o Meso level: families, schools, neighborhoods
o Macro level: countries, cultures, societies
Social problems are problems that affect many people, not just one person.
Sociologists study these problems in a scientific way, they look at patterns and causes
instead of opinions.
Instead of asking “What is right or wrong?”, sociologists ask scientific questions like:
o Descriptive: What is happening?
o Theoretical: Why is it happening?
o Application: How can we use this knowledge?
If a question is unclear, sociologists make it more specific by breaking it down.
A question becomes more important if it connects to society (real-world impact)
or science (adds to research).
There are private sociologists (who use sociology in jobs or organizations)
and academic sociologists (who do research and teach).
Sociology builds on earlier studies, every new study adds to what is already known.
Key concepts
1. Individual perspective: Looking at behavior by focusing only on one person — their
choices, personality, or feelings.
2. Social context: The environment around people — like their family, school, culture, or
society — that influences what they do.
3. Sociological imagination: The ability to see how personal problems are connected to
bigger social issues.
(Example: Losing your job may not be just your fault — it could be because of the economy.)
4. Sociological perspective: Seeing the world by understanding how society shapes people’s
actions and beliefs.
5. Social phenomenon: Any pattern in society that can be studied — like crime, poverty, or
education.
,6. Proximate causes: The direct or immediate reasons something happens.
(Example: You skipped breakfast → you’re hungry.)
7. Ultimate causes: The deeper or underlying reasons behind something.
(Example: You skip breakfast because you have no time — maybe society values busyness too
much.)
8. Micro, meso, macro level
Micro: individuals (e.g., one person’s behavior)
Meso: small groups (e.g., families, schools, communities)
Macro: large systems (e.g., countries, cultures, economy)
9. Social problem: A situation that affects many people and society wants to change — like
inequality or pollution.
10. Public issue: A problem that affects many people in society.
(Example: high unemployment rate.)
11. Personal trouble: A problem that affects one person.
(Example: one person losing their job.)
12. Social intervention: An action or program designed to solve or improve a social problem.
(Example: anti-bullying projects in schools.)
13. Societal relevance: When research or a question is important for society — it helps solve
real-life problems.
14. Normative question: A question about what is good, bad, or should be done.
(Example: Should the government help poor people?)
15. Scientific question: A question that can be answered with facts, data, and research — not
opinions. (Example: How many people live in poverty?)
16. Descriptive question: Asks what is happening.
(Example: What is the unemployment rate?)
17. Theoretical question: Asks why something is happening.
(Example: Why are more young people unemployed?)
18. Application question: Asks how we can use sociological knowledge.
(Example: How can we reduce youth unemployment?)
19. Precise question: A clear and specific question that is easy to study and measure.
20. Ill-defined question: A vague question that is too broad or unclear.
(Example: Why is society bad? → too unclear.)
21. Question ingredients: Parts that make a good research question, such as: who, what,
when, where, and why.
,22. Scientific relevance: When a question or study adds new knowledge to science — helps
researchers learn more.
23. Literature review: A summary of what other researchers have already found about your
topic.
24. False theoretical question: A question that sounds like theory but can’t really be tested or
explained scientifically.
25. Comparative-case question: A question that compares two or more groups, countries, or
cases. (Example: Why is crime higher in country A than in country B?)
26. Common sense: Everyday knowledge or beliefs that people think are true — but not
always based on facts.
27. Private sociologists: People who use sociology in jobs or organizations (e.g., policy
advisors, consultants).
28. Academic sociology: Sociologists who work at universities — they teach and do research.
29. Cumulative science: A science that builds on earlier studies — each study adds new
knowledge to what we already know.
30. Background knowledge: What you already know about a topic before you start studying
it — helps you understand new information.
, Chapter 2 - Theories
Why do sociologists use theories?
Sociologists make theories to explain why something happens in society (social phenomena).
A theory is a group of connected ideas and assumptions that explain how certain things in
society work and can predict what might happen in the future.
How do we know if a theory is useful? There are two main things to look at:
Truth (empirical success): How well does the theory match real facts or data?
Information (information content): How much does the theory help us understand
or explain?
The more true and informative a theory is, the more useful it is.
What makes a theory strong? A theory is stronger when:
It is precise (clear and detailed), and
It has a broad scope (it can explain many different things).
A deeper or more general theory can explain smaller theories by showing when and where
they apply.
What are concepts? Concepts are the basic building blocks of a theory.
They are ideas or categories we use to describe something — for example, “social class,”
“integration,” or “education.”
There’s a difference between:
Theoretical variables: the idea (like “social status”), and
Measurement variables: how we measure it (like “income in euros per month”).
What is causality (cause and effect)? If we want to say that X causes Y, we must show three
things:
1. Connection: X and Y change together.
2. Time order: X happens before Y.
3. No other cause: The change in Y is really because of X, not something else (non-
spuriousness).
(Example: If we think studying more (X) causes higher grades (Y), we must show that
studying comes first and not that both are caused by something else like motivation.)
A conceptual model shows how different ideas or variables are connected.
There are different types of relationships:
Direct: X → Y
Mediation: X affects Y through another variable (X → Z → Y)
Moderation/Interaction: The effect of X on Y depends on another variable.
Bidirectional/Feedback: X and Y influence each other.
