Sociology

​Sociology- the systematic study of human societyand behavior;identified as a science discipline by the U.S. NationalScienceFoundation●Industrial Revolution- a period ranging from 1760to 1840 whenagricultural societies shifted to industrial ones; this transitionaected every aspect of life

●Population Growth Rate- measures the change in populationover aunit time period

●"Pursuit of Self"- new ideas regarding politicalrights that emergedduring the Age of Enlightenment (late 17thand early18thcenturies)

●Auguste Comte- (1798-1857) a French philosopher whocoined theterm "sociology" in 1838 and created the doctrine of positivism whichargued that understanding should be based on science; often referredto as "THE father of Sociology"

​●"The Law of Three Stages" -theory created by Auguste Comte that paved the way for the creation of Sociology that claimed the history of mankind could be broken down into three stages- theological stage, metaphysical stage, and the scientific stage

●Theological Stage- the period of history that extends from the beginning of civilization to the end of the Middle Ages (mid-1300s)when society expressed God's will; one element of Auguste Comte's" Law of Three Stages" ●Metaphysical Stage- the period of history that extends from the Renaissance of the 1400s through the mid-1500s when society was seen as a natural system rather than just a reflection of God's will ;one element of Auguste Comte's "Law of Three Stage

​●Scientific or Positivist Stage- the period of historythat began with scientists applying scientific laws to the physical world (beginning with Copernicus, Galileo and Newton) and that continued through August Comte's lifetime when scientific laws were then applied to society; one element of Auguste Comte's "Law of Three Stages"

●American Journal of Sociology -established in 1895by Albion Small ;the oldest academic journal of sociology in the United States

●American Sociological Association- a non-profit organization founded in 1905 as the American Sociological Society, currently the world's largest association of professional sociologists

​●Social Sciences- a branch of science that deals with the institutionsand functioning of human society and with the interpersonal relationships of individuals as members of society ; includes the fields of psychology, sociology, political science, communication studies ,social work, anthropology and economics

●Psychology- the science of the mind or of mental states and processes

●Political Science- the science of politics, or ofthe principles and conduct of government

​●Communication Studies- an academic field that deals with processes of human exchange of information

●Social Work- work designed to improve the social conditions in a community often through relief of poverty or the promotion of child welfare

●Anthropology- the science that deals with the origins, physical and cultural development, and social customs and beliefs of mankind

●Economics- the scientific study of the production ,distribution and consumption of goods and services

●Humanities- academic fields like literature, philosophy, art, etc. asdistinguished from the sciences

​●Scientific Method- a method of research in which a problem is identified, relevant data gathered, a hypothesis formulated and the hypothesis empirically tested

●Society- a body of individuals living as members of a community; anorganized interaction of people who typically live in a nation or some other specific territory

●Positivism- a way of understanding based on science; the world operates according to laws and intuition is rejected

●Culture- knowledge, values, customs and physical objects that are shared by members of a society

​●Sociological Perspective- the special point of viewof Sociology that sees general patterns of society in the lives of particular people

●Common Sense- sound practical judgment that is independent of specialized knowledge or training

●Sociological Imagination- the way sociologists look at the world; American sociologist C. Wright Mills coined the term in 1959 to mean" the vivid awareness of the relationship between personal experience and the wider society"

●C. Wright Mills- (1916-1962) an American sociolog is the a vilyinfluenced by Max Weber and Karl Marx's interpretations of Sociology and personally stressed that the sociologist be able to connect individual experiences and societal relationships