Sociology

Sociology is a social science on the study of the social lives of people, groups, and societies, sometimes defined as the study of social interactions. It is a relatively new academic discipline that evolved in the early 19th century. It concerns itself with the social rules and processes that bind and separate people not only as individuals, but as members of associations, groups, and institutions. Sociology is interested in our behavior as social beings; thus the sociological field of interest ranges from the analysis of short contacts between anonymous individuals on the street to the study of global social processes. In a broad sense, sociology is the scientific study of social groups, the entities through which humans move throughout their lives. There is a current trend in sociology to make it a more applied discipline for people who want to work in an applied setting like non-profits.

More reading

• Anthony Giddens, Conversations with Anthony Giddens, Polity, Cambridge, 1998. A useful introduction to core themes in classical and contemporary sociology.
• Robert A. Nisbet, The Sociological Tradition, London, Heinemann Educational Books, 1967, ISBN 1560006676
• Evan Willis, The Sociological Quest: An introduction to the study of social life, 3rd edn, New Brunswick, NJ, Rutgers University Press, 1996, ISBN 0813523672