Scopes of Sociology | Major Scopes Of Sociology

Two major Scopes of Sociology – Most Popular scopes of Sociology

Picture for Scopes of Sociology (taken form kissclipart.com non copyright)

In order to continue the research areas and domain of investigation, the major two schools of thought have given their own opinions in order to demarcate the boundary for a comprehensive understanding of the issues. In order to systematize the boundary of research with concrete methodlogy, they have prescribed some areas for investigations.

Scope of Sociology

There are two major scopes of Sociology. They are

1. German/Specialist/Formalistic School of Thought

This school of thought was established by George Simmel and his followers Max Weber, Verkandt, Von Wiese and Tonnies. It aims to confine the areas by including social institutions, group behavior, formal social facts, social dynamics, social actions, interactions, social processes, division of labor, social structure and system along with sub-ordination. They wanted to introduce sociology as a pure understanding and independent science by encompassing limited areas.

Max Weber was of opinion that sociology should interpret social behavior through cause and effect relationships. They believed that if sociology studies the limited contents it can study the contents in depth that eventually make the sociological research more scientific interpretation. As much the area of study becomes smaller it can study the matters in a very deep way.

2.French/Synthetic/Informal School of Thought

This school of thought was founded by Emine Durkheim, one of the founders of sociology. His followers were Ginsberg, Hob House, and P.A. Sorokin. They were not satisfied with the view of the German school of thought and their view towards making sociology as a pure understanding by encompassing limited contents and making the scope narrow and superficial.

They came to the conclusion that sociology should be encyclopedic in character. sociology should include all types of social phenomena that exist in society. According to them, sociological contents can be of vivid, bizarre, formal and informal as well but the perspectives, tools, techniques, and methodology should be appropriate and adequate that makes researchers’ argument more persuasive, convincing, rational and trustworthy.