Consider an anthropologist who studies garbage. He examines what people discard to understand what kind of lives they lead (Bond 2010). Anthropology is the study of humanity in its broadest context. It is closely related to sociology, and the two areas have common historical roots and sometimes overlapping methodologies and subject matter. However, anthropologists have different specialties in four major subfields within anthropology: physical anthropology (which is related to biology), archaeology, linguistics, and cultural anthropology (sometimes called ethnology). This last field has the most in common with sociology. Cultural anthropologists study the culture, or way of life, of a society.
A psychologist may wire research subjects to a machine that measures their physiological reaction to a violent film clip and then ask them questions about what they were feeling. Psychology is the study of individual behavior and mental processes (e.g., sensation, perception, memory, and thought processes). It differs from sociology in that it focuses on individuals rather than on groups, institutions, and societies. Although there are different branches of psychology, most psychologists are concerned with individual motivations, personality attributes, attitudes, perceptions, abnormal behavior, mental disorders, and the stages of normal human development.
▲ Anthropologists can learn about a society by studying what it throws away. Consider this picture of children rummaging through a garbage dump in India just to survive. What do you think they would learn about you from your garbage?
© Dbimages/Alamy Stock Photo
A political scientist studies opinion poll results to predict who will win the next election, how various groups of people are likely to vote, or how elected officials will vote on proposed legislation. Political science is concerned with government systems and power—how they work, how they are organized, the forms of government, relations among governments, who holds power and how they obtain it, how power is used, and who is politically active (Domhoff 2018). Political science overlaps with sociology, particularly in the study of political theory and the nature and uses of power.
Many economists study the banking system and market trends to try to predict trends and understand the global economy. Economists analyze economic conditions and explore how people organize, produce, and distribute material goods. They are interested in supply and demand, inflation and taxes, prices and manufacturing output, labor organization, employment levels, and comparisons between postindustrial, industrial, and nonindustrial nations.
What these social sciences—sociology, anthropology, psychology, political science, and economics—have in common is that they study aspects of human behavior and social life. Social sciences share many common topics, methods, concepts, research findings, and theories, but each has a different focus or perspective on the social world. Each of these social science studies relates to topics also studied by sociologists, but sociologists focus on human interaction, groups, and social structure, providing the broadest overview of the social world.
Thinking Sociologically
Consider the issue of unemployment in the United States. What is one question in each discipline that an anthropologist, psychologist, political scientist, economist, and sociologist might ask about the social issue of unemployment?
Why Does Sociology Matter?
Sociology helps us to understand our relationships with other people; it can inform social policy decisions; and we can use skills developed through sociology in a wide range of career fields.
Why Study Sociology?
The sociological perspective helps us to be more effective as we carry out our roles as life partners, workers, friends, family members, and citizens. For example, an employee who has studied sociology may better understand how to work with groups and how the structure of the workplace affects individual behavior, how to approach problem-solving, and how to collect and analyze data. Likewise, a schoolteacher trained in sociology may have a better understanding of classroom management, student motivation, the causes of poor student learning that have roots outside the school, and why students drop out. Consider the example in the following Sociology in Our Social World feature, which explores who drops out, why, the consequences of dropping out, and other variables that shape the professional life of teachers and academic success of students.
Sociology in Our Social World
High School Dropouts: Causes, Consequences, and Cures
“Cesar entered Hacienda Middle School in the Los Angeles School District in the sixth grade. He lived with his mother and three younger siblings in a garage that was divided into sleeping quarters and a makeshift kitchen with no running water. His mother, who spoke only Spanish, supported the family by working long hours at a minimum-wage job” (Rumberger 2011:1). Because Cesar missed lots of school and did not complete assignments, he failed the first quarter. However, a dropout prevention program helped him begin to pass courses. By eighth grade peer pressure and gangs became part of his life. He was involved in a fight in school and was “transferred”—but stopped going to school. Cesar became a dropout (Rumberger 2011).
Sociologists studying education look for causes and results of students dropping out versus staying in school. Dropouts are defined as “16- through 24-year-olds who are not enrolled in school and have not earned a high school credential (either a diploma or an equivalency credential such as a GED certificate)” (National Center for Education Statistics 2017a). The percentage of high school dropouts has decreased from 12% in 1990 to approximately 6% in 2017. The decline for White students was from 9% to 5%, for Blacks from 13% to 7%, and for Hispanics from 32% to 12%. This narrowed the gap between White and Hispanic students by 23% (McFarland, Stark, and Cui 2018; U.S. Department of Education 2015). The U.S. dropout rate is currently at an all-time low due to improvements in graduation rates to 84.1% overall and lower dropout rates for students of color, low-income students, English language learners, and students with disabilities (America’s Promise Alliance 2018).
Yet sociologists, educators, parents, and policymakers, among others, are concerned about dropout rates because of economic factors—dropouts have difficulty finding jobs, pay fewer taxes, and often receive public assistance. If they do find a job, they earn about $8,000 a year less than high school graduates and $26,500 a year less than college graduates (Alliance for Excellent Education 2018). Unemployment rates for dropouts are 7.7% compared to 2.5% for college graduates (Bureau of Labor Statistics 2017c). Dropouts have poorer health, use more health services, and die younger. They also are more likely to engage in criminal behavior and spend time in prison. They are less likely to vote or be engaged in civic activities. Dropouts cost the nation an estimated $1.8 billion every year in lost tax revenue alone (“High School Dropouts Cost $1.8 Billion Every Year” 2013).
Why do students drop out? A few reasons stand out:
High rates of absenteeism
Low levels of school engagement
Low parental education
Work or family responsibilities
Problematic/deviant behavior
Moving to a new school in ninth grade
Attending school with lower achievement scores (Child Trends 2013b)
Sociologists and others propose many solutions for the dropout problem. Dropout counselors can identify students at risk and work with them, finding programs and curricula suited to their needs. Schools designed for at-risk students attempt to address issues in the students’ lives such as living situations, poverty, poor health, lack of nutrition, gang membership, and other barriers