Social Sciences is the field of sciences concerned with the studies of the social life of human groups and individuals, including economics, geography, history, political science, psychology, social studies, and sociology. Science (from the Latin scientia, meaning " Knowledge " or "knowing" is the effort to discover, and increase human understanding Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Geography (from Greek γεωγραφία - geografia) is the study of the Earth and its lands features inhabitants and phenomena History is the study of the past particularly the written record Those who study history as a Profession are called Historians Etymology Political science is a branch of Social sciences that deals with the theory and practice of Politics and the description and analysis of Political systems Psychology (from Greek grc ψῡχή psȳkhē, "breath life soul" and grc -λογία -logia) is an Academic and Social Studies is a term used to describe the broad study of the various fields which involve past and current human behavior and interactions Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" [1]
In studying subjective, inter-subjective and objective or structural aspects of society, are traditionally referred to as soft sciences. Soft science is a colloquial term often used for Academic Research or Scholarship which is purportedly "scientific" however it is not based [2] This is in contrast to hard sciences, such as the natural sciences, which may focus exclusively on objective aspects of nature. Hard science is a term used to describe Natural sciences and Physical sciences as distinct from Social science. In Science, the term natural science refers to a naturalistic approach to the study of the Universe, which is understood as obeying rules or law of Nowadays, however, according to proponents of this view, the distinction between the hard sciences and many of the so-called soft sciences is blurred.
Currently, it is a matter of fact that some social science subfields have become very quantitative in methodology. Conversely, the interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary nature of scientific inquiry into human behavior and social and environmental factors affecting it have made many of the so-called hard sciences interested on some aspects of social science methodology. [3] Examples of boundary blurring include emerging disciplines like social studies of medicine, sociobiology, neuropsychology, bioeconomics and the history and sociology of science. Medicine is the art and science of healing It encompasses a range of Health care practices evolved to maintain and restore Human Health by the Sociobiology is a neo-Darwinian and Socialism Synthesis of Scientific disciplines that attempts to explain Social behavior Neuropsychology is the applied scientific discipline that studies the structure and function of the Brain related to specific psychological processes and overt behaviors Bioeconomics is the study of the dynamics of living resources using economic models Science is a body of empirical, theoretical, and practical knowledge about the natural world, produced by a global community of researchers Sociology of science is the subfield of Sociology that deals with the practice of Science. Increasingly, quantitative and qualitative methods are being integrated in the study of human action and its implications and consequences.
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History of the social sciences
The word "science" is older than its modern use, which is as a short-form for "natural science". For more see Social sciences#History of the social sciences In ancient philosophy there was no difference between the Liberal arts of mathematics Uses of the word "science", in contexts other than those of th organized body of knowledge which can be taught objectively. The use of the word "science" is not therefore always an attempt to claim that the subject in question ought to stand on the same footing of inquiry as a natural science.
Ancient Greece
- See also: Ancient Greece
In ancient philosophy, there was no difference between mathematics and the study of history, poetry or politics. The term ancient Greece refers to the period of Greek history lasting from the Greek Dark Ages ca This page lists some links to ancient philosophy. In Western philosophy, the spread of Christianity through the Roman Empire marked the end of Hellenistic Mathematics is the body of Knowledge and Academic discipline that studies such concepts as Quantity, Structure, Space and History is the study of the past particularly the written record Those who study history as a Profession are called Historians Etymology Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions Only with the development of mathematical proof did there gradually arise a perceived difference between "scientific" disciplines and others, the "humanities" or the liberal arts. In Mathematics, a proof is a convincing demonstration (within the accepted standards of the field that some Mathematical statement is necessarily true The term liberal arts refers to a particular type of educational Curriculum broadly defined as a Classical education. Thus, Aristotle studied planetary motion and poetry with the same methods, and Plato mixes geometrical proofs with his demonstration on the state of intrinsic knowledge. Aristotle (Greek Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC was a Greek philosopher a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. In Physics, an orbit is the gravitationally curved path of one object around a point or another body for example the gravitational orbit of a planet around a star Biography Early life Birth and family Plato was born in Athens Greece Geometry ( Greek γεωμετρία; geo = earth metria = measure is a part of Mathematics concerned with questions of size shape and relative position
Islamic civilization
- Further information: Islamic economics in the world, Islamic psychology, and Historiography of early Islam
Significant contributions to the social sciences were made by Muslim scientists in the Islamic civilization. Islamic Sociology is a discipline of Islamic studies and the Social sciences. This is a sub-article of Islamic economic jurisprudence and Muslim world. The Historiography of early Islam refers to the study of the early origins of Islam based on a critical analysis evaluation and examination of authentic Primary Al-Biruni (973–1048) has been "the first anthropologist". Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of [4] He wrote detailed comparative studies on the anthropology of peoples, religions and cultures in the Middle East, Mediterranean and South Asia. Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of The Middle East is a Subcontinent with no clear boundaries often used as a synonym to Near East, in opposition to Far East. The Mediterranean Basin refers to the lands around and surrounded by the Mediterranean Sea. Al-Biruni's anthropology of religion was only possible for a scholar deeply immersed in the lore of other nations. [5] Biruni has also been praised by several scholars for his Islamic anthropology). For other meanings including people named 'Islam' see Islam (disambiguation. [6]
Ibn Khaldun (1332–1406) is regarded as the father of demography,[7] historiography,[8] the philosophy of history,[9] sociology,[7][9] and the social sciences,[10] and is viewed as one of the forerunners of modern economics. Ibn Khaldūn or Ibn Khaldoun (full name أبو زيد عبد الرحمن بن محمد بن خلدون,, ( May 27, 1332 AD/732 AH &ndash March 19 Demography is the statistical study of all Populations. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic population that is one that changes over Philosophy of history or historiosophy is an area of Philosophy concerning the eventual significance if any of human History. Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. He is best known for his Muqaddimah (Prolegomenon in Greek). The Muqaddimah, or the Muqaddimah of Ibn Khaldun ( Arabic: ar مقدّمة ابن خلدون Amazigh: Tazwarit n Ibn Xldun Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly
European enlightenment
- See also: Age of Enlightenment
During the European Age of Enlightenment, this unity of science as descriptive remains, for example, in the time of Thomas Hobbes who argued that deductive reasoning from axioms created a scientific framework, and hence his Leviathan was a scientific description of a political commonwealth. The Age of Enlightenment or The Enlightenment is a term used to describe a phase in Western philosophy and cultural life centered upon the eighteenth century The Age of Enlightenment or The Enlightenment is a term used to describe a phase in Western philosophy and cultural life centered upon the eighteenth century Thomas Hobbes (born 5 April 1588died 4 December 1679 was an English philosopher, whose famous 1651 book Leviathan established the foundation Deductive reasoning is Reasoning which uses deductive Arguments to move from given statements ( Premises to Conclusions which must be true if the In traditional Logic, an axiom or postulate is a proposition that is not proved or demonstrated but considered to be either self-evident, or subject Leviathan or The Matter Forme and Power of a Common Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil, commonly called Leviathan, is a book written by Thomas The English noun commonwealth dates from the fifteenth century. What would happen within decades of his work was a revolution in what constituted "science", particularly the work of Isaac Newton in physics. Sir Isaac Newton, FRS (ˈnjuːtən 4 January 1643 31 March 1727) Biography Early years See also Isaac Newton's early life and achievements Newton, by revolutionizing what was then called "natural philosophy", changed the basic framework by which individuals understood what was "scientific".
While he was merely the archetype of an accelerating trend, the important distinction is that for Newton, the mathematical flowed from a presumed reality independent of the observer, and working by its own rules. Reality, in everyday usage means "the state of things as they actually exist" For philosophers of the same period, mathematical expression of philosophical ideals was taken to be symbolic of natural human relationships as well: the same laws moved physical and spiritual realities. For examples see Blaise Pascal, Gottfried Leibniz and Johannes Kepler, each of whom took mathematical examples as models for human behavior directly. Blaise Pascal (blɛz paskal (June 19 1623 &ndash August 19 1662 was a French Mathematician, Physicist, and religious Philosopher Johannes Kepler (ˈkɛplɚ ( December 27 1571 &ndash November 15 1630) was a German Mathematician, Astronomer In Pascal's case, the famous wager; for Leibniz, the invention of binary computation; and for Kepler, the intervention of angels to guide the planets. Pascal's Wager (or Pascal's Gambit) is a suggestion posed by the French Philosopher Blaise Pascal that even though the Existence of God The binary numeral system, or base-2 number system, is a Numeral system that represents numeric values using two symbols usually 0 and 1. An angel is a Spiritual Supernatural being found in many Religions Although the nature of angels and the tasks given to them vary from tradition to tradition A planet, as defined by the International Astronomical Union (IAU is a celestial body Orbiting a Star or stellar remnant that is
In the realm of other disciplines, this created a pressure to express ideas in the form of mathematical relationships. Such relationships, called "Laws" after the usage of the time (see philosophy of science) became the model which other disciplines would emulate. Philosophy of science is the study of assumptions foundations and implications of Science.
Nineteenth century
- See also: Nineteenth century
The term "social science" first appeared in the 1824 book An Inquiry into the Principles of the Distribution of Wealth Most Conducive to Human Happiness; applied to the Newly Proposed System of Voluntary Equality of Wealth by William Thompson (1775–1833). The 19th century of the Common Era began on January 1, 1801 and ended on December 31, 1900, according to the Gregorian calendar William Thompson (1775 &ndash 28 March 1833 Rosscarbery, Co Cork was an Irish political and philosophical Writer and Auguste Comte (1797–1857) argued that ideas pass through three rising stages, theological, philosophical and scientific. Auguste Comte (full name Isidore Marie Auguste François Xavier Comte; 17 January 1798 – 5 September 1857 was a French thinker who is generally credited for having Theology is the study of a god or the gods from a religious perspective Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language Science (from the Latin scientia, meaning " Knowledge " or "knowing" is the effort to discover, and increase human understanding He defined the difference as the first being rooted in assumption, the second in critical thinking, and the third in positive observation. Critical thinking consists of mental processes of discernment, Analysis and Evaluation. This framework, still rejected by many, encapsulates the thinking which was to push economic study from being a descriptive to a mathematically based discipline. An economy is the realized social system of production exchange distribution and consumption of goods and services of a country or other area Karl Marx was one of the first writers to claim that his methods of research represented a scientific view of history in this model. Science (from the Latin scientia, meaning " Knowledge " or "knowing" is the effort to discover, and increase human understanding
With the late 19th century, attempts to apply equations to statements about human behavior became increasingly common. For the Björk song see Human Behaviour Human behavior is the collection of Behaviors exhibited by Human beings and influenced by Among the first were the "Laws" of philology, which attempted to map the change over time of sounds in a language. See Comparative linguistics for the narrower field of "comparative philology" A language is a dynamic set of visual auditory or tactile Symbols of Communication and the elements used to manipulate them
It was with the work of Charles Darwin that the descriptive version of social theory received another shock. Charles Robert Darwin (February 12 1809 &ndash April 19 1882 was an English naturalist, who realised and demonstrated that all Species of life Social theory is an essential tool used by scholars in the analysis of society through the use of theoretical frameworks social structures and phenomena are analyzed and placed in context Biology had, seemingly, resisted mathematical study, and yet the theory of natural selection and the implied idea of genetic inheritance - later found to have been enunciated by Gregor Mendel, seemed to point in the direction of a scientific biology based, like physics and chemistry, on mathematical relationships. Foundations of modern biology There are five unifying principles Natural selection is the process by which favorable Heritable traits become more common in successive Generations of a Population of Gregor Johann Mendel ( July 20, 1822 &ndash January 6, 1884) was Physics (Greek Physis - φύσις in everyday terms is the Science of Matter and its motion. Chemistry (from Egyptian kēme (chem meaning "earth") is the Science concerned with the composition structure and properties
Twentieth century
- See also: Twentieth century
In the first half of the 20th century, statistics became a free-standing discipline of applied mathematics. The twentieth century of the Common Era began on Statistics is a mathematical science pertaining to the collection analysis interpretation or explanation and presentation of Data. Applied mathematics is a branch of Mathematics that concerns itself with the mathematical techniques typically used in the application of mathematical knowledge to other domains Statistical methods were used confidently, for example in an increasingly statistical view of biology.
The first thinkers to attempt to combine inquiry of the type they saw in Darwin with exploration of human relationships, which, evolutionary theory implied, would be based on selective forces, were Freud in Austria and William James in the United States. eVolution is the third Album by eLDee, it was due to be released in 2008 Sigmund Freud (ˈziːkmʊnt ˈfʁɔʏt born Sigismund Shlomo Freud (May 6 1856 &ndash September 23 1939 was an Austrian Psychiatrist who founded For other people named William James see William James (disambiguation William James (January 11 1842 – August 26 1910 was a pioneering The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Freud's theory of the functioning of the mind, and James' work on experimental psychology would have enormous impact on those that followed. MIND ( Moving In New Directions) (est 1975 is an alternative education high school in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Psychology (from Greek grc ψῡχή psȳkhē, "breath life soul" and grc -λογία -logia) is an Academic and Freud, in particular, created a framework which would appeal not only to those studying psychology, but artists and writers as well.
One of the most persuasive advocates for the view of scientific treatment of philosophy would be John Dewey (1859–1952). John Dewey (October 20 1859 &ndash June 1 1952 was an American Philosopher, Psychologist, and educational reformer, whose thoughts and ideas have He began, as Marx did, in an attempt to weld Hegelian idealism and logic to experimental science, for example in his Psychology of 1887. In Western civilization, Idealism is the philosophy which maintains that the Ultimate nature of reality is ideal or based upon ideas values essences The so-called Logic is the study of the principles of valid demonstration and Inference. However, he abandoned Hegelian constructs. Influenced by both Charles Sanders Peirce and William James, he joined the movement in America called pragmatism. Charles Sanders Peirce (pronounced purse) (September 10 1839 &ndash April 19 1914 was an American Logician mathematician, philosopher For other people named William James see William James (disambiguation William James (January 11 1842 – August 26 1910 was a pioneering Pragmatism generally considered to have originated in the late nineteenth century with Charles Peirce, who first stated the Pragmatic maxim. He then formulated his basic doctrine, enunciated in essays such as "The Influence of Darwin on Philosophy" (1910).
This idea, based on his theory of how organisms respond, states that there are three phases to the process of inquiry:
- Problematic Situation, where the typical response is inadequate.
- Isolation of Data or subject matter.
- Reflective, which is tested empirically.
With the rise of the idea of quantitative measurement in the physical sciences, for example Lord Rutherford's famous maxim that any knowledge that one cannot measure numerically "is a poor sort of knowledge", the stage was set for the conception of the humanities as being precursors to "social science. Ernest Rutherford 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, OM, PC, FRS (30 August 1871 – 19 October 1937 was a New Zealand Physicist "
This change was not, and is not, without its detractors, both inside of academia and outside. The range of critiques begin from those who believe that the physical sciences are qualitatively different from social sciences, through those who do not believe in statistical science of any kind, through those who disagree with the methodology and kinds of conclusion of social science, to those who believe the entire framework of scientificizing these disciplines is solely, or mostly, from a desire for prestige and to alienate the public. Physical science is an encompassing term for the branches of Natural science and Science that study non-living systems in contrast to the biological sciences Methodology (also called manner) is defined as "the analysis of the principles of methods rules and postulates employed by a discipline"
In 1924, prominent social scientists established the Pi Gamma Mu honor society for the social sciences. 'Pi Gamma Mu' or ΠΓΜ (from Πολιτικές Γνώσεως Μάθεται) is the oldest and preeminent Honor society in the Social sciences Among its key objectives were to promote interdisciplinary cooperation and develop an integrated theory of human personality and organization. Toward these ends, a journal for interdisciplinary scholarship in the various social sciences and lectureship grants were established.
Rise
Theodore Porter argued in The Rise of Statistical Thinking that the effort to provide a synthetic social science is a matter of both administration and discovery combined, and that the rise of social science was, therefore, marked by both pragmatic needs as much as by theoretical purity. Theodore M Porter is a professor who specializes in the history of science in the Department of History at UCLA. An example of this is the rise of the concept of Intelligence Quotient, or IQ. An Intelligence Quotient or IQ is a score derived from one of several different Standardized tests attempting to measure Intelligence. It is unclear precisely what is being measured, but the measurement is useful in that it predicts success in various endeavors.
The rise of industrialism had created a series of social, economic, and political problems, particularly in managing supply and demand in their political economy, the management of resources for military and developmental use, the creation of mass education systems to train individuals in symbolic reasoning and problems in managing the effects of industrialization itself. The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture manufacturing and transportation had a profound effect on the Definition In the absence of agreement about its meaning the term "social" is used in many different senses referring among other things to attitudes An economy is the realized social system of production exchange distribution and consumption of goods and services of a country or other area Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions In Organizational studies, resource management is the efficient and effective deployment of an organization's resources when they are needed A military is an Organization authorized by its Nation to use force usually including use of Weapons in defending its Country (or by attacking This is a list of articles on Education organized by country A Education in Afghanistan Education in Albania is a process of social and economic change whereby a human group is transformed from a Pre-industrial society into an industrial one The perceived senselessness of the "Great War" as it was then called, of 1914–18, now called World War I, based in what were perceived to be "emotional" and "irrational" decisions, provided an immediate impetus for a form of decision making that was more "scientific" and easier to manage. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Simply put, to manage the new multi-national enterprises, private and governmental, required more data. More data required a means of reducing it to information upon which to make decisions. Numbers and charts could be interpreted more quickly and moved more efficiently than long texts. Conversely, the interdisciplinary and cross-disciplinary nature of scientific inquiry into human behavior and social and environmental factors affecting it have made many of the so-called hard sciences dependent on social science methodology. Examples of boundary blurring include emerging disciplines like social studies of medicine, neuropsychology, bioeconomics and the history and sociology of science. Medicine is the art and science of healing It encompasses a range of Health care practices evolved to maintain and restore Human Health by the Neuropsychology is the applied scientific discipline that studies the structure and function of the Brain related to specific psychological processes and overt behaviors Bioeconomics is the study of the dynamics of living resources using economic models Increasingly, quantitative and qualitative methods are being integrated in the study of human action and its implications and consequences.
In the 1930s this new model of managing decision making became cemented with the New Deal in the US, and in Europe with the increasing need to manage industrial production and governmental affairs. The New Deal was the name that United States President Franklin D Institutions such as The New School for Social Research, International Institute of Social History, and departments of "social research" at prestigious universities were meant to fill the growing demand for individuals who could quantify human interactions and produce models for decision making on this basis. This is about the university in New York; for other uses see New School (disambiguation. The International Institute of Social History ( Dutch: Internationaal Instituut voor Sociale Geschiedenis, abbreviation IISG) is a historical
Coupled with this pragmatic need was the belief that the clarity and simplicity of mathematical expression avoided systematic errors of holistic thinking and logic rooted in traditional argument. This trend, part of the larger movement known as modernism provided the rhetorical edge for the expansion of social sciences. Modernism describes an array of Cultural movements rooted in the changes in Western society in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century
Present state
There continues to be little movement toward consensus on what methodology might have the power and refinement to connect a proposed "grand theory" with the various midrange theories which, with considerable success, continue to provide usable frameworks for massive, growing data banks. See consilience. Consilience, or the unity of knowledge (literally a "jumping together" of knowledge has its roots in the ancient Greek concept of an Intrinsic
Studying Social Science
Universities throughout the world consider the study of the social sciences as vital for the future of society, and most cater for many degrees in the multiplicity of social science fields.
The Bachelor of Social Science BSocSc or B. The academic undergraduate degree of Bachelor of Social Science (commonly abbreviated as B The academic undergraduate degree of Bachelor of Social Science (commonly abbreviated as B Soc. Sc is a degree targeted at the social sciences in particular, it is often more flexable and in-depth than other degree's which also include social science subjects. The Bachelor of Social Science can be studied at The University of Waikato, Hamilton, New Zealand, The University of Hong Kong, The University of Manchester, Manchester, England and Lincon University, Christchurch, New Zealand. The academic undergraduate degree of Bachelor of Social Science (commonly abbreviated as B The University of Waikato ( Te Whare Wānanga o Waikato) is located in Hamilton and Tauranga, New Zealand, and was established in 1964 New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island The University of Manchester is a " red brick " civic University located in Manchester, England. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Christchurch (Ōtautahi The largest City in the South Island, it is also the second largest city and third largest urban area of New Zealand New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island
Social science Sub-branches
Anthropology
Anthropology is the holistic discipline that deals with the integration of different aspects of the Social Sciences, Humanities, and Human Biology. Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of The humanities are academic disciplines which study the Human condition, using methods that are primarily Analytic, Critical, or Speculative Human biology is an Interdisciplinary Academic field of Biology, Biological anthropology, Nutrition and Medicine which It includes Archaeology, Prehistory and Paleontology, Physical or Biological Anthropology, Anthropological Linguistics, Social and Cultural Anthropology, Ethnology and Ethnography. Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek grc ἀρχαιολογία archaiologia – grc ἀρχαῖος archaīos Stone Age Paleolithic See also Paleolithic, Recent African Origin, Early Homo sapiens, Early human migrations "Paleolithic" Palaeontology redirects here For the Scientific journal, see Palaeontology (journal. Biological anthropology, or physical anthropology is a branch of Anthropology that studies the mechanisms of biological Evolution, genetic inheritance Biological anthropology, or physical anthropology is a branch of Anthropology that studies the mechanisms of biological Evolution, genetic inheritance Anthropological linguistics is the study of the relations between language and culture and the relations between human biology cognition and language Social anthropology is the branch of Anthropology that studies how currently living human beings behave in social groups Cultural anthropology is one of four fields of Anthropology (the holistic study of humanity) as it developed in the United States. Ethnology (from the Greek ἔθνος, ethnos meaning "habit custom convention" is the branch of Anthropology that compares and Ethnography ( Greek ethnos = people and graphein = writing is a genre of writing that uses Fieldwork to provide a descriptive It is an area that is offered at most undergraduate institutions. The word anthropos (άνθρωπος) is from the Greek for "human being" or "person. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly " Eric Wolf described sociocultural anthropology as "the most scientific of the humanities, and the most humanistic of the sciences. Eric R Wolf ( February 1, 1923 &ndash March 6, 1999) was an Anthropologist, best known for his studies of Peasants, "
Economics
Economics is a social science that seeks to analyze and describe the production, distribution, and consumption of wealth. Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. [11] The word "economics" is from the Greek οἶκος [oikos], "family, household, estate," and νόμος [nomos], "custom, law," and hence means "household management" or "management of the state. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly " An economist is a person using economic concepts and data in the course of employment, or someone who has earned a university degree in the subject. An economist is an expert in the Social science of Economics. A degree is any of a wide range of status levels conferred by institutions of Higher education, such as universities, normally as the result of successfully completing The classic brief definition of economics, set out by Lionel Robbins in 1932, is "the science which studies human behavior as a relation between scarce means having alternative uses. Lionel Charles Robbins Baron Robbins (1898 - 2008 was a British economist and adherent to the Austrian School of Economics. " Without scarcity and alternative uses, there is no economic problem. The economic problem, sometimes called the fundamental economic problem, is one of the fundamental economic theories in the operation of any Economy. Briefer yet is "the study of how people seek to satisfy needs and wants" and "the study of the financial aspects of human behaviour. "
Economics has two broad branches: microeconomics, where the unit of analysis is the individual agent, such as a household, firm and macroeconomics, where the unit of analysis is an economy as a whole. Microeconomics is a branch of Economics that studies how individuals households and firms and some states make decisions to allocate limited resources typically in markets Macroeconomics is a branch of Economics that deals with the performance structure and behavior of a national or regional Economy as a whole Another division of the subject distinguishes positive economics, which seeks to predict and explain economic phenomena, from normative economics, which orders choices and actions by some criterion; such orderings necessarily involve subjective value judgments. In the Humanities and Social sciences, the term positive is used in a number of ways Normative has specialized meanings in several academic disciplines Subjectivity refers to a subject's perspective particularly feelings beliefs and desires Since the early part of the 20th century, economics has focused largely on measurable quantities, employing both theoretical models and empirical analysis. Quantitative models, however, can be traced as far back as the physiocratic school. The physiocrats were a group of Economists who believed that the wealth of nations was derived solely from the value of land Agriculture or land development Economic reasoning has been increasingly applied in recent decades to social situations where there is no monetary consideration, such as politics, law, psychology, history, religion, marriage and family life, and other social interactions. Public choice in economic theory is the use of modern Economic tools to study problems that are traditionally in the province of Political science. Law is a system of rules enforced through a set of Institutions used as an instrument to underpin civil obedience politics economics and society Experimental economics is a the application of experimental methods to study economic questions Economic history is the study of how economic phenomena evolved in the past A religion is a set of Tenets and practices often centered upon specific Supernatural and moral claims about Reality, the Cosmos NOTICE TO WOULD-BE ROMEOS **************
This paradigm crucially assumes (1) that resources are scarce because they are not sufficient to satisfy all wants, and (2) that "economic value" is willingness to pay as revealed for instance by market (arms' length) transactions. Scarcity (also called paucity) is the problem of Infinite human needs and Wants, in a world of Finite Resources In other Rival schools of thought, such as heterodox economics, institutional economics, Marxist economics, socialism, green economics, and economic sociology, make other grounding assumptions, such as that economics primarily deals with the exchange of value, and that labor (human effort) is the source of all value. Heterodox economics refers to the approaches or schools of economic thought, that are considered outside of mainstream, that is orthodox economics Institutional economics, known by some as Institutionalist political economy, focuses on understanding the role of human-made institutions in shaping economic behaviour Note Marxian economics is not restricted to Marxist economics as it includes the economic thought of those inspired by Marx's works who do not identify with Socialism refers to a broad set of economic theories of social organization advocating state or collective ownership and administration of the Means of production and distribution Ecological economics is a Transdisciplinary field of academic research within Economics that aims to address the interdependence between human economies and natural Economic sociology is the Sociological analysis of economic phenomena
Education
Education encompasses teaching and learning specific skills, and also something less tangible but more profound: the imparting of knowledge, positive judgement and well-developed wisdom. Education encompasses both the Teaching and Learning of Knowledge, proper conduct, and technical competency The University of Bologna (Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna UNIBO) is one of the oldest continually operating degree-granting universities in the world This is a list of education topics. See also Education, Education lists category, and the List of basic education topics. In Education, a teacher is one who helps Students or pupils often in a School, as well as in a Family, religious or In the fields of Neuropsychology, Personal development and Education, Learning is one of the most important Mental function of humans A skill is the learned capacity or talent to carry out pre-determined results often with the minimum outlay of time energy or both. Knowledge is defined ( Oxford English Dictionary) variously as (i expertise and skills acquired by a person through experience or education the theoretical or practical understanding In non-legal contexts a judgment is a balanced weighing up of evidence preparatory to making a decision Wisdom is a concept of personal gaining of Knowledge, Understanding, Experience, discretion and intuitive understanding, along with a capacity Education has as one of its fundamental aspects the imparting of culture from generation to generation (see socialization). Culture (from the Latin cultura stemming from colere, meaning "to cultivate" generally refers to patterns of human activity and the symbolic The term socialization is used by sociologists, social psychologists and Educationalists to refer to the process of learning one’s Culture Education means 'to draw out', facilitating realisation of self-potential and latent talents of an individual. It is an application of pedagogy, a body of theoretical and applied research relating to teaching and learning and draws on many disciplines such as psychology, philosophy, computer science, linguistics, neuroscience, sociology and anthropology. Pedagogy (ˈpɛdəgɒdʒi or paedagogy is the Art or Science of being a Teacher. Psychology (from Greek grc ψῡχή psȳkhē, "breath life soul" and grc -λογία -logia) is an Academic and Philosophy is the study of general problems concerning matters such as existence knowledge truth beauty justice validity mind and language Computer science (or computing science) is the study and the Science of the theoretical foundations of Information and Computation and their Linguistics is the scientific study of Language, encompassing a number of sub-fields Neuroscience is a field devoted to the scientific study of the nervous system Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of [12]
The education of an individual human begins at birth and continues throughout life. (Some believe that education begins even before birth, as evidenced by some parents' playing music or reading to the baby in the womb in the hope it will influence the child's development. ) For some, the struggles and triumphs of daily life provide far more instruction than does formal schooling (thus Mark Twain's admonition to "never let school interfere with your education"). Personal life (or everyday life or human existence) is the course of an individual Human 's life especially when viewed as the sum of personal choices A school (from Greek σχολεῖον - scholeion) is an Institution designed to allow and encourage Students (or "pupils" Samuel Langhorne Clemens (November 30 1835 – April 21 1910 better known by the Pen name Mark Twain, was an American Humorist, satirist Family members may have a profound educational effect — often more profound than they realize — though family teaching may function very informally. Family denotes a group of People affiliated by consanguinity affinity or co-residence
Geography
Geography as a discipline can be split broadly into two main sub fields: human geography and physical geography. Geography (from Greek γεωγραφία - geografia) is the study of the Earth and its lands features inhabitants and phenomena Human geography is a branch of Geography that focuses on the study of patterns and processes that shape human interaction with the environment with particular reference to Physical geography (also known as geosystems or physiography) is one of the three major subfields of Geography. The former focuses largely on the built environment and how space is created, viewed and managed by humans as well as the influence humans have on the space they occupy. The latter examines the natural environment and how the climate, vegetation & life, soil, water and landforms are produced and interact. Climate encompasses the temperatures humidity rainfall atmospheric particle count and numerous other meteorogical factors in a given region over long periods of Vegetation is a general term for the plant life of a region it refers to the Ground cover provided by plants Soil, often typeset as SOiL, is a four piece rock band from Chicago Illinois United States founded by Shaun Glass Tom Schofield Tim King and Adam Zadel Water is a common Chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of Life. [13] As a result of the two subfields using different approaches a third field has emerged, which is environmental geography. Environmental geography is the branch of Geography that describes the spatial aspects of interactions between humans and the natural world Environmental geography combines physical and human geography and looks at the interactions between the environment and humans. [14]
Geographers attempt to understand the earth in terms of physical and spatial relationships. EARTH was a short-lived Japanese vocal trio which released 6 singles and 1 album between 2000 and 2001 The first geographers focused on the science of mapmaking and finding ways to precisely project the surface of the earth. A map projection is any method of representing the Surface of a sphere or other shape on a plane. In this sense, geography bridges some gaps between the natural sciences and social sciences. Historical geography is often taught in a college in a unified Department of Geography. Historical geography is the study of the human, physical, fictional, theoretical and "real" geographies of the past
Modern geography is an all-encompassing discipline that seeks to understand how the world has changed in terms of human settlement and natural patterns. The fields of Urban Planning, Regional Science, and Planetology are closely related to geography. Regional science is a field of the Social sciences concerned with analytical approaches to problems that are specifically urban, Rural, or regional Planetary science, also known as planetology and closely related to planetary astronomy, is the Science of Planets or Planetary systems Practicioners of geography use many technologies and methods to collect data such as remote sensing, aerial photography, statistics, and global positioning systems (GPS). Remote sensing is the small or large-scale acquisition of information of an object or phenomenon by the use of either recording or real-time sensing device(s that is not in physical Aerial photography is the taking of Photographs of the ground from an elevated position Statistics is a mathematical science pertaining to the collection analysis interpretation or explanation and presentation of Data. Basic concept of GPS operation A GPS receiver calculates its position by carefully timing the signals sent by the constellation of GPS Satellites high above the Earth
The field of geography is generally split into two distinct branches: physical and human. Physical geography examines phenomena related to climate, oceans, soils, and the measurement of earth. Physical geography (also known as geosystems or physiography) is one of the three major subfields of Geography. Climatology (from Greek grc κλίμα klima, "region zone" and grc -λογία -logia) is the study of Climate, scientifically Oceanography (from the greek words Ωκεανός meaning Ocean and γράφω meaning to write also called oceanology or Pedology (from Greek πέδον pedon, "soil" and λόγος logos, "study" is the study of soils in their natural environment Geodesy (dʒiːˈɒdɪsi also called geodetics, a branch of Earth sciences, is the scientific discipline that deals Human geography focuses on fields as diverse as Cultural geography, transportation, health, military operations, and cities. Human geography is a branch of Geography that focuses on the study of patterns and processes that shape human interaction with the environment with particular reference to Cultural geography is a sub-field within Human geography. Cultural geography is the study of cultural products and norms and their variation across and relations to spaces and Transportation Geography is the branch of Geography that investigates spatial interactions let them be of people freight and information Health geography is the application of geographical information perspectives and methods to the study of Health, Disease, and Health care. Military geography is a sub-field of geography that is used by not only the military but also academics and politicians to understand the geopolitical sphere through the militaristic Urban geography is the study of Urban areas That is the study of areas which have a high concentration of Buildings and Infrastructure. Other branches of geography include Social geography, regional geography, geomatics, and environmental geography. Geography (from Greek γεωγραφία - geografia) is the study of the Earth and its lands features inhabitants and phenomena Human geography is a branch of Geography that focuses on the study of patterns and processes that shape human interaction with the environment with particular reference to Regional geography is a study of regions throughout the world in order to understand or define the unique characteristics of a particular region which consists of natural as well as Geomatics is the discipline of gathering storing processing and delivery of geographic information or spatially referenced information Environmental geography is the branch of Geography that describes the spatial aspects of interactions between humans and the natural world
History
History is the continuous, systematic narrative and research of past events as relating to the human species; as well as the study of all events in time, in relation to humanity. History is the study of the past particularly the written record Those who study history as a Profession are called Historians Etymology A narrative or story is a construct created in a suitable format (written spoken poetry prose images song Theater, or Dance) that describes a sequence of Research is defined as Human activity based on Intellectual application in the investigation of Matter. For other uses see Time (disambiguation Time is a component of a measuring system used to sequence events to compare the durations of There is much debate over history's classification of academe, for instance in the United States the National Endowment for the Humanities includes history in its definition of a Humanities (as it does for applied Linguistics)[15]. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the The National Endowment for the Humanities ( NEH) is an independent federal agency of the United States established by the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities However the National Research Council classifies History as a Social science. The National Research Council (NRC of the USA is the working arm of the United States National Academy of Sciences and the United States National Academy of [16] History can be seen as the sum total of many things taken together and the spectrum of events occurring in action following in order leading from the past to the present and into the future. The historical method comprises the techniques and guidelines by which historians use primary sources and other evidence to research and then to write history. The historical method comprises the techniques and guidelines by which Historians use Primary sources and other evidence to research and then to write history Primary source is a term used in a number of disciplines In Historiography, a primary source (also called original source) is a Document, Recording
Law
Law in common parlance, means a rule which (unlike a rule of ethics) is capable of enforcement through institutions. Law is a system of rules enforced through a set of Institutions used as an instrument to underpin civil obedience politics economics and society The Central Criminal Court in England, commonly known as the Old Bailey, is a court London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. [17] The study of law crosses the boundaries between the social sciences and humanities, depending on one's view of research into its objectives and effects. Law is not always enforceable, especially in the international relations context. It has been defined as a "system of rules",[18] as an "interpretive concept"[19] to achieve justice, as an "authority"[20] to mediate people's interests, and even as "the command of a sovereign, backed by the threat of a sanction". [21] However one likes to think of law, it is a completely central social institution. Legal policy incorporates the practical manifestation of thinking from almost every social sciences and humanity. Laws are politics, because politicians create them. Law is philosophy, because moral and ethical persuasions shape their ideas. Law tells many of history's stories, because statutes, case law and codifications build up over time. And law is economics, because any rule about contract, tort, property law, labour law, company law and many more can have long lasting effects on the distribution of wealth. A contract is an exchange of promises between two or more parties to do or refrain from doing an act which is enforceable in a court of law Tort law is the name given to a body of law that creates and provides remedies for civil wrongs that do not arise out of Contractual duties Property law is the area of Law that governs the various forms of Ownership in Real property (land as distinct from personal or movable possessions Labour law (also known as employment or labor law is the body of Laws administrative rulings and precedents which address the legal rights of and restrictions Corporate law (also "company" or "corporations" law is the Law of the most dominant kind of business enterprise in the modern world The noun law derives from the late Old English lagu, meaning something laid down or fixed[22] and the adjective legal comes from the Latin word lex. [23]
Linguistics
Linguistics is a discipline that investigates the cognitive and social aspects of human language. Linguistics is the scientific study of Language, encompassing a number of sub-fields Ferdinand de Saussure (fɛʁdinɑ̃ də soˈsyːʁ ( November 26, 1857 – February 22, 1913) was a Swiss linguist Linguistics is the scientific study of Language, encompassing a number of sub-fields The field is traditionally divided into areas that focus on particular aspects of the linguistic signal, such as syntax (the study of the rules that govern the structure of sentences), semantics (the study of meaning), phonetics (the study of speech sounds) and phonology (the study of the abstract sound system of a particular language); however, work in areas like evolutionary linguistics (the study of the origins and evolution of language) and psycholinguistics (the study of psychological factors in human language) cut across these divisions. In Linguistics, syntax (from Ancient Greek grc συν- syn-, "together" and grc τάξις táxis, "arrangement" is the Semantics is the study of meaning in communication The word derives from Greek σημαντικός ( semantikos) "significant" from Phonetics (from the Greek φωνή ( phonê) "sound" or "voice" is the study of the physical sounds of human speech Phonology ( Greek φωνή (phōnē voice sound + λόγος (lógos word speech subject of discussion is the systematic use of sound to encode meaning Evolutionary linguistics is the Scientific study of the origins and development of language. Psycholinguistics or psychology of language is the study of the psychological and neurobiological factors that enable Humans to acquire use
The overwhelming majority of modern research in linguistics takes a predominantly synchronic perspective (focusing on language at a particular point in time), and a great deal of it—partly owing to the influence of Noam Chomsky—aims at formulating theories of the cognitive processing of language. Avram Noam Chomsky (noʊm ˈtʃɑmski born December 7 1928 is an American linguist, Philosopher, cognitive scientist, Political However, language does not exist in a vacuum, or only in the brain, and approaches like contact linguistics, creole studies, discourse analysis, social interactional linguistics, and sociolinguistics explore language in its social context. A creole language, or simply a creole, is a stable Language that originates seemingly as a nativized Pidgin. Discourse analysis (DA or discourse studies, is a general term for a number of approaches to analyzing written spoken or signed language use Sociolinguistics is the study of the effect of any and all aspects of Society, including cultural norms expectations and context on the way Language is used Sociolinguistics often makes use of traditional quantitative analysis and statistics in investigating the frequency of features, while some disciplines, like contact linguistics, focus on qualitative analysis. Statistics is a mathematical science pertaining to the collection analysis interpretation or explanation and presentation of Data. While certain areas of linguistics can thus be understood as clearly falling within the social sciences, other areas, like acoustic phonetics and neurolinguistics, draw on the natural sciences. Acoustic phonetics is a subfield of Phonetics which deals with acoustic aspects of speech Sounds. Neurolinguistics is the science concerned with the human brain mechanisms underlying the comprehension production and abstract knowledge of Language, be it spoken Linguistics draws only secondarily on the humanities, which played a rather greater role in linguistic inquiry in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Ferdinand Saussure is considered the father of modern linguistics. Ferdinand de Saussure (fɛʁdinɑ̃ də soˈsyːʁ ( November 26, 1857 – February 22, 1913) was a Swiss linguist
Political science
Political science is an academic and research discipline that deals with the theory and practice of politics and the description and analysis of political systems and political behavior. Political science is a branch of Social sciences that deals with the theory and practice of Politics and the description and analysis of Political systems Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions Aristotle (Greek Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC was a Greek philosopher a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. Aristotle's Politics ( Greek Πολιτικά is a work of Political philosophy. Political science is a branch of Social sciences that deals with the theory and practice of Politics and the description and analysis of Political systems Research is defined as Human activity based on Intellectual application in the investigation of Matter. Politics Politics is the process by which groups of people make decisions A political system is a System of Politics and Government. It is usually compared to the Law system, Economic system, Cultural Fields and subfields of political science include political economy,political theory and philosophy, civics and comparative politics, theory of direct democracy, apolitical governance, participatory direct democracy, national systems, cross-national political analysis, political development, international relations, foreign policy, international law, politics, public administration, administrative behavior, public law, judicial behavior, and public policy. Political philosophy is the study of questions about the City, Government, Politics, Liberty, Justice, Property, Rights Civics is the study of citizenship and government with particular attention given to the role of citizens― as opposed to external factors― in the operation and oversight of government Comparative politics is a subfield of Political science, characterized by an empirical approach based on the comparative method. Direct Democracy is a movement within the British Conservative Party dedicated to localism and Constitutional reform as a means of reviving public Foreign Policy is a bimonthly American Magazine founded in 1970 by Samuel P International law is the term commonly used for referring to the system of implicit and explicit agreements that bind together nation-states in adherence to recognized values and standards Public administration can be broadly described as the development implementation and study of branches of government Policy. Political science also studies power in international relations and the theory of Great powers and Superpowers. Power in international relations is defined in several different ways A great power is a Nation or State that has the ability to exert its influence on a global scale A superpower is a State with a leading position in the international system and the ability to Influence events and project power on a worldwide scale
Political science is methodologically diverse. Approaches to the discipline include classical political philosophy, interpretivism, structuralism, and behavioralism, realism, pluralism, and institutionalism. For the use of structuralism in biology see Structuralism (biology Structuralism is an approach to the human sciences that attempts to analyze Behavioralism (not to be confused with the learning theory Behaviorism) is an approach in Political science which seeks to provide an objective quantified approach Contemporary philosophical realism is the belief in a Reality that is completely Ontologically independent of our conceptual schemes linguistic practices beliefs Political science, as one of the social sciences, uses methods and techniques that relate to the kinds of inquiries sought: primary sources such as historical documents and official records, secondary sources such as scholarly journal articles, survey research, statistical analysis, case studies, and model building. The social sciences comprise academic disciplines concerned with the study of the social life of human groups and individuals including Anthropology, Communication studies Sampling is that part of Statistical practice concerned with the selection of individual observations intended to yield some knowledge about a population of concern Statistics is a mathematical science pertaining to the collection analysis interpretation or explanation and presentation of Data. Herbert Baxter Adams is credited with coining the phrase "political science" while teaching history at Johns Hopkins University. Herbert Baxter Adams ( April 16, 1850 – July 30, 1901) was an American educator and historian
Psychology
Psychology is an academic and applied field involving the study of behavior and mental processes. Psychology (from Greek grc ψῡχή psȳkhē, "breath life soul" and grc -λογία -logia) is an Academic and Wilhelm Maximilian Wundt ( August 16 1832 - August 31 1920) was a German medical doctor psychologist physiologist and professor Experimental psychology approaches Psychology as one of the natural sciences investigates it using the experimental method. Psychology (from Greek grc ψῡχή psȳkhē, "breath life soul" and grc -λογία -logia) is an Academic and For the song by 311, see Grassroots. Applied science is the application of knowledge from one or more natural scientific Psychology also refers to the application of such knowledge to various spheres of human activity, including problems of individuals' daily lives and the treatment of mental illness. Knowledge is defined ( Oxford English Dictionary) variously as (i expertise and skills acquired by a person through experience or education the theoretical or practical understanding Personal life (or everyday life or human existence) is the course of an individual Human 's life especially when viewed as the sum of personal choices Mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern that occurs in an individual and is thought to cause distress or disability that is not expected as
Psychology differs from anthropology, economics, political science, and sociology in seeking to capture explanatory generalizations about the mental function and overt behaviour of individuals, while the other disciplines rely more heavily on field studies and historical methods for extracting descriptive generalizations. Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of Economics is the social science that studies the production distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Political science is a branch of Social sciences that deals with the theory and practice of Politics and the description and analysis of Political systems Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" Mental functions and cognitive Processes are terms often used interchangeably (although not always correctly so the term cognitive tends to have specific Behavior or behaviour (see spelling differences) refers to the actions or Reactions of an object or Organism, usually In practice, however, there is quite a lot of cross-fertilization that takes place among the various fields. Psychology differs from biology and neuroscience in that it is primarily concerned with the interaction of mental processes and behavior, and of the overall processes of a system, and not simply the biological or neural processes themselves, though the subfield of neuropsychology combines the study of the actual neural processes with the study of the mental effects they have subjectively produced. Foundations of modern biology There are five unifying principles Neuroscience is a field devoted to the scientific study of the nervous system Neuropsychology is the applied scientific discipline that studies the structure and function of the Brain related to specific psychological processes and overt behaviors Many people associate Psychology with Clinical Psychology which focuses on assessment and treatment of problems in living and psychopathology. In reality, Psychology has myriad specialties including: Social Psychology, Developmental Psychology, Cognitive Psychology, Industrial-Organizational Psychology, Mathematical psychology, Neuropsychology, and Quantitative Analysis of Behaviour to name only a few. Mathematical psychology is an approach to psychological research that is based on Mathematical modeling of perceptual cognitive and motor processes and on the establishment The word psychology comes from the ancient Greek ψυχή, psyche ("soul", "mind") and logy, study). The Ancient Greek language is the historical stage in the development of the Hellenic language family spanning the Archaic (c In Psychoanalysis, the psyche (ˈsaɪki refers to the forces in an individual that influence thought, Behavior and Personality.
Psychology is a very broad science that is rarely tackled as a whole, major block. Although some subfields encompass a natural science base and a social science application, others can be clearly distinguished as having little to do with the social sciences or having a lot to do with the social sciences. For example, biological psychology is considered a natural science with a social scientific application (as is clinical medicine), social and occupational psychology are, generally speaking, purely social sciences, whereas neuropsychology is a natural science that lacks application out of the scientific tradition entirely. Medicine is the art and science of healing It encompasses a range of Health care practices evolved to maintain and restore Human Health by the In British universities, emphasis on what tenet of psychology a student has studied and/or concentrated is communicated through the degree conferred: B. Psy. indicates a balance between natural and social sciences, B. Sc. indicates a strong (or entire) scientific concentration, whereas a B. A. underlines a majority of social science credits.
Social Work
Social Work is concerned with social problems, their causes, their solutions and their human impacts. Social work is a discipline involving the application of Social theory and research methods to study and improve the lives of people groups and societies Social work is a discipline involving the application of Social theory and research methods to study and improve the lives of people groups and societies Social workers work with individuals, families, groups, organizations and communities. Social Work is the profession committed to the pursuit of social justice, to the enhancement of the quality of life, and to the development of the full potential of each individual, group and community in society. Social refers to human society or its organization. stem "soci-" which is from the Latin word socius, meaning member, friend, or ally, thus referring to people in general. It is a social science involving the application of social theory and research methods to the study and improve the lives of people, groups, and societies. Life is a state that distinguishes Organisms from non-living objects such as non-life and dead organisms being manifested by growth through Metabolism Human beings, humans or man (Origin 1590–1600 L homō man OL hemō the earthly one (see Humus In Sociology, a group can be defined as two or more Humans that interact with one another accept expectations and obligations as members of the group and share a A society is a Population of Humans characterized by patterns of relationships between individuals that share a distinctive Culture and Institutions Social work is unique in that it seeks to simultaneously navigate across and within micro , mezzo, and macro systems -in order to sufficiently address and resolve social issues at every level. Social work incorporates and utilizes all of the social sciences as a means to improve the human condition.
Social work bases its methodology on a systematic body of evidence-based knowledge derived from research and practice evaluation, including local and indigenous knowledge specific to its context. It recognizes the complexity of interactions between human beings and their environment, and the capacity of people both to be affected by and to alter the multiple influences upon them including bio-psychosocial factors. The social work profession draws on theories of human development and behaviour and social systems to analyse complex situations and to facilitate individual, organizational, social and cultural changes. (International Federation of Social Workers).
In social work research there is a great deal of traditional research, both qualitative and quantitative being carried out, primarily by university-based researchers, but also in different fields, by researchers based in institutes, foundations, or social service agencies. Meanwhile, the majority of social work practitioners continue to look elsewhere for knowledge. This is a state of affairs that has persisted since the outset of the profession in the first decade of the twentieth century. One reason for the practice-research gap is that practitioners deal with situations that are unique and idiosyncratic, while research deals with regularities and aggregates. The translation between the two is often imperfect. A hopeful development for bridging this gap is the compilation in many practice fields of collections of "best practices," largely taken from research findings, but also distilled from the experience of respected practitioners.
One of the most prominent organizations promoting social work research science is The Society for Social Work and Research (http://www.sswr.org/) which is a non-profit professional society incorporated in the State of New York in 1993. The Society is devoted to the involvement of social workers, other social work faculty, and social work students in research and to promotion of human welfare through research and research applications.
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society and human social action. Sociology (from Latin: socius "companion" and the suffix -ology "the study of" from Greek λόγος lógos "knowledge" It generally concerns itself with the social rules and processes that bind and separate people not only as individuals, but as members of associations, groups, communities and institutions, and includes the examination of the organization and development of human social life. A convention is a set of agreed, stipulated or generally accepted Standards norms social norms or criteria, often taking the form of As commonly used, individual refers to a Person or to any specific object in a collection A voluntary association or union (also sometimes called a voluntary organization, unincorporated association, or just an association) is a group In Sociology, a group can be defined as two or more Humans that interact with one another accept expectations and obligations as members of the group and share a In biological terms a community is a group of interacting Organisms sharing an environment. Social organization or social institution, refers to a group of Social positions connected by Social relations performing a Social role. 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. Social contact is a pair of Social actions with no further consequence - i Globalization (or globalisation) in its literal sense is the process of transformation of local or regional phenomena into global ones Most sociologists work in one or more subfields. This is a list of Sociology subfields Subfields Applied sociology/clinical sociology (also see Sociological practice)
The meaning of the word comes from the suffix "-ology" which means "study of," derived from Greek, and the stem "soci-" which is from the Latin word socius, meaning member, friend, or ally, thus referring to people in general. It is a social science involving the application of social theory and research methods to the study of the social lives of people, groups, and societies, sometimes defined as the study of social interactions. Definition In the absence of agreement about its meaning the term "social" is used in many different senses referring among other things to attitudes Life is a state that distinguishes Organisms from non-living objects such as non-life and dead organisms being manifested by growth through Metabolism Human beings, humans or man (Origin 1590–1600 L homō man OL hemō the earthly one (see Humus In Sociology, a group can be defined as two or more Humans that interact with one another accept expectations and obligations as members of the group and share a A society is a Population of Humans characterized by patterns of relationships between individuals that share a distinctive Culture and Institutions Social interaction is a dynamic changing sequence of Social actions between individuals (or groups who modify their actions and reactions according to the actions by their It is a relatively new academic discipline which evolved in the early 19th century. An academic discipline or field of study is a branch of Knowledge which is taught or Researched at the college or university level
Because sociology is such a broad discipline, it can be difficult to define, even for professional sociologists. One useful way to describe the discipline is as a cluster of sub-fields that examine different dimensions of society. For example, social stratification studies inequality and class structure; demography studies changes in a population size or type; criminology examines criminal behavior and deviance; political sociology studies government and laws; and the sociology of race and sociology of gender examine society's racial and gender cleavages. In Sociology, social stratification is the hierarchical arrangement of Social classes Castes and strata within a Society. Demography is the statistical study of all Populations. It can be a very general science that can be applied to any kind of dynamic population that is one that changes over Schools of thought In the mid-18th century criminology arose as social philosophers gave thought to crime and concepts of law Political sociology is the study of power and the intersection of personality social structure and Politics. Sociology of gender is a prominent subfield of Sociology. Since 1950 an increasing part of the academic literature and of the public discourse uses gender
Sociological methods, theories, and concepts may inspire sociologists to explore the origins of commonly accepted conventions. Common sense (or when used attributively as an Adjective, commonsense, common-sense, or commonsensical) based on a strict construction Sociology offers insights about the social world that extend beyond explanations that rely on individual quirks and personalities. Sociologist may find general social patterns in studying the behaviour of particular individuals and groups. This specific approach to social reality is sometimes called the sociological perspective. The sociological perspective is a particular way of approaching a phenomenon common in Sociology.
Sociologists use a diversity of research methods, including case studies, historical research, interviewing, participant observation, social network analysis, survey research, statistical analysis, and model building, among other approaches. An interview is a conversation between two or more people (the interviewer and the interviewee where Questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from Participant observation is a set of Research strategies which aim to gain a close and intimate familiarity with a given group of individuals (such as a religious occupational A social network is a Social structure made of nodes (which are generally individuals or organizations that are tied by one or more specific types of interdependency such as Statistical surveys are used to collect quantitative information about items in a population Statistics is a mathematical science pertaining to the collection analysis interpretation or explanation and presentation of Data. Since the late 1970s, many sociologists have tried to make the discipline useful for non-academic purposes. The results of sociological research aid educators, lawmakers, administrators, developers, and others interested in resolving social problems and formulating public policy, through subdisciplinary areas such as evaluation research, methodological assessment, and public sociology. Evaluation is systematic determination of merit worth and significance of something or someone using criteria against a set of standards For article assessment process on Wikipedia see WikipediaVersion 1 Public sociology is an approach to the discipline which seeks to transcend the academy and engage wider audiences New sociological sub-fields continue to appear - such as community studies, computational sociology, network analysis, actor-network theory and a growing list, many of which are cross-disciplinary in nature. Community studies is an academic field drawing on both Sociology and Anthropology and the Social research methods of Ethnography Computational sociology is a recently developed branch of Sociology that uses Computation to analyze social phenomena Network analysis can refer to Analysis of general networks see Network theory. Actor-network theory, often abbreviated as ANT, is a distinctive approach to Social theory and research which originated in the field of Science studies An academic discipline or field of study is a branch of Knowledge which is taught or Researched at the college or university level
Further fields
Social theory and research methods
The social sciences share many social theory perspectives and research methods. Communication studies is an Academic field that deals with processes of communication commonly defined as the sharing of Symbols over distances in space and time Development studies is a Multidisciplinary branch of Social science which addresses issues of concern to developing countries. Information science is an interdisciplinary science primarily concerned with the collection classification, manipulation storage retrieval and dissemination Sociobiology is a neo-Darwinian and Socialism Synthesis of Scientific disciplines that attempts to explain Social behavior Theory perspectives include various types of critical theory, dialectical materialism, feminist theory, phronetic social science, assorted branches of Marxist theory such as revolutionary theory and class theory, post-colonial theory, postmodernism as well as the related intellectual criticalism and scientific criticalism, rational choice theory, rational criticalism, social constructionism, structuralism, and structural functionalism. In the Humanities and Social sciences, critical theory is the examination and critique of Society and Literature, drawing from knowledge across Dialectical materialism, according to many followers of Karl Marx 's thinking is the philosophical basis of Marxism. Feminist theory is the extension of Feminism into theoretical or philosophical, ground Phronetic social science is an approach to the study of social – including political and economic – phenomena based on a contemporary interpretation of the classical Greek concept See also Marxian economics, Marxism Marxist philosophy or Marxist theory are terms which cover work in Philosophy A proletarian revolution is a social and/or political Revolution in which the Working class attempts to overthrow the Bourgeoisie. Class conflict, also class war or class warfare, is both the friction that accompanies social relationships between members or groups of different Postcolonialism ( postcolonial theory, post-colonial theory) is an intellectual discourse that holds together a set of theories found among the texts and Postmodernism literally means 'after the modernist movement' While " Modern " itself refers to something "related to the present" the movement of modernism Anti-intellectualism describes a sentiment of hostility towards or mistrust of Intellectuals and Intellectual pursuits Antiscience is a position critical of Science and the Scientific method. Rational choice theory, also known as rational action theory, is a framework for understanding and often formally modeling social and economic behavior Social constructionism and social constructivism are sociological and psychological theories of Knowledge that consider how social phenomena develop in For the use of structuralism in biology see Structuralism (biology Structuralism is an approach to the human sciences that attempts to analyze Structural functionalism also known as a social systems paradigm is a Sociological paradigm which addresses what Social functions various elements Research methods shared include a wide variety of quantitative and qualitative methods. Quantitative research is the systematic scientific investigation of Quantitative properties and Phenomena and their relationships The objective of quantitative Qualitative research is a field of inquiry that crosscuts disciplines and subject matters.
The graphism thesis maintains that social sciences do not use graphs as much as natural sciences. In Sociology of science, the graphism thesis is a proposition of Bruno Latour that Graphs are important in science
Criticism
The social sciences are sometimes criticized as being less scientific than the natural sciences, in that they are seen as being less rigorous or empirical in their methods. In Science, the term natural science refers to a naturalistic approach to the study of the Universe, which is understood as obeying rules or law of This claim has been made in the so-called Science Wars and is most commonly made when comparing social sciences to fields such as physics, chemistry or biology in which corroboration of the hypothesis is far more incisive with regard to data observed from specifically designed experiments. The Science wars were a series of intellectual battles in the 1990s between " Postmodernists " and " realists " (though neither party would likely Social sciences can thus be deemed to be largely observational, in that explanations for cause-effect relationships are largely subjective. A limited degree of freedom is available in designing the factor setting for a particular observational study. Social scientists however, argue against such claims by pointing to the use of a rich variety of scientific processes, mathematical proofs, and other methods in their professional literature. Flyvbjerg (2001) has argued that the discussion of whether natural science is more scientific than social science is futile; social science is best practiced as phronesis, whereas natural science is best practiced as episteme, in the classical Greek meaning of the terms, and both have important if different roles to play in the production of knowledge in society. Phronesis ( Greek: φρόνησις in Aristotle 's Nicomachean Ethics is the virtue of moral thought usually translated "practical wisdom" Distinguished from Techne, the word ἐπιστήμη is Greek for Knowledge or Science, coming from the verb
It has been argued that the social world is much too complex to be studied as one would study static molecules. The actions or reactions of a molecule or chemical substance are always the same when placed in certain situations. Humans, on the other hand, are much too complex for these traditional scientific methodologies. Humans and society do not have certain rules that always have the same outcome and they cannot guarantee to react the same way to certain situations.
A third criticism is that social sciences tend to be compromised more frequently by politics, since results from social science may threaten certain centers of power in a society, particularly ones which fund the research institutions. Further, complexity exacerbates the problems, since observed social data may be the result of factors which are hard to evaluate in isolation.
Not all institutions recognize some fields listed above as social sciences or as being only social scientific. Some disciplines have characteristics of both the humanities, social and natural sciences: for example some subfields of anthropology, such as biological anthropology, are closely related to the natural sciences whereas archaeology and linguistics are social sciences, while cultural anthropology is very much linked with the humanities. Anthropology (/ˌænθɹəˈpɒlədʒi/ from Greek grc ἄνθρωπος anthrōpos, "human" -λογία -logia) is the study of Biological anthropology, or physical anthropology is a branch of Anthropology that studies the mechanisms of biological Evolution, genetic inheritance Archaeology, archeology, or archæology (from Greek grc ἀρχαιολογία archaiologia – grc ἀρχαῖος archaīos Linguistics is the scientific study of Language, encompassing a number of sub-fields Note that social science methodologies are being incorporated into so-called hard science fields like medicine, where a three-legged stool to the understanding of physical well-being is now emphasized in the medical curriculum: biological, socio-psychological, and environmental.
Notes and references
- ^ Glossary at nces. ed. gov. Retrieved 25 April 2008
- ^ The Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences is a comprehensive source, for example.
- ^ Vessuri, Hebe. (2000). "Ethical Challenges for the Social Sciences on the Threshold of the 21st Century. " Current Sociology 50, no. 1 (January): 135-150. [1], Social Science Ethics: A Bibliography, Sharon Stoerger MLS, MBA
- ^ Akbar S. Ahmed (1984). "Al-Biruni: The First Anthropologist", RAIN 60, p. 9-10.
- ^ J. T. Walbridge (1998). "Explaining Away the Greek Gods in Islam", Journal of the History of Ideas 59 (3), p. 389-403.
- ^ "Islamic Anthropology" and the "Anthropology of Islam", Anthropological Quarterly 68 (3), Anthropological Analysis and Islamic Texts, p. 185-193.
- ^ a b H. Mowlana (2001). "Information in the Arab World", Cooperation South Journal 1.
- ^ Salahuddin Ahmed (1999). A Dictionary of Muslim Names. C. Hurst & Co. Publishers. ISBN 1850653569.
- ^ a b Dr. S. W. Akhtar (1997). "The Islamic Concept of Knowledge", Al-Tawhid: A Quarterly Journal of Islamic Thought & Culture 12 (3).
- ^ Akbar Ahmed (2002). "Ibn Khaldun’s Understanding of Civilizations and the Dilemmas of Islam and the West Today", Middle East Journal 56 (1), p. 25.
- ^ economics - Britannica Online Encyclopedia
- ^ An overview of education
- ^ What is geography?. AAG Career Guide: Jobs in Geography and related Geographical Sciences. Association of American Geographers. Retrieved on October 9, 2006.
- ^ Hayes-Bohanan, James. What is Environmental Geography, Anyway?. Retrieved on October 9, 2006.
- ^ Overview
- ^ Research-Doctorate Programs in the United States: Continuity and Change
- ^ Robertson, Geoffrey (2006). Geoffrey Ronald Robertson QC (born 30 September 1946 in Sydney, New South Wales) is an Australian human rights Crimes Against Humanity. Penguin, 90. ISBN 9780141024639.
- ^ Hart, H.L.A. (1961). Herbert Lionel Adolphus Hart (1907-1992 was an influential English-speaking legal philosopher of the twentieth century. The Concept of Law. The Concept of Law (ISBN 0-19-876122-8 is the most famous work of the legal philosopher H Oxford University Press. ISBN ISBN 0-19-876122-8.
- ^ Dworkin, Ronald (1986). Ronald Dworkin, QC, FBA (born December 11, 1931) is an American Legal philosopher, currently professor of Jurisprudence Law's Empire. Harvard University Press. ISBN ISBN-10: 0674518365.
- ^ Raz, Joseph (1979). Joseph Raz (יוסף רז born 1939) is an influential legal, moral and political Philosopher. The Authority of Law. Oxford University Press.
- ^ Austin, John (1831). John Austin (1790 - 1859 was a noted British Jurist and published extensively concerning the philosophy of law and Jurisprudence. The Providence of Jurisprudence Determined.
- ^ see Etymonline Dictionary
- ^ see Mirriam-Webster's Dictionary
Book sources
The beginnings of the social sciences in the 18th century are reflected in the grand encyclopedia of Diderot, with articles from Rousseau and other pioneers. An encyclopedia (or '''encyclopædia''') is a comprehensive written Compendium that contains Information on either all branches of Knowledge Denis Diderot ( October 5, 1713 – July 31, 1784) was a French Philosopher and writer The growth of the social sciences is also reflected in its specialised encyclopedias. The older editions are therefore of strong historical interest while the newest reflects current discussions and methodologies.
- Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences (1934)
- International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences (1968), ed. The International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences was first Published in 1968. , David L. Sills and Robert K. Merton. Robert King Merton ( July 4, 1910 &ndash February 23, 2003, born Meyer R
- International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences (2001), ed. The International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences (2001 edited by Neil J , Neil J. Smelser and Paul B. Baltes, Amsterdam: Elsevier. Neil J Smelser is a University of California Berkeley Sociologist who studied Collective behavior. Paul B Baltes ( Saarlouis, June 18, 1939 - Berlin, November 7, 2006) was a renowned German Psychologist
Further reading
- Efferson, C. & Richerson, P. J. (In press). A prolegomenon to nonlinear empiricism in the human behavioral sciences. Philosophy and Biology. Full text
- Flyvbjerg, B. Making Social Science Matter: Why Social Inquiry Fails and How It Can Succeed Again (Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University Press, 2001).
- Singleton, Royce, A., Straits, Bruce C. , "Approaches to Social Research", Oxford University Press, 1988. ISBN 0195147944
Academic resources
- The ANNALS of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, ISSN: 1552-3349 (electronic) ISSN: 0002-7162 (paper), SAGE Publications
See also
- Main list: List of major social sciences
External links
- Social Science Virtual Library
- UC Berkeley Experimental Social Science Laboratory
- Intute: Social Sciences (UK)
- History of Social Science
- International Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences
- International Journal of Social Sciences
- International Social Science Council
- Social Science Virtual Library:Canaktanweb (Turkish)
- Social Science Research Society
- International Conference on Social Sciences
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