Also, Karl Popper argued that the logic of science is deductive; scientists set up a hypothesis, test it against empirical data and then draw conclusions to the accuracy of the hypothesis (hypothetico-deductive model). He also says that the way in which Sociological experiments are illustrated in a way which is similar to how a science experiment is written in school. This shows that Sociology also has similar ‘headings’ to the way science is taught in schools. This suggests that Sociology is evidence based and involves subject matter in which gives valid and reliable results.
Realists would say that Sociology could and could not be classed as a science. It could because some experiments can be held in the laboratory like many scientific experiments. They also believe that the way Sociology is classed, e.g. based on observations, is similar to other subjects which are deemed sciences, for example, meteorology and engineering. On the other hand, they would also say that not all the experiments that are needed can be done in a closed environment, therefore wouldn’t give reliable results like the natural sciences.
Also, Interpretivists would say that there can be no definite answer to a Sociological issue as it is based on theories. Sociology is also from many different schools of thought, this makes it harder to devise just one explanation for an issue, and therefore it cannot be called a science.
Interpretivists would also explain that there are feelings and different states of mind involved as the subject matter is humans who think and act in different ways therefore the behaviour recorded would be constantly changing. They would also argue that humans can’t be generalised effectively therefore any results recorded would be unreliable. This would imply that it cannot be classed as a science.
In addition, Feminists would reason that there must be just one truth to an argument, whereas sociology provides many different outcomes to just one subject. This suggests that sociology is not a science because it doesn’t have just one answer.
In conclusion, positivists believe that sociology can be classed as a science because it is similar in the ways a scientific subject is classified. Whereas Interpretivists would argue that is cannot be classed as a science because there are too many answers and contradicting statements which will not be able to conclude a final answer.
by
chloeslater (student)
