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There can be no doubt regarding the respect in which the founders of sociology held science. Auguste Comte, founder of the term sociology, believed that “… scientific knowledge about society could be accumulated and used to improve human existence.” (vanKiren et al, 2000, pg 588) Due to the differing subject matter of the social sciences to that of the natural sciences, many sociologist believe that the methods used by natural sciences to conduct research are inappropriate and limited when concerned with human behaviour. However, all sociologists do not share the same opinion or paradigm. In fact there are several schools of thought held by sociologists with regard to the accurate gathering and analysis of data. These views can be widely categorised to include: § Functionalist, quantative or scientific approach § Humanistic, qualitative or interpretive approach Functionalism is a perspective that regards empirical data and sensory facts as the only valid and reliable data that can be gathered. Functionalists believe that “…. sociologists should aim at establishing general laws describing human behaviour from which predictions can be made.” (Spratt, 1997, pg 145) One such influential sociologist is Emile Durkheim. “Durkheim (1982) believed that sociology should be the objective study of ‘social facts’ rather than the study of individuals.” (Jureidini, 1997, pg27) He defined the term ‘social fact to be…. “every way of acting, fixed or not, capable of exercising on the individual an external constraint…while at the same time existing in it’s own right independent of it’s individual manifestations.” (Durkeim, 1966) This definition constitutes the idea that things such as morals, laws, customs, beliefs and fashions exist on their own and can be empirically studied.
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