sociology definition

Sociology is the study of human social relationships and institutions. Sociologists emphasize the careful gathering and analysis of evidence about social life to develop and enrich our understanding of key social processes. The research methods sociologists use are varied. Sociology is defined as the study of human values, relationships, beliefs and society. An example of sociology is what someone is studying when they attend a religious service of a religion that isn't their own. Sociologists today employ three primary theoretical perspectives: the symbolic interactionist perspective, the functionalist perspective, and the conflict perspective. These perspectives offer sociologists theoretical paradigms for explaining how society influences people, and vice versa.