Pascal Ebner Media & Sociology

SO52003A
Philosophy & Methodology

Can social science be objective? Discuss.

In the following essay I will discuss the question whether social sciences can be
objective or not. Therefore I will mainly draw on the work of Emil Durkheim,
Max Weber, Auguste Comte and Robert Pinker, who shared the belief that social
science can be objective in altered ways. Furthermore I will try to explain the
importance of Positivism and its relation to the objectivity of social sciences as
well as the concepts, which claim that sociology can be scientific as well as
objective.

The question whether social sciences, such as sociology, anthropology and many
others, can be objective has been an issue for scientists and professors for a long
time. Even though some may argue whether social science itself is considered
scientific or not, it is a fact that objectivity, as well as generalization and
explanation, are considered fundamental elements of a science, whether it is
focused on natural or social phenomena. One of the main reasons why society
would consider social sciences not capable of being objective is that natural
scientists use numbers and statistics to prove their theories and statements.
Anthony Giddens describes society as a part of nature and claims that a science
of society, ergo social science, has to be based upon the same logical principles
as those found in natural sciences. (Giddens A., 1978:34) Keeping this in mind, it
is still more difficult for sociologists, or other social scientists, to prove their
point of view and their theories due to the fact that other social scientists may
develop the same theory further or enhance it with their own ideas. Besides that
it is also more complicated to perform experiments, since society is not a
physical object, or use calculations to get to a reasonable result. Thereto,
sociologist Emil Durkheim argued that social facts must be treated as things
and thus recognize that society has an objective existence. With this theory in
mind, sociology, according to Durkheim, can be studied by methods of objective
observation. (Giddens A., 1978:35) Though how is it possible to treat something
immaterial such as society as a thing? Additionally, it is difficult to analyse
people as a whole and the way they react within their environment. Tim May,
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sociologist at the University of Salford, states in his book Social Research

Issues, Methods and Process that we may see ourselves, the society, as a
product of our environment. According to Durkheims research we the
environment defines our nature and the way we act. (May T., 1998:10) This
would describe the position of the two schools of thought in social research:
behaviourism and positivism. An example for a research that was conducted in
that specific way would be Durkheims study on suicide.

In his research on Suicide, Durkheim used statistics and numbers to come up

with four different forms of suicide: altruistic, egoistic, anomic and fatalistic. All
of these forms of suicide occur due to certain phenomena and conditions in
society, which therefore affect the people living in the society. Durkheim
therefore moves from the individual to the whole, seeing the community as the
trigger for committing suicide. Before his research, suicide was seen as a moral
problem of the individual rather than a product of society. Durkheim though
treated the suicide as a social fact by using his own statistics as well as those of
earlier theorists, rather than focusing on the individuals motivation or feelings.
Therefore Durkheim himself tried to explain social life in the same way as
natural phenomena. This way of researching society, according to Tim May, can
be characterized in the same terms of natural science: the prediction and
explanation of the behaviour of phenomena and the pursuit of objectivity, which
is defined as the researchers detachment from the topic under investigation.
(May T., 1998:10)

Thus for a positivist, the social scientist is ought to study in the same way as a
natural scientist. Sociologist Tim May found an interesting way of visualising this
concept. Therefore he compares people and their social life with molecules. Just
as the environment affects society, molecules change when, for example, heat is
applied to a liquid. People react to certain conditions and changes of their
environment. (May T., 1998:9) This can also be compared to Durkheims thesis
that people tend to commit suicide in times of upheaval or economic changes in
the world. Just like scientists in the laboratory we collect data from our research.
This happens equally in social science: Durkheim collected data on social
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environments and the reaction of the people living in these environments. With
this information he was able to draw upon the different kinds of suicide and
explain each of them with their special conditions (e.g. a specific occasion, time
or situation). Additionally, by focusing on the society and treating it as a thing,
the social research is therefore objective. Whereas focusing on a persons
individual feelings and motives, as Auguste Comte argues, leads to a non-
objective result. Though if the social sciences would do the opposite, they would
be able to imitate the methodology of the natural sciences. Comte describes in
his works, that society has evolved through three different stages of
development, which are described as the theological, the metaphysical and
lastly the positive. (Kirby M. 2000:553) While the first one is based on
supernatural beings and the metaphysical stage replaces deities, or gods, with
abstract forces, the positive stage is characterized by the abandonment of the
search for absolute causes. (Comte A., 1853:1)

Max Weber, although sharing the belief that social sciences can be objective,
argued that subject matter of social sciences itself is essentially different from
the natural sciences. Due to the fact that people have human characteristics,
which include meaning and spirituality, Weber doesnt connect social with
natural sciences. (May T., 1998:50) For Weber it is also impossible to establish
the truth of ideals in a scientific manner. Sociology, or other social sciences, can
only assist people to find the way in achieving that certain goal. More specifically
social sciences show people the pros and cons of different means and the costs
that are involved, may they be economical or political. Robert Pinker, just like
Weber and Durkheim, believes that social sciences can be objective. Pinker states
as follows, the first function of scientific theory is to help us distinguish
correct from incorrect knowledge. (Pinker R., 1971:130) According to him,
social theory should be based upon what the members of the society actually
believe and not what the theorists would finally tell them they ought to believe.
(May T., 1998:50) This again shows that sociologists should aim to assist society
to find the right way for them selves instead of giving their solution as the only
available option. Thus sociology would become part of the problem rather than
the part of the solution. (Kirby M., 2000:574)
Pascal Ebner Media & Sociology

Concluding, we can say that in order to be objective, sociologists, or other social

scientists, should maintain a certain distance from their research or the thing
that serves as their object of investigation. With this thing, as Durkheim
describes it, we can also describe the society and the people living within it.
Furthermore, we should keep in mind, as Weber stated, that people have human
characteristics and are not only mere objects of science. Although it is easier for
the natural sciences to stay objective, due to the fact that they work primarily
with numbers and hard facts, it is not impossible for the social sciences to
achieve the same results in terms of objectivity.
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Bibliography

Durkheim E., (1895) The Rules of Sociological Method

Giddens A., (1978), Durkheim, Redwood Burn Ltd.: Sussex

Kirby M., (2000), Sociology in Perspective, Heinemann Educational

Publishers: Oxford

Lukes S., (1973), mile Durkheim His Life and Work: a Historical and

Critical Study, Peregrine: London

May T., (1998), Social Research Issues, Methods and Process, Open

University Press: Buckingham