sociology and social policy

• social problems

  refer to social behaviour that cause public friction and misery and requires a collective response

  poverty, juvenile delinquency and divorce
• sociological problems

  WORSLEY - any pattern of relationships that class for an explanation in other words any social behaviour or phenomena which requires explanation

  • why poor people are more likely to commit crime
• social policy - Functionalist

  • believe that the state acts in the best interest of society and sees social policy as being good for all
  • help society to run more smoothly and efficiently
  • promote equal opportunity and social cohesion
  • functionalists favour social policies which are referred to as piecemeal social engineering - favour a cautious approach tackling one issue at a time
  • sociologists should investigate social problems scientifically and provide explanations as well as solutions to social problems
• social policy - new right

  • believe that people should be self-reliant
  • believe that the state should not interfere too much in the private lives of the citizen
  • welfare state = undermining people's sense of responsibility
  • they believe that social policy should aim to restore people's sense of responsibility
• social policy - marxists

  • believe that the state represents the interests of the ruling class and therefore social policies will reflect the interests of the ruling class as well
  • provide ideological legitimation - masks capitalist exploitation (welfare state)
  • maintain the labour force - NHS
  • means of preventing revolution - placating the working class and making it seem as if the state is looking after working class (max working hours)
  • need to reveal truth - class consciousness occurs and revolution starts
• social policy - feminism

  • the state and society is patriarchal
  • social policies maintain this patriarchy
  • maternity policies
  • feminist research has had an impact in a number of policy areas
  • equal opportunities
  • gender neutrality
• state policy - postmodernist

  • arent interested in social policy
  • do support policies that help diversity and choice
  • lare modernists - social policies need to adapt constantly to globalisation
• factors affecting the influence of sociology on social policy

  • electoral popularity
  • ideological and policy preferences
  • cost/funding
  • globalisation
  • critical sociology
• influence of sociology on social policy

  ELECTORAL POPULARITY

  • research findings may be unpopular with voters so governments may decide not to follow those recommendations
• influence of sociology on social policy

  IDEOLOGICAL AND POLICY PREFERENCES

  • if a researchers values or perspectives is in line with the governments then it is more likely to have a chance at influencing policy
  • New right - considerable influence in the conservative government
• influence of sociology on social policy

  COST/FUNDING

  • governments may not have the budget to implement a sociologists recommendations
  • whoever is funding the research may influence the recommendations and findings that the study publishes
• influence of sociology on social policy

  GLOBALISATION

  • social policy isn't just made by a nation in isolation
  • International organisations like EU may influence social policy within individual nations
• influence of sociology on social policy

  CRITICAL SOCIOLOGY

  • sociologist like Marxists are critical of the state and therefore unlikely to influence policy