Rise of the Social Sciences (1800’s)

Social Sciences --- branches of knowledge that scientifically study people as
members of society
o Topics --- economics, history, political institutions, and human
relations
o Having these topics treated like science was new to the 1800’s
 Social Science helps us understand why humans act the way they do
o Before the 1800’s, everybody studied things like biology, chemistry,
etc…
 New views of history were found when people studied documents, diaries
and letters
o Example --- Darwins theory of evolution
Archaeology, Anthropology, and Sociology
 Archaeology --- the study of human culture through the artifacts people
leave behind
o Archaeologists studied prehistoric cave paintings. They also found
out how old earth and humans are.
 Anthropology --- the study of different societies both past and present
o Anthropologists explored the ways humans and attitude relate to
each other.
 Sociology --- the study of relationships in society
o Auguste Comte --- founder of sociology; argued that society, like
nature, operated by certain laws, so scientists should use facts-not
personnel interpretations
 Psychology --- studies the mind and human behavior
 Psychoanalysis --- the study of people in an unconscious state
o This helped treat people of mental illness
 it worked because while being unconscious, people remember
things they otherwise didn’t remember
 Example: dreams, hypnosis
 Psychiatry --- the study and treatment of mental illness
People in Social Sciences
•
E.B. Taylor
o
A British anthropologist
o
Used the German word Kultur to explain beliefs and behaviors
a society shares
o
Wrote the book Primitive Culture where he talked about how
religion has evolved in society
•
James George Frazer
o
Also a British anthropologist
o
His main study was the customs of different societies
o
He wrote a book that talks about anthropology, called The
Golden Bough
•
Auguste Comte
o
French philosopher and sociologist
o
One of the main founders of sociology; said that society, like
nature, follows certain laws
o
He argued that people should only follow facts and science and
not personal interpretations
•
Herbert Spencer
o
Sociologist that used biological sciences to explain things
o
Accepted and studied Darwin’s survival of the fittest and
evolution used it as a basis for the study of human communities
o
His Theory became known as Social Darwinism
•
Ivan Pavlov
o Discovered conditioned reflex which means there are things species
don’t have to be taught
 Example: Dog barking
o He concluded that human actions are responses to outside stimuli
and can be changed by training
 Sigmund Frued
o Introduced idea of unconscious as a determining factor in human
behavior
 He founded modern psychiatry which is the study and
treatment of mental illness
Quiz
1. Define social sciences in your own words --2. Who discovered the conditioned reflex?
A. James George Frazer
B. Auguste Comte
C. Ian Pavlov
D. E.B. Taylor
3. True/False
Social sciences developed during the 1800’s?
4. Freud founded modern __________________, the study and treatment
of mental illness.