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Correct me if i'm wrong, but sociology is soft-science, subfield of psychology right? Maybe it isn't, i'm not sure, but this is what i've been lead to think. A

by orwin 6y ago

Correct me if i'm wrong, but sociology is soft-science, subfield of psychology right? Maybe it isn't, i'm not sure, but this is what i've been lead to think. And sociology have predictive value, can we agree on that? Putting plots/columns in front of emergency exit (or just small exits) do help the human flow. We can predict and manipulate panic spread, social contagion, how people evacuate[0]... So i suppose sociology is one of the exception you're talking about, but, realistically, isn't that just because sociological studies and applications have more founding, are easier to recruit for, and have less ethics constraint than other psychologies studies? It's nothing like economics. [0] https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsif.2016.0414 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rsif.201...

acoard 6y ago
Sociology is generally considered it's own field that has some overlap with psychology and not a subfield. >And sociology have predictive value, can we agree on that? No, I don't think we can and I think that's the crux of the disagreement. What big predictions have sociology made that have born to be true? Your example of emergency exits doesn't fit, and in fact proves the opposite. Those emergency exit signs existed before any sociological study of them. It's not the case that sociologists said "Hey, we just invented emergency exit signs and predict they will save lives," rather they're saying "You know those things that people have been using in emergencies to save lives for decades? Turns out it works." To be clear, I like sociology and the sociology courses I took I did find enriched my understanding of society at large. But I do not believe sociology helps us predict the future any more than history does (another field I love!). In contrast, fields like climate science say "If you release carbon, temperatures will rise" and that falsifiable prediction has born to be true. And I wager that sociologists will be more like historians with a diversity of opinion, than climate scientists who overwhelmingly agree with falsifiable and predictable claims.

by orwin 6y ago

acoard 6y ago

Sociology is generally considered it's own field that has some overlap with psychology and not a subfield. >And sociology have predictive value, can we agree on that? No, I don't think we can and I think that's the crux of the disagreement. What big predictions have sociology made that have born to be true? Your example of emergency exits doesn't fit, and in fact proves the opposite. Those emergency exit signs existed before any sociological study of them. It's not the case that sociologists said "Hey, we just invented emergency exit signs and predict they will save lives," rather they're saying "You know those things that people have been using in emergencies to save lives for decades? Turns out it works." To be clear, I like sociology and the sociology courses I took I did find enriched my understanding of society at large. But I do not believe sociology helps us predict the future any more than history does (another field I love!). In contrast, fields like climate science say "If you release carbon, temperatures will rise" and that falsifiable prediction has born to be true. And I wager that sociologists will be more like historians with a diversity of opinion, than climate scientists who overwhelmingly agree with falsifiable and predictable claims.