AQA GCSE Sociology 9-1 Student Book Sample - Chapter 1 Topic 1: What is Sociology?

Sep 5, 2026

AQA GCSE Sociology 9–1 Student Book Sample introduces sociology as a systematic study of human social life, social relationships and group behaviour. It explains how sociologists investigate society using specialised concepts, theories and research methods such as questionnaires, interviews and observation to uncover what lies beneath appearances. The text contrasts sociological perspectives with psychology and journalism, and highlights the role of research in shaping policy and everyday life decisions.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryExam

FormatPDF

Pages21

Reading Time53 min

AccessFree to download

Chapter 1: The sociological approach

Topic 1: What is sociology?

Topic 2: What are social structures, processes and issues?

Topic 3: What key concepts do sociologists use?

Topic 4: What does the term 'socialisation' mean?

Topic 5: What are the key ideas of Karl Marx?

Topic 6: What are the key ideas of Emile Durkheim?

Topic 7: What are the key ideas of Max Weber?

Topic 8: What is the 'consensus versus conflict' debate?

Focus on skills

AQA GCSE 9–1 Sociology Student Book Pauline Wilson Allan Kidd and Simon Addison The sociological approach Topic 1: What is sociology? Topic 2: What are social structures, processes and issues? Topic 3: What key concepts do sociologists use? Topic 4: What does the term ‘socialisation’ mean? Topic 5: What are the key ideas of Karl Marx? Topic 6: What are the key ideas of Emile Durkheim? Topic 7: What are the key ideas of Max Weber? Topic 8: What is the ‘consensus versus conflict’ debate? Topic 9: Focus on skills 10 Chapter 1: The sociological approach 1 Chapter 1 . Topic 1 What is sociology? Objective • Explain what sociology involves Sociology is the study of human social life and social relationships. Sociologists investigate and explain the social world and our behaviour in it. This involves examining how people live together in society and how they interact with each other in small groups, communities and large organisations. Sociologists try to understand not only the ways in which society influences us in our daily lives but also the ways in which we shape society. In Britain, people tend to think of themselves as unique individuals who make their own free choices about most aspects of their lives. For example, teenagers make choices about their friends, their clothes and the music they listen to. People also choose whether to marry and what career to pursue. Sociologists are interested in the ways our choices may be constrained (or limited) by factors such as our social class background, gender and ethnicity. They are also interested in the ways that our choices may be enabled (or helped) by such factors. Sociologists study a wide range of topic areas, as the diagram below shows. Health and illness Ageing and ageism Crime The media Religions and secularisation Families and family life Sociology focuses on the whole range of social life, including big issues (such as poverty and war) and aspects of everyday life. Topics include: Education Work Ethnicity and racism Gender inequality Poverty and wealth Social class inequality Disability | Glossary terms | | --- | | ethnicity, gender, social policies, society, theory | Making connections Rather than seeing these topic areas as completely separate, sociologists always look for connections or links between them. In pairs, choose two of these topics and discuss how they are connected. Then make brief notes to describe the connection. Sociology involves a distinctive way of seeing the social world. It focuses on how society influences our behaviour and the choices we make. In doing so, it asks important questions about human social life, groups and society. Here are some examples of these questions: 1. 1 Why are some people obsessed with finding fame through reality TV? What causes urban riots? What role do social media play in organising demonstrations? When sociologists try to answer such questions, they do not take anything at face value (accept that things are exactly as they appear to be) . Instead, they undertake careful investigation to explore what is really going on beneath the surface. In trying to make sense of the social world, sociologists use: • a body of terms (specialised vocabulary) and concepts (key ideas) that they have built up • a body of theories about the relationship between the individual and society • a tool kit of research methods such as questionnaires, interviewsand observation to gather evidence in an organised and systematic way. As a result, sociology can provide factual information that is more reliable than information from other sources. Why do girls perform better than boys at GCSE? Do the police and courts treat women and men differently? Why do girls perform better than boys at GCSE? However, sociology is not just about carrying out research and contributing to our knowledge of modern society. Many sociologists believe that research sho

FAQs

What does sociology study, according to the text?

Sociology studies human social life and social relationships, including how people interact in small groups and large organisations. It also examines how society shapes behaviour and how people help shape society.

How do sociologists avoid simply accepting things at face value?

Sociologists investigate carefully to explore what is really happening beneath the surface. They use specialised concepts, sociological theories, and research methods to build reliable understanding.

Why can sociological research be more reliable than information from other sources?

The text states that sociologists gather evidence in an organised and systematic way using research toolkits such as questionnaires, interviews and observation. This structured approach supports more reliable findings.

Sep 5, 2026

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