Jumaah Jasim Khalef

In my opinion, I think the reason we have different definitions of sociology is because different people have different views of their social environment. Note that perceptions differ and that affects how one defines the concept of sociology.

And it can be defined as the science that studies phenomena, relationships, and social systems in a scientific study using the scientific method in order to reach the laws that govern the functioning of these systems, relationships, and social phenomena in society. That is, the aim of this science is to reach social laws and whose definition is this: "

It is useful to catalogue the various approaches to Sociology, and the relationship of these to other areas where the search for knowledge goes on (such as the natural sciences) but the difficulty in such classifications is that they are based as much on axiomatic concepts of the nature of social phenomena as on the processes and relationships purported to be found in them. Social 'science' has not yet found its 'Newton', still less its Einstein; it is bound to time and circumstance . It has discovered no laws and can make no predictions nor can it provide precise mathematical formulae for what it counts and describes, and what it describes is bound to time and constantly changing circumstances. It had not yet reached a place where its insights run deep enough to enunciate 'laws' which apply generally, across time and context.

Methodologically, it is more akin to philosophy than even non-experimental areas of thought such as physical Cosmology. Social surveys, even experimental psychology, may provide building blocks upon which eventual explanations and predictions may be constructed, but such constructions are built on foundations of sand and employ bricks that melt in the heat of the constant historical flow of change.

The science project - the development of a scientific Sociology - is ever promising but never delivering.

If what I have just written is broadly valid then we should turn our attention to finding and developing conceptions of phenomena that are uniquely 'social' and ways of studying these that are reproducible.

It seems to me that the only candidates as yet available for sociology are the phenomena of human communication, phenomena that are publicly observable (or other humans could not observe them and communication could not occur) and can be interpreted by social participants (otherwise communication would ever only produce random results), and can be seen to occur in structured ways, following sets of communicative expectations (roles), and much work remains to be done in developing a capacity to deal with the analysis of the intricacy and sheer volume of communicative interactions, and their organisation across social contexts (structuration), and the hidden dimensions where these external processes are mirrored (inverted, distorted maybe) in the internal worlds of culture and mind.

Perhaps this conception of the social or some other may enable the cacophany of voices in sociology to find a path to unification. But then , we see a similar proliferation of differences in many other fields of endeavour, and in the history of fields that today only display such variety at seminal moments of uncertainty in parts of for a time, or in the face of anomalous new evidence (viz. in the last approx. 100 years of the impact on physics of quantum theory). It is not unusual to see diversity and even incoherence in any of the sciences ... sometimes but the difference is that these phases of incoherence are often temporary and get resolved, or if they persist, as they do in Cosmology, in areas where reliable data are incomplete or where key questions remain outside the possibilty of observation given current technology. Recent data flows from orbiting telescopes show how new technological capacities for observation can resolve disputes and push fields of study towards resolution of differences.

Sociology seems to be in a permanent state of confusion despite the very great insights it throws up from time to time. Will it ever be able to transcend the ephemeral character of its findings and the unconquerable nature of the conceptual diversity of its output?

You can also view different definitions as a sociology of knowledge problem, to be studied using the tools of social and cultural construction.

Briefly, the meanings of sociological terms are socially constructed, leading to different definitions depending on the community or society in which they are used, transmitted and received. Social network theory shows how knowledge is shaped by interactions with others in their social networks, and transferred from one generation to another depending on unique needs and context.

Jumaah Jasim Khalef Each sociologist's different perspective includes their conceptualization. In addition, when sociologists define sociology, the dynamics of their own periods should also be taken into account.

Because they differ in defining society.

In my opinion, The varying definitions of sociology arise from the dynamic nature of societies. Each society's unique belief systems, culture, history, and current conditions shape its perception of sociology. Cultural variations, historical experiences, social conditions, cultural context, and globalization contribute to these differences in definition. Sociology remains adaptable, reflecting the evolving needs and perspectives of diverse societies.