Is a value-free sociology either possibleor desirable?

his essay is asking two questions at once. The key words in the title are 'possible' and'desirable'. In order to achieve a high grade, both questions must be answered. An

appropriate balance is the key to success. This just goes to show the importance of readingthe question through a few times before you attempt to answer it. Many students panic inexaminations and don't read the question through properly. This often results in good studentsachieving lower grades than they are capable of. Be warned.

Value freedom is the notion that sociological research can andshould be carried out without the researcher's own views and

values intruding into the research investigation. In other words,the socioiogist must be neutral, without biases and should nottake sides. Value freedom is often associated with objectivity.

According to Bierstedt, research is only objective if it is free from'subjective elements' and 'personal desires'.

The view that a value-free sociology is both possible and desir­able is most closely associated with the positivist perspective.

According to positivists, value freedom is achieved by followingthe methods and procedures of the natural sciences. However, thispositivist view of an objective and value-free natural science has

been challenged by Kaplan who has pointed out that researcherswithin the natural sciences do not necessarily follow the method­

ological approach which positivists maintain that natural scien­tists use.

In addition, values must inevitably come into any researchwhether it is within natural science or social science. As soon as

a researcher chooses one subject to study rather than anothersubject, that researcher has expressed a value. For example, within

A-Level Sociology: Essays

This opening paragraph simply

provides a brief definition of value

freedom. If you can remember a

relevant quote or phrase, it always

looks good in an introduction.

However, if you can't remember a

quote, just do what I've done and

put down the key words.

In this paragraph, I've explainedwhere the idea of value freedom

comes from and how it can be

achieved. This is an example of

setting the scene and acts as a

launch-pad into the main body of

the essay.

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Question 4

Weber is a key name in the value­

freedom debate, and no essay onthis subject wouldbe completewithout him. This is because

Weber points to the relativenature of values. Youmust

make sure that you've a good

understanding of Weber or yourvalue-freedom essay willbe weakand incomplete.

This paragraph uses informationfrom another area of the syllabus,in this instance, health, andapplies it to the question. This isa useful technique to learn.

Gouldner is another essentialtheorist in the value-freedomdebate. Youwillnotice that the

introduction of Gouldner takes the

essay in a different direction. Thecontemporary issue of homeless­ness is used to support

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sociology it is evident that classical sociologists such as Durkheimand Marx, who both claimed to be objective and scientific, were

in fact motivated by their own personal values. The Marxist Baritz

takes this argument one stage further by saying that the valueswhich form the basis of any piece of research are less likely to bethose of the individual researcher than of the organisation or personfunding the research. This argument is supported by the exampleof the Rowntree Trust which funds research into poverty.

Weber would agree that the values of the researcher do influencethe area of study. He pointed out that values are inevitably linkedto the society in which the researcher works, so different societies

will give rise to different types of knowledge. The knowledgereflects the values of that particular society. For example, the

Bulger case has given rise to numerous attempts to link the massmedia with anti-social behaviour. Research of this nature is

unlikely in a third world country as other issues or values takepriority. However, Weber believed that once the topic of investi­

gation had been chosen, objectivity was possible, providing theresearcher does not make any value judgements upon the resultsof the research.

According to Marxists, the researcher may consider the results to

be value-free but there is no guarantee that others will look atthe results of the research in the same manner. Marxists would

argue that some research findings can be used to benefit thedominant social class. Additionally, the powerful can commissionresearch to suit their own purposes; for example, the layout of

large supermarket chains is designed by social scientists in orderto maximise profits. Where research findings do not fit in with thegoals of the body funding the research, the funders have the powerto suppress the findings. This occurred in the case of theConservative government which commissioned The Black Report

and The Health Divide which were research investigations into thehealth of the nation. The results showed that bad health was

linked to inequalities between the social classes. The governmentdid not publish these reports as they might have proved damagingto Conservative policy.

According to the American Marxist Gouldner in his essay 'Anti­

Minotaur: The Myth of a Value Free Sociology', just as themythical creature the Minotaur cannot be separated into man and

bull, neither can values be separated from facts in sociology.Gouldner argues that the whole idea of a value-free sociology

stems from the self-interest generated by capitalism. He claims

Exam Success

that early American sociologists who had been critical ofAmerican society came under attack from those in power and as

a result began to lose their academic status. In order to savethemselves, they created the myth of a value-free sociology andwere no longer critical of American society. However, Gouldner

claims that 'sitting on the fence' and saying nothing critical aboutsociety is in itself a value, so a value-free sociology is not possible.

He argues that if something is wrong in society, sociologists havea moral duty to speak out because silence concerning a socialinequality is as good as support for social inequality. For example,sociologists should comment on people living and sleeping on thestreets, and if they stay silent about it, then they are as good assaying that people should live and sleep on the streets. Gouldnerbelieves that sociology is not and should not be value-free.

Since the 1960s, many modern sociologists have rejected thenotion that a value-free sociology is either possible or desirable.The interactionist Becker claimed that as the social world was

mainly seen through the eyes of the powerful, sociologists shouldattempt to redress the balance by showing the social worldthrough the eyes of the underdog. Hence, many pieces of re­search from the second half of the twentieth century have notbeen value-free, nor have they attempted to be. This trend was

encapsulated in Parker's work View From the Boys, which showscrime from the point of view of those who commit it.

Marxist sociologists would go further than Becker by ad­vocating a form of sociology which is clearly political and there­

fore not value-free. Marxist sociology not only looks at the struc­tured inequalities of the social world, but it frequently gives aprescription to remove these inequalities as it perceives them to

be immoral. This idea that sociology is political and therefore notvalue-free is not exclusive to left-wing writers. For example, the

New Right apply right-wing explanations, laden with right-wingvalues, to the causes of social problems: Marsland criticises the

Welfare State for creating a culture of dependency and advocatesthe destruction of the Welfare State as we know it. Many sociol­

ogists concur with Gouldner in believing that sociology is not andshould not be value-free.

In conclusion, it appears that contemporary sociology has lost its

infatuation with value freedom. Most contemporary sociologistsdo not see a value-free sociology as either possible or desirable.It has been accepted that values which are present in every societywill become part of the socialisation process of any individual.

This in itself will ensure that a value-free sociology is impossible.

Those like Marsland who attack sociology for its left-wing biasare themselves guilty of their own right-wing bias through theirpreoccupation with maintaining the present capitalist social order.

A-Level Sociology: Essays

Gouldner's argument. Can you

think of different examples which

equally demonstrate Gouldner's

point? You need to develop the

confidence to apply theoretical

debates to contemporary issues.

It will make your essays more

enjoyable to read and write and

will show that you can make the

link between theory and practice.

The conclusion refers to, and

answers, the question. It also

makes further reference to why a

value-free sociology isn't possible.

Note that the question has been

answered at various points in

the essay and not just in the

conclusion. Regular reference ot

the question will keep your essay

tight and to the point.

17

Essays on value freedom are fairly clear-cut - there's a limited number of ways in which the

examiner can ask the question. Therefore, unlike other essays, it's highly unlikely that you'll have

trouble in interpreting the question. However, do give yourself time to read the question thoroughly

and plan your answer carefully. Unli ke other areas of sociology, where there are any number of

theorists who can be applied to explain a point, freedom has some specific theorists who ought

to be used, namely Weber and Gouldner.

In addition, as stated in the guidance notes, don't be afraid to link in other areas of sociology.

In the case of this essay the subject of health has been linked with the subject of value freedom.

The modularisation of A-level Sociology has encouraged students to view each topic as a separate

subject. It's important, however, to recognise the interrelationships between all topics on the

syllabus.

Related questions

1 To what extent can value judgements be kept out of sociological research?

2 'There is no such thing as value neutrality in sociology and it is therefore pointless to pursueit.' Evaluate this statement.

3 How far is it true to say that values inevitably enter into any piece of sociological research?