Yuhikaku Arma Syakaigaku Gairon (Introduction to sociology - What and how have sociologists been thinking?)

This book was written as an introduction to the study of sociology for first-year college students. It is intended to describe the contributions of sociology to “newcomers” interested in the discipline.
 
Many well-organized textbooks on sociology have been published. However, this book is unique in two ways.
 
First, it traces the path of sociologists’ basic concepts and pathways of thought, as is indicated by the subtitle of the book: “What and How Have We Thought?” The significant issues in sociology are divided into 13 topics that represent established fields of sociology, such as “the individual and society,” “family and the intimate sphere,” “crime and deviance,” “work and industry,” and “welfare and poverty,” to enable readers to trace the relationships and connections among the basic concepts of the discipline.
 
Second, the authors have attempted to present this roadmap in the most concise manner possible. They describe the basic concepts of sociology and try to explain the orientation of sociology as straightforwardly as possible. This book provides an overview of the main ideas that have preoccupied sociologists.
 
The role of newcomers in sociology may differ from their role in other disciplines. In the face of today’s emerging social phenomena, newcomers are likely to be more sensitive to social changes than veteran sociologists who are part of these phenomena. In fact, the development of sociology has advanced thanks to newcomers who have tried to understand the new social phenomena in each era.
 
On the other hand, many sociologists believe that understanding new social phenomena is better achieved by employing concepts developed by sociology. Therefore, when introduced to sociology, readers must grasp its fundamental concepts within the context of research developments. However, presenting this idea succinctly has proven challenging. At the same time, some degree of consensus likely exists on the significant concepts in sociology; however, the connections between these concepts are not necessarily the same. The varieties of connections between the basic concepts were repeatedly brought to our attention during discussions among the co-authors while writing this book. There is flexibility in how the essential concepts of sociology are linked, and this book presents one such approach.
 
This book thus attempts to balance a description of the trajectory of sociology with conciseness. Whether it has succeeded will be left to the reader’s judgment. It would be gratifying if those newly interested in sociology could connect new social phenomena with sociological contexts and add new sociological concepts.
 

(Written by YONEZAWA Akira, Associate Professor, Graduate School of Humanities and Sociology / 2025)