In which way you can define the term sociology .

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Sociology is a branch of social sciences that uses systematic methods of empirical investigations and critical analysis to develop and refine a body of knowledge about human social structure and activity , sometimes with the goal of applying such knowledge to the pursuit of a social welfare . Sociology is a broad discipline in terms of both methodology and subject matter . Its traditional focuses have included social relations , social stratification , social interaction , religion , culture and deviance , and its approaches have included both qualitative and quantitative research techniques . Sociology later evolved as an academic response to the challenges of modernity , modernization , such as an industrialization and urbanization that emerged in the early 19th century . Sociology , including economic , political , and cultural systems , has proto - sociological origins in the common stock of human knowledge and philosophy .