Knowledge, Belief and Religion
Chapter 15  Key Themes

• Positivism is a body of theory that claims that social life should be analysed in the same way that scientists study the 'natural world'. Underpinning this philosophy is the notion that phenomena exist in causal relationships and these can be empirically observed, tested and measured. The theoretical output of sociologists opposed to positivistic ideas can be seen in Chapter 18 'Making Social Life: Theories of Action and Meaning'. The empirical implications of positivism can be seen in many areas of social life, for example, read Chapter 10 'Education'.

• The Enlightenment was an eighteenth-century philosophical movement based on notions of progress through the application of reason and rationality. Enlightenment philosophers foresaw a world free from religious dogma, within human control, and leading ultimately to emancipation for all humankind. The idea of progress was therefore central to Enlightenment ideas. To explore the theoretical developments from the Enlightenment, look at Chapter 2 Living in Modernity. The impact of Enlightenment ideas in the development of the modern state can be seen in Chapter 8 'Power, Politics and the State'.

• Conscience collective was a term coined by Durkheim. It refers to the prerequisite for social integration, that is, the shared beliefs and values of a collectivity. Such collectively held ideas promote both a sense of belonging for the individual and the continuity of the group. The theoretica basis for the idea of the conscience collective can be found in Chapter 17 'Social Theory, Feminism and Modernity'. To see how it might operate in either substantive area, look at Chapter 14 'Crime'.