Introduction. Positivism is a philosophy of science that assumes a specific epistemological, ontological, and methodological perspective. Auguste Comte was the first to lay out the positivist position for sociology arguing that (1) social phenomena—or social facts, as Durkheim would call them—external and observable to individuals were amenable to empirical, scientific analysis and, thus Durkheim argued that the fundamental goal of sociology was to identify social facts, which are social forces that exist independently of individual people but still greatly influence their lives For Max Weber, social action has a subjective definition whereas for Émile Durkheim social action is objective. Differences between social action and social facts In order to understand the difference between these two theories, both of which are of great importance in sociology, one must first understand what the Social Fact Theory is Durkheim's "social fact" thus proved to be a conveniently elastic concept, covering the range from the most clearly delineated features of social structure (e.g., population size and distribution) to the most spontaneous currents of public opinion and enthusiasm. Rules for the Observation of Social Facts Émile Durkheim ( April 15, 1858 – November 15, 1917) was a French sociologist whose contributions were instrumental in the formation of sociology, anthropology and religious studies. His work and editorship of the first journal of sociology (L'Année Sociologique) helped establish sociology within the academy as an accepted social science. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Emile Durkheim is remembered for the path-breaking research in which he found that _____ are influenced by _____ , and not just by individual choices. a. economic factors; investment strategies b. suicide rates; social factors c. ethnicities; discrimination d. Durkheim proposed again that anomie, or a state where social norms were unknown or not expected, led to suicide of individuals. The state of anomie does not allow a person to propose objectives for him or herself, leading to a state of unhappiness that cannot be corrected. This unhappiness then leads to suicide for many. Study with Quizlet and memorize flashcards containing terms like Émile Durkheim analyzed the social changes transforming society in his lifetime in terms of:, A child's father is likely to tell the child to "say thank-you" when the child receives a gift. This is an example of:, According to Émile Durkheim, societies must have organic solidarity based on cooperation and a general agreement on Z0MVc.