Sociological imagination is the capacity to distinguish how large scale social forces and individual actions relate. In this realm one can be able to see the relationship between historical changes and the lives of individuals. One can be able to tell the operation of social causation in the society. It is a description of the insight that is offered by the sociological discipline. It also explains the relevance that is offered by sociology in our daily lives (Mills, 5).
Sociological imagination aids a person in realizing that one is not usually in control of the issues that affect their lives in a vast extent. It assists the individual not to focus on the meager causes of a certain problem but to look at the bigger picture when analyzing a certain problem in life.
According to this concept, culture has a lot to do with the social shapes and happening in our lives. Culture has a direct influence on the way that we talk, the way we learn and the orientation of our thoughts. With sociological imagination, the conscience of a person is simplified to avoid stressful thinking which might have resulted from major losses in life.
When a person happens to suffer a job loss or some other significant loss in life, sociological imagination can be beneficial in assisting the person in being able to comprehend that the loss is not absolutely due to their will. There are so many responsibilities in our daily lives that might have a direct or an indirect influence on our jobs leading to the job loss. At times, one can lose a job because the company that he is working in has a lower demand and thus low market capabilities. Such a problem is beyond the control of an individual (Rose, 13).
Some of the excuses that can come in from the concept of sociological imagination vary. A person can be fired due to incompetency. This incompetency could have resulted from poor education because of lack of funds or due to irresponsible parents.
A drop out can assume that the cause of dropping out from school was due to the norm in the family where everyone was taking part in the same behavior. This might have resulted from poor conditions in their respective schools like being harassed by their peers to an extent that they could not condone the conditions (Mills, 6).
According to Mills, any occurrence in the life of an individual has an interrelation with the society. In getting to know how the life of a certain individual is, one should look at the immediate surrounding. This will help the person in being able to perceive the image as a whole basing the happenings with the surroundings (Kendall, 7).
It is not possible to cover all the variables that are involved with this field. The concept of sociological imagination is due to the human nature to make a discovery and a subsequent interpretation of the meaning of our day to day experiences. It basically involves learning nature between social groups in a society. Sociological imagination thus will help play a crucial role in helping a certain individual be able to come to terms with various things that occur in life and thus be able to forge ahead smoothly (Kendall, 6).
Works Cited
Kendall, Diana. Sociology in our times, (6 Ed.) Michigan: Cengage Learning. pp. 6–7. 2007
Mills, C. Wright. The Sociological Imagination, Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1959
Rose, K. Golden. “Mills and the Profession of Sociology”, In the New Sociology, (Ed). Irving Lewis Horowitz, New York: Oxford University Press. 1964.
The topic of engaged citizenship can be listed among the popular research problems in sociology and psychology. The term in question can be understood as citizens’ readiness to take an active part in political life, support positive change, and engage in self-directed learning to enrich their knowledge of political processes. The goal of this essay is to place engaged citizenship in the context of Mills’s sociological imagination that involves being able to link one’s personal experiences to processes taking place in wider society.
Engaged Citizenship
The emergence of engaged citizenship has to deal with changes in values and attitudes to political life. Modern scholars associate popularization and normalization of the so-called engaged citizenship with the spread of such values as self-expression and individual freedom during the post-modernization period (Hooghe & Oser, 2015). Engaged citizenship and being an active participant within society involves demonstrating sensitivity to issues affecting others, such as human rights violations (Hooghe & Oser, 2015). Importantly, engaged citizenship takes the duty-based understanding of being a citizen to the next level. Duty-based citizenship emphasizes reliability as a taxpayer and political participation to observe formalities but does not involve being active and assertive.
In general, it is possible to regard sociological imagination as a tool that enables a person to move beyond the threadbare and oversimplified ways of understanding individual experiences and what they reveal about life. In his work originally published in 1959, Mills (2000) introduces the term “sociological imagination” to make fragmented knowledge related to the role of historical events in social processes a well-recognized problem. As he argues, it is not surprising that ordinary people “cannot understand the meaning of their epoch for their own lives” (Mills, 2000, p. 5). Basically, to possess this sociological imagination means to be able to reflect on individual and collective experiences without getting lost in disparate and sometimes conflicting facts (Ritzer & Wiedenhoft Murphy, 2019). More precisely, it allows people to “understand the larger historical scene” and its influences on particular individuals, as well as to anatomize societies to grasp their inner structures (Mills, 2000, p. 5). With that in mind, this type of imagination enables a person to develop a more structured understanding of society he or she lives in, which is extremely important for becoming an engaged citizen.
Sociological Imagination
What Mills calls the sociological imagination is a critically important tool for those making scientific inquiries into human society, but fostering it in ordinary people can also help to raise new generations of engaged citizens. As Carter (2015) suggests, engaged and comprehensive citizenship involves taking responsibilities in addition to those specified in laws. As an engaged citizen, a person transfers knowledge about responsibilities in small groups (families, school and workplace teams, and others) to larger and more global contexts, such as communities, cities, or countries (Carter, 2015). However, to recognize these responsibilities, it is essential to understand the role that individuals play in their society’s proliferation and development. The application of sociological imagination discussed above is a good way to approach this task since it helps to find unobvious connections between people’s efforts as citizens and the social outcomes of these efforts.
Knowledge About the Links Between Different Parts of Global Societies
Improving people’s knowledge about the links between different parts of global societies is another aspect of sociological imagination, making it a tool for engaged citizenship. As Mills (2000) states, those possessing sociological imagination focus on the history of societies, their essential components, and connections between these components. This principle finds reflection in the education needed to raise responsible and engaged citizens. To harness engaged citizenship to the betterment of humankind, it is recommended to educate students in wealthier countries about how their lifestyles involve the exploitation of labor in developing states (Hooghe & Oser, 2015). Social imagination can also be used to improve the recognition of environmental problems that affect different populations disproportionately (Norgaard, 2018). Depending on their life circumstances, engaged and mindful citizens should be aware of global political and economic processes and understand their position in relation to more and less powerful subgroups or entire nations. Since it allows drawing connections between personal experiences and global tendencies, sociological imagination can be a useful tool to foster engaged citizenship.
Sociological Knowledge and Reasoning Skills
In some instances, people that do not possess sociological knowledge or lack reasoning skills to draw analogies between small and large groups may misunderstand or underestimate their power as citizens. Sociological imagination can be helpful in eliminating this problem since it provides people with knowledge concerning “the mechanics by which the society is changing” (Mills, 2000, p. 6). The diffusion of knowledge between citizens can contribute to citizen involvement in decision-making to solve different problems (Bruni, Zarić, & Sansone, 2018). However, it is reasonable to think that the effective diffusion of knowledge takes place when citizens are interested in exercising their power and understand opportunities linked to their current status. By fostering sociological imagination in ordinary people, especially those in developed democratic societies, it is possible to improve their understanding of how citizens contribute to policymaking.
Conclusion
To sum it up, sociological imagination can become an effective tool for the promotion of engaged citizenship. By fostering sociological imagination in ordinary citizens, it is possible to make them realize their role in promoting well-being and see global trends in the distribution of power and wealth. Moreover, since sociological imagination involves the application of systems thinking to social processes, it can help citizens to understand and use their power to support positive change.
References
Bruni, R., Zarić, S., & Sansone, M. (2018). The power of knowledge of the citizens. Knowledge International Journal, 25(1), 15-22.
Carter, C. C. (2015). Social education for peace. New York, NY: Palgrave MacMillan.
Hooghe, M., & Oser, J. (2015). The rise of engaged citizenship: The evolution of citizenship norms among adolescents in 21 countries between 1999 and 2009. International Journal of Comparative Sociology, 56(1), 29-52.
Mills, C. W. (2000). The sociological imagination (40th ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Norgaard, K. M. (2018). The sociological imagination in a time of climate change. Global and Planetary Change, 163, 171-176.
Ritzer, J., & Wiedenhoft Murphy, W. (2019). Essentials of sociology (3d ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications, Inc.
This reflective treatise attempts to explicitly review the concept of sociological imagination about the view of Mills. The paper will then develop an example of sociological imagination. Finally, the treatise explains how the examples are instrumental in understanding the importance of using the sociological imagination to analyze social problems.
Sociological imagination
Sociological Imagination is the intrinsic ability to surpass common view and analyze the situation as they occur in the background of informed theoretical conceptualization. This concept views the society as a platform where conflicting and friendly occurrences interact to influence behavioral inclination, norm organization, and conflicts as a result of the cut-link between order and anarchy.
Through sociological imagination, it is easy to understand behavior change and identify forces: positive or negative, that facilitate the angle of inclination towards the preset norm and values at individual and societal magnitude. This concept liberates an individual to draw an informed understanding of the past through reflection of current events (Mills 13).
Mills’ example
Mills uses the example of unemployment to display the concept of sociological imagination. The example states that an individual who remains unemployed in a population of 100,000 employed members of a community will shift the focus of his or her unemployment to personal skills, character, or opportunities (Mills 16).
However, the same situation becomes a social issue when the number of those unemployed represents a good percentage of the population. It becomes difficult to relate the unemployment to individual skills or character. The focus may then shift to institutional challenges as the root cause of unemployment, and not character or personal skills of a few individuals (Giddens and Sutton 31).
In the above example, unemployment as a considerable percentage of the population may be a clear indication of a structural malfunction in the units that make the society self-sufficient. Unemployment becomes a structural challenge since the impacts cannot be directly related to individuals, but market dynamics (Mills 17).
Since sociological imagination shifts focus of a social issue to group dynamics in a society, the problem of unemployment as a structural breakdown in the community may catalyze the need to mark forces interacting to inspire the need for changed approach.
Personal example
In the year 2012, there was a protest in Afghanistan. This was due to accusation circulating in the corners and homes of Afghan Muslims that some American soldiers in the NATO base were burning the holy Koran in what they perceive as malice and religious antagonism.
Despite spirited initiations to restore order, the NATO officials’ apology was rejected, and tension escalated into verbal onslaught and physical confrontation. An individual from the Muslim community burning a Koran may be treated as a person onslaught to the religious belief. However, the same event becomes a community concern, especially when the accused persons belong to a different culture or religious inclination.
The examples and the sociological imagination
Understanding human society requires critical analysis of cognitive values attached to practices, beliefs, and social dynamics which control and align a society towards astute of simultaneously interacting functions at macro and micro levels (Mills 12).
From the above examples, understanding sociological imagination calls for knowledge of present and past events that help to change the history of a society. In the process, at the micro level, perception of an individual is likely to adopt a reactive response exhibited in line of behavior as is the case in the above examples.
Works Cited
Giddens, Anthony, and Philip Sutton. Sociology. New York, NY: Polity Press, 2013. Print.
Mills, Wright. The Sociological Imagination. London, UK: Oxford University Press, 2000. Print.
In an effort to explain sociology based on how relevant it is in daily life, many sociologists today find the term sociological imagination coined by C. Wright Mills inevitable in their discussions. Through his work under a similar name, Wright Mills stands out as the most appealing sociological theorist to me.
Therefore, as pointed out by Mills, sociological imagination gives me a deep insight of the nature of sociology. It goes further to shed light on how it directly connects with the lives of individuals in the contemporary society. However, one might want to know what sociological imagination entails.
Sociological imagination through Mills’ own words is the capacity to shift from one perspective to another. In other words, it is “the capacity to range from the most impersonal and remote transformations to the intimate features of the human self, and to see the relations between the two of them” (Mills, 1959, p. 3).
The ability to connect between the two, according to Mills, is the driving force behind sociological imagination. The key to this theory is the reality of the existence of public issues, as well as private troubles. Public issues originate from the society. They go down to individuals who take them as being a result of their personal failures rather than seeing them for what they ought to be.
On the other hand, private troubles arise because of a personal character. For instance, in a society where jobs are hard to get, circumstances may force a person to accept that he is not working simply because he is lazy. This, however, may turn out to be a public issue when many people cannot find anywhere to work, hence forced to stay idle.
Wright Mills, through sociological imagination theory, gives an emphasis that sociology mostly focuses on the manner in which social institutions and forces shape the individual behaviors of people in the society. It shows how the affected people respond to the influence. By being able to see the bigger picture, and derive connections between public issues and private troubles, a person is more enlightened and aware of the happenings in his society.
According to Brewer (2005, p.134), people will always be interested if their personal problems can be addressed merely by solving other external factors. It is pertinent to note that, when addressing issues in the society, it is indispensable to do so with the inspiration from Mills’ sociological imagination to see the issue in totality. By so doing, one stands a better chance to address it comprehensively.
It is only through the ability to see the larger picture, as put forth by Mills, that people can derive sociological solutions and explanations. Other theorists under the inspiration of Mills came up with explanations on how some things happen in the society (Vissing, 2011, Para.3).
For instance, Mills’ work formed a basis for theorists such as Emile Durkheim who came up with a theory to explain suicide in societies. The sociological imagination theory has, therefore, proven concrete since other scholars in the discipline view it as the only elaborate theory that brings forth reliable sociological explanations.
In conclusion, a sociological theory should aim at giving details on sociological problems. By providing an avenue for one to relate issues in his/her private lives with the happenings in the society, Mills’ theory ensures that the real causes of problems in the society are analyzed. It provides accurate solutions to avoid future occurrence of such problems.
Reference List
Brewer, J. (2005). “The Public and the Private in C. Wright Mills Life and Work”. Sociology, 39(4), 661-677.
Mills, W. (1959). The Sociological Imagination. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Vissing, Y. (2011). Introduction to Sociology. San Diego, CA: Bridgepoint Education, Inc. Web.
In reference to an article published in the New York Times on September 6 2011, most people from New York are largely discontented with the quality of education that is being offered in most government schools within the city. According to them, the system has gone down since the Mayor in charge took over leadership for the last nine years. The majority of people cited various reasons for their dissatisfaction.
Such reasons included treating the schools as business entities, wrong choice of education system, shallow content, congestion in classes, poor services to children with disabilities among others. This is despite the fact that the mayor’s spokesperson rated the progress in the schools using the increased rate of graduation as well as the admirable performance in their exams.
With regards to the New York Times polls, the quality of education in these schools deteriorated in 2010 when a person with little experience in education was made the overall chancellor in charge of the schools. However the teachers in these schools were rated higher in 2011 at 34% than in 2004 which was at 13%.
In view of the above story, sociology refers to the systematic study of social interaction and social organization. Sociological imagination refers to one’s ability to see beyond his/her daily life as the source for success or defeat. In other words sociology Imagination is a term used to denote an individual’s capacity to visualize his/her personal experience as well as individual challenges (micro level) as influenced by the structural organization of our society at present (macro level).
In general, micro sociology refers to the analysis of people‘s day to day behaviors while macro sociology refers to a society’s collective practices as in associations and institutions as well as their public patterns. It involves viewing the society as the root of our accomplishments and downfall. C. Mills 1959 states that, sociological imagination enables an individual to identify with the history involving the inner meaning of life as well as the profession of an individual.
According to him, many people are not aware of the connection that exists between their way of living and their history. These people do not appreciate what history has contributed to what they later become in life and in the society. When studying the society, logical and scientific examination should be applied. The study should also involve relative analysis of the past.
From the above definition of sociology and sociological definition, it is no doubt that the story given can be described as a social issue. This is because it is dealing with public schools which are social institutions and involve the cooperation of the administrators, teachers, pupils and parents.
It is in these institutions that the constant actions of the stakeholders mentioned above may lead to either failure or success of the learners and thus to the growth and development of the society at large in future. In addition, comparative analysis of the history of the school has been used to support the above story. This is seen where the teachers’ performance in government schools was rated at 34% in 2011 as compared to 13% in 2004.
Functionalism refers to the theory that states that, for a society to exist, division of social status is inevitable. According to this theory, the most motivated and daring people work hardest in life and pursue education to the highest level in an effort to climb the social ladder. The theory argues that, other people in the society are less motivated and less aggressive in life and end up meeting their basic needs by working manually.
This theory stipulates that, such inequality in social classes must exist in a society for it to develop. For a society to grow there must be employers and employees. According to the functionalists, a society is an organized structure with unique functions and dysfunctions of institutions, and distinguishes between visible functions and hidden functions. This approach regards all individuals as having something in common and based on their beliefs and ethics.
Conversely, the Conflict Theory stipulates that those people who are at the highest social class where they have influence and reputation are in a constant struggle to retain their status. While doing this, these people create feelings of dissatisfaction, doubt and resentment amongst themselves. In such cases, the common people are incapable of obtaining similar education as well as material goods with those who possess power.
This is because the few people who are up the social class ladder are always struggling to acquire and uphold more affluence, influence and status. In this kind of social division, those in the low- social class are not allowed to attain a similar position with those who are up the social ladder even though they may also be intelligent and aggressive.
In contrast, symbolic interactionism involves the minute subdivisions of people within a given society. Such subdivisions are symbols that represent wealth, speech communities and activities. The groupings are often viewed as the constituents of the overall culture within a society.
In the analysis of the above story using the principles of the conflict theory, it is clear that the administrators of the public schools in New York are in a constant struggle to own the schools even when some are incompetent. This makes it impossible for those who are in the lower class to possess similar positions of leadership with those in power.
Therefore even though some learned parents realize that the level of education in the public schools have gone down, they have no influence over the schools’ culture. Moreover, the children of the common man continue living in unfavorable conditions such as congestion in classes.
Looking at the above story using the eyes of a functionalist theorist, we can argue that a school is a social institution whereby learners who put more effort at school end up pursuing better careers, live better lifestyles and acquire more influence as compared to those who do not work hard.
More often than not, this group of people ends up doing manual work and living poor lifestyles. Here, the mayor can be said to have worked extra hard to acquire his leadership position as a chancellor.
In view of symbolic interactionism, we can say that the public schools that are being referred to in the story constitutes of learners who have something in common. This includes poor services and overcrowding. They constitute of children whose parents are at the lowest level in the social class ladder and therefore experience similar problems.
However, all these learners have equal chances to change their lifestyles. Those who will work hard despite their challenges will end up doing well in school and pursue better professions and thus raise their social status changing their associations to match their lifestyles.
In conclusion, among the three theories, the conflict theory offers a more convincing and applicable analysis on the main issue. This is because the administrators of the public schools in New York are in a constant struggle to own the public schools even when some are incompetent making it impossible for those who are in the lower class to obtain similar positions of leadership.
Sociology is a subject that studies societies and social behavior of individuals in a society. Social issues are matters that pertain to people’s lives as they interact with one another in a society. This paper seeks to discuss sociological aspects. Based on a newspaper article, the paper will explore concepts of sociological imagination and sociological perspectives.
Summary of the newspaper article
‘Santorum, taking on Michigan, wants to talk jobs, not social issues’ is an article that was published in the New York Times magazine on February 13, 2012. The article, written by Seelye Katharine, highlighted Santorum’s political campaigns that had been successful based on social issues as political agendas.
The republican presidential hopeful, who was also facing criticism over his former remarks on a feminist movement’s position, was however changing his political agendas to addressing economic issues rather than social matters.
Sociological imagination and its contribution to the understanding between human behavior and society
Sociological imagination is an approach to understanding the scope of sociology as a subject. It is a form of critical thinking aimed at developing insights over the subject.
Sociology is a subject that offers insight into behavior of individuals and groups of people in a society and its scope covers established relationships between people in a society, the effects of such relationships on people’s interactions and society’s overall reactions to the relationships.
Sociological imagination therefore offers an approach to understanding the whole concept of how people relate in a society and how such relationships are projected to macro sociological aspects of a society.
Sociological imagination refers to the set of analytical thoughts that are applied by experts in exploring and understanding sociological aspects of people in a society. It is defined by the ability to comprehend the interaction between individuals and the society as a whole.
The imagination forms the basis of an understanding of a person’s sociological environment, both personal and general. The main concept of sociological imagination is the development of an independent approach to personal aspects of sociology and the sociological factors of a person’s external environment.
Sociological imagination therefore allows for a critical approach to understanding the society from a sober and impersonal approach. The approach develops a link between personal matters that affects individuals or small groups of people and social issues that concerns an entire society.
A precise example is the issue of divorce. Even though marriage and divorce are personal issues between spouses, their basis forms fundamental principles to the existence and stability of a society. A sociological imagination’s approach to a single divorce case would therefore be to consider the seriousness of that single case as a factor that affects the entire society.
Since the core objective of sociology is to study and develop an insight over how people behave in their societal set up, the subject develops understanding into the relationship between individuals and the society as a whole. There exists a mutual dependence between the society and behavior of members of the society.
While opinions may be held that people’s behavior defines a society, it can be understood that the society plays a very important role in shaping the behavior of its members. Cultural values and practices in a society for instance have direct impacts on people’s thoughts and actions.
This means that a person’s attitude, reaction, and behavior will largely be determined by the society from which the individual originates. This concept is in line with the principle of ‘self-belonging’ that aligns a person’s behavior to generally accepted norms of his or her society.
Similarly, people are the founding elements of a society. From this approach, its members define a society. As a result, moral and ethical values in a society will be defined as the set of practices that have been adopted by its members and accepted to be good.
It can therefore be understood that while the society defines and largely shape the behavior of its members, personal behavior of a person is an element to the person’s entire society and may define stability of an aspect of the society.
Social imagination therefore contributes to the understanding that personal behavior and the society as a whole are related. This is because it projects personal issues as factors that determine the nature of a society.
Social imagination and the article
The concept of social imagination is directly applicable to the article. From the story, it can be identified that personal opinions and sentiments of an individual have both immediate and future impacts on the person’s society. Santorum, the subject of the story is a politician who is interested in being the next president of the United States.
Though his candidature may be a personal move for political achievement of power or for prestige, his policies as the future president, if he is elected will be felt by the United States as a society. Similarly, reception and support that the article reports for the aspirant are an indication that his candidature has an impact on his society.
The article also highlights impacts of Santorum’s sentiments against feminist movement on his candidature. While his remarks had been made from an individual’s perspective, critics have used the remarks as a tool for evaluating him for presidency.
The relationship between personal and societal interest, as illustrated by the article and in light with the principle concept of sociological imagination, identifies the story as a social issue.
Ideas and concepts of sociological perspectives
Functionalism, conflict theory, and ‘interactionism’ are the major concepts of sociological perspectives.
Functionalism
Functionalism, as a sociological perspective, focuses on interactions among sections or members of a society. It is also concerned with how members of a society react to sociological changes in their environment.
Conflict theory
Conflict theory is concerned with competition among members of a society as well as leadership and power.
‘Interactionism’
‘Interactionism’ on the other hand focuses on personal exchanges and relations between members of a society.
The story and sociological perspectives
The story that is based on Santorum’s political campaigns illustrates the three sociological perspectives.
‘Interactionism’
‘Interactionism’ is exhibited by the aspirant’s campaigns that involve face to face rallies.
Functionalism
Functionalism is identified by relationships that the politician has developed with groups such as conservatives and evangelicals.
Conflict theory
The contest for party’s nomination on the other hand illustrates the concept of conflict theory that is also identified between the aspirant and feminist movements. The perspectives therefore apply to the story.
Conclusion
Sociology studies people’s behavior in a society. This paper has discussed sociological imagination and sociological perspectives as elements of sociology. The paper has also identified an article on social issue and related the article’s story to sociological imagination, functionalism, conflict theory, and ‘interactionism’.
Society’s emphasis on social event and sports competition could drive athletes into taking drugs to achieve an athletic advantage. As a result of this, the strong motivation for many athletes to use or abuse performance-enhancing substances is the desire to boost performance, gain prestige, and status. Furthermore, many diverse pathways lead to drug use in sporting events. Factors contributing to the use or abuse of performance-enhancing substances (Illicit drug use) in sporting events include age, genetics, family influences, peer pressure, education, individuality, and a range of mental health factors, including stress and basic abnormal behavior (Murphy, 1995). Competitors in various sporting events are not resistant to these factors.
The structural sources of the trouble/issue of “juiced” athletes
Although most debates on drug abuse in sporting events concentrate on performance-enhancing drugs, however, abuse of so-called recreational or social drugs by athletes continues to be a serious problem. On the other hand, the intake of illicit drugs is restricted to a comparatively little and distinct group of athletes. In line with this, the use of recreational drugs (e.g., illicit drugs, nicotine) must be carefully analyzed within a much broader societal perspective (Murphy, 1995).
According to Mills Wright, “The relationship between learning to acquire understand and subsequently societal change is the sociological imagination” (62). In line with this, the sociological imagination is the ability to distinguish the association between individual lives and larger social forces at work determining lives. Mills urged us to understand that human personal fortunes or problems must be fully apprehended in terms of general public concerns (e.g., the strength of the economy).
Given Mill’s perspective, the issue of drug use among athletes can be linked to social pressure. The social influence regarding substance use involves the pressure in society to win at all costs. Athletes, however, consider the use of drugs, especially if it improves athletic performance. Certain drugs do have the desired result of instant performance enhancement. Many athletes who use performance-enhancement drugs become more willing to risk their long-term health when faced with pressure to excel in competitions from society. Athletic merit is often met with society’s reaction to overwhelming support and tremendous pressure to win and attain dominance.
Athletes competing in organized sporting events or competition learn at an early age the significance of winning and excelling in their preferred field. Fairness in following the rules of the game, so often emphasized by the athletic coach, becomes a secondary center of attention when the stakes for winning involves financial gain, rank, status, media focus, and greater social benefit. Thus, societal pressures to win may excessively control athletes and physically active individuals to consider the use of substances to aid their performance.
In Mill’s famous book “The Sociological Imagination” he noted how knotted social forces and individual lives are influenced by society. He further stated, “Neither the life of a human being nor the narration of a society can be fully apprehended without understanding both” (Mills, 1959).
Without a sociological point of view, society might be inclined to think of these individual experiences mainly in individual terms. Society might trace both the foundation of a problem and the way out to that dilemma as lying within an entity. The experience of athletes who use or abuse performance-enhancing substances, for example, an individual problem may be on account of his or her traits such as opportunities. As Mills further stated, “The mere constitution of opportunities has broken down” (9). Establishing results for these comprehensive problems entails looking into the structure of the social order (Mills, 1959).
Conclusion
Mills sensed that increasing a sociological imagination will assist the society to stay away from becoming “preys” of social pressures and better direct human existence and lives. By realizing how social systems carry out their duties, society can improve the approaches embarked on to create change and influence history.
Reference List
Mills, C. W. (1959). The Sociological Imagination. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Murphy, S. M. (1995). Sport Psychology Interventions. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.
Sociological imagination can be defined as the level of awareness that exists as a result of the relationship between personal experience and society in general. It focuses on the thoughts and beliefs that individuals have. The thoughts and beliefs of an individual have an overall effect on the status of society.
Scholars have argued that every individual has, at one point in life, thought or have an idea that that troubled him/her. Such troubles are normally reflected in society at a relatively larger scale than a single individual would have thought. This is due to the commonality of problems that we may have as members of a given society. This paper shall therefore focus on the private trouble that I experienced and its relationship with society.
Trouble and Its Effects
The neighborhood that I grew in had a lot of children who were of my age. We, therefore, developed together and interacted a lot with each other. When we joined kindergarten, most of us went to the same school, although, some joined different classes. During this time, we used to interact with each other, without any boundaries. However, as we became older, I started to notice that I was not quite comfortable with most of my friends.
This became even worse when I reached puberty. I found it difficult to socialize and interact with my peers. The situation was even worse when individuals of the opposite sex were involved. I was nervous while sitting next to or talking to people who were members of the opposite sex. This made my social life as a teenager to be so stressful and boring. Within a few years, most of my friends were dating. I could see that they were enjoying themselves unlike me.
All through this time, my friends were making fun of me, calling me all sorts of weird names. I was okay with that since I believed that I would get through this situation. However, there was one comment that had a tremendous impact on my thoughts and emotions; a friend of mine called me a homosexual. I did not know how to respond to this. I did not know whether the signs I was exhibiting were that of a homosexual or it was just a stage in my development.
This made my socialization and interaction to become even worse. I developed low self-esteem. As a result, I spent much of my time indoors. It was not until when I joined college that I realized that I was only shy. I discovered that I was straight and people liked me a lot. My self-esteem was rejuvenated and the thoughts of me being a homosexual slowly faded away.
Homosexuality is a common phenomenon in modern society. However, it is difficult for an individual to know whether he/she is a homosexual or not. An individual can falsely think he/she is gay or lesbian due to some characters that he/she has. The thought can become even worse if his/her peers are making fun of him/her.
Conclusion
Several other factors in society can affect the thoughts of an individual. This mainly includes movies and fashion. The theme of homosexuality is common in most movies and TV programs that are being aired all around the world. Also, some dress codes may make other individuals in society think otherwise about your sexuality. For example, men have started to wear tight clothing that has bright colors. This is contrary to what is expected of them. All these factors show that homosexuality is gradually being accepted into society. However, individuals should be careful before deciding as to their sexuality.
The differences the writer would have discerned among the visitors to the Mall would be in terms of their dresses, personal appearances, and conduct. It could also be seen in terms of the fact whether the visitors are seriously intended on the purchase or just to look around the place and spend time. People of different age groups, occupations, income groups, and social statuses have dissimilar reasons for visiting malls. Wealthy people come to buy luxury items, cosmetics, and expensive clothes; poorer people just come to do some window shopping or buy need-based articles, children come to play, have food and drinks. There are some groups of people who just come to loiter around, watch what other visitors are up to, and generally do nothing except observing the going-on in the Mall. Their age groups, nationalities, social outlooks, and purchasing capacities are significant aspects that determine how they dress and what they buy.
According to C.W. Miles, because: “neither the life of an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both”, we need to develop a way of understanding the interaction between individual lives and society. (Encyclopedia: Sociological imagination, 2003).
Functional Analysis
The manifest intentions of the Super Bowl are to determine the world football champions. The latent aims would be in terms of generating revenues, sponsorships, and gate money.
The manifest intention of attending church is to reinforce faith in God and pray. It is also to gain inner strength to counter the challenges of daily living. It is also a kind of solidarity shown to the community members and the church organization. The latent aims of visiting churches are to seek communion with God and seek solace in spiritual thoughts.
The manifest intentions of attending sociological classes are to prepare oneself for a career in this profession through acquiring knowledge and experience in this field. The latent objectives could be to understand the social aspects of human behavior and conduct and to pre-determine, with reasonable accuracy, how individuals/groups would behave under selected social settings.
However, it is often seen, as suggested by Robert K. Merton, that a “middle-range theory.” needs to be applied in sociological situations. (Merton, 2003).
Sociological Perspectives
The fundamental paradigms of sociological perspectives vest on the following patterned behavior which most of us enjoin:
Perceiving the obvious in the specifics: We tend to form generalized, patterned behavior processes in terms of dress code, food preference, and professed code of conduct; this could also be in terms of matching people with stereotyped characteristics, behavior, etc,
Seeing the bizarre in the familiar: Often people are quick to castigate uncoded behavior patterns or sometimes focus on “how society guides our thoughts/actions often without our awareness.” (Seeing the strange in the familiar, n.d). It is often seen that individual patterns are seen in a social context. Persons are accountable for individual responsibilities undertaken by them, without giving less credence to the fact that societal influences often interfere in individual or group action and performance.
It is not always simple to separate personal troubles and public issues. The related problems are often associated, which can be illustrated by the concept of the sociological imagination. The purpose of this paper is to summarize a video about that concept. According to the author of the video, the task of the sociological imagination is “to grasp history and biography and the relations between the two within society” (“Sociological Imagination” 00:00:25-00:00:37). The term and the concept of sociological imagination were presented in the book of the same title by Charles Wright Mills in 1959 (“Sociological Imagination” 00:00:20-00:00:27). The primary feature of this concept is to understand the difference between the troubles of a single person and a public issue (“Sociological Imagination” 00:00:37-00:00:45). For instance, if a person cannot find a job, that is their personal trouble, but if a million out of 10 million people cannot get employed, that is a public issue (“Sociological Imagination” 00:00:45-00:01:01). This example illustrates what personal trouble and a public issue are and how they differ from each other.
However, the author of the sociological imagination believed that both concepts described in the previous section are related. For instance, if a person decides to exercise, it can be beneficial for both the individual and society (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:10-00:01:21). The person gains various health benefits from exercising since it helps lower blood pressure, maintain a healthy weight, and alleviate stress (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:21-00:01:37). At the same time, exercise can be beneficial for the society in many ways. For instance, people can exercise together, which helps establish positive connections between friends and teaches them to be a part of a team (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:21-00:01:37). The company where the exercising person works can also benefit as physical activity can help that person be more productive at work, directly increasing the company’s general effectiveness (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:21-00:01:37). Exercise can also provide community benefits, inspiring it to take action by building walking, biking, and running trails (“Sociological Imagination” 00:01:37-00:01:45). Overall, exercise benefits an individual while also contributing to larger purposes of the social world. This example demonstrates how personal troubles and public issues are associated and how they influence each other.
It is not always clear whether a specific problem is personal trouble or a public issue. For instance, the problem of obesity can be discussed from both perspectives. Although people are generally in control of what and how much they eat, sometimes external social factors, such as family traditions, can influence their weight (“Sociological Imagination” 00:02:30-00:03:27). Another significant factor impacting obesity in the United States is associated with so-called food deserts. It is a specific area in the country that does not have access to healthy food because it is difficult to grow it there locally (“Sociological Imagination” 00:04:10-00:04:27). Although there are government subsidies for food production, the research shows that less than 1% of those subsidies go to the production of healthy food, such as fruits or vegetables (“Sociological Imagination” 00:04:30-00:04:40). The majority of those subsidies go to the production of unhealthy food such as meat, dairy, and grain, making the prices for healthy food significantly higher on the market (“Sociological Imagination” 00:04:40-00:05:00). Therefore, from the perspectives of the sociological imagination, the factors described above can significantly contribute to the rates of obesity in the United States.