Description
In order to understand society and ourselves, we need to use sociological imagination. Generally speaking, sociological imagination refers to an ability to relate personal issues to broader social processes. Sometimes it is easy for people to so easily find us as responsible for our troubles in life (e.g., being out of work, being obese, drug use, unsuccessful careers, etc.,), failing to see a connection between these personal troubles and social reasons or social circumstances. Sociological imagination does not claim that your personal troubles are entirely explained by broader social forces. It does not deny the fact that individuals have some authorship of their lives, too.
One of the most popular examples given for sociological imagination is unemployment. Many people think somebody is unemployed because of personal reasons. For example, some people think the person is unemployed because she does not have the level of education needed for today’s jobs. Some might say the unemployed person is lazy or is unmotivated or that she doesn’t try hard enough to find a job. Some might also say she keeps losing her job because of her temper or job performance. What we need to realize though is that many people are unemployed because our economy creates unemployment. A lot of people lose their jobs to automation. Many companies keep laying off people to reduce their costs so that their profits will be maximized. Many companies understaff their operations to reduce costs and maximize profits. Hospitals understaff their wards to reduce costs. This obviously reduces the number of people employed in the nursing profession. Many companies demand higher productivity so that they don’t have to hire more people. This, too, creates unemployment. So, a person’s unemployment situation is substantially related to broader social processes.
Let’s look at another example. Many people view obesity as a personal situation. Aside from the health issues involved, obesity becomes a personal issue of concern because, for one thing, the culture of society paints is as something to worry about. In the absence of such cultural perceptions and admonitions, obesity may not even become a personal issue of concern. Besides, we don’t eat just because it is necessary to eat. A lot of eating happens in social settings during a myriad of events and socialization gatherings. A lot of food and drinks are consumed in such gatherings and interactions, contributing to obesity. Also, the food industry encourages us to eat more, particularly unhealthy food. I remember I once saw a man walking out of Jack in the Box with his takeout bag on which “eat more” was unabashedly written in bold letters. So, here we see that a lot of social realities happen to not only create excess weight, but to also create the very notion of obesity as a personal issue of concern.
We said how sociological imagination means the ability to relate personal issues or problems to broader social forces. These social forces also include what are known as “history” and “biography.”
“History” refers to some major situational changes that happens in society that affect outcomes at a personal level. For example, the Covid pandemic was something that happened in society and affected millions of people in terms of their health, their jobs, their education, and their family life. The Covid pandemic was a historical event. So, the difficult situation many persons found themselves in (unemployment, threats of evictions, particularly if eviction moratoriums were non-existent, disruption of educational plans, the wave of anti-Asian sentiments and hostilities, etc.) were caused by some event (in this case the pandemic). This must be seen as a broader social issue.
“Biographay” refers to life situations or circumstance or events that contribute to your personal troubles. Domestic violence, for example may lead to homelessness. When we consider the fact that this happens to a lot of people, and that the absence of social support systems such as immediate legal response and supportive services, it is easier to see it as a broader social force.
Sometimes a particular personal issue of trouble such as drug abuse can be seen as impacted by both “biography” and “history.” Succumbing to peer pressure or having had to run away from home and finding yourself in the company of people who might drag you into drug use would be an example of life circumstances that is part of your life biography. But, if massive infusion of drugs into society (particulary in targeted areas) happens in society as a result of massive production and distribution of drugs by powerful cartels, which changes societies for perhaps an extended period of time, then this is a historical event, then a person has actually fallen victim to social situations brought on by the ascendance of powerful drug cartels. So, the personal drug use problem of a person may be viewed as being related to both “history” and “biography.”
Sociological imagination does not mean that larger forces or life circumstances totally determine a person’s life. It just says they influence it greatly. People do also maintain authorship of their lives and shape their own destiny. They do make decisions that influence or shape their lives. It is all dynamic, and it is a matter of degree. The lives of some people are affected very greatly or overwhelmingly by broader social forces, and the lives of some others are affected by social forces to somewhat a lessor extent by broader social forces. But what we must realize that the lives of all of us are impacted by broader social forces and life circumstances.
Sociological Imagination also allows us to be kinder persons. Many of us hold a person responsible for her situation in life. For example, many of us hold a person responsible for her homelessness, poverty, drug abuse, etc. Many of us think a person is homeless because she is lazy or lacks education or is unmotivated, etc. instead of realizing that larger social forces such as high cost of leaving, high housing costs, low wages, unemployment, temporary employment, domestic violence, etc., are the reasons for his homelessness. When this is the case, many of us develop negative feelings or even hatred towards them instead of feeling compassion for them. This is a classic case of a blame-the-victim mentalityso many of us have come to develop towards our fellow humans in misery and pain. However, when we become aware of how broader social forces beyond a homeless person’s control are responsible for her homelessness, we can actually develop feelings of compassion and empathy towards our suffering homeless fellow humans; we can engage our feelings of kindness instead of feelings of disrespect or even hatred. The kind person in us awakens continually, and we are validated in our kindness rather than animosity. Experiencing our goodness in our hearts and actions is precious. Such a realization also helps us participate in efforts to help the homeless person and create social change. In younger people, participating in helping the homeless and participating in social action to end homelessness actually builds character. Our characters (especially young people) are created by what we do, by what practice, by how we treat others. To a substantial extent, we become who we are by what we practice. Sociological Imagination helps us engage our kindness in our hearts and actions. This is precious both at individual and social levels.
Discussion assignment
1. Please describe what sociological imagination is and comment on it.
2. Please offer an example of sociological imagination in real life.
3. Please comment on at least one classmate’s post.
Your original post must be at least 400 words, and you response to your classmates must be at least 150 words.
The discussion is worth 20 points (16 points for your original post, and 4 points for your response to classmates)
