![]() We have to show some accountability for our choices and actions. Whether we're dealing with unemployment or gang members, it's never okay to just put it all on society. ![]() The sociological imagination is never meant to excuse someone's position in life. A person who abuses alcohol may have an undiagnosed or untreated psychiatric condition and is drinking as a form of self-medication.People who choose to affiliate with violent gangs may have been abandoned early in life, and so and attach to the gang as a familial replacement.An adult who abuses their loved ones or engages in violence toward strangers is often likely to have experienced abuse as a child.Some people may behave in a deviant way because they simply like to harm others or want to harm themselves, but that often is not the case.Is that because they're terrible people? That's not for us to say. Those who behave in a deviant way make bad decisions that harm others or themselves. Is deviance a personal act of desperation? Maybe. Where do we even start? There's common thievery, random murder, gang violence, drug and alcohol abuse, and on and on. Whether we see it on TV or see it in real life, deviance is prevalent in society. The same is true with other college-related choices, such as whether you'll live in a dorm or off-campus or if you'll pledge a fraternity or sorority. The notion of boxing up your college choices into a solitary experience can easily be shaken up by sociological imagination. Is your family pushing you to major in a subject that you're really not that interested in?.Do you have a longstanding family history at one university over another?.Is a teacher indirectly pushing you toward an Ivy League school when you want to attend art school in Manhattan?.Do your friends have any expectations of you regarding what college you should choose?.Even your personal situation is broader than your immediate world when you take into consideration your family members, friends and school teachers. But, is it such a solitary path? Never mind the obvious point that millions of others are also doing it. You might think this is a solitary path: you have to pass the tests, you have to nail the college entrance essays. How many different perspectives can you think of for these activities?Ĭonsider the choices that need to be made when applying to college. Other everyday behaviors that can be viewed using the sociological imagination technique include exercising, watching TV or owning a pet. Coffee drinking can be seen as a social activity because “going for coffee” focuses less on the beverage and more on talking with others.Drinking tea or coffee frequently could be considered an addiction after all, both beverages contain caffeine.Drinking tea or coffee can be considered a tradition or a ritual, as many people choose to make it the same way every day at a certain time.Tea drinking can be seen as a means of maintaining good health in the way that one might take daily supplements or vitamins.It's rarely just a solitary person from England sipping a warm cup of Earl Grey on a misty morning. Something as simple as drinking a cup of tea or coffee can be examined from several different perspectives. Everyday behavior is a fun place to start because it allows you to see how almost any behavior can have the sociological imagination applied to it. ![]() This makes sense, given the broad lens through which he viewed the world.Īs soon as you start to think about various issues or activities in perspectives that differ from your own, you're entering the realm of the sociological imagination. He felt sociologists, psychologists, economists, and political scientists should all work together. However, Mills never thought sociology alone was the ultimate science. There are hundreds or thousands, if not millions of others who are going through the same struggle. There's some truth to that, isn't there? It's unlikely that every struggle you face is unique to you alone. If you take Mills' stance, you'll start to believe that every problem faced by an individual has roots in society as a whole and is faced by many others. The world around you." Mills believed things only worked when you saw "the vivid awareness of the relationship between experience and the wider society." He encouraged people to stop focusing on themselves alone and to look at the wider landscape of society. ![]() If Mills were around, he'd say, "Not you. You didn't try hard enough …" You, you, you. That person is likely to look in the mirror and say, "You didn't work hard enough. An individual facing unemployment might feel defeated, depleted and discouraged. What is perhaps the most common example of the sociological imagination pertains to unemployment.
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