SOC301
| Environment and Society |
Many of you have already taken sociology courses or other social science classes, so some of this information may be familiar to you already. Review of the sociological perspective; however, is always helpful and will serve as an important foundation for this course.
Many of you have not studied sociology. In this case, understanding some main concepts is crucial toward being prepared for the rest of this class. Please make sure you understand the information in this lesson. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to email me at janine.minkler@nau.edu.
THE SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE
The sociological perspective enables you to understand your own life in relation to much larger social structures. Social structures are patterns of social relationships that from the stable framework within which social interaction takes place. Thus, while we have our own individual experiences, they are situated within much larger patterns, institutions and culture. With a sociological perspective, we attempt to understand these larger patterns and social dynamics.
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SOCIOLOGY AND COMMON SENSE
While common sense consists of tools that we use to navigate around and understand the world, sociology includes more systematic analysis of the social world. With sociology we question our common sense beliefs.
For example.
Let’s first do a little exercise. Please write down the approximate percentage of violent crime that you believe are committed by youth (individuals under 18 years of age) in the United States.
Before I tell you the answer, let’s think about how we have formed our impressions about youth violence? Are news headlines like “Teenage Time Bombs” and “Children Without Souls” (Time) influencing our common sense ideas about youth violence? In “Children Without Souls, Time reported “America’s beleaguered cities are about to be victimized by a paradigm shattering wave of ultraviolent, morally vacuous young people some call ‘the superpredators (Glassner, page xiv).”
In reality, violence among youth has continued to decline. In 1999, the percentage of violence committed by youth was 13% (Glassner, page xiv). How does that compare to the number that you wrote down?
From what did you form your common sense ideas? Can you see the differences between common sense and sociological understanding?
CRITICAL THINKING
Through critical thinking we exercise our mind to SEE what is visible, invisible and all of the gray areas in between. We question common sense. We seek to understand the social world through multiple perspectives, understanding that society is dynamic and ever-changing. Critical thinking enables us to recognize the complexities and intangible elements of our society and encourages us not to settle for simple answers.
THE SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION
"The Sociological Imagination enables its possessor to understand the larger historical scene in terms of its meaning for the inner life, and the external career of a variety of individuals." - C.W. Mills
Through a sociological imagination we understand how our individual troubles are tied in with larger social patterns and historic currents and thus understand ourselves better.
For example:
If you get a divorce you might see this as your own personal problem. Yet divorce is both a personal problem AND social trend. One in two new marriages end in divorce in the United States. You are somehow tied into these trends. If you lived in an island country in the south pacific, your likelihood of getting a divorce would be different- even though you would be married to the same person.
You are given opportunities and limitations based on the world you were born into. And yet, ARE WE THEN JUST PUPPETS ON A STRING? DOES THE SOCIAL STRUCTURE RULE OUR ACTIONS?
I hold that we are not only influenced by social trends and patterns, but we help create these trends, patterns and the larger social structure. It is very important that we recognize that “society” is not some abstract entity that controls us, we ARE society. We can therefore change society. But how? This is a crucial question that we will continue to ask of ourselves throughout this course.
EXPLORING SOCIOLOGY FURTHER
Here are some website links that will aid you in further exploring sociology. I hope that you will spend time throughout the semester exploring some of the theories, methods and other resources that will help deepen your sociological understanding.
THEORY LINKS:
METHODS:
TOPICS IN SOCIOLOGY
RESOURCES AND LINKS
References:
- C. W. Mills. “The Promise,” in Cargan/Ballantine (eds). (2000). Sociological Footprint. 8th edition. (Wadsworth).
- Glassner, Barry. (1999). The Culture of Fear. (Basic Books)
Once you have finished you should:
Go on to Using Sociological Concepts to Understand
Environmental Issues
or
Go back to Welcome to Environment and Society
E-mail Janine Minkler
at Janine.Minkler@nau.edu
Call Janine Minkler
at (928) 523-7482
Copyright 2002
Northern Arizona University
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED