I’d say that is the study of all things human and by that, I mean, sociologists study
individuals, and structures and social groups.
So, anywhere, there are people interacting with other people, or people
who are affected by other people even when they’re seating at home alone, sociology
is doing something in there.
For me, sociology is about understanding why people do what they do.
We’re not the only discipline that does that, but I think we have a unique perspective
on trying to answer that question of why people chose the lines of action that they do.
It’s the study of how people’s context, their neighborhoods, their schools, their
families, the subculture they belong to affect their behavior.
It’s about the power of context.
It provides a lens for seeing the world, a lens that maybe we don’t naturally have
and that is a lens for trying to understand how people’s behaviors are impacted and
shaped by forces outside of them.
It gives you a way to analyze society in a systematic way based on empirical evidence.
So, it’s not just opinion, what you think about something.
It’s a way to bring a little light into a situation which there often is a lot of heat.
There often is a lot of fire and anger, and angry voices.
But, it’s a way to kind of step back from that and say: “Ok, let’s try to analyze
this and see what’s going on here.”
One of its main strengths is looking at inequalities and, especially very subtle inequalities.
Inequalities change over time, and across historic layers.
And so, sociologists really look at what kind of processes reinforced those.
Sociology can help us to understand what happens as our world becomes more and more complex,
and as the global population becomes more and more integrated.
Sociology allows us to apply an historical lens where we can really think about the foundations
of our society and the inequalities and divisions that are produced along racial, class and
gender lines.
A big problem that sociologists have been interested in is social mobility, or the lack of it
People tend to end up in a similar social class position as their parents.
Some of it is about how much money parents have.
Some of it is about how much knowledge parents have to help their kids get ahead.
Some of it is about social networks.
All of those things, I think are best dealt with by sociologists.
Sociology holds society accountable for a lot of social ills by making them visible.
So, I think sociology is important because it makes these types of inequalities or invisible
social structures, visible.
And, in the process, it sorts of provides society
with a roadmap of how we might be able to facilitate change.
What I think sociology can do for society is to offer policy-relevant research.
The issues of economic inequality and political polarization today require as much perspective
as we can gain on them.
And so, sociology is uniquely positioned by talking to people and taking a whole range
of data and information sources in trying to make sense of the lived experience that
people have.
Racial segregation and poverty, and inequality are certainly not going away on their own.
It’s important that sociology, and other fields, continue to pursue research on the
causes and consequences of these incredibly important problems.
It’s important for sociology and sociologists to serve as a magnifying glass, and really
highlight the issues that are relevant in our society and make society, as a whole,
understand how these issues are impacting larger populations than we realize.
So much of what’s going on with our political climate and the rhetoric right now is all
about individual people, individual communities as the source of issues.
And, the reality is: these are collective problems that have structural bases.
And, sociology is fundamentally helping us understand: how those inequalities are shaped,
what is going on with the structure that’s shaping them and what we can do about it.
I think, right now, it’s a perfect opportunity for sociologists to make a contribution to
the discourses that are going on.