Week 1 Discussion - Sociologists use the sociological imagination

Week 1 Discussion: An Introduction to Sociology

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Sociologists use the sociological imagination to understand how individuals' problems (i.e., troubles) are tied to broader social patterns.  First, read this week's learning resources (UMGC, n.d.), including the segment of C. Wright Mills's Sociological Imagination (linked below) (Mills, 2000). This discussion question has two parts:

Part 1. Give an example of a problem that an individual may face, and using your sociological imagination, explain how broader social factors in society may be impacting that person's life. For example, a person who is struggling to get a job may be impacted by an array of social factors, such as inadequate education, discriminatory practices, and a lack of transportation. Be creative! 

Part 2. Briefly explain one of the three main sociological perspectives (structural functionalism, conflict theory, or symbolic interactionist) in your own words. According to this perspective, generally speaking, why does the problem that you identified in Part 1 exist in society?

References and Citations

Here are the references you should cite in your main post.

Mills, C. W. (2000 [1959]). Chapter 1: The promise, in The sociological imagination. Oxford University Press. (Pages 3-14 only). 

University of Maryland Global Campus. (n.d.). Week 1. Introduction to Sociology. Document posted in UMGC SOCY 100 online classroom, archived at https://learn.umgc.edu. 

Make sure to include the complete reference information at the end of your post. If you refer to any additional sources, please be sure to include them in your reference list as well.

When referring to the different topics of the material in the learning resources within your posts, use the following citation format: (UMGC, n.d., name of topic). 

For example: (UMGC, n.d., What is Sociology?) or (UMGC, n.d., Why Study Sociology?).  For the chapter by Mills, the citation is (Mills, 2000).  

To learn more about how to cite in APA style, visit the UMGC Library at APA 7th Edition Citation Examples: