Introduction
The concept of sociological imagination was introduced in 1959 by C. Wright Mills (1916-1962) that explains how the quality of the mind allows people to think about the challenges they encounter in their personal experiences and relate them to the general issues felt by others in society (Ma & Qie, 2022). Therefore, this quality of mind allows a thinker to imagine the historical contexts and social background of an issue affecting them and view it from multiple perspectives by contemplating how that issue affects other people in society (Ma & Qie, 2022). Therefore, people can connect their social environments (milieu) and the wider social environment by understanding how various social and historical forces are enmeshed.
In C. Wright Mills’s (1916-1962) explanation, he identified the difference between personal troubles and social and public issues. When describing personal troubles, he explained that people are actors and cresses of their personal lives where they make decisions that impact the outcomes that determine their success or troubles in their lives (Rasmussen, 2021). On the other hand, the more significant social issues are forces or elements beyond our control. They are determined by social institutions or structures that design systematic processes for people’s lives. Although someone may make decisions that drive them to success, these factors may change the outcomes of these events and result in more challenges that will be experienced by others in society (Rasmussen, 2021). By understanding the connection between personal troubles and social issues, one can use sociological imagination to explain how these issues relate to one another and their impact on society.
One of the topics that can be assessed using the sociological issue is the connection between education and unemployment in the United States. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, I worked in a sit-and-eat diner where I served customers, cooked meals, and ran operations in a local restaurant. However, I lost my job after the nationwide lockdown and had trouble finding a job after the pandemic. I also had a low academic experience that made it challenging to secure a similar job opportunity after the pandemic; this experience made me understand how the sociological imagination concept applied to the social issue of unemployment and the influence of education when people look for job opportunities. Sociological theory can help connect the troubles of unemployment and education in the country because I can assess this challenge from a larger perspective. This discussion will also use some theories and concepts in Conerly et al.’s book, ‘Introduction to Sociology’ (2022).
Planning Phase
This discussion follows the following structure when discussing the concept of sociological imagination about personal experience. The first task is to understand the meaning of sociological imagination, which is the ability of the mind to think about a personal issue and relate it to the issues of the general public or social issues affecting others in society (Ghidina, 2019).
Topic of discussion: the connection between education and unemployment- education is one of the determinant factors for securing a job in the United States. However, some people may be employed but need help to get a job in the country (Mohapatra, 2022). The sociological imagination theory can help to connect the troubles of unemployment and education about the social and economic forces that cause public issues.
Chapters from the book: this discussion retrieved the sociological concepts from Chapter 1, focusing on the theoretical perspectives of sociology (p.17) to describe the theories relating to the social issue (Conerly et al., 2022). I will use Chapter 9 on Social Stratification in the United States to explain how employment and education classify people in terms of wealth, income, power, and education. I will also apply the concepts in Chapter 18 on work and the economy to describe how economic systems influence employment in society and the role of education in helping one secure a job.
Sociological theory: I will use conflict theory to explain how factors like structural inequality, class struggle, power dynamics, and reproduction of inequality are intertwined with education and unemployment in society (Conerly et al., 2022).
Discussion- Sociological Imagination Of A Personal Experience
Personal Experience
During the COVID-19 pandemic, I lost my job and was forced to look for a new one to earn a stable income. Since I had worked in a local diner before the pandemic, my first option was to apply for the role of a help desk assistant at a local hotel, but I was also rejected because of my low academic qualifications in the hospitality industry. The second job application was for a job in a mobile sales and marketing company that was advertising automotive services to consumers. I also failed this application because I did not have experience in sales and marketing. I opted for a job in a warehouse company where I was offered a menial job because of my academic qualifications and experience. It was a tedious job requiring me to offload and load goods from trucks and would be asked to work extra hours while receiving minimum wage. I reluctantly accepted the position but had no choice since several employers had rejected me for lacking adequate qualifications. When I started working in the warehouse, I was surprised that other people had more academic qualifications and experience but were working menial jobs in the company. I could not understand how someone with a college degree could accept the position I was reluctant to accept. Upon further inquiry, I discovered that many people had high school diplomas alone, while a few had college. The demand for menial jobs was very high because even those with degreesdegreescould not get better-paying jobs and were opting to work in lower-level positions that were paying lower wages. This experience made me realize the social dynamics that affected unemployment and the role of education in creating the social issue. Despite the challenges I had encountered when other people were trying to get employment opportunities in an industry, I chose to proceed with my studies because improving my education would increase my ability to acquire better employment opportunities.
When reflecting on this experience using the sociological imagination concepts, I can view the problem and social issue from different perspectives. I can relate the differences between the troubles one faces in society and the social issues that affect the larger public as described by C. Wright Mills (1916-1962) in the sociological theory (Lequieu, 2021). From the sociological perspective, my trouble was unemployment and low education, makingard for me to get a good job in an organization. However, the social issue arose when a large population of people with higher education levels was also working in these minimum-wage jobs. It was evident that many social, economic, and structural issues were exerting external forces that were increasing the magnitude of this issue in society (Mohapatra, 2022). Therefore, the sociological imagination principle helped me analyze the problems I was experiencing from a more significant social perspective to understand the factors that influenced education and unemployment in society. The theories,, concepts, and principles explained by Conerly et al. (2022) in their book could help to understand this concept and gain a deeper understanding of the issue.
Conerly et al. (2022) discussed the principle of social stratification in the United States and explained how people wish to achieve different objectives and gain life satisfaction. Chapter 9 explains how the society creates social ranks based on people’s level of education, income, wealth, and power (Fanizza, 2019). For most people in the United States and across the world, education is the key to success because it opens new opportunities that uplift their social status and ranking in the social ladder. However, the supply of more educated people and fewer employment opportunities has caused disparities in the uplifting people’s social class because only some get equal opportunities to improve their social status. Therefore, social inequities become a severe challenge to society as a whole (Fanizza, 2019). Chapter 18 discussed the principle of work and the economy by defining how employment opportunities and a country’s economic status affect people’s income. When there are many job opportunities, it is easier for people to get jobs and improve their living standards. The wages will also be high, making people satisfied with their jobs (Bargheer, 2021). However, poor economic systems and low employment opportunities will result in lower wages and unemployment opportunities.
The sociological theories described in chapter 1 of the book by Conerly et al. (2022) also made me understand the concept of the conflict theory in society. According to the conflict theory, everyone in society competes for limited resources, which results in inequality and conflicts between people. Interpersonal conflicts make everyone strive to acquire more resources through capitalism while others seek ways to climb the social ladder (Bargheer, 2021). Education is one way people improve their social status since they will have the academic qualifications that enhance their ability to get better paying jobs in the market. However, social institutions like education systems reinforce the inequalities because they are structured in ways that benefit other people while limiting the growth of others (Carey, 2022). Some people can use social connections to get good jobs, while those deserving to serve in various employment opportunities will be disadvantaged and remain stuck in lower-level positions.
The trouble I experienced when entering the job market was an eye-opener that helped me understand the role of social systems in affecting people’s lives. Although I had felt that I was one of the unemployed people because of low education, I viewed the challenge from multiple perspectives. I learned that it was a big social issue that could only be understood by understanding how social factors and systems affected a population (Dizman, 2021). The experience also helped to relate the concepts discussed by Conerly et al. (2022) in their book and apply the skills in a real-life situation and sociological imagination to address a social issue.
References
Bargheer, S. (2021). Paper Tools and the Sociological Imagination: How the 2× 2 Table Shaped the Work of Mills, Lazarsfeld, and Parsons. The American Sociologist, 52(2), 254-275.
Carey, A. C. (2022). Disability and the Sociological Imagination. Sage Publications.
Conerly, R., Holmes, K., & Tamang, A. (2021). Introduction to Sociology 3e. OpenStax.
https://openstax.org/details/books/introduction-sociology-3e
Dizman, Z. Ş. (2021). Analyzing Crime And Unemployment From A Sociological Perspective. Pamukkale Üniversitesi Sosyal Bilimler Enstitüsü Dergisi, (44), 433-443.
Fanizza, F. (2019). The sociological imagination on the horizons of contemporary society. Mimesis.
Ghidina, M. (2019). Deconstructing victim-blaming, dehumanization, and othering: Using empathy to develop a sociological imagination. Teaching Sociology, 47(3), 231-242.
Lequieu, A. M. (2021). The everyday sociological imagination. The Routledge International Handbook of Public Sociology.
Ma, H., & Qie, Y. (2022). Sociological imagination of educational inequality: A Case study of the educational conditions of “left-behind children” and the younger generation of migrants in China. Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Science, 6(1), 141-150.
Mohapatra, B. (2022). Sociological Imagination to Responsibility: COVID-19 Calls for Reshaping Future World Order. In Future of Work and Business in Covid-19 Era: Proceedings of IMC-2021 (pp. 297-312). Singapore: Springer Nature Singapore.
Rasmussen, P. (2021). Public reason, adult education and social imagination. European Journal for Research on the Education and Learning of Adults, 12(1), 15-29.
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