Sociological Perspective Analysis

I will be applying the three major sociological perspectives, which include functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism to the experiences of Hispanic Americans. No ethnic group attracts more public attention than the Hispanic people do due to their large numbers, their residential clustering, and bilingual programs and signs associated with them making them a recognizable ethnic group. Hispanic people who live in poverty or the small number involved in gangs, drugs, or other criminal activity get more attention and generate negative stereotypes, but most of them live as members of the middle class.

1. The sociological perspective, as a way of thinking about the world, includes the sociological imagination from C. Wright Mills, the beginner’s mind from Bernard McGrane, and the idea of culture shock from anthropology. Explain what all three of these concepts have in common.

The issue I have chosen is the use of social networking websites and how the three sociological perspectives apply to them. The use of social networking website has become a social norm in the way our society communicates with each one another. I believe that there are benefits with using social networking websites in your private and public life. On the other hand, I do believe that with social networking websites, the boundary between our private and public life merge and become difficult to separate.

In this assignment I will be explaining some of the different sociological perspectives in today’s society. The sociological perspectives which I will be explaining will be Functionalism, Marxism, Feminism, and interactionism, Collectivism, Postmodernism and The New Right.

C. Wright Mills defined sociological perspective as the ability to “think yourself away from the familiar routines of everyday life” and “the vivid awareness of the relationship between experience and the wider society.”

In the world of sociology there are many different ways that humans interact with the world. Although we are all human beings, we do not always see the world the same way that others do. Even though not many are aware of the different ways they can see the world, there are three sociological perspectives. Using structural functionalism, the conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism one will be able to decide which view best represents the way they see this world. When asked about my perspective on the world, I view it using the conflict theory due to the examples that society gives us based on events that happen frequently. Even though all three of these theories are socially correct, the conflict theory defines my view of the world more than structural functionalism and symbolic interaction.

Sociological perspectives are used to understand and describe the way societies function and the different behaviours of individuals within these societies. These perspectives can be used to explain the organisation of different areas of society, including social stratification, social mobility, social diversity, socialisation, and social institutions as well as the way each element fits into society. In this assignment I will be focusing on explaining each of the main sociological perspectives in society. The perspectives that I will be focusing on in this assignment are:

In this course I have learned about different social problems in societies worldwide. Some of these include poverty, social inequality, discrimination of race and culture, urbanization, and more. After learning all these subjects and more, I have decided to do my final on social inequality and minorities in the United States. I chose this particular topic because I have seen this in almost every place have lived. I find it appalling that minorities are still not treated 100% equal. We as Americans know what inequality is and know how it is used in our everyday society. I want to explore this topic and show how real and big this

Growing up, my life was somewhat sheltered compared to the lives of other people my age. I was raised by both my mom and dad in a Christian household, in which I was taught morals based upon our faith. As a result of this upbringing, my parents and I made the decision to enroll me in a private Christian school in sixth grade. In this setting I was protected from the influences of the outside world. All of the language, violence, and temptations were around me, which I began to recognize as I entered my freshman year of high school. Even the walls of the highly respected establishment could not keep the real world out.

The sociological project, which is also known as the sociological perspective, is a particular method of looking at and examining the world in which one lives. According to Randall Collins in the article “The Sociological Eye and Its Blinders”, the sociological project is an approach to examining the world which involves digging beneath the surface through the utilization of the sociological imagination and empirical, social science research. Furthermore, in order to develop a sociological perspective, there are four questions that one must examine. According to Giddens et al. in the article “What is sociology?

A sociological perspective on human behavior is connected to the society as a whole. It invites us to look for the connections between the behavior of individuals and the structures of the society in which they live. (Appendix 1)

The sociological perspective was defined by Peter Berger as seeing the general in particular. What this means is that by using the sociological perspective, sociologists can observe trends by looking at how individuals within groups act. Sociologists use the sociological perspective to observe how society impacts individuals, whereas psychologists observe individuals and how their own experiences influence their lives and choices. Someone using a political perspective would think about how the political world can influence individuals, and someone with a religious perspective would think about how the presence or lack of religion would affect an individual.

The basic insight of the sociological perspective is that the world does not consist of a reality that everyone sees in exactly the same way and that each and every one of us possesses our own individual social construction of reality (the sum total of our life experience, observations and thoughts.) The Micro level of analysis is that which pertains to the individual and the macro level applies to the larger society.

Throughout the assigned reading of “Theoretical Perspectives in Sociology” by Hunter, Chris, and Kent McClelland three sociological theories were focused on: Functionalism, Conflict Theory, and Symbolic Interactionism. Each one of these theories are unique and provide different lens on society. Functionalism can be defined as a theory that sees society as a functioning system: stable, balanced, and durable. Conflict Theory can be defined as a theory that views social life as constant struggle between haves and have-nots, essentially some individuals are given access to resources versus those who are unlikely to ever get much resources. Lastly, Symbolic Interactionism can be defined as a theory in which human interaction and communication

At the beginning of the semester, I knew very little about sociology or even what it was about. I just knew I needed to take the class for my degree plan to transfer to a four-year university and that I would be doing a lot of reading about different terms and theories of society. However, this first month of class has helped me improve my understanding of what sociology is about and shown me how my personal society has impacted the way I view society. Not only did I learn about the relationships between society and myself, but I have also learned different concepts that have helped me gain a better understanding of how society works. There are three specific sociological concepts that has helped me improve my understanding of the relation