Introduction to Sociology

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Introduction to the Sociological Imagination

What you’ll learn to do: define the sociological imagination and apply it in a variety of contexts

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Figure 1. Sociological imagination is making the connection between personal challenges and larger social issues. Occupy Wall Street protestors viewed the difficulty in finding jobs as connected to the larger U.S. social issue of increasing economic inequality. (Photo courtesy of David Shankbone/Wikimedia Commons)

The sociological imagination allows us to grasp the interconnectedness of history and biography. This section will introduce you to C. Wright Mills and his concept of the sociological imagination. The readings and videos will also provide a number of examples for us to explore how the sociological imagination can help us make sense of issues like obesity or the rising cost of college textbooks.

LICENSES AND ATTRIBUTIONS
CC LICENSED CONTENT, SHARED PREVIOUSLY

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  Introduction to the Sociological Imagination. Authored by: Sarah Hoiland for Lumen Learning. Provided by: Lumen Learning. License: CC BY: Attribution
  
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  Day 20 Occupy Wall Street October 5, 2011. Authored by: David Shankbone. Provided by: Wikimedia Commons. Located at: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Day_20_Occupy_Wall_Street_October_5_2011_Shankbone_14.JPG. License: CC BY-SA: Attribution-ShareAlike
  

The Sociological Imagination

LEARNING OUTCOMES

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  Define the sociological imagination
  
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  Apply the sociological imagination
  

Figure 1. The sociological imagination enables you to look at your life and your own personal issues and relate them to other people, history, or societal structures.

Many people believe they understand the world and the events taking place within it, even though they have not actually engaged in a systematic attempt to understanding the social world, as sociologists do. In this section, you’ll learn to think like a sociologist.

The sociological imagination, a concept established by C. Wright Mills (1916-1962) provides a framework for understanding our social world that far surpasses any common sense notion we might derive from our limited social experiences. Mills was a contemporary sociologist who brought tremendous insight into the daily lives of society’s members. Mills stated: “Neither the life of an individual nor the history of a society can be understood without understanding both”^[1]. The sociological imagination is making the connection between personal challenges and larger social issues. Mills identified “troubles” (personal challenges) and “issues” (larger social challenges), also known as biography, and history, respectively. Mills’ sociological imagination allows individuals to see the relationships between events in their personal lives (biography), and events in their society (history). In other words, this mindset provides the ability for individuals to realize the relationship between their personal experiences and the larger society in which they live their lives.