style="font-size:15px;"> 7 gain useful skills in interpersonal relations, critical thinking, data collection and analysis, problem-solving, and decision-making; and8 learn how to change your local environment and the larger society.
This book introduces you to most major topics in sociology, as outlined in the sociological literacy framework: the sociological eye (or the sociological imagination); social structure (from micro to macro levels); socialization (the relationship between ourselves and society); stratification (social inequality); and social change and social reproduction (major change processes and how social structures reproduce themselves) (ASA 2017).
What Do Sociologists Do?
Graduates with a bachelor’s degree in sociology who seek employment immediately after college are most likely to find their first jobs in social services, administrative assistantships, sales and marketing, or management-related positions. The kinds of employment college graduates with a sociology major get are listed in Figure 1.1. With graduate degrees—a master’s or a doctoral degree—sociologists usually become college teachers, researchers, clinicians, or consultants (Bureau of Labor Statistics 2018a). Some work for governments, whereas others work for businesses or public service nonprofit organizations.
▼ Figure 1.1 Occupational Categories for Sociology Graduates’ First Jobs
Source: Based on “21st Century Careers With an Undergraduate Degree in Sociology,” American Sociological Association, 2009.
Many sociologists work outside of academia, using their knowledge and research skills to address the needs of businesses, nonprofit organizations, and government. For example, they may work in human resources departments and as consultants for businesses. In government jobs, they provide data such as population projections for education and health care planning. In social service agencies, they help provide services to those in need, and in health agencies, they may be concerned with outreach to immigrant communities. Both sociologists who work in universities and those who work for business or government can use sociological tools to improve society. You will find examples of some jobs sociologists are doing in the Sociologists in Action boxes throughout the book. In addition, at the end of some chapters you will find a discussion of policy related to that chapter topic.
Thinking Sociologically
From what you have read so far, how might sociological tools (e.g., social interaction skills and knowledge of how groups work) be useful to you in your anticipated major and career or current job?
What Do Employers Want?
Ask employers what they want in a new hire, and the focus is likely to be on writing, speaking, and analytical skills—especially when the new employee will be faced with complex problems. Other desired skills include the ability to cope with change; work effectively in diverse teams; gather and interpret quantitative information; and other “soft skills” such as leadership, communication, and collaboration (Beaton 2017). Indeed, having a combination of social skills and math and computer skills is the best predictor of landing a job that is unlikely to be replaced by technological automation and tends to do better than most other areas in pay (Deming 2015). The left column in Table 1.1 indicates what employers want from college graduates; the right column indicates the skills and competencies that are part of most sociological training. Compare the two, noting the high levels of overlap.
▼ Table 1.1
Source: American Sociological Association 2009; Hansen and Hansen 2003; WorldWideLearn 2007. See also Association of American Colleges and Universities and Hart Research Associates 2013.
We now have a general idea of what sociology is, what sociologists do, and what jobs students with sociology degrees tend to seek. It should be apparent that sociology is a broad field of interest; sociologists study all aspects of human social behavior. The next section of this chapter shows how the parts of the social world that sociologists study relate to each other, and it outlines the model you will follow as you continue to learn about sociology.
Thinking Sociologically
Imagine that you are a mayor, legislator, police chief, or government official. You must make many decisions each day. What method of decision-making will you use: your own intuition or assumptions, information gathered by social science research, or some other method? What are some advantages or disadvantages to each decision-making method?
The Social World Model
Think about the different groups you depend on and interact with daily. You wake up to greet members of your family or your roommate. You go to a larger group—a class—that exists within an even larger organization—the college or university. Understanding sociology and the approach of this book requires a grasp of levels of analysis—that is, social groups from the smallest to the largest. It may be relatively easy to picture small groups such as a family, a group of friends, a sports team, or a sorority or fraternity. It is more difficult to visualize large groups, such as corporations—Target, Nike, Apple, General Motors Company, Starbucks, Google, or Facebook—or organizations such as local or state governments. The largest groups include nations or international organizations, such as the sprawling networks of the United Nations or the World Trade Organization. Groups of various sizes shape our lives. Sociological analysis involves an understanding of these groups that exist at various levels of analysis and the connections among them.
The social world model helps us picture the levels of analysis in our social surroundings as an interconnected series of small groups, organizations, institutions, and societies. Sometimes these groups are connected by mutual support and cooperation, but other times there are conflicts and power struggles over access to resources. What we are asking you to do here and throughout this book is to develop a sociological imagination—the basic lens used by sociologists. Picture the social world as connected levels of increasingly larger circles. To understand the units or parts of the social world model, look at the model shown here (and at the beginning of each chapter).
We use this social world model throughout the book to illustrate how each topic fits into the big picture: our social world. The social world includes both social structures and social processes.
Social Structures
Picture the human body, held together by bones and muscles. The organs or units that make up that body include the brain, heart, lungs, and kidneys. In a similar manner, social units are interconnected parts of the social world ranging from small groups to societies. These social units include dyads (two people); small groups like the members of a family; community organizations including schools and religious groups; large-scale organizations such as political parties or state and national governments; and global societies, such as the United Nations.
All of these social units connect to make up the social structure—the stable patterns of interactions,
