Putting It Together: Sociological Foundations

In this module, you learned about what sociology is, where it came from, and the many possibilities for its present-day use. Unless you are planning a life of total solitude, sociology can contribute positively in both your personal and professional life. Due to the diversity of our society and a “shrinking” world, it’s a good bet that you will regularly encounter people from distinctly different cultures, even within the borders of the United States.

Case in point: How Sociological PARADIGMS Might View Food Consumption

Just like food production and consumption, every society has a legal system in place to regulate human behavior. Examine the legal and justice system (policing, course, fines, jails, prisons etc.) and consider how each theoretical perspective might think about these things:

  • How would a conflict theorist examine the criminal justice system in the U.S. and around the world?
  • How would a functionalist examine the criminal justice system in the U.S. and around the world?
  • How would an interactionist examine the criminal justice system in the U.S. and around the world?

What other topics interest you and how can you begin to think about them using the theoretical paradigms? Which theories do you find yourself gravitating toward and why?

A structural-functional approach to the topic of food consumption might be interested in the role of the agriculture industry within the nation’s economy and how this has changed from the early days of manual-labor farming to modern mechanized production. Another examination might study the different functions that occur in food production: from farming and harvesting to flashy packaging and mass consumerism. Functionalists would also examine how food production is related to social solidarity and equilibrium through the division of labor and interdependence among groups in modern society.

A conflict theorist might be interested in the power differentials present in the regulation of food, and would explore where people’s right to information intersects with corporations’ drive for profit, and how the government mediates those interests. Or a conflict theorist might undertake a macro analysis that examines the power that large farming conglomerates like Monsanto have over comparatively powerless local farmers. The documentary film Food, Inc. (2009) gives an example of this as it depicts Monsanto’s patenting of seed technology. Other topics of study might include how nutrition varies between different social classes or racial and ethnic groups, or why there are food deserts (places that lack access to fresh produce) in densely populated areas.

A sociologist viewing food consumption through a symbolic interactionist lens would be more interested in micro-level topics, such as the symbolic use of food in religious rituals, or the role it plays in the social interaction of a family dinner. This perspective might also study the interactions among group members who identify themselves based on their sharing a particular diet, such as vegetarians (people who don’t eat meat) or locavores (people who strive to eat locally produced food). Interactionists might also examine the relationships between farm workers and their employers, how workers or the owners of large farms identify/ see themselves, and/or specific symbols that have taken on importance (i.e. the Coalition of Immokalee Workers (CIW) use a bloody t-shirt to represent violence against farm workers).

Watch the following video to review some of the major contributions from early sociologists and the ways that sociologists study behavior:

Understanding one another contributes to more peaceful interactions as we go about our daily living. An active and working knowledge of the sociological imagination helps us see the connections between our personal experiences and how our own life may be impacted by the way society views us as individuals.