7.1 -

The Sociological Imagination

Sociology and the development of empathy for patients

Learning Journey "Stop-See-Learn" Spot #2 of 6 

The  School of Health Sciences, Ngee Ann Polytechnic, Singapore

Introduction

"No Man is an Island" John Donne (1624) 

Part 1

Sociology and the Development of Empathy

We often like to tell each other that "We understand your problem?" But do we? It is not easy to acquire this thing called Empathy. We almost always confuse Sympathy with Empathy. These are two entirely different thoughts. Sociology helps us develop our sense fo empathy by forcing us to understand why individuals are compelled by their social environment or social relationships to behave in a certain way. Sociology can be defined in this very short form:

Society Influence Behaviour

You can get a loner and more in-depth definition of sociology from the Department of North Carolina (Chapel Hill) Department of Sociology's home page here. So the study of society is the science of analysing how our social world affects our behaviour and by extension, shapes our behaviour towards illness and health. If we are good students of Sociology, we may learn to understand our patients' (or indeed ourselves or our loved ones) behaviour by analysing the social forces acting against them (or us). This ability to understand from another's perspective is known as Empathy. Within sociology, this empathy is called by another name - The Sociological Imgination. 

Part 2

Empathy & "The Sociological Imagination"

The Sociological Imagination is a term coined by C. Wright Mills in 1959. Below is a simple illustration of the Sociological Imagination by Nik Irfan (2017). 

7.1 Sociological Imagination (Biteable).mp4

This presentation by Nik Irfan can be found in its original source at Youtube via this link: https://youtu.be/my_zyLCRBms

Part 3
"The Sociological Imagination" &
The Analysis of Obesity in the United States

The Sociological Imagination. is used here to help us understand the complexities of the obesity situation in the United States in this short Youtube lecture by Sociology Live! (2015). 

7.1 Sociological Imagination.mp4

Cathy Mattresse in her online Sociology course with Lumen Learning summarise the power of the Sociological Imagination with the following quote:

 "The real power of the sociological imagination is found in how we learn to distinguish between the personal and social levels in our own lives. Once we do, we can make personal choices that serve us best, given the larger social forces that we face. "  (Matresse & Lumen Learning, n.d.)

If this topic interests you and you would want to explore further in this stop of your learning journey, you can read Matresse's full essay via this link or at Lumen Learning original site here. 

Next Section

In the next section we will look at how we came to be who we are through the way our society "programmes" us in the process known as Socialisation. 

References

Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina. (n.d.). What is Sociology? Retrieved February 24, 2020, from https://sociology.unc.edu/undergraduate-program/sociology-major/what-is-sociology/

Irfan, N. A. (2017, January 31). Sociological Imagination (Biteable). Retrieved February 23, 2020, from https://youtu.be/my_zyLCRBms

Matresse, C., & Lumen Learning. (n.d.). Defining the Sociological Imagination. Retrieved February 23, 2020, from https://courses.lumenlearning.com/alamo-sociology/chapter/the-sociological-imagination-add-image/

Sociology Live! (2015, October 22). Sociological Imagination. Retrieved February 23, 2020, from https://youtu.be/BINK6r1Wy78