Social Imagination by Wright Mills - Essay Example

The decisions are based on various factors such as the situation itself, their belief system, other actors in the situation, etc. The ability to see the reasoning behind the different reactions of two individuals to the same situation is known as social imagination.

Social imagination is not just limited to viewing a situation from a different social perspective involving others. Social imagination is also the ability to see the different views or perspectives of a situation that one is involved in. This needs the person to discard his/her personal belief system and values and see the situation from the perspective of the other person. To do this, a person must be able to pull away from the situation and see it from a wider perspective.

This can be applied to various situations such as running in a marathon, where we shop or where our children go to school, etc. A person’s shopping behavior depends on various factors such as religious beliefs of the person, eating habits (vegetarian or non-vegetarian), spending purses, etc. A vegetarian due to religious purpose would prefer vegetarian products only or a person from a poor family would choose a cheaper grocery store. Similarly, cultural values and economic status also play a role in where our children go to school.