Sociological Biography - Book Report/Review Example

1. Question Your Sociological Biography: My biography shows my anxiety for the troubles of the unemployed for my future patients. Rosen reported that there could be a relationship between unemployment and mental health problems. A Gallup poll suggested that “unemployed Americans are more than twice as likely as those with full-time jobs to say they currently have or are being treated for depression—12.4 percent vs. 5.6 percent, respectively” (Rosen, 2014). Though it is possible that depressed people have a harder time getting and maintaining jobs, it is also probable that people are getting depressed for not getting a job after six months or more of job hunting.

I am concerned of how the individual troubles of unemployment underlie larger social issues. Mills (1959) argued for the importance of the sociological imagination in understanding the relationship between biography and history because finding a connection between the two is essential to realizing how our troubles are connected to social issues. In this example, the trouble for me as a future psychologist is to understand why people get depressed when unemployed for a long time. Clearly, the unemployed will find their conditions depressing, if they could no longer pay the bills and feed their families.

However, I also believe that being depressed is related to the philosophy of time in America where unemployment is seen as a waste of time and that those who are unemployed must be unemployable and considered as losers of modern society. The unemployed may be getting depressed because their inability to productively use their time, as their culture demands them, lowers their social status and social relevance. Perhaps if society is less restrictive in how it sees time and how it values money, it can appreciate unemployment as a process of self-improvement and people may become less judgmental of the unemployed.

This biography shows that the emotional troubles of the unemployed is not only financial and personal in nature, but also an indication of cultural malaise. References Mills, C.W. (1959). The sociological imagination. Rosen, R.J. (2014, June 9). 2. This week, we want you to view your own surroundings with this same sociological eye. Go to a public space and observe what people are doing for 30 minutes (for example, you can go to a restaurant, park, pub, grocery store, or just observe your own neighborhood).

How are people interacting with one another? What patterns of behavior (speaking, moving etc.) do you notice, and what is the underlying function or motivation of these everyday life activities? In your posting provide a one paragraph detailed description of your site, and one paragraph discussing your findings and analysis of one aspect of social behavior. I went to the mall and stayed at a coffee shop where people usually lingered for an hour or two because its coffee and food are good and affordable.

The people who usually go there are students or professors, though some couples and small young families also patronized it. Customers regularly come in twos or in groups of three or more. I could see that people went there to have conversations or read books. Though people came in to talk with their companions, the chatter was quite low, as if in a library. The noisiest conversations occurred outside, and this was where I stayed because I wanted to observe people who were in their most relaxed state and not thinking about keeping their voices down.

Furthermore, the service crew were polite and helpful, but do not talk to their customers so much. In addition, the main decorations and feel of the interior design of the coffee shop create a sense of comfort and desire for conversations, since it had paintings of celebrities from the past, especially musical icons. I sat beside a group of four people who looked like they were around the ages of 20 to 25 years old. There were three males and one female. I focused on their communication patterns.

They were talking about what was clearly one of their favorite TV shows, Game of Thrones. They were going over their theories about who the real heir of the Seven Kingdoms is and should be. They talked for about a little more than an hour. They sat a bit farther at first from each other, but as their conversation progressed, they went closer to one another to whisper to the group or tap each other’s shoulders. The female was the least talkative, though she also contributed to the group. The one who talked the most was what appeared to be a gay person, with the way he talks and moves.

He was funny and fond of playfully slapping the hands or shoulders of his friends. I could say that the underlying function of their group interaction is to have a fun time with their friends. Their form of relaxation includes drinking coffee, eating dessert, laughing, and talking about their main interests in life. People are motivated to go here to feel refreshed and have a good time with loved ones, friends, and associates.