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WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER THE QUEEN CALLED “SOCIOLOGY”




WHY YOU SHOULD CONSIDER THE QUEEN CALLED “SOCIOLOGY”
BY OLANIBA BOLAJI OLUWATOBI

            Sociology : derived from the Latin word “Socius” meaning “companionship” and the Greek word “Logos” meaning “study of”, is a relatively new social scientific arm of knowledge (born in the 18th century in the midst of industrial, cultural, intellectual and political changes across Europe), yet She has over the years tuned up her muscles in tandem with the role of consistently shedding bright light on those factors that continue to shape our lives and are yet not far off, but are resident within the confines of our human relation - dominated systems, where we have attained biological growth overtime. Now, the vital question is; have you ever come in contact with an entirely new environment/individuals who seems to hold on to beliefs and perspectives of life that are entirely different from what you are used to, or have acquired over the years? If yes, then you would have felt some inconveniences and nervousness (cultural shock) in the quest of adapting to the new environment or holding on to your pre - learned beliefs and perspective of life. But unfortunately, the most likely occurrence is you adapting to part if not all aspect of the new way of life you have just encountered, as there are negative implications of not adapting to them, especially on your biological and emotional well being.
             Sociology gives us insight into various social phenomena. From the behavioral power generated in a crowd or audience, which both has the ability to pull individuals out their shells and make them either resort to violence or conform to peaceful demonstrations or actions; actions that an individual would not have considered solely. To cases of being ascribed certain tags by social categorization, labels or groupings (e.g. elites, illiterates, beggars, unclean, masses, students, slaves, masters, criminals, etc), to being doomed or lucky as a result of being a member of a particular ethnic or racial group in certain unpalatable circumstances (holocaust carried out on the Jews by Germans in the 20th century) and many more. All these phenomena have their roots in the “Social Environment”, a context where Human interactions and relation creates ideas, beliefs, norms/behavioral patterns, values and Perspectives that are unique to the individuals relating and interacting within a particular context over a considerable extended period of time in close proximity, and where the evolving norms (expected way of behaving), values (judgment of what constitutes good or bad), artifacts (physical collection of unique items and tools) and perspectives (views of life), have the power to regulate and shape the behavior of all individuals involved in that social environment.
We cannot doubt the power of cultural practices, beliefs and traditions and their ability to reconfigure physical looks and structure of an individual or to even mar them (facial marks inscriptions, tattooing, genital mutilations, twin killings etc) and we cannot also overlook the power of massive cultural contacts and influence (cultural diffusions) with cogent example in the Social transactions between Europe and Africa in 18th through 20th century (colonialism) which reconfigured our thoughts and perspectives on the ineffectiveness and cruel nature of the acclaimed cultural  practices of genital mutilations, killing of twins, facial mark inscriptions etc. “Sociology “ hence has two phases, (1). as a scientific arm of knowledge which seeks to consistently apply scientific methods (observations, questioning, data collection, critical analysis) to study behavioral patterns in individuals or to diagnose inefficiencies in individuals by reconnecting them back to the Social environment where they evolved and had consistent contact with overtime; starting from the family to close friends/peer groups to the school to religious groups, mass media, work place and so on and so forth, (2). As a scientific arm of knowledge which seeks to study how individuals in turn create, shape and redefine their social environment.
We should note that the values and behavioral capacity we acquire as we progress through life and by virtue of our membership in some groups for our entire life (Primary groups; family) and in some for short periods (Secondary group; religious organizations, debate or football clubs etc) have great influence on our personality; which is a unique character that defines the person of an individual as; introvert or extrovert, playful or hard working etc. The power of social influence cannot be understated, the Bible says; Evil Company corrupts good manners, Also, the tendency of individuals to compare themselves with others in good light of personal advancement or in determination to change a negative behavior.  Or in bad light of envy or incompetence, or even the growth of agitations, protest, rallies, revolutionary movements etc all stem from social evaluations and weighing, comparisons of individual or group situations to that of others because of perceived gaps of imbalance.
If you haven’t read of feral children, you should please do, as their situation shows how lack of considerable interaction with fellow human beings for an extended period of time especially at very early age, can hamper the ability of a child to function in relation to the demands of the society (a grouping of persons occupying a specified geographical territory, having shared values and norms, practices and world outlook, and also influencing each other’s behavior on frequent basis). We could also wonder why we feel uneasy when our phones ring out in the middle of a Church Sermon or Quran reciting session in the Mosque, this is because the social atmosphere present is highly regulated and considered “Sacred” (where silence and utmost respect is to be rendered to GOD) unlike in physical chatting sessions with our friends or in party situations where the social atmosphere is considered profane; free, light and relatively unregulated.
You can also wonder the feeling you get in situations where you have a lot of task to complete from school or work place on a particular day, and you get a call from your friend requesting you to attend a birthday party, at the same time you are envisaging attending a meeting at church or mosque, then you remember your mum requested you take her shopping on the same time on that  same day; it’s a situation called role conflict, roles are expected behavior that an individual occupying a particular status/position (worker, friend, Christian, Muslim, Son or daughter) is expected to elicit or show. In situations like the one described above it can be quite annoying and stressing.
New situations, such as the emergence of the internet and social media and the transition to a new form of interaction, “Virtual” against “physical” (cases where friends sit with one another but still prefer to interact via social media applications instead of face to face interaction is on the rise and its telling us something). Also worthy of taking note of is the recent liberation of Female folks and the opportunities for them to take up managerial, ministerial and other leadership roles, while parenting has taken a new shape too, and the need to balance work with child and family care is becoming strenuous for our 21st century women. There are so many behaviors emerging which are traceable to changes and forces within our social interaction system. Sociology sheds great light on these phenomena, with several theoretical positions and models, you might consider viewing events with the “Sociological Lens/imagination” (the understanding of individual behavior by virtue of placing him within his social context/environment).

Bolaji Olaniba





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