Shame and the Social Bond: A Sociological Theory

Emotion has long been recognized in sociology as crucially important, but most references to it are generalized and vague. In this essay, I nominate shame, specifically, as the premier social emotion. First I review the individualized treatment of shame in psychoanalysis and psychology, and the absence of social context. Then I consider the contributions to the social dimensions of shame by six sociologists (Georg Simmel, Charles Cooley, Norbert Elias, Richard Sennett, Helen Lynd, Erving Goffman) and a psychologist/psychoanalyst (Helen Lewis). I show that Cooley and Lynd, particularly, made contributions to a theory of shame and the social bond. Lewis's idea that shame arises from threats to the bond integrates the contributions of all six sociologists, and points toward future research on emotion, conflict, and alienation/integration.     

A Qualitative Sociological Approach to Address Issues of Diversity for Social Work

ABSTRACT

This article identifies prevailing conceptual approaches employed to formulate issues of diversity for social work research and practice. It argues that the notions of “welfare” and “diversity” are customarily defined within unduly narrow realms. “Welfare” is normally defined from the ideological perspective of modern mainstream society, even though competing minority ideologies of “welfare” are both possible and evident. “Diversity” is normally organized around the central concept of “ethnicity,” even though the universality of this notion is questionable. In response a research approach to address these limitations is proposed which employs a sociological perspective and qualitative methodology to discern appropriate conceptual frameworks.     

Sociological Social Psychology and Intersectionality: A Synergistic Relationship

Sociological social psychology developed out of interdisciplinary knowledge growth. Despite this positive progress, critics have argued that sociological social psychologists need to “step up their game”. In this paper, I review the three “faces” of sociological social psychology and propose a potential avenue to address this critique by incorporating ideas from intersectionality research into sociological social psychology's paradigms. To accomplish this integration, I also discuss the background and current debates of intersectionality research. Intersectionality scholarship originated in the gender studies area and has always been multidisciplinary. However, notions from intersectionality have not spread widely within the field of sociological social psychology. I propose a true synergy between sociological social psychology and intersectionality with the hope of advancing both fields.     

The Spirit of Blumer's Method as a Guide to Sociological Discovery

Herbert Blumer did not offer textbook-style instructions for how to do research. What he offered, in his classic 1969 essay “The Methodological Position of Symbolic Interactionism,” is a broad account of what research must entail to accord with symbolic interactionist premises that human social life depends on meanings, interpretation, and interaction. Blumer's essay also voices a spirit of research that is ardently empirical, sociological, and creative. It is this spirit, I argue, that holds great value for guiding sociological research toward fresh discoveries. I make this argument by reviewing what Blumer meant by exploration and inspection, and then drawing out five Blumerian principles of inquiry. By embracing these principles we can avoid the problems of inadvertent theorizing, unreflective mesearch, analytic foreclosure, excessive subjectivism, and aprocessuality. I also suggest how we can enhance the sociological value of Blumer's method by paying more attention to power, inequality, and our own institutional biases. Embracing the spirit of Blumer's method, I conclude, can help a new generation of symbolic interactionists do more imaginative and insightful work.     

Connecting Social Psychology and the Sociology of Sport: Using Goffman as a Framework for Sociological Sports Research

Research on the sociology of sports has much to contribute to public discourse on sports and is well positioned to do so through the connection between sociology of sports and social psychology. This article uses the work of Erving Goffman ( 1967 ) as a framework for situating research in the sociology of sports into the themes of courage and gameness, integrity, and composure. This framework provides a way of organizing research in the field and also highlights areas where further research is needed.     

A Sociological Review of China's Social Credit Systems and Guanxi Opportunities for Social Mobility

This paper proposes a novel understanding of social mobility in China by exploring the literature on social credit systems. I propose that social credit systems, which include credit rating systems and factors of social governance, can affect occupational attainment, as they may influence or function in tandem with guanxi networks. Through social credit systems, there could possibly be a new order of stratification powered by norms of social conformity. These systems can curtail social mobility efforts by designating some individuals as high risk. In addition, these systems can regulate social behaviors, as actions that are considered “right” are rewarded, while “wrong” actions result in penalties.     

Intersections of Gender and National Identity in Sport: A Cultural Sociological Overview

Sport is a global phenomenon that is assigned different meanings in different countries. This article reviews how we can understand the intersections of national identity and gender in sport. Two diverging analytic pathways reveal themselves. On the one hand, we have an intersectional approach, wherein national identity and gender are understood to be formed by universal notions of nationalism and patriarchy, respectively. On the other, we have a cultural analysis by which specific national‐identity repertoires are understood to form local gendered meaning. These two analytic pathways are exposed by comparing selected sport studies with developments in cultural sociology. I find that intersectional sport studies draw attention away from cultural sociologists' aim to uncover variation in global and local meaning‐making. Cultural sociology can thus help take apart the universalities argued for in many sport studies and explicate variations across national representations of gendered identities.     

Mental Retardation as a Western Sociological Construct: A Cross-cultural Analysis

The purpose of this paper is to examine the sociological processes evidenced by Western and non-Western cultures in defining and labeling persons as mentally retarded. Societal perceptions of individuals with mental impairments have meaning only within a specific cultural milieu. Regardless of any existence in an absolute sense, 'mental retardation' is also a sociological construct. Cross-cultural, sociological studies may yield alternative strategies for assessing mental retardation in 'advanced' industrialised societies, making treatment of individuals labeled retarded more effective and more humane. The knowledge gained from such studies will provide insights into the relationship which exists between the perceptions and definitions of mental retardation and the various levels of sociocultural and socioeconomic integration evidenced by humankind.     

Application of Psychological and Sociological Theory to Teaching Social Work with the Group

Ethnic minority content as a substantive curriculum area in social work education evolved as a response to the times. However, the “what” and the “why” have never been fully addressed. In fact, ethnic minority content is not based on any discernable theoretical framework. A questionnaire was mailed to all ethnic minority doctoral students in the United States. The responses supported the need for a theoretical framework. A curriculum model was proposed utilizing the concepts of socialization, pluralism, and sociocultural dissonance. The focus was on the presentation of seminal ideas that would propel others toward development of more definitive models appropriate for their educational situations.     

Sociological consciousness as a component of linguistic variation1

While practice theory has provided a valuable framework for establishing connections between individual‐level sociolinguistic variation and social structures, Bourdieu's (1977) formulation of practice theory has been argued to inadequately address subjectivity. The sociologist C. Wright Mills' (1959) concept of the sociological imagination – consciousness of links among personal experiences, social structures, and historical processes – is posited as a partial solution, as it offers a framework for modeling one aspect of subjectivity. Use of the sociological imagination concept is demonstrated through a quantitative acoustic analysis of /o/ fronting in Worthington, Ohio, a Columbus suburb confronting acute urban sprawl. The distribution of /o/ fronting across 21 speakers largely resists traditional sociolinguistic explanations. A close analysis of four speakers' mental representations of the local tensions surrounding urban sprawl reveals significant differences which are argued to account for their variable use of fronted /o/.     

Interstate Relations and the Sociological Imagination Revisited: From Social Distance to Territoriality*

This essay presents a conceptualization basic to the development of a global sociology. Claiming that territoriality is the successor concept to social distance, the author provides an extension of the aspects of territorialization to the entire globe. A global sociology requires a reactivation and global application of two nearly forgotten subdisciplines: sphragistics, that is, the discipline that investigates ideas and practices related to the use of seals and signet rings; and ekistics, that is, the scientific study of human settlements. Among the subconcepts that are elaborated in service to these developments are home territorialization, boundaried communication, and the territorialization of the body politic. Examples are drawn from post-cold war developments in Eastern Europe.     

Evaluating the Social Environment Component of Social Work Courses on Human Behavior and the Social Environment

SUMMARY

This analysis of 117 foundation of Human Behavior and Social Environment (HB&SE) course outlines gathered from 60 graduate schools of social work is based on the HB&SE standards of the Council on Social Work Education (2001). It draws upon an analytic framework for integrating content related to the social environment. Specific criteria for assessment included how well the course outline reflected the reciprocal nature of human behavior and the social environment, presented a strengths perspective, incorporated diversity content, and covered material related to families, groups, organizations, communities, and political economy. Four types of HB&SE course outlines were identified (lifespan-oriented, systems-oriented, theory-oriented, and combination), and results are presented by course outline type. The findings suggest that increased attention to content related to the macro social environment, human diversity, well-being, and theory for practice is needed to strengthen HB&SE foundation courses.     

Challenges in Governance for the PSA as a Regional Sociological Association

In this essay we identify and discuss some of the challenges currently faced by the Pacific Sociological Association (PSA) related to its governance. The PSA is not unlike other regional associations and faces similar challenges. The rapid growth in membership for the association has repeatedly placed strains on the governance structure, particularly on the office of the Executive Director. The formal organization of governance has not always matched the actual ways in which governing is carried out, almost entirely by volunteers. Although there is growth, there is also significant turnover in members from year to year and this presents a challenge for maintaining an active, vibrant organization. The governing structure of elected committees and officers has not changed with membership growth but the number of standing committees has increased dramatically, spreading the volunteer membership thin. To meet these challenges, we make several suggestions. We argue for the importance of maintaining a stable membership; that the PSA should continue its work to formally define roles and positions including a restructuring of its committees; and an emphasis should be placed on providing an intellectual home for the members of the PSA. We elaborate on these responses to the challenges faced by the PSA and suggest considerations for the association as it moves into the final decade of its first 100 years.     

Social Work Response to the Needs of Biracial Americans

Abstract

The number of interracial marriages is rising. The offspring of these marriages are a special group that is experiencing the complexities and frustrations of multiracial existence. Over six million Americans identified themselves as biracial in the 2000 census. These people are different from biracial Americans of the past. They do not want to disown any part of their ancestry and are resisting the societal practice of forcing them to identify with only the racial community of one parent. This paper examines the social realities and worldviews of these Americans and identifies their major needs. It discusses these and suggests a social work response at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels of practice.     

A Sociological Alternative to the Psychiatric Conceptualization of Mental Suffering

Uncovering both the structural causes and experiences of suffering is a central sociological endeavor. Sociologists study many different kinds of suffering; after all, strife is experienced both physically and emotionally, because of internal factors such as illness, due to external factors such as trauma, and as a result of economic, political or natural environments. In this paper, I address one form of suffering: mental suffering. In particular, I describe the medicalization of mental suffering in biological psychiatry, which focuses on the genetic factors of illness and equates mental suffering with mental illness. The psychiatric concept of mental illness highlights the continuing, crucial role for sociology in both understanding the experience and identifying the structural roots of suffering. Since the dominant conceptualization of mental suffering is as a medical concept, it is vital for sociology to offer alternative explanations and contribute to a multidimensional analysis. The roots of mental suffering are much more than biological; social comparison, social inequality, and other social stressors are equally important etiological considerations. Therefore, a true understanding of mental suffering requires multiple perspectives, and sociological constructs guard against a total medicalization of mental suffering.     

Enacting Blind Spaces and Spatialities: A Sociological Study of Blindness Related to Space,Environment and Interaction

Lack of eyesight generates blind spaces. Blind spaces often enacted together with sighted are different from visual spaces in important ways. Sharing physical and social space with sighted may imply special challenges for blind persons with regard to interaction order and social identities. The article is based on ethnographic data with the purpose to describe enactment and management of physical and social spaces for blind born persons in different settings. It focuses on the physical and social plasticity of blind spaces and the mediated, practiced and often toolic relationship between body, self and physical and social environments.