Discussion Week 1

Sociology
Sociology, as the name suggests is the study of association between the social beings that we
homo sapiens are. Sociology takes the scientific as well as humanistic approach to study the
social interactions and relationship of an individual, group or institution. A sociologist is
interested in the general study of social behavior as it occurs in groups, big or little, and puts
stress on understanding social life within the contemporary world.

How is sociology beneficial in identifying issues and concerns of

society?

Proposed Model Of Sociology

Network of Social groups

Social
Social Actions Social and social Society
Interactions
Relationships institutions

Sociology has a broader perspective of the social problems and society than other social
sciences. It involves analyses of the human behavior, their interaction with others to draw
conclusion in the form of theoretical formulations and generalizations. These generalizations
can then be applied to bring about a detailed picture of the issue and the ways to fight the
issue. Hence it is beneficial not only in identifying issues and concern in the society but also in
providing possible solutions by analyzing the root of the problem through finding the answers
to questions like; What an individual or a group feels about the issue? Who is facing the
stated problem? Etc.
 Case Study

Poverty in India
Now, poverty may seem like a social issue of the past in India but the fact is, it is far from being
a problem of the past. According to United Nation's Millennium Development Goal (MDG)
program 270 million or 21.9% people out of 1.2 billion of Indians lived below poverty line.

270 million people living in poverty, to put this into perspective let us look at the population
chart of countries.

Apart from India, only two countries boast a population of more than 270 million namely China
and United States. The fact is India has more people living in poverty than most countrys
total population. This is the major reason behind India not being able to catch up with world
superpowers like USA and China.

Sociological studies of the population of India can help in reducing the poverty by identifying
the various causes that hampers poor people from growing out of poverty. It can help in
improving the poor peoples interaction with the society. The problem can only be solved when
there is proper social interaction between the ones who are facing the issue and the ones who
make policies regarding the issue. This can be achieved by political sociology studies.
Political sociology of poverty requires an analysis of the relationship between the political,
economic and socio-cultural actors, institutions and processes in the context of poverty. It
assumes that poverty is a complex and cumulative consequence of power relations over a
period of time between groups within a region and between regions in the modern world
system.

Protracted steps need to be taken to keep poverty in India to a bare minimum. Only a profound
sociological study of Indias population can provide the solution to this social issue that haunts
millions in this country.