Miami Dade College Sociological Imagination Paper

The purpose of this essay is to apply C. W. Mills’sSociological  Imagination concept to explain a personal situation. The essay will  demonstrate the student’s ability to use sociological concepts &  theories learned in the course, to describe a personal situation. The  topic is left to the student’s discretion.The Essay paper should have the following 5 content areas: 

???Introduction:  In this first content area, write a paragraph introducing C. W. Mills’s  concept of sociological imagination, and give a general overview of how  you will be applying it to the personal situation that you will discuss  in your paper.

• ???Personal  Explanation: In this second content area, describe your personal  situation/topic. Based on whether the situation is a current one or a  past one, describe how you dealt or are dealing with it. You can also  pick a situation from a person’s life who is closely related to you or  whose experience affected you. You should know the person well enough to  write the essay. Describe what caused the problem, who were involved,  what were others’ and your roles in the situation, and if a resolution  was reached. This section is all about your account of your situation  and should be no longer than four paragraphs (3/4 – 1 page).

Sociological  Imagination: In this third content area, analyze your personal  situation by applying sociological imagination, i.e., examine how  society and social forces affected your situation. This section should  be the most substantial portion of your essay. You should use terms and  concepts from at least 3 different chapters from the textbook, and one  sociological theory

1. ???Data/Stats:  Utilize at least 2 statistics or research studies from the textbook or  outside sources such as the Galen College online library. The references  should be scholarly and should be relevant to your situation (E.g.,  Inclusion of divorce rates in the US if the topic is on Divorce;  inclusion of poverty rates, crime and victimization rates, or suicide  rates if the topic is either on Poverty or Crime). Citing at least one  outside source is required.
2. Conclusion:  Write a wrap-up conclusion summarizing the major finding/themes in your  paper. This should be no more than a paragraph.