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Paper Instructions:

A 10-year-old child named Elizabeth is brought into the emergency department by her mother. The mother appears anxious but sits quietly next to her daughter in the waiting room. When called into the triage area, the mother gives a history of coming home from work to find Elizabeth sitting on the couch watching television. Elizabeth did not go to the door to greet her or look toward her when she said hello. The mother thought the daughter's behavior was odd because she always greeted her at the door with a hug. As she approached Elizabeth, she noticed that she was clutching her right arm as if in pain. The mother asked what was wrong, but Elizabeth remained silent. Then she said "Nothing is wrong." The father is sleeping upstairs. The mother gives a family history of having an alcoholic husband who usually drinks himself to sleep. She said he has abused Elizabeth physically and psychologically in the past, and she brought her to the emergency room because she fears he has hurt her. When Elizabeth is asked about the abuse she appears scared, insecure, and withdrawn.

What considerations should be made by the nurse, to provide a physically and emotionally safe environment for the interview and assessment of this client who has experienced domestic abuse?
In your response, include some special considerations that should be taken when interviewing a child.

Integrate evidence to support discussion. Credit at least 2 sources.

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Paper Instructions:

Write a two-page reflection paper that addresses the following requirements:

1.    Explain how sociological theories and concepts affect your work, home, and/or community life and influence your future learning opportunities.
2.    Identify a minimum of two different sociological concepts or theories you learned from this course and explain how you will apply these sociological concepts or theories to your work, home, and/or community life.
3.    Use specific sociological terms and concepts from the textbook readings and article from the library in your paper to demonstrate that you understand and can apply the concepts.

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What are the disadvantages of teen pregnancy and give a sociological perspective?

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Since we know that children are less likely to succeed if their most basic needs go unmet and the research on poverty now tells us just how devastating these impacts can be for families, in the short-term and the long-term.  What do you think the reasoning behind why the government at both the state and federal levels failed to make real changes to government policies dealing with poverty  that would benefit working poor families  which would move them from poverty to a stable environment?

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Why, and how, can sociologists study suicide?

Questions and Topics We Can Help You To Answer:
Paper Instructions:

Provide two examples of stereotypes as it relates to Christians. Using a social psychological explanation, discuss how these stereotypes affect people's perceptions about this group

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Paper Instructions:

Write a 1500-2000 word sociological autobiography in which you appropriately use a minimum of five (5) and a maximum of seven (7) sociological concepts to demonstrate that you understand the role of societal factors that have influenced specified aspects of your life. Each concept will be graded out of 5, and you will receive a final grade made up of the 5  highest grades.

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Paper Instructions:

Judy Allison has a severe eating disorder, known as bulimia nervosa, which can be life threatening. This condition is one “in which a pathologically excessive appetite with episodic eating binges is sometimes followed by purging”. The purging may occur through such means as self-vomiting, or the abuse of laxatives, diet pills, or diuretics. She was admitted to the hospital two days ago after her sister found her unconscious in the bathroom of the home they shared. As a hospital social worker, you have interviewed Judy at the request of the physician who has been treating her during her hospital stay.

Judy acknowledges she has a serious problem, but says a friend told her that it can be cured by a diet of fruits and vegetables. You are unaware of any current research for treating this illness that involves the diet she describes. Instead, you are aware of two treatment programs which have been very successful in treating eating disorders.  Both are multidisciplinary programs offering inpatient and outpatient treatment, individual and group therapy and follow-up. You recommend that Judy consider entering one of these programs and offer to have a representative of the program contact her. Judy says she’d rather try the new diet her friend told her about first. She refuses further treatment.

What is your reaction? What would the hospital social worker do? Or how would they respond to Judy’s refusal of treatment?

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Paper Instructions:

Ling, eighty-six, is a bed-bound resident in a nursing home. Although she has numerous physical difficulties, she has maintained strong mental faculties.  She enjoys the company of her two daughters who visit regularly. Ling’s physician has just discovered that Ling has developed a lethal form of intestinal cancer and has only weeks, possibly a few months to live. Ling’s daughters beg the nursing home social worker not to tell Ling of her condition. They plan to visit Ling daily and want her to enjoy her time as best as she can. They feel that informing Ling about her cancer would only ruin her last days.

What should the social worker do? Should she inform Ling of her condition? What are the pros and cons of informing or not?

Swanson’s Theory of Caring

Introduction

Numerous theories have been used in the explanation of the nursing practice. However, for critical analysis of this practice, more emphasis has been put on middle-range theories. The purpose of these theories is to provide a middle reality on generalizing practices in areas in nursing. Also, offering the nurses collective ideas is very useful in their nursing practice. For this paper, the theory of selection is Swanson’s Theory of Caring, which is one of the most outstanding theories used in demonstrating how nurses care for their patients as one of the essential attributes contributing to the well-being of the patients. The theory was put forward by Kristen Swanson, proposed in the year 1991, highlighting the clinical activities (Wolf & France, 2017). Swanson highlights that care for the whole person is the backbone for better care and achieving better health. This paper presents Swanson’s theory of care, its analysis, and its evaluation.

Theory Description

Purpose

Primarily, the role of this theory is to explain caring linking it to nursing practice and care. Swanson’s Theory of care has a central focus on teaching and healing, especially dealing with pregnant mothers. Also, the theory gives insights on both families and healthcare givers o how to address issues on miscarriages and the healing processes (Lillykutty & Samson, 2018). The theory seeks to ensure that the services offered are at their best, providing closure.

Concepts

            The theory makes part of the middle-range theories of caring. More precisely, being structured around five primary concepts, which are maintained belief, knowing, being with, doing for, and lastly enabling (Lillykutty & Samson, 2018). These five components are essential and need adequate time for their development on skills to apply them in nursing practice.

Definitions

            Swanson’s theory of caring is comprised of five components that need to be defined. Maintaining belief is defined as the ability to others in esteem and more critically believing in their ability to achieve their goals. Therefore, the nurses should seek empowerment from the patients to make them gain hope and trust. The aspect of knowledge is trying to understand the meaning of events based on other persons' perceptions. Additionally, knowing is a concept that encompasses seeking to understand events in life while avoiding all possible assumptions. The focus is on persona being cared for, assessing in-depth, seeking cues, and, more importantly, engaging the caregiver and the person being cared for in the process of knowing (Lillykutty & Samson, 2018). Another important concept is being with, which means getting emotionally present for the other person. This provides an opportunity to share feelings; however, it is essential to make sure that the person being cared for is not burdened.  This also means being with the individuals physically to share experiences and ensuring the patient’s situation is well understood.

            The other aspect is “Doing for,” which is an essential component defined by actions to help protect and increase comfort for the person being cared for. This incorporates those activities that are aimed at contributing to health, either achieve recovery or peaceful death. Also, entails adhering to wills, strength, or knowledge. Additionally, focusing on “Enabling,” which focuses on facilitating other persons through life transitions on unfamiliar events (Mårtensson et al., 2020). The role of this concept is empowerment, especially through information, support, generating alternatives, validating feelings, thinking through things, and offering feedback.

Relationships

            Relationships are based on the above concepts, with an assumption that all people reveal some common characteristics. It is assumed that all the people are complex, spiritual, reflective, growing, and thus they appreciate the need of being connected. It is also assumed that nurses understand their role as leaders who fight for human rights, equity in access to health care, and other humanitarian causes (McKelvey, 2018). Besides, the nurses are believed to share experiences and knowledge of caring with others. This concept is genuine, based on the fact that nurses are always willing to share their experiences in various situations and learn from others.

Structure

Figure 1: Structure of caring according to Swanson (Turkel et al., 2018)

Assumptions

All theories are based on various assumptions; this is similar to Swanson’s theory of care, which assumes that caring is effectively demonstrated and its practice is interpersonal. It is also assumed that effective care leads to health and growth. In addition, caring accepts people now as well as in the future (Kalfoss & Owe, 2015). Another assumption is that a caring environment is a basis for development, and thus caring practice is the central focus for nurses and nursing practice.

Theory Analysis

Theory’s Origin

The theory is attributed to Swanson, which is a middle-range theory created over several years. It noted that she developed her theory as she performed phenomenological studies with mothers who have experienced miscarriages, mothers of infants in the intensive care unit, and those at social risks. According to Swanson, caring was the practice of nurturing, through relating to a valued other, especially those one has built with a sense of commitment and responsibility (Lillykutty & Samson, 2018). She closely emphasized caring and the benefits that are borne once the nurses build belief with their patients.

Unique Focus

            The uniqueness of Swanson’s theory of caring is the view on people’s dynamism, growth, self-reflection, and the urge to get connected with others. The view of people being spiritual is not common among many theorists and thus makes this one unique. Also, Swanson believes that the spiritual being is behind the connection of each being to the universe and eternity. This is the source of universal goodness, creativity, mysteries of life, and serenity (Lillykutty & Samson, 2018). Additionally, she presents the spiritual endowment based on soul, positive energy, higher power, or simply grace. She also equates free will to choose, which can decide to act amid various possibilities.  

Content

In addition, to the five principles mentioned earlier, the theory is also built on four meta-paradigm concepts. These concepts include in this paradigm include the person, health, environment, and nursing.

Theory Evaluation

Significance

             Theory importance is its applicability in practice. The significance of this theory is its ease of applicability in the nursing profession. The theory helps in understanding clients, building a good rapport among them to ensure better care services. However, despite the consequences, there is a need to ensure that the nurses play their role as supporters and mentors to our patients.

Comprehensiveness

            This theory has high utility in nursing. The theory is applicable in many nursing fields; despite the original setup for pregnant mother care, it can be used in other sectors. For instance, it can be applied to in-home care and ending in oncology treatment services. The availability of comprehensive information presented by the theorists makes various nurses choose the theory over others (Kalfoss & Owe, 2015). Through this theory, nurses learn how to apply various techniques in various parts revolving around their practice.

Logical Congruence

Not many theorists take full utilization and realization of logic, which makes theories unique. However, Swanson’s middle-range theory deploys a logic structure in the presentation of ideas. The logic is seen in the categorization of empirical aspects of care actions, which employs systematic literature and the conceptualization process. Additionally, the author presents an understanding of facts and goes beyond empirical data. Besides, Swanson uses theoretical prospects and reflection on other theories, referencing Jean Watson’s Theory (Hubert, 2018). Watson had earlier built a theory named Transpersonal Caring, which would be similar to Swanson’s Theory of Caring; both theories are in most stances cited together, as they portray a high level of credibility.

Credibility

            Swanson’s theory is highly credible. For instance, the Carolina Care Model was based on this theory to develop practices aimed at promoting patient care. This was practiced at the University of North Carolina hospitals. Additionally, Wang and Hsu highlight a full description based on their experiences, using Swanson’s care theory. The two utilize this theory in offering care on terminal lung care patients, with a patient suffering from spiritual distress (Kalfoss & Owe, 2015). Swanson’s models have been highly used in hospitals and also used by various physicians in their practice. By using this theory, the nurses have been in position to provide care to the patients and take care of themselves.

Contribution to Nursing

            From the discussion above, we understand how this theory has been helpful in the nursing practice. Nurses can effectively apply the theory of care into the caring processes as they go about their daily practices. More importantly, the nurses are in a position to avoid taking the theoretical underpinnings for granted. Based on various scholars, the major challenge faced by the nurses in their profession is on how to measure the care, especially in a complex and evolving healthcare environment (Ortega Barco & Muñoz de Rodríguez, 2018). Therefore, the ability to transform theory into practice will act as a scale that can measure the quality of care offered. Through investigation on empirical attributes of care can help transform care and fully implement theory into practice. This will help offer quality services for both patients and nurses to ensure overall well-being.

Conclusion

In general, quality care is an essential component of nursing that has been around us for centuries. Throughout this time, the nursing department has been in the race towards improving patient and nurse comfort. Essentially, there have been unmentioned efforts daily that focus on growing the profession and health organization to achieve the best. There is a need, therefore, to advance in nursing education, especially on caring. This would also incorporate current technologies and practices, appreciating the changes and evolution in practice. The use of both education and technology will help in promoting best practices in nursing activities.

References

Hubert, P. M. (2018). Application of Jean Watson's theory of transpersonal caring in nurses practicing in a pain center (Doctoral dissertation, Seton Hall University).

Kalfoss, M., & Owe, J. (2015). Empirical verification of Swanson’s caring processes found in nursing actions: Systematic review. Open Journal of Nursing, 5(11), 976.

Lillykutty, M. J., & Samson, R. (2018). Insights from Kristen M Swanson's Theory of Caring. Asian Journal of Nursing Education and Research, 8(1), 173-177.

Mårtensson, S., Hodges, E. A., Knutsson, S., Hjelm, C., Broström, A., Swanson, K. M., & Björk, M. (2020). Caring Behavior Coding Scheme based on Swanson’s Theory of Caring–development and testing among undergraduate nursing students. Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences.

McKelvey, M. M. (2018). Finding meaning through Kristen Swanson’s caring behaviors: a cornerstone of healing for nursing education.

Mertens, D. M., & Wilson, A. T. (2018). Program evaluation theory and practice. Guilford Publications.

Ortega Barco, M. A., & Muñoz de Rodríguez, L. (2018). Evaluation of the Nursing Care Offered during the Parturition Process. Controlled Clinical Trial of an Intervention based on Swanson’s Theory of Caring versus Conventional Care. Investigación y Educación en Enfermería, 36(1).

Turkel, M. C., Watson, J., & Giovannoni, J. (2018). Caring science or science of caring. Nursing Science Quarterly, 31(1), 66-71.

Wolf, Z. R., & France, N. E. (2017). Caring in nursing theory. International Journal of Human Caring, 21(2), 95-108.

The Critical Race Theory and Housing

Inequalities existing in the present United States housing practices can be explained by the Critical Race Theory (CRT). The United States Fair Housing Act outlines the housing policy in the United States. The mandate of this policy is to ensure that fair housing is available throughout the United States. The Critical Race Theory argues that race is a social invention and that racism does not only arise from personal prejudices but is a phenomenon that is integrated into policies and legal systems. This perspective can be applied to show how the best regions were reserved for white communities while the nonwhites were left to live in environments that experience hazards at higher rates. White supremacy entails structuring society to facilitate the existence of social advantages that facilitate the domination and exploitation of people of color and other minority groups. Housing policies that are in place today are influenced by ideas informed by racial prejudice.

The disparities evident in different neighborhoods in terms of the level of security, the value of homes, quality of health services available and other indicators can be traced back to accumulated past economic advantages gained through racial oppression of the minority groups such as African and Native Americans. The gap in the ability to obtain a home between white-identified people and the colored minority is influenced by policies that were banned long ago which relied on the issuance of racial covenants stipulated in property deeds (Dwyer, 2007). Research has shown that housing policies in place are based on assumptions biased in favor of white-identified people and thus overlook the marginalization of other communities who as a result have less access to quality and affordable housing. These led to the observable effects that include the quantifiable racial inequality in home values that are observed to grow steadily. Critical race theory attempts to explain the origin of disparities that exist in ownership patterns between different racial divisions and argues that property ownership regulations are shaped by assumptions that provide advantages for whites at the expense of other racial groups 

The United States Fair Housing Act outlines the housing policy in the United States and ensures that fair housing is available throughout the United States. This is interpreted to mean that providers of housing who include real estate companies, landlords, home insurance companies and banks are prohibited from discriminating against people intending to obtain housing based on their race among other social identifiers. Companies or entities that are found to have a pattern of discriminating persons can be prosecuted and tried for these criminal practices (The United States Department of Justice, 2021). The Fair Housing Act was enacted in 1968 and since then its interpretation is being continually broadened to counter housing providers who still find ways to disguise their discrimination. The civil rights movement have made a significant impact on policies that guide housing practices. However, much remains to be done to curb the prevalent inequality in housing across the nation. This regulation applies to builders, architects, owners and all people who are involved in various housing projects if the buildings they provide fail to meet the stipulated design requirements.

The Critical Race Theory argues that race is a social construction and that racism does not only arise from personal prejudices but is a phenomenon that is integrated into policies and legal systems. The theory advances that race is not a biological but a social phenomenon invented to be a tool for oppressing people of color. The theory criticizes the laws of the United States as being inherently racist because they play a significant role in sustaining the socio-economic and political inequalities between the different races in America in favor of the whites over nonwhites (Britannica, 2021). Its precursor the Critical Legal Studies that investigated ways in which the legal system favors the wealthy existed in the 1960s and ‘70s and lay the groundwork for its unveiling in 1989. This theory attempts to show how various social structures such as racism influence the laws and other social determinants to serve the interest of the whites. This theory was part of Derrick Bell, Richard Delgado, and others responses to government-endorsed discrimination of people based on the racial background that happened in the 1930s where officials designated some areas to be financial risks and not worthy of government funding because the dwellers in those areas were deemed to of inferior race.

White supremacy entails structuring society to facilitate the existence of social advantages that facilitate the domination and exploitation of people of color and other minority groups. The traditional understanding of the concept of white supremacy is challenged by Gillborn (2005) who asserts that the phenomenon is more subtle and is not limited to Nazi-era claims of intellectual and cultural superiority (Gillborn, 2005). Instead, most social structures such as education, political parties, the health system all imperceptibly have inbuilt tendencies to strengthen the grasp that whites have on sources of power in consumerist societies. As a result of these policies, inequality continues to grow steadily and social tensions keep on rising over time. However Gillborn (2005) and the Critical Race Theory critique the attempts to interpret the current laws to be independent of the events of history. This trend is mainly attributed to the idea that the changes introduced to minimize the effects of racial discrimination are a result of a series of patches to the various policies in response to protests and outcries from the oppressed minorities and not the fruit of a comprehensive plan to ensure fairness to all.

Housing policies that are in place today are influenced by ideas informed by racial prejudice. The disparities evident in different neighborhoods in terms of the level of security, the value of homes, quality of health services available and other indicators can be traced back to accumulated past economic advantages gained through racial oppression of the minority groups such as African and Native Americans. Therefore barriers are in place to prevent social and spatial mobility and these, in turn, affect housing accessibility for people who are considered racially inferior (Smelser, Wilson & Mitchell, 2001). Policies and regulations continue to legitimize the trend perpetuating a system of values where white norms and values are seen to be superior to those of other categorizations. This view is further reinforced by the observable patterns of settlement where different housing neighborhoods are clustered together and populated by members of the white and non-white communities who come to see these places as their rightful territories that should be defended from intrusion. Attempts to integrate into different neighborhoods are resisted and individuals who attempt to overcome this resistance are exposed to various social pressures which in turn generates further tension between the racial divides.

The gap in the ability to obtain a home between white-identified people and the colored minority is influenced by policies that were banned long ago which relied on the issuance of racial covenants stipulated in property deeds. Restrictive covenants have historically determined where people live. For example in the city of Seattle policymakers adopted deed restrictions to keep out persons considered as of inferior races from occupying certain areas that were reserved for whites. One of the most significant impacts of this practice is that it led to a disparity in the level of investments available to the different neighborhoods (Kollmann, Marsiglio & Suardi, 2018).  These covenants’ impact still lingers in Seattle and other due to the continuance of the traditional practice of racial segregation (Silva, 2011). Different cities in America have demographics that reflect the history of the country highly controverted racial debate and continue to impact the average American’s access to equitable housing facilities.

Research has shown that housing policies in place are based on assumptions biased in favor of white-identified people and thus overlook the marginalization of other communities who as a result have less access to quality and affordable housing. Pager and Shepherd (2008) were astounded by the high levels of discrimination that was reported. The specific cases entailed discrimination from job opportunities, access to housing facilities and various economic or social resources. People who come from non-white communities have been understood to face difficulties while undertaking housing searches or applying for home insurance and home mortgages (Pager & Shepherd, 2008). The frequency of complaints filed with the Fair Housing Bureaus can provide a glimpse of the extent of discrimination that is prevalent under the current housing legislation. Despite the reforms that have been implemented in housing regulations, discrimination in property ownership is still prevalent in America.

Critical race theory attempts to explain the origin of disparities that exist in ownership patterns between different racial divisions and argues that property ownership regulations are shaped by assumptions that provide advantages for whites at the expense of other racial groups. Whites have historically consolidated their power over resources such as land, housing, education and industrial property and have used their influence to shape policies in their favor. Housing policies in existence fail to ameliorate the inequalities in existence and instead serve to provide a semblance of fairness while failing to meet the objectives of their formulation (George, 2021). Critical race theory explains this phenomenon and calls for a comprehensive reexamination of society’s rules and regulations to safeguard the impartiality of the law. The assumptions that the various regulations are based on should be challenged and replaced with more realistic ones for inequality in housing to be replaced by equitable access for all.

Segregations policies in which the best resources were reserved for white-identified people created a gap in terms of the influence and the ability of non-whites to obtain property in certain neighborhoods that help perpetuate housing and other social-economic inequalities. The Fair Housing Act was enacted in 1968 and since then its interpretation is being continually broadened to counter housing providers who still find ways to disguise their discrimination (Thomas, Moye, Henderson & Horton, 2017). This regulation applies to builders, architects, owners and all people who are involved in various housing projects if the buildings they provide fail to meet the stipulated design requirements. The Critical Race Theory attempts to show how various social structures such as racism influence the laws and other social determinants to serve the interest of the whites. As a result of these policies, inequality continues to grow steadily and social tensions keep on rising with time.

This trend is mainly attributed to the idea that the changes introduced to minimize the effects of racial discrimination are a result of a series of patches to the various policies in response to protests and outcries from the oppressed minorities and not the fruit of a comprehensive plan to ensure fairness to all. Policies and regulations continue to legitimize the trend perpetuating a system of values where white norms and values are seen to be superior to those of other categorizations. This view is further reinforced by the observable patterns of settlement where different housing neighborhoods are clustered together and populated by members of the white and non-white communities who come to see these places as their rightful territories that should be defended from intrusion. The frequency of complaints filed with the Fair Housing Bureaus can provide a glimpse of the extent of discrimination that is prevalent under the current housing legislation. Despite the reforms that have been implemented in housing regulations, discrimination in property ownership is still prevalent in America. The assumptions that the various regulations are based on should be challenged and replaced with more realistic ones for inequality in housing to be replaced by equitable access for all.

References

Britannica. (2021, June 16). Critical race theory. Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/topic/critical-race-theory

Dwyer, R. E. (2007). Expanding Homes and Increasing Inequalities: U.S. Housing Development and the Residential Segregation of the Affluent. Social Problems, 54(1), 23-46. doi:10.1525/sp.2007.54.1.23

George, J. (2021). A Lesson on Critical Race Theory. Retrieved from https://www.americanbar.org/groups/crsj/publications/human_rights_magazine_home/civil-rights-reimagining-policing/a-lesson-on-critical-race-theory/

Gillborn, D. (2005). Education policy as an act of white supremacy: Whiteness, critical race theory and education reform. Journal of Education Policy, 20(4), 485-505. doi:10.1080/02680930500132346

Kollmann, T., Marsiglio, S., & Suardi, S. (2018). Racial segregation in the United States since the Great Depression: A dynamic segregation approach. Journal of Housing Economics, 40, 95-116. doi:10.1016/j.jhe.2018.03.004

Pager, D., & Shepherd, H. (2008). The Sociology of Discrimination: Racial Discrimination in Employment, Housing, Credit, and Consumer Markets. Annual Review of Sociology, 34(1), 181-209. doi:10.1146/annurev.soc.33.040406.131740

Silva, C. (2011). Racial Restrictive Covenants History. Retrieved from https://depts.washington.edu/civilr/covenants_report.htm

Smelser, N. J., Wilson, W. J., & Mitchell, F. (2001). America Becoming Racial Trends and Their Consequences. Volume I. Retrieved from https://www.nap.edu/read/9599/chapter/14

The United States Department of Justice. (2021, June 16). The Fair Housing Act. Retrieved from https://www.justice.gov/crt/fair-housing-act-1

Thomas, M. E., Moye, R., Henderson, L., & Horton, H. D. (2017). Separate and Unequal: The Impact of Socioeconomic Status, Segregation, and the Great Recession on Racial Disparities in Housing Values. Sociology of Race and Ethnicity, 4(2), 229-244. doi:10.1177/2332649217711457

 Max Weber’s Verstehen Perspective of Sociology

Max Weber’s Verstehen perspective of sociology is an attempt to understand social behavior from the perspective of the individuals who manifest those behaviors. Studying subjective aspects of behavior entails studying the meanings attributed by individuals to their actions and provides a more accurate understanding of human behavior. Understanding why people behave the way they do requires putting into consideration the meanings these people attach to their behavior. Max Weber argued that understanding how people interact within social groups starts with understanding what motivates people to behave in the way they do.

In my humble opinion, the difference between a blink and a wink could mean that understanding human social behavior by studying both the objective aspects and subjective aspects of society may provide better answers than just studying subject aspects of society. In this analogy, a blink and a wink may seem similar to each other at a cursory examination but are very different. Max Weber’s Verstehen perspective of sociology seeks to understand social phenomena from an insider’s viewpoint by incorporating the meanings that individuals attach to their behavior (Vyain, Scaramuzzo, Cody-Rydzewski, Griffiths, Strayer, Keirns, . . . Little, 2014). For instance, the black lives matter protests and the behavior of participants observed can be more accurately interpreted by the sociologist by understanding that objective aspects and subjective aspects that are separate and supplement each other which should be understood to be complementary for a more accurate understanding of the protesting behavior to be achieved.

Thus, using Verstehen may help shed light on why individuals participate in protests and provide insightful information to policymakers and administrators. This information can shed light on how to solve the various social problems in existence. Employing Verstehen is important in that it provides the framework for reconciling different perspectives into one holistic model of how different aspects of society function. Sociology thus needs to be both a quantitative and a qualitative science.

References

Vyain, S., Scaramuzzo, G., Cody-Rydzewski, S., Griffiths, H., Strayer, E., Keirns, N., . . . Little, W. (2014, November 06). Chapter 1. An Introduction to Sociology. Retrieved from https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontosociology/chapter/chapter1-an-introduction-to-sociology/