Perspective Memo 1
As a human being it is difficult to avoid imagining things in our head. With imagination, comes theorizing and it something that we tend to do every day in situations in our day to day lives. Many people confuse theorizing and think that if you can come up with a theory, you can come up with sociological theories. What people do not understand is that sociology is more complex. “Sociology is the scientific study of social behavior, its origins, development, organization, and institutions. It is a social science that uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about social order, social disorder, and social change.” Theorizing, on the other hand, is a speculation without any stern evidence or research.
Based upon an article I read in The Economist, “Migration to the United States: Under-age and on the move”, I could not help but notice how his explanations were very vague and short-determined. The article speaks on the overwhelming migration of children, usually from Central America, who travels alone in hopes of reaching the United States. According to the article, the number of children attempting to cross the border alone has increased from 15,700 (2011) unaccompanied children to 52,000 (2014). The explanation The Economist gives for this is the “rumors” of President Barrack Obama being lenient on children who travel alone. The rumors are being generated mostly by the Central Americans who are attempting to make business on the naïve minds of those who truly do believe that all kids, regardless of age, will be permitted permission to stay. This theory of the explanation of the influx of children crossing the border is a very good theory however; it is not backed by evidential facts, especially because these rumors were denied repeatedly by the White House.
Upon reading George Ritzer’s “Introduction to Sociological Theory”, I determined that The Economist’s article on...