How to Analyze the Relevance of Sociology to Economics

While superficially distinct, the truth is that sociology and economics are highly correlated; thus it is often impossible or arguably invalid to thoroughly analyze one without considering the context the other provides. According to Princeton University's Wordnet, economics "deals with the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services." Similarly the American Sociological Association defines sociology as "the study of our behavior as social beings, covering everything from the analysis of short contacts between anonymous individuals ...to the study of global social processes." Notably, both are social sciences that examine the behaviors of human society, and their respective relevance arises from this.

Instructions

    • 1

      Determine the specific subsection of economics to which you wish to analyze the relevance of sociology. Economists have divided the discipline of economics into specialized areas, like Macroeconomics, Microeconomics, Applied Economics, Economic Game Theory, and Behavioral Economics, among others. Your analysis likely concerns one or more of these specialized areas.

    • 2

      Determine which subsection of sociology you wish to relate to economics, as scholars have divided sociology into specialized areas. For instance there are subsections of sociology like Sexuality and Gender, Sociology of Culture, Sociology of Education, and Economic Sociology, among others. Determine which subsections most relate to the economic analysis you wish to conduct. Ex: The Sociology of Religion may not be highly relevant to your economic analysis unless you're analyzing a topic like Islamic finance and it's impact on GDP at the macroeconomic level, or the ability to start a business at the micro-economic level.

    • 3

      Examine closely the culture and social organization of the company/country/community you plan to study. Analyze how socially-constructed notions of gender, race, class, sexuality, morality, success, among others affect the economic variables you wish to analyze. For instance, how does the culture of a country/company affect their economic success or failure? Ex: Does risk-aversion in market-dominant large companies diminish profit margins? Could a merchant in a small town give credit more freely and informally than a merchant in a large city? Would country A have a higher GDP if women in the workplace were not socially stigmatized?

    • 4

      Draw conclusions about how the social organization and dominant socially-constructed modes of individual and group identity affect economic activity. Present your conclusions with as much evidence as possible.

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