I consider that sociology is associated with a broad field of research that deals with issues related to the personal life of each individual, interpersonal relations in society, and the global world. Gender and race identification, family and romantic relations, deviant behavior, religion, and aging are all studied at the individual level (“What is sociology?” n.d.). Regarding the social level, sociology investigates topics including crime and punishment, poor and rich, business enterprises, urban community, and social imagination (“What is sociology?” n.d.). The sociological imagination helps people connect personal problems with more global issues. The global level explores issues of overpopulation, immigration, wars, inequality, and the economy.
The task of sociologists is to consider social phenomena in terms of different points of view. Each individual who is a member of society becomes a social being. An individual inevitably attracts to society, which is why a person cannot express and realize themselves without another human being. Sociological research can cover a specific problem (micro perspective) and a global phenomenon (macro perspective). The micro point of view represents problems and disagreements on an interpersonal level or in small groups, which refers to symbolic interactionism. At the same time, the macro aspect analyzes issues in society and the global world. This level of analysis covers the functionalist perspective and conflict theory.
The essence of conflict theory is that some groups in society have power and others without, with the power of some exercised concerning others. In symbolic interactionism, special attention is focused on communication, through which the essential properties of society and the individual, their unity achieved in the interaction process, are manifested. According to the exchange theory, human aims to maximize profit and minimize the expense of relations. I think the functionalist perspective makes more sense since it assures that the actions in society are intertwined and help the development of a global society. For example, individuals must pay taxes to their state to function properly and protect the rights and freedoms of the people (Neelima, 2019). In this way, the interactions within society provide order, stability, and productivity. Thus, sociology can cover both specific events and global problems, micro and macro analysis, respectively. In turn, each level can be correlated with a particular point of view, functionalism, conflict theory, or symbolic interactionism. Functionalism makes more sense to me because it answers the questions of the interaction of society with the community and the global world.
References
Neelima, V. R. (2019). A review of three major perspectives in sociology. Think India Journal, 22(01), 6106-6109. Web.
What is sociology? (n.d.). Department of Sociology. Web.