Sociological Imagination and the problems of University Students in African Countries. 

Posted by Sikhanyisiwe Mkhonto

In the world we live in today each individual is faced with challenges that often lead to a personal crisis. What if is there was a way of understanding that some of our personal trials are not only due to bad personal decisions but could also be linked to the society in which we live in and shapes us. C. Wright Mills (1959: 3-8) states that ‘in order for one to understand the discomfort of their own personal lives they need to be aware of the influence the wider society might have in the situation they are faced with’. This essay will discuss fully the meaning of Sociological Imagination. It will also clearly explain what is meant by a “personal problem” and how different it is to a “social issues”. Alcohol addiction affects many South African University students. The essay will also explore if alcohol addiction is an individual crisis or a societal issue? What are the causes of alcohol addiction in students and what treatment methods would I suggest to those suffering from alcohol addiction?

What is Sociological Imagination?

Sociological Imagination is a concept that helps an individual understand their personal experiences in relation to the public issues that a society may be facing in a particular period of time. One can often feel like they live in a cycle of constant troubles that do not have any solutions. They may feel a sense of confinement. This concept allows one to look at things, not only from their own personal perspective however also try and understand what “historical issues” might have contributed to the reasons of not having any solutions to solve their own personal problems (Mills 1959: 5).

The difference between personal problem and societal issue

When  an individual is conscious about the troubles they are facing and tries to find reasons why they may be facing these troubles, maybe it may due to the way in which they live or how they were raised, by whom and what they had to face as a result of those circumstances is known as personal problems. Social issues are all the problems that a public face as a whole. This could be due to poor public infrastructure, lack of education or an issue that the country has created and affects a majority of individual (Mills 1959: 5). For example, among communities you may find young children indulging in alcoholic drinks and becoming addicts whereas in actual fact that particular country is known to be one of the highest in terms of alcohol abuse, either due to a lack of education, poor treatment programs or negative events that may contribute to the psychological reasons of a young child indulging in alcohol (Stein et al. 2012: 1)

Alcohol Addiction amongst University students.     

South Africa is ranked the highest when it comes to alcohol consumption in the world (Mogotsi et al. 2014: 187). Thabo a friend of mine, a student at the University of the Western Cape. He regularly consumes alcohol. One day we were sitting and talking and I asked him why does he drink alcohol in an uncontrollable manner. He told me it started at home, both his parents drink and he was always exposed to alcohol. It started off as something small however as soon as he got into university, he met friends who were like him and drinking would be an occasional thing they would do. Now consuming alcohol has become a routine in his everyday life, he says he cannot go a day without having at least one bottle of alcohol. He has tried multiple times to let go. It is not easy to do so.

Is Alcohol addiction a unique problem or in some way a societal issue?

Is this an individual problem? Studies have shown that alcohol abuse is more prevalent in the youth especially students who attend university, first year students to be more specific (Mogotsi et al. 2014: 187). This is a societal issue; research shows that indeed alcohol abuse is more prevalent in university students as a whole and not just one unique individual who is suffering from alcohol addiction. It seems to be more common in students that are doing their first year of studies, reasons for this are simply because first years are no longer under parental supervision and feel they should conform to the norm of seeming “cool” if one consumes alcohol in University, this sort of reasoning can be linked to peer pressure (Mogotsi et al. 2014: 187) Besides peer pressure, social factors such as rape, depression, post-traumatic stress and family dysfunction(Pengpid et al. 2013: 2044) often contribute to the reasoning of why students consume huge amounts of alcohol leading to alcohol addiction that is not seen as a problem (Stein et al. 2012: 1)

Treatment methods

The first thing I would suggest in the treatment of alcohol addiction amongst university students. Is to find out if there are any societies within the university that addresses the dangers of alcohol to make individuals aware of different types of drinking. Peltzer, Davids and Njubo (2007-2013: 30) defined hazardous drinking as ‘a type of drinking that can lead to adverse health risk which can contribute to the number of deaths caused by alcohol.’ If students are aware that there are dangers and that the reason for their drinking could be related to a problem, they are facing they can seek those facilities which would also offer treatment programs.

Conclusion

Sociological imagination has given us a platform to not be narrow minded in our thinking when it comes to the realization of issues. A personal issue can be understood by looking at its context which is the larger society. Society shapes us and defines us; society needs us and we need society in order for it to function therefore seeing that we are connected to a larger society and whatever issues it faces it affects us as an individual, maybe not every individual but a majority of individuals can be seen struggling with the same issue in the same social setting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Reference List

Mills, C.W. 1959. The Sociological Imagination. New York: Oxford University.

Mogotsi, M, Nel, K, Basson, W and Tebele, C. 2014. ‘Alcoholic use by Students at           Emerging University in South Africa’. Journal of Sociology and Social    Anthropology, 5(2): 187.

Peltzer, K, Davids, A and Njubo, P. 2007-2013. ‘Alcohol use and Problem Drinking in     South Africa: Findings from a National Population - Based Survey’. Africa              Journal of Psychiatry, 10-16(3-6): 30.

Pengdip, S, Peltzer, K, Van der Heever, H and Skaal, L. 2013. ‘Screening and Brief             Interventions for Hazardous and Harmful Alcohol use among University      Students in South Africa: Results from             Randomized Controlled Trial’.       International Journal of Environmental Research, 10(5): 2044.

Stein, D.J, Ellis, G.F.R, Meintjes, E.M and Thomas, K.G.F (editors). 2012. Brain and             Behavioural Science. Cape Town: University of Cape Town Press.