Читать книгу Essential Concepts in Sociology - Anthony Giddens - Страница 82

Social constructionism has been enormously successful in sociology and probably plays a part in the majority of research studies today. There is no doubt that it has produced many insights into social life. Social constructionism points to the inexorably social nature of all known phenomena, which puts human societies at the heart of the analysis, giving sociologists a central place. It can be extremely valuable as it lays bare processes of social construction and thus facilitates a better informed and wider public debate about major issues rather than leaving these to ‘experts’.

One particularly contentious issue, both historically and in contemporary societies, is that of migration and attitudes towards migrants and refugees. In our globalizing age, migration has become significant in political, economic and cultural debates in many countries. Flores and Schachter (2018) explored the specific issue of illegal immigration into the USA, asking the question ‘who are the illegals?’ It may appear that this question is irrelevant, as legality and illegality are matters of law, and definitions of who counts as ‘illegal’ are therefore fixed. However, this piece of survey research looked into perceptions of illegality among 1,515 non-Hispanic, white American adults. The authors found that social class, national origin and criminal background were key factors in the creation of shared stereotypes and a form of ‘social illegality’ that influences the decisions of employers, teachers, landlords and members of the public. In short, ‘illegality’ in society is not merely that defined in law but is powerfully socially constructed, with serious consequences for ethnic-based inequality.