By Peter Kaufman

 What makes you a sociologist? Is it a degree? A title?
A job? Are there certain books you need to read? Is there a test you need to pass?
Must you freely use jargon and esoteric language? Do you need access to a
password or a secret handshake? Despite what you may think or what you may have
learned, I believe that being a sociologist requires none of these things.

A
sociologist is someone who thinks and acts like a sociologist. I realize that
is not a very helpful definition because it uses the word to describe itself. So
what does it mean to think and to act like a sociologist? What are the
orientations, perspectives and behaviors of one who claims this identity? To begin
answering these questions I started generating a list of what I believe are the
defining features of a sociologist.           

Sociology has produced some insightful lists over the
years especially regarding oppression and inequality: Peggy McIntosh’s white
privilege, Steven Schacht’s male privilege, Jewell Wood’s black male privilege, the upper-class privilege checklist and the heterosexual privilege checklist.

In addition to these there are other sociological
lists such as the core concepts in sociology, 37 moral imperatives of aspiring sociologists, most cited works in
sociology, the top-selling sociology
books, the top fifty sociologists
on Twitter,
and the fifty best sociology
movies of all time.  

To this list of lists I add one more: the list of what
it means to be a sociologist. Beginning with the prompt: “I am a sociologist because. . . .” here is what I came up with:

1. I am curious about the world
   in which I live
2. I am fascinated by all
   things social
3. I am intrigued about why
   people do the things they do
4. I am interested in how
   people interact with each other
5. I believe that society is a
   human invention and I want to know how, why, and who invents it
6. I wonder how meanings are
   created
7. I question who has the power
   to create social norms
8. I realize that there may be
   an artificial and even arbitrary distinction between normal and deviant
9. I am aware that my beliefs,
   attitudes, values, and actions are based on my social position and not some
   innate personality traits
10. I recognize that the time
    period in which I live has also influenced my beliefs, attitudes, values, and
    actions
11. I struggle to be mindful of
    the biases that may cloud my views 
12. I am suspicious of neat and
    tidy explanations 
13. I attempt to understand
    reality from the perspective of others 
14. I listen to the stories that
    people tell about their lives
15. I observe social practices
    and social processes 
16. I collect and rely on data
    to support my assertions
17. I focus on patterns and
    trends instead of on unique individual experiences 
18. I ask questions, and then
    ask some more, instead of accepting commonly offered answers 
19. I engage myself and those
    around me with inquiries about the bigger picture
20. I try to be attentive to the
    interdependent web of connections that characterize our world
21. I prefer to explain things
    based on structural factors rather than just pointing to individual actions 
22. I strive to understand how
    our lives are impacted by forces such race, gender, sexuality, social class,
    ability and other such variables
23. I am angry that inequality
    is increasing in a world of plenty
24. I see examples of racism,
    sexism, homophobia, and other forms of inequality in the fabric of our social
    institutions such as the media, education, sports, health care, religion, and
    politics
25. I am concerned that our
    inability to recognize institutional forms of oppression often results in our
    collective denial of such oppressions
26. I do not stand by silently
    when I hear others make comments or jokes that are sexist, racist, homophobic
    or reflect other forms of inequality
27. I challenge
    taken-for-granted assumptions that perpetuate inequality, oppression, and
    injustice
28. I refuse to accept the
    social order as natural, inherent, and “just the way it is”
29. I reject the notion that the
    status quo is permanent, stable, and everlasting
30. I maintain that the only
    thing that is permanent is the impermanence of the world in which we live
31. I endeavor to be socially
    aware so that I may see things that others may not recognize
32. I use my sociological
    knowledge to deflect harm not cause it
33. I expect to transform
    knowledge into action and create a more just and equal world
34. I am committed to fostering
    positive social change
35. I think about sociological
    ideas
36. I read sociological books
37. I study sociological
    theories and concepts
38. I write sociological essays
    and papers
39. I discuss sociological
    themes
40. I encourage others to
    embrace the sociological perspective
41. I act like a sociologist by
    engaging in the behaviors on this list

So
tell me: Are you a sociologist? Do you see any things here to which you can
relate? Are there things that you do as a sociologist that are missing from
this list? If so, feel free to suggest what they might be. This list is a
work-in-progress. I expect it will generate discussion and even debate about
what it means to be a sociologist.

My
hope is that as others consider this list not only will the list grow but so
too will the number of people who recognize the importance of identifying as a
sociologist. I don’t expect we’ll take over the world anytime soon but it
wouldn’t hurt if more people proudly proclaimed: “I am a sociologist because. .
. ”