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100 Sociology Research Topics You Can Use Right Now

Sociology is a study of society, relationships, and culture. It can include multiple topics—ranging from class and social mobility to the Internet and marriage traditions. Research in sociology is used to inform policy makers , educators , businesses , social workers , non-profits , etc.

Below are 100 sociology research topics you can use right now, divided by general topic headings. Feel free to adapt these according to your specific interest. You'll always conduct more thorough and informed research if it's a topic you're passionate about.

Art, Food, Music, and Culture

• Does art imitate life or does life imitate art?
• How has globalization changed local culture?
• What role does food play in cultural identity?
• Does technology use affect people's eating habits?
• How has fast food affected society?
• How can clean eating change a person's life for the better?
• Should high-sugar drinks be banned from school campuses?
• How can travel change a person for the better?
• How does music affect the thoughts and actions of teenagers?
• Should performance artists be held partially responsible if someone is inspired by their music to commit a crime?
• What are some examples of cultural misappropriation?
• What role does music play in cultural identity?

Social Solutions and Cultural Biases

• What (if any) are the limits of free speech in a civil society?
• What are some reasonable solutions to overpopulation?
• What are some ways in which different types of media content influence society's attitudes and behaviors?
• What is the solution to stop the rise of homegrown terrorism in the U.S.?
• Should prescription drug companies be allowed to advertise directly to consumers?
• Is the global warming movement a hoax? Why or why not?
• Should the drinking age be lowered?
• Should more gun control laws be enacted in the U.S.?
• What bias exists against people who are obese?
• Should polygamy be legal in the U.S.? Why or why not?
• Should there be a legal penalty for using racial slurs?
• Should the legal working age of young people be raised or lowered?
• Should the death penalty be used in all cases involving first-degree murder?
• Should prisons be privately owned? Why or why not?
• What is privilege? How is it defined and how can it be used to gain access to American politics and positions of power?
• How are women discriminated against in the workplace?
• What role does feminism play in current American politics?
• What makes a patriot?
• Compare/analyze the social views of Plato and Aristotle
• How has labor migration changed America?
• What important skills have been lost in an industrialized West?
• Is the #MeToo movement an important one? Why or why not?
• What conflict resolution skills would best serve us in the present times?
• How can violence against women be dealt with to lower incidence rates?
• Should students be allowed to take any subject they want in High School and avoid the ones they don't like?
• How should bullies be dealt with in our country's schools?
• Do standardized tests improve education or have the opposite effect?
• Should school children be forced to go through metal detectors?
• What is the best teacher/student ratio for enhanced learning in school?
• Do school uniforms decrease teasing and bullying? If so, how?
• Should teachers make more money?
• Should public education be handled through private enterprises (like charter schools)?
• Should religious education be given priority over academic knowledge?
• How can schools help impoverished students in ways that won't embarrass them?
• What are ethical values that should be considered in education?
• Is it the state's role or the parents' role to educate children? Or a combination of both?
• Should education be given more political priority than defense and war?
• What would a perfect educational setting look like? How would it operate and what subjects would be taught?

Marriage and Family

• How should a "family" be defined? Can it be multiple definitions?
• What is a traditional role taken on by women that would be better handled by a man (and vice versa)?
• How has marriage changed in the United States?
• What are the effects of divorce on children?
• Is there a negative effect on children who are adopted by a family whose ethnicity is different than their own?
• Can children receive all they need from a single parent?
• Does helicopter parenting negatively affect children?
• Is marriage outdated?
• Should teens have access to birth control without their parents' permission?
• Should children be forced to show physical affection (hugs, etc.) to family members they're uncomfortable around?
• What are the benefits (or negative impact) of maintaining traditional gender roles in a family?
• Are social networks safe for preteens and teens? Why or why not?
• Should the government have a say in who can get married?
• What (if any) are the benefits of arranged marriages?
• What are the benefits for (or negative impact on) children being adopted by LGBTQ couples?
• How long should two people date before they marry?
• Should children be forced to be involved in activities (such as sports, gymnastics, clubs, etc.), even when they'd rather sit at home and play video games all day?
• Should parents be required to take a parenting class before having children?
• What are potential benefits to being married but choosing not to have children?

Generational

• Should communities take better care of their elderly? How?
• What are some generational differences among Generations X, Y, and Z?
• What benefits do elderly people get from interaction with children?
• How has Generation Y changed the country so far?
• What are the differences in communication styles between Generation X and Generation Y (Millennials)?
• Why could we learn from our elders that could not be learned from books?
• Should the elderly live with their immediate family (children and grandchildren)? How would this resolve some of our country's current problems?
• What are some positive or negative consequences to intergenerational marriage?

Spiritualism, religion, and superstition

• Why do some people believe in magic?
• What is the difference between religion and spiritualism?
• Should a government be a theocracy? Why or why not?
• How has religion helped (or harmed) our country?
• Should religious leaders be able to support a particular candidate from their pulpit?
• How have religious cults shaped the nation?
• Should students at religious schools be forced to take state tests?
• How has our human connection with nature changed while being trapped in crowded cities?
• Which generation from the past 200 years made the biggest impact on culture with their religious practice and beliefs? Explain your answer.

Addiction and Mental Health

• How should our society deal with addicts?
• What are ethical values that should be considered in mental health treatment?
• Should mental health be required coverage on all insurance policies?
• Is mental health treatment becoming less stigmatized?
• How would better access to mental health change our country?
• What are some things we're addicted to as a society that are not seen as "addiction," per se?
• Should medicinal marijuana be made legal?
• What are some alternative treatments for mental health and wellness instead of antidepressants?
• Has social media helped or harmed our society?
• Are video games addictive for young people and what should be done to curb the addiction?
• Should all recreational drugs be made legal?
• How has mental health treatment changed in the past 20 years?
• Should recreational marijuana be made legal?
• How is family counseling a good option for families going through conflict?

It’s too late to learn something new.

Top 50 Sociology Research Topics Ideas and Questions

Interesting Sociology Research Topics and Questions: Due to the vastness of the possibilities, coming up with sociological research topics can be stressful. In order to help narrow down the specificities of where our interests lie, it is important to organize them into various subtopics. This article will be focusing on various sociology research topics, ideas, and questions, one can venture into, to write an effective sociology research paper .

• Social Institutions

Interactions with social institutions are inextricably linked to our lives. Social institutions such as family, marriage, religion, education, etc., play a major role in defining the type of primary and secondary identities we create for ourselves. They also define the types and natures of our various relationships with fellow individuals and social systems around us and play a huge role in the type of socialization we are exposed to in various stages of our lives. Some topics that one can consider to examine the roles that social institutions play in different dimensions of our lives are as follows:

• Hierarchical creation of Distinction and Differentiation in cultures rich in Plurality
• Violence perpetuated in the structures of Family, Marriage and Kinship
• Sexually Abused Boys – The contribution of familial and societal neglect due to unhealthy stereotypes resulting in silenced voices of male victims
• The Institution of Dowry – Turning Marriage into an Unethical Transaction Process
• Gendered Socialization of young children in Indian households and how it feeds into the Patriarchy
• Marital Rape – An Examination on the Importance of Consent
• How do the institutions of Family, Marriage and Kinship contribute towards the Socialization of young minds?
• In the Pretext of upholding the Integrity of the Family – The Horrifying Prevalence of Honor Killing
• The Underlying Influence of Religion and Family in the cultivation of Homophobic sentiments – A Case Study
• The Roles of Family, Education and Society in both enforcing as well as eradicating negative sentiments towards Inter-caste Marriages.
• The effects of Divorce on young minds and their interactions with their social environments and the relationships they create. Are there primarily negative effects as society dictates, or could divorce also have possible effects for children in mentally/ physically abusive parents?
• Examining the Influence of class status on Parenting styles
• Social Issues

Our society is never rid of the conflict. It lies in our very human nature to create conflict-ridden- situations and seek multiple ways to resolve them. Conflict is ingrained in human society, and the more diverse it is, in terms of social institutions, nationalities, gender identities, sexualities, races, etc., the more prone to conflict we are. It is not always necessarily a bad thing, but a clear sociological examination of these social issues that stem from our various interactions is of utmost importance, in order to come up with optimal and rational solutions. Some social issues that one can focus on for delving into research are as follows:

• Reconceptualizing the underlying differences between Race and Ethnicity with the help of examples and examining the interchangeable usage of the two terms
• Assess from a Sociological perspective the rise in Xenophobia after the rise of Covid-19
• Examining the prevalence of gender-inequality in the workspace and solutions that can help overcome it
• Sociological Perspective on Ethnic Cleansing and possible solutions
• 10 Things that Need to Change in the Society in order to be more accommodative of Marginalized Communities and help tackle their Challenges
• The Directly Proportional Relationship between Privilege and Power – A Sociological Examination
• Demonization of the Occident by the Orient – A Case Study
• Dimensions of Intersectionality – An Examination through Feminist Theory
• Examining the Manner in which the Modern Education System feeds into Harmful Capitalistic Ideals with examples
• The perpetuation of differential treatment of male and female students within Indian Educational Systems
• Scarcity of Resources or rather the Accumulation of the World’s Resources in the Hands of a Few? – A Sociological Examination
• Links between Colonialism and Christianity and their effects on the Colonized
• Creation and conflict of Plural Identities in the Children of Migrants
• The Overarching need for Social Reform to precede and hence ensure Economic Reform
• Marxist Perspectives

Karl Marx was a renowned German Sociologist from whom comes the Marxist Theories. Through works such as “The Communist Manifesto” (1848) and other renowned works, his views on capitalist society, the unequal division of labor, class conflict, and other issues spread throughout the world, influencing many. His influential works significantly widened the Marxist perspective. He sought to explain and analyze the various inequalities and differences that were imposed on society and led to class conflict; for which the economic system of capitalism was blamed. His views on other topics like religion, education, interdisciplinarity, climate change, etc. were also highly praised. Here are some of the topics one can venture into for researching Marx’s perspectives.

• Marxist perspective on the Effect of Capitalism on the Climate Crisis
• Marxist perspective on the Importance of the element of Interdisciplinarity within Indian Sociology as an Academic Discipline
• Marxist Criticism of Normative Ethical Thought

Read: How to Apply Sociology in Everyday Life

The majority of the world’s population is exposed to various forms of media in today’s world such as, Films, Newspapers, TV Shows, Books, Online Sources, Social-Media etc. The consumption of such content has increased to such an extent that it now plays a huge role in the way individual identities are shaped and influenced. They also play a huge role in influencing the opinions and views we hold about the world’s issues and various phenomena, and now hold the power to become driving forces of social change in society. These are some areas that have the potential for in-depth sociological research:

• A Sociological Analysis of the Influence of Pop Culture in an Individual’s socialization process and building body image
• Influence of social media in the ongoing perpetuation of Western standards of Beauty
• A Sociological Analysis of Representations of Masculinity in Audio/Visual/Print Advertisements and the effects the pose for audiences who are offered this content
• A Sociological Analysis on the Fetishization of Queer Relationships as Token Diversity in Film
• A Sociological Perspective on the Perpetuation of Casteism in the Bollywood Industry by means of Endorsements for Colorist advertisements, as well as portrayal of Negative Stereotypes of Marginalized Communities on the big screen
• Popular Cinema – Possessing Potential to both Reinforce or Challenge Hegemonic Masculinity
• A Detailed Sociological Analyses of Cultural Appropriation in Media and how it perpetuates unhealthy Fetishization of certain cultures
• Trace Representations of Hegemonic Masculinity in Popular Media – Assessing spectator relationship

READ: How to Write Academic Paper: Introduction to Academic Writing

• Political Issues

Just as social issues, political issues are equally important. The various political systems of the world determine the kind of governance we are under and the nature of human rights we are ensured as citizens. A sociological assessment of the various relationships between the different political issues instigated by the numerous forms of political power is of utmost importance. Such sociological indulgence helps in assessing the nature of these issues and the effect these issues have on citizens. Colonialism, Caste system, Resource conflicts, Communism, etc. and their roles in the political arena, as well as the nature of the world governments of today, can be assessed using research questions/ topics such as these:

• Sociological Inspection on the International Peacekeeping Efforts in local conflicts
• Tracing the Role of Colonialism in the act of instigating Contemporary and Historical conflicts in post-colonial states – A Case Study
• Illustrating with examples the Vitality of Symbolic Representation of Indian Nationalism and how it contributes to Nationalistic Sentiments
• Comparative Analysis on the two cases of Palestine/Israel conflict and Kashmir/India conflict within the dimensions of State Violence, Separatism and Militancy
• Case Study outlining the influence of socio-economic and political factors that result in the creation and perpetuation of Conflict over Resources.
• Trace the Relationship between Naxalism and Intrastate Conflict
• Analyzing the existence of Caste based Violence in India
• Examination of the extent to which Freedom of Speech and Expression is allowed to be practiced and controlled under the Indian Government today
• Sociological Analysis on the Occupation of Kashmir within Dimensions of Militancy and Human Rights
• Sociological Analysis on the Occupation of Palestine
• Annihilation of Caste: A Review – Stirring the Waters Towards a Notional Reform to Attain Fundamental Social Reforms
• The demonization of Communism – A Sociological Perspective
• Role of Social Movements – A Sociological Case Study

We will update with more sociology research topics like Urban Sociology, industries, crime, mental health, Etc.

Also READ: How to write a Sociology Assignment – Guide

Angela Roy is currently pursuing her majors in Sociology and minors in International Relations and History, as a part of her BA Liberal Arts Honors degree in SSLA, Pune. She has always been driven to play a part in changing and correcting the social evils that exist in society. With a driving passion for breaking down harmful societal norms and social injustices, she seeks to learn and understand the different social institutions that exist in society like family, marriage, religion and kinship, and how they influence the workings and functioning of various concepts like gender, sexuality and various types of socializations in an individual’s life. She envisions herself to play a vital role in building safe places for today’s marginalized communities and creating a world that is characterized by equity and inclusiveness, free of discrimination and exploitative behaviors.

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