Exploration of a Journal Article in Sociology
This paper reviews the article Security, Surveillance, and Sociological Analysis, which was written by David Lyon and David Murakami Wood (2012) and published in the Canadian Review of Sociology. It is a review article where a summary of evidence that supports the authors’ proposition is provided. It covers both the authors’ personal and professional perspectives, as well as the summaries of related research.
In the article, the authors proposed that the fields of security and surveillance should be analyzed from a sociological perspective due to the fact that security and surveillance are tied to political currents, particularly to technological and economic power – as well as with the daily routines of ordinary life. To support their assertion, they cited how security and surveillance issues are no longer just confined to military operations but are things that ordinary people can experience and are concerned about, such as in the London Olympics or in the 9/11 incident. As well, the authors used the findings and assertions of previous researchers in order to support their claims.
The article fits into the overall field of sociology as the authors proposed that security and surveillance issues should be analyzed based on how the society functions and how such issues affect the society. In the book Sociology by Macionis (2010), the topic of the article would best go along with the chapter on Politics and Government, which discusses terrorism, war, and peace, as well as the causes of war, which would all be related to security and surveillance. In addition, the chapter discusses social classes, the military, the cost and causes of militarism, and nuclear weapons, which are still related to the fields of security and surveillance.
This article is different from articles in non-scholarly periodicals, such as newspapers and magazines, in that scholarly articles are written by experts in the field whereas non-scholarly articles are usually written by reporters or writers who may come from different backgrounds. As well, scholarly articles include the references for the article through in-text citations and bibliographies where the nature of such references is also scholarly. On the other hand, non-scholarly articles don’t always cite their sources and the nature of such sources are non-scholarly as well. Furthermore, in scholarly articles, the findings that are presented are usually based on the result of a lengthy research process whereas the information being reported in non-scholarly articles are based on interviews, hearsay, and from witnessing an event firsthand. Moreover, the language and tone used in scholarly articles are formal where jargons and complicated words are used. On the other hand, non-scholarly articles make use of simpler words and an informal or conversational tone.
On the other hand, one similarity between scholarly and non-scholarly articles is that they both aim to provide information, although non-scholarly articles have an entertainment quality while scholarly articles are more academic in nature. There are also times when, just like scholarly articles, even non-scholarly articles can be written by experts. As well, both types of articles are available in both print and online form.
References
Lyon, D. & Wood, D. M. (2012). Security, surveillance, and sociological analysis. Canadian
Review of Sociology, 49 (4), 317-326.
Macionis. (2010). Sociology (13th ed.). Prentice Hall.
