I stress the word “good” here because it’s pretty easy to think of a topic like gun control when you’re watching a cop show, but what do you do if your ideas stop there? What do you do if your prof insists that you write about something more original than the tired old topics he’s read about for the past two decades?

Don’t despair quite yet. If you’ve been handed an assignment sheet with a long list of prohibited topics, here are 13 that won’t bore you (or your prof) to death.

13 Sociology Research Topics That Won’t Bore You to Death

Anyone who has ever written an essay knows that, sometimes, finding the right topic for your paper can be one of the hardest parts of writing an essay. That’s why I’ve provided you with 13 sociology research topics to help you find the perfect fit.

I’ve included broad topics in the list below, along with a brief discussion of subtopics to help you narrow your focus (depending on your purpose and/or goals of the paper).

I’ve also included a few essay tips and links to example essays on sociology research topics, so you can see how other writers have approached the subjects.

Body modification

Are you covered in tattoos? Do you have multiple piercings? If so, you most likely see these body modifications as a positive form of self-expression. Others, however, still frown upon such modifications and see them as deviant behavior.

If you’re writing about the positive aspects of body modification, you might be interested in reading Body Modification as a Means of Self-Expression for inspiration.

If you want to research body modification and potential negative aspects, take a look at Why Employers Wouldn’t Hire Applicants With Tattoos and Piercings.

Or if you’re writing about this social issue in a history class or from a purely historical perspective? You might also consider researching the history of body modifications across the world or in one specific country or culture.

Aging and the elderly

If you’re a young person driving on the roads, you might think that “old people” have no business driving. But do older drivers really cause more accidents, or are teens more likely to be involved in accidents?

You could also approach the topic of aging and the elderly from another angle and research nursing home care, shortages of nurses, or concerns of adult children as caregivers.

If you’re specifically interested in researching aging from the perspective of the elderly, take a look at The Concept of Successful Aging and What It Entails.

Gender roles and norms

In the 1950s, men were expected to work, and women were expected to stay home and take care of the home and children. How much have these roles changed today? What aspects of these gender roles are still present today?

Interested in an example essay? Read A Comparison of the Past and Present Roles of Women in Society.

Family dynamics

The definition of family has changed drastically over the years—no longer is a traditional nuclear family the norm. Thus, a research paper about family dynamics might include a historical overview of how families have changed or a discussion of how family dynamics differ between cultures.

Looking for a few examples? Take a look at these:

• A Report on Family of Origin Through Family System Boundaries
• A Review of the Impact of Social Change in the Family

Community studies

Community studies is just that—the study of various aspects of a community.

Not sure how to approach this topic? Here are two example essays for inspiration:

• The Different Characteristics of a Sustainable Community
• How Community-Oriented Policing Builds Stronger Communities

Thinking about writing about sustainable communities, community policing, or another related topic but aren’t sure where to start? Check out 5 Best Resources to Help With Writing a Research Paper.

Prison systems and issues

Prison overcrowding (especially due to longer drug sentences) has been in the news lately. But if you want another angle on this topic, try safety in prisons (for both employees and prisoners), varied security measures, prisoner education, recidivism, or the use of isolation and its impact on the prisoner.

Social norms and deviance

Ever grab a few things at a convenience store and automatically stand patiently in line behind the person in front of you? Ever eat at a fast food restaurant and throw away your trash before you leave?

If so, you’ve followed the unwritten social norms of American society.

Your paper about this topic might discuss a variety of social norms or perhaps how social norms become part of our lives.

Work-life balance

If you work so much that you’re struggling to find time for your friends, family, and yourself, you’re struggling with work-life balance.

But don’t think that work-life balance only affects one age group and only people in the United States. It can affect all ages across the world.

Looking for a few ideas to help get the creative juices flowing? Read these sample essays:

• Understanding the Challenging Phenomenon of Work-Family Balance in Canada
• The Complex Working Relationship of the Millennials in the Workplace

Have you found a few sources for your paper, but aren’t sure they’re credible? Learn how to apply the CRAAP test to your essay sources.

Materialism in society

I bet on at least one occasion you’ve bought something that you really didn’t need. Maybe you bought a pair of shoes, a phone, or a video game system just because you wanted the latest and greatest model.

Of course, you’re not the only person who has done this, so think about how materialism affects not only your personal budget but also the economy in general.

Looking for an example essay about the topic? Read The Impact of Poverty, Materialism and Greed on the Global Environment and Society.

Keep in mind that many sociology research topics, including materialism, are also prominent in literature. If you want to incorporate a bit of literary analysis or comparison and contrast into your research paper, consider how the topics are portrayed in novels, short stories, or poems.

Take a look at An Analysis of American Materialism in The Great Gatsby to read more about materialism in The Great Gatsby.

Volunteering

A research paper about volunteering could focus on the requirements of student volunteers, how volunteering might help citizens and the community, or why people volunteer.

Take a look at this sample essay to see one perspective on volunteering: Give a Hand and Save a Life Through Volunteer Work.

Role models

Is your mom or dad a role model to you? Have you ever thought of a celebrity or an athlete as a role model? Should kids model their lives after celebrities? Are athletes appropriate role models?

Whether you write about cartoon characters or real-life heroes as role models, take a look at these two essays to see what others have to say about the subject:

• Are Disney Princesses Positive Role Models for Children?
• Stories of Holocaust Survivors

Subculture and counterculture

The list of subcultures is long, so you have plenty of groups to choose from if you’re writing about this topic.

Once you’ve settled on a subculture, you’ll need to decide what you want to say about it. Do you want to research the history of the culture, its influence on society, or its place within the mainstream culture? Do you want to examine how and why people become part of subcultures or deviant cultures?

If you’re not sure of an angle, check out The Identity Crisis of Teenagers and the Hipster Subculture for ideas.

Sexual orientation

Remember, your prof wants you to write about a unique sociology research topic. Researching same-sex marriage or adoption rights might be on the list of not-so-original topics.

Instead, try researching the severe penalties for homosexuality in Africa or the Middle East. If you’d like to focus on concerns in the United States, you might examine discrimination in the workforce or transgender individuals in public spaces, such as locker rooms and restrooms.

If you want to write about sexual orientation from a religious point of view, you might consider a history of homosexuality. Or you could look at how gender is viewed within the church.

To see an example essay about this topic, take a look at The Ostracism of Homosexuality by the Church Throughout History.

Need Even More Topic Ideas?

I get it. Sometimes, not even one of 13 super-awesome sociology research topics I’ve included here will grab your attention.

If you’re still in need of a topic that speaks to you—one that you care about and can really sink your teeth into—check out these posts for help:

• 7 Awesome Secrets for Choosing More Interesting Essay Topics
• 4 Ways to Mine Social Media for Better Topics to Write About
• 13 Surprising Sources of Inspiration for Writing

Still feeling bored with your topic choice and not quite sure it will hold your audience’s attention? Let us review your essay and help you spice up your ideas.

Happy writing!

But every once in a while, you get that essay assignment that encourages you to write about something you feel passionate about. Something you can sink your teeth into. Something that you know you can write five pages (or more) about.

If that essay assignment involves arguing whether Game of Thrones is better than The Walking Dead, you probably don’t have to worry too much about broaching a touchy subject or offending your readers.

On the other hand, if your essay assignment requires you to write about a more serious and impactful social issue—such as abortion, marijuana legalization, or immigration—you need to be able to write a thoughtful, convincing, and respectful essay.

In need of a little assistance navigating the waters of such subjects? Here are a few tips to help you write about contemporary social issues.

How to Write a Powerful Social Issues Essay

Let me first start by saying that this post is designed to help you write about a specific type of topic (a powerful social issue).

If you’re assigned to write about a social issue but haven’t chosen a topic yet, check out 7 Awesome Secrets for Choosing More Interesting Essay Topics.

Once your topic is firmly in place, consider these tips before writing a social issues essay.

Tip #1: Show some respect

If your grandmother is anything like mine, she has told you (likely more than once) to “respect your elders.” Her words of wisdom ring true not only when it comes to respecting (all) people in your daily life but also when writing essays.

Here’s an example. Let’s say you’re a blonde, and you read an essay about how the “dumb blonde” stereotype is true. You might be offended, right?

Now think about reading an essay that attacks your nationality, your gender identity, your religious beliefs, or your race. Think about how you’d feel about that writer and how angry you might feel about the writer’s words.

No one wants to read an essay that offends or attacks, so be respectful by carefully choosing your words so that you don’t offend your audience.

For instance, if you’re writing about immigration, using the terms “alien” and “illegal” can be offensive. Instead, use more correct terminology, such as “migrant,” immigrant,” or “refugee,” depending on the context of your discussion.

Being respectful also means avoiding generalizations about specific groups. Don’t assume that all marijuana users are criminals or that all immigrants are “bad people.”

Instead, be careful to clarify that, while a segment of these populations may fall into one category, the groups themselves cannot be generalized into one broad definition or description.

Tip #2: Stay cool

Being passionate about a subject is no excuse for going off on a rant. If you’re ranting about a topic, your essay will sound like one big complaint.

Here’s an example. Let’s say you’re unhappy about the homeless population who begs for money in your neighborhood.

If your essay simply rants about how you think homeless people make your city look bad, how they shouldn’t bother people, and that they should just go get a job, it does little to solve the problem or rationally discuss the topic. It simply lists a series of complaints.

How do you keep a level head when discussing such a passionate topic? Try listing your concerns and opinions through a prewriting exercise.

This might mean that you list all of your complaints (and angry rant topics). That’s okay. Prewriting lets you get it all out of your system before drafting. Then you can objectively examine your key points and decide which information is appropriate for your paper.

Once you’ve drafted your social issues essay, make sure to revise your paper. This will give you another chance to review your work to make sure that your arguments are solid, rational points rather than mere complaints.

If you want some help determining whether your arguments are appropriate, get additional help from the expert editors at Kibin.

Tip #3: Be convincing

In most cases, if you’re writing about controversial issues, you’re writing an argument essay. This means that the goal of your paper will be to convince your readers. You can do that in three ways:

• Create logical arguments
• Choose appropriate evidence
• Avoid bias

Create logical arguments

You might initially think that including anything and everything that seems to even remotely support your argument is the most effective way to convince your readers. But the opposite is actually true.

To be convincing, you must first create logical arguments.

To be convincing in your social issues essay, you must first create logical arguments.
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You can’t argue that legalizing marijuana means it won’t be long before all narcotics will be legalized. One action doesn’t always lead to another similar action or reaction.

This type of reasoning is a slippery slope logical fallacy and weakens your argument. (To learn more about logical fallacies and how to avoid them in your own writing, read 10 Logical Fallacies That Will Kill Your Argument.)

Choose appropriate evidence

Another component of creating a convincing argument is choosing appropriate evidence. Be careful, however, that you don’t cite only sources that support your argument. Also look for sources that argue the opposing view.

Including a strong discussion (and rebuttal) of the counterargument demonstrates that you have examined the argument carefully and aren’t simply including information that supports only your personal beliefs.

Avoid bias

A third component of creating a convincing argument is avoiding bias. We all come to the table with a certain inherent bias, but don’t let your personal biases interfere with your writing.

Here’s what I mean. If you’re a religious person arguing against abortion, you have strong moral and religious convictions. Those convictions can lead to a biased opinion as you present your arguments about why abortion should be illegal.

The same holds true if you’re an atheist who believes in abortion rights or if you’re a non-practicing Christian who falls somewhere in the middle of the argument. Your background and beliefs can change the tone and even the content of your writing.

So keep any biases in check.

In other words, use evidence from your sources—rather than personal, biased opinions—to support your arguments. (Not sure whether your sources are appropriate and don’t contain biases of their own? Read How to Apply the CRAAP Test to Your Essay Sources.)

Tip #4: Be original

When drafting, create a unique and original social issues essay. Don’t rely on the same old, tired arguments that you wrote about in middle school or that your professor has read too many times already. Look for a new approach.

How do you create an original essay? It can be as simple as narrowing your topic. If you’re writing about immigration, for instance, don’t write a basic essay that argues whether the United States should accept immigrants and/or refugees.

Instead, you might write about DACA and argue whether the program should be kept in place, whether it should be revised, or whether it should have never been instituted in the first place.

Writing about something more specific means that you can focus your ideas. It also means that your paper will not only be more interesting to research and write, but also be more interesting to read.

(Remember, an interested professor is a happy professor, and this might reflect kindly on your grade!)

Live in the Present

You’ll notice that the title of this post uses the word “contemporary.” Thus, my final piece of advice is to make sure that you choose a current topic for your social issues essay.

Many social issues have been debated for years. So if you choose one of them as the focus of your essay, make sure you write about a current discussion (unless, of course, you’re in a history class, and the assignment is to discuss the history of such topics).

Not sure where to find current, relevant, and interesting topics? Check out 4 Ways to Mine Social Media for Better Topics to Write About.

Finally—some examples. I know it’s easy to tell someone how to write, but it’s also important to show people how to write. To read a few examples of finished papers about the topics in this post, check out these papers about immigration.

Happy writing!

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