Page 12 - Prathima Volume 12

Editorial

It is with great pleasure that we present Prathimana Volume 12, the 2018-2019 issue of
the Annual Academic Journal of the Department of Sociology, University of Ruhuna.
Prathimana journal aimed at disseminating new knowledge that emerges through
research carried out specifically in the field of sociology and generally in a diverse
group of social sciences. The seven papers on different themes that are published in
this volume are meant to help explorers of new knowledge, researchers, and general
readers in expanding their awareness. They have been reviewed by a panel of veteran
academics from the field of sociology and the other related disciplines. For the
convenience of our readership we review them briefly in this editorial.

The opening paper “A sociological study of the nature of poverty in families of
urban informal economic activists/operators” by Saminda Gnanarathana identifies
the informal economic activists/operators as a work community of daily wage earners
in the informal sector functioning outside the formal control of the state. Further, it
focuses on the social and economic sectors associated with the urban poor, in a
theoretical perspective of the culture of poverty, social capital, and economic
capability. The informal economic operators are working in daily-paid temporary
jobs, and the researcher has focused on a variety of conditions concerned with them,
such as instability and inconsistency in their monthly earnings, social isolation, and
marginalization. Moreover, it is observed that, in their capacity as informal economic
operators, they are faced with many social, economic, cultural, and political
challenges.

At a time when professional social work is identified as a prominent aspect of human
services, the paper by R.I.C. Ranaweera and Sarath Gamlath under the title
“Sociological contribution for social work intervention: Analysis through Erving
Goffman” relates how professional discipline of social work has emerged as a
practical field of sociology. They comment on the contribution of Erving Goffman's
theoretical framework to the development of social work as a discipline, through his
studies: The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life (1959), Interaction Ritual (1967),
Forms of Talks (1981). More importantly, the authors broadly analyse Goffman's
interpretations of social interactions as dramatic scenes and apply their findings to the
identification of the use of group work as a primary method of social work oriented
intervention. Moreover, the authors describe how the concept of “the self” is more
effective than “the team” and the importance of maintaining well-designed controlling
strategies among the interacting groups while pointing out the significance of
Goffman's clarification in understanding it theoretically.

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