Towards a sociological imagination of menopause

Bibliographic Data

ID21394501
AuthorsShani Orgad (0000-0001-5129-4203, London School of Economics and Political Science, corresponding author), Belinda Steffan (0000-0003-3646-0562, University of Edinburgh)
Year2026
Volume74
Issue4
Pages685-706
Publication date2026-07-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Sociological Review (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0038-0261 • E-ISSN: 1467-954X
PublisherSAGE Publications (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/00380261261451627
OpenAlexW7160692670
LanguageEN
Citations received5
References cited60

This article presents the monograph Reimagining Menopause as a sociological response to the heightened public visibility of menopause in the West and the increasing attention it is receiving in the Global South in recent years. Employing C. W. Mills’ concept of the sociological imagination as a lens, the monograph examines how individuals’ and groups’ diverse lived experiences of menopause relate to and interact with contemporary cultural narratives and social discourses and structures. The articles in the monograph highlight the significance of the current visibility of menopause in challenging its historical invisibility, while also underscoring the limitations and exclusionary character of dominant ways of imagining menopause, ageing, femininity and the body. The article discusses the monograph’s contribution to sociological scholarship on gender, the body and ageing, to demonstrating the continuing importance and utility of the sociological imagination, as well as to advancing creative methods for reimagining social issues and domains, particularly those related to the body. The final section presents the central questions addressed by the monograph and outlines its three sections: (1) Current menopause imaginations: Narratives and actors; (2) Social imaginaries and lived experience of menopause; and (3) Reimagining menopause: Methods, modes, media

Menopause · Narrative · Scholarship · Sociological imagination · Sociological theory · Visibility · Historical Studies on Reproduction, Gender, Health, and Societal Changes · Menopause: Health Impacts and Treatments · Participatory Visual Research Methods