Sociology explores patterns of human social life and examines the development, structuring, and organization of societies in all their historical and current diversity. Sociologists seek to understand how people live, think, feel, and believe in the ongoing processes that maintain and shift society and culture. Through understanding the social forces, structures and relationships that shape our world, sociology allows us to see why and how things are as they are, and how everything could be otherwise. Sociology is therefore central to understanding institutions, organizations, social policy, inequality, privilege, social problems and social change.