Shift Happens

After watching the video, I did wonder how much our world will change in just five years. Population growth is inevitable, but to think that while we are in school, for some people, the education they receive for the jobs they are training for will be out-of-date by the time they graduate. Although you cannot control the speed of innovation occurring, I do think the education system will need to be updated in order for people to be knowledgeable about their field by the time they graduate. Since I am not getting a technical degree, I am not sure how I would change the system or if it is even possible to do so. However, since many people will have had ten jobs by the time they are thirty-eight, I do think everyone should receive a well-rounded education, whether that being knowledgeable about different types of math, science or having students either double major or receiving a major and minor in contrasting fields.

I do think the continual improvements in information processing and it's availability are improving our lives. I think since the internet was invented people are being exposed to different cultures and ideas they may not have heard about in their community or in school. I also think information processing has helped the medical field by promoting organizations that help with charities and by allowing people in remote locations to receive necessary medical information. I also think the advancements in information processing will continue to help people all around the world. I think the information processing advancements have changed our society and will continue to modify societal norms, education, and the work and economic infrastructure of our world.

Urban/Suburban/Rural Life

Over the years, population has continued to increase causing the community we live in to change as well. I agree with the book that inner-city areas have become segregated and lack many resources. I also agree that suburbs farther away, around 40 miles, from cities have continued to grow. The town I live in now is a suburb that has greatly increased since I moved there eleven years ago. Since it is close to D.C., many people who work in D.C. live in our town. The suburbanization and growth of our town has influenced many business to open stores there. However, I do think the recession and the crash of the housing market either stopped people from moving to the suburbs or cause people to move out of the suburbs into cheaper areas. While the economy has improved I am do not think an era of urban renewal is occurring in cities. Especially after listening to Week Fourteen's podcast, it seems more city buildings are decaying rather than being upgraded. However, I do think there are more jobs in cities than in rural areas. With the increasing population, in the future there may be very few rural areas and more cities throughout the world. I think the growing suburbs could turn some places into cities while some rural areas turn into suburbs and cities become very overcrowded. It will be telling to see if one of the UN's estimated predictions for the world population is correct.

Who Has the Power?

Democracy and the Western push for others to conform to democratic governments has greatly influenced the world. For the most part, I agree with Mills's power elite theory on democracy. While the people in power in becoming more diverse in ethnicity and sex, I still believe the majority of the people in power are WASP-type men. However, I do not think that WASP-type men should be the only people in power. I think our society could greatly benefit from having women and people of different races become powerful political and social leaders. I also thinks Mills's idea that there are "three spheres" in which people move up the hierarchical ladder ring true today. For example many large business, especially those involved with military aspects, and their leaders often either run for office or make large contributions to a person that could really influence how likely they would win the election. Often politicians, such as previous presidents, often go into business with companies that were involved in their campaign/s or helped when they served their term. Since these companies have so much influence and are so influenced by political figures, military personnel may see it as beneficial if they also became close with both spheres. Thus, the process continues to repeat itself.

I also agree with most of Mills's idea about the three levels of power in the US. I do think the "power elite occupy the highest level" and interest groups are beneath the power elite. However, unlike Mills, I do think the mass population can have an effect on policy decisions. The system of checks and balances established many years ago ensures that the population can vote to repeal a law or impeach a leader. They are also the ones who vote to elect a politician to office or choose to support a company by buying their products. I think the mass population can have a large effect on how society functions and how the government and power elite operate. However, I think all aspects of society, including businesses, government officials, and citizens, influence the world we live in, in a variety of ways.

The Case of Walmart

After reading the textbook and watching the video, I feel that Walmart does have negative effects on the American economy and job market. While the low prices can save people money, I think placing factories in China takes away hundreds of jobs for Americans. Factory plants are now simply wasting land all over America because of the effects the demand for lower prices has created. Since goods are cheaper to produce overseas and create a cheaper product, American goods are losing value. I found the statement about America's trade deficit with China to be profound. If there is a way to produce goods China would buy in such large quantities, such as those that America buys from China, then I think this trade flow could greatly benefit both countries. I think Walmart has created a monopoly over selling products. The effects Walmart has had on big companies, such as Rubbermaid, seem harsh, demanding, and unrealistic. In order for many companies to grow and survive, they need to sell to Walmart at very low prices and in large amounts to make a profit off the low prices. Although Walmart provides great prices for many products, I think a slightly higher priced product could benefit more people because it would place less of a demand for products to be made overseas and would use more American materials.

Division of Labor and Second Shift

I thought the chart activity gave me more insight into how much work everyone in a family contributes. I was not surprised to see that my Mom does the majority of the tasks, especially the daily chores, such as cooking dinner and packing school lunches. While my Dad does do some chores, I definitely think my Mom has a second shift where the number of chores she does greatly outweighs how many chores my Dad does. The textbook mentioned how some wives are more willing to do chores, since the husband is the breadwinner and provides economic stability. I think this idea does apply to our family. When I interviewed my Mom for the gender inequality assignment, she even mentioned how she does not think there is inequality within the house because my Dad does other things, such as taking care of our finances. While I highly doubt that my parents would agree with this, I think it would be interesting to switch the dynamics and roles each person in the family plays for a few days, just to see how people handle the role reversals. If this were to happen, it would also be interesting to see the after effects, if there are any, of this activity and if people change how many daily chores they do.

The Pill

Margaret Sanger made many contributions to society, but her most important one was advocating the right to use contraceptives. She helped educate people about birth control and even helped develop a contraceptive pill. Sanger lived to see her efforts become a reality when the Supreme Court overruled a Connecticut law that "prohibited the use of contraception." Sanger's most important contribution was that she allowed everyone the right to privacy over contraceptives and abortions.

When reading the 1966 pill article, I felt it was extremely conservative and seemed to exaggerate how the pill would affect society. However during the 1960s, many adults may have been worried about the younger generation, since the 1950s were such a conservative decade. I also think the pill could have been a small catalyst to the sex, drugs, and rock and roll that occurred during the 1960s and 1970s. I do think, like the article stated, that the pill "provides an invitation to premarital sex." However, I do not think "moral anarchy" will or has occurred by taking the pill. I do think the pill allows more women to have safe sex without getting pregnant.

I thought it was interesting to hear about the cultural norms before the pill was created. I was not surprised to hear how many people looked down upon those who had sex before they were married. However, I was surprised to hear how women wore girdles in the 1950s. I tend to associate wearing girdles with the 1700s through the 1800s, not something that was worn in the mid-1900s. It was also interesting to hear the male perspective on birth control; I wish the clip showed more about his point of view. I really liked the quote in the after clips about how the pill gave the woman a sense of "ownership over my body." Having a child can affect your life in such a dramatic way, that taking a pill to prevent this from happening can also have a dramatic impact on your life. The pill allows women to choose when they want to have a child. I also think the pill can prevent couples from having more children then they desire or can handle. Many people in the after and before videos described how their world was very sheltered and how the pill changed that because, as one person stated, "it changed our most basic assumptions about the way life should be organized." I think what surprised me the most about the videos was how the pill affected women's careers. It was disturbing to hear that a company hung up on a women during an interview because she had young children. While there is still gender inequality in the workplace, I think the pill greatly affected the level of respect and treatment women now receive in their jobs.

Religion's Role in Government

I do not think that religion should have a role in the government. Since new leaders are often elected every few years it would be difficult and somewhat controversial to continue to have one leading religion influence the government's decisions. Today, there are numerous religions around the world. Within a country people could be practicing from any of these religions, thus it would be difficult for the government, if influenced by a religion, to please the majority of the citizens. The text book talked about how often times conflicts within countries deals with religion. The examples listed in the textbook, such as Israel's frequent spot in the news over religious disputes with their neighbors, are violent.
One religion can be powerful without having a large following. Therefore, a powerful religious group can become intertwined with the government. This religious group can then proceed to change many of the laws of the country. If different religious groups were elected then the laws of the country would continue to change, potentially wrecking havoc on the land. Or if one religion continues to be elected they could become more fundamentalist, creating differences between the majority and minority groups. I think if religion does not play a role in the government, then there is a higher likelihood of having peace within the country.

Racial Inequality

While reading the two stories of Max and Byron, I was shocked at how different their lifestyles became, even with degrees from college institutions. I was surprised that Byron still did not earn as much money as Max, despite having recieved an Ivy league education and being conservative with his money. It made such a difference for Max's lifestyle when his parents were able to contribute money to his education and home. I feel I can most relate to Max and his situation. While our family did not have much money when I was young, my parents will still be able to retire comfortably, like Max's parents.

Although this website was supposed to focus on race, I felt the two stories were more about the socio-economic differences between the two boys. However, I feel that one's race can affect one's socio-economic position even today. There still exists prejudices and discrimination against race, religion, gender, and cultures. This discrimination can greatly affect generations and could take many generations before people change their beliefs about others. I think education, the media, and politics can help shape future generations towards becoming a more equal society.

Social Construction of Gender

I thought the book did a good job of exploring various cultures and their views on gender. American culture is so predominately patriarchal that it was interesting to read about other cultures. I thought the !Kung seemed to have a good balance of power between the men and women. One can see how other norms work in different regions, I think the a problem of gender inequality is that once norms are established it is extremely hard to change the norms. The UN's Conferences on Women are good examples of this. Many consider the United Nations to be a powerful, influential organization, yet it is difficult for them to promote women in politics and equality around the world. I think in order to reach equality, the media, education systems, and powerful leaders of a culture all need to agree that this goal should be reached.
Gender norms can easily be seen by just exploring one aspect of a culture, such as advertisements. Ads are created to promote a product in an appealing manner. If the majority of the public finds the ads appealing, then the majority of the public may copy the actions in the ad or buy the product. I thought the book did a good job of pointing out the differences between ads. Oftentimes, ads are just something we look at for a few seconds and then move on with our lives. But it seems as if the pictures can truly influence how we behave or what we purchase. It would be interesting to find a study of how appealing men and women found ads portraying traditional roles versus unconventional roles.

Global Inequality

From the podcast, I was better able to understand how global inequality ties into sociology studies. Understanding how global inequality affects social stratification is relevant to our everyday life, no matter where we live. By looking at where people live or whether or not they are homeless, most people are able to see the effects of global inequality in their neighborhood. Finding out who benefits from this structure can help us gain more insight into how global inequality is created and possibly try to shorten the wide gaps between the rich and the poor.
I think the topic of global inequality is especially prevalent now with the government discussing how to decrease our trillion dollar debt. Although America is a strong core country in the world, there are still people living in poverty. While our power may be strong, our economic power would be stronger if we did not have trillions of dollars of debt. Global inequality can be seen throughout the world, from powerful countries to cities and even in small communities.

Social Class in the United States

Despite the All-American Dream of equality and achieving success, I do think social class plays a prominent role in society. The book provided many examples of how one's social class influences what type of job, income, life experiences and the community one lives in. For example, many children who are born from parents of a low socio-economic or working class may not have the chance to go to summer camps and could fall behind in school. Many middle to upper class families will send their children to summer camps or enrichment programs where they will be challenged to learn. These programs benefit them in the classroom and can give them an advantage over children from the working class. Although social class is important very early on in one's life, I do think one can move to a different social class.
I also think people value social class and strive to achieve a higher status in terms of impression management. How we appear to others has remained an important value for the majority of the American population. The clothes we wear, the cars we drive, where we shop, and the activities we participate in during our free time are indicators of our wealth, just as the PBS "People Like Us" website demonstrates. Our class status can affect, although I do not believe that it should, how we interact with others. We may hold people who are the CEO's of various companies in high regard, while a worker at McDonald's with not as much respect. I think until the gap between the rich and poor lessens and people begin to treat each other more equally, then one's class status will still continue to be an important value in American society.

Social Connections

Since the invention of the phone, technology has continued to change Americans' lives. I do believe technology has allowed Americans to be more isolated. Emails, Facebook, text messages, and phone calls have replaced many face-to-face interactions. However, technology does allow people to make connections with others around the world. This can help expose various cultures or ways of thinking, but I think it can also isolate a person from other people in their community.
People are able to make hundreds of connections with people through the internet every day, however, these connections may not be significant or develop into forming a relationship with another. Many people with personal relationships with friends and family members will not feel very isolated. The increasing use of technology has expanded the number of friends people have, but has not dramatically increased the number of personal relationships people have with others. Many times, what people say on the internet and even on the phone is misinterpreted since people cannot see the person's nonverbal actions, such as their facial expression. I think this prohibits strong personal relationships from growing and could even increase the degree of isolation people feel.

The Criminal Justice System

The differences between the male and female crime rates were staggering. According to the statistics in the book, crimes are mostly committed by males. The book even suggests that "certain crimes perpetrated by women go unreported." Otto Pollak's suggestion is that women are committing crimes in the home. Although this claim was made in the 1950s, it makes one wonder how much this still stands true today. While many women today have a full time job, there is still a stereotype of women being more domestic than men. It could be possible that the crimes women commit are inside their home, therefore it could be more difficult for police to catch women committing the crime. Or society's perception that women are not often violent could be inhibiting police from being less likely to arrest a women committing a crime. This stereotype could also explain why women mostly commit non-violent crimes, such as stealing. It would be interesting to conduct an experiment to see if Pollak's chivalry theory was being practiced by policemen. Since women get sent to prison less than men, it would be interesting if a statistic was compiled of their crimes and how many men who committed those same crimes were in prison. Statistics such as these could help determine if the chivalry theory was being practiced in society.

Nature vs. Nurture

I believe the nature of society is influenced by the nurture aspect of society. With the process of socialization, if the majority of the parents in a society nurture their children in a certain manner, then the nature of a society will be shaped in a certain manner. For example, the book highlighted some cultures who define peer groups by age-grades. In these age-grades, each transition of life is marked by a ceremony. Some argue that these children have a better transition into adulthood, compared to more Westernized civilizations, because they transition slowly. American society often has a sharp and dramatic transition from childhood to becoming a teenager. If American society put more emphasis on growing a older, then perhaps there would be a less climatic transition into becoming an adult.

I also believe nature can be shaped by nurture in terms of gender socialization. Some cultures have more matriarchal norms, where the women in the society have the most power. If a society places emphasis on women having power, mothers will more than likely raise their children to develop an identity that values these characteristics as well. Although it has decreased, there is still a sense in America that women will take care of the home and the men will provide for the family by working in an office. Many children accept these gender roles because it is what society dictates is acceptable and agrees with aspects of how they were raised. When the majority of people raise their children to accept certain values, then the nature of society will be determined.

BBC Skit

Hugh Laurie's song showed his interpretation of American singers. While certain emotions are recognized all around the world, Americans can be seen as a more emotional culture. In America, people, especially singers, tend to be open about how they are feeling. American singers are expected to sing songs with feeling. To the British, these concepts may clash with their social norms, and therefore, seem silly or ridiculous. From the clip, it seems that the British do not like overly dramatic or emotional people. This could be a reason why Laurie was punched at the end of the skit. He may also have been punched for repeating the same two words over and over again. Many American songs have choruses that repeat throughout. I can understand how the British would think American songs only repeat certain words. Some American songs, such as various Jason Derulo songs, only have one or two statements that repeat over and over again. Although the video was poking fun at Americans and portraying Americans in a negative light, I thought Hugh Laurie did a good job of interpreting American norms.

Stanford Prison Experiment

Although the Stanford Prison Experiment has become a controversial study due to the effects of prison life the prisoners tolerated, I believe it was an ethical study. All of the participants volunteered to participate and some were even eliminated due to psychological or medical disabilities. Volunteers were paid to participate and were randomly selected to be either guards or prisoners. All of these aspects are important to gain approval from an Institutional Review Board.

Since no one, prisoner or guard, spoke up to stop the experiment or be removed from the experiment, they just assumed their roles, this experiment has contributed to the understanding of the role of authority in society. The experimenters were able to be objective enough that they recognized the increasing tension and distress from all the participants and ended the study earlier than planned. After the study ended, prisoners were able to talk to guards about how they felt about their treatment in prison. The Stanford Prison Experiment received flack for its quick transformation from experiment to real life, but the procedures the researchers followed categorize it as an ethical experiment.

Week One: Introductions

Hello! My name is Rachel. I am currently a student at the University of Virginia. I am majoring in Psychology and earning my Masters of Teaching in Elementary Education. After I graduate, I hope to teach in a charter school in Massachusetts. In order to complete my Masters and Bachelors on time, I need to take extra courses outside of school and summer classes helps me earn more credits. I took a Sociology of the Family class two years ago and really enjoyed it. I signed up for Sociology 200 because I wanted to learn more about sociological concepts and the field of sociology.

Outside of school, I really enjoy playing sports and reading. Besides taking this class, this summer I am babysitting and visiting friends in various states.

From this class, I hope to gain a greater understanding about society and how it functions.