Two sociological theories and two psychological theories

Two sociological theories and two psychological theories The Johnson family Scenario In this assignment I will explore two sociological theories and two psychological theories impacting on the Johnson family. I shall begin by exploring sociological theories analysing and defining them and in the second half of this assignment will then explore psychological theories. I will also look at the professional interventions available in social work. I shall endeavour to indicate their strength and weaknesses incorporating their relationships to issues of class, race, culture gender and sexuality. I will then reflect on the influence of these theories on my own development to achieve social work professional status. Max Weber defined consensus as existing when expectations about the behaviour of others are realistic because the others will usually accept these expectations as valid for themselves, even without an explicit agreement. For Marxists, consensus is a highly ideological concept used to perpetuate class rule by attempting to disguise the extent of conflict within society. (Answers.com) Durkheim is known to have drawn an analogue of the functionalist perspective view in which he said that society is a system of interrelated parts each of which relies upon the other parts for efficient functioning.'(Cunningham, J Cunningham,S).These institutions are essential for maintaining that society works harmoniously and orderly. The view of the functionalist is that the use of power is acceptable and generally beneficial to society. They share norms and values which help them to determine the right from the wrong. There is an acceptance from the functionalists positions that conflicts will occur but will only be temporary and can quickly be resolved. Society should be adequately prepared to deal with instances of anti social behaviour so that society as a whole benefits. In the functionalist perspective schools first role is to emphasise proper behaviour and knowledge that is necessary to maintain a civilised society. According to the functionalist, the children in the Johnsons should therefore be sent to school to be equipped with this weapon and the fact that they are truanting could easily be viewed as anti social behaviour. Karl Marx did not at all agree with capitalisms theories of consensus and in his writing highlighted the conflict theory, although acknowledging structural integration of societys institutions such as political, legal or religious which he described as the superstructure. His view was that workers in the class system like Desmond a car mechanic and Mary a cook at a primary school were being exploited and that there should be equality on control, power, wealth and the best education. Marxists felt that it was those with the means of production that had the power and therefore significantly influenced the rest of the society. This causes a difference of interest among social groups which in turn causes conflict. As both Desmond and Mary are working this creates pressure on parenting skills and has probably forced Desmond to decide sending Eustace to a residential home. Marxists perceive functionalists as deceiving as they say the norms and values which they claim are the backbone of society are infect their norms and values that only help to strengthen their positions perpetuating the unequal social system. Marxists argued that the workers were being replaced by machines in their roles of employment and this resulted in them loosing their skills, assuming monotonous jobs, separated from each other by the noise and would return home dehumanised and physically exhausted. Marx believed the proletariat would realise the exploitation, join together and revolt overthrowing the system and establishing true systems . The Marxists view of social work is that it is an agent of the state and as such reinforces the interest of the ruling class. Their view is that the state in capitalists societies saves the interests of the ruling classes and do not treat their citizens equally even in cases of welfare services. They further state that the image of caring that they create is only a myth which serves to enhance the profits of the capitalists that the social workers serve through the state. The Marxists do not see the necessity of the social control role of social work but an agent of state bent on socially controlling those that are already marginalised and excluded. In this view social workers tend to be ignorant of the poverty they are meant to be addressing from the society by empowering service users to take action and bring about change. The Johnson family appears overcrowded in their residence and this is associated with poverty. Social workers have found themselves working with tied hands as th e system is tightly regulated and procedural thereby restricting social workers from exercising their knowledge. Functionalists viewed the institution of family to be the best organisational basis for society. Talcott Parsons (1955) insists that the family retains two basic and irreducible functions. These are the primary socialisation of children and the stabilisation of adult personalities. So this view will explain that for the family to maintain stability, it needs support to ensure normality. This perspective then explains that if there are signs of antisocial behaviour such as truanting then the family unit needs to be supported. According to Murdock (1949) family performs four important functions i.e. providing new members of the society by reproduction, providing stability for adults through sexual gratification, providing for the economic well being and educating the young to socialise into societys norms and values. Eustaces wondering and confusion could be viewed as hindering by the functionalists because it is affecting Mary who they expect to be participating in the society both as a mother and a worker as it is the institute that will influence good behaviour of children. Functionalists believed that the family is a positive institution, a view that meets well with the needs of an advanced industrial society. The functionalists would view Eustaces confusion as costing the society in terms of health care for Mary and himself. Eustaces problems must be rectified in order to get Mary functioning well again and become productive in the society. Functionalists highlight the ideal family type in a modern society, as the nuclear family. The view of the nuclear family comprises of a breadwinner husband ( in the scenario this would be Desmond) and dependant wife and children. Mary cannot be classified as dependant as she is also working and earning. The functionalist view of the family as ideological is criticised as a conservative stance. Some feminists criticise this view as being unrealistic as it does not recognise the oppression of women in families. However, they defend the claim that the functionalist view of family life is shared by many people, if not only as an aspiration. The nuclear family is seen as traditional and positive. Marxism states that the family is a product of capitalism and is therefore an exploitative institution. They argue that families are not built upon love but are founded from necessity. Women therefore become the property of men and all roles within families exist in order to maintain a capitalist state. There are two classes in the society according to Marxism. One is the ruling class and the other is the subject class. The Johnson family would be classified as a subject class and their employers like the garage owners where Desmond works would be the ruling class. This is opposed by functionalist who claims that there are many classes in society and points to a division of labour. Eustaces situation is also causing friction between Desmond (a father and mechanic) and Mary thereby threatening the institution of family. However a Marxist would hold a different view putting the blame on Mary being over worked and thereby causing her to be depressed. They highlight the lack of care from the employers who do not pay well enough keeping most of the profits to themselves prompting Mary to work long hours. Desmond is said to be impatient with Eustace who he sees as stressing his wife at home while trying to do her job. This appears a functionalist view where Desmond is concerned about Mary being disrupted in doing her job hence not able to contribute to the income. Mary and Desmond might have moved to the UK in response to the big drive for workforce after the world war. They were promised better lives with luxurious facilities only to realise when they arrived in the UK that it was not the case and they had to work extremely hard to earn a living. Desmonds role would be to provide and Mary also performing this role as she also works. Caring for Eustace could be seen by Desmond as preventing Mary from performing the task expected within her role, a view that the feminists would regard as oppressive. Whilst various sociological school of thought tries to explain family circumstances and possible interventions that may assist families it is not adequate in itself. In this context I will now turn to psychological perspectives. The essay will examine psychological theories of behavioural approach, which developed through the works of Thorndike (trial and error learning), Pavlov (classical conditioning) and Skinner (operant conditioning) who all believed that the environment controlled behaviour. Behavioural theory is based on a scientific method (Banks, 2001. p. 73) and on what can be observed, studied, measured and reliably changed (Feltham, 1995; cited in Adams R, Dominelli L Payne M, 2002. p.144). It argues that internal states such as thoughts, intentions and feeling are not observable and replicable, hence are not open to scientific analysis, it aims to eradicate or reduce behaviours that are deemed problematic while positive behaviours are encouraged, an agreement between the service user and the practitioner through the process of positively reinforcing and rewarding consequences that a service user consider valuable. Payne (1997) in his token economies (Payne, 1997. p.133) argues that this helps reinforce and strengthen the desirable behaviour. This theory sees the behaviourist assuming that most behaviour is learned as a result of our interactions with our environment, including emotional development, perceptions of the external world, social behaviour and personality. Milner and OByrne (1998 p112) describes Classical conditioning occurring when there is an association of conditioned and unconditioned stimulus such that the former stir up a response previously evoked only by the later. This was similar to Pavlovs (1911) conclusion in his famous Dog-Salivation-Experiment. If applied in this case study it would first try to identify the original stimulus, in this case, the loss of a loved one Susan, the response, Eustaces confusion and Marys anxiety and depression. Those associated with unpleasant or stressful feelings may become conditioned stimuli for feelings of anger and anxiety later on. (Birch A, 1997, p139). Another theory of behaviour Operant conditioning claims that learning occurs when voluntary behaviour arises from an individual and becomes more or less likely to be repeated depending on its results as demonstrated by Skinner (1953) in his Skinner-Box-Experiments with a cat and a pigeon. In the Johnson family scenario, Mary is a service user with depression and anxiety which Milner and OByrne argues ABC Approach (Milner and O Byrne, 1998. p.114) is necessary in identifying and analysing the behaviour that needs modification in agreement with the service user. Mary has gone to see the doctor on her own accord and therefore there is an agreement. This would involve establishing the Antecedent (caring for her father and the family), and the consequences (depression and anxiety). The consequences will either strengthen or weaken behaviour by reinforcement or punishment (Payne, 1997. p. 114). In Marys case it is the depression and anxiety that is undesirable. The distinctive characterist ic of operant conditioning relative to previous forms of behaviorism is that the organism ( Mary) can emit responses instead of only eliciting response due to an external stimulus (the practitioner). It is likely that Mary would respond positively if the right responses have been reinforced. Behaviourism models are advantageous due to their easy adaptability and practicability by inexperienced practitioners without extensive training than would be expected of a psychodynamic approach (Adams, R, Dominelli, L and Payne, M, 2002. p. 144) in facilitating an effective outcome. Payne (1997) also argues that the prescribed explicit, structured guidanceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦and assessment instruments employed (Payne, 1997. p. 134) gives unskilled practitioners the confidence to apply behavioural theory and procedures in interventions. My perception is that as behavioural intervention focuses on negative behaviour that needs modification, it is empowering the service user to choose and self determine the behaviours that need modification in partnership and therefore the practitioner is recognising and respecting individuality. The role of the practitioner is to facilitate and support the service user. Thus, labelling and making judgement on the service user is avoided and is then direct ed to the behaviour. Behavioural approaches have been criticised by some practitioners as being excessively mechanistic (Banks, 2001. p.73) and non-human (Payne, 1997. p.122) in some of its methods, conducts and terms used, as they do not take into account service user individuality and will to choose. It is true that Mary would be different from other service users who would have used the same theory. The behavioural approach overall intervention emphasis is on the need to change or modify the client behaviour rather than those around the client who may be the problem. In the case scenario it is probably Desmond who we need to convince that Mary and Eustace need his understanding and cooperation as well as dealing with the fact that the family were not offered support to grieve and move on with life after the death of a loved one. Milner and OByrne (1998) point out that social workers tend to do as they find easier to change an individual than challenge the status quo (Milner and OByrne, 1998. Attachment has been defined as an affectionate bond between two individuals that endures through space and time and serves to join them emotionally Kennell 1976. John Bowlby described attachment as a lasting psychological connectedness between human beings (Bowlby, 1969, p. 194). Bowlby believed that the earliest bonds formed by children with their caregivers had an impact lasting throughout their lives. Adult attachment theory helps Social Workers understand how people feel and act within close relationships, particularly in stressful situations.  Attachment is not different in adulthood and in childhood as they all will give and receive support. Attachment relationships can be secure or insecure.  Attachment is clearly influential in both professional and personal settings.   As a Social Worker knowing about the attachment theory can help to make the right steps in order to protect the child and the family. Mary Ainsworth expanded greatly on Bowlbys original work with behaviour experiment which she named Strange Situation. In the study children between 12 months and 18 months were left alone with a stranger with the mother returning a moment later. The study revealed three major styles of attachment: secure attachment, ambivalent-insecure attachment and avoidant insecure attachment. A fourth one was later added on by researchers Main and Solomon called disorganised insecure-attachment. It is clear that Mary has a bond with her father and hence his condition is affecting her psychologically. The fact that Mary and Desmonds relationship seemed to be strained by having Eustace living with them shows that they are experiencing lack of intimacy support for one another. The scenario mentions the death of Susan in the family and appears that Eustace, Mary and the Kids have been affected. Loss through death is a normal part of life experienced by everyone. The grief process varies in length and this also depends on the strength of the attachment. This period is usually very painful as the affected seek to adjust or cope without their loved one. Collin, Murray-parkes (1972) describes bereavement as an illness, thus in turn prompted Mary to see her doctor for help. The Johnson family appears not to have gone through the grieving process. Eustace is showing a lack of interest in normal life by wondering and could be his way of searching for his wife. The grieving process involves psychological suffering ( Birch, A ,1997 p251) Grief is defined as the process of psychological, social and somatic reactions to the perceptions of loss (Rando, 1984). This explains that the individual is affected mentally, physically as well as socially. Bereavement is defined as the state of having suffered a loss (Rando, 1984). According to Balwby excessive separation anxiety is usually the result of adverse family experiences, such as repeated threats of abandonment or rejections by parents, or to parents or siblings illnesses or death for which the child feels responsible. The truanting of the children could be a result of the feeling that they felt abandoned after the death of Susan who at one stage raised them for three years when their parents moved to the UK and could have bonded with the children. They have been living in the same house and this could have kept them close. A key principle of an attachment based practice is the acknowledgment that young children develop a range of adaptive strategies that are designed to help them cope with, survive and function in whatever situations they happen to find themselves, The children could be truanting as way of coping with the loss. As Eustace is wondering and possibly searching for his wife, it could be that he is thinking of joining her wife where ever she is. This brings Erikssons stages of development Integrity v Despair. Integrity is contentment with what you have achieved and Despair is the feeling that you have achieved nothing. As Eustace could be nearing the end of his life he will probably look back with integrity. He had his child who also got married and had her own family. He has lived for more than sixty years and although it does not look like he lived a porch life he was not homeless and up to this day still has a loving daughter taking care of him. Eustace will probably be looking forward to dying with contentment. Applying sociological and psychological theories as well as social work values has been a challenge for me considering my ethnic background of African origin as much as the Johnson family who travelled to settle in the UK, a country with different norms, cultures and values. I feel I empathise more with the Johnson family, in relation to the impact of new norms, culture and a new way of living. Studying social work has challenged some of my beliefs and prejudices and hence the toleration of others, provide recognition and ability to challenge discrimination. Adherence of work values have provided me with further understanding of being respectful of other peoples, views, religion, culture and preferences which is of paramount significance to become a social work practitioner. (GSCC 2002).  

Pressures of Frito Lay

essuresWhat are the sources of pressure on firms such as FL to reduce their environmental footprint? Many industries in the UK and abroad have similar pressures from groups and environmentalists which cause severe problems to the company’s credibility and causes issues to customers knowing the fact that the company is facing problems. In the United Kingdom itself there are groups that pressure companies with environmental factors they are: For Environment: Campaign for Better Transport Campaign to Protect Rural England Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales Climate Camp GreenpeaceFriends of the Earth (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) Friends of the Earth Scotland Forum for the Future Surfers against Sewage Rowers against Thames Sewage (RATS) Waste Watch Rights Of Way Alliance Neath (Rowan) Women's Environmental Network For Food: Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) aFood Commission Sustain the alliance for better food and farming. The pressures are due to the customers also. Some of them insist that the bags for chips should be eco-friendly while other applauds Frito-Lay for its green efforts. Because of this, Frito-Lays sales have dipped as they introduced the eco-friendlyFrito-Lay was threatened to be sued by a news service company and The Centre for Science in the public interest (CSPI) after Frito-Lay switched the name on its olestra-laden snack line. This came into picture when FDA withdrew a requirement that companies warn customers of Olestra possible side effects. Centre for Science in the Public interest speculated that Frito Lay was trying to set apart its low-fat chips from the previous olestra warnings. After the warnings Frito-Lay made a settlement with CSPI in which Frito-Lay agreed to post Olestra Logo more transparent and also by adding the phrase â€Å"Made with Olestra† more flagrantly.Executive director of CSPI, Michael F. Jacobson said in a press statement about the settlement that Frito lay agreed to these modest changes, whi ch are sufficient to avoid a lawsuit and will help consumers who know to avoid Olestra to do so. But this was not without a flipside, even with the Olestra logo the complete fault is not stated in the bag. The possibility of side effect with use of olestra will not be mentioned in the packaging instead it will acknowledge Olean as a low-fat property on the chip line. An Environmental Footprint is an extent to the amount of bio productive land and sea required to sustain a person’s lifestyle.It includes the land required to cultivate their food, dispose of their waste and absorb their carbon emission. Another pressure came from four associations which include Green Peace, Organic Consumers Association, friends of the earth and other associations claim that 15 American largest food corporations are using GE based ingredients in their products and was asked to ban this ingredient from their products. After this acquisition Frito-Lay announced that 95% of their corns for corn pro ducts are GE free. http://www. organicconsumers. org/ge/gepotatoban. cfm

Engineering Essay Samples Ideas

Engineering Essay Samples Ideas If you don't know Calculus then there is absolutely no hope for you in the subject of Engineering. So deciding to go for a career in civil engineering isn't depending on the money. In the discipline of civil engineering computer program application is getting more important, famous and productive. Combine selected major with vital difficulties and solutions in the industry of engineering. Calculus is a rather important part of Engineering in general. Introduction Civil Engineering is most likely the earliest engineering discipline. Science is, in addition, the 2nd big half in becoming an engineer. New Ideas Into Engineering Essay Samples Never Before Revealed For that reason, it's important to consider the structural and financial efficiency of a specific bridge. A bridge has to be designed to meet up with the set specifications for the security of its users. As an outcome, the number of changes might fall or increase over a concise period of time. Make certain you include enough detail so the reader can reproduce the experiments in their very own lab. Composite also decrease the quantity of fasteners used. When it has to do with providing energy for the full planet, engineers are using nature to fulfill the requirements of today and tomorrow. A computer-based design is a simpler method of solving very complicated technological issues. The Argument About Engineering Essay Samples Alumina is the principal constituent of clay. Currently a days engineer prefers composite material rather than steel because composite materials are usually stronger, lighter and a whole lot more resistant to extreme temperature. The Battle Over Engineering Essay Samples and How to Win It You should have attention to detail whilst simultaneously understanding the larger picture. This part will make it possible for you to provide brief background information to create your readers fully comprehend the objectives of your work. The reader might not be acquainted with the manner in which you have presented your information, so ensure you include detai led captions. Your readers have to be informed with how you have shown your details, so informative captions are required. The New Angle On Engineering Essay Samples Just Released At a business level, it is simpler to assign a share of the profit to a salesman because he's contributed to a particular amount of turnover. 1 reason why I decided to turn into a mechanical engineer is to be my own boss later on. You do not understand that those jobs are for the select few folks who possess the smarts or are born into a certain kind of family to attain that sort of job. Despite how the work of the engineer has become more and more difficult, the image and recognition of the engineer for the remaining portion of the society has declined over recent years. When you build a productive advertising slogan it offers an accurate picture of what your company is about and the slogan becomes a valuable part of your brand. Becoming an engineer is quite challenging, considering all the various stages one must go through. Advertising and Marketing has an important function in creating a brand. What's more, there are stringent measures to guarantee plagiarism isn't tolerated and all essays meet the compulsory minimum. There are a few useful strategies for writing an essay. Composing the abstract region of the paper is quite important to comprehend how to compose a civil engineering essaythat mandates an accurate overview of your writing. Knowing the subsequent cv samples. The degree takes four decades of full-time study to realize. The Cornell personal rating accounts for achievements in the selection of fields. The fulfillment differs. Even in the event you don't have experience with engineering, you can secure an expert aid in making your essay.

The Evolution Of Music And Its Ability - 1319 Words

The evolution of music and its ability to have multitudinous uses is what makes the notion of music unique when compared to anything else. Communication was one of the first uses of music. Utilizing music as a style of communication required the creation of complex and subtle acoustic techniques, each with the purpose of articulating a specific idea. These musical gestures developed from manipulations of the various parameters of music. When Guido D Arezzo first improved and reworked standard notation by adding time signatures and inventing solfege in 1000 CE, this was the beginning of music taking on the form of art. As musical advances continued many elite composers began to arise. Music was then employed as a form of expression, representing joy, sorrow, and pain. Music can also paint scenes and take the listener to distant places; however, this requires an experienced composer, who can manipulate pitch, tempo, dynamics, instrumentation, texture, and form. If the composer can exp loit these properties of sound and music to paint a vivid world of emotions, he can paint a musical masterpiece. This use of musical gestures is prevalent throughout Western composition, particularly in the form of program music, â€Å"which is a piece of instrumental music, usually for symphony orchestra, that seeks to re-create in sound the events and emotions portrayed in some extra musical source: a story, a play, a historical event, an encounter with nature, or even a painting† (Wright). WhenShow MoreRelatedFrom Vinyl to Digital: The Changing Nature of Music1659 Words   |  7 PagesThe new era of how music is heard 1. The evolution of listening to music The modern day society is highly developed and the sector setting the trend for this development is represented by the technologic industry. Throughout the past recent decades, technology has evolved from an inaccessible dimension into one which impacts all aspects of the modern day life, from the making of breakfast to the means in which the people complete their professional tasks. The evolution of technology is asRead MoreIs Art Important For Human Evolution?901 Words   |  4 PagesArt is crucial to human evolution because it is both a medium of expression that allows humans to evolve and is also key evidence of human evolution. The development and evolution of the human conscious has a direct correlation to the art created from each time period and has allowed researchers to interpret it, using it as a gateway into early human life. Art acts as a window into the minds and lifestyles of our ancestors. It has influenced the development, evolution, and the process of naturalRead MoreMusic Is The Product Of Our Evolution1331 Words   |  6 PagesI studied the hypothesis that music is the product of our evolution and that most mammals and cultures have used music to continue to evolve and reform. Most scientific articles agree that music has evolved throughout thousands of years. Even the first Homo sapiens used music as a mode of communication. But in a bi ological standpoint, music can be used as a way to express mate selection, as a way of motivation and pleasure, development and learning, and social communication. The big questionRead MoreEffects of Mass Media633 Words   |  3 Pages | |What were the major developments in the |The major developments in the evolution of mass media during the 20th century were radio, | |evolution of mass media during the 20th |television, Internet, social media, newspaper, and cell phones. Radios were less expensive| |century? |than telephones and had the ability of allowing huge numbers of people to listen to the | | |same event atRead MoreModern vs. Classical Music955 Words   |  4 Pagesas it would have felt for people listening to a live symphony during the Classical era, the ability the artists, and those involved with them, have with the increase of new technology and business schemes has allowed their base of listeners to be on a global scale for millions, if not yet billions. During the late 17th century to early 19th century, the phenomenon that is the evolution of Liturgical Music had hit the Classical era; extremely skilled artists such as Mozart, Beethoven, Haydn and SchubertRead MoreEvolution Of The Internet And Its Effect On The Music Industry1628 Words   |  7 PagesAmber Dawkins - Music Business Skills The Evolution Of The Internet And Its Effect On The Music Industry The evolution of digital music has created an obvious and drastic shift in the way consumers and producers view and use the music industry. The introduction of digitally compressed music files has made music so easily attainable to all for a small fee or to download illegally for free. This has made the music industry reevaluate how they are to make a profit off their art form. Social mediaRead MoreBlog Essay1124 Words   |  5 PagesThe evolution of streaming music platforms has been a curiosity of mine for the past several months. As a user of both Spotify and Soundcloud, I find myself not only attracted to their service, streaming audio content, but also the dynamic communities formed by their active users. The prevalence of the social web, combined with the music’s unique ability to bring people together, creates a compelling niche—one where like minded individuals can share, relate and discuss the content consumed. In thisRead MoreFine Studio Arts and Music Essay1 286 Words   |  6 PagesFine Studio Arts and Music Fine studio Arts is a discipline which incorporates the creativity of an individual or artist into both plastic and visual media. This field makes use of the traditional fine arts media such as sculpture, painting and drawing and it also utilizes upcoming modern media such as digital images, ceramics and textile. Other in the context of modern media is the maintenance and management of studios, perspective and composition and the theory of art and color (Colwell 56). SinceRead MoreWhat Is A Musician?1469 Words   |  6 Pagesgrowth of technology in music, those who don’t play an instrument such as DJs or rappers. The dictionary definition is â€Å"a person who plays or composes music, esp as a profession,† but I would now say that anyone who can be said to be musically talented, or contributes to music in any way, falls under the title, musician. The lecturer also made the point that pop music can be more easily defined in terms of what it is not, with the particular examples of serious or classical music. I would argue, howeverRead MoreDrumming Traditions Of Ghan Traditional Music1162 Words   |  5 PagesNM2610 Research Essay Drumming Traditions of Ghana The Traditional music of Africa presents itself as an oral practice of instrumental skill passed down from ancient ancestors. This idea has influenced the sound produced through instrumentation thus allowing the replication of spoken language. Within Ghanaian tradition, the practice of dance drumming is a part of everyday culture and can be linked to religion, politics, life events and entertainment (Green 2012 p. 235-238). The practice of drumming