Sociology Scholars

Summer reading, perhaps?

Fri, 11 May 2012 10:53:42 -0400

About The Reading List Essential links to new and classic social science research, The Reading List is a resource to inform your reading of the news, research in the field, and showing off at fancy cocktail parties (or on Twitter).

///: Why your Bachelor of Arts is worth more than you think

Fri, 27 Apr 2012 20:47:44 -0400

///: Why your Bachelor of Arts is worth more than you think:

rustout:

At 11:00am on April 15, I penned the last words of my final undergraduate paper, bringing a close to the past five years of my life. In prior weeks, I had been anxiously anticipating this moment, but as I ran the final spell check and half assed another edit, I become reluctant to save and send….

UC Berkley: Lower Classes Quicker to Show Compassion in the Face of Suffering

Mon, 09 Apr 2012 15:38:00 -0400

UC Berkley: Lower Classes Quicker to Show Compassion in the Face of Suffering:

thesituationreport:

By Yasmin Anwar, Media Relations |December 19, 2011

BERKELEY —

Emotional differences between the rich and poor, as depicted in such Charles Dickens classics as “A Christmas Carol” and “A Tale of Two Cities,” may have a scientific basis. Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have found that people in the lower socio-economic classes are more physiologically attuned to suffering, and quicker to express compassion than their more affluent counterparts.

By comparison, the UC Berkeley study found that individuals in the upper middle and upper classes were less able to detect and respond to the distress signals of others. Overall, the results indicate that socio-economic status correlates with the level of empathy and compassion that people show in the face of emotionally charged situations.

“It’s not that the upper classes are coldhearted,” said UC Berkeley social psychologist Jennifer Stellar, lead author of the study published online on Dec. 12 in the journal, Emotion. “They may just not be as adept at recognizing the cues and signals of suffering because they haven’t had to deal with as many obstacles in their lives.”

Stellar and her colleagues’ findings challenge previous studies that have characterized lower-class people as being more prone to anxiety and hostility in the face of adversity.

“These latest results indicate that there’s a culture of compassion and cooperation among lower-class individuals that may be born out of threats to their wellbeing,” Stellar said.

It has not escaped the researchers’ attention that the findings come at a time of rising class tension, expressed in the Occupy Wall Street Movement. Rather than widen the class divide, Stellar said she would like to see the findings promote understanding of different class cultures. For example, the findings suggest that people from lower socio-economic backgrounds may thrive better in cooperative settings than their upper-class counterparts.

“Upper-class individuals appear to be more self-focused, they’ve grown up with more freedom and autonomy,” she said. “They may do better in an individualist, competitive environment.”

More than 300 ethnically diverse young adults were recruited for the UC Berkeley study, which was divided into three experiments that used three separate groups of participants. Because all the volunteers were college undergraduates, their class identification – lower class, lower middle class, middle class, upper middle class or upper class – was based on parental income and education.

In the first experiment, 148 young adults were rated on how frequently and intensely they experience such emotions as joy, contentment, pride, love, compassion, amusement and awe. In addition, they reported how much they agreed with such statements as “When I see someone hurt or in need, I feel a powerful urge to take care of them,” and “I often notice people who need help.” Compassion was the only positive emotion reported at greater levels by lower-class participants, the study found.

In the second experiment, a new group of 64 participants viewed two videos: an instructional video on construction and an emotionally charged video about families who are coping with the challenges of having a child with cancer. Participants showed no differences while watching the “neutral” instructional video, and all reported feeling sad in response to the video about families of cancer patients. However, members of the lower class reported higher levels of compassion and empathy as distinct from sorrow.

The researchers also monitored the heart rates of participants as they watched the neutral and emotionally charged videos. Lower-class participants showed greater decreases in heart rate as they watched the cancer family video than upper-class participants.

“One might assume that watching someone suffering would cause stress and raise the heart rate,” Stellar said. “But we have found that, during compassion, the heart rate lowers as if the body is calming itself to take care of another person.”

Finally, a new set of 106 participants was randomly divided into pairs and pitted against one another in mock interviews for a lab manager position. To further raise the stress level in interviews, those who performed best were to win a cash prize. Post-interview reports from the participants showed that the lower-class interviewees perceived their rivals to be feeling greater amounts of stress, anxiety and embarrassment and as a result reported more compassion and sympathy for their competitors. Conversely, upper-class participants were less able to detect emotional distress signals in their rivals.

“Recognizing suffering is the first step to responding compassionately. The results suggest that it’s not that upper classes don’t care, it’s that they just aren’t as good at perceiving stress or anxiety,” Stellar said.

Other coauthors of the study are UC Berkeley psychologist Dacher Keltner; Michael Kraus, a postdoctoral fellow in psychiatry at UCSF; and Vida Manzo, a researcher in social psychology at Northwestern University. The study was funded by grants from UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center and the McNair Scholars Program.

During a lecture called, “How I Taught Family Sociology...

Thu, 29 Mar 2012 13:57:40 -0400

During a lecture called, “How I Taught Family Sociology Using Michael Moore’s Book ‘Here Comes Trouble’,” students in John Girdwood’s sociology class asked Michael Moore questions using Skype.

Photo

Fri, 16 Mar 2012 19:26:56 -0400

Photo

Wed, 14 Mar 2012 23:32:38 -0400

Michigan State online course faces zombie threat

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 11:52:05 -0500

Michigan State online course faces zombie threat:

Michigan State University is taking on the zombie threat.

The School of Social Work is offering an online course called “Surviving the Coming Zombie Apocalypse - Catastrophes and Human Behavior.”

The seven-week course starts May 14. The university says students will learn how human behavior and nature change after catastrophes, both historical and hypothetical.

The course will combine traditional coursework, online forums and a catastrophic event simulation of a zombie pandemic.

“We are using the idea of a zombie apocalypse to attract attention to the important research and science on the topic of ‘Catastrophes and Human Behavior,’” said Glenn Stutzky, social work instructor and creator of the course. “Students will learn about the nature, scope and impact of catastrophic events on individuals, families, societies, civilizations and the Earth itself.”

The university says the two-credit course will include aspects of anthropology, sociology and geology.

Dr. Carl Taylor, Dept of Sociology at MSU, gives some feedback...

Wed, 07 Mar 2012 11:48:55 -0500

Dr. Carl Taylor, Dept of Sociology at MSU, gives some feedback and commentary on youth care and urban communities that have suffered from economic downturn and increased crime. Dr. Taylor has a presence, both in these cities and in any room he’s in. His mission is inspiring and commands attention.

"As people gain the tools to work for social change — and find the courage to go public within and..."

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 10:29:52 -0500

“As people gain the tools to work for social change — and find the courage to go public within and between themselves — two things happen: (1) they spread their message to others who are on the same path without knowing it, growing the community of congruence toward critical mass; (2) they attract critics who help and even compel them to check and correct themselves, purging the movement of distortions and making its message clearer and more compelling. This is one of the points at which democratic and fascist movements diverge. Fascist movements kill off their critics, literally or metaphorically, while democratic movements value, invite and even welcome criticism.”

- Parker J. Palmer (via azspot)

Truth

what is sociological imagination?

Tue, 31 Jan 2012 13:38:08 -0500

Simply put — Sociological imagination can be considered as the capacity to see things socially, how they interact, and influence each other.

Basically.. it’s a sort of vision. The more someone understands a set of relationships, the people interacting, and the outcomes that occur .. these sort of relationships can be seen as they happen.

This can be something as simple as ..

A child sitting at a table unattended. On that table is a large plate of cookies. Depending on the environment.. let’s say it’s their home, or rather.. their grand parent’s home. Based on these relationships.. the norms that are embedded within, one could assert that the child may help themselves, or at least focus a great deal of attention on the cookies.

The sociological imagination is an awareness, this awareness speaks to how much someone perceives, and what they may be able to understand or predict based on that awareness. This can be simple things or it can be things on deeper levels.

It tends to grow.. once it starts. The more you see.. the more you learn.. the more you learn.. the more you see.

The power of Socialization — Sometimes questions...

Thu, 12 Jan 2012 14:38:02 -0500

The power of Socialization — Sometimes questions aren’t asked & sometimes things aren’t as they seem.

Look around.. where have the lines of reality been blurred into realism? What’s the difference between real & realistic?

So often there is talk about whether or not money does really...

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 12:39:44 -0500

So often there is talk about whether or not money does really buy happiness. Finally someone has ventured the time and resources to establish a survey, that with luck & enough data, may finally be able to shed light on this age old question.

It’s easy to think, as someone without a lot of money, that an increase in wealth would surely elevate happiness, but the question of validity still persists.

This image shows that money can buy happiness, but what is bought significantly determines how long that happiness will remain. Buying experiences opposed to material goods seems to prolong the feeling of fulfillment, the feeling of happiness, the feeling that we all long for…day in and day out.

If you’d be interested in contributing to this survey and many others that may help paint a better picture of our own moral fibers, take a stroll over to yourmorals.org. The surveys are free, academically organized, and established to provide a building understanding for our own morals that we can continually cite back to in the future.

Charles Cooley — The Primary Group It’s easy to...

Thu, 01 Dec 2011 13:13:39 -0500

Charles Cooley — The Primary Group

It’s easy to look around and see how urbanization and specialization has changed society, the relationships we have, and the morals for which guide us.

What type of society do you live in? Large city or small town? Can you identify social relationships that lack cohesion? Can you identify relationships that can stand up against the social pressures of the demanding landscapes?

Fruit for thought.

Thought of the Day Perspective — How such a subtle...

Mon, 28 Nov 2011 11:48:54 -0500

Thought of the Day

Perspective — How such a subtle difference can change things so dramatically.

How does your perspective inform your reality & how different could it be with just a few subtle changes of perception?

"I don’t like this expression “First World problems.” It is false and it is condescending. Yes,..."

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 15:44:00 -0500

“I don’t like this expression “First World problems.” It is false and it is condescending. Yes, Nigerians struggle with floods or infant mortality. But these same Nigerians also deal with mundane and seemingly luxurious hassles. Connectivity issues on your BlackBerry, cost of car repair, how to sync your iPad, what brand of noodles to buy: Third World problems. All the silly stuff of life doesn’t disappear just because you’re black and live in a poorer country. People in the richer nations need a more robust sense of the lives being lived in the darker nations. Here’s a First World problem: the inability to see that others are as fully complex and as keen on technology and pleasure as you are.”

- Privilege comes in many forms — Interpretations and self defined means are sewn by a biased thread of perspective.

Awareness + Perspective = Understanding

"Sociology is possible only because human behavior is patterned. Students in a classroom tend to sit..."

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 11:36:00 -0500

“Sociology is possible only because human behavior is patterned. Students in a classroom tend to sit in the same part of the room each day - often in the same seat. Concertgoers tend to applaud simultaneously and at appropriate intervals. Elevator passengers almost invariably face the front. The potential gift of sociology is to uncover the patterns and regularities from among many incidents and observations so that perhaps people may recognize their own isolated experience within the context of the experiences of others. But the path of each individual life is unique and unpredictable.”

- So often the subtle patterns and trends of society go unnoticed by its participants, while the aware and observant sociologists look on, with the desire & passion to understand and make meaning of it all.

Perspective and awareness — Whether Thanksgiving is...

Tue, 22 Nov 2011 14:15:05 -0500

Perspective and awareness — Whether Thanksgiving is considered a tradition or holiday, one must always be cognizant of what it is founded upon.

Lest we never forget.

Live stream of TEDYouth — Enriching and engrossing...

Sat, 19 Nov 2011 15:35:56 -0500

Live stream of TEDYouth — Enriching and engrossing applications of science and teaching, for the growth and betterment of everyone involved.

Live Stream -- Grad School Info Session

Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:34:03 -0500

Live Stream -- Grad School Info Session:

Have you been curious about the application process? How to select a program? What do you need to have in order to give yourself the best chance to get into the graduate school of your choosing?

This is an opportunity for you to ask those questions and figure out if you’re on the right track for graduate school. Stop in, check us out, and hopefully you’ll get what you need to continue your education towards your masters or doctoral degree. We will have Dr. Zachary Neal on hand to answer your questions and share his experience and insights with the graduate application process.

Comparing Quality of Life among Countries

Wed, 16 Nov 2011 13:21:12 -0500

nortonsoc: