Blog Assignment 8

Grant

It's understandable as to why men's voices are so absent when talking about women and their rights in business. In recent studies, it was found that men who did speak up about women and their rights many men and women were shocked and outraged. When a male is given that type of reaction it's understandable as to why their voices aren't heard. Nobody will take their statements or words seriously regarding the matter. (Grant, 2014).

Croft, Schmader, Block, & Baron

"The present research examined how parents' behaviors and implicit associations concerning domestic roles, over and above their explicit beliefs, predict their children's future aspirations (Baron, Block, Croft, & Schmader, 2014)." A study was performed that shows if fathers take on household responsibilities, their daughters will break through the stereotypical gender roles. The study shows girls being more interested in work outside of the home, rather than having the same gender-role beliefs as the mother due to her share in household chores. 


Brown, Nesse, Vinokur, & Smith 

 "Results from logistic regression analyses indicated that mortality was significantly reduced for individuals who reported providing instrumental support to friends, relatives, and neighbors, and individuals who reported providing emotional support to their spouse (Brown, Nesse, Vinokur, & Smith, 2003)." This study shows that supporting someone who is close to you, like a spouse, is proven reduce mortality. Although it showed that giving support to someone, receiving support had no effects. This study was done on older couples.


References 

Grant, A. (2014, April 29). Why So Many Men Don't Stand Up for Their Female Colleagues.  Retrieved April 30,       2015.

Baron, A., Block, K., Croft, A., & Schmader, T. (2014, June 2). The second shift reflected in the second               generation: do parents' gender roles at home predict children's aspirations?
    Retrieved April 30, 2015. 

 Brown, S., Nesse, R., Vinokur, A., & Smith, D. (2003). Providing Social Support May Be More Beneficial Than         Receiving It: Results From A Prospective Study Of Mortality. Psychological Science, 14, 320-327.                       doi:0.1111/1467-9280.14461. Retrieved April 30, 2015. 

Blog Assignment 6

According to the reading by Arlie Hochschild, from her book The Second Shift:

1. What is the “Second Shift?”

According to the reading, the "second shift" is a term used to describe a woman's work load that is waiting for them at home after their normal job. These tasks include "shopping, cooking, paying bills; taking care of the car, garden, and yard" (Hochschild 1989). 

2. Hochschild argues that families create “myths” about their division of household labor. Name and describe the family MYTH created by Nancy and Evan Holt.

According to Hochschild, Evan and Nancy Holt created the type of family myth that divides the household by their chores/interests. Evan would take care of the downstairs part of the house which consisted on the garage, car, and all of his hobbies. Nancy took care of the upstairs which was the dining room, kitchen, bedrooms, and bathrooms. (Hochschild 1989). By looking at this split it it very obvious that it isn't fair, but Nancy and Evan think this type of split is fair. 

3. According to Hochschild, what is the purpose of family myths?

The purpose of family myths is to have a family believe that there is no problems or conflicts in their household. It makes the family believe that they are truly "happy" and all conflicts are resolved.
4. How do you expect to divide household labor and child care when you start a family? Please note whether you intend to work full-time, part-time, or stay at home when married and/or when you have young children.

When I start a family I expect the household labor and childcare to be completely 50/50. If my husband has a job where I am able to stay at home for a few years then I plan on taking advantage of that. If it isn't possible then I do plan on working full time and possibly asking grandparents to watch over my children. I feel that splitting all the household chores is very fair. 

Blog Assignment 5

1) There are many individuals in the world today who are living under the definition of single. Give two of the examples of types of singles and briefly describe them in your own words. Why are more people single today? 

There are two different types of singles in the world today. One type of single is to be completely 'single' no partner and all. The other type of single is to be in a relationship but not married to one another. Most people are single today because they are either busy in the world focusing on starting a career and then trying to get married or they just don't want to get married at all anymore. In today's world marriage isn't the big thing anymore. It's mostly about getting a career that you can support yourself with and marriage is being put off farther and farther. 

2) Go to http://www.census.gov/hhes/fertility/files/cps/Monte_Ellis_PAA_April-11-13-2013.pdf

 (Links to an external site.) and describe three ways that data collection has changed according to this report.

According to this report there are three main changes in the data collection. The first one was an expanded age range that is no 15-50 instead of 15-44. The second change was asking questions about time of first birth instead of the most recent birth. The last change was new questions about women's relationship's during the time of their first birth. 

3) According to your textbook, there are four types of cohabitation. Please list and describe two of these using your own words.

Premarital cohabitation is the period of the relationship where the couple tries living together before getting married. Substitute marriage cohabitation is a long-term commitment between two people who don't plan on getting married. 

4) Would you ever consider cohabitation? Why or why not? If you would consider cohabiting, which of these meanings coincides with how you might view your own cohabiting relationship?

I would consider cohabitation later on in life. I would considered participating in premarital cohabiting. I would rather chose that one because it seems the most reasonable. I do see myself getting married and I have always said that I would want to love with someone before actually getting married so you are better aware of how that specific person is 24/7. Also I feel that that's another way of getting to know the person you intend on marrying. 

5) Do you believe that cohabiting heterosexual couples should have the same rights as married couples? Why or why not? What if the couple are the same-sex and cannot marry in their state, should they receive the same benefits of married people. Why or why not?

Of course! I feel that when two people are living together for a long amount of time they should have the same rights. The only thing that really sets them apart is a little something called a marriage certificate. Living with someone else is a gigantic step and just because two people don't want to be recognized by the state as being married doesn't mean that people should lose rights. This also goes along with same-sex couples. If their home states prohibits them from actually getting married, why take away the closest thing that they have to that? It's not fair to do that to any couple out there.

Blog Assignment 4

1. According to the slides how do we define power, prestige, and privilege and give an example of each.

Power- the ability to force another person to do something that is even against their will.
Prestige- respect and status in society.
Privilege- special advantage or benefit enjoyed by individuals, but not by everyone.

2. Also, what three variables do Sociologists use to define social class.

Income, occupation, education.

3. After reading the textbook and reviewing the lecture slides, how would you define your social class (using terms from the lecture and textbook) and why?

After reading the lecture slide and the textbook I would classify my family to be of a middle class background. My family makes enough money for us to live comfortably without having many economic problems. 

4. Briefly describe what is happening to the upper class (the rich), the middle class, and the working and lower classes according to Chapter 13 in the Benokraitis textbook.

The upper class are becoming even more wealthy.
The middle class are shrinking, even though a little more than half of Americans consider themselves to be middl class.
The lower class are becoming even more poor. They aren't making much and it just keeps declining. 

5. Lastly, your importance in U.S. society is often linked to race/ethnicity, education, age, income, and gender. Think about how your race/ethnicity or gender or age has blocked your from an opportunity or given you an advantage. Please identify your age, education, gender of race/ethnicity and then tell me your story of an opportunity or disadvantage you have experienced in your life.

I am a 19 year old white female. I am also a college freshman. I haven't had an opportunity where my race/ethnicity, gender, age, and education has helped me in anyway. I also haven't had a disadvantage. 

Blog Assingment 3

1) In your blog, please write about your race and or ethnicity briefly. For example, how would you answer question 8 and question 9 on the census short form attached below? Where were you born, where were your parents born and where were your grandparents born, if you know.

For question 8 I would answer that I am not Hispanic, Latina, or of a Spanish origin. For question 9 I would mark off the "white" box. I was born in Livingston, NJ and raised in Scotch Plains, NJ. Both of my parents were born in the United States. My father's mother and father were born in Brasil. His father was also Italian and Syrian. My mother's parents were both born in Portugal. My step-grandmother is Brazilian and was born there. 

2) Is your race/ethnicity important to you or not something you think about and WHY or WHY NOT.

My race isn't important to me because I don't really care about that. I don't judge other people nor do I care what they associate themselves with so why should I care about mine like that? I do enjoy learning about where my family has come from because it's not something that gets talked about everyday and it's always new information to me. 

3) What crossed your mind when you filled out the Census questionnaire? Are you of mixed race?

I was just really confused as to why there were so many race related questions, and why is that aspect of a person's life so important. I am not of a mixed race. 

4) Next, give me your reaction to the video posted below

After watching the video that was posted I felt upset because the little girl didn't feel beautiful because of her skin color. In today's world I would have thought that skin color wouldn't matter in the determination of beauty. 

5) What struck you most about the video?

What struck me most was the fact that all of the little kids picked the white doll to be associated with good and the dolls of color to be associated with bad. 

6) Why - SOCIOLOGICALLY - do you think the children choose the dolls that they do. HINT what larger social factors influence the children's doll choice.

I think the children chose the dolls that they did because in today's society white is associated with good, while black is associated with bad. From a young age virtually everything is geared towards showing that the bad people are black or of color while the "good guys" are white. 

Blog Assignment 2

1. According to the structural functionalism perspective, what was the definition of the "instrumental leader" and what was the definition of an "expressive leader." What family roles were connected to each of these leader definitions?

According to the structural functionalism perspective an "instrumental leader" is the "breadwinner" role in the family. They provided shelter, food, and are tough and hardworking. The "expressive leader" is the supportive and nurturing role of the wife in the family. The mother was the "homemaker," and provided emotional support and nurtured the family unit.

2. What is the main criticism of the functionalist perspective?

The main criticism of this perspective is that it is still seen as conservative. This perspective hasn't kept up with social change, an example would be divorce, they still see divorce as being highly dysfunctional and only see it as a negative rather than a positive.

3. In contrast to functionalist theorists, in your own words, what is the main theme of conflict theory?

The main theme of conflict theory in my perspective is that inevitable change is actually a good thing. Sometimes change needs to occur to make a person's life much better than it previously was.

4. According to conflict theorists, where do family problems come from?

According to conflict theorists, family problems don't come from individual shortcomings but come from societal problems instead. An example would be a shift in the US economy leading to a decline in many well-paying blue-collar jobs.

5. Gender/Feminist theory is based on what main idea? Describe one way that feminist theory has led to more diverse understanding of families.

Gender/Feminist theory is based on the idea that both sexes should have an equal rights such as political, educational, and economical and many others. The feminist theory has led to more of a diverse understanding of families by endorsing a greater equality between husband and wife, unmarried partners, and have pushed for legislation for parental leave rights for both men and women.

6. Social exchange theorists is based on ideas from economics. What is the main argument of social exchange perspective? Give two examples of "resources" people bring to a relationship?

The main argument of a social exchange perspective is the a person might stay in a relationship if there are more benefits than losses or if it's about the same. In a relationship people bring a variety of resources such as, energy, money, material goods, intelligence, and much more.  

Blog Assignment 1

1) Please tell us about yourself. What makes you interesting or unique or tell us a funny story about you.

There really isn't anything unique about myself. I am a very quite person until I get to know someone, and then I become very outgoing and talkative. 

2) Please tell us are you an FCST major or not. If so why did you choose this major? If you are not an FCST major, tell us about your own major and why you chose it.

I am currently in the process of becoming an FCST major. I switched over from Biology. I went with Biology originally because I enjoy the subject and I wanted to become a 7th grade biology teacher.

3) What are your current career plans or plans for graduate school? Or tell us if you plan to marry rich or travel the world!

Right now my plans are to graduate college and hopefully teach for a year or two. After that time I would like to return to school to receive my masters and be finished with school. I would also like to travel around the world before settling down and starting a family. 

4) Next tell us about your family - for example - are your parents married or not, do you live with them, do you have siblings, pets etc? Or maybe you grew up in foster care, or you are cohabiting or married and live with your spouse and/or children.

My parents are married and I do live with them. I have a younger brother who is a freshman in high school and I have two kittens.

5) Please describe an activity you like to share with your family? etc.

As a family we enjoy taking day trips to different parts of New Jersey as well as surrounding states to go and eat lunch or dinner. It gives us time to bond together and experience a new place at the same time and I love it.

6) Next choose 2 topics on the syllabus that interest you and tell us a few sentences WHY they interest you.

Two topics that interest me would have to be Gender & Families and Family life & Social class. I like those two topics because I enjoy learning about families in general and talking about gender could be really interesting in that aspect. I also like to learn about social class and how to it relates to family life. 

7) Review quiz of syllabus:

A) What day and time does class meet?

Tuesdays 1-2:15pm in Dickson 286. 

B) How many blogs must you complete for full credit?

6 out of the 7 must be completed for full credit.

C) When are blogs assignments due?

The following Monday at 10 am.

D) What should you do before EVERY face-to-face class?

Check MSU email, canvas, and make sure all the readings are read before the class.

E) What is a topic of a class during week 3?

Methods of research on families(in class) & theoretical perspectives on families(on line)

F) Which week do we focus on Marriage?

Week 6 part 3.