Organization of relationships Essay Example for Free

Organization of relationships Essay Functionalism Functionalism is perhaps the oldest, and still dominant theoretical perspective in sociology. This paradigm is based upon two related emphases: application of the scientific method to the objective social world, and use of analogy between the individual organism and society. The perspective was developed by Emile Durkheim, and expanded by Talcott Parsons in the 1950s. The perspective assumes: 1) that the application of the scientific method extends to the social world, 2) values provide general guidelines for behavior in terms of roles and norms, 3) institutions are generally composed of interrelated roles and norms, and 4) the society is a functioning organism composed of functioning institutions. Functionalists perceive the social world as objectively real – observable with methods such as surveys and interviews. Rules and regulations assist in the organization of relationships between members of the social body. These institutions of society such as the family, religion, the political system, even the economy are interwoven. They function congruent to social needs and aspirations. They are directed to the attainment of social objectives. Functionalism has the following assumptions: 1) the interrelatedness of institutions, roles, and norms is congruent with social needs; 2) social need is not necessarily physiological in orientation (it can be in the form of status acquisition); 3) gradual change is the main motor of social change (abrupt change is seen as something unnecessary and leading to social dislocation of actors); 4) objectivity is the primary qualification of social research (functionalism, later structural functionalism is highly correlated with the empiricist approach to social research); 5) the social world is generally governed by social actors. Functionalism addresses the following issues: 1) the evolution of roles and norms in a particular social setting, 2) the development of interrelated institutions, 3) the efficacy of long-term change, 4) the cohesive functioning entity, and 5) the importance of role-making and empiricist research. From the five sociological paradigms discussed, conflict theory seemed to be the least useful because: 1) It fails to answer the evolution of roles and norms in the society (it views morality as something created by power politics); 2) While it explains the efficacy of short term (abrupt) change, it fails to fully substantiate the saliency of long-term (gradual) social change; 3) It saw conflict as the only effective means of altering social arrangements, roles, and norms of the society here, conflict is seen as a positive force of social change (the word ‘positive’ here is morally neutral).

The Loss of a Life Partner Essay -- Relationships Grief Death Love Ess

The Loss of a Life Partner Introduction Feelings of loss are very personal because only the person involved in the loss knows what is significant to them. People commonly associate certain losses with strong feelings of grief. The solitude is always agonizing, especially for someone who has never lived alone. Many people lose their spouses each year. Because the modern society has few mourning rituals other than the memorial service, they may find themselves alone and disconsolate just when they are most in need of comfort. Different Kinds of Loss Loss of one’s partner can be due to various reasons including:  · Death of a partner/Bereavement  · Serious or dilapidating illness of a loved one If you—or your loved one—has become sick or injured, expect a number of physical, emotional and financial changes in your life. Coping with these changes can be very difficbrt, even overwhelming at times, but the following strategies may help:  · Relationship breakup/Separation Relationship breakup. This involves losing a partner from a problematic relationship. Although it might seem easier to lose a partner when the relationship has been difficult or unsatisfying, the feelings of dissatisfaction can make the survivor vulnerable to guilt and second thoughts. When he/she remembers the best times of the relationship, self-blame can convince the individual that if he/she had done things differently, they could have had good times. The grief then can be colored easily by regret and guilt. If the survivor's friends and family are aware of the difficulties in the relationship, they may expect the person to quickly move on and they may not support her process of grieving. We have a cultural prohibition about speaking ill of the dead. Because of this prohibition, the survivor may find no opportunity to talk about the different aspects of her experience because only the positive aspects are acceptable. Also, if she wants to begin a new relationship, she may have difficulty cultivating a positive identity as a partner because of the negative experiences with her lost partner. Bereavement Bereavement triggers a normal, natural, healthy process that often leaves the victim/bereaved partner feeling far from normal, natural and healthy. Indeed it can leave you feeling quite mad, suicidal, or even like harming others. Feeling like it for a period of time is one... ...u can. Something as simple as a home-cooked casserole or cookies is not only helpful, but it also lets people know that you care about them.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Help a bereaved person to make plans for getting through special occasions such as the first Christmas without his or her spouse. The anniversary of a loss, either a death or divorce, is an especially sad time.  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Do not try to minimize grief  ·Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Talk about your own losses There's no question about it that loss is a necessary and painful part of life. But perhaps what matters most is that there are ways in which those who love you can help you say good-bye, and deal with loss. It is very difficult to think about what do when you are experiencing a loss, or want to help someone else who is. Often, even trying to make sense of loss is a daunting task for a person to do alone. BIBLIOGRAPHY Fisher, Bruce. Rebuilding: When Your Relationship Ends. Impact Publishers, 1990. Kilne, S. Nathan, MD. From Sad to Glad. G. P Putnam’s Sons. Toronto. 1994 Shaw, Eva. What to do when a Love One Dies: A Practical and Compassionate Guide to Dealing with Death on Life’s Terms. Dickens Press, California. 1994

The American Sign Language

The American Sign Language or ASL is a formal and structured means by which people are able to communicate. Like all other languages, the ASL also follows specific structures or guidelines that set how this particular system is used to communicate. Over the years, there had been various definitions presented framing what the ASL is all about, as mentioned by Harry Markowicz in his transcript. However, Markowicz strongly discloses how established and generalized definitions of the ASL are, in actuality, myths that should be debunked in order to give way to the formation of a clear and factual connotation of the ASL.In Markowicz’ transcript, he revealed six myths about the ASL, thoroughly discussing justifications as to why widely held beliefs and ideas about ASL or simply sign language are, most of the time, inaccurate and false. According to Markowicz, sign language is not a universal language which is utilized and understood by the deaf populations all over the world. Like al l other languages, ASL differs from other systems of sign languages in other countries, just as the English language differs from the German, French, Spanish, etc. languages in form and in structure.Another myth is the widely held belief that since language is based on the meaning of words or sentences expressed, the sign language is also based on the conveyance of words or sentences through gestures. Some other beliefs relate to the idea that the ASL is a translation or a transposition of the English language. However, the sign language does not work that way. Communication through sign language, or the ASL for that matter, is based on concepts or impressions that may be expressed singularly through gestures. (Markowicz, 1980)The third myth has something do with how people often undervalue the sign language as merely a system of language through arbitrary gestures diminishing its formal and systematic structure. Markowicz revealed how the sign language follows various rules that co nstitute a succession of concurrent body movements, facial expressions, gestures, etc. Another myth is how the sign language is regarded as simply iconic or graphic. However, Markowicz argued how considering the sign language as simply a visual means of communication does not justify the system’s purpose of facilitating communication for the deaf.He rationalized that if the sign language is truly and simply iconic or visual, then people without hearing problems would be able to understand the language. This means that the sign language is not merely a visual stimulus, but a succession of meaningful concepts that are conveyed through the process of communication. (Markowicz, 1980) The fifth myth limits the communicative process facilitated by the sign language. Many people believe that the sign language is only capably of transmitting concrete and discrete ideas, leaving out the abstract and conceptual ideas that are easily expressed through words.Markowicz discounts this view by proving how the ASL has formal signs or gestures for abstract ideas such as love, faith, and such. The last myth discussed by Markowicz again touches on the issue of the form and structure of the sign language. People overlook the structural aspect of the sign language by disregarding how it is formed under grammatical rules and expressions. Markowicz justified his position by stating examples on how a particular thought differentiated by various patterns of inflections may be expressed through sign language according to their correct word arrangements. (Markowicz, 1980)The aforementioned arguments and justifications of Markowicz may be further proven by looking into other research studies, discussions, or transcripts concerning the sign language. For instance, the research study conducted by Padden and Ramsey (2000) regarding the ability of deaf children to read textual data as it is related to methods and strategies of instruction, has revealed how the sign language is not uni versal and word-based. The results and conclusions obtained from the research study have revealed how the competencies of deaf students differ according to their culture, family, and school environment.This means that based on discrepancies or gaps concerning sign language competencies among deaf students, they may not be able to communicate effectively even through shared sign language. Moreover, this particular research study proves that the sign language is not word-based since deaf students who read texts do not express the ideas from the book through the exact words or sentences in the text, but through various concepts or whole ideas gained from reading them.(Padden & Ramsey, 2000) Moreover, this also means that if deaf children are able to translate written texts to concepts in sign languages, this means that sign language is not simply a representation of concrete ideas, but also complex abstract thoughts and ideas that originated from the thinking process involved in unders tanding, analyzing, and judging written texts. The discussion relayed by Bellugi and Klima (1975) also supports Markowicz’ arguments by revealing how the sign language is formed or structured, debunking myths of it being merely glorified gestures and ungrammatical.According to Bellugi and Klima, the signs or gestures are translated into notational representations that form a complete thought or idea which is distinguishable in the English language. In addition, for each word or though represented through signs or gestures, there are proper and exact portrayal of simultaneous movements as observed in the figures included in Beluggi and Klima’s discussions. (Bellugi & Klima, 1975) Liddell (1980) explored the grammatical structure of the sign language comprehensively by analyzing the syntactic components of the ASL alongside the English language.On the other hand, the research study of Pettito (2000) discredits the myth about the sign language as iconic, which means that communication through the sign language is simply visual in nature, eliminating the form, structure, the grammar, and the formal learning process behind it. According to Pettito, babies will not be able to exhibit the formal and structural nature of either signed or spoken language, unless they are exposed to sign language or spoken language within their immediate environment.(Pettito, 2000) This rationalization supports Markowicz assumptions that a child will not be able to fully understand the concept of milk, unless he is exposed to the nature or processes behind the word. (Markowicz, 1980) References Bellugi, U. & Klima, E. S. (1975). â€Å"Aspects of Sign Language and its Structure† In: Kavanagh, James F. ; Cutting, James E. (eds. ). The Role of Speech in Language. Cambridge: MIT Press [335 pp. ], pp. 171-203. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90334. pdf Liddell, S. K. (1980) American Sign Language Syntax.The Hague: Mou ton, [194 pp. ], pp. 10-23, 68-80. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90335. pdf Markowicz, H. (1980) â€Å"Myths about American Sign Language† In: Lane, Harlan; Grosjean, Francois (eds. ). Recent Perspectives on American Sign Language. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum, [170 pp. ], pp. 1-6. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90333. pdf Padden C. & Ramsey, C. (2000) â€Å"American Sign Language and Reading Ability in Deaf Children† In: Chamberlain, Charlene; Morford, Jill P. ; Mayberry, Rachel I.(eds. ). Language Acquisition by Eye. Mahwah, N. J. : Lawrence Erlbaum [276 p. ], pp. 165- 168, 177-189. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90337. pdf Petitto, L. A. (2000) â€Å"The Acquisition of Natural Signed Languages: Lessons in the Nature of Human Language and its Biological Foundations† In: Chamberlain, Charlene; Morford, J ill P. ; Mayberry, Rachel I. (eds. ). Language Acquisition by Eye. Mahwah, N. J. : Lawrence Erlbaum [276 p. ], pp. 41-50. Retrieved February 20, 2009, from http://old. lib. ucdavis. edu/access/reserv/courses/90336. pdf

Analysis Of The Final Stage Of Life By Erik Erikson

What does it mean to live? Is it simply to eat, work, sleep, and repeat? Is that going to be enough of a reason by the time one is retired and is in â€Å"integrity versus despair† stage of life as Erik Erikson describes in the final stage of his psychological development theory? Personally, I disagree. I believe in order for life to have any meaning, one needs to create and achieve goals that impact the world around them. As I see it, realizing one’s potential and setting realistic goals based on that potential is the key to developing integrity rather than despair later in life. Personal circumstances have played a great role in choosing medicine as my career pursuit. My family, in particular, has not been without influence on this decision. My dad, now a nurse practitioner, was still in school when I was younger and so I grew up around the influence of his books and study materials as well as stories from his time working at the hospital. I, of course, did not understand any of it; in fact, I suffered nightmares for several nights after I came across pictures of tumors in one of his Pathophysiology books. Nevertheless, the seeds were planted and my interests slowly gravitated toward the field of science and a career in medicine. The reason why I am choosing to become a physician in particular is because I am interested in playing a more central role in shaping the structure of the care a patient receives. Furthermore, the gratification and honor of being a healer is utterlyShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of Erik Erikson s The Final Stage Of Life Essay878 Words   |  4 Pagesis in â€Å"integrity versus despair† stage of life as Erik Erikson describes in the final stage of his psychological development theory? Personally, I disagree. I believe in order for life to have any meaning, one needs to create and achieve goals that impact the world in a way that is meaningful to them. 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Karla raised Erikson alone for the first three years of his life in Frankfurt until she remarried Erikson’s pediatrician, Dr. Theodore Homburger. Karla and Theodore moved to Karlsruhe in southern Germany and raised Erikson. Erikson went by Erik Homburger as a child and young adult until he eventually changedRead MoreA Rose For Emily Psychoanalytic Theory Essay1225 Words   |  5 Pagesand analysis a person’s emotional development such as their ability to function as a healthy adult in society. From birth to young adulthood, individuals encounter people, parents, teacher and friends/classmates. Every individual that a person encounters helps to develop a person’s growth into adulthood. 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By analyzing the interactions of these variations between people and their responses when presentedRead MoreThe Role Of Role Confusion Within The Adolescent Years1748 Words   |  7 PagesAll of Erik H. Eriksons’ stages of development are significant, but the Identity vs. Role Confusion in the adolescent years was the one that impacted me the most prominently. The Identity vs. Role Confusion stage typically happens between the ages of twelve to eighteen, though it can potentially extend into other periods in a persons lifetime. This stage is concerned with developing a concrete personal identity and developing fidelity to a role. If the individual fails at this stage, they are oftenRead MoreEarly Childhood Abuse and the Effects on Emotional Development1352 Words   |  5 Pageseffects on further emotional development. A first focus falls on outlining the psychological stages of emotional development and the notion of emotional response, followed by a thorough analysis of the child abuse spectrum together with effects, both early and belated, of general and most notably socio-emotional nature. Firstly, the meaning of emotional regulation and Erik Eriksons theory of eight stages of development are depicted, with special emphasis on early childhood. This is done for the