ajiagatling-blog

[ajiagatling-blog]

Women take more crap than most others especially men, the male gender usually ends up receiving more benefits or they often are more successful than women. In 1868 feminism waves began with a woman in marching holding large posts with their desired choices. How women dress should be their choice, how our bodies are shaped is our choice. Our bodies are ours if we want to have an abortion that should legally be our choice. If we decide to have children we should receive maternity leave with pay. Most recently they’ve started offering men maternity to leave as well. Dating back to the later years us women have always suffered from being entitled to our rights. We are treated differently by authority because of us being females. Women are constantly dehumanized and are common victims of sexual assault or abuse. 

According to Parsons sex role theory men and women perform their sex roles as breadwinners and wives, mothers respectively because the nuclear family is the ideal arrangement in modern societies fulfilling the function of reproducing workers. If a woman wants to work that should be totally up to her. It is not as common today for women not to work. Sometimes the women are the breadwinner while the man doesn’t work and soaks up the benefits from women. Acts of feminism limit women, which acts as a glass ceiling an invisible limit on women’s climb up the occupational ladder (Conley,2017, Pg.312). Women should be opportunities as men, it shouldn't be pertaining to gender it should be a decision of what we can bring to the table what our qualifications may be. 

Word Count:274

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

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Mcdonaldization replaces many human functions, as technology improves it requires less work from individuals. If you notice most places you go instead of someone physically taking your order you can use a kiosk or online ordering, taking things like the TEAS test or the NCLEX its all computerized. When tests are graded once you run the scantron it automatically grades the students test and groups together different averages and common mistakes. Mcdonaldization makes less work but it also doesn’t benefit most at the same time. For example I work for Rite Aid and some of our locations in York have less technicians they can hire and less hours to get out due to having a machine that does the work, counts the prescriptions. 

The more technology improves and develops the less consumerism needs of humans. I believe this is an free rider problem the notion that when more than one person is responsible for getting something done, the incentive is for each individual to shirk responsibility and hope others will pull the extra weight (Conley,2017,Pg.248). For companies and developers it is cheaper to purchase technology to hold the weight of the work then to continue to hire others and pay salary or per hour. Which in turn leaves them with more income to continue to expand business and double the profit. Consider the new release of vehicles yearly, you can pay and additional few thousand dollars for the technology pacakge, which does things like lets you know when another car is close to or approaching your car. 

Word Count: 259

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

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In Killing Us Softly it was stated that to be pretty you have to have lighter skin and nice hair. A topic that's constantly stereotyped made fun of, and talked about is hair according to the African American ethnicity. For black women, they tend to spend more on hair products, services, and purchasing hair especially human hair is extremely expensive today, even higher for it to have a natural appearance. Fortunately, I have semi-decent hair, my father is fully African American and he lost his hair at a young age, my mother is Caucasian with extremely thick hair. On my fathers' side, none of my cousins have the same hair type as I do, growing up they constantly made fun of me for it. I have very fine but thick curly hair. Even though I have decent hair all through middle school and high school I flat ironed my hair because I wanted straight hair like my other Caucasian classmates. Now that I am older I realized my hair is beautiful regardless and it doesn't make me who I am. Flat ironing my hair caused it to be extremely damaging to the point it started breaking off and I ended up with a short haircut. It has been almost a year now that I’ve been wearing my natural hair and it took most of that time for my natural curl pattern to return. 

The misconception that to be pretty you have to have long nice hair is an act of prejudice thoughts and feelings about an ethnic or racial group which lead to preconceived notions and judgments often negative about the group (Conley,2017, Pg.359)

Word Count: 278

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

[ajiagatling-blog]

It’s traditional for women to be the emotional, anxiety raging being. Men according to social norm and gender roles are supposed to be masculine, dominant and the provider. Most women or other men consider it feminine for a man to show emotion, or to produce tears. Some men are just raised that way, my father was raised that way and its rubbed off on me in the sense that I show very few emotions. I’m now an adult and I still only have seen my father cry twice in his life and that was due to the death of his parents. Personally, I think it’s okay for a man to show emotion but to an extent. An overly excessive amount of emotions or crying, in my opinion, is abnormal. Also, most men believe that it is normal for themselves not to show emotion which makes it hard when trying to build relationships especially with women,

Men believe in Hegemonic masculinity the condition in which men are dominant and privileged and this dominance and privilege are invisible (Conley,2017, Pg.289). Being too dominant is not always a good thing, in the film Killing Us Softly, she touched on gender roles the way that advertisements degrade women and in some way that increases violence against women from men. Most men believe that the women should be in the kitchen, and performing their duties as they say. What makes a man is a confidence, morals and the ability to show compassion and to be empathetic to other. If men didn’t express their emotions nothing could ever be solved nor is it therapeutic to keep everything bottled up inside leading to a larger breakdown. 

Word Count: 283 

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

[ajiagatling-blog]

Reflection

I am a person who analyzes any and everything, I like to pick people's brains and try to understand the actions of others especially when it comes to breaking social norms. The issues that were covered in this course are things that I knew about previously but never in the perspective that we covered or learned. The content we reviewed caused me to reflect on myself how I communicate with others, it made me more cautious of what I say or even share on social networks. Sociology is all around us and it is essential for our life cycle of relationships and daily living to function. Sociology affects how we view others and how we view ourselves. If it wasn’t for sociology I believe we as a society would be lost in trying to translate the meaning of different subjects or actions. I really enjoyed this class especially the Killing Us Softly film and the documentary featuring Robert Reich they both reflect on topics that are often dismissed or taken lightly.  

Word Count:171

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Speaking from an average American, life would be a lot easier if I were rich or at least didn’t have the concern of checking my bank account before making a purchase. As hourly wages increase in return the price of needs rise as well making most things unattainable and poverty more prevalent. The cost of attending community college is even more expensive if you do the calculation the salary of what you would make a year is extremely low compared to the debt of college that you’ve now racked up. For individuals that are considered the middle class or low class we always feel as though more money equals happiness. If you look into the most recent history of celebrities that have committed suicide or overdosed, they were wealthy but still, that’s not enough to overbear the depression or feelings of loneliness.

For example most recently Kate Spade, a well-known designer of popular handbags and phone cases. When she had committed suicide unexpectedly she had left a note for her daughter stating she should ask her father why this happened. Within the last week or two Demi Lovato relapsed on her addiction to drugs, she expressed that even being successful it still isn’t enough for her to not feel alone or have those depressive thoughts. To the portion of our society that would be considered upper class, most of them believe in equality of condition the idea that everyone should have an equal starting point (Conley,2017, Pg.246). Although that may be partially true there are a few success stories of ‘rags to riches” but more commonly the upper-class individual came from a wealthy family, or had connections to move up in the hierarchy.

Word Count:283

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

[ajiagatling-blog]

When dining out it’s the social norm to tip at least fifteen to twenty percent of your bill. Tipping your server is and will to continue to be extremely controversial due to different views. Personally, I see both sides of this topic I’ve been that customer who sees her bill and due to it already being expensive I'm cringing at the thought of adding a tip. I also understand that servers make less than minimum wage an hour. However, I also feel as though those employees chose to work as a server. There are other employment options that pay more hourly or simply continuing your education. I’ve had plenty of jobs in the field I’m currently in. At a certain point I realized that if I wanted to make a living where I would be able to provide for myself, I would have to further my income. Now even though that I see both ends of this, I still make sure to always leave a tip of at least fifteen percent. My tip amount usually is based upon the food, and most importantly the service. If you notice in some restaurants the majority of the job being done is not from the server. 

In the article above, the journalist describes the pros and cons of tipping and how it doesn’’ always benefit the server. Tipping is a form of informal social sanctions the usually unexpressed but widely known rules of group membership, the unspoken rules of social life (Conley,2017, Pg.198). As well as primary deviance the first act of rule-breaking that may incur a label of “deviant” and thus influence how people think about and act toward you (Conley,2017, Pg.213). Think about it imagine you visiting your favorite restaurant and the server you had wasn’t so great so you don’t tip the normal rate. You return a week or two later and ironically you end up with the same server. Do you think you would receive even worse service due to the server remembering the tip you left them?

Word Count: 339

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

[ajiagatling-blog]

It’s rare in today's society that you don’t see a child glued to the screen of their tablet or holding on to their mother's smartphone for dear life. In the most recent years, use of technology in children has skyrocketed, companies have made large profits on developing children friendly tablets. I believe that tablets for children can be very beneficial if they are used in moderation. Free time on the tablet due to good behavior or grades and for educational resources. Children today are obsessed with watching Youtube videos of animated characters or watching other children play instead of actively playing themselves. There are the half of children that use technology and they learn inappropriate language and behaviors, not for their age range. Theirs the other half that expands their vocabulary or cognitive function from different applications and videos. Personally, I have two nephews barely one year apart, and the difference between the two is significant. My nephew Tristan is four and he barely can pronounce “mom” he doesn’t say many words or understand how to do certain things he more so often just screams. My other nephew Chase is soon to be three and he can swim, he controls the smart remote to turn on his shows on Netflix, he can say plenty of words. He also spends a lot of time on his tablet and watching movies. 

Many will argue that technology slows down the developing stages of children that there shouldn’t be electronic use. Consider this, is a child learning more from playing outside more than watching an educational interactive youtube video. This controversial topic falls within ethnomethodology literally “the methods of people” this approach to studying human interaction focuses on the ways in which we make sense of our world, convey this understanding to others, and produce a shared social order (Conley,2017, Pg.143).

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

Word Count: 307

[ajiagatling-blog]

My Advice

To the future students of the virtual sociology world, for starters make sure you are able to fully devote yourself and the time needed. Especially for an accelerated class such as this one. Personally this semester I struggled with a balance between my other classes, to the point I found myself waiting until after work on the weekends to complete my assignments which were incredibly stressful. So I would advise you to take advantage of the course material being available to do pieces of it through the week when you have spare time that way you can still enjoy your weekends and can put your full effort into each assignment. 

It was helpful to me to read the chapters previous to even starting my assignments, just because the chapters can be a little long in my opinion and the print is so small that it starts to blend together. Lastly, if you actually apply yourself this course can be easier, considering you don't have to actually attend classes, there are full papers assigned. Think of it has socialized with others and it will come easy. 

Word Count: 185

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More often as young women we have that classic dream of getting married having children, buying a home. When we think of being engaged we think of that big shiny sparkly ring we seen in our local jewelry store or maybe ever on the finger of our favorite celebrity. The belief that the size of the rock matters is a highly overrated stereotype commonly the concern of what others will think instead of personal opinion. I find myself falling into this discussion often, for example, my cousin recently got engaged, she had previously been searching through the house due to a family friend telling her there was a ring. She searched for it and found it which he still doesn’t know. So she spent months frustrated because she didn’t understand why he hadn’t proposed yet. So I had asked her to show me the ring she pulled it up online and zoomed in so that I was unable to see the price or where it was purchased from. Due to me being a huge Pandora fan I knew I had seen it before it was a sixty-five dollar pandora ring. Now although I didn’t care about the price, I could tell she did due to her being brief about the ring.

In the video above, it’s a clip from a popular talk show called “The Real” they discuss modern day issues. They discussed their different perspectives on the size of the ring. In the beginning, they had asked the crowd to clap if the size of the ring matters. All that was heard were a few subtle claps, I don’t think that most are comfortable with admitting that sometimes size does matter. I guess it’s hard to express a personal opinion until the situation. I can easily say that size or price doesn’t matter but I won’t actually know until the day I am proposed to. On the other hand, I know that in the past I have been guilty of discussing others rings with family members or friends. The social norm for engagement rings is typically at least a decent size. Consumerism the steady acquisition of material possessions, often with the belief that happiness and fulfillment can thus be achieved (Conley,2017, Pg.107). When you analyze this social norm if you think about it, the size of the ring isn’t ultimately what determines your happiness it should be the exciting new chapter in life. 

Word Count: 404 

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

[ajiagatling-blog]

In the last year or so, facial recognition has become highly popularized and raved about. Most recently Apple released the iPhone X which no longer had a home button instead to unlock you simply hold your face in front of the screen, It’s exciting and convenient, I myself purchase the iPhone X two months ago and I love it, its convenient it even recognizes my face when I’m wearing sunglasses or laying in bed with the lights off. The scary part about it is what if someone that has a similar face shape was able to scan into my phone, or if I'm sleeping and someone simply holds my phone up to my face would it unlock? 

Most recently facial recognition has been showcased frequently for assisting police in tracking down criminals. It’s serving as a useful tool considering, camera footage or drawings are not always the most reliable. This method is considered a part of operationalization the process of assigning a precise method for measuring a term being examined for use in a particular study ( Conley, 2017, Pg.53). In the article above, New York is a very hectic area if you’ve ever visited before. It’s impossible to locate others when the crowd is so overwhelming that everyone starts blending in together. Though this area being overcrowded recent facial recognition via camera was assistive in tracking down a criminal. With the increasing rate of violence and crime in today's society, especially in the Pennsylvania area, I believe this tool could be extremely useful. If you consider years ago when it came down to tracking a criminal, police relied on personal reports, drawings, or lineups. Along with that, there are many cold cases that have still yet to be solved. 

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

Word Count: 290

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Something I personally have always struggled with, the facial expressions they always seem to speak for me before words get a chance to actually escape my mouth. It’s almost as if sometimes I have no control of the sudden reactions my facial expressions make, sometimes my expression is exactly what I’m thinking and other times they mean the opposite or nothing at all contrary to what others think. Facial expressions dramatically affect my communication skills and how others interpret what I’m attempting to communicate or what my attitude may be portraying. Growing up the few times I had friends over everyone was always afraid of my father because he “looks mean” when in reality that's just his normal facial expression. Today in society its referred to as “Resting B****” face I’ve been told I possess this many times. I believe it’s very challenging when I see or hear a person being ridiculous so my face automatically reacts. The older I’ve become they have definitely become more controlled but I don’t think they will ever be absent.

The core of sociology is the social aspect of how we communicate with others according to delivery, perspective, thought process, and effectiveness. In the video above Sharon Ellison expresses the perceived defensiveness due to the use of facial expressions and how it may trigger others response. Facial expressions fall under the macro sociology category, a branch of sociology generally concerned with social dynamics at a higher level of analysis that is across the breadth of a society (Conley,2017, Pg.41). Communicating with facial expressions challenges the opposite person to analyze what our facial expressions are encoding. 

Conley, D. (2018). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a Sociologist. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Company Ltd.

Word Count: 271 

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Introduction

Hello, my name is Ajia Gatling I will be turning twenty-two at the end of this month. I am currently a full-time student at Hacc, I have one left semester until I receive my certificate for the LPN program. Back in 2014, I had majored in teaching and then I decided maybe I wanted to social work, I withdrew due to personal issues and laziness. I am no back and am certain that nursing is what I’m made for. Once I’m finished this program I would like to work in labor and delivery or in the special needs field specializing with Down Syndrom patients.

I currently reside in the Loganville area closer to the Maryland line I commute to the Harrisburg campus five days a week. In my spare time, I work at a pharmacy as a pharmacy technician which has expanded my knowledge tremendously. I have three older sisters and three younger brothers, I have a very supportive mother and a boyfriend who happens to be my high school sweetheart. I have two special puppies that are dear to my heart, Blossom my feist little chihuaha, and my Shih-Tzu Daisy. I enjoy interior decorating, spending time outside by the pool and binge watching on Netflix. 

Word Count: 206