Chapter 57: Social Issues

Question 1

Explain the field theory developed by Kurt lewin.

Answer 1

This theory emphasised the interplay between personal characteristics and environment elements.

Question 2

State what leads to violence

Answer 2

Violence begins when one person fail to esteem the other person stops respecting the other person’s dignity and starts to abuse him/her. This occurs as psychological violence like violent talk and intolerance. Structural violence like unfair distribution of resources due to class or race and violence of poverty which is the indignity of subhuman living conditions.

Question 3

What types of violence are there

Answer 3

Violence for material gain like mugging

Domestic violence which includes neglect of children battery of spouses and abuse of the elderly

Sexual violence such as rape and sexual harassment

State and collective violence such as colonialism and apartheid

Self inflicted violence like suicide and self mutilation

Question 4

What theoretical approaches to understanding violence are there

Answer 4

Instinct or socio biological approaches
Frustration aggression approaches
Observational learning approach

Question 5

State what instinct or socio biological approaches are

Answer 5

This sees violence as an inborn survival strategy where instinct had enabled humans to hunt for food and react to threats.

Question 6

What is meant by the frustration aggression approaches

Answer 6

This explains violence as the outcome of frustration. When people are frustrated they become angry and anger leads to violent acts especially if the frustration occurs in contexts that have previously been associated with violence.

Question 7

Discuss the observational learning approach

Answer 7

We learn to be violent through direct reinforcement and through modelling our behaviour on that of others

Question 8

What are the results of violence

Answer 8

It’s fragmenting in the sense that it breaks up and destroys important linkages and relationships in communities and it’s disempowering in the sense that it undermines people ability to fulfill their appropriate functions in their groups and community.

Alienation is a consequence of societal violence where society is shaped around rules in terms of which people accept personal responsibility for their conduct and expect others to do the same. Violence goes against the rule bound existence and creates a state of lawlessness that threatens people’s psychological well being

Question 9

What are the affects of alienation

Answer 9

The fear that yourself family or friends will fall victim to violence

The avoidance of all kinds of behaviour that used to be spontaneous like travelling certain roads at certain times which are now seen as dangerous

The experience of being at the mercy of forces beyond your control which gives rise to feelings of helplessness isolation lack of commitment to society and mistrust of people.

Question 10

What are the impacts of violence on children

Answer 10

It depends on how the child experience it and on what coping mechanisms they apply. Children need supportive home life with firm norms for behaviour. A culture of violence intimidation and terrorism us damaging to psychological well being of children and can result in forms of maladjustment.

Question 11

What is maladjusted behaviour and that forms are there

Answer 11

Maladjusted behaviour refers to a behaviour pattern that’s displayed in response to a certain situation ( adjustment) but fails to serve the purpose ( maladjustment)

The 1st form is a result of violence is when the behaviour becomes a permanent pattern. Which is continued long after the violence has disappeared.

The second is in reaction to violence is identification with the instigators and perpetrators of violence. The imitation of violent behaviour lies at the root of youth gangs who engage in violence. Children may become mentally lethargic in the presence of recurrent violence

The third is characterized by an uncritical acceptance of reasons why an individual or a group is branded as the enemy.theres uncritical acceptance of the situation of violence as a way of life and an inability to see the necessity of education

The 4th is the development of a skewed morality that comes from fanatical adherence to a certain ideology as children don’t have the opportunity for a balanced critical objective approach to life if they grow up in environments where they aren’t allowed to hear anything not supporting the dominant ideology

Question 12

What is discrimination

Answer 12

It is negative behaviour towards members of a particular group usually based on stereotypical ideas about the group which leads to prejudice against its members

Question 13

What is prejudice

Answer 13

It is a specific form of attitude which is negative and characterised by hatefulness and irrational beliefs

Question 14

What are stereotypes

Answer 14

Stereotypical ideas about a group are based on ignorance and faulty or incomplete knowledge about it

Question 15

What’s the connection between stereotypes prejudice and discrimination

Answer 15

Stereotypes and prejudice are beliefs systems and discrimination occurs when these belief systems are translated into practices that result in privilege status and power for one group at the expense of another

Question 16

When and how does sexism or gender bias happen

Answer 16

It is discrimination that occurs mainly against women because of the ideology of patriarchy where manhood is seen as the basic standard of being a person thus personhood is equated with manhood and doesn’t consider a combination of man and woman hood.

Question 17

Discuss how racism has transformed from its traditional ways to more modern Ways

Answer 17

Former or traditional racism is where a racial group is seen as bad or inferior to another and stated so explicitly but modern rasicm is more subtle as there is no direct denigration of a racial group. Modern racism occurs in racist remarks and jokes that groups of all races make among themselves about another race.

Question 18

State ways in which racism manifests itself

Answer 18

Unwittingly perpetuating negative stereotypes through selective perceptions of situations

Supporting the principle of equality while resisting it’s implementation through some kind of rationalisation

Implementing non racial policies yet withholding vital enablers of performance

Maintaining distance in interpersonal situations

Passively resisting support for another person by withholding normal supportive actions

Question 19

What is the difference between traditional and modern racism

Answer 19

The difference between traditional and modern rasicm is a symptomatic change meaning a change in the way in which racism is expressed but not a change in attitude

Question 20

Describe the cycle of the formation of poor communities

Answer 20

People enter a cycle of poverty and becomes a way of life carried from parents to children increasing the poverty level of each generation.

The victims are characterized by a learnt helplessness in the sense that they feel that nothing can be done about their situation and accept advice from outside experts and do what they are told because they believe they don’t have choices and bargaining power.

Question 21

What does poverty involve aside from deprevation of resources.

Answer 21

It includes a living situation of hopelessness uncertainty about the future and alienation from society because they feel there is no way out of their circumstances and live with this uncertainty on a daily basis and have no means to buffer themselves against unexpected events threatening their existence.

They feel alienated from society because their experiences is that institutional structures of society don’t serve them.

Question 22

What does the development of community require

Answer 22

Careful collaboration with community members and use of local knowledge and a process of participatory appraisal.

Knowledge and experience should be gained through co operation with the community.

Question 23

What is a community

Answer 23

It’s not only a physical or geographical entity but consists of people who experience a sense of belonging to the physical place as well as to one another where there’s a transactional relationship between a community and it’s members.

The identity of community members is determined by the community and converse true also. Members are co creators and responsible for the community they create

Question 24

What are the 4 characteristics of community development

Answer 24

1. Community membership
   - invested
   - boundaries ( those part of) and ( not members of )
   - advantages of membership ( emotional security,sense of belonging)
2. Influence: is the influence that members have over the community and members ( norms)
3. Need fulfillment: the ability to cater for members current and future needs.
4. Shared emotional connectedness: history, experience of places shared among members as well as future prospects.

Question 25

Discuss the environment as a physical place

Answer 25

Colours textures and smells create atmospheres that influence people’s moods. Environmental influences can be strong that they cause identification with and attachments to the environment. People are drawn to certain place because they find it beautiful or experience an inner sense of satisfaction or a combination of reasons.

Question 26

Explain the environment as an extension of self

Answer 26

An environment may cause us to experience strong emotions attached to all aspects of the environment to the extent that we feel our inner being is expressed in and through it.

The environment can feel apart of us and becomes something through which we express ourselves in a sense being an extension of self identity.

Question 27

Elaborate on the environment as a social system

Answer 27

There are 4 elements that characterise social aspects of an environment

The desire for privacy which is not to be alone but control how much interaction we have with others

It establishes boundaries between us and others creating personal space where these boundaries can be physical or psychological.

It enables us to control how much others know about us. The control can be formal or informal where we decide how much to tell others

Privacy allows us the opportunity for self reflection by having time to regain our own sense of self

Question 28

Identify and explain personal space

Answer 28

It refers to the amount of space we need between ourselves and others.

Diff individuals have different personal spaces some are more comfortable than others in allowing people close to them but also have diff personal spaces for diff people we interact with

The function of personal space is

A practical value in keeping people at a distance

Personal space is on of the non verbal ways in which we communicate intimacy.

Question 29

What is meant by territoriality

Answer 29

Refers to a place we select and that we demarcate as our own. There’s rules to our space and our living spaces our such spaces.

Question 30

What is crowding

Answer 30

It is a subjective experience of the number of people around us. It’s a psychological experience of a physical situation.

Experience of crowding depends and number of people and circumstances.

People show increased tendency to withdraw and reduce interaction with others as number of people increase. There’s also a tendency to reduce personal responsibility when there are others around as people are less inclined to personally take responsibility in the presence of others.