The Role of Social Institutions in Society Essay - 1

The Role of Social Institutions in Society - Essay Example The infrastructure of education uses a model of standardized testing and curriculum to ensure that students across the country share the same ideological framework. The education system is invasive because it controls the methodology through which individuals perceive history and the function of other institutions that make up the social nexus (Berger, 1966). For example, the dissemination of information regarding the history of mankind focuses on the history of nation states (Berger, 1966). This creates a society where individuals believe that the existence of a government is inevitable and are therefore not capable of perceiving a reality that extends beyond it. The deepest values of society are taught within this institution, from political organizations to capitalism. Regardless of the political party that individuals align with or the method through which they accumulate capital, they still value participation within these systems (Berger, 1966). Social values are shared by indi viduals who make up community. Such values help define the parameters of a culture and characterize the individuals within it. The educational system is an effective social institution that helps embed such values in growing citizens. As a social institution, the educational system is the most pervasive as well as the most effective at ingraining social values in individuals. Works Cited Berger, P. L. and T.

Exploration of Nazi captivity Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Exploration of Nazi captivity - Essay Example It is undoubtedly true that Adolf Hitler and slave owners exploited the unfortunates, using tragic inhumane methods. Before Hitler’s death he uttered, â€Å"Brutal force has not won anything durable.† Nazi slavery, or American chattel slavery were alternative beats of the same wicked heart, against the races that were at a highly disadvantageous position. Were the captives taken by the Nazi’s slaves? As far as history can retell the tales of these camps that were established to keep thousands of Jews in prison, one finds horrific tales of people who were brutally killed and the massacres; if we may use the term; to eliminate them. What happened in those camps will be discussed in the following text as we move step by step through articles found related to this topic. Amongst these articles are tales of eyewitnesses as well as som survival stories which shed light on the activities that went on in those prison camps. Before we set on to discover what and how the people or prisoners were treated and humiliated in the German camps set up under Hitler’s command, let’s go down the road of history to the time that Romans ruled one can see how they treated their slaves. Watching the slaves being tortured and killed was a game that the rulers of the Roman Empire enjoyed the most. (Femi Akomolafe, 1994) A review of a book on the survival of a captive from the Auschwitz in 1945 describes how the slaves were being treated. It fore tells how the slaves entered the gates where the sign  read â€Å"Arbeit  Macht Frei†. They were made to stay in cold rooms for hours, while the rooms were filled with freezing water that reached the ankles. Completely undressed and asked to remain naked even the shoes were not allowed. While in that condition the barbers were sent in to shave the heads of all the captives. The men were kept for hours in the same condition and they kept on thinking about their families and what was happening to the females

Discuss water - the sea, the hurricane, the flood - as natural and Essay

Discuss water - the sea, the hurricane, the flood - as natural and symbolic forces that are associated with the Zeitoun, the protagonist, and the major conflicts in the narrative - Essay Example According to Zeitoun, water is a natural and symbolic force because the hurricane caused the worst natural disaster ever recorded in the American history. However, according to Eggers, the disaster was not entirely natural. The book gives the finest investigations of qualified journalists who did their research during the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. According to the book, New Orleans became vulnerable to the disaster as a result of human error (Eggers 67). This is because the federal and the state authorities responded inadequately to the disaster. Many individuals acted alone. This is because most individuals were ignorant and selfish. The protagonist in the book is Zeitoun. He is a Muslim who was raised in Syria. He worked at the sea of a fisherman for twenty years. While working, he travelled across the universe and finally settled in the US. When the Hurricane Katrina approached New Orleans in 2005, his wife and children shifted to Baton Rouge. Zeitoun remained in the city to watch over their home, rental properties and the ongoing job sites. As a result of the storm, most houses in their neighborhood were flooded to the second floor. This made Zeitoun to start moving around in a canoe. He distributed the supplies that he had to his neighbors who were in need. He also moved them to higher grounds and saved dogs that had been abandoned (Eggers 109). The major conflict that arises in the narrative is the arrest of Zeitoun when he had not done any wrong. The National Guardsmen of the US army arrested and took him into custody on his property. They accused him of being a terrorist and treated him brutally. While under the custody of the National Guardsmen, Zetoun became a victim of physical and verbal abuse. Later, he was charged of looting $500. Contrary to the normal amount of the bail charged for the crime, Zeitoun was charged ten times more (Eggers

Origins of business Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Origins of business - Essay Example Entrepreneur can be defined as, "the one who undertakes an enterprise, especially a contractor, acting as intermediatory between capital and labor". (Jean-Baptiste Say) Entrepreneur is basically referred to a person who is willing to launch a new venture or an enterprise. He should have the qualities of carrying out a successful business. The effects of a good entrepreneur on business are that he has the quality to innovates efficiency and productivity in his business by introducing new technologies and ideas. He is a versatile and creative personality who brings in new strategies in his business or launches new types of products or services in order to profit his business. Planning or outline: Planning or an outline is a very important origin to start up a business. The founder of the business must plan first about the business. What, where, when and how, all these questions about the business are very necessary to answer before starting a business. The founder of the business must make a proper draft or an outline about his business and analyze all the expected aspects included the profit and loss of his business. This will be quite helpful in the future as the business will not be inclined towards any sort of loss and even if any loss may be occurring in the business, the entrepreneur will be ready to face it and handle it properly through the planning made before the launch of the business.

Owning a car when one turns 16 Essay Example for Free

Owning a car when one turns 16 Essay There are many advantages and disadvantages to owning a vehicle. A life style change can occur or an empty wallet or purse I can almost expect someone will have when they first start driving a vehicle of their own. This impact in ones life can not only change their life style and their money situation but also there grades, sports, social life, and most of all their physical health. These advantages and disadvantages can be for the better but most of all the worst. In my opinion, owning a vehicle at a young age develops a good source of financial planning, responsibility, and awareness of what can happen to them if they become an uncontrolled driver. Next, with the purchase of a car there can be a life style change and also a huge financial decrease. If one owns a car, especially a teenager, they become cocky and act like a hot shot because they have a vehicle. With this problem a teen may start to develop a new driving style. They will drive with only one arm and will constantly change the CD player to different compact discs and radio station. With having them do this they will increase the chances of not paying attention to the rode and will cause an accident. So, a driver needs to keep their eyes on the rode to not only protect to their own life but the lives of others. Then, the new driver has already developed the bad habits of driving and this will lead them into a having bad grades, missing practices for sports, and lose a social life. The bad grades can come from driving too much, but if one drives, they will need a job. A job is where a loss in a social life comes together. If they are working to drive, they will not have enough time to spend with their friends. Now that they are trying to find time out of work to drive, hang out with friends, and play sports. Sports are after school each day. I dont expect a driver to play sports all week and only work two days and still have enough money to pay for their vehicle. Finally, the most difficult sacrifice to give up is their physical health being tampered with. By working all the time and constantly trying to join sports and hang out with friends this will affect their health. Where is their time to sleep? One will be doing it all but; they do need time to sleep. All of these advantages and disadvantages will change their entire  life style. I believe owning a vehicle will do that but in some cases a change is a good thing so there is always something to look out for. Change can be good but the time will keep ticking away. So, do what makes one happy and make it how you want it.

Health And Social Care Personal Statement

Health And Social Care Personal Statement Due to previous experiences of working with a range of people in the care sector I believe that throughout my time on various work placements with people who have disabilities and difficulties in communicating, along with the experiences gained throughout my studies, my wish to pursue a career in the care profession has grown. To further my interest in working with and around people I completed a course in childcare. Throughout this course I was able to gain valuable experience of working with special needs children. While this was very challenging I also found it an extremely rewarding and enjoyable experience. To further my knowledge and passion for working with people I took a health and social care advanced course and took a weeks experience in a day center that involves working with people who suffer from difficulties in communicating and having disabilities. This again helped to broaden my understanding of working with people and also how to deal with children and adults with disabilities. Within my spare time I have researched the job role and requirements for health promotion to find out what is involved. To build upon these interests further, I am taking up a one week work experience within the health field. I will be spending the first week in a care home focusing on helping elderly people that suffer from dementia and my second week assisting a health promoter to experience a more professional job role in health care. I am looking forward to this valuable experience as it will further consolidate my desire to study health and social care. I currently work as a sales assistant which has given me a valuable experience of working with people and how to assist their needs in any way possible. During this time I am developing effective communication skills and good working relationships. In addition to this it is also helping me to show how committed I am to my responsibilities as well as demonstrating good organisation skills. Having to juggle work and school as well as social activities this also shows that I am developing my time keeping skills to make myself more committed and more punctual. During my first year of sixth form I helped to raise money for the McMillan Cancer trust charity. I also found this very rewarding as I was helping others that were in need, just like during my work placements. I often play sports after sixth form with my friends; this has helped me to develop extra skills in working well in a team. In addition I have completed voluntary work with a year six class to increase my knowledge of working with young people, another activity that I very much enjoyed and found extremely rewarding. To further my interest in working with people I have recently volunteered to do a level 3 v-volunteering in my spare time, the certificate itself is an accreditation form Newcastle University. During my spare time I mainly like to dance and sing. I find this is a good way to express myself in addition to help me keep fit. I also attend the gym often to also help keep me fit. I also like to attend various different events and take advantage of any activities that I am offered whether it is through school or outside of school. This helps to increase my confidence and also helps me to meet new people. I feel that university is definitely the right path for me. I am always working extremely hard to achieve the best I can, a feat which I intend to carry on throughout my university years. I feel I have the necessary skills needed to enjoy university to the full and also be successful in future years. In addition I would also like to go to university to help develop my skills even further so I can gain a good job in the health and social care sector which is always my main interest. Social Work Personal Statement I have decided to take up the course in social work because firstly the subjects which I am doing sociology looks at people and societys problems, I have in this subject done work on family and at the moment doing religion, this has fascinated me to help people who are facing problems such as abuse in families. Secondly I have done personal study on this subject which I have enjoyed reading around in periodicals and journals which had fuelled my interest in gaining a more depth knowledge of working with different type of people and their problems. Thirdly I would like to take up a course which fascinates me and in which I will determined me too succeed and the challenge of working to deadlines Whilst in the sixth form I have been involved in a scheme which aimed to provide children entering school with a low reading age, with the help their required to improve their reading levels. I also at in my private time tend to go to old people house who are disabled because one of my close relative is there also this house is opposite my house so I go in and talk to different people and talk or play games with them. This is another reason why I want to do this course because I have some experience of what I will be facing in this course, it wont be shock to me at first time round because I know in social work you get people who are hard to handle especially youngsters My part time job which is shop assistant helped develop my understanding of responsibility and has given me increased confidence also enabled me to act initiatively with dealing with unexpected problems and has helped to develop my communication skills . Working with the children in school has improved my interpersonal skills so that I can now work with children who can be awkward sometimes without any problems As an individual I like keeping fit which I have a gym in my house, I also like listening to music and going out with mates which provides me a different environment from college and work, this gives me an opportunity to make new friend and meet new people. I also in my part time help my younger brother and sister with their homework or I sometimes learn from my mum how to sew clothes As an applicant, I will bring with me an enthusiasm and motivation for this subject. My ethics background and cultural awareness should allow me to become and integrated yet individual of a university member in an increasingly cosmopolitan society. Personal Statements: the Good, the Bad and the Ugly Personal statements with positive impact After I was made redundant, I decided to become a support worker. This was because I had been volunteering for several years in the Youth Service, working with young people at risk of offending. I got a job in a special needs school where I supported pupils on an individual basis. I needed to develop a good relationship with each pupil and to adapt my communication to their special needs. An example is how I worked with a boy who was afraid of the doctor ( describes her intervention and outcome). Working in this field for three years has encouraged me to tackle an Access course; I have learnt the theory of communication and can see why I was successful in my work with school students. I would like to develop my skills and knowledge further by studying for a social work degree. Skills I had gained as a support worker were needed when my father was diagnosed with dementia. I had always relied on his support and found that I had to be reliable and useful for him without letting my emotions overwhelm me. I am currently working as a support worker in a multi-disciplinary community mental health team. Although I work mostly with the OTs I have a good opportunity to get an overview of the other professions including social work. I have worked together with social workers in the team to support vulnerable people in the community and particularly like the wider perspective they bring to their work such as involving carers. I have worked in the substance misuse field for 5 years and have undertaken NVQ3.I have been offered the post of manager in the service I work in but thinking about my own development needs , I now want to train as a social worker to gain a wider experience of working with vulnerable adults and children. I am a nursery nurse and wanted to take my interest in child protection further by studying OU courses on health and social care. Statements with Limited Impact I have always been passionate about care , becoming a social worker would allow me to fulfil my ambitions I have been employed as a carer for 6 years. I enjoy my job and the experience. This has been excellent for my personal skills as I have to talk to people like the elderly. I believe my personal drive is a key factor in my success as manager in a care home and I would be an asset to your degree. Working as a support worker means that I have learnt skills in communication and team work. (No further discussion of these points) Lengthy exposition of previous employment in various retail and marketing companies, paragraph ending with The work experience linked to social work was a six week placement in day centre where I helped escort the old people home. No further discussion of what person learnt from this, what impact it had on decision to apply to train as a social worker. Having gained an NVQ 3 in health and social care and with vast experience in paid and voluntary work, I want to further my career by studying for a professional social work qualification †¦.. (then follows list of all the service user groups applicant has worked with) †¦ in all these my skills in prioritising my workload, meeting deadlines , time management and team working has improved enormously. No evidence given to demonstrate this statement. Other statements contain very general comments on social work – such as A social workers vocation is very complex and more than interpreting the problem and assisting people find a solution. It involves methods, theories and ethics. There is a danger that these types of generalised comment are either from websites or books and articles which are not referenced – plagiarism can rear its head even before some applicants have started their academic career!

A Critical Analysis Of Deterrence Theory Philosophy Essay

A Critical Analysis Of Deterrence Theory Philosophy Essay This paper will analyze literature related to theories of nuclear deterrence and will seek to examine (1) historical application, (2) scientific and logical validity, and (3) the relevance of deterrence theories for international relations. I hypothesize that while deterrence theory has been widely used and relied upon, particularly in the context of relationships between modern nuclear powers, there are serious scientific and logical concerns as to the true validity of deterrence theories. These include problems with (1) circular logic; (2) bias; (3) difficulty in isolating the independent variables; (4) validation and falsification; and (5) misapplication or misinterpretation in scenarios where disparity exists between levels of risk aversion among actors. HISTORICAL APPLICATION OF DETERRANCE THEORY In his chapter entitled The Anatomy of Deterrence, Bernard Brodie reflects on the romantic notion that peace can be achieved through a negotiated peace as a result of military action on the part of strong and decisive leaders. (Brodie, 266). However, he makes the argument that in an environment where nuclear weapons of mass destruction exist, such military actions could (and most likely would) lead to a level of military conflict that would prove cataclysmic to human civilization as we know it. Therefore, a different understanding and explanation of international relations is called for. In his writings, Brodie advocates the strategies of deterrence and limited war which would, in theory, lead to levels of power parity between nuclear parties on the international stage. Therefore, an emphasis is placed on creating a scenario whereby any actor with the technology, ability, and will to launch a first-strike offensive attack on another nuclear nation would be met with the sure and certain fact that the other nation would, without restraint, launch a full-scale second-strike attack, leading to the destruction of both nations and, most likely, a large portion of human civilization as we know it. The premise of deterrence theory, then, is similar to that of a grand-scale game of chicken whereby each party desires to convince the other that they will not back down from a straight-on attack and are willing to destroy the other party and themselves in the process. Building upon the realist and neo-realist assumptions of unitary state actors, rationality and/or bounded rationality, and the idea that balances in power lead to a lower probability of conflict, this theory calls for the one for one buildup of nuclear arms with any nation capable of launching a first-strike attack, in order to openly demonstrate a nations willingness and capability to launch a second-strike retaliatory action against any first-strike attack. While this theory would appear, on its face, to be a natural extension of neo-realism and its theories, it would also appear to differ in some of its logic. For instance, in this case, a nation is hedging its future on the belief that it can convince the other nuclear power(s) that it is willing to guarantee not only vast losses but also utter defeat (Brodie, 276) at its own expense, if necessary. So, unlike traditional neo-realism, the idea of deterrence doesnt simply rely on the underlying assumption that nations seek to maximize power, but also assumes that nations seek to defend themselves through a tit for tat approach to the buildup of power and capability that they actually hope never to use. ASSESSING THE VALIDITY OF THE DETERRENCE THEORY A major criticism of traditional deterrence theory must be that it seeks to openly convince another nation that it will do something it clearly would not rationally choose to do, that is destroy itself in order to counter an offensive attack from the other side. The logic in this theory becomes almost circular in its approach. A nation is assumed to build-up power in order to defend itself from another nation that is building up power in order to defend itself from the first nations buildup of power à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ and on it will go. So, it would appear through the logic of deterrence that there is actually an incentive to buildup power on both sides in a way that actually leads to their possible demise. This is best explained by way of the security dilemma which would say that as each side seeks to build-up its nuclear capabilities in response to the other, both sides actually increase the probability that a conflict will occur. When viewing the buildup of nuclear capabilities, this should be seen from the outside observer as an irrational act, yet each side, seeking to maximize its power and military capability, sees the buildup as a rational act. However, one must question not only the logic of this theory but also the entire premise that a theory such as this can attempt to explain a non-event. In other words, this theory really depends upon events not occurring in order to demonstrate its reliability. If something must not occur in order for a theory to be reliable, how can that theory be tested or falsified? As Jervis (P. 293) observes, explaining basic changes in the relationship between states is beyond the boundaries of the theory à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ ¦ thus diminishing its validity. In other words, we only can see something that didnt happen empirically, but we really dont know what might have happened if the scenario had been different; and, as we discussed in last weeks lecture, there most likely would be no one around to report the results of an actual event or falsified observation which would lead us to empirically say that the theory is invalid. Therefore, we must rely on assumption and generalization to say that deterr ence is the true reason that a nuclear confrontation between superpowers never occurred. In addition to examining the circular logic of deterrence theory, one must also consider the presence of intervening variables, which might spuriously impact the outcome of a diplomatic or international event. For instance, in the obvious example of the Cuban Missile Crisis, was it deterrence that led the Soviets to back down from their decision to implement strategic missiles in Cuba or was it a combination of diplomatic channels, internal domestic differences between decision makers, military strategic decisions, or just pure luck? One could argue that any one of these variables may have been the deciding factor in the end result of the conflict. In other words, we dont know exactly what effect deterrence had on the outcome because it would be difficult, if not impossible, to control for it and/or falsify the outcome. Another observation, made by Jervis (P. 297) is that deterrence theory is biased in favor of status-quo powers. In other words, the status-quo powers may have the desire and/or ability to coerce others to behave in a manner that favors the status quo power. Jervis and others argue that the game of chicken is not an appropriate explanation of nuclear deterrence in that it assumes that both cars are in motion at the start. However, if we assume that one car got a head start on the other, the other car is more apt to make a strategic mistake that can lead to devastating results. If the two powers are not equally risk averse, and if the power that is not satisfied with the status-quo is the party that is less risk averse, a higher probability of nuclear exchange would be the result. This scenario would critically harm the validity of deterrence theory. And, as was stated earlier, if the probability exists that deterrence theory is, in any way, possibly invalid, it would be illogical and possibly disastrous to depend upon it when making decisions in the international arena. The discussions contained within this paper lead to an even more important criticism. What exactly is rational behavior? It would appear, as in the criticism of circular logic, that the rational decision made by a unitary actor desiring to maximize power would most likely be seen from the outside as an irrational decision, as it has a high probability of harming the very nation that is attempting to preserve itself. Therefore, a serious criticism of traditional deterrence theory, as outlined by Jerves (P. 299), is that a well stated and objectively measured operational definition of rational behavior does not exist within the literature. Is it rational to make a decision that would lead to the demise of ones own civilization? Or is it more rational to assume that if a first strike is launched against a nation, and the nations destruction is inevitable, then actions that will lead to the destruction of the other civilization are the logical choice? In this case, rationality is relative to perceived risk and to the risk-aversive behavior of both parties. However, if either partys level of risk aversion is below some unpredictable point, the assumption of rationality becomes invalid, as would the entire theory. In defense of Jervis work in addressing long-term stability under the deterrence model, Kugler and Zagare (1990) attempt to extend the traditional model by combining it with the model of power transitions, and make the observation that parity between nuclear parties is not stable, but rather is a critical point where conflict and/or nuclear exchange can occur. Again, since no specific exchange of nuclear weapons has taken place under these circumstances to date, this theory is far from verified and is definitely not in a position that can be defended through experimentation or falsification. Therefore, one must criticize their work as broad-based assumptions made by applying the work of other authors within the field. However, it would seem logical, and somewhat practical to believe that there is some glimmer of truth in the arguments made within Kuglar and Zagares paper. Therefore, while their work is not at a position that could be called scientifically progressive under the standa rds established by Lakatos, it can also be said that their theories are not degenerative to the previous models as they do not alter the hard-core assumptions of unitary actors and rational decision making. Therefore, my criticism of this work is far less negative than my criticism of the traditional model of deterrence outlined by Brodie. An additional observation is that Kuglar and Zagares work adds to the second wave models described by Jerves in that it examines the phenomenon of risk aversive actors and uses game theory to further determine the possible probabilistic outcomes of confrontational scenarios. But, as with the other explanations, we must depend upon the probability of predicting a non-event (long-term stability measured by the absence of a nuclear exchange) versus a catastrophic event (nuclear exchange). Either way the model is un-testable and unverifiable. It is more of an explanation than a true scientific model or theory. Thus, we are relying on assumptions and generalizations. In the works of Signorino and Tarar (2006) and Zagre (1990), we again see the application of game theory as a way of empirically explaining and/or predicting the possible outcomes of nuclear buildups by examining risk and uncertainty on the part of defenders and attackers. Again, we can see that if the attacker is the party that is less risk-averse, the probability of war should, theoretically, increase, thus explaining that there is really no such thing as long-term stability when evaluating nuclear deterrence. While the application of probit analysis to the model does add an elegant mathematical presentation, it is still not a progressive model that can be verified experimentally or falsified scientifically, as the results of such experimentation would more than likely prove disastrous to the entire world. Therefore, the criticism of these models remains that they cannot be empirically analyzed in a way that would satisfy the requirements of even the loosest constraints placed by t he Lakatosian system of evaluation. While Signorino and Tarar (p. 592) claim that their model explains 96% of the attackers actions and over 93% of outcomes using an analysis of the POLITY III data set from 1800-1994, the problem still remains that they are trying to empirically predict a nuclear exchange using non-nuclear conflicts and therefore are not addressing some very important elements. For instance, they are not really analyzing the willingness of either party to truly use nuclear weapons in a first or second-strike position. And, given that the United States is the only nation to ever definitively make the decision to use a nuclear weapon in a conflict, we must also critically examine their application of democratic peace theory to the analysis of deterrence theory. Thus, even the most contemporary of the papers reviewed for this analysis do not truly bring us to a model of deterrence that can effectively be used to explain or predict the actions of nuclear parties. One additional criticism which must be cons idered is that none of the literature assigned for this class addresses non-state actors. Given our post 9-11 war on terror, it is vital that we examine our current geopolitical environment in future research. CONCLUSIONS A review of literature assigned for our study of deterrence theory and a critical analysis of their findings leads me to believe that, while deterrence theory has a logical basis for explanation, it lacks a level of scientific validity which would allow us to depend entirely on its hypotheses and hard core assumptions. Therefore, reliance upon this theory as the sole explanation for the behavior of nuclear states and for the buildup of nuclear weapons in response to the actions of other states is not scientifically supported. Other methods such as negotiation, arms limitations, treaties, and efforts to promote sustainable economic growth among nations are also required for any nation that wishes to contribute to long-term stability in the modern nuclear age.