Abstract A look at the the effects of TV violence on the lives of children. The author includes real life examples and examines the constitutional attack on television violence as child violence escalates. An examination of the debates taking place.
From the Paper "In most people's homes there sits an outlet for violence that often goes unnoticed. It is the television, and the children who view it are often pulled into its realistic world of violent scenes with sometimes devastating results. Most parents don"t realize what their children are being exposed to. They know that their children are watching TV, whether they know what they"re watching or not, and how it can affect them later in life is a different story."
A term paper summarizing Durkheims "suicide". It is a paper that paraphrases what Durkheim actually meant when he wrote Suicide. Each paragraph covers Egotistic, Anomie, and Alturistic suicide.
Abstract This essay focuses on the work of Durkheim entitled "Suicide. " The author attempts to understand Durkheim's work, the role of sociology in suicide, the ambiguity surrounding the definition of suicide and the forms of suicide.
From the Paper Suicide, Durkheim's third major work is of importance as it was his first attempt to bring empiricism into Sociology. Empiricism would provide a sociological explanation for phenomena such as suicide, which was traditionally regarded as restrictively psychological or biological. Durkheim defined the role of Sociology as comparable to Biology in natural science. Both disciplines study the normal or abnormal characteristics of phenomena, which affect the strength, or weakness of the organism. Sociology's main focus is to "study facts external to the individual" (Thompson 1985:92). When the term suicide comes to mind, we do not automatically link it with Sociology. Suicide can be argued to be a mental state, which is reserved mostly for the discipline of psychology. Durkheim looks at how this perceived mental state can be brought into Sociology by looking at elements such as family, occupations and social ties, all of which are a part of society and the root of Sociology. These elements are "always contemporaneous with some crisis which temporarily affects the social state" (Thompson 1985:95). Looking at society's groups, Durkheim noted that each "population had its own suicide rate, and that this rate is more constant than the general mortality".
An examination of the phenomenon of Bipolar Disorder (manic depression) in children, focusing on how this affects children's social and behavioral development.
Abstract Bipolar disease in children, its prevalence, signs and symptoms, and treatment are discussed. No specific drugs are mentioned as the crux of the paper relates to the social development of these children. Specifically, the paper provides a quick definition of what is "normal" social development, the consequences of "abnormal" social development, and lastly what specific abnormalities or obstacles of social development affect children with bipolar disease.
From the Paper "Everyone can elicit some happy memory from childhood. For most individuals, an account of a favorite birthday party, camping trip, or other social event can be easily recollected. For some, this is an especially difficult challenge, and not because of an impaired memory or other cognitive deficit. They simply lack those memories; feelings of happiness, belonging to a peer group, or simply of having friends elude them. Bipolar disorder (also known as manic-depression) is a fairly well known illness that affects millions of adults worldwide and is now being diagnosed among children, some as young as 5 years old. Children with this condition are especially vulnerable, as it is during these years that their social development and interpersonal relationship skills are critically defined. Normal children do not have to consciously think about or make a coordinated effort to "make friends" usually; it is a process that seems to happen effortlessly. Bipolar children are not as fortunate, as the physical and psychological manifestations of the disease, coupled with the stigma that is usually attached to them, make healthy social development almost impossible. In response, the standard of care treatment of this disorder, at any age, is usually pharmacotherapy. But can this really help a lonely, depressed child, in their struggle to find a place in the world and be accepted?"
Abstract This paper examines the effects of violent music as debated in Congress, the American Psychological Association, and parents, over why violent music encourages violence, especially rap and rock music.
From the Paper "In the aftermath of the Columbine High School shootings, fingers quickly pointed at the violent media favored by the killers: violent video games, Quentin Tarantino films, Marilyn Manson music. For decades, violent lyrics and themes in popular music have been targeted for being responsible for almost every social ill- from school violence to teenagers increasing disrespect towards their parents."
Abstract This paper is a brief discussion of motivational theory. Various theories of motivation are outlined, including the most widely recognized modern motivational theory of opportunity-cost. The importance of motivation is also discussed.
From the Paper "Motivation is the study of what makes us do things. Every day we are faced with many decisions. What choice we make is the study of motivation. There are several theories of motivation, the theory of opportunity-cost is the most widely recognized. This paper will discuss the major forces that drive us and influence our decisions.
The advent of the industrialized age forced many companies to study what motivates their workers in an attempt to boost production. It was believed that money was the key motivational factor in driving employee performance. It was later found that other factors besides money effect their attitudes and work ethics (Lindner, 1998). This led to further studies in an attempt to understand the factors that motivate employees. These included Maslow's need-hierarchy theory, Herzberg's two-factor theory, Vroom's expectancy theory, Adam's equity theory, and Skinner's reinforcement theory (Lindner, 1998). All of these theories centered on one factor. Modern motivational theory believes that all of these theories are summarized in one idea, opportunity-cost (Lindner, 1998). This idea is centered on the idea that every action has a cost. This cost may be time, money, or emotional. In making our decisions we weigh the potential gain from the action against the cost (Lindner, 1998)."
Abstract The paper shows that there has been much debate centered on the growing number of single parents raising children and how society tends to blame single parent homes for the majority of ills including drug abuse, violent crimes and juvenile delinquency. While there are some single parent households headed by men, the overwhelming majority of single parent homes are headed by women. The paper shows that this fact sparks another concern, since the average household income for the female single parent is a mere 24,000 per year, which depending on the size of the family could mean that many single parent households are living at or below the poverty rate. The paper questions that with the apparent negatives of being a child in a single parent household, is it a valid conclusion to say that on average, children of single parent households are worse of than their counterparts living in a two-parent household? This paper also discusses how children of single parents cope emotionally and how they fare academically relative to their peers.
From the Paper "They may also be more knowledgeable, cultured and well rounded if they have two sets of families to learn from and be loved by. These aspects may help them become more determined to succeed in their endeavors, teach them to become great leaders and valuable contributors to their families and to society. Single parent families are not economic bads, as a matter of fact, many of the worlds great leaders, visionaries, entertainers, politicians, TV personalities and others who make a valuable contribution to society every day are products of single parent homes."
Tags: fatherless, juvenile, delinquency, independence, responsibility, underage, sex
Abstract This paper discusses the Florida ban on gay adoption, as well as other legal and ethical aspects of same sex parenting. The paper explores the question of whether children brought up by gay parents are at a disadvantage in any way and uses professional research to back up the findings.
From the Paper "Despite the number of laws passed or the numerous movies or television shows that support gay rights, the negative conations associated with same-sex parent adoption continue to taint both attitudes and laws. Society is still laden with negative biases against homosexual adoption, and against gays in general (Johnson, et al., 1995) which severely limits their rights as people and as parents."
Abstract Finding the key to motivating employees is not a lesson easily learned, nor is it a lesson which, once learned, can be considered mastered. Instead, individual employees respond to different types of motivation in different ways, and successful supervisors develop comprehensive understanding of each of their employees and the corporate environment in which they operate. This research examines types of motivation and the components the go into successfully motivating employees to meet their goals and objectives.
From the Paper "Introduction
Finding the key to motivating employees is not a lesson easily learned, nor is it a lesson which, once learned, can be considered mastered. Instead, individual employees respond to different types of motivation in different ways, and successful supervisors develop comprehensive understanding of each of their employees and the corporate environment in which they operate. This research examines types of motivation and the components the go into successfully motivating employees to meet their goals and objectives.
Motivation Theories
Understanding motivation and performance begins with understanding that the workers are not necessarily to be blamed if their performance or motivation is not what the supervisor envisions. Instead of ..."
Abstract This paper explores the often misdiagnosed manifestation of bipolar disorder in youth. The paper addresses the misconception that "depression" only affects adults. It looks at the many symptoms of bipolar disorder in children which continues through adolescence. It explains that even though there is no cure for the disorder, there are several treatments available - these are discussed. The paper also lists the type of behavior attributed to a youth suffering from bipolar disorder.
From the Paper "As a brain disorder affecting of 1 to 2 percent of the general population, bipolar disorder is considered to be genetically transmitted. Other than "bad genes", there is no other known cause (Durand et al., 2000). The disorder itself is rooted in biochemical imbalances that occur within the central nervous system. Symptoms include extreme mood swings, rise or fall in activity levels, and erratic behavioral changes. Most children with this disorder will go from a nearly euphoric high mood (manic) to a deeply depressed pessimistic and sometimes even suicidal mood (Depressive)."
From the Paper "Cognitive Development: Contrasting the Theories of Piaget and Vygotsky
Introduction
This research contrasts the cognitive development theories of Jean Piaget and L. S Vygotsky. The implications of these theories for the teaching of young children are also addressed.
Comparing the Theories
The origins of social learning theory lie in attempts to combine psychoanalytic and stimulus.response theory into a comprehensive explanation of human behavior (Grusec, 1992, pp. 776.786). Various theories of human development often tend to view people as either active or passive in interactions with their environments (Cohen, 1987, p. 22). A passive concept of human..."
Abstract This paper discusses the condition known as fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS) occurs when a pregnant woman drinks alcohol, an act that sends her baby a toxin that has been proven to hinder the growth of the baby's brain, cause birth defects, and rob the child of the chance to learn. It focuses on studies in this field and what research is still being performed.
From the Paper "Until the 1970s, the traditional medical thinking was that the mother's placenta was a natural barrier protecting an unborn child from harmful substances (Streissguth, 1983). That belief changed in the 1950s, when researchers discovered certain diseases, such as rubella, could cross the placenta and cause birth defects. In the 1970s, research on animals confirmed alcohol was a teratogen, an agent that produces defects in a developing embryo."
Abstract This paper contrasts both traditional psychoanalysis and a newer tradition, behavioral family therapy and looks at their applicability in different situations. The author explains that psychoanalysis, developed by Freud, helps the client gain more awareness and understanding of their inner world including motivations. The author points out that behavioral family therapy, a melding of behavior therapy and family therapy, assumes that all behavior is learned, or conditioned, and can be unlearned and changed and that the family, viewed as a system, is the focus of this learning.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Description
Comparison
Depth/Insight
Focus on Family
Goals
Length of Therapy
Meaning Orientation
Conformity
Application to Different Situations
From the Paper "While they both emphasize family, they do so in very different ways. In psychoanalysis, the therapeutic arrangement is between the therapist and the individual. Family members are not brought into the therapeutic alliance. In family therapy, the family is the unit that works with the therapist. The family is not separated out, but placed at the center of the working process."
Tags: motivation, awareness, conditioned, system, unit
Abstract Music has long been thought of as a mood-altering medium. As a way of influencing customer's moods, virtually all retail stores including supermarkets have some sort of background music playing. A number of studies have been done that analyze the effect in-store music has on customer perception and behavior but relatively few that examine the actual effect of a particular type of music influencing the purchase of a particular product. This paper tries to prove that music associated with a particular country (i.e. stereotypically Italian music will influence people to buy pasta or olive oil) will influence people to buy products associated from the country associated with the music in a supermarket setting.
From the Paper "Although dreams may contain elements of ordinary things, these elements are often scrambled in fantastic ways. Sigmund Freud, the first psychologist in the modern era that tried to analyze dreams, believed that dreams often delineated concealed fulfillment of repressed wishes. In Freudian dream interpretation, every dream has a manifest content that could come from the events of the day or early memories; and a latent content that comes from an individual's unconscious desires. By using Freud's theories of dreams, the rest of his theories can be explained. Freud viewed dreams as ?the royal road to the unconscious.? "
Abstract General summaries of the last four stages of human development: Adolescence, Young Adulthood, Middle Adulthood, and Late Adulthood. Examines physical, cognitive, and psycho-social aspects of development.
Adolescence
Definition
Reproduction
Risky behavior
Cognitive: Piaget (Formal operations), Elkind
Identity vs. identity confusion (Erikson)
Peer and Family relations
Young Adulthood
Cognitive: Postformal thought, Triarchic theory of
Intelligence (Sternberg), Emotional Intelligence
Personality: 5 factor model (Costa & McCrae)
Intimacy vs. Isolation (Erikson)
Levinson & the Grant Study
Culture: Marriage, childbirth, remaining single
Late Adulthood
Biological aging ? genetic programming, variable rate
theories
Physical changes
Cognitive ? Metamemory, semantic, procedural, sensory
Ego integrity versus despair (Erikson)
Disengagement, continuity, and activity theories
Retirement
Marriage, family, peer relationships
Living arrangements
From the Paper "Adolescence is the developmental transition from childhood to adulthood. Although its beginning or end is not clearly marked in Western societies, adolescence lasts about a decade from age 11 or 12 until the late teens or early twenties. Adolescence carries many risks to healthy development, as well as opportunities for physical, cognitive, and psychosocial growth."
Tags: erikson, geriatric, jung, middle-age, old, piaget, stage, young
