Assignment 3

I was the first generation to be born in America on both sides of my family. My mother, as well as her parents, were born in Germany. My father was born in Australia after his parents moved there from Poland. Although i do not think about my race and ethnicity too much, it is something that is important to me. i believe that the cultrual values and traditions that come from my backround help keep my family together. I would also like to pass on those traditions to my family one day.

While watching the video, what struck me the most was that the majority of the kids (despite their own race) picked the white doll to play with over the black doll. From an early age children are influenced by peers, at school, and by the media. I believe that their choice to play with the white doll over the black doll was not because they personally thought it was "nicer" but because the larger social factors influence them to believe that whiteness and lightness are associated with moral purity.

Assignment 2

1. According to functionalist theory, what was the definition of the "instrumental leader" and what was the definition of an "expressive leader." What family roles were connected to each of these leader definitions?
  

·         Functionalist theory defined the group’s instrumental leader as someone who led the discussion in just how certain assignments were to be completed. The expressive leader’s job is said right in the title; their job was to keep the groups spirit high. Functionalist theory views life in a very harmonious way; in their perfect world the father would be the family’s instrumental leader and the mother a supporting expressive leader.

2. What main demographic change during the 1960s and 1970s led theorists to be critical of the functionalist perspective?
              

·         The feminist movement was a huge demographic change that led theorists to be critical of the functionalist perspective. Women were commonly seen as “expressive leaders” within the family and often took care of the home life. As soon as they stepped outside into the work force the basic “functions” of family no longer held true and it became more of a conflict.

3. In contrast to functionalist theorists, in your own words, what is the main theme of conflict theory?

·         Funcationalism is a theory that every ‘piece’ of society comes together to function as a whole, just the opposite of that is conflict theory. Conflict theory concentrates on how those pieces of society differ and some are more likely to come to power rather than others. For example, a conflict theorist may study the inequality of men (who dominate) and women in the workplace.

4. Social exchange theory is based on ideas from what discipline (not sociology). What do exchange theorists say about husbands bargaining power versus that of wives?

·         Social exchange theory is based on ideas from economists. Humans are constantly weighing the pros and cons of actions and behaviors. To apply this theory to family, the “exchange” would typically be a wife doing housework& child care to reap the benefits of her husband’s income. However, once women entered the workforce they lost need for the exchange because their own income allowed them to be more independent.  

 5. Feminist theory is based on what main idea?

·         Feminist theory is based on the main idea of gender. Feminists believe that it is not the biological differences the separate men and women, but rather the socially constructed factors.

6. Thinking about the functionalist, conflict, exchange and feminist/gender perspectives or theories: do you think the power of wives versus husbands in families is changing and why? CLEARLY identify a specific demographic, economic, or cultural change(s) we went over in lecture 3 to support your argument.

·         Taking all the theories into account, I do believe that the power of wives versus husbands in families is changing. Women today are career oriented and independent so much so that they are putting off marriage and family life until they feel established.  In this economy, it almost seems natural to have dual-earners in the household.

Hey guys! I’m Chelsea and I’m a senior at Montclair. Even though I live about 20 minutes from campus, I have to leave an hour before class because parking is such a nightmare!! (I’m sure you all know that already though). I’m majoring in Sociology and I have no idea what I’m going to do with it once I graduate =/. I have taken an interest in Family Studies though and that is why I have enrolled in this course!  The most obvious career option I have with my future degree is to become a Social Worker, but I have also been looking into working with adoption agencies.

                My family is pretty tight knit. I live with both my parents and have an older sister and a younger brother. My parents have been married for over 25 years and I am fortunate that they provided me with an awesome childhood.  Perhaps that is why I am looking forward to topics like child poverty and effect of divorce and conflict on children.  Learning about these topics, I feel, will better help prepare me to get into a field where I can help children who are struggling.

                I am a newbie to wiki’s. I couldn’t even use my Montclair email to sign up! (hope that’s okay professor). I feel like the hardest part, creating the blog, is now behind me. After doing a little bit of exploring, the wiki seems pretty neat and easy to navigate. I am looking forward to using something other than blackboard =]