Consider this...

A sociology project

[futurenursepat-blog]

Opioid epidemic responses overlook gender

Yale health experts warn that current efforts to confront the growth of opioid addiction and overdose deaths must better incorporate an understanding of how women fit into this epidemic.

In the article, “Opioid Epidemic Responses Overlook Gender”, it states the Yale study calls for experts to view the opioid crisis different for women and how, when it comes to women, opioid addiction should be treated different. Women are more likely to misuse opiates prescribed by physicians due to the idea that pain tolerance levels are lower for women than men.

“Between 1999 and 2016, overdose deaths from opioid prescriptions increased by 404% in men and 583% in women.” (Overdose 2018) Emergency Medical Technicians are 3 times less likely to administer life saving drugs to women who overdose. 28% pregnant women entering treatment centers report opioid misuse in 2012.

 The study has concluded that women with opioid addictions:

Develop addiction quicker than men.

Have more personal, social and economic limitations than man.

Most likely to have a negative impact on family structure due to women being primary caregivers.

Opioid use is increasing across North America and the globe. Men and women experience opioid use differently and treatment needs are different between the genders. This needs to be understood to save lives.

This summary of opioid use as it relates to gender is an example of quantitative research. Conley describes quantitative research as methods that seek to obtain information about the social world that is already in or can be converted to numeric form (2017, p. 47). As you can see, the study shows numerical data to verify its findings. The article highlights the correlation or association- two variables that “tend to vary together” (Conley, 2017, p. 48)- between opioid use and the gender that is using it. As you can see above the number vary drastically between the use between males and females.

Word Count: 284

 Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

Yale University. (2018, July 25) Opioid epidemic responses overlook gender. Retrieved from https://medicalxpress.com/news/2018-07-opioid-epidemic-responses-overlook-gender.html

[futurenursepat-blog]

Advice for Future Students

“Advice for Future Students”

Sociology gives you an interesting way to view the world you live. Its not always easy and it is definitely not always comfortable, but in the end, you will end up being a better person for doing so. My biggest piece of advice is, Plan. Plan your time and energy wisely. If you are planning to have a packed course schedule for the summer like I did, plan to take it in the fall (insert laugh). Sociology is a course that requires a lot of attention to detail and, if you are like me and work a full-time job while going to school and raising children, it’s really hard to give the course the proper attention it needs.  There were some assignments that suffered because of this crazy schedule of mine. If I had to do it all over again, I definitely would have reconsidered and taken the class in the fall, where the time isn’t as constricted as a summer course. Enjoy! Be open to new ideas!

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[futurenursepat-blog]

How to Think About White Privilege

White privilege confers advantages on white people in the U.S. and in many countries around the world, and its necessary counterpart is oppr

This article highlights Peggy McIntosh’s 1988 essay where she coined the phrase “White Privilege” and explained what that meant. Nicki Lisa Cole highlights the multitudinous forms of advantages one has based on the fact that one’s skin is white. Many white Americans are blind to, or choose to, ignore the fact that we live in a racist society where life is generally easier for a white individual.

Through the use of social imagination- the ability to connect the most basic, intimate aspects of an individuals life to seemingly impersonal and remote historical forces- we, as a white community, are encouraged to evaluate the things and opportunities we have that are unavailable to those of color, and to make the choice to reject the privilege as much as possible (Cole, 2018, para. 5-6).

According to Cole, some of McIntosh’s points are still valid today. Especially:

-          The ability to speak and write from an unchallenged position of authority;

-          The ability to hold onto wealth during economic crisis;

-          Being able to deny that racism exists;

-          Believing you worked hard for and earned everything you have without receiving any help or advantage (Cole, 2018, para. 10-11)

Among many other points.

In our textbook, Conley discusses the importance of being white. As a culture, white people have lost the identity of their race. What does it mean to be white? We don’t think about it, why should we? What is whiteness? Why is it important? “Whiteness is about not feeling the weight of representing an entire population with one’s success or failure” (Conley, 2017, p. 347).

This is extremely enlightening. As a general reflection- the media likes to highlight the crimes of people of color. When all you see is this person was arrested for distribution of illegal substance, robbery, or murder, society tends to judge the race. When a white person does the same, society judges the individual. This is a major disadvantage for any minority and is something that we need to change.

Word count: 335

Cole, Nicki Lisa, Ph.D. (2018, June 22). Understanding and Defining White Privilege. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/white-privilege-definition-3026087

Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

[your-perfect-opposite-deactivat]

“I don’t think you can describe him as a ‘sex addict.’ He’s a predator. But what he’s as it were, the top of the ladder of is a system of harassment, and belittling, and bullying, and interference…..This has been part of our world, women’s world, since time immemorial. So what we need to start talking about is the crisis in masculinity, the crisis of extreme masculinity, which is this sort of behaviour……Do they have to be all as bad as him to make it count? Does it only count if you…have done it to loads and loads and loads of women? Or does it count if you do it to one woman once? I think the latter.” (x)

[futurenursepat-blog]

Social deviance is defined as any behavior that violates social norms. Ranging from informal deviances, such as coughing without covering your mouth, to formal deviance, any sort of crime- theft, rape, murder, or like in the case of this article, sexual assault.

In 2017, news broke of sexual assault allegations against Harvey Weinstein. To some this isn’t surprising, to many it came as a shock. This opened the flood gates to many others in the entertainment industry being accused of similar crimes. In this clip form BBC Newsnight, we see Emma Thompson, a renounded actress, talk about these incidents.

She talks about how we need to stop labeling these deviant offenders as “sex addicts” and call them what they truly are, “Predators”. In our textbook, Conley talks about the labeling theory- the belief that individuals subconsciously notice how others see or label them, and their reactions to those labels over time form the basis of their self-identity (Conley, 2017, p. 207). I believe the above mentioned quoted by Emma Thompson was a reflection on Weinstein constantly using the idea of himself being a “sex addict” as an excuse for his behavior. By giving himself this label, it gives the opportunity for others to view him as less a deviant and maybe even start to feel some sort of sympathy for him.  What Thompson is implying is that wee need to give these criminals the proper labels of “predator” and stop coddling their behavior and let them be punished properly for the crimes that they have committed. No matter to what scale the assault has been done.

 Word count: 266

Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

[gattungs-wesen]

Choose your team

[futurenursepat-blog]

When I found this meme, I knew I had to use it of my theory blog. Not because it pointed towards a specific theory, but because it represents some of the greatest minds in sociological history, the men who gave us the theories.

Karl Marx gave us Marxism- an ideological alternative to capitalism (Conley, 2017, p. 24). This elaboration of historical materialism pointed to the idea that struggles between classes is the drive of social change. The Marxist theory is also known as conflict theory. Theorists who follow this thought believe inequality exists because of this struggle.

Max Weber disagreed with Marx’s ideology. Weber felt that Marx focused too narrowly on economic/ social class. Weber went on to contribute the idea of Verstehen- the suggestion that sociologist approach social behavior from the perspective of those engaging in it (Conley, 2017, p. 26).

Lastly, here, we have Emile Durkheim, author of The Division of Labor in Society. Basically saying for social solidarity to form in society we need to division of labor, to maintain social cohesion. Durkheim is the founding specialist of positive sociology- “a strain within sociology that believes the social world can be described and predicted by certain observable relationships” (Conley, 2017, p.27).

When we evaluate the world around us, we often use theories taught to us inspired by these three theorist, among others. We should give them and their theories credit as we move forward. Personally, I tend to lean towards the theory brought to us by Durkheim. Whose team do you choose?

Word Count: 255

Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

[futurenursepat-blog]

https://www.pbs.org/pov/whosestreets/video/whosestreets/?utm_source=website&utm_medium=slideshow&utm_campaign=home_slideshow

Whose Streets starts with the death of Michael Brown, a young unarmed black man who was shot by a police officer. His body left on the street for hours. This incident was the tipping poin for the black community in Ferguson, Missouri. The event sparked the community to stand up for themselves by putting their lives on the line; seeking justice for Browns family, their community and their race. The events in Ferguson, MO lead to the formation of the Black Lives Matter movement.

Whose Streets focuses on the events that lead up to the beginning of the national social movement. Through the camera, you get to witness the real, peaceful, non-violent intended protests. The media portrayed the events as though the protestors where violent looters, when in reality the violence was started by the excessive force used by police to trample on the constitutional rights of the protestors.

This use of force is a very excellent example of hemegony- a condition by which a dominate group, in this case the Ferguson PD, uses its power to elicit the voluntary “consent” of the masses (Conley, 2017, p. 95). Through tanks, dogs, rubber bullets, and tear gas, the police forced protestors off the streets and into their homes.

In his essay, The Four Stages of Social Movement, Jonathan Christiansen describes social movements as organized yet informal entities that are engaged in extra-institutional conflict that is oriented towards a goal (Christiansen, 2009, p. 2). The events that take place in Whose Streets are an example of Stage 2 of a social movement- that is coalescence. This stage is “characterized by the coming together of social movement constituents. This stage is marked by demonstrations and formulation of strategy’ (Christiansen, 2009, p. 5). With the obvious protests and organized events to help bring light to the atrocities that afflict the black community in Ferguson, MO and around the country, this documentary is an excellent example of this stage.

Whose Streets is a powerful, emotional and sometimes takes you out of your comfort zone- especially for a white person who doesn’t understand what being black truly means. Anyone interested in the Black Lives Matter movement, and social movements for racial change, should watch this film.

 Word Count: 370

Christiansen, J. (2009) The Four Stages of Social Movements. EBSCO Publishing, Inc.

Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

[papermagazine]

🔥 See Amber Rose dressed as different feminist heroes in our new #Fandemonium issue 🔥

[futurenursepat-blog]

Amber Rose is a model and author of a new memoire/ self-help book How to be a Bad Bitch. In celebration on the release she dressed and did a photoshoot of several feminist hero’s; such as Rosie the Rivetor, Pussy Riot and Susan B. Anthony. This article describes how she became, of late, a feminist. Feminism is defined, in our textbook, as a consciousness rising movement to get people to understand that gender is an organizing principle of life (Conley, 2017, p. 281). All women are feminist, in my belief. The only difference between those who label themselves as so, and the others who don’t, is ‘feminist’ don’t sit idly by. They voice, protest and lobby for the rights that they believe that a woman should have.

Amber Rose, according to the article, used her celebrity power to organize a ‘Slut Walk’ to promote sex positivity, with the goal to “empower women and help them realize there is no shame in enjoying one’s sexuality” (Song, 2015, para. 3). Sexuality is defined as “desire, sexual preference, and sexual identity and behavior (Conley, 2017, p.281).

Roses’ ultimate goal in her feminist movement, "I guess what I want with our generation is to have it not be that way. Like, all of us as women, let's just stick together and look out for each other. I was really glad that my Slut Walk was extremely diverse. There were all types of women from all walks of life there... That would be the main thing for me... really just try to take the racism out of feminism for our generation” (Song, 2015, para. 6).

 Word Count: 270

 Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

Song, S. (2015, December 2) Amber Rose Alert! Retrieved from http://www.papermag.com/amber-rose-feminist-heroes-1488371818.html

[futurenursepat-blog]

Wild child: The Story of Feral Children is an interesting documentary on feral children and the study of them. Feral children are human children who have lived isolated from human contact and social/emotional connections from a young age. They also lack socialization- the process with which you learn how to become a functioning member of society (Conley, 2017, p. 117). Most of these cases are due to abandonment or abuse. According to Conley, we are largely shaped by interaction. If w eliminate society the hum part of human nature would not develop (2017, p.120). Studies in ‘human nature’ and feral children have shown that after a long period of isolation it can be difficult for them to behave like normal human being, especially in language (Conley, 2017, p. 120)

               Feral children are a classic example of nature vs. nurture. It gives great insight to how the nurture side of the debate really plays an important role in the development of young children.

               In our textbook, Conley discusses the story of ‘Anna’. Like the children in this video, Anna was raised in horrid conditions and in isolation, for an estimated 5 years. The professionals who cared for her reached several conclusions, but the one that stuck out as most relevant to me is that she “ seems to demonstrate that human nature is determined by the child’s communitive social contacts as much as by his organic equipment and that the system of communicative symbols is a highly complex business acquired early in life as a result of long and intimate training”(Conley, 2017, p.121). Basically, without intimate contact with human beings a child resorts to the wild behaviors of the animals, as the animals become their agents of socialization.

 Word count: 287

Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

[futurenursepat-blog]

Dalton Conley defines consumerism as the steady acquisition of material possessions, often with the belief that happiness and fulfillment can this be achieved (Conley, 2017, p. 107). It is through the study of consumerism where the theory of McDonaldization arose. McDonaldization is the theory that is used to describe society when it adopts the characteristics of a fast-food restaurant. It is based on 4 main principles- predictability, calculability, efficiency, and control.

Similarly, Disneyization is the idea that society adopts the characteristics of the famous theme park. This article goes over the similarities between it and McDonaldization as well as explaining its main principles-  theming, dedifferentiation of consumption, merchandising, and emotional labor .

Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

[biscuitsarenice]

Rich Hall’s Working for the American Dream

[futurenursepat-blog]

In this collection of gifs of Rich Hall, he clearly discusses the social class structure of American Society and how it is viewed among its citizens. We fail to recognize our social structure as we like to feel as if our country is homogenous. We tend to be blind-folded to our own social structure- and the struggles that arise in them. I feel that to have a proper working society, no matter the culture, social classes are a necessity, or we could end up with chaos.

Functionalism is the theory that multiple social institutions exist to serve and important function to keep society running. A class-based society would be an example of this, as in order for the class system to work properly, we need the different classes. Class system is important for the economy. If we view class through the eyes of a Marxist theorist, “every mode of production has its own unique social relations of production, basically the rules of the game for various players in the process (Conley, 2017, p.251). You need the worker in a factory, to make the ‘stuff’ for the sales men to sell, and the ‘big guy’ to make sure everything runs smoothly.

These gifs are a perfect example of how our country’s social class is more based on the status hierarchy system- a system of stratification based on social prestige. As that prestige is clearly based on where our names are place. If its on the building- upper class, on a desk- middle class, on our shirts- lower class.

 Word Count: 259

Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

[futurenursepat-blog]

In this comic strip we are seeing Tony Stark being praised for donating a large sum of money, $100,000 to be exact, to the hospital to help build their new wing. As a long time fan of the Iron Man series, I know that Tony Stark is a good-hearted individual and often means well, even if he doesn’t always think before he acts. Stark also happens to be very arrogant. He is often seen to be flaunting his wealth, as seen here in this comic. Instead of making an anonymous donation he is being awarded for his charitable contribution. This is the definition to conspicuous compassion- the use of charitable donations of money in order to enhance the social prestige of the donor, with a display of superior socio-economic status.

               Conspicuous compassion is a form of consumerism. According to Dalton Conley, consumerism is the steady acquisition of material possessions, often with the belief that happiness and fulfillment can thus be achieved (2017, p. 107). Mr. Stark did in fact use his money for the acquisition of the hospital wing, though not for himself. Doing so made him feel some happiness and satisfaction.

               The second frame we see Tony Stark announcing, presumably to either a crowd or camera, that he had ‘contacted’ Iron Man to entertain the children on live tv. Stark is planning to use the platform of television as his media- any formats, platforms, or vehicles that carry, present or communicate information- to show to the viewer that Iron Man, too, is charitable.

 Word Count: 254

Conley, D. (2017). You may ask yourself: An introduction to thinking like a sociologist (5th core ed).  New York, NY: W.W. Norton.

[futurenursepat-blog]

Welcome!

My name is Patty. I am a 35-year-old aspiring nurse. Ultimately, I’d love to get my BSN, but for now, let just get through my associates degree. I have always loved the idea of being a nurse and most who know me would describe me as a kind, caring, patient and creative individual- with a bit of stubbornness and sarcasm on the side. Learning about people and different cultures has always been an interest of mine, and I have always been honored to work with people of different ethnicities and religions. From Indian Hindu to Chinese Buddhism to North African and Middle Eastern Islam. The area that interests me the most would just so happen to be the food. It’s the one thing that connects us all. Its amazing how diverse, yet similar, all cultural cuisine is!

I live with my amazingly patient and supportive fiancé and I am a mom of 3 amazing children- a 14-year-old son, 9-year-old and 3-year-old daughters. Each completely different from the other. I would also like to include my fourth child, Leo. He is my 2-year-old Bengal-mix cat, and as all pet owners know, they are just as much our babies as a human.

I look forward to sharing my thoughts on different topics over the next few weeks. I invite you to come learn with me as I explore the world of Sociology and beyond!

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