One concept from chapter 12 that I really liked was the one about culture and goals. This section talks about how our culture defines our goal making decisions. In our culture many kids aspire to go to college. That is a common cultural goal in our American culture. In other cultures, school might not be a priority but making a lot of money might be the ultimate goal. It really depends on what is most acceptable.
I think we feel pressure in our culture to make certain goals for ourselves. According to our text, our culture follows the effort-optimism standard which is the belief that one will be rewarded for hard-work. Interestingly, this characteristic makes a lot of people feel over worked and burned out. Sometimes people become workaholics in order to achieve their goals. Other countries may not take work so seriously because they think that no matter what happens, God has the ultimate rule over their lives and it really doesn't matter how hard they work for something. Cultural goals can sometimes be a good thing but sometimes they can break people down. I think it's best to avoid letting our culture decide the goals we want to make.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Friday, April 3, 2009
March 29th - April 4th Question #2
I would have to say that I agree with the rationality, perfectibility, and mutability premises. I think that they all make perfect sense and most people would agree with them. I think as humans we are all naturally rational and capable of making logical decisions about numerous issues. The institutions that are based on this belief are the court system, free enterprise, and democracy. I think most people are capable of being rational but many are not. These people are not widely accepted by our culture because they do not fit into the norm.
The perfectibility premise "is based on the old puritan idea that humans are born in sin but are capable of achieving goodness through effort and control" (pg. 353). I agree with this statement but I also know it has some major religious connotations. I believe that people can work their way to goodness, but I don't know if perfection is possible. I believe that we are all sinners and no matter how hard we work we are bound to slip up, and that is why I think so many people believe in forgiveness and a renewal of the heart. Religious or not, I think many people follow this basic belief.
The mutability premise says that people are shaped by the world around them and because of this assumption, the institution of education is so important to our society. By helping to better someones environmental, physical and psychological circumstances you can drastically change someones life, which essentially helps better the rest of the culture.
The perfectibility premise "is based on the old puritan idea that humans are born in sin but are capable of achieving goodness through effort and control" (pg. 353). I agree with this statement but I also know it has some major religious connotations. I believe that people can work their way to goodness, but I don't know if perfection is possible. I believe that we are all sinners and no matter how hard we work we are bound to slip up, and that is why I think so many people believe in forgiveness and a renewal of the heart. Religious or not, I think many people follow this basic belief.
The mutability premise says that people are shaped by the world around them and because of this assumption, the institution of education is so important to our society. By helping to better someones environmental, physical and psychological circumstances you can drastically change someones life, which essentially helps better the rest of the culture.
March 29th - April 4th Question #1
I definitely agree with anthropologist Ruth Benedict that we are "creatures of our culture." I think that everything we know and believe and the ways in which we act are all shaped by the culture we were brought up in. I don't necessarily think that it is a negative thing, but I do believe it can become negative if we don't acknowledge it. It's fairly obvious what culture someone is from upon meeting them. That's just how our world works, we are a product of our specific cultures. Within a culture, there are many different people, but most fit the mold of what there culture represents.
Sometimes our culture limits us in ways that are not always apparent to us. "Cultures are group understandings rather than individual ones, and belonging to a culture means acting according to group norms" (pg. 344). Sometimes if you do not act according to those norms you will no longer be accepted within that culture. For example, in our culture it is a norm for girls to walk around in shorts and tank tops in the summer time. However, in other cultures this is completely inappropriate and if a woman was caught doing that she would no longer be accepted in the group. This is a case of culture interfering with personal freedoms. I think there are many aspects of our own culture that other cultures could learn from, and vice versa. We all have differences but for the most part we are very similar. It's important that we accept other cultures and try to learn from them in order to change ourselves for the better.
Sometimes our culture limits us in ways that are not always apparent to us. "Cultures are group understandings rather than individual ones, and belonging to a culture means acting according to group norms" (pg. 344). Sometimes if you do not act according to those norms you will no longer be accepted within that culture. For example, in our culture it is a norm for girls to walk around in shorts and tank tops in the summer time. However, in other cultures this is completely inappropriate and if a woman was caught doing that she would no longer be accepted in the group. This is a case of culture interfering with personal freedoms. I think there are many aspects of our own culture that other cultures could learn from, and vice versa. We all have differences but for the most part we are very similar. It's important that we accept other cultures and try to learn from them in order to change ourselves for the better.
Friday, March 13, 2009
Week 8-14 Question #2
Different countries often have very different ways of showing nonverbal communication. Even within our own country people communicate differently. I think one of the most obvious and interesting is how people communicate a simple hello. In many places people will communicate with a wave of the hand, and in some places a simple smile does the job. What I think is most interesting is the avoidance of communication. In some third world countries, women are not even allowed to look at a person to communicate a hello. I think this type of communicate ranges drastically depending on what country you are in.
Another interesting and obvious difference occurs in our own country. One of the biggest nonverbal communicators is the way we present ourselves in public, or simply put, our fashion sense. I know we shouldn't judge people by the way they dress, but it's actually really hard to avoid that. People dress a certain way to send a certain nonverbal message. Most people have enough sense to know that if they dress a certain way then they will be judged a certain way. Fashion trends vary from city to city. Everybody dresses differently but I think we all stick to similar standards of dress, whether that be professional, punk, preppy etc. We all fit into some category that sends a very specific message to the people around us.
Another interesting and obvious difference occurs in our own country. One of the biggest nonverbal communicators is the way we present ourselves in public, or simply put, our fashion sense. I know we shouldn't judge people by the way they dress, but it's actually really hard to avoid that. People dress a certain way to send a certain nonverbal message. Most people have enough sense to know that if they dress a certain way then they will be judged a certain way. Fashion trends vary from city to city. Everybody dresses differently but I think we all stick to similar standards of dress, whether that be professional, punk, preppy etc. We all fit into some category that sends a very specific message to the people around us.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
March 8-14 Question #1
Nonverbal messages can be extremely ambiguous and I have definitely misinterpreted the meaning of others' messages. I have also had my nonverbal communication be misinterpreted. That is why I think it is extremely important to back up your nonverbal communication with verbal communication. Especially if you know someone may misunderstand you.
My old roommate was a professional when it came to sending confusing nonverbal messages. I knew that she wanted to tell me something but the only way she knew how to do it was with nonverbal messages, which to me seemed like very passive aggressive behavior. "When nonverbal codes work together to send the same message, their impact is intensified. When they work at cross-purposes, confusion results" (110). I think that this was exactly what was happening with my roommate. She was trying to act like nothing was wrong but her nonverbal communication was not consistent. It became a very confusing situation and ended with us having to move out because our issues with each other were not being solved with a proper form of communication.
I think in order to avoid these issues in the future, I've learned that my own nonverbal communication says a lot about what I'm thinking, and in order to make sure I'm consistent I need to talk about things too. I can't solely rely on what my body language and actions are telling people. And it goes both ways. If I'm confused about someones nonverbal communication I need to ask them directly about it before I jump to conclusions. "It is not a good idea to read deep meaning into every gesture, yet it is important to give proper attention to nonverbal cues. People will sometimes tell us nonverbally what they will not tell us with words, and we should not ignore those silent messages" (135). I learned a big lesson with my old roommate. And I now know how to react to someone with they are only offering nonverbal communication about their issues.
My old roommate was a professional when it came to sending confusing nonverbal messages. I knew that she wanted to tell me something but the only way she knew how to do it was with nonverbal messages, which to me seemed like very passive aggressive behavior. "When nonverbal codes work together to send the same message, their impact is intensified. When they work at cross-purposes, confusion results" (110). I think that this was exactly what was happening with my roommate. She was trying to act like nothing was wrong but her nonverbal communication was not consistent. It became a very confusing situation and ended with us having to move out because our issues with each other were not being solved with a proper form of communication.
I think in order to avoid these issues in the future, I've learned that my own nonverbal communication says a lot about what I'm thinking, and in order to make sure I'm consistent I need to talk about things too. I can't solely rely on what my body language and actions are telling people. And it goes both ways. If I'm confused about someones nonverbal communication I need to ask them directly about it before I jump to conclusions. "It is not a good idea to read deep meaning into every gesture, yet it is important to give proper attention to nonverbal cues. People will sometimes tell us nonverbally what they will not tell us with words, and we should not ignore those silent messages" (135). I learned a big lesson with my old roommate. And I now know how to react to someone with they are only offering nonverbal communication about their issues.
Thursday, March 5, 2009
March 1-7 Question #2
I definitely think that men and women use language differently. It's not a bad thing, it's simply just a difference that I think we have all learned to work with. I think language differences are one of the biggest things to cause conflict in a relationship. But it does not have to be that way. We just need to learn how to adjust our communication styles so that we can more more understanding of the opposite sex.
Our textbook says that men and women grow up completely different. "Women's culture stresses intimacy and connection, whereas men's culture values autonomy and individual achievement. These orientations affect men's and women's topics of conversation, their conversational styles, and their interpretations of one another's meanings" (Trenholm p.90). So really, nobody is to blame with an argument arises over misunderstood language. We communicate how we were taught to communicate, if we can't fully understand someone elses language, it is not our fault nor theirs.
We are brought up to act like our specific gender from the very day that we are born. Our understanding of communication and language is based in large part on the fact that we were treated a certain way all throughout our lives. I'm a girl, so I was treated as a girl from the day I was born. I was treated how my parents thought/knew a girl should be treated, and they raised my brothers to act like boys. Our gender languages are almost unavoidable. Every culture has different gender language patterns, but for the most part they follow the same basic assumptions.
Our textbook says that men and women grow up completely different. "Women's culture stresses intimacy and connection, whereas men's culture values autonomy and individual achievement. These orientations affect men's and women's topics of conversation, their conversational styles, and their interpretations of one another's meanings" (Trenholm p.90). So really, nobody is to blame with an argument arises over misunderstood language. We communicate how we were taught to communicate, if we can't fully understand someone elses language, it is not our fault nor theirs.
We are brought up to act like our specific gender from the very day that we are born. Our understanding of communication and language is based in large part on the fact that we were treated a certain way all throughout our lives. I'm a girl, so I was treated as a girl from the day I was born. I was treated how my parents thought/knew a girl should be treated, and they raised my brothers to act like boys. Our gender languages are almost unavoidable. Every culture has different gender language patterns, but for the most part they follow the same basic assumptions.
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
March 1-7 Question #1
I don't think it is possible to perceive someone without judging or categorizing them. I think to perceive something is to judge it. I think they are one in the same. The issue is whether we make positive or negative judgments of other people and why we choose the judgments we make. Our text says that we use personal constructs to make sense of what we notice in others. "Like other schemata, they can make perception easier and more efficient, but they can also be inaccurate and unfair" (Trenholm p.51).
These constructs all depend on how the person has been "primed" to think. If a person is having a good day and has experienced a positive event, they are more likely to think of others in a positive light. If they are having a bad day or have suffered some kind of trauma then they are more likely to perceive people in a negative light. It's in our power to decide how we make judgments and how we perceive people.
To be fair about our judgments it's important for us to make sure we understand our cognitive schema. I've always believed that negative people will judge others in a negative way, and this whole section of chapter three proves that to be fairly accurate. If we can maintain a positive attitude, we can maintain positive judgments of others.
These constructs all depend on how the person has been "primed" to think. If a person is having a good day and has experienced a positive event, they are more likely to think of others in a positive light. If they are having a bad day or have suffered some kind of trauma then they are more likely to perceive people in a negative light. It's in our power to decide how we make judgments and how we perceive people.
To be fair about our judgments it's important for us to make sure we understand our cognitive schema. I've always believed that negative people will judge others in a negative way, and this whole section of chapter three proves that to be fairly accurate. If we can maintain a positive attitude, we can maintain positive judgments of others.
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