Author: Andre Coleman

Sexuality is believed to be shaped by social and cultural norms; however, it is also recognized that sexuality is shaped by other social differences such as gender, race/ethnicity and class. In general, norms are identified as social rules and expectations which guide individual or group behavior. Many cultures reflect their social norms on sexuality by identifying what is considered as ‘normal’ and ‘acceptable’ sexual behavior within society. According to Costa and Wood (2005, p9) “sexuality is an integral part of the human experience with physical, emotional, intellectual, social and spiritual dimensions. While deeply personal, sexuality occurs within specific social, economic, cultural, political and religious contexts”. These contexts, in turn, strongly shape an individual’s sexual experience through possibilities and limitations, as well as structuring their social outcome. In order to understand sexuality and how it is shaped, we must identify other forms of social and cultural contexts in which it is constituted. This essay will illustrate sexuality through social and cultural norms. I will discuss the impact of socially constructed sexuality, which is ultimately shaped by certain forms of social differences. In saying so, the endeavour over sexuality is deeply significant, as it not only demonstrates how societies behave towards one another, but how societies are able to maintain acceptance to coexist.

The function of norms is to coordinate the expectations in individual interactions; as norms impose consistency of behavior within a given social group, but often vary substantially among groups (Durlauf & Bloom 2008). In saying so, all human sexuality is socially constructed though a wider spectrum; shaped by social differences in gender, class structure and specific historical stipulations. Most cultures contain social norms with regard to sexuality. Particular guidelines are put forward to be followed and obeyed in order to be socially accepted. Abiding by social norms, maintains an individual’s acceptance within a group; alternatively, ignoring the social norm puts an individual at risk by becoming unaccepted or in extreme situations even becoming a social outcast. For instance, it is suggested that sexual acts are ranked hierarchically. The positive social norm is identified as a heterosexual marriage, which ultimately ranks at number one on the top of the hierarchy. Consequently, masturbation, homosexuality, adultery and other sexualities that deviate from societal norms are ranked closer to the bottom, with very little or no tolerance at all.

One approach that focuses primarily on the sociology of sexuality is sexual scripts. Flood (2010) states that sexual scripts are guidelines that help define who, where, when and why individuals have sex. They are social rules, regulations and roles which guide appropriate and acceptable sexual behaviour. Sexual scripts come from various sources such as; family, peers, media and institutions. Kornblum (2008, p203) suggests that the concept of sexual script is a metaphor that helps explain differences between sexual expectations and actual sexual conduct. Research has indicated that most people have not memorized actual ‘scripts’ to guide their sexual activity, but they do have definite ideas about sexual conduct that influence the way they sexually behave. The concept of sexual scripts emphasizes the social and cultural influences on sexual behaviour and this is seen more influential as opposed to the biological and natural framework of sexuality.

Another form of representation shaped by society is gendered constructions of sexuality. The development of sexuality is reflected by gender. Gender differences in sexual behaviour are often included in gender identities and roles, sexual orientation, eroticism, pleasure and intimacy. Sexuality is generally constructed through, fantasies, and desires, beliefs, attitudes, values, behaviours, practices, roles and relationships. The modern ideology of sexuality is that lust is the province of men and purity that of a woman. Flood (2010) illustrates several examples regarding gendered scripts for sexual relations as; male sexuality is seen as uncontrollable, sex is organized around men’s pleasure, women are objects rather than subjects of sexuality, women as the gatekeeper’s and the guardians of sexual safety and health, and sexual double standard and the policing of female sexual reputation. Parker and Aggleton (p,170) express the socially constructed assumption that even pornography and pervasions have been considered part of a male domain.

It is apparent that gender differences and inequalities exist; ideologies have claimed that women as opposed to men should be pure prior to marriage. Ilkkaracan and Jolly (2007) argue the norms around sexuality and what is considered acceptable according to context. They suggest that in many cultures there is a huge pressure to be married and sometimes forced to an early marriage. Other kinds of sexual behavior such as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender are discouraged by social stigma with legal penalties made apparent. A commonly shared ideology is to be a ‘proper man’ or ‘proper woman’ and to conform to gender stereotypes and express desires for or have relations only with people of the ‘opposite’ sex. In the early eighteenth century distinctive minorities emerged and were labeled as homosexuals. However, society emerged and opposed their sexuality, and drew the line with social norms. This was perceived as a taboo to traditional masculine behaviour.

Men are generally assumed to have greater access than women to the pleasures of sexuality. This is socially constructed though ideological perspectives that men; are risk takers, insensitive, sexually sinful, have a high sex drive and sexually experienced. On the other hand, the gendered constructions of women’s sexuality represent them as innocent, sensitive, slut or frigid, responsible with regard to pregnancy and STIs, passive in sex, seduced and ignorant (Flood 2010). Although apparent social and cultural norms create gender differences in sexual behavior, it is believed that women’s sexual experience is coming closer to men’s. This is due to the sexual revolution and women’s movements (Flood 2010). However the gender inequalities continue to be present, with men in contrast to women having more pleasurable sex. Further closely related to this concept is the theory of the sexual double standard. Although it is recognized that the primary principle is that all people, regardless of their gender, class, age, religion, marital status and race/ethnicity have the right to decide on their sexuality.

The term double standard is a set of principles or provisions, generally situated to social norms and is perceived as either acceptable or unacceptable. Kornblum (p,406) describes sexual double standard as the belief that women must adhere to a different more restrictive social or moral code than that applied to men. The sociological view on double standards is shown to suggest that sexuality is divides women in to ‘good’ if they are wives and virgins, ‘and bad’ if they are sexually active and prostitutes (Randall & Waylen p,86).However men’s sexual behavior is free of social constraint. Flood (2010) describes two standards of sexual behaviour, one for men and one for women, associated with having sex and various sexual partners. Additionally, women’s sexual behavior is socially policed and highly controlled in comparison to men’s. Further, women who are sexually active are believed to be ‘sluts’ as opposed to men who are known as ‘studs’. Consequently, sexual reputations are socially controlled; this can be to an individual’s advantage or disadvantage, depending on the gratification of the social norms.

Introduction

Social work brings about social change. It addresses complex relationships between humans and the environment. Social work involves analyzing human problems and addresses issues to resolve injustice, discrimination, and dysfunction. Thus, according to International Federation of Social Workers (2000 qt. Ramsay 2003), the social work profession can be defined as a profession that “promotes social change, problem solving in human relationships, and the empowerment and liberation of people to enhance well-being. Using theories of human behavior and social systems, social work intervenes at the points where people interact with their environments. Principles of human rights and social justice are fundamental to social work.” Social work profession is based on the fundamental interrelation of a system of values, theory and practice. Although over the years, the definition of social work has undergone tremendous transformation. Nevertheless, the essence of its humanitarian and democratic ideals of social work through the centuries has remained the same. Today, social work has a global context and professionals follow national and international code of ethics that make the scope of their work more complex and challenging. Moreover, social work professionals also draw their experiences from accepted methods developed through systematic evidence-based knowledge from extensive research designed for both specific and general practices (Ramsay 2003). Theoretical frameworks form the basis of their evaluation of human behaviors, development and social systems and enable them to resolve the problems inherent therein.

Social Work Theories

Social work theories have their roots from the need to develop a disciplined approach to social work. By adopting common principles, social professionals were able to focus on the social goals. Charles Loch developed this conceptual framework during the early 20th century. Later social work scholars took up his seminal work. During the 21st century, renowned Harriet Bartlett (Bartlett 1970) had taken up and continued to develop professional frameworks for social work to “articulate words, terms, concepts to represent the important facets and components of the profession’s practices as a whole.” As more and more formalized ideas, theories and disciplines formed, social work has come to be acknowledged as an independent discipline with subset knowledge and systems for dealing with problems of the society. Bartlett (1970) also further reiterated the three key concepts – person, interaction and environment – as the basis for social work practices. Any theory developed with the view to examine, evaluate and resolve social issues must be based on these three key concepts.

Given the above background on the development of social work theories, the researcher now shall discuss theories of particular interests, which are the theories of problem solving and psychoanalytic. In the following discussion, the researcher shall trace the theories in its historical context, values, concepts and fitness with the strengths approach. The strengths approach basically involves challenging the traditional problems-oriented way of working through training, expectations and work experience of professionals. The problems are then resolved through developing a collaborative framework based on examination of the professional’s strengths and resources for positive growth and development (Morgan 2006; Wormer and Boes 1998).

Problem-Solving Theory & Social Work Treatment
According to Duncker (1945):

“A problem arises when a living creature has a goal but does not know how this goal is to be reached. Whenever one cannot go from the given situation to the desired situation simply by action, then there is recourse to thinking… Such thinking has the task of devising some action which may mediate between the existing and the desired situations.”

According to this definition, a problem arises when it is not clear to the individual what action(s) are to be taken to achieve some desired goals. The action to rectify this problem is known as problem-solving. Problem solving starts from a given situation where the problem or state of the situation requires additional knowledge to work towards its solution (Anderson 1980).

Problem-solving theory has its developmental origin to Herbert Simon, Alan Newell and colleagues at Carnegie Mellon University during the 1980s (Patel 1991; Newell and Simon 1972). The general theoretical approach is that problem-solving theory is based on a given problem-solving situation. The second premise is that knowledge is a set of rules that specify actions to be performed in specific situations. The third premise is the distinction between weak and strong methods for resolving problems. Thus, an expert is expected to utilize the set of rules to find the solution for the given problem situation by using forward reasoning or observations. Alternatively, problem solving can involve using exhaustive knowledge base for deductive reasoning and assessing the validity of the hypothesis or goals against the facts given. This is a backward reasoning approach (Patel 1991). Newell-Simon theory of problem solving describes processes for developing expert systems in cognitive psychology, which forms the basis for other experiments in specific fields.

Social work field

In social work field, problem solving has its origin in the concept of social change developed by Helen Harris Perlman of the University Chicago (1957). In her work ‘Social Casework: A problem-solving process’, the author views casework and problem solving synonymous which are based on constant elements, forces and processes. The constants form the reasoning framework for analyzing problems just as humans solve their daily problems. Learning is developed when individuals are involved in organizing, synthesizing and imagining the solutions of the problems (Perlman 1957). Perlman’s theoretical framework is limited to the casework components such as the individual, problem, place, process, expert relationship and the resolution to the problem. The emphasis is more on the components rather than on the problem solutions itself and the scope of the solution is limited by the casework situation.

Alternatively, Compton and Galaway (1979) also developed a problem-solving model for social work practice, which emphasizes on intervention and beyond processes. According to their theoretical framework, problem solving is connected with human relationships in a dynamic manner, which may involve partners, family members, friends or co-workers or group relationships such as race, ethnicity, gender or religion. Social works can resolve problems depending on the micro, mezzo or macro level practice they are involved in. Compton and Galaway’s (1979) problem-solving theory is based on two phases – first the definition of the problem must be established for identification of intervention methods. The second phase involves intervention methods based on the problem context defined by human, societal and physical environment. Thus, Compton and Galaway’s (1979) problem-solving theory is based on human relationships with the environment and other individuals. The focus is on intervention rather than on the problem itself.

These investigations and conceptualization leads to the unified theory of problem-solving, which holds that experts process new information and integrate it into their existing knowledge base which helps them to recall and deal with situations rapidly through forward reasoning within limited time span and scope. There is little account for differences in complexities in domains and situations. For this reason, the problem-solving theory is only valid for responding to domains that are apparent through explicit patterns of results.

From the social work practice, context problem-solving theory presents social worker as the expert and the source for intervention, and the individual with the problem as the client of the environment. The worker encounters problem situations within the work environment. To resolve, he/she refers to activities that co-workers or peers have undertaken on behalf of clients. Working with the client, the social worker analyzes, and identifies problem commonality to resolve it through group relations. Hence, problem solving in the social work practice means participation and direct involvement of the client with the worker (Sheppard 1991).

Intervention method

Another underlying element of the problem-solving theory is the intervention method. Unlike early perception of social workers, the value of work is not gauged by the duration of its intervention. Instead, it is gauged by the significance of the knowledge base used to analyze the problems to develop solutions. Therefore, intervention is further defined by the relationships of interaction among individuals involved in the problem. The social worker is the support element who is responsible for mediating between the environment and the person (Sheppard 1991).

As an intervention method, problem-solving method is dynamic in the sense that it mediates problems by resolving on a case-by-case basis. Each individual problem in this theory is unique and is defined by the individual, relationship and context of the environment which makes it versatile in addressing numerous problem solutions. Furthermore, the option of forward and backward reasoning helps social workers to analyze and determine problem solutions from different perspectives depending on the nature of the problem. In the social work context, this is a valuable tool as it allows individuals to work on a case from the grassroots level, without having to eliminate vital facts and situations to achieve desired social goals.

Furthermore, the researcher is of the view that problem-solving theory, though limited by the expertise and knowledge base developed by peers and colleagues, is flexible in allowing new avenues to be included in the problem-solving process. As workers work their way through resolving the problem, they discover new facts, and perhaps new solutions, which might be different from the initial premise that they have set for its solution. From a strengths perspective this implies that problem-solving methods add new resources; they enrich the experiences of the social workers by allowing them to explore new perspectives; and add value in developing new approaches for solving similar albeit unique problems.

Psychoanalytic Theory

The study of the unconscious was relatively schematic and meager before the advent of Sigmund Freud. For this reason, it could be said that Freud was the pioneer in psychoanalytic theory. Freud held that the human mind takes into account of transactions within the limits of the body. Unlike traditional belief that the human mind is shaped by culture, Freud believed that the depth and endurance of human personality is dependent on the social context in which an individual is born. A psychosomatic process is the traditional method by which physicians analyze symptoms of mental disorders within the pathological discourse. However, Freud holds that psychosomatic processes are limited, as he believes that individuals are influenced by elements that are outside the body – that is the environment. To exemplify that, he writes of the influences of human association and its impact on the unconsciousness. It is only through observational procedures that the expert would extricate subtle and multiple ties of the personality with the other individuals and environmental elements. Observations of body language, as well as human acts in relation to sequences of interaction form the study of individuals within the context of the society (Ruitenbeek 1962). Freud’s conceptual framework was based on the observation of the human consciousness and unconsciousness, and its relation with the basic nature of man. It lacked the social work context. His theory implies that man is exceedingly indulgent or deprived by his/her surroundings which give rise to a certain psychiatric state of mind.

The Theory of Psychoanalytic Technique

Menninger (1958), in his work ‘The Theory of Psychoanalytic Technique’ counteracts the practice of external influence by suggesting that individual behavior is a reflection of behaviors that occur during and after the events they are involved in. Menninger and Holzman (1973) differed from Freud’s theory for psychoanalysis in the sense that they were of the view many individuals may demonstrate similar behavior without having any psychiatric problems. Therefore, psychoanalysis is not essentially about the physiological influence but rather associated with stimulus from interactions. The authors emphasize on new methods for observing and interpreting behavior in the context of culture and personality through structured research instruments. They believe that the psychoanalytic approach has particular associations with socialization sequences that lead to individual relationships with the environment, culture and personality. This implies that psychoanalysis approaches emphasize on the role of the professional engaged in the observation of individual behaviors and interpretation of the same. The skills used to deduce valuable information about the personality is derived from daily life processes. Likewise, an intervention is inherent in the behaviors and actions of the individual under study.

Alternatively, works by Roy Schafer (1976) and Irwin Hoffman (1983) have entirely altered the conceptual framework of psychoanalysis theory and practice. They emphasize on the reality of social construct and its impact on both the individual and the professional. They present the view that solutions for problems in psychoanalytic are dependent on the cultural life at large. It is based on objective knowledge derived from social agreements and human actions are the narrative of the acts. Therefore, psychoanalysis is the study of the language of the human acts and interpretation of the same to represent possible accounts of the past or present life of the individual. Transactions between the analyst and the patient are constructed by subject experience, human agency, and fragments of individuation/separation etc. Thus, “For Schafer, (1) psychoanalysis is concerned in a primary fashion with language and its equivalents; (2) subjective experience, objective reality, and selves are all constructions brought to life in language; (3) these present-day tellings could be told in other terms and do not represent real world events; (4) unitary selves are displaced by the notion that we tell useful stories about “multiple selves” in order to conduct our affairs; and (5) cure accompanies changes in discourse.” qt. Leary 1994). Similarly, Hoffman believes that human beings, whether professional or individuals, requiring intervention live worlds within worlds to make social interaction highly ambiguous. Observation of individual behaviors cannot construct individual social environment alone. Individual experiences must be taken into account to understand the influences of elements surrounding them. Intervention follows the paradigm of change and analysis of the participants because he believes individuals are incapable of understanding their own dilemma.

These later conceptual frameworks of the psychoanalytic theory not only pose challenges for social work practices but also offer new dimensions for analyzing complex individual social problems. The role of the social worker in the psychoanalytic context is separate from the individual and the environment, as he/she has to observe objectively to interpret individual behaviors in the psychiatric context as well as in the context of the environment in which the individual inhabit. Thus, the professional is segregated and does not really participate in the problems faced by the individuals. This tends to dissociate the analyst from the individual, which at times hinders problem resolution. However, objective observations in psychoanalysis enable the social work professional to emphasize on interventions methods. Since interventions are not set in paradigms or experiments or processes from knowledge base, the social worker has more leeway in developing creative interventions that meet desired social goals at the individual and from the broader societal contexts.

At the same time, there are certain limitations to the theory of psychoanalytic. There is too much emphasis of the individual and less focus of intervention for the broad social context. As individuals live in the society – interact, transact and have relationships with other entities within the environment – it is natural to assume that any problems or issues that they face should be resolved in the context of the community they live in. It is not natural to assume that the problem is inherent within the environment and the intervention method should be for the individual only. From this perspective, the psychoanalytic theory is limited.

Therefore, the psychoanalytic approach does not really fit the strengths approach, which basically emphasizes on resource development. Although psychoanalysis emphasizes on problem resolutions, this is limited to the issues faced by individuals – not from a communal or global context. There is little scope for adding value to interventions in the social work practice as it represents the realities of the individuals. Therefore, world events, social change and communal issues become secondary to the analyst who adopts this approach.

Compare and Contrast

At the beginning of the discussion, the researcher emphasizes on the importance of the key components in social work i.e. person, interaction and the environment. These key components, as one observes over the course of the evaluation of the theories of problem-solving and psychoanalytic, play integral roles in synergizing the conceptual framework for social work and professional practices. In this context, if any one component were missing from the theoretical framework, it would destabilize its validity and usefulness to the profession.

Theoretical fit with the social work professional focus

From the discussion, the researcher observes that the problem-solving theory, as compared to the psychoanalytic theory, has more dimensions to the mission of social work. The nature of forward and backward reasoning enables social work professionals to trace the problem from multiple layers of contexts such as culture, race, gender, ethnicity and religion, to extricate the inherent issues prevalent within the individual, a community or a society. In doing so, it encompasses broader social perspectives and addresses problems such as poverty, cultural diversity, discrimination, gender bias or social injustice. Thus, the problem-solving theory serves the purpose of problem identification and eventually leads to its intervention as well, even though the problem-solving theorists have not emphasized as such. Interventions, according to the theory, stem from set rules and the knowledge base that professionals can acquire through experience and expertise.

On the other hand, the psychoanalytic approach adopts similar processes for problem identification within the individual and in the social context but does not really view the problem as a social problem. The components of person, interaction and environment are not synergistic but rather segregated from each other. This makes finding interventions difficult as the social work professional would have to differentiate the person, relationship and the environment, before individual resolutions can be devised. This is because the psychoanalytic approach mandates objective observations and following set processes, which does not allow social workers to view the problem from different dimensions which are inherent in the social work mission. Therefore, psychoanalytic theory mostly identifies problems within the society from micro perspectives, thereby, limiting the scope of intervention. Unlike the problem-solving theory, the psychoanalytic theory integrates social problems like poverty, cultural diversity, discrimination, gender biases and social injustice into the social environment and explains its influence on the individual. Sometimes, these factors may or may not be the culprit for individual problems but, in fact, the problem stems from within the unconscious. Thus, the abstract nature of the psychoanalytic theory makes it difficult to devise interventions realistically that are practical in the social work field.

Progress on the part of the client and ethical concerns

As a social work professional, one is responsible for the progress of the client. The problems or issues my client faces may be from the micro, mezzo and macro environment and therefore require different approaches towards interventions. Therefore, I would reserve the psychoanalytic approach for micro interventions so that I would be able to analyze the psychological as well as physiological dilemmas, and ultimately devise interventions that address the root problem. On the other hand, if the nature of the problem that my client is experiencing stems from the outset and requires a broad perspective in evaluation, then I would adopt the problem-solving approach to address the problem, first from the macro level then narrow it down to the micro level and resolve it accordingly. The approaches differ because, as a social work practitioner, I need to have flexible tools to evaluate the progress of my client. This can only be possible if I use a combination of theories and approaches to offer me flexibility as well as dynamism in my work.

The only ethical concern I have regarding the application of these theories would perhaps be the scope and limitations each poses for social work practice. The problem-solving theory, as discussed earlier, emphasizes too much on the processes, which at times may result in compromised interventions. On the other hand, the psychoanalytic approach is too narrow and limited in its scope in addressing individual perspectives and tends to neglect the broader scenario. In resolving individual problems, perhaps I would neglect to incorporate the bigger picture and, thereby, inadvertently harm the society instead of benefiting it as a whole through my social work practice.

Conclusion

Despite the above reservations, the researcher is of the view that each of the theories has its own merit and application in intended practice. It is difficult to choose one over the other, as social work professionals realize no social issues or problem congruent with the other. Each problem is unique and requires unique resolutions. Since human beings are dynamic, their problems are dynamic too, requiring diversity in resolutions and intervention methods. Yet, from a broader perspective, the researcher would prefer the problem-solving approach over the psychoanalytic as it would more commonly be used in every day practice for the interventions of common problems. Such problems require a knowledge base to be developed from set rules and experiments, and require less time for interventions. On the other hand, for complex problems the researcher would prefer to use the psychoanalytic approach for individual objective observation and interventions.

References

“Definition of Social Work Profession” International Federation of Social Workers general meeting in Montreal, Canada, July 2000, and endorsed by the International

Association of Schools of Social Work in 2001 in Ramsay, R. F. (2003). Transforming the Working Definition of Social Work Into the 21st Century. Research on Social Work Practice, Vol. 13 No. 3, pp. 324-338

Bartlett, H. M. (1970). The Common Base of Social Work. New York: National Association of Social Workers.

Compton B. & Galaway, B. (1979). Social Casework’ A Problem-Solving Process. revised edn. Homewood, IL: The Dorsey Press.

Fine, R. (1979). The History of Psychoanalysis. Columbia University Press.

Leary, K. (1994). Psychoanalytic “Problems” And Postmodern “Solutions”. Psychoanalytic Quarterly. Volume: 63. Issue: 3. pp. 447.

Menninger, K and Holzman, P. S. (1973). Theory of Psychoanalytic Technique. Basic Books.

Menninger, K.S. (1958). The Theory of Psychoanalytic Technique. New York: Basic Books.

Morgan, S. (Accessed 15-10-2006). “A Strengths Approach” Practicebasedevidence.com, Online accessed from: http://www.practicebasedevidence.com/strengths.htm

Newell, A., & Simon, H. A. (1972). Human Problem Solving. Englewood Cliffs, NJ:PrenticeHall.

Patel, V. (1991). “A view from medicine.” In Toward a Unified Theory of Problem Solving: Views from the Content Domains. by Mike U. Smith (ed). Lawrence Erlbaum Associates: Hillsdale, NJ. pp. 35.

Perlman, H. (1957). Social Work Process Social Casework: A Problem-Solving Process. The University of Chicago Press.

Ruitenbeek, H. M. (1962). Psychoanalysis and Social Science. Dutton, New York. pp. 16.

Sheafor, B. W., Horejsi, C.R. & Horejsi, G.A. (2005). Techniques & Guidelines for Social Work Practice. Allyn & Bacon.

Sheppard, M. (1991). Mental Health Work in the Community: Theory and Practice in Social Work and Community Psychiatric Nursing. Falmer Press pp. 32.

Wormer, K. and Boes, M. (1998). Social Work, Corrections, and the Strengths Approach. Paper presented at the Canadian Association of Social Workers National Social Work Conference, June 20 – 24, 1998 Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

Welfare is “all collective interventions to meet certain needs of the individual and/or to serve the wider interests of society may now be broadly grouped intoaˆ¦ categories of welfare” (Titmuss, 1959). The development in the social values of welfare has always been changing throughout the centuries, particularly the 20th century. In traditional Chinese society, people used to believed that social welfare, or “fuk lei”, was given by kind-hearted philanthropists in society (N. Chow, 1994, p.325). In the early 20th century, the concept of social welfare was still very weak among Hong Kong people. Majority of welfare services were provided by non-government organizations before 1965 (W. S. Chow, 1993, p. 41). The situation changed after the publication of the white paper of the social welfare in 1965. Together with the rise of social worker, more people consider social welfare is part of their civil rights in the following decades. In 1997, the change in sovereignty of Hong Kong and the Asian financial crisis brought a significant impact on the social values of welfare. In the following paragraphs, I will briefly discuss the development of social welfare in Hong Kong and the corresponding social values of welfare, particularly the changes before and after 1997. As will be argued, there are both long term and short term factors that led the changes. The former would be the increasing consideration of civil rights and the latter would be the Asian financial crisis in 1997, the change in sovereignty of Hong Kong and the publication of Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) Review.

In the early 20th century, majority of people considered welfare was given by kind-hearted philanthropists in society. As Hong Kong was a colony of Britain at that time, the colonial government put their focuses on protecting the British’s interest, particularly the British merchants. Hence, the living environment and welfare of local Chinese were not concerned by the colonial government unless it interfere the interest of British. With this colonial background, local Chinese rationalized the concept of “welfare would not be given by the colonial government”. The Chinese merchants “used their wealth to establish and maintain their reputations and leadership roles through acts of charity” (Leung, 1996, p.3). They set up organizations and gave welfare to the locals. Among these organizations, Tung Wah Hospital was the most noteworthy charitable organization which catered the medical services and welfare needs to the locals. Apart from these organizations, churches and clans’ man association would also give welfare to the locals too.

In the post World War II period, the situation had a slightly change. In the post war period, a large number of non-government or voluntary welfare organizations were set up in Hong Kong. It is important to note that most of these welfare organizations had their parent-bodies overseas. A typical example of these organizations would be the Hong Kong Red Cross. “During this emergency period, the internationally-linked welfare organization had probably done much more than the government in meeting the welfare needs of people” (N. Chow, 1994, p.324). Although the concept of “welfare is given by kind-hearted philanthropists” was weaken, “the majority of the Chinese in Hong Kong are still unable to wipe away the traditional notions of welfare and accept the modern idea that it should be the responsibility of the state to provide the necessary social welfare services” (N. Chow, 1994, p. 325). Meanwhile, a large proportion of population was refugee from mainland China (Due to the civil war in China). Part of them considered Hong Kong is there temporary shelter but not their home. Hence, welfare development would not be their consideration as they expected to leave Hong Kong soon. These factors made there were only little pressure groups would fight for the rights for the locals in that period.

The situation further changed after 1965. In 1965, the colonial government published the White Paper on social welfare. N.Y. Chow (1993) suggests that “to be exact, the beginning of social welfare policy of Hong Kong was after the publication of the first White Paper on social welfare in 1965” (p.41). The White paper was the first government document that discusses social welfare policy in Hong Kong. It explained the welfare development and integrated the experiences from the development. Also, it gives the stands of colonial government toward social welfare policy and reasons that made the government cannot implement comprehensive social policy in Hong Kong. Although the White Paper has been blamed for lacking in-depth discussion on the blueprint of social welfare development and the foreseeable challenges, but this White paper gives a foundation for the further development of social welfare system (W. S. Chow, 1993). The concept of “social welfare” and “government” were no longer dissevering like the past. More people started to integrate “social welfare” into the role of government.

The most rapid change was found in the 70s. There were two major factors that led the change, the “Big Bang” of social policy and the rise of social worker. The “Big Bang” of social policy was initiated by the 25th governor of Hong Kong, Murray MacLehose. “After MacLehose take office the governor in 1972, he had a strong sense of responsibility towards social welfare, under his influence, amendment of social welfare policy was necessary” (W. S. Chow, 1993, p. 52). Apart from it, the increasing social problems (i.e. the riot in 1966 and 1967, Corruption) led the demand for government’s involvement in social welfare further increased. These factors urged the publication of the second White Paper of social welfare in 1973. The aim of the White Paper was giving a five year plan of social welfare development and dividing the responsibility in providing social welfare between government and voluntary organizations. The aspects of social welfare in the five year plan included education, housing, medical service, social allowance, youth services etc. The comprehensive expansion of welfare services increased the involvement of people in social welfare system. The value of “welfare would not be given by the colonial government” was further weakening in this period.

Apart from the “Big Bang” of social policy, the rise of social worker also led to the significant change in social value of welfare. The rise of social worker could be traced back to the professionalization of social work and the implement of professional training at the University of Hong Kong and the Chinese University of Hong Kong in the mid-1960s. In the 1960s, “Fabian Socialism was the most fashionable approach taught in the social work schools of the two universities” (N. Chow, 1994, p.327). Equality, freedom and fellowship are the central values of Fabian Socialism. The social work students in 60s and 70s were strongly influenced by these values. They had a strong sense of “working towards a more equal and justice society”. Hence, when the students became social workers in society, they would try to advocate policies that achieve to these two ideals. More people would consider welfare as a means to achieve an equal society. Meanwhile, the young social workers at that time also stressed on civil rights. They believed that social welfare is one the important parts of civil rights. When they graduated, they would educate and advocate the public to uphold their civil rights through different social actions. As a result, under this influence, it led to the rise of the awareness of welfare system as rights enjoyed by citizen.

Another significant change of social values of welfare could be found in 1997. The major factor that led to the change is the Asian Financial Crisis in 1997. Before the crisis, the economy in Hong Kong was at boom. Majority of people were actively investing in property market and stock market. At that time, people emphasized on material values and short-term time horizon. “Material values are the major criterion used to evaluate the worth of things and people” (C.K. Wong, K. L. Chow & K.Y. Wong, 2001, p.68). Meanwhile, majority of Chinese investor were looking for the maximum benefit in the shortest period of time.

Topley states that many Chinese still prefer to invest in non-industrial property and trade because of the relatively quicker return of capital and profits.

When investing in industry, the overwhelming desire of investors is to look for quick profits by whatever means present themselves as attractive in the short run rather than to look for opportunity for starting long-term investment. (as cited in Lau, 1982, p.70)

As both of the property market and stock market were so flourished, the economic environment enabled people to achieve the above goals simultaneously. This in turn led Hong Kong became one of the wealthiest cities in Asia. The living standard in Hong Kong was one of the highest in Hong Kong history in the early mid 1990s. As most people could sustain their life in the market, they put less consideration on the welfare system. At that time, people would consider social welfare system was only for those who were in need in society, like elderly and disabled people. In other words, despite the underprivileged and the corresponding pressure group, majority in society would not care about the welfare system as they believed they could achieve self-sustentions in market. In general, social welfare development was overwhelmed by economic development at that period.

But a significant change was provoked by the 1997 financial crisis. A great depression in both stock market and property market was provoked by the crisis. Lots of people were bankrupted because of the suddenly fall in the property market. Also, a massive unemployment was accompanied with the economic downturn, particularly in the financial sector. The decline in consumption led to further depression in other non-financial sector. The financial crisis brought two major impacts on the welfare system. First, it led to a significant fall in the tax income of the government. Second, more people fall into the safety net of the welfare system. In other words, it led an increase in demand for welfare services. Simultaneously, it would increase the welfare expenditure of the government. As these two factors happened at the same time, this brought heavy pressure on the financial budget of the government.

At the same period, the sovereignty of Hong Kong changed back to China. One of the problems that foresee by the government is the increase in immigrants from China. In the review report of CSSA that published by the Social Welfare Department, it suggests that the increase in mainland immigrants would lead to an increase application for CSSA. It implies that the government believes that a number of mainland immigrants would rely on the welfare system for livelihood. Before the publication of the report, the government already spread this ideology through news and government press. At that time, the government disclosed different abusive cases of CSSA by the new immigrants. This made the public also be believed the new immigrants would bring pressure to Hong Kong welfare system.

The economic downturn, mainland immigrants, together with the foreseeable aging population, these made the government believed a review for welfare system is necessary. As the government wanted to tighten the budget for social welfare expenditure, the publication of the review report was a means of government to the public support. This report brought a momentous impact on the social value of welfare. In particular, there were more people believed that abusive cases are common in the welfare system after the publication of the report. For example, the report suggested the level of benefits for four-person household is high. The average monthly payment for a four-person household increased in 120% from 1980s to 1990s. But the median wage of workers only increased 41%. The government suggested that this would create disincentive to work and lead to long term dependency on welfare system. According to a survey, 36.4% of respondents believed that “the increasing number of CSSA cases because the criteria for application is too lenient” (C.K. Wong, K. L. Chow & K.Y. Wong, 2001, p.5).

Although the way and method that government used to interpret and present the statistics had bias and hidden agenda, majority still believed that CSSA was breeding lazy people. Since CSSA has a strict income test and asset test, statistics of Suspected Fraud and Abuse was minimal. But the mass media created a negative image of CSSA recipients as they only reporting fraud and abusive cases. This, in turn, created a strong labeling effect on CSSA recipients. In a survey, 40.8% of respondents agreed that “CSSA recipients are not deserved to be help” (C.K. Wong, K. L. Chow & K.Y. Wong, 2001, p.9). This reflected the fact that CSSA recipients were stigmatized.

Apart from stigmatization of CSSA recipients, the role of welfare that interpreted by the public is also worth to discuss. Compare with giving direct welfare, people considered that self-reliance would be more appropriate. In a survey, 70.3% of respondents believed that “people should satisfy their needs through self-reliance”. On the other hand, only 8.6% respondents believed that “people should satisfy their needs through social welfare” (C.K. Wong, K. L. Chow & K.Y. Wong, 2001, p.30). The development of the concept “self-reliance” could be explained by the Utilitarianistic Familism. Utilitarianistic Familism is social values of the Chinese people in Hong Kong (Lau, 1982). Chinese people would put the interest of family member in a higher priority over others. The bonding of the family members was strong. In addition to the extended family structure in the early mid 20th century, people would not look for help from government; rather, they would look for help from family members. As most problems could be solved without the help of government, it contributed to the development a sense of “self-reliance”. This concept is particularly prevailing value hold by the older generation (i.e. Those who born in the Post War Baby Boom).

From the above discussion, we can see two sets of contradictory social values of welfare have developed in Hong Kong. On one hand, more people consider social welfare as their civil rights. On the other hand, people stigmatize some welfare recipients. It makes the rights of accessing welfare become alienated from the civil rights. These two contradictory values lead to different conflicts in society. Social workers, pressure groups and non-government organizations are striving for destigmatization of the welfare recipients. Lots of social actions like social demonstration and public forum are used to promote this civil rights. But at the same time, the government is attempting to marginalize the welfare recipients in order to reduce the welfare expenditure. From time to time, the government would publish the fraud and abusive case in CSSA. It seems that it wants to remind people that “abusive cases are still common in welfare system”. These, in turn, led to never-ending debates between the two interest groups.

As seen in above discussion, it is hard to find a consensus towards the value of welfare in Hong Kong. The historical background, personal experiences and education would have a strong influence on the development of our value. But it seems that government would spread concepts and ideas that deviated from the principles of social welfare – equality and equity, because it’s political agenda. Whether the ultimate goal of government is bring a stable and harmonious society in Hong Kong is questionable.

The Concept of Social Stratification

Stratification is the geological concept of strata – rock layers in natural processes. While in sociology, the concept of stratification turns to refer to the different strata of social groups and their arrangements. Social stratification is a particular form of social inequality which involves power, prestige and wealth.

We can find in our lives that one group may own and enjoy more economic resources than another, or it may be held in high esteem, or it may be in a position to order other groups around. The study of social stratification is to explore how is the hierarchy formed within the society, how are social resources unequally distributed and how these different groups relate to one another.

Obviously, the arrangement of different social groups within a society is not really like the arrangements of rock in the earth’s crust as there are frequent and various interactions between the higher and lower social groups. Moreover, contrary to solid rock layers, “rises” and “falls” take place both by group and by individuals in social system. One group may rise in power and status while another group may fall. Individuals also move up and down to change their group belongings. So when we study social stratification, we should pay attention to its characteristic of interaction and mobility. Any neglect would lead to a false conclusion.

Theories of Social Stratification

Social stratification is not a new born concept. Long ago in ancient China, “Li” was considered a special subject on institutions and manners which gave a strict division and rules of social classes. In “Han Shu-Monograph on Food and Currency “, people were stratified in a descending order of scholars, peasants, workers and businessmen.

In the west, the earliest discussion on social stratification can be dated back to ancient Greece. Plato illustrated an ideal state in “Republic” with three stable classes of freemen—-Rulers or Philosopher Kings, Warriors or Guardians, and Workers, while Aristotle argued with an idea of the rich, the poor and the middle.

When talking about social stratification, we can always find these two names: Karl Marx and Max Weber. The classic statements on both social class and stratification provide the foundation from which we can fully appreciate current social dynamics and new directions in the study of social inequality.

The Marxist Perspective

Karl Marx was born in the aftermath of the European Revolution. By witnessing the end of the old era and the emergence of a new age, he found a similarity in all societies—-the ever existence of two social classes. He inherited Hegel’s account of the conflict between master and slave, then took the idea of two opposed forces to analyze the form of the conflict.

Marx was the first to develop a systematic theory on social class. A class is a social group whose members share the same relationship to the means of production. Individuals in a class not only act in much the same way but also tend to think in much the same way. There are two major social groups in all societies, a ruling one and a subject one. The relationship between the two major classes is conflict—-exploiter and exploited, oppressor and oppressed. Marx conceived the society as a system of production based on the existence of these two opposite social classes. The ruling class (the bourgeoisie) own the means of production (land, capital, labour power, buildings and machinery) while subject class (the proletariat) has no choice but to work for the capitalists. Wage labourers produce goods and services but get only subsisted rewards. Employers take the products away to sell them at a value greater than their cost of production. By accumulating this surplus value, capitalists get more wealth and means of production to sustain the system.

Capital is a social power. Political power comes from economic power, from the control of means of production. The ruling class build up the superstructure of society—-the major institutions, values and belief systems, according to the common interests of the group. They seek protection for their ownership of means of production through laws and mechanisms which are favorable to them. In addition, a distorted picture of reality (ideology) was invented to justify and legitimate the domination of the ruling class and to inculcate the mass oppressed working class a false consciousness of the nature of relationship between social classes.

Marx pointed out that there is a polarization of the classes through which the society would more and more split into the two great hostile camps. Although he did not deny the individual mobility between the social groups, the possibility is little because each group is relatively closed. Individual movement up and down does nothing to change the system. Only by thorough revolutions can social orders be reconstructed, can means of production be used by everyone and can social equality be achieved.

Despite the great contribution to the study of social stratification, people raised problems in Marxist approach as listed below:

Not all societies are class societies

Class may not be the most basic social division

The rise of the middle class and the fragmentary class structure

Working class consciousness and intellectual wishful thinking

To solve these problems, Neo Marxist scholars have made many efforts. Succeeding Marx’s basic view of social stratification, the primary concern of modern Marxian theorists has been to apply this Marxian view of society to industrial societies that have experienced change since Marx’s time, while also using new methods of social science research to validate some of the principal Marxian concepts. For instance, Gramsci accused dehumanizing aspects of modern capitalism and advocated more education on working class to develop intellectuals among them. Poulantzas thought the fragmentation of class structure was a defining characteristic of late capitalism, so any analysis must tackle the new constellation of interests and power. Structural Marxist, Wright, did some empirical research on social stratification. Inspired by other’s works, he borrowed the concept of skills and defined class in relation to the productive system: Capitalists, managers, workers and the petty bourgeoisie.

The Weberian Alternative

Max Weber contributed the most to development of stratification theory since Marx. He was said to have had a dialogue with Marx but got different conclusions. Marx saw classes in economic terms, while man does not strive for power only in order to enrich himself economically. He expanded Marx’s standard of class division to a multidimensional view.

People forming the same class roughly share common life chances which are reflected into class situation. In Weber’s point of view, ownership of property will directly give an individual more life chances in market, however, the skills and education the individual has had is also playing an important role in defining social classes. Under this assumption, Weber was able to explain the emergence of middle class while Marxism failed to do so. He identified as “social class” according to the economic rewards in labour market—- the working class as a whole, the petty bourgeoisie, technicians, specialists and lower-level management and the classes privileged through property and education.

Moreover, social stratification is not only decided by class(economic rewards), status is another significant perspective. Whereas class refers to the unequal distribution of economic rewards, status refers to the unequal distribution of social honor, which refers to how a person or a group is regarded by others. Individuals from a similar status group are likely to share similar status situation including lifestyle, sense of belonging and restriction on interaction with outsiders etc. This dimension managed to solve the doubt about the role of gender, ethnicity and religion in stratification theory.

The last dimension in Weber’s three-component theory of stratification is party or power. To achieve whatever goals, people form organizations in rational orders to influence and dominate others. The most typical organizations of this kind are political parties and bureaucratic institutions. Where is one stand and how is one placed within the organization decide one’s position in this dimension of stratification.

Weber concluded that the three dimensions of hierarchies lead to the ranking of individual and group in human society. Nevertheless, the importance of each dimension differs in different societies.

Weber’s theory of social stratification has relativity and mobility, which enlightened his successors like Anthony Giddens, Frank Parkin and John Goldthorpe, etc., to continue promoting the development of multidimensional theory of stratification.

The Former Study on Hong Kong ‘s Social Stratification

Boggs, C. (1984). The two revolutions : Antonio Gramsci and the dilemmas of western Marxism (1st ed.). Boston, MA: South End Press.

Crompton, R. (1993). Class and stratification : an introduction to current debates. Cambridge, UK ; Cambridge, MA, USA: Polity Press.

Haralambos, M., & Holborn, M. (2008). Sociology : themes and perspectives (7 ed.). London: HarperCollins Publishers.

Hess, A. (2001). Concepts of social stratification : European and American models. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire ; New York: Palgrave.

Kerbo, H. R. (1996). Social stratification and inequality : class conflict in historical and comparative perspective (3rd ed.). New York: McGraw-Hill.

Levine, R. F. (1998). Social class and stratification : classic statements and theoretical debates. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Li, P. (2004). Social stratification in China’s today(Zhongguo she hui fen ceng) (1 ed.). Beijing: She hui ke xue wen xian chu ban she.

Li, X. (2008). Dream and reality : stratification and social mobility in Hong Kong(Meng Xiang Yu Xian SHI: Xiang Gang De She Hui Fen Ceng Yu She Hui Liu Dong) ( 1 ed.). Beijing: Publisher of Peking University.

Marx, K., & Engels, F. (1888). Manifesto of the Communist party ([5th ed.). London,: W. Reeves.

Poulantzas, N. A. (1982). Political power and social classes. London: Verso.

Saunders, P. (1990). Social class and stratification. London: Routledge.

Weber, M., Gerth, H. H., & Mills, C. W. (2009). From Max Weber : essays in sociology. Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon ; New York: Routledge.

Wright, E. O. (1997). Class counts : comparative studies in class analysis. Cambridge ; New York

Paris: Cambridge University Press ;Maison des sciences de l’homme.

Introduction

Social stratification can be defined as a form of social inequity which involves the ranking of individuals into hierarchies according to their wealth and status and thus succeeding in the formation of distinct social groups (Haralambos & Holborn, 2004:1). Before 1994, this was a huge and worrying problem in South Africa as cases of gender inequality, inequality in education systems, racial inequality and many other forms of social prejudice were becoming more and more severe. However, after the introduction of a new democratic society, the South African government has been slowly reforming the inequalities of our past and attempting to prevent the occurrences of social stratification in general. This essay will discuss the various attempts made by the government to prevent social stratification. In particular, it will focus on the reasons why the government implemented these specific programmes, what they aimed to achieve when implementing them, and also the results of these programmes and the effects on the South African society.

Gender Inequality in South Africa

As the years have passed, the case of gender inequality has become much more severe in South Africa. In the past, a women’s place was known to be in the kitchen while the man’s duty was to hunt and fight battles in the fields. Each gender group had a specific role towards the success of their homes and societies. By today’s standards, these traditional African culture routines are seen as unfair, yet the issue of gender inequality has worsened since then (Bwakali, 2001).Women are known to be discriminated against, being frequently sexually harassed, and they generally receive a lower income than men because they are not seen as important elements in comparison to males in the business world. It is known that, in South Africa, a rape occurs every thirty-six seconds, one in every three women is in an abusive relationship, and a woman is killed by her partner every six days (Maharaj, 1999). Clearly, this is a serious issue that needs to be dealt with urgently and with immediate effect.

The Government’s Plan to Alleviate Gender Inequality

The South African government is bound to numerous national and global commitments and obligations which require it to uphold gender equality within the country and make certain that it is achieved within society as a whole. South Africa is lawfully compelled to follow the steps outlined in the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) to ensure that there is a process being followed in order to achieve gender equality in South Africa (Sadie & Loots, 1998). An example of some of the changes made to eradicate gender inequality in South Africa is the empowerment of women in the workplace, the access to greater education and training to increase the number of opportunities for women in society, and also the stressing of the importance of female health and well-being which includes greater forms of punishment for violence against women and also greater access to health facilities available.

Poverty in South Africa

Poverty levels in South Africa continue to be very high. No significant change has occurred since the inception of our country’s new democratic society, and the issue of poverty is becoming worse and worse as the years pass by. With only a 5.7 percent decrease in poverty over aˆ?the first twelve year period of South Africa’s new democracyaˆ?, nearly half of South Africa’s population live in extreme poverty. Due to the inequality regarding income levels, there is a wide gap between the rich and the poor of our country and the unemployment rates in South Africa are as high as 40 percent. This social stratification of the rich and the poor is causing great problems amongst our society and leading to higher crime rates and social violence issues (Luyt, 2008).

The Alleviation of Poverty in South Africa

In order for the high poverty levels in South Africa to be significantly decreased, the specific dimensions and causes of poverty have to be looked at first, since this would allow the government to take specific actions to alleviate the various forms of poverty. Without a good form of authority, poverty will never be successfully reduced. Thus far, our government has provided aˆ?housing, water, sanitation, electrification, health and educationaˆ? to some of our country’s disadvantaged communities and peoples. Also, to alleviate the issue of crime due to high unemployment levels, the government is aiding in job creation for the poor in governmental services and providing skills development training for the uneducated (Luyt, 2008).

Overall Changes in South Africa’s Society

All in all, the government is attempting to prevent the occurrence of social stratification within the South African society but this is not a very easy task. Although the government has provided certain disadvantaged communities with essential needs, there is still a lot of work to be done to completely break down the social hierarchies within our country regarding gender and poverty. There are many complaints that not enough has been done to improve South Africa’s social status since 1994, but even the poor citizens have more advantages than their families did a generation ago. The government has provided assistance to millions of South African citizens with the introduction of social programs, and also providing housing and electricity (Eisner, 2009).

Conclusion

Therefore, even though the occurrences of social stratification have not been completely eradicated from South Africa, the government has been hard at work and trying their utmost best to provide its citizens with basic and essential needs such as housing, electricity, health care. Etc. Many are cynical about the progress that South Africa has made since the end of the Apartheid era because they are either still living in poverty or have not enjoyed the benefits of living in a democratic society. However, change cannot be expected to occur instantaneously, and if given a few years South Africa can be transformed into a great and powerful democratic society with equality for all.

Social stratification is a sociological phenomenon in which people in the society are placed in different ranks with reference to same economic conditions. Normally, there are those of a high standard and others of a low standard. Social stratification borrows classification from earth sciences and thus it refers to its classes as strata. The difference in economic characteristics of persons leads to domination of power by one group to another. Social Stratification is characterized by four core principles namely;

Social stratification has been said to be transferable from generation to another. Every generation adopts the classifications that had been set by a generation that proceeded.

Social stratification is a societal characteristic and not an individual view. The society forms a uniform way of grading persons ‘which is not a sole person’s objective’.

Social stratification is said to be universal and also variable. Though this statement seems contradictory, it means that classification is uniform in a certain society but will vary when compared with other societies.

Lastly, social stratification is not all about equality of persons, but also the beliefs that they hold. This means that social classes in the society are also based on common beliefs.

The classification of the society into various ranks brings about inequality. In the western communities, social stratification adopts three key; the upper, middle and lower class. It is due to these classes that inequality is developed. Those of upper class view themselves as superior and having more prestige compared to their counterparts in lower ranks. Therefore, sharing of common resources in the society is based on the stratification ranks. Inequality is a social evil that emanates from social stratification (Bottero 3-8).

Origins of the Social Stratification Theory

The above theory is said to have emanated from the Judaeo-Christian Bible ‘which presents’ the social idea of the Greeks. Though the idea was not extremely straightforward at the beginning, it has gone through various transformations to the present day where it presents itself clearly.

The Sociological View of Social Stratification and Inequality

Various sociologists have had different views and interpretations on social stratification. For instance, Talcott Parsons who was an American sociologist emphasized that stability of social stratus is partly influenced by universal values. On a different note, Marxism identifies unequal distribution of resources and limited mobility to be factors of stratified societies.

However, numerous sociologists have had a uniform view with reference to the fact that the wealthy ‘in the society’ control the political power. In such a case, the poor ought to submit to orders from the rich. Several sociologists had diverse views on the origin and form of the social stratification theory. Below are some of these sociologists and various discussions regarding each one of them.

Karl Marx

In his theory of Marxism, Karl asserted that social stratification in the society is based on the way people are related to the factors of production. In such, there exist two different categories of persons; those that own the factors of production and those who labor for the owner of the factors of production. The classification by Karl Marx seems to be inadequate especially in the current view of economics. This is because there exist various aspects of the present economy that have been left unsolved by the Marxism theory. For instance; it does not provide accurate categorization as to productive, occupational and economic aspects of society.

Modern scholars of economics have said that the issue of social stratifications requires in depth classifications other than the generalized one provided for by the Marxism theory. In fact, theories behind social stratification need to draw a clear cut between the economic aspects of skilled and unskilled labor, owning and managing a business and also between business and professional occupational roles.

Secondly, the Marxism theory appears to be so generalized to the extent that it overlooks various vital social-structural phenomena that are of a great influence in the society. These include ethnic affiliations, kinship and lineage affiliations. Modern sociologists have ‘however’ not ignored these crucial aspects the way Marx did. Thirdly, the theory of Marx on social stratification seems to be so limited in defining the role of cultural factors in social classification. Cultural factors include legal practices, religious norms and scientific ideas among others. It is crucial to note that science has played a key role in maintaining social classes. In summary, Marx defined the relationship between people and property as the key aspect behind social stratification (Jackson chapter 2).

Max Weber

Weber was thrilled by the propositions of his predecessor, Marx, and hence he thought of making corrections to Marx’s theory. Weber designed a model based on status, class and a more explicit and systematic differentiation with reference to social stratification. Unlike Marx who identified property to be the sole determining factor in social stratification, Weber identified status and class as additional factors. Weber built an interconnected model that would define the relationship between these three factors. Any one of factors can affect the other two, and in any case any of these factors can be replaced with another. In his model, Weber also did not cover several key influencing factors like education, ethnic and kinship factors.

Below are the definitions that Weber gave to his three factors of influence;

He defined class as an individual’s economic position in the society with reference to birth and their personal achievement. Secondly, he defined status as the position occupied by an individual in the society as a result of their social honor, popularity and prestige. Weber also defined power as the ability of an individual to progress despite various factors offering resistance in the society (Rossides, 186).

Wright Mills

Wright sought to advance Weber’s thoughts on social stratification with no discrimination whatsoever. Similar to Weber, he identified power to be economic oriented but ‘in addition to be influenced by’ political and military domains. Through his famous book titled ‘The Power Elite’, Mills brings out a clear connection between political power and social status in the society. He asserted that the very power embodied persons occupy a certain class in the society. In order to keep themselves relevant in the society, the power elite tend to develop close ties in ideas, work and marital issues. To him, the power elite are clearly defined in education institutions whereby the persons of the high status group attend prominent schools thus preparing them for high class tertiary schools.

Conceptual Model to Social Stratification

A conceptual model for the current nature of social stratification ought to be multidimensional. It should have considerable measurement techniques and be flexible to accommodate various ideological biases. There appears to be two factors that have led to the resistance of such a conceptual model. These are ideological and methodological oriented. Looking at ideological issues, we find sociologists who still hold on to the traditional ways of classifying people. They want to maintain definitions that are straightforward, clear and self explanatory. However, straightforward definitions have proved to be incompetent in the current nature of society that presents changing and complex situations.

With reference to methodology aspects, scientists have had fear of exploring a multidimensional concept because they fear the complex resources and methods that could be involved. The more differentiated a model is the more involving it will be in terms of equipments needed to analyze and the processes that will be involved. Researchers have committed themselves in exploring models that are multidimensional ‘however’ significant success has not been realized. Studies by the Hindu caste society show that a multidimensional model is necessary.

Various dimensions of stratification are closely related to one another, but this does not mean that they are not exclusively autonomous. For instance, such dimensions as power, prestige, income and education are in a way related to one another. However, in some cases, it can be noted that power is independent of the other factors. In fact, in certain circumstances, power may be attained irrespective of occupational prestige. Again, a certain level of education grounds may not be strong enough if not accompanied by money. The key role of a multidimensional model is to address issues of interdependence and independence of social stratification factors.

Key Dimensions of Social Stratification

Power

As defined earlier in this paper and with reference to Karl Marx, power refers to the ability to pursue goals despite resisting factors. Power will be addressed with reference to size and various natures of societies. The degree of division of labor in the society is related to the way typical social classes will be formed. Power exists in two diverse forms; legitimate and illegitimate and hence there cannot be established a direct relation between power and social stratification.

Occupational Prestige

The various productive roles in the society are accorded different level of prestige. It has been evident that though societies may be different, there will always exist a similarity in the way they accord prestige to various occupations. For instance; some professions like law, medicine and pilot, are given a high level of prestige because they are associated with good amounts of money. The variability of the way occupations are valued is dependent on the way the society values those occupations. Therefore, it is vital to note that prestige accorded to various occupations will differ with reference to the values of the societal setting.

Income/Wealth

Wealth plays an extremely significant role in social stratification. Whether earned or inherited, wealth will impact the class that a person will occupy in the society. Various profession and business roles in the society offer diverse opportunities in accumulating wealth. Sometimes, the so high ranked roles have proven to accumulate low wealth when compared to low prestige roles. Looking at the example of a professional doctor who uses intellect and professionalism to accumulate his wealth yet he may not gather a lot like a bandit. The latter can accumulate in one night, money equal to that a professional doctor earns in an entire month. ‘When money is used as the determining factor in social stratification,’ business and professional roles lack relevance.

Social stratification on the basis of income influences to a significant extent other dimensions of societal classification. For instance; the level of education gained by a person may be determined by the relative amount of income they have. Disposable income has also not been left out in studying how it influences social stratification.

Family and Ethnicity

The status of kinship groups and family lineage plays a vital role in determining the social classes in the society. Not once and not twice have persons being seen as wealthy and hence prestigious because their fore fathers were wealthy. The role played by a family in the society in terms of monetary contribution and influence holds a significant support as to why it holds a certain class in the society. The class occupied by a certain family in the society determines the social class it occupies and hence the treatment they will be accorded by the entire society. Family and ethnic position do not ‘however’ hold a one to one relationship in far as social stratification is concerned.

Local Community Status

Individuals and families do not live in isolations or islands ‘in the society’. Their day to day activities are influenced by norms set by the nature of the community. Families and individuals by extension are given placed under certain social classes due to the way the society operates. The position of the local community in the society is determined by the nature of influence it has on the entire community (Andersen 216-220).

Modern Stratification Systems

In the contemporary world, there exists three key systems of stratification which are; slavery, the caste system and the class system. Despite various laws disregarding slavery, many people in the world today live in conditions that can be classified as slavery.

Slavery

Slavery is still eminent in nations such as Ghana, Benin and Mauritania among others. Also, Asia has been mentioned numerously for prevalent cases in sex slavery.

Caste System

The above is a social system that is based on characteristics and traits those persons posses by virtue of their birth. These traits include body type, race, gender and age among others. The caste system is said to be a rigid one. This means that it assigns various unchangeable castes to persons which cannot be varied. However, persons have in various situations tried to change their ascribed statuses by lying about their age, changing nationality or performing plastic surgery, but not at all times do these attempts yield positive results.

Class System

Class system classifies individuals in reference to statuses earned and not those individuals were born with. Persons born in a certain social class can choose their careers, education level and spouses. The class system is characterized by social mobility nature. Social mobility refers to the act of moving either up or down the various social strata (Levine)

Conclusion

Every society has various classes that are assumed by members of the society based on various factors. Common held belief in the society model the way a society sets up these classes. Most common factors that determine classification are education and knowledge, power, prestige, and religion among other factors. Sociologists have formed various theories to address the determining factors of social stratification though no one theory seems to have provided comprehensive coverage. Every society exhibits unique factors and believes, but there exists a close relationship between the way these diverse factors influence social stratification.

The self-concept involves how we think about and evaluate ourselves. In psychology self means the collection of cognitively held beliefs that a person possesses about themselves. However it is also seen that the “self” is an important tool with the help of which human beings make their mark in the society and manage themselves to satisfy and fulfil their needs. Traditionally the concept of “self” was seen as a tool which only represented the stable, genetically determined character or which later came to be called as “personality”. Though recently it was found that “self” keeps on evolving throughout the lifetime of person. With more developments in science and research it has been found that “self” is seen as dynamic and changeable, hierarchical, situationally and cognitively influenced and culturally constructed.

In marketing field it is seen that every customer has a unique image of himself/herself. These self-images or perceptions of self have close relationship with personality, customers tend to buy those products and services whose images or personalities they can relate in a meaningful manner. The purpose of self is to gain social acceptance and play social roles, the society creates and defines roles, and the individual seeks and adopts them. For example farmer, soldier, businessman etc. are all various roles in a society pursued by individuals. Aristotle the Greek philosopher said “man is by nature a social animal, an individual who is unsocial naturally and not accidentally is either beneath our notice or more than human. Society is something that precedes the individual”. This is where the social self comes into picture. In social self a significant portion of “self” and its “behaviour” are socially directed and influenced. The social self and socialization comprise of an intrinsic bond which is inseparable when it comes to identity formation. Socialization is imminent and inevitable consequence of human existence in society, the reason why an individual receives inclusion into society is to produce social and cultural continuity. Thus it is seen socialization plays a vital role in the prevalence of a culture and without adequate forms of socialization, culture may cease to exist. An individual’s life depends on other individuals, human infants are born unable to care for themselves. Their survival depends on another individual’s efforts. Thus the relation with individuals is the key not only to survive but also to fulfil needs, desires, attain success and reach highest potential.

Sociology and marketing are closely interrelated. Marketing involves creating the value for people, making it accessible, retaining old customers and attracting new ones. It is hard to create and spread it without understanding human relations and behaviour of consumers. Once marketers understand how consumers think, what makes them tick, why do they choose specific products and services compared to other ones then they will be able to pitch their product/service in more efficient and visible manner. This in turn will be beneficial for the company as well, as with increase in sales profit will rise and eventually more and more consumers will begin to buy products/services. So sociology and marketing do not involve focus groups or media, they involve real life observations and digging into human nature and nature of interactions. Social media and the digital technology are just enhancers of social behaviour. Human beings just keep interacting and express themselves and their opinions, in the current scenario which is powered by technology that makes it wider and allows them to reach more people. The motivations remain the same as before social media – belonging and conviviality, to mention two most relevant drivers.

Development of concept of self has two aspects:-

The existential self – this is the most basic part of self-concept, sense of being separate and distinct from others and the awareness of the constancy of self. According to psychoanalysts the existential self begins as young as two to three old and rises in part due to relation the child has with the world. For example when the child smiles and someone smiles back.

The categorical self – the self can be put in categories such as age, gender, size or skill. In early childhood the categories children apply to themselves are very concrete. Later, self-description also begins to include reference to internal psychological traits, comparative evaluations and to how others see them.

Social Self and Self Image:-

The social self is simply any idea, or system of ideas, drawn from the social life that the mind cherishes as its own. The social self involves how the society perceives the individual, and the ideal social self involves how the individual would like the society to perceive him/her. In a society individuals are unique and different from one another however their “self” is thoroughly socially constructed. The social self can include ethnicity, gender, age, and place of residence or any other categorization that helps characterize a person’s identity. There are two types of socialization: primary and secondary. Primary socialization involves the beginning stages of accepting social ideologies like for example a child’s embrace into cultural practices and norms. Secondary type of socialization manifests on primary and becomes the true test of identification and the social self. The social self exists within the parameters of subjective reality, but selfhood is a part of larger objective reality that is intrinsically connected with socialization. Without socialization the social self and identity would not exist. Social self is on-going process combining the “I” and the “me”. In this on-going process social self is influenced by four factors:-

The “I” – the unpredictable and unorganised self.

“Me” – the image of the social self seen through other people’s reactions.

The generalized other – organized set of information about the general expectations and attitudes of a social group.

Significant others – a person or persons who have great influence on one’s behaviour and self-esteem.

The social self maintains complete cohesion based on its societal influences, the generalized other and primary socialization respectively. A number of theories explain how people become socialized and develop a sense of self. The looking-glass self refers to the interactive process by which we develop an image based on how the individual imagines he/she appears to others. Other people act as a mirror, reflecting back the image we project through their reactions to our behaviour. Seeing oneself as how others perceive is only the beginning. Eventually one sees how others see us, but also takes on or pretends to take the roles of others. This act of role-taking forms the basis of the socialization process by allowing us to anticipate what others expect of us.

The figure on next page (fig-1) shows the hierarchy of social self and the various components that govern social self.

Fig-1

Throughout history individuals have been thought to have a single self-image and to be interested as consumers, in products and services that satisfy that single self. When consumer behaviour is taken into consideration, the idea of individual embodying a number of different selves suggests that marketers should target their products and services to consumers within the context of a particular self. Every individual has a certain image of himself or herself with certain traits, skills, habits, possessions, relationships, and ways of behaving. Individuals develop their self-images through interactions with people, initially their parents and then other individuals or groups with whom they relate over the years.

It is the image people create of themselves that is the psycho-cultural basis of their strengths and weaknesses, triumphs and failures. For a nation’s self-image tends to be self-fulfilling. If individual thinks that he/she will be defeated, then he/she has already lost the cause. If one thinks he or she is inferior, then one will tend to lower standards and will be satisfied. Negative self-images, whether individual or collective, can cause untold social and cultural damage. Human beings have nothing to lose by creating and working for the most exalted and inspiring images of themselves, because, as scholar Dr. Perlas “any social self-image is a self-fulfilling prophecy anyway”. Some people may ask how one person can be a potent force for social transformation, but as the prominent leader in Indian nationalism Mahatma Gandhi once remarked “if you like the world to change, you can before by being the change you want to see in the world”.

Today, seemingly immutable ideas about people and organizations are being directly challenged and transformed on an unprecedented scale. Indeed, as human beings are moving towards a post-modern global society they are breaking out of their parochial perspectives and are recognizing that organizations in all societies exist in a wide array of types and species and functions within a dynamic spectrum of beliefs and lifestyles. A significant leading light towards this expansive direction is the illumination provided us by the profound insights of scholar Dr. Nicanor Perlas. His radical message is that “organizations are products of human interaction and imagination rather than some blind expression of an underlying natural order”. This contemporary insight is still shattering many beliefs-one of which is the longstanding conviction that bureaucracy, oligarchy, and other forms of hierarchical domination are inevitable. In direct contradiction to materialist and behaviourist doctrine, where everything is supposed to be governed from below upward through micro determinist stimuli and physiochemical forces, the new ideational view upheld by scholar Dr. Perlas gives subjective mental phenomena a causal role in brain processing and thereby a new legitimacy in science as an autonomous explanatory construct. Future reality, in his view, is “permeable, emergent, and opens to the mind’s causal influence”. That is, reality is conditioned, reconstructed, and often profoundly created through individual’s anticipatory images, values, plans, intentions, beliefs, and the like. To a far greater extent than is normally acknowledged, he asserts that human beings create their own realities through symbolic and mental processes and, because of this consciousness evolution of the future is a human option. It is the image of which in fact determines what might be called the current behaviour of any organism or organization. The image acts as a field. The behaviour consists in gravitating toward the most highly valued part of the field. By deliberately changing the internal image of reality, people can change the world. This is what led Einstein to admit that “imagination is more important than knowledge”.

All individuals hold self-images, images of their race, profession, nation, and cultural belief systems; the underlying images held by a civilization or culture has an enormous influence on its fate. Human beings also have images of their own potential as well as the potential of others. According to mind-body studies, merely an anticipatory image, for example, of a hostile encounter can raise one’s blood pressure as much as the encounter itself. Similarly, numerous new studies now show that consciously constructed images can lead directly to such things as blood glucose increases, increased gastric acid secretion, blister formation, and changes in skin temperature and pupillary size. The positive image of the future is the single most important dynamic and explanatory variable for understanding cultural evolution: “Any student of the rise and fall of cultures cannot fail to be impressed by the role played in this historical succession of the future”. The rise and fall of images of the future precedes or accompanies the rise and fall of cultures. As long as a society’s image is positive and flourishing, the flower of culture is in full bloom. Once the image begins to decay and loses its vitality, the culture does not long survive.

Digital trends set to trigger changes in the social self:-

1. The inner circle: Individuals seek to mirror their social personals in the digital world. But so far, digital has forced individuals to bring together not only their social selves, but also their professional and familial ones, and present a single persona to everyone they keep in contact with online. The average Facebook user has 130 friends, from best friends to new acquaintances. Examples: Google circles, Facebook Groups, Twitter Lists

2. Personalized news: It is seen that human beings currently create more information in a year than they ever have historically. Understandably, overwhelmed by the plethora of information online, people need ways to navigate relevant information and choose what to read. Already, RSS feeds and social networks facilitate the process through integration with news sites that allow users to generate passive status updates by posting content to the wall. Now applications that sort content based on digital friendship are emerging. The result is social reading is the new standard in online content consumption. Examples: Percolate, News.me, Flipboard, Zite

3. Rent: Today one can get more entertainment for less. The average Netflix user spends over 11 hours per month watching movies. Digital has changed the sense of ownership and the behaviour of renting is extending into categories beyond media and car rental where human beings realize that their use for certain products is limited and therefore does not warrant a purchase like for instance infant clothes or art for home or office interiors. Examples: Plumgear.com, Artsicle.com

4. Seamless transactions: People are always demanding that their processes become more efficient, quicker and safer, especially when it comes to their bank account. People can now carry at least one screen with them at all times. 40% of US consumers own a Smartphone, which has becomes so much more than a phone. Transactions are quickly becoming fully integrated with screens in multiple ways, from paying with their phones to executing financial transactions. Examples: Bitcoins, Google Wallet, Monitise, Square Card, Facebook Credits

5. Home, body, web: Technology is fast reaching a tipping point where it is both sufficiently small and affordable to allow people to monitor their bodies and adapt to their environment automatically. People’s interest in leading healthier lifestyles, and automating the process through technology and sharing results and experience, is increasing dramatically. Examples: Nest.com, Jawbone Up

6. Ubiquitous accessibility: Market researchers and data analysts have found that data storage capabilities double every two years, so the demand for data and data accessibility is huge. With the increase in cloud computing usage, physical storage space is becoming obsolete. People access data from multiple devices, whether at home or on the go. Not long ago people stored their digital files locally, but the development of the cloud allows them to store larger amounts online. This is a storage solution that will become more prevalent as companies allow cloud access and service offerings drop in price. Examples: Bitcasa, DropBox, Google Docs, Instapaper, iCloud, SkyDrive

7. The reliable subscription: Human beings are creatures of habit and they want availability of the products they love in their busy lifestyle. In the past decades people have become an increasingly time-starved society, limiting their availability to maintain routines. Subscription services are utilizing this opportunity to greatest extent possible. Examples: ManPacks, PlaneRed, Lollihop, Memberly

8. Short-term nostalgic obsessions: Nostalgia has always been embedded in culture and society. People like to analyse their recent life through check-ins and status updates and to enhance their tactile experiences by bringing digital things to life. As people become more immersed in digital objects, their desire to revisit the not-so-recent past will increase. Examples: Little printer, Instaprint

9. Location-based discovery: Seeing the same place through someone else’s perspective enriches it with new meaning. Interactive websites and mobile social apps are helping people to make creative archives on locations. Examples: Trover, Foursquare Radar, Google Maps, Tour Wrist

10. Control over data: Data has become an intricate part of human life. People are now able to quantify all their digital actions and more services catering to specialized activities have emerged. People are becoming aware of the value of the data they share online, and may start making decisions differently. Examples: Ford Sync, LastFM, Goodreads, reading.am, Voy.url

Manifestations of self in online social networks:-

Over the past 5 years, online social networking sites (OSNs) like Facebook and MySpace have become a central, virtually unavoidable medium for social interactions. OSNs started by catering to specialized communities and niche groups but have since expanded their reach substantially, permeating virtually every stratum and demographic group in the developed world. As such, they now provide fertile, ecologically valid, and empirically tractable domains in which to examine on-going, real-world phenomena and processes in social and personality psychology.

To map out the basic connections between self and OSN behaviour, two descriptive exploratory studies are observed and studied to examine how traits are expressed on Facebook, currently the most widely used OSN in the world. The personality correlates of self-reported Facebook usage and ways in which personality traits are expressed in terms of observable information found on Facebook profiles are also studied as well as the extent to which observers are sensitive to the ways in which personality is manifested on profiles. Two competing hypotheses have been proposed to describe the relationship between offline and online behaviour. The rich-get-richer hypothesis argues that “individuals with pre-existing social structures and socially adaptive personalities will reap larger social benefits from Internet use and will use the Internet more for social communication” than will “individuals who are less socially adept”. In contrast, the social-compensation hypothesis argues that individuals who struggle to make social connections in face-to-face interactions will use the Internet as a place to enhance their inter- personal lives by forging social relationships online.

Some early research on aggressive behaviour online suggested that online personality could diverge from offline personality, but others have argued that those studies were based on forms of media in which users had no expectation for future interactions.

Supporting the idea that online social processes mirror those conducted offline, recent research suggests that people largely use online tools to maintain their existing relationships, people who are liked in offline context are also liked online, and mirroring offline findings, those who use OSNs more frequently also possess greater social capital.

Despite this research pointing to similar socialization processes in offline and online contexts, research focusing specifically on personality processes in online contexts is scarce. The deliberate processes by which personality traits become expressed in physical, aural, social, and virtual environments could play the same role in OSNs.

Result and conclusion of the research:-

In two studies, this research revealed a number of connections between personality and Facebook-related behaviour. Extraversion predicted not only self-reported frequency of Facebook usage, but also engagement in the site, with extraverts (vs. introverts) leaving observable traces of higher levels of OSN activity. Consistent with socialization in offline contexts, extraverts seek out virtual social contact and are more engaged during online social experience than are introverts. In the case of social networking sites, this engagement leaves behind a behavioural residue in the form of friend lists, picture postings, and so on. Similarly, rather than providing an opportunity for conscientious people to loosen their collar, OSNs may instead provide another haven in which low conscientious procrastinators can avoid getting down to work. Openness is also expressed as it is in the offline-world with evidence of exploring new activities, experiencing new people, and changing the photo- graphic scenery. Thus, rather than being an escape from reality, OSN sites exist as a microcosm of people’s larger social worlds.

The findings converged with other research to suggest that individuals are able to use observable profile information-be it the number of friends, photos, or another feature-to form accurate impressions of at least some basic personality traits. However, the research also showed that observers seemed to neglect some of the valid cues. These findings showing that some traits are manifested more clearly than others are consistent with the growing body of research showing that different traits are manifested in different contexts.

Conclusion:-

The society plays a crucial role in developing the “self” of an individual. Self has evolutionary as well as adaptable functions , the self can serve various psychological functions, having a self is not only knowing who you are, what you can do etc, but also how to get along in a group, observe and understand how to contribute in a group and make oneself visible and important figure. Everyone uses social comparison to understand how are they doing and how high or low do they stand in various situations. The social comparison is done to make oneself feel better by downward comparison and for improving oneself the individual has to look through upward comparison. The self-concept is formed from three major sources of information that humans obtain from others: words, feelings, and behaviours. What one thinks about oneself is often based on other’s comments, how one feels about oneself often comes from other’s emotional reactions towards individual and how an individual behaves is often in response to other’s reactions towards that individual. Another source of information that helps build or reduce self-concept is the set of internal standards used to judge one’s performance. If these standards of ideal performance are too high, a person may feel that he or she does not measure up. Consequently, the person develops feelings that devalue a sense of worth, resulting in a low self-concept or self-image in that area. Children often learn these internal standards from watching how their parents, teachers, and peers judge their performance at school and at home.

When social self is discussed, another important aspect is also considered which plays vital role in development of “self”, this aspect is socialization. Socialization is a sociological approach that attempts to explain how people learn cultural morals and the responses and emotions that differentiate human beings from animals that are driven merely by the drive to survive and reproduce.

Socialization starts from the assumption that humans are more than animals that do whatever it takes to survive. Instead humans recognize that they are part of a group, and they observe other humans for guiding cues on how they should respond. When a baby is born it observes its mother to learn how emotions work and what the proper response to different events should be. Gradually as the child learns that it is a separate being from its mother and other humans it learns to think about its own reactions and responses and how they differ from those of other people. In this stage the child may deliberately test things out by trying a different response than the one approved by other people. Eventually, the child settles into a pattern of being able to regulate their own responses and empathize with what others want and how they respond. In this way socialization is a careful dance in which the developing human learns to balance their own independent desires and responses with those of the people around them.

The social sciences are those sciences or scientific disciplines that deal with aspects of behavior and activities of humans, usually not studied in the natural sciences. Social scientists examine both the physical manifestations as intangible societies andindividuals.

In general, there is a reasonable agreement on what disciplines should be considered part of the social sciences and natural sciences, but the traditional division between the two is doubtful in the case of some. For example, although the language had been almost universally considered a social science, the modern approach initiated in the generative grammar of Noam Chomsky suggests that language is not so much social interaction but must be seen as a part of psychology evolutionary biology, as in the functioning of languages and temporal evolution of consciousness of the speakers or their psychological representations do not seem to play no role. For this reason, some authors have come to see that languages are a natural object that is generated spontaneously and not by deliberate human.

In general, without being excessively rigorous, the following disciplines have been considered by a large number of authors as examples of social science

Science related to social interaction:

Anthropology, History, Economy, Ethnography and Ethnology, and Sociology.

Science related to the human cognitive system: Language and Psychology.

Archaeology, depending on whether one considers the European or American tradition, archeology can be considered a discipline attached to history or anthropology respectively.

Science related to the evolution of societies: Demographics, History, and Human Ecology.

Applied Social Sciences, that try to organize or improve organizational processes or teaching:

Business Administration or Management, Library, Education, Planning, and International Relations.

Humanities. There are other disciplines, which are sometimes located as part of the humanities, but whose status is more controversial science, this group consists of:

Anthropology (Considered by some Universities in the Faculty of Humanities), Communication Sciences, Political Science, and Teaching, which are “teaching” of Social Sciences, Mathematics, Natural Science, Language and Literature: Law, Philosophy, Theology, Semiology, Legal Sociology, and Social Work.

Social science versus social studies. To be specific, a science is defined broadly by the scientific methodology used, which is two: the inductive and deductive. The inductive method is the methodology of the Natural and Social Sciences, being the deductive for mathematics. On this criterion, only the philosophy and theology would be part of the list of Humanities. In contrast, a study may be based on reasoning and observations but not strictly adhere to the scientific method, yet may be of interest, as stated in What are the social sciences?

Many of the social science disciplines have epistemological discussions about what is science. In the beginning was taken as a model of science to physics and other science experiments. However, time has identified the particular object of study, which is society, which does not fall within the methods and assumptions to study the natural sciences. In particular social systems does not generally permit the realization of certain experiments in controlled laboratory conditions and in other cases the predicted effects are qualitative and difficult to set quantitative limits for these predictions. An in-depth theoretical distinction is in the article: Theory of Human Sciences and in other epistemological approaches Critical Dictionary of the Social Sciences.

Between science and philosophy. Seeking social sciences, since its inception, reaching a truly scientific stage, achieving, is a certain independence from the prevailing method in philosophy. In this co-exist conflicting views on some aspect of reality, while in the exact sciences, this is not possible. Hence the humanistic branches of science should try to imitate, at least in this aspect, in the exact sciences, as stated in in Social science. William James expressed in the late nineteenth century: “A series of mere facts, small talk and bickering over opinions; parsimonious classifications and generalizations in a purely descriptive …. But not a single law as providing us with physical, not a single proposition which can be derived from any consequences causally… This is not science, it is only a science project”.

Remember that all science must establish objective descriptions based on observables, and therefore verifiable reality. The laws that have to consist of causal links between the variables, are involved in the description. In addition, knowledge should be organized in a way axiomatic, similar to the ethics established by Baruch Spinoza. Such an organization does not guarantee the accuracy of a description, but constitutes a prerequisite for the social sciences to acquire the scientific nature we all seek and yearn, as described in Social science.

Mario Bunge wrote “scientific researchers are expected to be guided by the scientific method, which reduces to the following sequence of steps: prior knowledge, problem, solution candidate (hypothesis, experimental design or technique), test, evaluationcandidate’s final review of either candidate to the solution, considering the procedure, prior knowledge and even the problem.” “Verification of the proposals is to test them for consistency and truth, which often proves to be only approximate. This test can be conceptual, empirical, or both. Nothing except the conventions and the mathematics, is considered exempt from the empirical evidence. Nor is there any science without them, or are absent any search and usage patterns.” “As I believe, the brief description above is valid for all sciences, regardless of differences of objects, special techniques or degrees of progress. It conforms to the social sciences such as sociology, as well as the biosocial, such as psychology, and natural sciences such as biology. If a discipline does not use the scientific method or do not seek or use regularities, proto, unscientific or pseudoscientific “.

Interdisciplinarity. At present there are critical to increasing specialization and low crosstalk between the social sciences. This would undermine a global analysis of society. Encyclopedia of Sociology, focuses on this issue: Sociology is very closely related to social psychology, with social history, with human geography, with the policy but should be more, if it is more related to cultural anthropology, human ecology with, with the demography, with urban planning, with the Estadisticay with philosophy. These relationships are not fully, but in parts or sections of each discipline. Sociology is the subject more open to other contributions from other social sciences and this is deducted from the collections of indices of citations in articles and books, as described in Social science.

The process is that in the border areas are being created hybrids and this is what gives coherence to the necessary interdependencies and benefits. The poor communication between disciplines is even more apparent among social scientists of different countries, mentioning only those of their cultural background, or your own country, mainly to the classics, when in fact the groups Latin American, European and Japanese, than group in American English literature.

Considering the Anthropology, where social science is described along with the race. We will review the race and its variations, differences and peculiarities all over the world. Race -is the system of human populations, characterized by the similarity of the complex inheritance of certain biological characteristics, with the outer phenotypic expression and formed in a particular geographic region. Features that characterize the different races, often appear as a result of adaptation to different environmental conditions, which took place over many generations. The criterion of distinction of race on the form is the absence of significant barriers to create fertile offspring, which leads to the formation of many transitional forms of miscegenation. The concept of “race” in general, more or less clearly perceived by different researchers, but in detail there are significant differences, different schools of anthropologists were isolated from four to seven major races and dozens of small anthropological types, as described in What is race?

The skull was discovered in 1795 in Georgia, launched Blumenbahom as a hypothesis about the origin of the Europeans from the Caucasus. Research considering the race – is the section of anthropology that studies the human race. The research of race examines the classification of races, the story of their formation and the factors of their occurrence, as the selective processes, isolation, confusion and migration, the influence of climatic conditions and the general geographical environment on racial grounds, as described in Are there really different races?

Race was particularly prevalent in the Nazi Germany and other Western European countries, as well as earlier in the USA (the Ku Klux Klan), which served as a justification for institutionalized racism, chauvinism and anti-Semitism. Sometimes research of the race issue is equated with ethnic anthropology. However, the latter is, strictly speaking, to study the racial composition of individual ethnic groups, that is, tribes, peoples, nations, and the origin of these communities.

In the part of racial studies, which focused on the study of ethnogenesis, Anthropology conducts research in conjunction with linguistics, history, archeology. In the study of the driving forces pf creation of race, anthropology comes into close contact with the genetics, physiology, zoogeography, climatology, general theory of speciation. Study of the races in anthropology is important for solving many problems. It is important to address the issue of ancestral modern human species, the use of anthropological material as a historical source, the coverage of systematics, mostly small systematic units, learning the laws of population genetics, to clarify certain issues of medical geography.

Denying the existence of races. In the middle of the XX century was originated the concept of unreality considered as infraspecific divisions of humanity. One of the first was formulated by the Belgian scientist J. Jernej, declaring the race is not a fact, and the concept.

In the recent decades, American and European anthropology forthright has a tendency to deny the reality of the existence of human races.

Division by race. There are many opinions about how many races can be distinguished within the species Homo sapiens. Existing points of view range from the hypothesis of two major racial trunks up to 15 independent hypothesis races. Between these extremes lies a wide range of hypotheses, postulating from 3 to 5 races trunks. It is worth noting that the races themselves (small race) are divided into subrasy, and there is no consensus regarding the affiliation of subras to certain races (small races). In addition, different anthropological schools use different names for the same races.

Typological concept of race historically comes first. According to the typological approach, describing the features of a particular person, can be clearly attributed it to a particular race: racial types are distinguished, and each individual is evaluated by the degree of approximation to this or that ‘pure’ type. For instance, the width of the lips and nose more than a certain size, combined with low head-pointer, a large protrusion of the face forward, type of skin and darker than a certain standard model is regarded as a sign of belonging to the Negroid race. This scheme can even determine the race of a particular person as a percentage. The complexity of the typological concept involves the separation of “pure” types, is distinctly different from one another. Depending on the number of types and attributes are defined as race, will vary, as well racial identification of the person. Moreover, the consistent application of strict typological principle leads to the fact that siblings can be attributed to different races.

Natural habitat Caucasians – from Europe to the Urals, North Africa, Southwest Asia and the Indian subcontinent. It includes the Nordic, Mediterranean, Alpine, East Baltic, and other subgroups. It differs from other races, especially the strong profiling individuals. The remaining symptoms vary widely. Natural habitat – Central, West and East Africa. Characteristic differences – curly hair, dark skin, dilated nostrils, thick lips, etc. Provided the eastern subgroup and western subgroup (Negro type, round-headed, middle-sized). Of special note is a group of Pygmies. Natural habitat pygmies – the western part of Central Africa. Growth from 144 to 150 cm for men, skin is light brown, curly hair, dark lips rather thin, large torso, arms and legs are short, the physical type can be classified as a special race. Possible number of pygmies can be from 40 to 200 thousand people.

Kapoidy (Bushmen, Khoisan race). Natural habitat – South Africa. Stunted, with infantile features. Are very short and with the curled hair. Skin yellowish-brown, not elastic – quickly wrinkles, droops fold over the pubis. Characterized steatopyga (mostly fat deposits on the buttocks), a strong lordosis. Special fold-century, prominent cheekbones and a yellowish skin attached to the Bushmen some resemblance to the Mongoloids. This occurred in parallel to adapt to life in similar conditions semi-desert.

Race east barrel are characterized by two differences: a greater evolutionary archaic (in particular, runs slowly universal human process of simplifying the teeth). This is due to the geographical features of eastern fire. The abundance of geographic barriers – the seas, mountains, great rivers, as well as the shelves are in a period of glaciation that were naked, then fired up, gave an advantage over migration groups.

Mongoloids. Originally inhabited by Eastern Eurasia, formed on the territory of modern Mongolia. Appearance reflects an adaptation to the conditions of deserts (the Gobi desert – one of the largest deserts in the world by area, located in Mongolia and northern China, the territory which is mainly inhabited by Mongolians). The main feature – is the eye protection from high insolation, dust, cold, etc. For this is a narrow slit eyelids, extra fold – epicanthus, darker iris, thick eyelashes, prominent cheekbones with cushions of fat, long (unless cut) lines and black hair. Identify two contrasting groups: the northern (solid, tall, fair-skinned, with a large face, low cranial vault) and southern (gracilis, short, swarthy, little face and high forehead). This contrast is caused by factors infantilizatsii in crowded southern regions. Young race – is about 12 thousand years.

American race – race, prevalent in North and South America. This race is characterized by straight black hair and an aquiline nose. Black eyes, wider than the Asian Mongoloids, but narrower than in Caucasians. Epicanthus are relatively rare in adults, although often in children, as stated in How race is lived in America.

Australoids (Australian-Oceanic race). Ancient race, which had a huge area bounded by the regions: the Indian subcontinent, Tasmania, Hawaii, Kurile Islands (that is, almost half the globe). Widely displaced and mixed with migrants. Includes groups: Polynesian, Melanesian, Australian, the Ainu. Extremely diverse race. Features of the exterior of indigenous Australians – a light brown skin tones, large nose, long wavy hair, burnable as tow a massive frontal bone, powerful jaws sharply distinguish them from African Negroids. However, among the Melanesians (Papuans) are frequently encountered spiral hair, which, along with the genetic proximity, indicates a slight influx of migrants from Africa.

Metis and migrants. As a result of intermarriage, there are mixed race. Mulatto – the result of combining the Negroid and Caucasian, Mestizo – Mongoloid and Caucasoid, and Sambo – Negroid, and Mongoloid. Moreover, there are entire nation, is now changing its race. For example, residents of Ethiopia and Somalia pass from Negroid to Caucasoid, and the inhabitants of Madagascar – from Mongolian to the Negro. Keep in mind that in the after- Columbian era, huge masses of people have left their natural habitats. Even in pre-Columbian era to the border, races formed metisnye transitional types – Ethiopian, Ainu, South Siberian and others. Active settlement and conquest of the Europeans stepped up the process of mixing and migration. In particular, almost all blacks are not pure Negroids, and mulattoes. To quell xenophobia, in such societies, the social organization promotes negative attitudes towards racial segregation, as described in Mixed-Race People Perceived as ‘More Attractive,’ UK Study Finds.

White people. Ancient mankind, is represented by early tropical populations of Homo (Homo habilis, Homo rudolfensis, Homo ergaster, etc.). Dark skin, hair and eyes were also migrants from Africa, giving rise core of the modern human species Homo sapiens. The loss of pigment occurred only on the outskirts of the area. The combination of light skin, hair and iris in pre-Columbian era was only a small fraction of Earth’s population, concentrated in the White Sea-Baltic “belt blonds.” However, the population of huge territories in North America and northern Eurasia has led to an increase in area and population of people of Caucasoid type. Currently, this population is again reduced due to lower fertility in white families, and mixing with the black population that bear the dominant genes.

Racial differences. Belonging to the form of Homo sapiens, people of every race are able to master all the achievements of culture. The most archaic (preserving the ancient characteristics of morphology) are Australoids. Each race in its own way is better suited for survival in a specific context: the Eskimos in arctic deserts and Nilotic peoples – in the savannahs. However, in an era of civilization, such opportunities appear from all races. Nevertheless, the facts relating to racial physiology continue to exert its influence on people’s lives.

The origin of races. Neanderthal, Neanderthal man – fossil species of humans that lived 300-24 thousand years ago. Neanderthals had an average height (about 165 cm) and a massive physique. Volume of the cranium (1400-1600 cm ? and above), they even surpassed the modern people. They are characterized by strong eyebrows, broad nose, and he is very small chin protrusion. By craniological indicators Neanderthals were dolichocephaly. There is an evidence that among them were red and white faced. Neanderthal genome showed that this species was not a direct ancestor of humans – their evolutionary lines diverged about 500.000 years ago. However, probably there were several episodes of interbreeding with Neanderthals Homo sapiens (in particular, about 50.000 years ago). The genes of Neanderthals were found only in representatives of non-African populations, so that interbreeding with Neanderthals could make some contribution to the formation of races.

Cro-Magnon. Cro-Magnons, the earliest representatives of modern humans in Europe and partly outside it, who lived 40-10 thousand years ago (Upper Paleolithic period), the possible ancestors of Caucasians. The Cro-Magnon was less massive than the Neanderthals. They were taller (up to 180-190 cm) and had extended “rain” (that is typical of modern tropical human populations), body proportions. They comparing to the skull with the skull of Neanderthals, had a higher and more rounded arch, more direct and smooth forehead, protruding chin (Neanderthal people had beveled chin). Cro-Magnon people type is characterized by low broad face, angular orbit, narrow, strongly protruding nose and a large brain (about 1600 cm ?).

For Valentine, social geography is “the study of social relations and the spatial structures that underpin those relations” (Valentine, 2001). Social geography covers a vast range of ideas and subjects; it looks at the inequalities in society such as sex, class, ethnicity and disability which are missed in other fields of geography (Johnston, 2001). One of the most important topics is the study of how people interact and use the space around them. These classifications and social markings make’s us what we are and how we are seen by others (Jackson, 2005). The ideas which Valentine thought described social geography can be shown through the issue of homelessness. This essay will look at: what homelessness means, social relationships within homelessness and spatial structures within homelessness.

Homelessness is becoming an ever growing social problem. The obvious definition of homelessness would be simply a person without a home, but it could also be seen as a “condition” where someone is ejected from society because of a lack of relations within a social structure (Chaplow in Bahr, 1973). Valentine has outlined different categories of homelessness. There is official homeless, where people are recognised by the state and have applied for housing. Single homeless is people who have no legal rights to housing and live on the streets. Hidden homeless are people that are not officially recognised by the state and living with friends or in other precarious situations. Protohomeless are people who could become homeless in the future due to their current circumstances (Valentine, 2001). These definitions from Valentine already show there are more social issues behind the issue of homelessness than first appear. The growing number of homeless people can be shown through a 58% increase in people in Scotland (between 1989/90-1999/00) applying under the homelessness legislation (Scottish Gov’t, 2009). It is believed that every night in England up to 500 homeless people sleep rough on the streets (Crisis UK, 2006) and that 10,000 people will do this over the course of a year. The largest majority of people sleeping rough is made up of young males, up to 52,000 young people were found to be homeless by local authorities in England during 2003 (Crisis UK, 2006). There are a number of common factors seen as the cause or lifestyle choice of the homeless, which often comes as a stigma to some of the homeless population. The next section will look at how social relations can often be the cause of homelessness.

Valentine claimed that “social relations” are a fundamental concept of social geography (Valentine, 2001). Social relations are about how different people/groups interact with each other and the bonds/relationships they form. Relationships (small or large) in society can have big effects on people. This can be shown through the example of domestic violence (small scale) compared to Local Authority Tolerance towards the homeless (large scale), both issues can have equally important effects on individuals.

Domestic violence is seen as one of the route causes of homelessness. It is the second most common crime in the UK, one incident is reported every minute (Womens aid, 2009). On average 1-2 women are murdered each week at home by male partners and 63% of women aged 30-49 cite domestic violence as the key reason for their homelessness (Crisis, 1999). Although the vast majority of domestic violence is targeted at women, men are also at risk. Especially those who are: young, old, frail or have disabilities.

The home is often associated with the ideas of security, comfort and family, this has not been the same throughout history. It was only in the late 19th/early 20th century where the home was separated from the work place. This new lifestyle changed the role of the wife and gender relationships (Madigan, 1990). Behind the closed doors of private homes there are no prying eyes or means of protection, the home could alternatively be associated as a place of violence and secrecy. The breakdown in relationships within the house such as couples (through domestic violence) or between family members (especially young members) leads to people being forced or choosing to leave the home. Family conflict is a main cause of homelessness amongst two thirds of homeless young people and 86% of young homeless people are forced out of their home, rather than leave on their own will (Crisis, 2006). Once the social relations breakdown and people are on the street, they are consumed by the stereotypical image of the homeless.

The homeless are associated with drug and alcohol culture, mental illness, crime and violence, for example ? of those who sleep rough have been to prison (Crisis, 2006). These views are primarily meant for the street homeless, the visible homeless population which only make up a small proportion of all the homeless. However these images which are the face of homelessness often are unfair on a number of people and create a new problem in the way of tackling a much larger issue (Ravenhill, 2008).

The state and public can see the homeless as not worth helping, due to these stereotypical associations. One example of a state approach towards the issue of homelessness is the *anti-bum ordinances” in America where local authorities tried to rid homeless populations by displacing them to neighbouring cities. In other areas of America authorities were seen to be punishing the homeless. On a cold winters night (30th December 1987) in Miami, 41 homeless were arrested by police in order to uphold there policy of no sleeping on the streets. The state was seen to be cleaning the streets of “the unsightly presence of homeless individuals” (Baker, 1990). Both these examples show the poor social relationships between the homeless and the state, the issue was in most cases not treated fairly or just passed onto another person.

The idea of the state moving the homeless away from the city streets links into the idea of NIMBYISM (not in my back yard), creating a spatial structure where the homeless are not wanted or don’t fit in anywhere. This idea of NIMBYISM relates especially to residential and business areas, as the presence of homeless could reduce housing prices and create security concerns. The homeless don’t fit into the spatial pattern of the city, seen as a nuisance or an eye sore. It is however important that homelessness is not just seen as an urban issue.

Rural homelessness is an almost hidden issue from society and is often not even pictured when regarding the subject of homelessness. In rural England the number of homeless grew by 30% from 2002-2004 (Countryside Agency, 2004). It is an issue which is growing larger in the UK as people adopt new spatial structures of living. People are moving out of urban areas into rural areas, these are often wealthy families looking for the rural idyll (the more glamorous view of the countryside). In 2003 only half of those who purchased property in the countryside with land attached were farmers (Countryside Agency, 2004). There is a growing lack of affordable housing for rural locals, due to this structural switch and a lack of planning for the future in the countryside. This rural homeless population are normally forced to stay in cars or make shift camps/shelters, exposed to the elements. One of the most common outcomes of rural homelessness is known as “sofa surfing” where people move between staying with different friends. This group is often unrecognised by the state, therefore not creating the attention needed to spark help. Like the street homeless the make up and social associations of the rural homeless are the same. The majority of the rural homeless are also between the ages of 19-25 and there are large associations still with drugs, alcohol, crime, mental health and suicide. Where ever the homeless populations are they face much the same issues and stereotypical associations.

The issue of homelessness can be extensively examined by looking at the social relations and spatial structures within the topic. Through homelessness it can be seen that social relationships affect how people are treated and viewed in society. This concept can be applied to many social geography issues such as gender and ethnicity. For homelessness however these relationships are vital in understanding how some people have become homeless (through the breakdown in family relationships), how the public view the homeless (as drug addicts and thieves) and even in how the state approaches dealing with the issue. The study of the spatial structures of homelessness shows us how the homeless use space. This could be creating there own new homes, creating conflicts through NIMBYISM and it also lets us explore aspects like the rural homeless. Homelessness often does not fit into the social structure of cities; there is no room or will to accommodate the homeless. The issue of homelessness is a complicated one, but can be summarised as a complex structure of social relationships and issues of the use of space.

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The United States Supreme Court In 1967 ruled that Virginias anti-miscegenation laws were not in accord with the principles set forth in the constitution of the state and put a stop to all of the legal restrictions that were in place against marriages amongst mixed race (Erin, 2005). Since that time there has been a remarkable increase in the number of marriages amongst mix race in the United States (Lewis and Yancey, 1997), and the figures of interracial couples has also become twice as much every decade since 1960 (Killian, 2002). Statistics show that currently there are about 3 million interracial marriages, which make up 5% of all marriages in the United States, and another 2.5 million mix race couples that are dating (Hibbler and Shinew, 2002).

Interracial marriages can include the combination of White, Blacks, Asians, Hispanics, and any other group. However, when people talk about interracial relationships, the first things that mostly come to their mind is relationships amongst black and white (Vernellia, 1998). The rate of growth of interracial marriages is increasing by the day. In particular, the kind of interracial intermingling involving Blacks and Whites has been constantly changing. Immediately after Emancipation, the figures of black and white interracial relationships increased, got to its peak in 1900, and subsequently decrease till 1940. However, this form of union is still the least common type of mix race union (Davidson, 1992), even though the Black and White intermarriages has been on the increase since the 90’s (Tucker and Mitchell-Kernan, 1990).

There are a lot of reasons for the sharp increase in the figures of the different form of interracial marriages. One of the reasons is the Supreme Court decision in 1967 that made anti- miscegenation laws unconstitutional (Kalmijn, 1993). The close in the gap narrowed down between Blacks and Whites education, occupation and income (Kalmijn, 1993). Also, data from National Center for Health Statistics indicates the decrease in White’s prejudice against Blacks (Kalmijn, 1993). Further more, the increase in interracial marriage can be linked to the progress made by the Civil Rights movement, the increase in opportunities afforded Black people, and the increase in social contact between the races (Davidson, 1992).

This research aim at reviewing the historical background of interracial relationship both interracial dating and marriage, and also factors attributed to relationships amongst mix race. This research also focuses on the opinions of the youth to interracial relationship in the 21th century. In general, the main aim of this piece is to examine interracial relationships, whether marriage or casual dating and the attitude of the youths towards it, taking foreign pre- masters students at ICRGU from different regions as samples. The reason for the study of different forms of relationships is because some individual rather prefer to go into a causal date, than going into a serious relationships that might lead to marriage. But this research will not only look at attitude towards interracial relationships from perspective of preference. It will look at possible points of meeting a person from another region or origin, and what might probably propel someone into such relationship base on personalities and compatibility. The research questions are as follows:

What are the attitudes of the youths towards relationship amongst mix race in the 21th century?

How popular is relationships amongst mix race.

Factors affecting relationships amongst mix race.

LITERATURE REVIEW

This section of review on the interracial relationships will basically focus on three major tittles, which are

The characters of those going into interracial relationships

Theories why people marry outside of their race taking blacks and whites form of union as study sample.

Social reactions to interracial relationship.

To start with, characteristics of those in interracial relationships, in terms of marriage, research shows that people who interracially marry tend to be younger, likelihood of being married before, live in developed environment like cities or town, or are older in age from their spouse compared to people who married within their own race (Erin, 2005). Research founds that male and female within a particular racial group to an extent have different tendency to get married to someone outside their racial group (Erin, 2005). For instance, Black male have high records of interracial compared to black females. Also, Japanese and Native American woman have much higher numbers of interracial marriages compared to their male counterparts (Erin, 2005). In the U.S interracial marriages currently are highest in the west and lowest in the southern region. However, Hawaii breaks the normal trends of interracial marriages. Hawaii has a unique racial makeup in that no single racial group makes up more than 25% of the population and nearly 40% of all marriages interracial (Solberry, 1994). Therefore, it is significant to note that interracial couples tend to often move to more hospitable areas of the country (Tucker and Mitchellkernan, 1990).

Further more, many theories have been established to explain the reasons behind people getting married to race other than their race, and success of such marriage to stand test of time. Structural theory states that marriages among mix race is more frequent in areas where community structure have been kept in place to support and authorize interracial marriages, and also community were there is increase in awareness of peoples personal decision to go into such a union. Recent attention given to interracial marriage in the media and in popular literature along with more people living and working in more integrated environments has lead to an increased acceptance of heterogeneous relationships (Hibbler and Shinew, 2002).

Another predominant theory on reason people chose to marry outside of their race is the social exchange theory. Using Black-White interracial marriage for instance, social exchange theory states that when White women marry Black men, who usually are of higher economic status, they exchange the prestige of their skin color for the Black husband’s higher economic status (Davidson, 1992; Kalmijn, 1993; Lewis and Yancey, 1997). However, Black women have been found to marry down in both interracial and same race unions, which seem to prove that Black-White interracial marriage is more complex than just an exchange of status (Foeman and Nance, 1999). An additional theory, which attempts to account for the union of interracial relationships, is the racial motivation theory (Kouri and Lasswell, 1993). The racial motivation theory states that many interracial marriages take place because of racial differences, not in spite of them (Kouri and Lasswell, 1993). From this view, it can be said that curiosity about differences in race, increases sexual interest or attraction to someone not of same race. This theory also says that those who intermarry may be acting in rebellion against social norms of racial endogamy and using the marriage as a way to state their independence (Kouri and Lasswell, 1993).

Finally, there has been a change in the societal view of interracial marriages. Many studies have shown that there is less pressure in society today to have racially homogeneous relationships than in the past (Lewis & Yancey, 1997). Never the less there are still some discriminations in some form of interracial union. Using the union of Black and White for instance, recent studies still suggest that the Black-White interracial union, especially the Black male-White female union, is still the most negatively viewed relationship type (Norment, 1994). There have been many researches on the history of discrimination against Black-White Interracial union. Today, the relationship between Blacks and Whites is seen as different from that of other minorities. When one speaks of “race relations” in America, the majority of people immediately think of the struggles between Black and White people (Killian, 2002; Wright et. al, 2003). Despite the dramatic increase in Black-White marriages, they are still the least favorable form of interracial marriage in America (Wade, 1991), and they are still considered to be a taboo subject by some (Harris and Kalbfleisch, 2000). According to survey carried out among Blacks and White marriage, in the study of 270 interracial couples, it was found that nearly half reported that marrying someone not from their race makes marriage difficult, while about two thirds reported that at least one of the parent objected to their marriage (Fears and Deane, 2001). Although there is increase in the tolerance of interracial couples, there are still powerful forces in society that make Black-White interracial marriage hard and unappealing (Dainton, 1999). Many Black-White interracial couples report that they face discrimination from members of their own particular race; European Americans view them as being “too Black” and African Americans view them as being “not Black enough” (Orbe, 1999).

Another source of discrimination for those in interracial marriages is often the family. The majority of people in interracial marriages have said that they have had to face one or both parents express serious concern to outright disapproval of their choice to marry interracially. Most of the time , this disapproval are always expressed verbally, and in the case where couple goes on with the marriage, some certain members of the family not in support of the union might refuse to attend any important event organized by the couples, such as wedding, holiday celebrations, family reunion or even family visitation. In some extreme cases, members of interracial marriages have reported having lost all contact for years at a time with once close members of their families (Luke and Carrington, 2000). But, one part of the two’s couples tend to be more acceptant than the other. Studies have also found that acceptance of interracial marriages is increasing at a rapid rate and an increasing number of interracial couples are reporting that their families have openly accepted their interracial relationship, and they feel comfortable speaking about their relationship in public (Fears & Deane, 2001, Rosenblatt et. al., 1995). However, attitudes towards interracial relationships have been found to vary based on race, age, and gender. In a study of Black and White people between the ages of 21 and 40, it was reported that men have more positive attitudes towards interracial relationships compared to women, and also those that are younger have more favorable views on interracial relationships (Datzman and Gardner 2000). It was also found that the families of the Black partner in interracial relationships tend to be more accepting and supportive than the families of the White partner (Hibbler and Shinew, 2002). In another study eighty-six percent of Black respondents said that their families would welcome a White person into their family compared to only 55% of White respondents who said their families would welcome a Black person into their family (Fears & Deane, 2001).

This research however is not just about interracial relationships among blacks and white, the review is to build up facts associated with interracial relationship considering researches already done on different topics on interracial relationships which can help answer some of the research questions. This research aims at cutting across all forms of interracial relationships, and types of relationships, whether causal dating or marriages and associated factors that influences the opinion of people towards going into it. Also, it aims at finding the opinion of the youth towards interracial relationships in the 21th century.

METHOLOGY

The research targeted at getting the opinions and attitudes of the youths towards interracial relationships, whether just casual dating or marriages. Considering the limitation both time and resources, the research were conducted among international students of ICRGU who are from different parts of the world, namely, China, Nigeria and Kazakhstan. The final sample of students consist of 4 Chinese (1 males, 3 females), 3 Nigerians (2 males, 1 female), and 3 Kazakhstanis (1 male, 2 females), all between the age of 20-35. None of the participant is married.

Interviews were conducted on each of the participants to explore their attitudes toward interracial relationships. Qualitative data were collected by the means of follow-up interviews with the respondents who participated in the survey. The interviews with the respondents were semi- structured interview, including general questions as well as sets of questions for individuals who either have family members or friends, or know someone who was is into interracially relationship. Generally, all the questions aimed at getting disposition towards interracial relationships, and also general opinion towards interracial relationships.

DISCUSSION

Over the decades now, many studies have been made on interracial relationships and so far shown many controversies. The study on interracial relationships is a wide study, but very interesting study. This research however focused on the opinion of the youths towards interracial relationships, and has been proven that there is increase in the awareness of youth towards interracial relationships, unlike in the past.

The table 1 shows the numbers of participants both male and female who took part in the survey, and their opinion on whether they can go into a relationship with someone not of their race. About 60% agreed they can go into interracial relationships, while about 20% disagree not to going into interracial relationships. 20% percent others would want to, but are restricted because of some factors like family acceptance or their culture.

Table 2, shows the participants general opinion towards interracial marriages, and from the table, there is a trend of acceptance in some region compared to other regions. Fig 2.1 and 2.2 shows the percentages of both male and female’s opinions towards interracial marriages. Figure2.1 shows individual dispositions towards interracial marriage and about 60% sounded positive of getting married to someone outside their race, and about 40% wouldn’t want to get married to someone not from their race. Figure 2.2 shows the general opinion on interracial marriages, and about 90% feels nothing is wrong in going into interracial marriages, while about 10% feels interracial marriages isn’t ideal.

Even with challenges faced in interracial relationship, it’s still something one can rule out from happening. According to Mr. John, he feels with high speed travel and communication technology in this age of globalization interracial marriages will always happen irrespective of the family, cultural believes, or societal opinion. But he feels to preserve culture, interracial marriage is not ideal. Miss Ama also feels marriage has nothing to do with culture or believes. She feels as long as there is love and the both parties understand themselves, marrying each other shouldn’t be a problem. She also didn’t rule out difficulties that might come with the marriage such as language barriers but she said if the 2 parties are strong enough to overcome the challenges that will make them strong.

Generally, from the research, it was observed most believe interracial relationships have to do with the personal decisions and feeling. According to Miss Beauty, she feels going into interracial relationship is a personal thing. She also said as long as there is respect and happiness, there is nothing wrong about interracial relationships. To add to this, Miss Ama said feeling is a thing of the mind irrespective of color, culture or religion , you don’t expect it, it just happens. When happens and you feel the person is the right choice for you, you just go for it.

One of the limitations in this research is the time frame. The time frame to complete this research isn’t long enough to get more samples for analyzing the topic in context. The research was restricted to little numbers of participants and limited questions to elaborate more on the factors affecting opinions so as to have enough time to execute the aim of the research. However, with previous review on related research, the aim of the research was accomplished. Another limitation was the numbers of different regions availably. In the pre masters class of ICRGU where the survey was carried out, presently have students mainly from 3 countries namely, Nigeria, China, and Kazakhstan. The effect of this is that, there were limitations to cultural behaviors and believes considering the topic was generally on opinion of the youths in the 21th century, and just 3 countries were available for the survey.

CONCLUSION

An interracial relationship is where there is marriage, sexual or romantic relations between individuals of different races. In the past, interracial marriages were in fact taboo in some parts of the world, but with globalization there has been a change in ideology about interracial relationship. From the result of the survey, it suggests that there is increase in the awareness of interracial relationships. It also suggests there is an increase in the acceptance of going into a relationship with someone of different race. However, there are still some believes that interracial relationships, especially marriage if encourage, could lead to cultures being eradicated, in this light very few persons wont support such union so as to preserve culture. The finding in the studies also shows that about 90% of the participants feel there is nothing wrong in going into interracial relationships, as long as both parties love each other and have reasons to want to go into such relations, and also can solve their differences.

There are some attitudes common to the participants of this survey which are,

All participants are in their 20’s and are all international students of ICRGU who are from different countries, and might want to try something new.

They have been opportune to meet with other students from other countries. Considering might be the first time most of them have the opportunity to meet different people with different culture, color, background and country.

They believe as long as the 2 parties are willing to pass the huddles, there is nothing wrong in interracial relationships

Lastly, they feel relationship is the thing of the heart. It has nothing to do with color, culture or country. As long as the two parties can cope with their differences.

There are a lot of controversies on interracial relationships because believes of every individuals varies. But according to this research, it can be said to some extent that interracial relationships is somehow accepted and there is increase in awareness. In light of the increasing rates of interracial relationship and the opinion of people towards it, there is still a great deal of research that needs to be done on this topic. One of the researches needs to discuss more on the success of interracial marriages.