Author: Andre Coleman

Theories of why crime, atrocities and violence against women occur provide insight into the changes necessary to prevent and eradicate that. At the fact that the vast majority of crime atrocities and violence committed against women is committed by men. This raises the question, “Why do men batter women?” We believe that a root cause of woman abuse is the pervasive social belief system that posits male superiority over women as natural and preferred. Moreover, there exists a broad-based social belief that women are inferior and that it is their role to be subservient to men. We also acknowledge that this belief system of “domination over” can be adopted by women as a framework for relationships to men as well as their relationships with one other. Because these beliefs pervade so much of our society and its institutions, eradicating violence against females will require changes at the most fundamental levels of society. These changes must eliminate policies and practices perpetuated by the male-dominated culture that sexualize women as objects, demean their value, restrict their participation in decision making, dehumanize them with labels, control their rights over their own bodies, and marginalize and demean their presence.

Explanations of crime, atrocities and violence against women that focus on characteristics of individuals use a micro-level or individual-level perspective. Theoretical explanations of crime, atrocities and violence against women that reflect the micro perspective include social learning theory; psychopathology, psychological, and physiological explanations; resource theory; and exchange theory. Social learning theory is one of the most popular explanatory frameworks for crime, atrocities and violence against women, suggests that individuals learn how to behave through both the experience of and exposure to violence. Biological and physiological explanations suggest that the crime atrocities and violence against women is related to the process of natural selection, such that men, who are biologically driven to reproduce as much as possible, will resort to rape when they have difficulty finding consensual female partners. Alcohol has also been cited by researchers as a frequent factor in violent acts against women.

Under exchange theory, individuals are viewed as engaging in certain behaviors either to earn reward or to escape punishment; under this theory, men’s violence against women can be interpreted as a means for men to maintain their position in the social structure. Resource theory is situated within the framework of exchange theory, which views men as using violence within the family to establish power over women within family dynamics when other resources of persuasion are lacking. In contrast to micro theories, macro or socio-cultural theories focus on the social and cultural conditions that make violence against women a likely occurrence. A psychopathological explanation of crime, atrocities and violence against women suggests that individuals who are violent toward women have some type of personality disorder or mental illness that might get in the way of otherwise normal inhibitions about violent behaviour.

More recently, the trend in theory development regarding crime, atrocities and violence against women has moved toward the development of multidimensional theories of crime atrocities and violence that take into account both social structural factors and individual characteristics. As well as social theories which consider external factors in the perpetrator’s environment, such as family structure, stress, social learning. As with many phenomena regarding human experience, no single approach appears to cover all Factors.

Some of the theoretical propositions on criminal violence against Women generally are:

it can be an instrument useful in obtaining some end or reward,

it is a some psychopath, and

it can be a response that is consistent with norms supporting its use, and so forth.

A few social scientists have attempted to explain criminal violence types of violence against women. These associations and correlations howsoever do not provide a scientific theoretical insight into the causes of violence against women.

Theories of Crime, Atrocities and Violence against women

The analyses of various types of crime, atrocities and violence against women and their varied patterns presented in this study, therefore, calls for examining and testing some important theories.

So far as Indian scene is concerned, in the past few decades, with increasing evidence the phenomenon, domestic violence has drawn the attention of several concerned feminists, human rights groups, social scientists and social work practitioners. Many scientists have also attempted to study the phenomenon and have proposed several theories to explain the same. An overview of various theories that have been put forward is as follows:-

Feminist Theory and violence

The Family System Theory

Psychological Theory: A Focus on Individual

Physiological theory

Psycho-Pathological Theory

Socio-Psychological Theories,

Perversion Theory,

Self-Attitude Theory,

The Cycle Theory of Violence and Psycho-social theory of Learned Helplessness,

Survivor Theory,

7. Socio-Cultural theories,

Structural Theory,

System Tension and Feedback Theory,

Resource Theory,

Patriarchy Theory,

conflict and control Theories,

Inter-actionist deviance Theory,

Social Learning Theory,

Cognitive Behaviour Theory,

Exchange Theory

8. Multi-Factor Theory,

Integrated Approach Theory,

The Multi-factorial Systemic Theory

Feminist Theory and Domestic Violence

Feminist theory in domestic violence emphasizes gender and power inequality in opposite-sex relationships. It focuses on the societal messages that sanction a male’s use of violence and aggression throughout life, and the proscribed gender roles that dictate how men and women should behave in their intimate relationships (Pence & Paymar, 1993). It sees the root causes of intimate partner violence as the outcome of living a society that condones aggressive behaviours perpetrated by men, while socializing women to be non-violent.

Proponents of feminist theory acknowledge that women can also be violent in their relationships with men; however, they simply do not see the issue of women abusing men as a serious social problem, and therefore, does not deserve the same amount of attention or support as violence against women (Kurz, 1997).

Treatment Approach

The “Duluth Model” represents the dominant treatment approach aligned with feminist theory. This model was created following a serious domestic violence homicide that took place in Duluth, Minnesota (Pence & Paymar, 1993). Community and government officials wanted to address the problem of domestic violence, but did not know where to begin. They wanted to create a treatment approach that involved the courts, police services, and ‘human services’. Guiding the model’s development were the following questions:

“Why is she the target of his violence? How does his violence impact the balance of power in their relationship? What did he think could change by hitting her? Why does he assume he is entitled to have power in the relationship? How does the community support his use of violence against her?” (Pence & Paymar, 1993, p. xiii).

As one can begin to see, much of the Duluth model revolves around the power dynamics inherent in opposite-sex relationships, which is a reflection of the different ways men and women are socialized on issues of power and equality. The goal of treatment is to educate men about gender roles, and how behaviours and values identified as ‘masculine’ have been shaped by societal messages and attitudes that reinforce patriarchal privilege and unhealthy ways of relating with women.

Limitations of Feminist Approach

Limitations of feminist theory can be found when trying to explain violence in same-sex relationships (Lawson, 2003). While issues of power, control, and autonomy have also been identified as reasons for intimate partner abuse in lesbian relationships, issues such as dependency and jealousy also exist (Renzetti, 1992). The point is that partner abuse in same-sex couples requires a more comprehensive analysis and theoretical explanation.

Secondly, a feminist approach is also limited for explaining abuse perpetrated by women. Feminist theory typically explains women’s use of violence in the context of self-defence and retaliation for previous abuse. Yet, by doing so, a strictly feminist orientation denies that women can also feel angry and enraged without provocation in their relationships with men (Nolet-Bos, 1999). Additionally, while much of a woman’s use of violence does exist within the framework of retaliation and self-defence, feminist theory does not explain why women perpetrate violence outside their intimate relationships (e.g., at work, with children, or with peers).

The Family System Theory [7]

Family systems theory has had a significant impact on the study of families and on approaches to working with families. Such as understanding traumatic events or chronic health issues and their impact on individuals and families, substance abuse intervention and treatment modalities, and kinship networks. It has provided a useful lens through which a greater understanding of families has emerged. However, as with any lens, critics have challenged the clarity of the lens in certain areas. Some critics have argued that issues of gender inequality are not fully articulated or addressed within family systems theory.

For example, in patriarchal societies, where power lies primarily with men, equality of influence between men and women cannot be assumed. Critics of family systems theory argue that such inequality is often overlooked or understated (Goldner 1989; Yllo 1993). The application of family systems theory to issues of family violence has been criticized.

For example, a systems perspective on family violence will focus on the family dynamics that contribute to the violence, and less attention will be given to the characteristics, motivations, and attitudes of the perpetrator of the violence. Critics argue that the utilization of family systems theory in this area can lead to the perception of a shared responsibility for violence between the victim and perpetrator and less accountability by the perpetrator for his or her actions (e.g. Whitchurch and Constantine 1993; Finkelhor 1984).

Over the years variants in family systems have emerged. The communications model focuses on the communication patterns found within family systems, specifically on the role of inputs and outputs in communication and the consistency between these in explaining family communication patterns in functional and dysfunctional families. Such a model was heavily influenced by the work of Gregory Bateson, Don Jackson, Paul Watzlawik, and others at the Mental Research Institute in Palo Alto (Watzlawick, Beavin, and Jackson 1967). In contrast, Salvador Minuchin’s (1974) work with family systems theory has focused more on the spatial nature of families. Central to this orientation is an examination of the social contexts and structures in which families find themselves and their interaction with those contexts and structures.

Criticism:-

Family systems theory will be challenged to consider and integrate the increasingly important role that genetics and neurobiological structures have on personality traits and individual behavior. Family systems theory is also being challenging to consider cultural and broader contextual issues that influence families. The integration of family systems theory into the medical realm, the study of ethnic and cultural differences, and broader systems is a testament to its continued utility.

Psychological Theory: A Focus on Individual [8]

There are many different theories as to the causes of crime, atrocities and violence (abuse). These include psychological theories that consider personality traits and mental characteristics of the offender, as well as social theories which consider external factors in the offender’s environment, such as stress, social learning and drug and alcohol abuse. These are following:-

Psychological theories focus on personality traits and mental characteristics of the offender. According to this theoretical approach, characteristics associated with individuals who abuse their partners include low self-esteem, isolation from social support, a manipulative nature, and a desire for power and control (Suman Kakar 1998).

These individuals are likely to be unwilling to take responsibility for their own actions, have extreme feelings of jealousy and possessiveness, be overly dependent on the victim, and/or have certain mental or psychological disorders. These

Important aspects in the psychological theory are power and control. In some relationships, violence arises out of a perceived need for power and control. This are the abuser may use violence as a strategy to gain or maintain power and control over the victim. Abusers may feel the need to control their partner because of difficulties in regulating anger and other strong emotions, or when they feel inferior to the other partner in education and socioeconomic background.

Stress may be one most cause of the crime, atrocities and violence against women, increased when a person is living in a family situation, workplace and social level with increased pressures. Social stresses, due to reason for sometime inadequate finances or other such problems in a further increase tensions. Violence is not always caused by stress, but may be one way that some (but not all) people respond to stress.

Families and couples in poverty may be most likely to experience domestic violence, due to increased stress and conflicts about finances and other aspects. Some speculate that poverty reason hinder a man’s ability to live up to his idea of “successful manhood’, thus he fears losing honour and respect.

Social learning theory suggests that the people are learning from observing and modelling after others’ behaviour. With positive reinforcement, the behavior continues. If one observes violent behaviour, one is more likely to imitate and there are no negative consequences (e.g. victim accepts the violence, with submission), then the behaviour will likely continue. Oftentimes, crime, atrocities and violence is transmitted from generation to generation in a cyclical manner.

Drug and/or alcohol abuse may be a precursor to domestic violence. Substance abuse leads to out-of-control behaviour. A drunk or high person will be less likely to control his or her violent impulses. However some have argued that abusers use drug and alcohol as an excuse for their action. Yet, alcohol is an important risk factor for partner abuse., many of the most gruesome murders and sexual violence are linked to mental disease brought about by drug and alcohol addiction, respectively.

For instance, a young boy may see his father come home from work and his activities;- first he drunk and angry, screaming at his mother and second outside home abusing neighbours and fighting others. He watches his mother attempt to please and placate his father’s drunken behaviour and outside others to see shameful. The young boy is being taught that crime and violence gets results. He is developing his own ideas about what makes a man.

Physiological theory

Another theory emphasizing on individual is physiological theory. There are several variants of physiological theory. One focuses on evolution and the genetic characteristic that predispose men to violence. Others emphasize brain structures, chemical imbalances, dietary dellciencies and hormonal factors such as testosterone. Genetic and hormonal explanations reasons for the greater pre-disposition towards violence in men than in women, but this not apply to chemical imbalances or dietary deficiencies.

Criticism

Physiological theories are not context specific. They purport to explain all forms of violence and they contribute little to the understanding of specifically domestic violence. Their main deficiency, however, is that they play down both individual responsibility for violent acts and the influence of structural and political factors, Such theories always more commonly encountered are now deservedly out of fashion. [9]

Psycho-Pathological Theory

According to this theory, men who abused their wives were mentally ill and could be cured through medication or psychiatric treatment. Comparisons were made between the “typical” batterer and severely mentally ill, primarily schizophrenic, men (Dobash and Dobash 1979). The researchers found that the behaviour of batterers did not correspond to profiles of persons who were mentally ill. When the battered women’s movement began in the United States in the early 1970s, the prevailing theory of why men batter was based on psychopathology. [10]

From this perspective, domestic violence is rooted in individual psychopathology or dysfunctional personality structures, which are more likely than biological factors to be learned and shaped by early childhood experiences. Research is this area includes studies of male batterers, showing that witnessing domestic violence or being the victim of abuse undermines one’s ability to trust and to regulate emotions and results in hostile, dependent, insecure individuals with ability to develop healthy relationships. Similar research shows that male batterers are more likely than non-batterers to score poorly on mental health tests (for example, anxity, depression, mania, psychosis) and criminality indicators (for example, antisocial personality and stranger violence). [11]

Feminists criticized this theory because they believed it excused the batterers and did not take into account the patriarchal structure of the society. But today, psychopathology has once again become a popular. Since the mid-1990s, researchers have been investigating the psychological roots of domestic violence.

A number of recent studies have found a high incidence of psychopathology and personality disorders, most frequently antisocial personality disorder and borderline personality organization ( or post-traumatic stress disorder), among men who assault their intimate partners (Dutton and Bodnarchuk 2005).

Studies have included the Million Clinical Multiaxial Inventory (MCMI) as a personality evaluation tool (Million, Davis, and Million 1997). These studies found that almost 90 percent of batterers had MCMI scale elevations for at least one personality disorder, and more than a third of these men had such elevations on four or more MCMI personality scales (Million, Davis, and Million 1997).

Most recently, researchers have studied the role of antisocial personality characteristics in understanding intimate partner violence by men. The most conclusive studies have been conducted by researchers studying large, preexiting data samples for subjects originally recruited in childhood to examine development of delinquency, criminal behaviour, and aggression. This work demonstrated a relationship between antisociality and intimate partner violence by men (Holtzworth-Munroe and Meehan 2002).

Dutton and Bodnarchuk (2005) describe an “abusive personality” as one that is characterized by shame-based rage; a tendency to project blame; attachment anxiety manifested as rage; and sustained furious outbursts, primarily in intimate relationships. This abusive personality is constructed around characteristics of the borderline personality. According to this theory, men become violent when they fear abandonment, given their great dependency on their intimate partners.

In a 1999 study, Gondolf found that a smaller percentage of men than in previous studies had high enough scores on any personality subscale to indicate a ” clinical disorder” (i.e., 48 percent in his sample versus up to 80 percent in other samples). He concluded that batterers are “less pathological than expected” and that too much attention has focused on the pathology of batterers (Gondolf 1999). However, a significant number of researchers have drawn attention to the potential importance of personality characteristics, often at a sub clinical level, in understanding batterer violence. [12]

Socio-Psychological Theories,

The Socio-psychological theories assumes that criminal violence can best be understood by careful examination of external environmental factors that exercise impact on an individual offender. This theory also examines the types of everyday interactions (say, stressful situations or family interactional patterns) which are precursors of violence. Theories such as the Frustration-Aggression theory, the Perversion theory and the self -Attitude theory approach criminal violence from a socio-psychological level of analysis. [13]

Frustration-Aggression theory

This theory first stated in 1939 by Dollard, derived many of its basic postulates from Freudian theory. It explains the process by which aggression is directed to the source of frustration. Whenever something interferes with an individual’s attempt to reach some goal or end, he feels frustrated and frustration in turn leads to some form of aggression (John Dollard). After taking various criticisms into account, this theory was modified. Today it is recognised that an actual display of aggression may be inhibited by either internalized norms of external controls, even though the impulse for aggression may be strong following some frustrating experience. It is also recognized that frustrations can be cumulative and that they can remain active over a long period of time. It is also acknowledged that people perceive frustrations in varying ways, with those deemed arbitrary or unreasonable most likely to trigger aggressive responses. Further, it is recognized that responses to frustrations can be learned. In short, aggressive actions are not an automatic consequence of frustration, and their occurrence depends upon numerous factors. [14]

Criticism

According to the Frustration-Aggression theory, aggression is always directed towards one who is believed to be responsible for frustration. If this is so, this theory does not explain criminal violence in the types of crimes we have analyzed here. Take for example the case of a dowry-death. Why does the mother-in-law/husband kill the daughter-in-law/wife, when the source of frustration is not the girl who is killed but her parents who fail to fulfil the dowry demands?

Thus, theory is criticized on the ground that aggression is not always directed to the source of frustration but also because it is often directed towards some other object. It is also criticized on the grounds that:-

the relationship between frustration and aggression is not innate,

a wide variety of responses may result from frustration and aggression is not the only response, and

aggression may be an adaptive response and a rational choice of behaviour.

Yet another criticism against this theory is:-

human behaviour is not an extension of animal instinctive or innate behaviour but the product of a complex interplay of biological and environmental factors. An individual’s social behaviour depends upon his social and cultural milieu;

responses to frustrations are learned just like any other social behaviour and what is learned has a lot to do with socialization practices which themselves differ from group to group and society to society. [15]

Perversion Theory

The psychoanalysts explain violence on the basis of the Theory of Perversion (Giles Pie, 1952) and the Theory of Symptom Formation. They do not regard perverts as constitutionally inferior people but maintain that perversion develops from instincts (see, Menachem, Amer, Patterns in Forcible Rape, 1971). According to Freud’s early theory (1949), perversion essentially means persistence in the adult of infantile instincts and behaviour at the expense of adult behaviour. In the pervert, infantile traits fail to undergo the normal process of integration during puberty but are not converted into neurotic symptoms. Violence can be the product of strong inborn drives or of pathological experiences in infancy or early childhood ( Johnson, 1956). In the latter cases, childhood conceptions of the relations between the sexes as being aggressive and sadistic and the idea of pleasure as a negative process, essentially achieved by relief from a state of “unpleasure” are carried into adulthood.

Explaining different kinds of perversion, psychoanalysts point out that maturation involves leaving early aims and objects and choosing new aims. Perversions can therefore, be conceived of as distortions of aims and objects and in the absence of the distortion of appropriate feelings towards these objects ( see, Freud Three Essays).

Fenichel (1945) consolidated the approach that aggression arises from castration fears which in turn are derived from earlier oral sadism. This was later accepted by most psychoanalysts as a possible explanation of the etiology of perversion, in particular violence against the weak. This theory was considered important because it was supported by the clinically established fact that there is a higher incidence of perversion among males than among females.

A discussion of the dynamics of perversion has included the objects of aggression and the operations of the ego and superego. One theory suggests that the ego mechanisms, the object splits. Klien (1946) suggests that a ‘good’ object6 is idealized by the pervert while he uses aggression towards a ‘bad’ object. [16]

Criticism

The present theory is rejected because of the limitations of its approach. While explaining psychoanalytical hypothesis of ‘infantile instincts’, inborn pathological drives’, ‘distorted feelings’, ‘childhood sadism’ or ‘split ego’ about causes for committing an offence by individual male offenders it ignores an important dimension of environment in the causation. Wife-beating, rape, bride-burning, and even murder cannot be the result of a mere primary institutional component of a personality or a means of solving psychic conflict. Though aggression is b basic element in personality structure, its origin and direction in social relations, especially between the sexes, cannot be explained only as a result of personality pathology.

Self-Attitude Theory

This theory maintains that in a society, a culture, or group that-values violence, persons of low self-esteem may seek to bolster their image in the eyes of others and themselves by carrying out violent acts. It explains the propensity to violence of those for whom society makes it difficult to achieve an adequate level of self-esteem (see Gelles and Straus, 1979)

Accepting this theory would mean that all individual who use violence against women (that is, rapists, abductors, murderers, and batterers) suffer from low self-esteem. [17]

The Cycle Theory of Violence and Psycho-social Theory of Learned Helpless

Two of the most often discussed theories on battered women are Lenore Walker’s, ‘The Cycle Theory of Violence’ and ‘Psycho-social Theory of Learned Helplessness’.

The cycle theory of violence comprises three distinct phases in the cycle of violence- the tension building stage, the acute battering incident and kindness and contrite loving behaviour. In the first stage, when minor battering incidents occur, the woman adapts, rationalizes and externalizes the problem. Tension mounts in the second phase leading to the acute battering incident leading to severe repercussions on the woman physically, emotionally and psychologically. Phase three is welcomed by both the partners, which is marked by uncontrolled love, affection and promises by the husband never to repeat the incidents again. This cycle keeps repeating itself in the lives of almost all battered women. The psycho-social theory of learned helplessness focuses on the factors which reinforce battered women’s victimization. According to this theory, battered women operate from a premise of ‘helplessness’ which further serves to only aid passivity and a fatal acceptance of the exploitative situation. [18]

Criticism

Walker talks of immobilizing terror leading to learned helplessness. Dobash and Dobash reject the notion of ‘learned helplessness’ which has ‘negative implications for public perceptions and actions associated with the problem of violence against women’ and is ‘based on false premises and unsubstantiated evidence regarding the predicament and actions of women experiencing persistent violence’. [19]

Survivor Theory

As opposed to the cycle theory, E.W. Gondolf and E.R. Fisher proposed the survivor theory in 1988 which views women not merely as passive victims but proactive help-seekers and survivors. The assumptions of the survivor theory are in sharp contrast to the above theory of learned helplessness. The survivor theory credits women with the capacity to innovate newer strategies of coping and acknowledges the efforts of the survivors in seeking help from formal and informal sources. In addition, the survivor theory stresses the need for accessible and effective community resources for the woman to escape from the batterer. As mentioned earlier, the survivor theory takes cognizance of several help-seek behaviour in women in the face of increased violence. Further, it also lauds the ‘female survivor instinct’ which focuses on nurturing rather than destruction, the willingness to adapt and the efforts directed at furthering of self-growth. [20]

Socio-Cultural Theories

The sociological or socio-cultural model provides a macro-level analysis of criminal violence. This model examines criminal violence in terms of socially structured inequality, and social and cultural attitudes and norms reg

The Machismo, how is it called in Mexico and latinamercia “is a set of beliefs claiming that real or alleged differences between women and men establishing the superiority of one sex over the other. Also known as discrimination or devaluation based on a person’s sex, as in restricted job opportunities; especially, such discrimination directed against women”

Mexican society in general has been classified in the past as a male-dominated society in which women did not have the same rights as men to be categorized by their sex. In the year of 1953 was the first time in Mexico that women could exercise their vote in the elections, only a few years ago in our country, women did not work and just took care of the housework, was battered and bruised, in most cases the authority ignore the abuses of force by the male.

57 years ago women voted for the first time in elections and in this short spam of time we have seen dramatic changes in the thinking of society, although there are still so many people that have the same ideology that years ago.

“According to the First National Survey on Discrimination say that one in five Mexicans believe that it is natural to prohibit more things to women than to men, one in three believe that it is normal that men earn more than women, and almost one in ten Mexicans agree that women are raped because they provoke men. In addition, one in five women believes that women themselves are responsible for discrimination against them”

As we can see in these Survey, even if the ideology or mentality has changed over the decades we can notice that there are still a huge percentage of the population that still discriminate women

It seems that in 2012, gender equality in society is already a thing of the past. Although macho culture is still dominating society as we can see in the survey, it is hard to believe these results, when it is said that in Mexico is making progress on issues of discrimination and gender inequality. When looking at the results of this poll. I think Machismo/Sexism in Mexico would be very difficult to remove if we don’t change the way of thinking directly from our homes to treat in the same way boys and girls, so we finish the custom that has been inculcated from generation to generation and has been the first reason that made Mexico a Sexism Society.

It is very disappointing to find these results and know that many men feel that women are inferior and deserve different treatment.

because as can be seen the man is still seen as the work figure, while the woman is still seen as the one that have to care and raise children and do all the housework.

The aim of this work is to find a better way to live along between men and women which lies not only in respect but also in equality, although the society has evolved there are still traces of discrimination against women.

This paper will release how Sexism against women affects the society, touching the theme of gender roles as well as the consequences of this.

The Sexism/Machismo traditionally has been associated with subordination of family roles and favor and welfare to men, therefore it is deemed to assign less tiring work for men, because they are the breadwinners of the house.

A part of Sexism is the use of some type of systematic violence against women in order to maintain an emotional or psychological control on them, further it punished any feminine behavior (some examples as: Men don’t cry, men cannot express their feelings, etc) in a men and from these mentality is the base of Homophobia, the worst punishment a sexist could receive is to have a gay familiar, because it demonstrate that their blood and family name is weak and from these idea the discrimination against homosexuals is huge.

Sexism has been an element of social control and sexist exploitation in many cultures. Some factors that have contributed to its survival and continuity

-Discriminatory laws against women.

-Treatment difference in the case of adultery:

-In some cultures adultery and pregnancy before marriage is punished with death.

-Permission from male for economic activities

-Denial of right to vote or other civil

-Sexist education in school and home

Religious discrimination in different religions all over the world as example of some are in Muslim countries predominated as the old Taliban regime of Afghanistan, in certain branches of Christianity as Mormonism, in the orthodox Jews, Hinduism, etc.

Sexist division of labor, whereby men prefer other men in decision making jobs position (originally the sexist division was based on the difference in physical capacity and muscular), in which men had comparative advantage. However in modern technological societies force is irrelevant, being more important intellectual abilities and social skills. It also refers to a payment of lower wages to women than men in exchange of the same work.

Now at days rarely we heard stories of men who do not allow their wives or daughters to study or work. Almost 40% of women of working age are in employment, the number of students enrolled in colleges and universities is divided equally between the sexes, Women are increasingly aware of their rights and demand equal treatment in the workplace and in politics.

Under these conditions, Machismo has mutated. Today is based more on control and psychological coercion or discrimination in physical restraints. In a sense, machismo has gone underground. Deeply buried in our daily habits, is almost invisible in the educated or high classes, invisible but always present.

It is possible that in many areas women are consider as equal to men. In Mexico, women do not own their time. When they go out, spend money, see their friends, they are still expected to tell with detail their schedule of their daily activities to their Parents, brothers, boyfriends and husbands, but men do not accept to be asked. At home, men can say “Do not bother me, I’m watching TV,” but women do not, because they are supposed to be available night and day for her husband and children.

These double standards are now a pillar of machismo. Surveys show that men are willing to go to the supermarket or children take over for a while, but refuse to iron, sew, cut vegetables or clean the oven or bathroom, because these tasks are considered unmanly. The men help, but within rigidly defined parameters.

This division of labor in all areas of life means that both men and women are still surprisingly inept for the tasks assigned to the opposite sex. We can see educated and successful men who don’t know how to make a cup of coffee and professional women who have no idea about how to change a fuse. So machismo creates people with only half of the

Conclusion to end of Sexism/Machismo.

Share the work that has traditionally been considered “women’s work”.

Challenge the notion to both men and women that boys are by nature aggressive and violent. Stand firm that it is only hard conditioning that makes anyone act this way. Stand firm that boys are just like girls, and girls as boys

Encourage men to feel and express all our feelings. Men’s largest conditioning comes from being forced to act like we have no feelings (like “Big boys don’t cry”, “You’re acting like a girl “). This conditioning is what eventually makes men take on all of the inhuman roles we are expected to play in society.

Support women’s leadership.

Model non-sexist behavior everywhere. Tell and show men and women that eliminating sexism is a primary focus in your life. The presence of sexism in society is hurtful to everyone, not just women. It’s elimination will enhance every human being’s life.

Educate the new generations with the idea that boys and girls are equal with the same rights and responsibilities, and are able or capable to do anything.

Societies consist of men, woman, and children and of various age groups. If these components are not present there can be no society. They make up society collectively. Our society responds differently to recreation and leisure and in turn so do the individuals. The individuals play an important part of how they function in society and how they react to recreation and leisure. The way in which we perceive our roles in society impacts on our recreational and leisure activities. We must consider the way in which we as individuals and our society come together in terms of recreation and leisure. As individuals we need to ensure that our roles in society impact positively. Society in general does not consider the impact of their roles and how it affects leisure. They both are two different entities but function together. I will consider the factors that affect us as individuals in society and how it relates to our leisure in the following discussion.

Leisure as a Social Phenomenon

Leisure is considered to be a complex social phenomenon that affects many social institutions and should not be considered as just past time activities. Recreation and leisure significantly affects several social institutions. However if utilised incorrectly they can have negative effects on many aspects. Within our societies leisure can be practised in different ways. It can be undertaken alone or in solitude, or it can be occur in a social environment that can be private or community based.

We can all participate in leisure in its different forms and this does not necessarily mean that it is not influenced or affected by other people. Our leisure is in fact more often than not affected by other people.

Our surroundings and environment can affect our privacy in terms of leisure in three ways: namely by supporting it, by infringing on it and by forcing us into it. Parents can support the leisure activities of their children by purchasing toys for them, which can inspire them to pursue a specific career or cause in life.

Our leisure can also be infringed upon by others, for instance competing over the television with an older brother or sister when your favourite show is on.

Circumstances can also force us into solitary leisure, for example writing. A famous example is J.R.R. Tolkien, the author of the, The Lord of The Rings novels. In the trenches of World War I, he began recording the episodes of war that brought horror to him. He used this as escapism from the harsh reality he was facing. These recordings of the harshness he experienced were later transferred into the books, The Lord of The Rings. The writing of his books not only provided a sense of recreation and leisure to him. It has also provided these benefits for millions around the world. This demonstrates how one person’s leisure can directly and indirectly affect people around them. His books have been developed into multi – million dollar earning movies. The movies have lead to memorabilia and figurines being collected by children and adults as hobbies. People have flocked to the premieres of these movies. This indicates the domino effect of his recreation and passion on the rest of the world. This has also positively affected numerous people and economies.

In contrast to this an individual’s solitary recreation can also have negative consequences. In February 2004, Warren le Blanc murdered his 14 year old friend by savagely beating him with a claw hammer and stabbed him after luring him to a park in Liverpool, England. Warren re – enacted violence from a popular video game that he used to play called Manhunt. Warren played this game as a recreational past – time but there was a negative transfer from his experience. The game gained interest for all the wrong reasons. It was played on the personal computer and Sony play – station platforms. These are both popular past – times for all age groups. This demonstrates how a video game, a popular past – time, became a societal hazard which stemmed from a persons solitary recreation. This emphasises the need for control of technology in our societies in order to alleviate negative consequences. However it must also be remembered that the positives of solitary recreational experiences outweigh the negatives.

Leisure does not only occur in solitary settings. It can also directly involve other people. They can take the form of bystanders and participants. Both bystanders and participants collectively contribute to the activity.

People can further be divided into primary and secondary groups. Primary groups are small groups in which there are face to face relations which are fairly intimate and personal in nature. These primary groups consist of two types namely: family and cliques. Secondary groups are defined as a larger relatively temporary, more anonymous; formal and impersonal group based on some interest or activity and whose members interact on the basis of specific roles (Henslin, 1993). Secondary groups can be a cooking class, book club or Sunday golf league.

Primary groups have several factors such as social custom, family beliefs and kinship which influence leisure activities. Secondary groups on the other hand are not only influenced by the group but the individuals in – turn can affect the group.

The type of groups that we as individuals form part of will have an influence on our leisure activities. It will also affect the people in that group. Our role in these groups will affect our societies in which we exist. It will have individual implications as well as group implications.

Leisure, Recreation and Gender

In our post – modern era the categories of gender are gradually being broken down and multiple categories of gender are arising. With post – modernism people are able to express their gender and sexuality with fewer boundaries and constraints.

As history suggests men have been the superior sex in most western cultures. In past centuries recreational activities were reserved for men only. There was also a general segregation of genders.

Males were the bread winners and woman in were in charge of the household. Due to this most of the woman undertook their recreational activities at home. In recent times the expectations of woman and men have changed. Men and woman tend to change and share roles within our post – modern society.

Men have a desire for leisure as it is motivated by their hard work. They consider it as a reward for the work they endure. Women generally have a weaker motivation for it as they have to deal with the constraints of the household first. Women tend to combine their leisure with household chores, such as decorating or supervising activities for the children.

I certainly feel that leisure opportunities do exist for women outside of the household but other duties and concerns take precedence. There may be cases where equal opportunity exists for men and women but women still tend to perform the feminine tasks. They will naturally be concerned with meals and care of children at various activities.

Another problem facing women’s participation in these activities is that they find it difficult to participate in them. Other woman may be too busy with family, lack physical ability or merely not knowing where to learn the activity. It is important that women empower themselves in aspects of leisure and recreation. This will ensure that they will also reap the benefits of recreation and leisure. Men need to accept them into programmes and provide equal opportunities in our communities.

In recent times there has been an increase in lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender individuals. People now feel free to disclose their alternative sexual identity. In the past however leisure did not deal with issues of sexuality. These individuals are now being openly accepted into communities; however few opportunities exist for them in terms of recreation and leisure. They are increasingly becoming parents, which indicate that they also have families. All families need to enjoy the benefits of recreation and leisure including the gay and lesbian families. There are few programmes that are designed for them, which re-enforces that they need to be accepted into all programmes without discrimination. There have been programmes such as the gay games and Olivia cruises but this creates segregation. We should design programmes that accommodate everyone irrespective of their sexual orientation. In this way we eliminate any misconceptions and preconceptions that people may have within our societies.

Leisure, Recreation, Race and Ethnicity

Involvement in recreational and leisure activities is influenced by ones race or ethnicity. These factors also contribute to how programmes are provided for communities’ people. Race and ethnicity both influence recreation and leisure but have different meanings.

Race refers to the genetic make up of a person. This includes characteristics such as eye colour, skin colour and hair. Ethnicity refers to our social and cultural heritage. Ethnic groups can be identified by language, customs and religion; this is what distinguishes them from other groups.

There continues to be racial and ethnic stereo types in our society despite the ongoing struggle against discrimination. This impacts significantly on recreation and leisure due to the fact that most programmes do not cater for all races and ethnicities. It also creates segregation amongst groups in programmes. This is one of the reasons that the department of Sport and Recreation of South Africa has created the indigenous games project. The project is trying to trace and bring in indigenous heritage to life amongst people of South Africa. Western cultures predominantly oversee these programmes. Leisure services should aim to merge the different groups in order to give people the opportunity to learn about the different races, cultures and ethnicities collectively. This would create an understanding between the differences that people may experience. This would also prevent under representation in the diverse races and ethnicities. We need to ensure that all groups feel comfortable and feel a sense of belonging when participating in these programmes. Everyone should be invited, included and involved. By having programmes that include these factors we can create understanding and positive relationships between groups. This will enable us to overcome the prejudice and racial discord that may be still present in our communities.

I feel that one way in which we can alleviate the problem of under representation is for the so called minorities to give themselves another identity. They must no longer consider themselves as a minority. By constructing an alternative identity they can give themselves a new representation. This would lessen the perception of them being minorities by others. This in turn would make them more open to participation in programmes. This may develop an attitude in them in which they believe that they are part of the group. We must strive to provide programmes that alleviate inter-group misunderstandings and promote favourable relations.

Socio – economic Status and its Influence on Leisure and recreation

Socio – economic status is a means of classifying people into categories based on their income, education, occupation and wealth.

People within a specific class have similar attitudes, values and interests. These things can impact on recreation and leisure choices. Socio – economic status can affect leisure in a number of ways.

Firstly, the amount of education and/or the amount of money that a person has influences the amount of free time and income available for recreational purposes. In general the lower classes have been minorities when it comes to participation in recreational activities. They also seldom participate in health and fitness programmes. Those in higher classes who have more education and disposable income look for more refined and prestigious leisure. For example, in the United States it has been discovered that the poor working class and middle class have been the predominant users of public and non – profit services. The agencies that function in the various sectors provide programmes for all income levels but target the lower and middle class particularly. This is a rational approach as it provides opportunities for those who cannot afford the more expensive recreational options. However the upper – class may have access to these programmes but often choose to go the commercial route. They may utilize these services as most consider it as providing a higher quality of service. The upper class may also choose the option of commercial services due to the issue of status. Status may be assigned to things such as exclusive club memberships or exotic travel destinations.

There are also activities that may appeal to all social classes such as reading or socializing but there are others that can be placed in each social class exclusively. For example, attending the opera or yachting may most likely be assigned to the upper class, where as a camping trip would more likely be an activity of the middle class. Sometimes there are activities that are popular to all classes but may be enjoyed in different ways.

Socio – economic status has a significant effect on recreation and leisure activity choices. If we are to be justified providers of recreation and leisure we need to understand these impacts and supply services that meet the needs of everyone. It may not always be possible to provide these services to all people but we need to understand the variations in needs and leisure patterns for those that we target. In this way we can ensure that no one is denied and unrepresented of recreation and leisure opportunities.

An important factor that has restricted many people lately is the global recession. The ability to fund recreational or leisure services is an issue that all socio – economic classes have faced. With the current state of the economy all service providers have to generate income to stay alive, even the non – profit and public organisations. The concept of pay to play is becoming more prominent and this eliminates the poor and working class almost entirely. Many programmes are being kept alive by sponsorships and in – turn keep our much needed recreational programmes alive and accessible to all.

Is leisure good or bad?

Most if not all leisure activities we can do have positive outcomes. There are really good leisure activities, however, only if they are carefully moderated. Some of the activities that people participate in during their free time include sports, cultural activities, technology as well as socialising with friends.

Sporting activities e.g. swimming or playing soccer provide great positives in the sense that we exercise, we relax, forget about our problems for a while and meet people. I feel that leisure activities which involve sport should keep the element of competition as low as possible. The emphasis should be on having fun and taking in the experience. When it develops into a serious competition it could deter others who are simply there for the fun aspect. Everyone should be included at all times with the intention of providing some sort of satisfaction to all involved.

Cultural activities like learning to play a musical instrument, reading or writing can provide a host of positives. Many people use music as a mode of personal expression of their thoughts and emotions. This can help provide an outlet for the individual. There are many traditional instruments that people can learn to play despite being of different ethnic or racial backgrounds. The instructional classes educate people on the culture behind the music as well as provide them with the skill of learning how to play these instruments. This also allows us to overcome barriers of race and ethnicity in the sense that people spend more time with other races.

Technology provides us with alternatives to traditional leisure and recreation. It sometimes eliminates the physical component but can stimulate the mind. Playing video games, web browsing and watching television can be very interesting as well as educational. There are video games which can give us an idea of what it takes to pilot a plane or be a front line soldier during the Second World War. It creates experiences similar to the actual thing and provides escapism from the reality of life. We should however be very careful with these activities; they can make people socially incapable, by making them shy or quite and restrict face to face encounters. It can also make people spend too much time indoors. We must draw a firm balance when participating in these activities in order to extract the positives. Television has numerous good or bad programmes which can educate, provide relaxation and relieve stress in an individual. It also has negative influences, which means we must select what we watch carefully.

Most individuals enjoy spending time with friends, such as going to the movie theatre, going out for dinner or going out at night. These activities provide a lot of benefits to us but there are problems associated with it as well. A major problem is the abuse of alcohol and drugs at night time meeting spots. People tend to over drink on nights out with friends and engage in substance abuse. Substance abuse can have serious emotional and physical implications. Self – control will lead to happy and enjoyable experiences in these situations.

Science and technology has provided our societies with the highest levels of comfort. Technology has also made much more time available to us. Holidays and vacations have also increased and the duration is much longer.

If we do not control our leisure and recreation it may become the core of our existence. Our free time must be spent constructively rather than being detrimental to us. It is the responsibility of our societies to make recreation and leisure an asset rather than a liability.

How is leisure beneficial to the individual in Society?

Leisure has many implications to the individuals in our society and it does not discriminate against race, class or gender when providing people in our society with positives. Society needs to be educated on how recreation and leisure programmes can be beneficial to them. This will promote participation and emphasise the importance of it in our societies. Leisure is a major force in our lives, to the extent that it has become a major concern for governments, parents and leaders.

People are now spending more money each year on activities such as sport, tourism, outdoor recreation and many other past – times. There has also been a drift towards organised leisure with changes in basic living and competition between our interests. However leisure can still be spontaneous, solitary and surprising.

Apart from physiological needs such as sleeping, leisure is what we engage in mainly. According to Leitner and Leitner (2004) if you are 18 now, of the probable 60 years that you will live for, you will spend 18 years in full time leisure. This might be an alarming statistic but it is quite precise. Recreation and leisure has the ability to educate and provide us with vital components for our health and growth from our birth to our death. It is in this sense that leisure provides us with a sense of wellness, satisfaction and improved quality of life. Recreation and leisure can provide the potential to significantly contribute to our physical, social and emotional well being.

Having considered the importance recreation and leisure I will now discuss the benefits that it can provide us with.

Emotional well- being is an important component for a good life. If we are mentally healthy we are filled with positive emotions. Recreation and leisure can provide us with positive emotions.

Recreation and leisure provides a channel for us to improve self – definition, self actualization and a sense of empowerment. It provides us with opportunities for self – exploration of our talents, capacities and our potential. Recreation and leisure do not possess any constraints and can be used to reinforce our identities. Being actively involved in Recreation and leisure relates to our mental health in way that leads to our intrinsic motivation being enhanced in daily life. Iwasaki and Mannell (2000) found that by simply believing in it, it can contribute to our emotional well – being and is enough to reduce mental illness symptoms. This may be quite precise in the sense that in what ever we do we have to think positively in order to achieve our goals. On the other hand, active leisure and recreation may be more stimulating than passive recreation and more beneficial to our psychological health. If the both are linked the outcomes may be even more positive.

Stress is a major issue for everybody. Numerous studies have pointed out leisure’s ability to help people cope with stress. Stress can often make us very sick and can lead to complications such as heart disease, hypertension and body pains. The effects of these complications can be reduced by recreation and leisure.

The research in the field of recreation and leisure has confirmed that enjoying life’s pleasures, having satisfying social relationships and pursuing self – expressive behaviour can help to lower stress and have positive effects on our immune system. This suggests that we should support our recreation and leisure in order to avoid these complications. Psychological well – being can be promoted by activities that are meaningful, fulfilling and active. It provides a balance for the demands of life even during times of crisis.

Our physical health is strongly related to emotional health. Our physical health can benefit greatly from leisure and recreation. By staying active in recreational and leisurely activities we can gain numerous physiological benefits. The cardio – vascular, respiratory, musculo – skeletal and metabolic systems benefit greatly. Recreation and leisure can help the body respond favourably by reducing the risks that of coronary heart disease, hypertension, colon cancer and diabetes.

An active lifestyle also helps decrease fatigue, provides us with protection against obesity, maintains bone density and joint mobility and may even protect us from urinary tract infections. Constant physical activity promotes enjoyment, encourages support from others and enhances our confidence in our ability to regularly participate. It also helps to reduce any negative perceptions of being physically active.

Technology and peoples life styles have made life in general more sedentary. This emphasises the importance of activity during recreational and leisure activities much greater. It does not matter on the type of activity that has been chosen. It can be a game of Frisbee, surfing, group exercises or even tai chi. They will all provide some sort of physical benefit. Numerous studies have also confirmed that regular participation in these recreational activities provide the necessary aerobic benefits.

Recreation and leisure also provide benefits such as social well – being and social development. They both contribute to our friendships and the ability to get along with others. Recreation and leisure promotes social interaction for both children and adults.

Participation in activities that are highly sociable promotes social support. Our social well – being requires social support. This can help test connections or relationships amongst individuals an can also strengthen and test the relationships during recreational experiences. When people feel that they are being cared for and supported they tend to feel better about themselves and their lives. This can help people to develop and maintain their family lives.

With the developments in technology activities that emphasize sociability are not as common as they used to be in our societies. People are moving further away from the concept of socializing. Some prefer to watch a movie alone at home on the DVD player rather than at the movie theatre with others. People invest in home gym equipment instead of attending a gym at a recreational centre or a health club. It is important to preserve the older methods in order to promote social benefits to the individuals in our societies.

The many benefits of recreation and leisure converge to create a sense of well -being in people. It is important as it emphasizes the vitality in our surroundings and the world. It helps us develop vigorous and caring communities and has the power to create harmony among the diversity in which in exist.

Life satisfaction is what we strive for everyday. It is difficult to define but we can recognize it when we have it. It is an emotional and internal experience. Recreation and leisure helps us achieve this satisfaction. When we are satisfied with our lives we focus less on our selves, become less hostile and abusive and generally less vulnerable to disease. These are qualities that need to be eliminated from our societies. We need to be more loving, forgiving, trusting, creative and sociable. Recreation and leisure can help provide these qualities for us. This will in turn provide a snow ball effect as happy people tend to be more positive about their leisure activities. They feel positive and accept the belief that these activities are in fact helping them and the people around them.

In order for the importance and benefits of leisure and recreation to be experienced by people in society, we need to have leisure professionals who possess the necessary skills to ensure it is executed effectively. Whether you are employed at a hospital, camp, theme park, national organisations or a resort, you must be able to deliver positive experiences for people. You must be able to personify qualities that reflect professionalism. He should also possess qualities that enable him to deliver the programme or activity successfully.

The leisure professional must base his efforts on the needs and interests of the focus group. He should try to develop programmes based on their needs rather than his own. Even if he is employed in a profit making organisation he must focus on the desires and needs of the consumer or else he will fail in his attempts. He should possess the willingness to listen and learn to people in order to provide the correct aspects of the programme. He should embrace the diversities of race, culture, gender etc. Respect should be given to himself and the participants.

Recreational experiences require precise organisation and planning. He must be able to provide a sustained effort in the provision of activities. A willingness to put in long hours and hard work is imperative. A lot of recreational activities occur on weekends, after hours or public holidays. This means that he must be willing to work during other people’s free hours. This is a major sacrifice that most people are not willing to make so it is important to consider.

The leisure professional should possess a high degree of integrity. Our world is constantly faced with acts of misconduct and improper behaviour. When delivering a service you must maintain a high level of ethical responsibility. This is important especially when dealing with the diversities amongst people. Participants should be treated with dignity and fairness by the leisure professional. This will transfer between participants; they will learn to treat each other graciously and with respect.

The leisure professional must possess the ability to project the direction of the programme or activity. He must be able to visualise the positive outcome of the service. The plan will only come together if he can first see it happening. This provides direction and intention. The participants will generally expect an excellent service but he muse try to exceed those expectations.

CONCLUSION

The importance of recreation and leisure to the individuals in our society has a number of implications. As discussed earlier it relates to race, gender, socio – economic status etc., it affects a wide array of people and institutions. We must try to educate people on the importance of these types of activities in order to overcome the various barriers that our societies face. It is one of the best developments in the last century to help overcome barriers such as diversity and health related problems. The reality is that recreation and leisure programmes do work. This is correct to the point where specific projections of what recreation and leisure can achieve have been put forth. There are national departments that have multi -million dollar budgets around the world in order to make it a part of everyone’s lives. It has been making a difference to millions of lives around the world.

REFERENCE:

1. Jarvie, G. & Maguire, J.A., 1994. Sport and leisure in social thought, Taylor & Francis.

2. (Organization), H.K. & Kinetics, H., 2006. Introduction to recreation and leisure, Human Kinetics. Champaign, Illinois, USA

3. Russell, V.R., Jamieson M.L., 2008. Leisure Program Planning and Delivery. Human Kinetics. Champaign, Illinois, USA

4. Moran M. J., 1979.leisure Activities for the mature adult, Burgess publishing company. Minnesota. USA

5. WWW.SRSA.GOV.ZA

Gun violence take a heavy toll both in the lives of its victim and in the quality of life of the victim’s relatives and friends, many of the stories of the victim do not capture the headlines of the newspaper, but each violent statistic is a headline story to the loved ones of the victims. Of the 25,000 homicides in the United States last year, an estimated 70% were committed with firearms. And thousands of other Americans are wounded form gunshots, often with long term effects on their health. To put statistics into a context, every two years more Americans die from firearms injuries in the United States that were killed in the entire Vietnam War. Since 1933 more Americans have died from gun wounds here at home that in all the wars our country has been involved in since – and including – the American Revolution.

Criminal activity, then takes a heavy toll in human life. But guns kill and maim not only because of crime but also because suicides and accidents. In firearm fatalities, more people die from suicides than from homicides. In 1999, for example firearms were involved in 18,547 suicides. And firearms cause fatalities unintentionally through accidents, either by misfiring of weapons, inaccurate shooting, carelessness, or recklessness.

Although Americans use firearms in ways that are criminal or sinister, they employ guns in the ways that are often regarded as law-abiding and good. The second amendment ensures “the right of the people to keep and bear arms.” People should have every right to think and judge, and act for themselves, but not all people do this in the most responsible way. When immoral, irrational, or unethical decisions are made the government needs to intervene. Inside the home, one should be able to do what he wishes on his property, but even there, an invisible line must be drawn. For the good of the whole, people need to abide by certain laws, and when those lines are crossed, the government has to step in to protect its people.

As a society, we put our safety into the hands of the government by employing police officers and firemen, and by trusting the men and women of the military. We should therefore, trust the lawmakers, by allowing them to make stiffer gun control laws. There are some gun control laws presently in effect, while some are waiting to be pass in Congress. The ones that are passed are mostly state and local levels. There are ‘place and manner’ laws, which prohibit the firing of a gun in certain places, such as within city limits, and some state restrict carrying a concealed weapon anywhere in public. There are also ‘restricted ownership’ laws that prohibit the sale of any typed of gun to convicted felons, aliens, minors, alcoholics, drug users, and mentally or emotionally disturbed people. In some states, buyers must fill out an application and there is ten day waiting period, while their background are checked before the purchase of an firearm. These laws are helpful, but they are not in effect everywhere, and they do not always fulfill the purpose. One of the most prudent gun control law has been idling in Congress for the past two years. This law requires a person before purchasing a gun to take classes on the proper ways to store and handle a firearm, and it also require the consumer to take this course to renew their firearm registration every year. By pressuring your local congressmen we can set in motion some of these laws.

Where children are concerned, parents need to put guns out of reach, and to teach our children of the dangers of guns. Guns should not be a taboo subject that is not to be discussed. Minors should be one group that guns are illegal to. A person cannot drink until he reaches the age on 21, so if the law states that liquor could harmful to an adolescent who may not be equipped to deal with its effect, then shouldn’t that also hold true for a deadly weapon? But guns can be purchased from pawnshops, or a dealer who ignores the laws, or stolen from a relative. The laws need dig deeper, beginning with manufacturer. Tobacco companies and liquor distributors are held accountable for the dangerous effects of their products.

Bar owners and even bartenders can be sued and jailed if a customer they serve harms someone under the influence. So maybe the firearms producers should also be held responsible.

Firearms have been an important feature in American life since the first Europeans settled in the new World. Although most people who use firearms in the United States do so in a peaceful manner, the illegal and violent use of firearms remains a great problem to civilized society, as does the role of firearms in suicides and accidents. It would be foolhardy to predict a solution in the near future; however, stricter gun control laws would be an effective start. Education is the key. Educating people about the firearm related accidents that that occur every year is the first step. People have to govern and be governed, in order for a city or nation to work side by side to end violence and fear associated with handguns. We need to find a solution to end the problem, not promote it.

Bibliography:

1) Levine, Herbert M. American Issues Debated Gun Control. Austin: Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1998.

2) Bender, David, ed. Gun Control Opposing Viewpoints. San Diego: Greenhave press, 1997.

3) LaPierre, Wayne R. Guns, Crime, And Freedom. Washington DC: Regency Publishing, 2000.

This paper is going to briefly delve into the meaning of gang violence and its implication. The word gang can be described as a group of people within an organization and share a common identity, it must be noted that the meaning of this word has undergone change and has increasingly been associated with criminal activity or has basically been branded as a criminal organization.

Thesis statement

In the recent past, the name gang has become synonymous with violence. This is indeed a sudden change of events; this is because more and more youths are getting closely affiliated to these gangs. The truth is that gang violence actually a social problem in many aspects which simply means that the society is increasingly coming under the potential threat of violence that is perpetrated by these gangs. The gangs are increasing in numbers because most of the youths who fill that they have been rejected by the society find a false sense of belonging within these gangs. A sociological study and survey that was conducted by a sociologist from the University of Massachusetts (Andrew v.papachristos) revealed that the younger members join the gangs for the purpose of being recognized and achieving a certain class status, protection is another reason for membership. The threat of the gang violence cannot be ignored since it is slowly tearing families apart either directly or indirectly through deaths, incarceration of some of the gang members, rape, murder et cetra.Andrew pointed at the fact that gang violence is indeed a social problem and not a police issue that must be addressed from a larger context.

Gang violence

It must be remembered that most of the gang violence are majorly driven by the gang codes, which drives or pushes the members not to appear weak any time they are wronged i.e. they must appear turf and therefore tend to retaliate any time another gang violates or trespasses on their gang territorial borders (American journal of sociology July issue).Gang violence has opened a new chapter in criminal activities and is proving to be a complex and challenging vice for the police to deal with simply because it cannot just be eliminated or be made to disappear. Gang violence has a root cause within the society and must therefore be critically examined in order to understand what sustains these gangs if a solution is to be found.

The common approach of incarceration of the violent gang members seems to be failing and simply escalating the problem e.g. the gang members after incarceration consider them selves fully initiated and are only much more violent and dangerous that indicating that the ‘Lock them up’ approach only seems to be failing and pushing the violence levels up. Once the fact that gang violence is part of bigger social problems is adequately understood then there will be some progress made towards finding a solution to this problem.

A nation wide survey conducted in the year 1995 by the National Youth Gang Center under the directive of the U.S department of justice, office of juvenile justice and delinquency prevention, revealed the following trends; the existing communities within the 50 states did report that there were about 652,000 gang members who were affiliated to the 25,000 gangs within the Nation. These numbers are very startling. There is evidence that there is an increased gang and gang related problems of 48% in the communities, this is an indication that the gang problems are only worsening with little improvement of about 10% witnessed in some states. The number of sheriff and police agencies that reported the gang related activity stood at 1,974 out of the 34,447.Gang membership usually fulfills a number of factors namely; the search for love, a feeling of belonging or commitment, a degree of recognition, the feeling of power and authority, and finally an environment of acceptance for the gang members. Based on sociological research findings the following are some of the risk factors that are associated with joining gangs that are majorly involved with violent and illegal activities; drug addiction, possibility of death as a result of illegal arms dealing and usage. The factors that drive these youths to join these gangs include racism, poverty, influence from the media and lack of support network (Source, research, 1994, 2)The evidence from the state of Los Angeles has revealed that more than 10,000 African American and Latino young men have been killed as a result of gang war fare (source, vigil, 2002).

Conclusion

Many researchers have shown that many youths join the gangs at an early age of between 9-11 years old (Knox, 2002).The studies also revealed the need for these youths to feel some kind of belonging, this would help them avoid getting involved with these gangs. The gang members were mostly from families that had subjected them to abuse, neglect or had simply ignored them. There was evidence that there was reduced possibility for youths from stable and loving families to be members of gangs for example those youths from a two parent family and were actively involved in community activities were less likely to join these gangs. Gang violence is an issue of national concern that has negatively impacted on the society; it has led to the rapid degeneration of social values and erosion of the traditional cultures. This problem must be addressed and this can only be done through an extensive and intensive preventive measures.

REFERENCE

American journal of sociology (July issue)

National Youth Gang centre (National survey 1995)

Before talking about football hooliganism, it first must be clear how this phenomenon is defined. What is football hooliganism? In the literature many definitions are given, but actually none of them really covers the whole problem, we believe. The main reason for that is that hooliganism is something that has expanded all over the world which makes it is a very complicated problem actually. Between the countries, and even within countries and clubs, there are many differences. For example: some hooligan groups are very well organised, others not; one group is more violent than the other; some violence is directly related to sport, other not, etc. So you can say that hooliganism is many-sited and worldwide, what makes it a very complex problem. Eric Dunning stated that there actually is no precise definition of football hooliganism: “it lacks legal definition, precise demarcation of membership and is used to cover a variety of actions which take place in more or less directly football-related contexts” (Spaaij, 2005). We take this as our starting point in this paper, showing that the problem is very complicated and very hard to attack.

To Guilianotti there are two important ‘types’ of football violence. Some violent behaviour can be called spontaneous, other violence is more organized. The first type, the spontaneous violence can be caused by a ‘wrong’ decision of the referee for example or even by a wrong “word” of someone. These are situations that couldn’t be foreseen and it can lead to total chaos. It is very dangerous and it requires a fast reaction of the police. The latter type, the organised violence, may even be more dangerous and larger of size. ‘The battlefield’ in Beverwijk Holland is a good example of this type of violence. Two hooligan groups (Ajax and Feyenoord hooligans) met each other at an open field and fought with each other. The rest is history; one man died. Even today this event has a great impact. But this is only one example, and so many other examples can be mentioned here to illustrate the problem of well-organised hooligan fights against other groups and the police. Even innocent people, like father and son, are not safe anymore in those situations. Through the years many things had changed and organisation of violent behaviour actually became easier due to the internet and mobile telephones for example. Another point is that the stadium is not the anonymous place anymore as it used to be in the past. The security had become a lot better, so it became harder to riot in the stadium itself. Rioters now find other, more anonymous places where they can still go on with their illegal activities. This makes it of course harder to control for the police. The preceding examples were just given to illustrate how difficult the phenomenon hooliganism is and how many problems it entails.

The above distinction by Guilianotti (spontaneous vs. organised) is a very general one and it does not cover the whole problem according to us. Spaaij makes several efforts to give a more precise definition of football hooliganism. By trying to conceptualize the phenomenon he had to deal with several problems. Below, some of most the relevant problems are briefly described to show how difficult it is to define hooliganism.

1. In the past hooligans mainly fought against other hooligans. Actually, nowadays there are a lot of examples where hooligans attacked the police or other innocent people, like ‘normal fans’. This is very dangerous of course because now nobody is safe anymore.

2. Where the violence used to be in and around the stadiums, now it more and more spread to all kind of other places like housparties, open fields and other locations that are not related to the sport. This shift in violence is probably due to the better security in and around the stadiums. So it really becomes a wider and more incontrollable problem. Like the first problem this is a very important point in this paper.

3. Football hooliganism not always means violence in the way of really attacking other people or demolishes all kinds of stuff. For al lot of so-called hooligans, group feeling is most important and violence is not a priority. To them it is all more symbolic opposition.

4. Like Guilianotti stated already, not all the incidents are well-planned. Actually there are a lot of situations where the violence was not planned at all. Like said before one single event can lead to a big riot. This is dangerous of course because of the ‘surprise element’ and it becomes harder to counter by the police. Many people, like the police, think that hooligan groups are always very well-organised, but this is definitely not always the case. The rate of organisation differs from country to country and even within countries and clubs there are many differences. Some groups have a real hierarchical (criminal) organisation, like in the army, while other groups just fight with almost no organisation at all. This is another point what makes it so difficult to define hooliganism.

Although, there is no precise definition of football hooliganism; almost everybody acknowledge the problem of the violence that seems to go hand in hand with this specific group of football ‘fans’. The last thirty years it really became a sociological problem en many efforts had been made to attack this so-called ‘English decease’. A lot of different prevention strategies led to a decrease of violent behaviour in and around the stadiums in many countries all over the world. But despite all the efforts that are made, hooliganism remains a disturbing problem (Spaaij, 2001). The next chapter describes some good working prevention strategies to counteract hooliganism.

How to prevent football hooliganism?

As mentioned in the introduction, football hooliganism is a very old phenomenon. “Even in the 1870s, when the game got its modern form in England, there was violent behaviour of spectators” (Dunning, 1986). But the last thirty, forty years the problems did become bigger and bigger and the phenomenon became a real societal problem. Something had to change and the authorities did a lot to prevent the violence that comes with hooliganism. But what is a good strategy to prevent this complex problem?

First, it must be clear that there is not a single strategy to fight hooliganism. In the previous chapter it was stated that there are a lot of differences between groups in every country and city. Every group has its own characteristics which entails different problems. So one has to look at the specific problems causes by an group and the

Spaaij gives some good working strategies

It is also important that there is an international and national exchange of prevention strategies. Good-working strategies in one city or nation could then be implemented in another city or nation for example. So, successful prevention of football hooliganism requires cooperation between a variety of institutions and agents, and also between football clubs and fan clubs. Their commitment is very important and the task is to continue the development to make even better strategies for the future .

Over the years many successful strategies are developed to prevent football violence. Like is said before these strategies came from all over the world thanks to the great effort of many relevant authorities. Now some four forms of prevention are discussed briefly. First, the police forces are discussed. There has been a change in policing football matches. It used to be very aggressive just responding to the problems as they arise. That’s why the police got a bad name, especially in Southern and Eastern Europe and in Latin America (Frosdick, Holford and Sidney, 1999). They used too much violence according to a lot of people and this had a counterproductive effect. So something had to change. The last ten years the policing changed into more proactive and intelligence-led, especially in Britain, The Netherlands, Germany and Belgium. This so called proactive and intelligence-led policing is advanced and appears to be very successful in these countries. Special police officers for example are closely monitoring the activities of hooligan groups. So the police forces are now trying really hard to prevent violence, whereas the old way of policing actually was just a reaction to the violence. Nevertheless, significant variations exist in the investments made in intelligence-led policing in different countries and in different localities (Spaaij, 2005). Second, fan projects as a prevention strategy. An important aim of a fan club is to improve the relationship between the hooligans and the club. However, it is difficult to determine the preventative effects of fan clubs. Evidence suggests that certain projects have improved the relationship between hooligans, clubs, youth workers and the police, and have prevented young fans from identifying with football hooliganism (Bieleman, De Jong, Naayer and Nijboer, 2004). But there are also hooligan groups who don’t want to be in a fan club. They want to distinguish themselves from regular fans and they will go on with their hooligan activities. Third, the football club itself has a major role in preventing hooliganism. For a very long time clubs where trying to please the hooligans, by giving them free tickets and an own territory within the stadium for example, because they were afraid of reprisals. All this favours only led to expansion of the group and that couldn’t have been the intention of the clubs (Spaaij and Vinas, 1996). So clubs have to make a statement, they have to take action, just like FC Barcelona did with their zero-tolerance policy for example.

Fourth, and finally, real football fans are important in the prevention of hooliganism. With their supporters’ organizations they can achieve a lot of good for the sport. They are against racism and violence and they cooperate with many institutes. Many of these supporters’ organizations contribute to conferences, debates or educational programmes promoting the positive social functions of sport. This is a very good thing, especially for young fans, because they are learning that violence is a bad thing and that this is not good for the sport.

References:

Dunning, Eric, Murphy, Patrick & Williams, John: “Spectator Violence at Football Matches: Towards a Sociological Eplanation”, 1986

Dunning, Eric: “Towards a sociological understanding of football hooliganism as a world phenomenon”, 2000

Giulianotti, Richard: “A different kind of carnival”, 2001

Spaaij, Ramon: “The prevention of football hooliganism: a transnational perspective”, 2005

Introduction

There is a long history of research into the effect of socioeconomic factors and deprivation on health. The spatial dimension where people live – is a major determinant of health inequalities, for example in terms of marked variations in life expectancy

( Mitchell et al 2005). One socioeconomic variable, the type of housing that people can afford to live in, is obviously related to income. Hence housing is thought to be one of the determinants of a person’s overall health and wellbeing in terms of both physical and psychological.

Fuel poverty can be defined as an individual being not capable of affording those resources to keep them in warm condition. Boardman (1991) defined fuel poverty as the inability of a household to acquire energy sources such as heating by using 1o percent of their household income. While the department of energy and climate change approach the same description of fuel poverty as a household to be in fuel poverty in case it needs to spend more than 10 percent of its income on fuel or on heating for sufficient warm ( 21 degrees for the main living area, and 18 degrees for other in use rooms). The living standard and people’s health can be damage while living in cold and damp houses. There is the possibility that elderly, children and people with a long term illness and disability are more susceptible to fuel poverty. The department of energy and climate change classifies fuel poverty into three main categories. (Department of energy and climate change, Addressing Fuel Poverty).

Poor condition of the energy efficiency in home

High energy prices and its affordability.

Low income status of the people

Dr. Noel DL Olsen (2001) described that “few people choose to live in cold damp homes that they cannot afford to heat well enough to protect their health. Yet for millions of British households this is the reality of poor quality housing, inefficient heating systems and inadequate building standards stretching back over generations.”

Aims:

The aim of the study is to understand and mapping of housing and heath determinants and their relationship in fueling poverty in Salford area of Greater Manchester.

Objectives:

To understand basic factors of housing and health inequalities

To understand how various housing and health inequalities fueling poverty

To understand the relationship of various factors using statistical analysis

Literature Review

The literature review will described the basic description of health and housing inequalities. The condition of housing includes a collection of characters that are integral to the status and well being of a family. Housing on the other hand must be in a state of safe and well-mannered conditions to represent a family life.

One of the most famous and influential sources here is John Snow’s study of clusters of cholera which were found to be caused by contaminated public water facilities in London (Hempel, 2007). This study will be important both in terms of its part in the then emerging field of public health, but also more recently as an illustration of the potential for GIS and spatial analysis techniques in that field. Other early works on the state of the emerging discipline of public health focused on the newly-industrializing slum communities of nineteenth century England. Manchester, the first industrial city, was a good example of this and accounts of the conditions there at that time have acquired totemic status. For example, Engels’ ‘Conditions of the working class in England’, (1987, originally published in 1844) formed part of the primary research which he and his colleague Marx used in their globally-influential economic and political analyses. One hundred and thirty years later, Roberts’ ‘Classic slum’ (1971) provided a first-hand account of someone growing up in Salford, the deprived area immediately to the North West of inner city Manchester, particularly the social and related health problems of its housing stock. However, although the relation between poor health and poor housing seems obvious because of the basic human need for shelter, Thomson et al (2001) comment in a systematic review of published literature of “despite, or perhaps because of this intuitive relation, good research evidence is lacking on the health gains that result from investment in housing”. Furthermore, Thomson et al (2001) described that “there is also a lack of comparative information on the costs and effects of specific housing improvements, such as central heating or major refurbishment. It is this type of evidence that is likely to be most valuable to policy makers and housing providers. Large scale studies that investigate the wider social context of housing improvements and their comparative effectiveness and cost effectiveness are now required.”

Fuel Poverty

Palmer et al. (2008) explained that “single-person households in England are much more likely to be in fuel poverty than couples or larger families, their risk being twice as high as the next highest household type, lone parents (in 2005, 15% compared with 7%). This applies to working-age singles as well pensioner singles. Because of their relatively high risk, two-thirds of the households in fuel poverty in 2005 in England were single-person households even though only a quarter of all households were single-person households.”

Housing, Health and Adequate heating

Boardman (1991) first described that fuel poverty are due to the causes of inability of adequate energy usage for adequate heating but on the same time Shortt and Rugkasa (2005) in their research explained that there is the complex relationship between other factors associated with the household such as income, adequate heating and how to use efficient use of the energy, in which case the failure occur when defining the fuel poverty. There has been an effect on person mental health due to poor and inadequate heating system. Poor housing and inadequate heating system lead to damp which causes most of the common health issues. The personal well being, mental health and physical health has been affected by damp conditions of a place. Such type of mental health effect on a person life has been suggested by Lowry (1991) describing that “the psychological consequences of having scrape mould off your walls everyday are obvious”.

A relationship between ill health and poor housing

It has been described by (Byrne et al., 1986) that impressive developments in housing sector were accompanied by the developments in health such as at younger age measured of the mortality or children growth and development and also by the declination in the occurrence of diseases associated with overcrowded houses and insanitary conditions. While Burridge and Ormandy (1993) described that there has been the revision of such relationship with in recent years. There is the declaration that due to the construction of as specific type of housing accommodation especially flatted, with no consideration to health criteria, without the needs of the prospective residents has had effects on health. Beside this ill health has been described as a physical manifesto which includes social and psychological effects. One of the local housing authority motivations and a aspiration for the improvement of working class health with the help of providing them with better housing, has resulted in recent decades new slums and health risks associated with it.

Boardman (1991) said that “people give priority to adequate heating, if they have sufficient income and therefore fuel poverty is a clear indicator of poverty. Whilst the concern is not necessarily true, it is reasonable to assume that most of those in poverty are restricted to the amount of fuel that they can purchase and thus are suffering from fuel poverty”. Health and well being of older people is crucial in terms of adequate warmth in their homes, mainly to avoid winter deaths among them (Wilkinson, et al, 2001). Where as Bates et al, (2001) illustrated that for inadequate heating the central heating is not only the just the suggestion but it is in association with the deprivation. From the above reports there is the indication that there is a significant relationship between poor health and other poor housing factors such as dampness, moulds and poor heating or no heating provisions.

Research Methodology:

There are many research methods from which to choose for a typical research methodology. In the research methodology there is the following general discussion on the conducting of the research and some understanding of type basic concept of the qualitative and quantitative methods. There are many research methods from which to choose from. Research methods are the technique of investigation used to conduct a study. They include the use of questionnaires, interviews, participant observation or field work with the community being studied together with the interpretation of official statistics and historical documents and other techniques not so widely used. Generally there are three main methodologies.

Qualitative methods

Van Maanen (1983) defines qualitative methods as “an array of interpretative technique which seek to describe, decode, and translate and other wise come to term with the meaning, not the frequency, of certain more or less naturally occurring phenomena in the natural world.”

Quantitative Methods

Easterby-smith et al (1995) described four main ways of gathering of quantitative data:

Interviews

Questionnaires

Tests/Measure

Observation

While they stress that the differences between quantitative and qualitative techniques is not always clear. Quantitative methodologies have an emphasis on the importance of basing research upon protocol and technique.

In this piece of research the author will rely on quantitative methodology in the form of secondary data through various sources of database. These databases will include census data to perform the analysis and find out the results.

The case study area: Salford, Greater Manchester

Manchester’s ‘twin city’, Salford, adjoins it across the River Irwell and shares much of its history. The wider Greater Manchester region is made up of ten metropolitan local authorities:

Bolton

Bury

Manchester (City of)

Oldham

Rochdale

Salford (City of)

Stockport

Tameside

Trafford

Wigan

The metropolitan authority known as the ‘City of Salford’ comprises 20 wards and has a population of 216,000. In this study GIS application will be used along with spatial analysis and statistical techniques to investigate the reality of fuel poverty in this area. This issue is important in policy terms because it seems likely to be a major problem for public health – and hence for the economy – because of the increasing proportion of elderly people in the population. Fuel poverty is worst among the oldest members of society, particularly those in deprived areas such as Salford. Areas like some parts of Salford also have a higher than average concentration of elderly people because younger people tend to leave the area to seek employment and training opportunities elsewhere.

Data and methods

The data on socio-economic conditions in Salford will be gathered along with the maps of the area using a variety of resources. Specifically, data on health, housing, family configuration and other conditions in Salford’s wards were obtained from the 2001 Census via NOMIS. Maps were obtained from Ordnance Survey and other sources.

Census data

In the census, ‘health’ will be chiefly covered by two questions. Firstly, responses confirm whether a person considers themselves to be in (a) ‘good health’, (b) ‘fairly good’ health or (c) not in good health. Secondly, data will be the available on whether respondents suffer from ‘limiting long-term conditions’. Some other variables will be envisaged may affect people’s health in this region. These were: whether housing accommodation provided, or did not provide, central heating; whether people lived as part of a couple or lived alone; and whether people were economically active or inactive (i.e were/were not in work, education or training).

Pollution data

Data on local pollution will be downloaded from the UK Air Quality website (UK NATIONAL AIR QUALITY ARCHIVE,). This will demonstrate the relationship between health and pollution. Pollutants included Nox, No2 and PM10.

Maps

These will be obtained from EDINA Ordnance Survey for both the Greater Manchester area as a whole and Salford’s constituent wards.

Statistical analysis of the results

The data will be analyzed using SPSS software, then using regression statistics to determine whether there is significance. The data will be modeled the extent to which health is affected by variables such as central heating, being economically active, living in a couple and so on. Map reports can be used to address the out come from the analysis of the geographical data.

Regression analysis:

In the following section there will be an analysis of results through regression analysis by using multiple variables. In SPSS a simple method “Analyze…. Regression…. Linearaˆ¦..” in each case will be followed. There will be the selection of different criterion (dependent) and the predictor (independent) variables and will used the multiple regression model four times. Multiple regression analysis (MRA) is a useful method for generating mathematical models where there are several (more than two) variables involved.

Multiple Regression analysis: the multivariate regression will be used for at least four times to analyze the relationship between various variable of housing and health inequalities. People in good health and unstanderised predicted variables. The multiple regressions will use run of people in good health as a dependent variable and various other in dependent factors as in a variable entered table.

Abuse can be defined as “to treat wrongfully or harmfully”. There are different categories of abuse that have been recognized and within our case study there appears to be two distinct forms of abuse, domestic abuse and child abuse. These can be sub divided into terms of physical abuse, emotional /psychological abuse, and non-organic failure to thrive. Physical abuse is the intentional inflicting of physical injury or harm or deliberately not preventing harm occurring.

The minimum physical signs seen in our study to both Mrs Black and James are bruising with suspect excuses for their appearance. Emotional abuse is the continual failure to meet basic emotional needs. Emotional development is stunted and well- being impaired. The emotional signs in our case study can be seen in James by his actions of being withdrawn and non-communicative. The behavioural sign to abuse taking place to James is his aggressive behaviour.

The short term effects of physical abuse to James are bruising and pain. In the long term recurring injuries can result in secondary illness and complications, permanent scarring and disfigurement. His emotional effects in the short term are a fear of adults or others, withdrawal, poor relationship with his peers. The long term emotional effects for James could be low self esteem, depression, inability to form relationships.

Abuse can arise for many reasons and there are a number of theoretical perspectives which may be useful in clarifying why the abuse has taken place. The Feminist perspective believes that gender and family roles gives approval to a culture of abuse. Consider the historical and stereotypical ideas of the family, with men, women and children having definite roles. With men having power and control in the perspective of abuse. In James case he lives in a reconstituted family with the father figure being dominant and a heavy drinker. From a psychological perspective, alcohol misuse can bring mental health problems which may increase aggression in the person and so James is more at risk from abuse by his step father. The family dysfunction theory suggests that the family is not functioning due to family dynamics. The dysfunctioning family attempts to find alternative ways of coping. The relationship between the mother and James, involves a dependency of James on his mother. With other problems in James mothers life, this leads to increasing stress and the inability of his mother to cope and manage the situation within the relationship. The attachment theory state that significant separations of a child from the carer in the early years can have an effect on their emotional development and can lead to psychological and social difficulties in later life. With the loss of both his father and his sisters` father with whom he was close, may have contributed to his deterioration of his behaviour

If a client begins to make a disclosure of abuse it is important to ensure privacy and confidentiality. It is necessary to show that listening skills are employed and that I remain calm and receptive. I must listen without interruption and make it clear that I am taking their disclosure seriously. I must only ask questions of clarification if I am unclear as to what the vulnerable adult is saying. It is important that I acknowledge their courage in coming forward and tell them that they are not responsible for the abuse. I must let it be known to them what I will do to help them and where possible get their consent to inform my line manager. I must speak to my client in comfortable and quiet surroundings. I would ask my client to sit down where I shall use SOLER techniques, which is on- verbal to aid in communication. Using the SOLER theory I would use the five basic components used in communication. I would sit squarely on at the table turned towards one another. I would adopt an open posture. I would lean forward slightly to convey to him that I am interested and committed to actively listen to him. I would sit so that we have regular but varied eye contact and that my client could see my facial expressions and gestures to aid in communication. I would maintain a relaxed manner. This would also let him know that I am involved in the situation. This adhered to our organizations policy on Confidentiality and the Data Protection Act of 1998 allowing my client to voice his concerns without worry and protected his privacy. I would inform him that they are not responsible for the abuse. I must let it be known to him what I will do to help him and where possible get his consent to inform my line manager. It is important that I make an immediate record of what the vulnerable adult has said, using only their own words. This should be recorded in the Incident Book, clearly, accurately and legibly, and then reported to the Line Manager who is responsible for any further action.

As we do not supply a care service, we are not required to register with the Care Commission, but we ensure all our policies and procedures meet their standards. As all clients under these standards are legally allowed an individualized care plan, we instead have an activity plan. The policy and procedures on abuse of our organisation are underpinned by the National Care Standards which were set up under the Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001. This Act came about to regulate the care and social work force and set out the principals of good care practice. The Care Commission was set up under this Act to register, regulate and inspect all care services listed in the Act. It also established The Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC). (ref1)The SSSC has aims and objectives to protect the service users, raise standards, strengthen and support workforce professionalism. An example of the code of practice of the SSSC is to look after service users and carers by protecting their rights and promoting their interests, by establishing and maintaining trust and users confidence , by promoting their independence, while protecting them as far as possible from danger or harm, respecting their rights and ensuring that their behaviour does not cause harm to themselves or others. The policy for protecting vulnerable people within our organisation is achieved through the careful selection, screening, training and supervision of staff and volunteers. Under The Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007 a code of good practice for vulnerable adults within our organisation has been developed which expects staff or volunteers suspecting or have had abuse disclosed must immediately report the concerns to their line manager and write up an incident report. The line manager will discuss the concerns with the person reporting the abuse; she will clarify the concerns and obtain all known relevant information. This will then be forwarded to the appropriate local Social Work Department stating that it concerns vulnerable adult protection. In the absence of a line manager the concerns should be reported directly to the local Social work department and then inform the line manager as soon as possible. The social work department after investigation may have to inform the police to investigate further.(ref2) The principal function of Registered Social Workers is the safety and support of the wellbeing of children and vulnerable adults. They should encourage the wellbeing of communities complying with the Scottish Social Services Council’s Code of Practice for Social Service Workers. (ref3) The social work department will work with the police to carry out joint enquires if necessary and organise case reviews and protection conferences. The police will keep safe from harm the individual who has been subjected to abuse and may call for a medical examination. They will examine and collect evidence, interview suspects, identify offenders and arrange cases for prosecution. The GP or hospital Doctor maybe involved giving medical evidence of abuse and treating the individual.

Under our code of good practice in preventing abuse it is important that I avoid unobserved situations of one -to-one contact with a vulnerable adult. I must never invite a vulnerable adult to my home; I must never offer to take a vulnerable adult alone in my own vehicle, if it is necessary to do things of a `personal nature` e.g. toileting , I must have the consent and knowledge of the carers and my line manager, before doing any of the above. I must not engage or allow any sexually provocative games involving or observed by vulnerable adults. I must never make or allow suggestive remarks or discrimatory comments to be made to a vulnerable adult. I must not engage in or tolerate bullying, or inappropriate physical behaviour. I must respect all vulnerable adults regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability or sexual identity. I must avoid “favouritism” and singling out “troublemakers”. I must never trivialise abuse and never let allegations of abuse go unreported, including any made against myself. The policy and procedures of our organisation adhere to the Protection of Vulnerable Groups Act (Scotland) 2007 by ensuring as a way of vetting and barring every volunteer and employee has undergone a Disclosure which shows any convictions. If any convictions suggest that abuse of our clients is a possibility then they would not be allowed to volunteer or be employed.

Sources of support for workers in the field of preventing abuse can be provided by statutory, voluntary, and private or independent organisations. Statutory services have a distinct concern laid down by legislation e.g. social services and NHS. The voluntary sector is run on a non profit making basis and have arisen through a recognised need and reflect society`s feelings. E.g. Advocacy, Mencap. Private organisations make a profit but I am not aware of any private local organisation that supports vulnerable adults suffering abuse. Support can consist of Casework, by working on a one to one basis, by counselling again one to one, and by group work bringing people together with shared issues to resolve problems together.

(Ref4) Cultural values play a part in defining what is considered abusive conduct. What we in the UK consider abuse may not be considered abuse in another culture. For example, domestic abuse has only recently become abhorrent in the UK. As up until the 1970s/80s, domestic abuse was considered a marital problem and to be accepted, but today we have little tolerance for domestic abuse. But, today, ethnic minority women still run the risk of long periods of abuse and find it difficult to report. Families expect women to put up with it, as ethnic women are considered their husbands property. ‘Honour killings` are not unknown amongst ethnic minorities using religious text as justification. (Ref5)Female circumcision is another culturally accepted form of abuse, still practised in 28 countries in Africa. It is seen to control female sexuality and sex outside marriage. This is done to girl’s age range from 4 to 12. It usually takes place in un- hygienic conditions with potentially fatal consequences. Forced marriages are also a problem, by taking the potential bride out of the country against her wishes and forcing her to marry a suitor specially selected by the parents.

Sometimes, workers may have trouble accepting the motives of people who are involved in abuse. There may be the need to ask why and how can they have abused? Where they just bad or mad? Perhaps the workers values and beliefs make working with an abuser distasteful. However, a professional approach to working with an abuser must be taken. For those who work with abusers there is a need to understand why people abuse.

(Ref6)Abusive behaviour can sometimes be the result of mental health problems, empathy deficit, brain damage or being abused themselves. By becoming the abuser they believe they are taking control, some even believe that they are not doing anything wrong and cannot stop themselves. When working with individuals who have abused it is important to be aware that they may go on to abuse again and as well as trying to treat the underlying cause for abuse their is a need to protect the community from the abuser. So, the use of risk assessments are important to keep safe when working with an abuser.

( Ref7) In Conclusion it is important to be able to understand the probable risks and take appropriate action to reduce them. Effective communication and personal skills are useful to understand and reduce potential conflicts. Reflection on my own values and how they may affect my practice, awareness and understanding of the abusers cultural values and background is required. This is to ensure awareness and intervention is employed when required. When dealing with abuse, it is important to listen, understand, report and keep the abused safe and if dealing with the abuser to keep myself safe.

References.
SSSC. (2009). Codes of Practice. Available: http://www.sssc.uk.com/Last accessed 09/02/2010.
Stephen Smellie. (2005). Role of the Social Worker: Protection of Title. Available: http://www.unison-scotland.org.uk/response/swrole2.html. Last accessed 09/02/2010
Elizabeth Bingham +. (2009). Protection including safeguarding and management of risk.. In: HNC in Social Care. Edinburgh: Heinemann. 229.
Mary Barnish. (2004). Domestic Violence: A Literature Review. Available: http://www.domestic-violence-and-abuse.co.uk/information/Cultural-Differences-in-the-UK.php. Last accessed 13/02/2010.
Frances A. Althaus . (1997). Female Circumcision: Rite of Passage or Violation of Rights? Available: http://www.guttmacher.org/pubs/journals/2313097.html. Last accessed 13/02/2010.
Kathryn Patricelli. (2005). Why do people abuse?. Available: http://www.mentalhelp.net/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=8482. Last accessed 13/02/2010.
Elizabeth Bingham +. (2009). Issues involved in protection from abuse. In: HNC in Social Care. Edinburgh: Heinemann. 217.

In the following essay I will be describing post modernism and analysing the impact it has had on class and inequality.

Modern means something up to date and a break away from the past. Modernity is a historical term which refers to the era that follows the ‘Middle Ages’ or feudalism. Modernity was the emergence of a modern industrial civilisation and manufactured society in the 1950s and 1960s. It was non-feudal. This industrial and political revolution changed society’s outlook on the world. Individuals were separated into classes.

Modernization “This term is often used to refer to the stages of social development which are based upon industrialization. Modernization is a diverse unity of socio-economic changes generated by scientific and technological discoveries and innovations…” (Sarup 1993)

In sociology modernism refers to the period dominated by theories that claimed there were patterns to social behaviour and these could be investigated and understood i.e. Functionalism and Marxism.

The key influence of post modernity is individualism. A contemporary society is characterised by endless choices; identity can be constantly up dated or altered according to current wants or needs through the cultural commodities we consume. This increasing diversity has led to fragmentation of collective social identity especially social class. Also society can develop uncertainty leading to the break down of franchises and social structures.

Postmodernism rejects the stratification theories and focuses upon identity and difference. Previous terms of identity such as class and ethnicity become extinct. Subjective individual identity is now more important than objective collective identity.

According to postmodernists class is not as important as it was and not the chief source of identity. They argue that identity is now derived from leisure and consumption and not from work or production.

Best (1995) argues that through post modernity we are all cast in the role of consumers. He believes that post modern stratification is about life style choices, fragmented association and the seduction into consumer spending through advertising and control change. This theory is very similar to the Marxist theory in which it is believed that media superstructure controls and dominates image and consumer spending.

Pakulski and Waters published a book “The Death of Class” in 1996 which announces the end of social classes in today’s post-modern societies. The authors mention that social class is a historical phenomenon that appears in the 19th century. In the beginning of the 20th century, factors such as the state and political parties changed the nature of class relations, resulting in class losing its validity. They define the decline in the importance of class as “status convention” and they use this term to indicate that although social inequalities are still present the differences in life style and status are the more important factor.

They also conclude that contemporary societies are still stratified and this stratification is achieved through cultural consumption not class position and the “division of labour”. Pakulski and Waters agree with the theory that we now live in an individual society where people no longer see themselves in social terms and say that “consumption is now central” and example of this is how we spend money and organise our everyday lives.

Sociologist Ray Pahl questioned whether class is still a useful concept in attempting to understand contemporary societies.

Rosemary Crompton criticises Pakulski and Waters. She agreed that traditional definitions of class have neglected cultural factors such as gender but states that Pakulski and Waters definition is unhelpful and confuses class and status.

John Scott and Lydia Morris also argue for a need to make distinctions between the class and positions of individuals: there location in a division of labour.

In conclusion there are still significant differences between social classes in terms of educational attainment, leisure pursuits and health. Modern social theories such as Feminism and Marxism can still offer insight as to why social inequalities exist.

Because today’s society is changing so rapidly and is so diverse there is no possible way of measuring it.

Qualitative approaches to measuring class such as mobility studies and inequalities of wealth indicate that class is not dead; it is more complex. Simply because aspects of class are now more dominant it does not mean that they do not exist. Social mobility is the degree to which an individual’s family or group’s social status can change throughout the course of their life through a system of social hierarchy or stratification. Subsequently, it is also the degree to which an individual’s or group’s descendants move up and down the class system. The individual or family can move up or down the social classes based on achievements or factors beyond their control.

Inequality, whether racial, ethnic, economic, political or social is a great concern everywhere in the world. This is because research has shown that inequality can lead to poverty and creation of social classes within a society. This theory was expounded by Karl Max in his “Communist Manifesto” in which he argued that the owners of the means of production, “capitalists,” exploit the poor or “proletariats” and accumulate wealth often leading to a class society.

This paper summarizes the findings of a 2007 study, titled “Ethnic Inequality in Canada: Economic and Health Dimensions, which was done by Ellen M. Gee, Karen M.Kobayashi and Steven G. Prus, and is available in the Canadian Journal of sociology. Other works will also be reviewed to secure a satisfactory understanding of the subject.

Introduction

Immigration into Canada totally changed the racial diversity of the Canadian population. In their study, Gee et al. (2007) noted that since the beginning of European immigration and settlements, the Canadian society has been ordered based on racial and ethnic dimensions. Ethnicity has occupied a central position in Canadian’s rising inequality (p.3). John Porter first studied this subject in 1965 and found that entry into the Canadian elite class was racially ranked and determined by income, “ethnic prestige,” and occupations. His findings found that, British-Canadians topped the group, French-Canadians took second position, and other European-Canadians were third while Blacks and Aboriginals-“visible minorities” occupied the bottom strata.

Despite rapid changes in policy, regarding ethnic and racial discrimination and Canada’s economic progress, aspects of ethnic inequality exist in Canada. Gee et al. (2007) examined ethnic inequalities in Canada now (their time of study being 2007). I summarize their findings on four key issues, namely; Economic Inequalities (income and occupations), Employment and home ownership, Health Inequality and the aspect of perceptions on discrimination and prejudice.

Economic Inequalities

Empirical examples show that, substantial and convincing studies have been done on ethnically or racially based economic inequalities in Canada. Well-studied areas on this subject include income disparities and inequality in occupations. Gee et al. (2007) summarized the various studies done on this subject. (Reitz and Banerjee 2007) concluded that visible minorities in Canada have higher poverty rates and lower comparable incomes than ethnic Canadians of European origin.

Gee et al. (2007) noted that recent studies on ethnic/racial orientations of income inequalities show that, household incomes of Aboriginals and visible minorities are usually low than those of Canadians with a European Origin. This is despite the fact that such studies have been conducted by different researchers at different times and applying different racial classifications and control variables. They further noted that racial disparities in the household incomes of European-Canadians have nearly minimized. Additionally, they also found indications showing that Canadians of southern European origin earn lower incomes than Canadians of British origin, while Canadians of French Origin earned much far better (p.14).

On occupations, (Nakhaie 1997 as quoted in Gee et al. 2007: 16) found that British-Canadians continue leading the class of Canadian elites, despite the fact that Canadians of other origins have made efforts to join the elite class over the years. Gee et al. (2007) also noted that the correlation between ethnicity/racism and occupation could be studied in two different ways. One way is by establishing whether certain ethnic groups are concentrated in specific occupations (based on division of labor). The other alternative is evaluating the position of “racial groups” in the Hierarchy or strata of “prestigious occupations” (p.17). Applying the first dimension, and using the male gender, studies showed that Aboriginals dominate the construction and building industries representing more than double of the Canadian male populations. They are extremely underrepresented in administrative and management occupations. Their women counterparts are represented in service jobs. They therefore concluded that, the Canadian labor force is more gendered than ethnically based. In terms of prestige of occupations, Jewish, British and Chinese Canadians top the hierarchy. Blacks, Greeks, Aboriginals and Portuguese Canadians occupy the lower strata in that order. In the case of the female gender, the picture does not change. In this case, ethnicity and racism outweighs gender (p.17).

Employment and Home Ownership

Li 2000 as quoted in Reitz and Banerjee (2007: 6) noted that the main economic problem that ethnic minority immigrants face in Canada is securing sufficient employment. This is associated with amicable reasons like, the “entry effect”-related to immigration problems and adjusting to the new environment (urban settlement), academic qualifications and racism. Ethnic minority immigrants experience more impediments than immigrants of European-origin (Reitz and Banerjee 2007: 6)

Gee et al. (2007) asserted that findings show that in terms of home ownership, the picture is no different. It reflects the same strata as it is observed in household income levels and occupations. Osberg (2008: 33) noted that, despite the fact that much literature has ignored the role of interest rates, wealth distribution, and household incomes of the wealthy and focused on earning trends, Canada now has much information on economic and other social inequalities and broad conclusions are apparent. He concludes that data shows an increase in economic inequality in Canada today.

Health Inequalities

Better health care is one of the basic needs that all human beings aspire to get any ware in the world. Low household incomes are frequently linked with poor health. Despite intensified research and studies on health inequality in Canada, little attention has been directed at ethno-cultural disparities on health.

Gee et al (2007) looked at both “heath care access” and “health status.” However much of the literature that they examined did not show a direct correlation between ethnicity and health status. In some instances data showed that, some recent immigrants, irregardless of race or ethnic group had better health than their Canadian-born counterparts. This “healthy immigrant effect” was however associated with the health requirements in the Canadian immigration act that locked out immigrants with chronic health conditions. Their studies concluded that Canadians whose mother tongue is non-English or non-French are economically disadvantaged. Recent “visible immigrants are typically disadvantaged. Their analysis also found significant disparities in “health status” and “utilization” depending on country of immigrant and language. The health status of recent Immigrants declines as their years of stay in Canada increase. This is because they hardly report for medical checkups, due to the fear discrimination, prejudice, and low household incomes.

Perceptions of Discrimination and Prejudice: A Barrier to Social Cohesion

Ethnic and racial inequality might be less decisive if it is because of circumstances amicable to the “visible minority,” such as status of new immigrants, language differences, or academic and technical training not compliant with Canadian requirements. In other words, inequality would not be a threat to social cohesion if it were viewed as legitimate. The feeling of discrimination, prejudice and racism is another issue all together (Reitz and Banerjee 2007: 8). A 2002 Ethnic Diversity Survey, which sought to get views of individual experiences of ethnic and racial discrimination, showed that 35.9% of all the respondents “consisting visible minorities” reported cases of discrimination and prejudice compared with 10.6% of all Whites who responded to the Survey, of the visible minorities, blacks recorded the highest rate at 49.6%. (p. 8:9). The Visible minorities also reported incidences of perceived discrimination of their ethnic group.

Despite improving economic status of immigrants as they cope up with Canadian environment and society an ethnic divide in perceptions of racial discrimination is eminent among immigrants with longer stay and experience in Canada. (p.9), this is even persistence among children. Cases of non-recognition of immigrant qualifications also abound, despite in some cases being equivalent to those of native Canadians. Failure to recognize foreign qualifications and experience are some of the barriers that “visible minorities” come across as they seek employment.

Racial discrimination is viewed with skepticism in Canada, but the mutual covenant is that it exists and cannot be ignored. It is true that one of the effects of racial discrimination of minorities is its impact on the social cohesion of the Canadian society. Social cohesion generally means the capacity of a society to formulate, implement and adhere to policies that guide it. Lack of it may lead to conflicts and civil disorders as it happened in France and the United Kingdom. Other effects may be failure of a group to participate in making decisions and sometimes withdrawing its support for certain decisions or societal policies.

Integrating “ethnic minorities” is an important issue in Canada. Social integration and social cohesion are mutually exclusive and cannot be separated. Proper social integration of minority ethnic groups in Canada is a sine qua non for a peaceful and prosperous society that is viewed by its occupants as a means to the achievement of their needs. This will strengthen the Canadian society; raise the spirit of inclusiveness, civic and voluntary participation in activities concerning human life.

Conclusion

Inequality is a social evil; no society is a friend to it. The above revelations reveal that forms of inequality based on ethnic considerations exist in Canada irregardless of how minute they are. This is a big concern to racial minorities. It is not only a challenge to the racial group that experience it, but also to the completely Canadian society in terms of forging a peaceful and an all inclusive society acceptable to all.

The process of socially integrating ethnic minorities into Canadian society is often slower than that of European immigrants. This is often associated with their feeling of exclusion and perceived discrimination. Of emphasis is that economic integration should match social integration, none should supersede the other.

Existing Canadian policies and legal structures are laudable against racial discrimination and economic inequality. This is possibly due to international conventions and pressure to eliminate global racism and ethnicity, but it is not clear whether they are sufficient in addressing the issues that affect minority ethnic groups in Canada. However, may consent is that ethnic prejudice and discrimination is a social construction that can only be changed by the subconscious minds of individuals-the way we think and see others. We should all join hands and fight ethnic inequality. We should judge others by their competence and content of their minds rather than the pigmentation of their skin.

“There shall be no solution to this race problem until, you yourselves, strike the blow for liberty”-Marcus Garvey