Category: Free Essays

Compare and contrast two of the five approaches to mental health & illness within Sociology. (social causation, social reaction (labelling theory), critical theory, social constructivism & social realism)Mental Health Illness

The issue of mental health has long been an object of study for society, the psychiatric professions and sociology has similarly had a long tradition of offering theoretical insights into the phenomenon. Why this might be is open to debate and many of the key sociological theories in relation to mental health have in fact as much to say about the prevailing viewpoints within society and within professional bodies towards mental health as they do about those who suffer from mental health related problems (Cockerham, 1992). The two most radical of the sociological theories concerning mental health have been social reaction or labelling theories as well as that of social constructivism.

Both these theories examined within this essay offer a radical conception of mental health in comparison to what might be called the dominant medical and social views on mental health. However while both of these theories offer a radical view of mental health they differ substantially in the theoretical framework which they respectively utilize towards understanding mental health. These differences can be located in broader trends which have occurred within the discipline of sociology itself as a shift in the major theoretical traditions within the discipline, (Delanty, 1999). The two sociological theories examined are that of social reaction and social constructivism.

Social Reaction

This critical theory emerged in the 1960s which in itself might serve to highlight the broader critical strands present within society when this theory was formulated. Labelling theory works from the simple premise that to define someone as mentally ill conveys upon them a stereotypical image which the person will then act. It drew its framework from the symbolic interactionism school of sociology so at its root this theory sought to examine the ways in which roles and actors interacted and played out within the drama of mental illness (Pilgrim and Rogers, 1999. Thus for labelling theory the relationship between the patient (or the individual defined as ill), family, medical professions and society generally is the determining factor for analysis in relation to mental illness.

For labelling theorists then the primary framework for analysing mental illness is to examine the twin concepts of primary deviance and secondary deviance. Primary deviance relates to things which might actually be wrong or actions or circumstances which involve actual rule breaking, (Pilgrim and Rogers, 1999) and for labelling theorists the most interesting item regarding this is the way those around sufferers rationalise and ignore this behaviour up unto a point, (Ineichen, 1979:11). Perhaps the most illustrative study of this phenomenon was the work of Yarrow, Schwartz, Murphy and Deasy (1955) which illustrated the various ways in which wives would dismiss strange behaviour up until a point was reached in terms of deviant behaviour.

However it is secondary deviance which labelling theory sees as the much more problematic of the two forms of deviance and it is here that the links also between the second of our theories examined are strongest. For labelling theorists secondary deviance has a number of critical factors. But simply put secondary deviance refers to those manifestations of symptoms which are not related in any way to the actual physical incidence. Thus we might say that the aetiology of secondary deviance is a function of the societal conditions surrounding the individuals rather than intrinsic conditions within the individual themselves. As Rosenham (1973) states The question of whether the sane can be distinguished from the insaneis a simple matter: do the salient characteristics that lead to diagnoses reside in the patients themselves or in the environmentsin which observers find them (250).

In Rosenham’s case where eight pseudo-patients gained entry into hospitals on the pretence of being insane to answer to this question lay firmly in the area of the observers. While popular at first with a number of studies finding the concepts expressed in the theory to be true in a number of famous studies labelling theory has not decreased in popularity with a number of major criticisms being levelled at the theory as a result of further investigation and continued studies

While labelling theory surmised that primary and secondary deviance were linked in that one will tend to lead to the other as a result of the ensuing interaction between the individual sufferer and those that label the sufferer this was not borne out by the research. In the case of Rosenham’s study it was found that the label of deviant though at first an uncomfortable and disturbing experience did not persist for a great length of time with the pseudo-patients in the experiment, (Pilgrim and Rogers, 1999).

Another weakness expressed in labelling theory is the relationship between the stereotypical images of the insane believed to be held by the public. If society was to blame for labelling the insane then it would have been expected that the images lay people had conformed to the images of diagnosis, yet research has shown that this is not the case. Indeed lay perceptions to mental illness have been demonstrated to only marginally relate to the images associated with medical diagnosis, (Pilgrim and Rogers, 1999:18).

Labelling theory accepts then (and is a criticism of the theory) that a distinction can be drawn between physical disorders, primary deviance, and the ensuing reaction from society which causes secondary deviance. For the second theory we examine here the existence of both categories is dependent on society or in other words that mental illness exists as a completely subjective definition.

Social Constructivism

While referring to a broad range of social critiques across a many wide variety of disciplines it is perhaps best represented in terms of its comments on mental health by the works of the French theorist Michel Foucault. In particular his seminal work The Birth of the Clinic sets out the radical viewpoint with which social constructivism is associated. In this Foucault argues that insanity exists as a classificatory concept derived from the subjective description of medical knowledge. Or that the objectification of insanity occurred after as well as in tandem with the development of psychiatric knowledge, the insane developed as a problematised group which in turn led to strategies being developed to manage them, (Foucault, 1976)

Superficially then we can see many similarities between these two theories in that both see a critical role for society in the determination of the meaning of mental illness. The critical difference is that while for social reactionists and labelling theorists a division exists between primary deviance which has a physical locus and secondary deviance which arises out of societal causes whereas social constructivists assign the loci of mental health strictly to the social environment. It does this through utilising the theoretical framework of discourses, thus the subjectivity of being mad is defined through the objectifying process of psychiatric or medical knowledge generally (Pilgrim and Rogers, 1999).

While many works recently have adopted social constructivist viewpoints in relation to medical knowledge it is Foucault’s works which are the best known and also which have been the most influential in developing this theoretical viewpoint. Foucault’s work was in particular concerned with how the shifting conceptions of what madness meant to society led to the development of a discrete set of knowledges which pathologise mental states according to a classificatory system related to madness and what were the strategies which developed as a result of this knowledge towards the control and management of the insane (Foucault, 1972, 1976).

This concept has had radial implications for a consideration of mental health and how it is defined in as well as by society. This theoretical framework can be seen thusly to criticise not only psychiatric practice but also psychiatric knowledge and even more critically the processes through which psychiatric knowledge is generated. Indeed from a social constructivist viewpoint it is the very construction of knowledge which leads to the boundaries and categories which delineates and determines who it is we call insane and indeed what it is that makes them insane for society.

Perhaps the biggest criticism we can make of the social constructivist viewpoint is the lack of a normative basis to its analysis. While the critique may be valid social constructivist theories can be distinctly vague about resistances to the all powerful discourses which they describe and analyse. Similarly the ability to formulate social policies arising out of the critique may similarly be limited (Rogers and Pilgrim, 2001: 175). A secondary point and one which we have already made in relation to labelling theory is that perhaps social constructivism deconstructs too much certain incidences of mental illness, perhaps there are some illnesses which in their aetioloigcal sense reveal themselves to be indeed physical manifestations of what we might actually be able to call a disorder (Zinberg, 1970).

Thus from this analysis we can see the close links as well as the clear differences between these two theories. While both are radical in their outlook we can argue that social constructivism has even been more radical. Similarly while social reaction theories have fallen out of favour along as well it must be noted as symbolic interactionsim in general social constructivist theories have been and continue to be hugely influential not only in relation to mental illness but to a broad range of social scientific disciplines and social issues.

References

Cockerham, W. C. (1992); Sociology of Mental Disorder; 3^rd Ed., Simon and Schuster Co.; New Jersey US

Delanty, G. (1999); Social Theory in a Changing World, Polity Press, Malden US

Foucault, M. (1976); The Archaeology of Knowledge, Tavistock, London UK

Foucault, M. (1976); The Birth of the Clinic, Tavistock, London UK

Ineichen, B. (1979); The Social Structure of Modern Britain: Mental Illness, Longman, London UK

Pilgrim, D. and Rogers, A. (1999); A Sociology of Mental Illness, 2^nd Ed., Open University Press, NY US

Rogers, A. and Pilgrim, D. (2001); Mental Health Policy in Britain, Palgrave, Basingstoke UK

Rosenham, D.L. (1973); ‘On Being Sane in Insane Places’; Science, Vol 179 Jan

Yarrow, M., Schwartz, C, Murphy, H. and Deasy, L. (1955); ‘The Psychological Meaning of Mental Illness in the Family’, Journal of Social Issues, Vol 11 No. 12

Zinberg, N. (1970); ‘The Mirage of Mental Health’, British Journal of Sociology, Vol. 21 No. 3

Americans mistakenly believe that the reason we spend more on health care is because we have the best health care system in the world. It would not be wrong to state as a matter of fact that we spend more on health care than any other developed country in the world. We as Americans spend twice as much on health care as the Japanese, but there are really very few who would argue, without a doubt, that our health care is better (Paraphrase Mahar 20). Or let us take a closer look to home, if one were to ask any Canadian what the main difference is between Canada and the United States, two countries so close geographically speaking, yet so different ideologically speaking, the Canadian would most likely say “health care.” “Ninety-six percent of Canadians say they prefer their health care system to the U.S.’s and nearly every politician in Canada knows to support the Canadian health care system as if it were some sort of sacred trust” (Armstrong, Armstrong & Fegan 1). The United State’s Canadian neighbor has a government that not only provides insurance, but the government pays for it. In a 2006 Harvard Medical School study, it was found that Americans are “42% more likely to have diabetes, 32% more likely to have high blood pressure, and 12% more likely to have arthritis then citizens in other industrialized nations (Associated Press). This study came right after another study that found that middle aged, white Americans are much sicker than their counterparts in England a country that has a national health care system (Associated Press). Universal health care can improve the health of Americans by affording them the health care that other countries such as Canada, England, and Japan already have. The problem with health care in the United States is essentially how we view it. Many view health care as a luxury, something for the rich, but health care is not a luxury, it is a right, and if America were to implement a universal health care system, Americans would be healthier overall. Healthier citizens would not just mean a happier country, but it would also mean a wealthier country, and this is something that countries like England, Canada, and Japan have already figured out. By denying our citizens health care, we are putting off costs that will be tripled in the long run because of the fact that people have to put off being seen by a doctor and thus their illnesses become either more severe or irreversible. Either way, Americans end up paying more.

Approximately 50% of Americans do not have some form of health insurance coverage. This number seems absurd when there is the fact that “the United States has a $2 trillion health care system, which is as large as the economy of China” (Herzlinger 15). Despite the fact that millions of dollars are spent on this so-called system, millions of people with chronic diseases and disabilities cannot get the treatment that they need. So where are these millions of dollars going? A universal health care system would allow people with chronic diseases and disabilities to get the treatment that they need. It would also benefit people in helping to prevent disease, which is a major part of modern medicine. In our system, doctors and hospitals are paid for treating sick patients, not for keeping them healthy, but without preventative medicine people are bound to be sick as opposed to bound to be healthy. Therein lies a major ethical dilemma. In a universal health care system, doctors and hospitals would take more of an interest in preventative doctoring because health care would already be paid for. All of this would lead to healthier individuals in the bigger picture. We have to ask ourselves, when did medicine become about simply fixing and not about preventing? The question is especially valid when we consider that modern medicine cannot even fix, unless for less than an exorbitant amount, the most common of illnesses and diseases that people are acquiring.

The U.S health care system is commonly referred to as the health care industry. Health and industry become one in terms of health care in the U.S. It is no wonder why with our health care, being an industry, people in America are, on average, unhealthier than their counterparts in Canada, Europe, and Japan, and pretty much every other developed and progressed country in the world. When we consider that the current U.S. health care system comes in at over $2 trillion dollars a year, that averages to roughly “$7,000 per man, woman, and child, healthy or sick or roughly $25,000 annually for the average family” (Relman 113). With that kind of money, it would be possible to have universal coverage in the U.S. This would equate into good quality care for all, which would therefore mean that our sick could be treated and our healthy taken care of with preventative measures. Most people who do not get health coverage through their jobs or through other means such as their family cannot afford the exorbitant costs of individual health insurance policies, therefore many people simply go without insurance, harming their health in the long run. This leads me to my next point, physicals performed by doctors are crucial to maintaining good health. It is through annual check-ups that many doctors spot issues that could turn disastrous if the person were to have gone without care. For Example, some types of cancers that if caught early enough could be kept from being fatal. Moreover, high blood pressure and cholesterol tests alert people to make changes in their diets and adapt to a healthier lifestyle. However, the 26 million uninsured in America are denied the right to these tests. People who are denied access to regular check-ups are being denied the right to good health.

In our current health care situation, there is a proliferation of sickness among the poor because they cannot afford health insurance or the out-of-pocket costs of seeing a doctor or buying prescriptions. Many advocates of universal health care believe that health care is as much a birthright as is education, yet half of our country slips by without access or means to doctors and hospitals to keep them healthy or cure them of their illnesses. It does not speak well about a country so prosperous that denies its citizens the right to the best health possible. When politicians turn their back on this important issue, they are turning their backs on the country. Without the people, there is no country, and so it makes sense that our country develops a universal health care system immediately.

Many Americans are in favor of a universal health care system, especially when we hear of a top health insurance company executive bringing home $24 million a year, many believe that a single payer system is the only way to ensure the health of our citizens (Paraphrase Mahar). Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP) reports that a single-payer option is supported by a majority of doctors, nurses, as well as general public and health care experts. When the very people who provide care are in favor of a different health care system, we have to stop and take note. When our own doctors and nurses are telling us that a universal health care system is crucial to our collective health, the people in the United States should listen. But what has happened is that America’s medical system has become a system that is driven by money rather than by the health of its citizens (Paraphrase Herzlinger). Insurance companies have become massively rich corporations that profit by taking money away from the citizens. They are companies that pay their executives out of this world wages yet deny to pay for screenings and physicals for its clients.

Japan, another country that is much healthier collectively than the United States, has a universal health system where all citizens are covered equally and they can go to any doctor or hospital they want, with no difference in cost (Summary Mahar 219). If Americans had the option of seeing any doctor that they needed or wanted to, no matter where they were in the United States, it would prevent many deaths and treatable diseases. The fact that Americans are lashed to one doctor or one hospital means that many will choose to wait to see a doctor or even forego seeing a doctor at all when they really need to. Perhaps lives could have been saved and perhaps more will be saved if a universal health care system is put into place.

The bottom line is that a universal health care system is the only fair and right system. It is a system not an industry that would be for the people and the people are what make up a country, so why shouldn’t our country care about the health of its citizens? Without insurance forms, policies, paperwork, high premiums and other red tape, our citizens would be in better health. The situation right now is that if a person has to choose between feeding their family and seeing a doctor for a pain in their chest, they will probably feed their family. This is not the way it should be, people should not have to choose between what is best for them and what is best for the people they love because an insurance company is standing in the way of their lives. People have the right to health care and the right to be the healthiest that they can be, whether that health is given through medical visits or through sustenance. A universal health care system would ensure that every citizen has the opportunity to receive the best care possible so that they can live a healthy and long life no matter how much money they make and what job they have. Health care is not something that should be negotiable in a country as wealthy and developed as the United States.

Universal health care would improve the health of the people of the United States and would ensure the health of the individuals who will become citizens in the future. The research shown has proven that countries where a universal health care system is in place have much healthier people when compared to U.S. counterparts. The research is obvious and the facts cannot be denied. The United States can learn a lot from the countries that offer a universal health care system such as our close neighbor, Canada, and neighbors not so close like Japan.

The United States adoption of a universal health care system is the only way that America can go when it comes to health care. One has to ask, where can a country, which is made up by people, go wrong when its citizens are not only treated, but they are taken care of? To prevent illness and disease is what medicine should be about these days and not just treating the already sick and disease ridden. We have the tools to see that certain diseases, certain cancers are avoided, so why would we put our nation in jeopardy by not giving people the preventative care that they not deserve but have a right to as citizens of the United States?

The United States is one of – if not – the richest nations on the earth. It does not matter that are health care system is embarrassing or an abomination in the eyes of other countries, what does matter is whether or not our health care system is embarrassing or an abomination in the eyes of ourselves and our own nation. If we cannot see that everyone in this nation, this rich nation, deserves health care, has a right to health care, then we are what the abomination is – not the “system” or the “industry.”

Many people consider healthcare to be a privilege while others consider it a right. Health care should be a right; everyone should be entitled to proper healthcare and not be subject to being medically treated or not, based on their financial status. This has been an argument for over 100 years. In a country like ours, it is a shame that we do not provide something that should be a basic human right to every citizen. The Preamble of the United States Constitution and in Article One, section 8 of the U.S. Constitution both describe the original purpose of our United States: to promote general welfare for every citizen. I believe that health care is a vital part of our general welfare and it is the government’s responsibility to provide this for us. It should be our right to health and health care.

Even in 1943 when President Franklin D. Roosevelt had proposed a Second Bill of Rights for Americans, for he suggested this was due to the political rights that are guaranteed by the Constitution and the Bill of Rights had proved to be inadequate to assure us the equal opportunity in the pursuit of happiness. Roosevelt’s remedy for this was to declare an economic bill of rights, which included “the right to adequate medical care and the opportunity to achieve and enjoy good health.” However, unfortunately the United States turned its back on Roosevelt’s vision for a more secure and happy America, and as a result our health care system is in a state of crisis.

Figure 1-Roosevelt, Franklin. The Economic Bill of Rights. Web. www.fdrheritage.org

The right to health however is guaranteed elsewhere through international human rights treaties and declarations such as, the Universal Declarations of Human Rights, the American Declaration on the

HEALTH CARE: A RIGHT OR COMMODITY 2.

Rights and Duties of Man, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. The right to health is also recognized by national constitutions around the world, and even some U.S. state constitutions include protection of the public health as a core government function.

“Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well being of himself and his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services, and the right to security in the event of unemployment, sickness, disability, widowhood, old age or lack of livelihood in circumstances beyond his control” ~Universal Declaration of Human Rights- Article, 25 ~

The country of France funds its health care system by using taxes from income, pharmaceutical companies, and products that are harming to one’s health such as tobacco. With their health care plan, they charge a co-payment for certain specific procedures that are performed, but every citizen still has health care. Denmark also has a universal health care system; it is different from France’s where it is free to everyone who is a citizen. Their government made the decision to fund its program through taxes. Germany has the world’s oldest universal health care system, which covers the majority of the German population. Not everyone is forced to participate in the standard program, people with higher incomes can choose to pay a tax and opt out of the universal plan and purchase private insurance. Those who have chosen to opt out to get private insurance then pay premiums that are linked to their health status. Many countries enjoy a universal health care system, where every citizen and even non-citizens can afford to get proper health care. How the system works basically, is everyone pays taxes towards medical care based on their income and allows everyone to use it without prejudices. This system is used successfully in many countries worldwide especially in Europe and Canada.

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When you hear someone from another country talk about the United States they are saying that

we have a great country to live in. With being in such a great country why is something as essential as health care considered as a luxury item. In addition, with our country being so rich and a country that actually helps to build other nations; it is sad that we as citizens are penalized on whom the better health care gets depending on money. The United States has one of the worst health care systems in the world and as far as industrialized countries we are the only country without a universal health care system and our citizenship does not include health care as a right. Either in the United States, we receive our health insurance through an employer-sponsored plan or we purchase our own insurance that often includes high premiums as well as high deductibles for a basic plan. I can definitely understand a person who cannot afford to pay the premiums that goes along with having private insurance; it can make you feel like you are stuck in a difficult situation. You know you need the insurance, but when something does happen that requires you to use it how will you pay for it all? The premiums are expensive enough as it is when you add the thousands of dollars for the co-payments and the deductibles; you can easily spend over $10,000.00 a year. Additionally, because of the economic downturn, many people do not have health care or cannot afford healthcare.

Figure 2-Nesri. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.nesri.org/programs/what-is-the-human-right-to-health-and-health-care

Health care is a luxury in our society, we have the people that can afford to pay for the medical services they receive, and we have the ones who cannot and they are left in the cold. Simply put, our HEALTH CARE: A RIGHT OR COMMODITY 4.

health care system serves too few, costs too much, harms too many, and is too inefficient. A decade ago, affordability was primarily a problem limited to low income families, but has become an issue with middle class families.

There have been many that have tried to pass a universal health system for the United States, but with no success. This goes way back to the 1912 Progressive Party Platform and Theodore Roosevelt’s Bull Moose Party when they both made passionate cases for a compulsory national health plan in their Declaration of Principles of the Progressive Party. Unfortunately, this did not go anywhere because of the opposition it received from the American citizens and the start of World War I.

“The protection of home life against the hazards of sickness, irregular employment and old age through the adaptation of a system of social insurance adapted to American use” ~1912 Declaration of Principles of the Progressive Party~””Roosevelt , T. (n.d.). Progressive party platform, 1912. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/primary-resources/tr-progressive/

The most recent attempt was in April 2006 when the state of Massachusetts became the first state in our nation to require all of its residents to purchase health insurance. This was to ensure that every uninsured citizen in Massachusetts will have affordable health insurance, this was particularly in part due to today’s health care costs which are rising twice as fast as inflation which makes insurance unaffordable for many of the employers and individuals. Currently, we have over 47 million Americans that have no health insurance. So in an effort to solve the problem in their state, Governor Romney and the Massachusetts state legislature enacted this plan with twin goals of reducing the cost of health care and guaranteeing coverage for all Massachusetts residents.

The Massachusetts plan consisted of the following elements: The state would establish a governmental authority known as the Commonwealth Health Insurance Connector(or Connector) to

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serve as a clearinghouse through which individuals would be able to purchase state approved insurance plans. Every resident would be required to purchase a health insurance plan, either from a private insurer or through the Connector, which there would be stiff penalties for those who failed to comply. For those who could not afford the insurance would have their expenses provided for by the state in part or in full, depending on their income. Employers with more than ten employees would also be required to provide health insurance for their employees or pay a special fee to provide coverage for low income individuals. The theory of this plan was to lower individual patient’s insurance costs by enlarging the pool of insured patients. Particularly, the younger and healthier patients (who often choose not to purchase insurance), would be required to do so, thus paying a portion of the health costs of the larger population.

So for these reasons, mandatory health insurance became popular with the politicians in both major political parties. This idea has also been endorsed by the National Small Business Association and the National Business Group on Health. This idea also made several states that includes New Jersey, Ohio, Rhode Island, Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Colorado to consider or are considering to incorporate some version of mandatory health insurance.

But after two years after it started, the Massachusetts plan failed to achieve either of its goals. The plan did not lower health care costs, nor did it achieve universal coverage. Instead, this plan has increased costs for individuals and the state, reduced revenues for doctors and hospitals. Costs have increased to the individual because Massachusetts requires insurance plans that includes 43 mandatory benefits, including in vitro fertilization, blood lead poisoning treatment, and chiropractor services-whether you want them or not. These mandated benefits have raised the costs of health insurance in Massachusetts by 23 to 56 percent. Costs to the state government have sky-rocketed and are projected

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to run hundreds of millions of dollars over budget. This is due to that mandated insurance is so expensive, the government has had to support the costs of the premiums not only for the lower income residents, but also for those with incomes as high as $60,000.00 for a family of four-which is 3 times the Federal Poverty Level. The state had anticipated a significant drop in spending for the uninsured instead, overall costs to the state has risen by more than $400 million, that is 85 percent more than originally projected. As a result of these rising costs and falling revenues, access to medical care has dwindled for many patients.

So what caused this innovative plan to fail in accomplishing its intended goals? The plan had failed for two reasons: First, it violates individual rights; second, health insurance is a commodity-a good or service created by businessmen for trade in the marketplace. As with any other commodity, health insurance cannot be created by a government mandate. The proper function of government is not to create or provide goods or services, but to protect individual rights. Selling health care to those who can afford it is a logical way to distribute it. That was certainly typical in the early days of this country when the doctors was paid in whatever manner the family could manage. Charity, for those who could not afford care, was the domain of the church and the community, not the government.

Our health care system is based on the premise that health care is a commodity like TVs and computers and that is should be distributed according to the ability to pay in the same way that consumer goods are. This is what health care is not about, health care is a need-not a commodity, and it should be distributed according to need. This is a fundamental mistake in the way this country and only this country, looks at health care. Let’s not forget about individual choice and personal liberty aspects of the American Way. We should be able to spend our own money in whatever way we see fit for we have earned it.

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Taking responsibility for our own health care means paying for it if I can, or doing without if I cannot. So those without financial resources receive inferior care, and those who can afford it receive quality care. I do not believe that unaffordable health care is anyone’s intent; however circumstances have made the cost of health care rise with the health care development and technology. It should be clear to everyone that United States health care system is failing and not serving its citizens.

In the most recent presidential election, the final two candidates provided positions on health care. John McCain’s idea focused on an open market contest rather than government spending. With his plan there were tax credits-$2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families who could not purchase or could not get health care through their employer. To help people who are denied coverage by insurance companies due to pre-existing conditions, McCain proposed working with states to create what he called a “Guaranteed Access Plan”. President Obama called for a universal health care system. His plan calls for the government to establish a National Health Insurance Exchange that would include private health insurance plans and a Medicare-like government run option. With the universal health plan everyone would have coverage regardless of health status like if they had a pre-existing condition, it would also put an end to charging premiums based on your health. It would have required all Americans to buy insurance through the government health care plan or a private insurance plan, but all Americans would be required to have insurance.

” I think health care should be a right for every American. In a country as wealthy as ours, for us to have people who are going bankrupt because they cannot pay their medical bills-for my mother to die of cancer at the age of 53 and have to spend the last months of her life in the hospital room arguing with insurance companies because they are saying that this may be a pre-existing condition and they don’t have to pay her

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treatment, there’s something fundamentally wrong about that” ~Barack Obama Oct. 7,2008 ~

President Obama is right about the unsustainable course of our health care spending. We spend $2.5 trillion per year for our health care, 17.5 percent of the gross domestic product. Under these current trends, this will increase to 48 percent of GDP by 2050. By that point, government health care programs like Medicare and Medicaid alone will consume 20 percent of our GDP. Simply put, we cannot provide all the health care that everyone might want. Any health care reform will have to confront the biggest single reason costs keep rising: The American people keep buying more and more health care. If a treatment can save our lives or increase quality of life, we want it. Therefore, in the long run, the only way to spend less on health care is to consume less health care. Someone, sometime, has to say no. The real debate here is about if we should ration care but who should ration it. Right now, that decision is often made by the insurance companies or other third party payers.

So if health care is considered as a commodity and not a right, it makes a fairly strong case that is should be bought and sold like any other commodity, for a profit, and at the highest price the market will tolerate. It seems that our current system of private- for sale- at a profit, health insurance makes the most sense when health care is considered as a commodity. Then our private health insurance corporations as they exist now will not need to change very much if at all. In regards to our private health care insurance system, we overpay for our health care due to buying more and more health care. Besides paying for our actual health care services themselves, we are also paying the operating costs of the insurance company, plus whatever profit’s the insurance company builds into our premiums. And although they are regulated to a certain extent, private health care insurers are not directly accountable to the public as government institutions are.

Health care is just not another commodity. It is not a gift to be rationed on the ability to pay. It is

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time to make universal health care a national priority, so that the basic right to health care can become a reality for all Americans. There should be a clearly defined basic health care plan that is available to all Americans. I am not talking about a health care plan that will cover at no cost, elective medical care. I would advocate for financing a health plan that be based on a concept of public good rather than a commodity. If all citizens can receive benefits, then they all can contribute based on their own ability to pay through income taxes. These funds then would pay for all medically acceptable inpatient and outpatient services, both mental and physical. A properly financed, universal health insurance program will provide the best opportunity to provide what we Americans want most, high quality, affordable health care for all. I also believe this would be something that most physicians also want and would benefit from. Our current system of health insurance tends to put the cart before the horse, the role of financing is first then the delivery of health care. If we can define the delivery of health care, we would have a better opportunity to create a more user friendly system. It would also support an extensive range of services made available to all Americans which reflects extensive community based, primary and secondary levels of care. We might finally recognize and fund what we have ignored for too long: long term, respite and nursing home care.

Health is the general condition of a person in all aspects of life. It can be seen as the level of functional and or metabolic efficiency of an organism, often implicitly human. According to World Health Organization (WHO), health is ‘a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity’- (WHO 1986). It can be defined as the absence of disease, a state of health unless symptoms emerge that demonstrates a deviance from normality.

Mechanic and Volkhart (1961) define illness behaviour as ‘ the way in which symptoms are perceived, evaluated and acted upon by a person who recognizes some pain, discomfort or other signs of malfunction’. Coe, (1979) asserts that illness is a subjective phenomenon. Individuals perceive themselves as not feeling well and hence may deviate from usual normal behaviour. According to him, “the individual may feel sick without a disease being present, (or he/she may not experience illness even though a disease is present). Two persons with the same clinical symptoms may act altogether differently in degree and kind of concern expressed, and whether and how they search for treatment”

Foster and Anderson (1979) posit that the state of illness comes with a time sequence. “There is the beginning, an awareness of the first faint symptoms, there is a progression, the social and psychological progresses that occur, and there is a termination, through recovery or death. At many points during the course of illness, medical and social decisions must be made, roles adjusted and attitudes changed to confirm to the reality of the situations”. Medical sociologist believes that illness behavior is to a large extent influenced by the individual’s social class, ethnic background and culture of orientation.

The definition of health and illness polarizes between those that rely upon objectives, scientific criteria at one extreme, and awareness, at the other. It has generated divergent views and understanding which is reflected in the academic debates about the nature of health and illness.

Traditional Medical View

The traditional medical view is that there is such a thing as a normal functioning of the body, which has a limited degree of variation. When operating within the normal boundaries of these variations, a person can be defined as healthy, and when they are outside these normal boundaries, they are ill or there organs are diseased. Health can be defined within this framework as the absence of disease. It assumes a state of health unless symptoms emerge that demonstrate a deviance from normality.

The Positivist Approach

The positivist approach accepts the concept of disease, but, brings out a much broader social element into the definition, suggesting that health is not just a physical state, but also a wider sense of well-being, closely linked to our social surroundings.

While the Lay Models of Health perspective emerged to use the functional definition by arguing that health can be defined as the ability to perform normal daily activities (Haralambos and Holborn 2008:280-1). The functionalist approach to the sociology of health and illness derives from the work of Talcott Parsons. He explored the relationship between illness and social control. Parson (1951) put forward one of the most famous concept in the sociology of health and illness: the sick role. This is the role assumed by an individual who excuses him or her from the normal behaviour because he is sick due to injury or incapacitation. He/she then seeks compassion from colleges, friend and family members and is no longer able to carry out normal activities. The sick person has the right to be exempted from normal social obligations, such as attending employment, or fully engaging in family activities. More so, sickness is something that no person can do anything about and for which the sick should not be blamed -they therefore have the right to be looked after by others.

However the obligation of the sick role entails that the sick person must accept that he/she is in a situation that is undesirable and should seek to get well a soon as possible. The sick person must seek professional help and cooperate with the medical profession to get better.

To the functionalist, illness has positive adaptive function which only a critical analysis can bring out. Dysfunctionally, disease and illness are destructive of human organism attacking cells and tissues thus reducing organism’s adjustment. It brings loss resources for the individual and his/her group and can engender role problems as one individual or some people are put off temporally or permanently. On manifest, illness serves to forewarn the individual about the possible collapse of his/her physical structure and to effect repair. It makes the individual, his/her group or society to mobilize for such and similar occurrence, and for the group or society to train members for multiple roles incase of incapacitation of some people.

On the latent functions, illness relieves the victim of unbearable pressure, mainly from relatives and dependants. It is used to gain attention and also maybe a device to expiate sinful feelings.

The Work of Foucault

A Foucaultian perspective drives social constructionalism much further on, right to the heart of the natural or biological, arguing that what we know as disease are themselves fabrications of powerful discourses, rather than discoveries of ‘truths’ about the body and its interaction with the social world (Bury 1986)

The corpus of his major work from the 1960s to the 1980s is an attempt to write a new history of the subject as constituted through historically located disciplinary powers. Foucault’s starting position is the configuration of knowledge or episteme which constitutes particular subjects during specific historical periods. For Foucault (1973) sociology was deeply implicated in the very episteme which had given rise to medicine. The discipline of medicine provided the tool whereby subjectivity could be experienced and enforced.

Contemporary sociology is not against medicine or professional practice, but rather seeks to problematize the taken- for- granted categories or reality within which they operate and deploy power/knowledge. The relationship between sociology and medicine and practices has always had a major impact on the field of the sociology of health and illness. His work went further to review the changing relationship before moving on to discuss some key characteristic of a sociological account for modern medicine and the social functions of medical knowledge. Although it is inappropriate to label Foucaults work postmodern it has been an important influences upon postmodernists.

Post Modernism

This approach allows the analysis of the fabrication of ‘health’, illness and “patient” subjectivity and the effect of the inscription on the body. It is suggested that health care professionals need to be more reflexive about their own knowledge claims and to resist the discursive practices which disempower and reduce choice.

There is sustained application of post-modernist ideas to the sociology of health and medicine, although there is certainly an interest among many to explore their relevance for the field. The objective of sociologists of postmodernity is to understand the nature of contemporary postmodern society. As a result of developments in medicine, the overall increase in levels of health, have created the belief that most people will live long healthy lives. “There is an increasing emphasis on ‘life planning’ and ‘self-identity’aˆ¦.as the constraints of life-threatening diseases early death and insecurity have given way to a more predictable life course” – Bury (1997). The experience of chronic illness therefore threatens much of what has come to be accepted as normal in contemporary society. Bury(1982) argued that chronic illness constitutes a major disruptive force in people lives undermining the taken-for-granted assumptions they had about the world and their place in it and forcing them to review their lives their own bodies and their own identities. He called this process biographical disruption. Narrative reconstruction is used by people to create a sense of coherence and order-why they got the disease.

Interactionist Perspective

Symbolic interactionism has probably been the most influential theoretical approach in the sociology of health and illness with studies focusing on the processes involved in people arriving at the decision to seek professional help, the interaction between the ill person and the medical professional in arriving at a definition of the illness and the impact on the person of being labeled as ill. This perspective rejects the notion that illness is a direct result of some form of disease instead they perceive it as a form of social deviance. What constitutes illness is a result of social definitions.

Mechanic (1968) defines illness behaviour as the way in which symptoms are perceived evaluated and acted upon by a person who recognizes some pain discomfort and other signs of organic malfunction.

Feminist Approach to Health

These can include liberal feminism, socialist feminism and radical feminism. Divisions are apparent in the theoretical debates on feminism within the sociology of health and illness.

All of them focuses in particular on inequalities of health between male and female and has sought explanations for these differences within the different role and economic positions of men and women. It tends to sought equality of numbers of men and women in the higher status medical professions and research has been undertaken to demonstrate the smaller number of women who occupy senior medical position and also the way in which nursing is regarded as lower-status, female profession. It also points to the lack of power that women have in their relations with the medical profession and demands a greater say in women’s health particularly in childbirth and conception.

Soialist feminist emphasizes that it is not possible to change the role of males and females within a capitalist patriarchal society as liberal feminist seek to do.

Conclusion

Health and illness in contemporary societies has been subjected of discuss from centuries back. Contemporary medicine includes unofficial, unorthodox, holistic and non conventional – reflects both the range of models of health which underlie these differing medicines and the ability of the more powerful biomedical profession to have them defined as somehow subservient to (complementary) or less proven (alternative than biomedicine.

Although there is general acceptance of the importance of social explanation in helping to understand health and illness within sociology, there is little consensus as to the exact mechanism which links social class, gender, ethnicity, and geography to different level of health – with the explanations ranging from those which stresses the wider economic structure of society, to those which stress the individual life style choice.

Finally the conceptualization of health and illness in contemporary society has brought out the idea that there are areas of knowledge which are natural and can only be understood through a sociological and physiological framework.

This essay will assess the question: has feminism achieved its goals? The essay will outline the three strands of feminism. The first section focuses on Liberal feminism which asserts the idea that in order for feminism to achieve its goals it must create equality among men and women. The second section turns to socialist feminism that believes that the only way feminist goals can be achieved is with the overthrow of the capitalist system and that of patriarchy. The Third and final section analyses radical feminism that advocates the goal of political lesbianism. This essay will conclude that feminism has not achieved its goals, however Liberal feminists believe their aim for equality is achievable in the near future.

Has Feminism achieved its goals?

Feminism as an issue first became prominent in the 17th and 18th century in France and America. It was not until the suffragette movement of the 19th century that feminism was seen as important in Britain. The scholar Estelle Freedman compares first and second-wave feminism saying that the first wave focused on rights such as suffrage, whereas the second wave was largely concerned with other issues of equality, such as ending discrimination. [1] Feminism is a contested issue, therefore difficult to define, due to the fact that feminism has a directory of meanings, however the term feminism can be used to describe a political, cultural or economic movement aimed at establishing equal rights and legal protection for women. Within feminism there are many strands, the most important and commonly known strands are Liberal, Socialist, Radical and more recently Post-modernist. Within these strands there is an on-going argument of whether or not feminism has achieved its goals.

Early feminism was heavily influenced by liberalism. Liberal Feminists main goal comes from the liberal idea of equality of opportunity, freedom for the individual. The idea that everyone, both men and woman deserve to be considered to be of equal worth. However these liberal feminists take into consideration that this is not the case in society. Their goal thus being to create a society consisting of a culture of equal rights. They believe that woman’s subordination is a product of stereotyping, for instance seeing a woman as a mother only. It is often implied that feminine behaviour is a weakness meaning that men are seen as the stronger part of society, creating this inequality. Friedan sees this as the ‘feminine mystique’ which she refers to as a cultural myth. [2] This is the idea that woman see certain things as more important; for instance the need for security and love is typically seen as feminine, whereas success and superiority is typically seen as masculine. This assumption thus disadvantages women and separates them from entering employment.

Liberal feminists therefore dismiss the notion that biological differences make women less competent than men, and believe that societies socialisation patterns need to change, so that gender socialisation does not occur, in other words males and females need to distance themselves from stereotypical roles. As both men and women our humans, they should have the same type of freedom and rights. Wollstonecraft asserts this view claiming that ‘the distinction of sex would become unimportant in political and social life’ [3]

Liberal Feminists believe that they can achieve this goal of equality through reform, for instance laws against sex discrimination in employment secures equal opportunities for woman. Added to this, they have the belief that society should not be organised by gender, but as Mill puts it: according to the ‘principle of equality’ [4] and that accidents of birth like the sex of the child should be irrelevant, thus suggesting that women should be open to all the aspects of society, just like men, having all the rights and liberties that men enjoy such as the right to vote.

Liberal Feminism is an optimistic theory, and overall believes that the goals of feminism are progressing and that over time gender equality will become the norm. This progression can be seen through different rights such as the right to initiate divorce proceedings and the reproductive rights of women to make individual decisions on pregnancy. Thus they believe that the goals of feminism may not be achieved at this moment in time, but the changes in society mean that soon they will be.

Liberal feminists have been criticised for this over optimism, they see the obstacles to equality as simply the prejudices of individuals or irrational laws, ignoring the possibility that there are deep seeded structures causing women’s oppression, such as patriarchy. Socialist and radical feminists criticise liberal feminists stating that one needs to recognise the underlying causes of female subordination, and that it is naive to believe that changes in the law will be enough to bring equality. Instead, they believe that revolutionary changes are needed.

Socialist feminists connect the oppression of women to Marxist ideas about exploitation, oppression and labour. They think unequal standing in both the workplace and the domestic sphere holds women down. Socialist feminists see prostitution, domestic work, childcare and marriage as ways in which women are exploited by a patriarchal system that devalues women and the substantial work they do. They focus their energies on broad change that affects society as a whole, rather than on an individual basis. They see the need to work alongside not just men, but all other groups, as they see the oppression of women as a part of a larger pattern that affects everyone involved in the capitalist system.

Socialist feminists dismiss the liberal feminist view that women’s subordination is due to stereotypes. They see women’s subordination as rooted in capitalism; although men may benefit from women, the main beneficiary is capitalism. For them the tension between men and women is due to the economic structure of society and only by overthrowing capitalism will women be equal to men. Thus their goal is: a revolution- that is they believe that the subordination of women can only be understood in terms of economic factors, for instance the idea that women are unpaid workers in the home. This subordination performs a number of functions for capitalism: women reproduce the labour force; women absorb the anger of men. Ansley for example describes wives as ‘takers of shit’ [5] . It is for these reasons that woman’s interests and thus their goal should be the overthrow of capitalism. If this is their goal, then it is quite clear that feminism, according to the socialist feminist side has not achieved its goals.

However modern socialist feminists refuse to look at the status of women in terms of economic factors and instead focus on the cultural roots. Mitchell suggests women perform four functions in society: ‘1) members of the workforce, 2) reproduce the human species 3) responsible for socialising children 4) sex objects.’ [6] Looking at this, the only way according to modern socialist feminists to achieve their goal is if they separate themselves from each of these areas, not just the idea of capitalism being replaced by socialism. This has yet to be achieved.

Many criticisms have been made of socialist feminists. For some, they fail to explain women’s subordination in non-capitalist societies. As women’s subordination is also found there. Unpaid domestic labour may benefit capitalism, but it does not explain why it is women and not men who perform it. They place insufficient emphasis on the ways in which men and not just capitalism oppress women and benefit from their unpaid labour.

Radical Feminism dismisses both liberal and socialist feminism, focusing on gender as the reason for all social divisions. They consider the male controlled capitalist hierarchy, which it describes as sexist, as the defining feature of women’s oppression. Radical feminists believe that women can free themselves only when they have done away with what they consider an inherently oppressive and dominating patriarchal system. For them the key concept is Patriarchy: which literally means rule by fathers and is seen process of gender oppression.

Patriarchy has come to mean a society where men dominate women, that there is a male-based authority and power structure and that it is responsible for oppression and inequality. As long as the system and its values are in place, society will not be able to be reformed in any significant way. Patriarchy is universal, existing in all societies. According to Firestone the origins of patriarchy are in biology; women bearing children makes them more dependent on men. However this is criticised by De Beauvoir who believes that the position of women is based not on natural factors but social factors, showing a critique of patriarchal culture.

The basis of radical feminism is the idea that sexual oppression is the biggest feature of society and that other forms of inequality for instance class exploitation take a back seat. For radical feminists patriarchy is the biggest form of inequality, men are women’s main enemy. Most radical feminists advocate the idea of separatism and Political lesbianism. Separatism refers to the idea of living apart from men creating a culture of female independence. Political Lesbianism is the idea that women become involved in lesbian relationships for political reasons. Many radical feminists argue that lesbianism is the only non-oppressive form of sexuality; ‘feminism is the theory; lesbianism is the practice’ [7]

The relationship between men and women must be transformed if women are to be free. Radical feminists argue that women and men should be separate, women should raise their consciousness about women’s oppression in women only groups and they stress that political lesbianism is the only non-oppressive form of sexuality.

Thus, this means that the goal of radical feminists is to live separate lives from men. However they recognise that this will not solve all the problems of the patriarchal society. Some radical feminists see no alternatives other than the total uprooting and reconstruction of society in order to achieve these goals. These goals have clearly not been achieved as heterosexual relationships are still the norm, although having said this there has been a rise of homosexual relationships in the last thirty years.

Socialist feminists argue that class, not patriarchy, is the primary form of inequality. They also argue that capitalism is the main cause and beneficiary of women’s oppression, and not men. Radical feminism offers no explanation of why female subordination takes different forms in different societies. It assumes that all women are in the same position and ignores class, ethnic differences. Liberal feminists argue that women’s position has improved greatly and that women are now more equal to men.

These three strands represent the different views and ideas of different feminist theorists. Although they all have different opinions, having considered all the arguments it is clear that they all believe that feminist goals have not been achieved. Liberal feminists believe that they are well on their way to achieving equality, whereas both socialist and radical feminists disagree. Socialist feminists asserting the view that an overthrow of capitalism is needed, whereas radical feminists assert the view that in order to be free they need to live separate lives from men.

Evaluate the contribution of grounded theory, as an approach to data analysisIntroduction

The concept of grounded theory is from the Glaser and Strauss’ research in 1967. In 1960s, they made a research for medical personnel to deal with an imminent death of the patient’s field observation in a hospital, and then discovered and developed the grounded theory. In this essay, I will evaluate the grounded theory in 5 parts. The first part is the characteristics of grounded theory; the second part is the procedure of grounded theory; the third part is comparison with other types of research methods and the forth part is the contribution of grounded theory research in management field, and the last part is the future of grounded theory.

1. The characteristics of grounded theory

Some perspectives of grounded theory

In Suddaby’s (2006) view, the grounded theory can be described as:

“Grounded the­ory is best understood historically. The methodology was developed by Glaser and Strauss (1967) as a reaction against the extreme positivism that had per­meated most social research.” (Suddaby 2006, p.633)

And Gephart (2004) points out:

“Glaser and Strauss (1967) proposed grounded theory as a practical method for conducting re­search that focuses on the interpretive process by analysing the “the actual production of meanings and concepts used by social actors in real settings” (Gephart, 2004, p.457).

And another view is Glaser’s perspective (1992, p16), he argues that:

“The grounded theory is a general methodology of analysis linked with data collection that uses a systematically applied set of methods to generate an inductive theory about a substantive area.”

Grounded theory research method is a type of qualitative research which is based on induction. It used in many sociological research areas such as education, religion, and many others. Zhigang (2007) argued that the method is characterized by extracting the theory from the phenomenon to create or enrich existing theoretical system.

In the view of Layder (1993), Grounded theory method is a process of generating a theory, which including constant comparison, thinking, analysis and transformation of information. The characteristics of emphasis on information and more interactive approach, which makes the researchers collect data by making use of a continuous and intimate interactions of the parties and events.

In summary, in the first place, according to Zhigang’s perspective,(2007) the grounded theory is a bottom-up approach to establish substantive theory, which is finding the core concepts reflects the social phenomenon based on systematical data collection, and then generate the relative theory through the links between these concepts. Secondly, grounded theory must be supported by empirical evidence, but it is not the main feature of grounded theory, the main feature is that it generates new theory or idea abstracted form the experience and data analysis. Lastly, in philosophical ideology, grounded theory approach is a paradigm based on the post-positivist, which emphasize on falsifying current theory which has been constructed.

The comparative analysis – the core of data analysis of grounded theory

Strauss & Corbin (1998) pointed out that the grounded theory emphasizes on development of the theory, but also the theory is based on the data collection of realities, and continuing data analysis through the comparison.

The strategy of comparative analysis usually used in sociology research. In grounded theory, it is a very important process. Glaser and Strauss (1967) argued that it should be first contrasted the use of the method with certain other users in the research process, and then define and describe what type of theory be created through comparative analysis. The purpose of comparative analysis, as a strategic method for generating theory, is to obtain the accurate evidence, which is the difference between establishing theory and verifying theory. The evidence collected from some comparative groups, which is used to examine whether the original evidence was correct.

The characteristic of comparative analysis for establishing theory or concept puts a high emphasis on theory as process. In other words, theory is not perfected; it needs develop continuously through comparative analysis. Glaser and Strauss (1967) believed that theory renders the reality of social interaction and its structural context as a process.

The coding

Coding is a key element of the data analysis in grounded theory. BaiKai and YuanBo (2009) argued that the encoding is the usually used technology in the qualitative research which is entirely different from quantitative research. In qualitative research, the purpose of coding is not counted, but rather “deconstruction” of information to form the concept. They would be re-arranged in different categories, in order to promote the comparison of information and proposition of theoretical concepts in one category.

Zhigang (2007) points out that the effective use of the grounded theory primarily depends on the following two aspects: on the one hand, the researchers should make an effort to choose a meaningful direction or area of research. It is difficult to identify the gaps that may exist in the theoretical proposition; On the one hand, the researchers should pay attention to data collection and collation, and propose some theoretical assumptions and refining the new conclusions in accordance with the principles, steps and techniques of the grounded theory.

2. The procedure of the grounded theory

In Strauss and Corbin’s view (1998), it is important that focus mainly on the process. They believe that the process is more important as describing and coding everything which is continuously changing.

The process of grounded theory research made based on the view of Pandit. N (1996)

Source: Pandit. N (1996) The Creation of Theory: A Recent Application of the Grounded Theory Method

As can be seen clearly, there are mainly 3 phases in the process of grounded theory – research design phase, data collection phase and data analysis. The whole process is started at review of technical literature and finished at reaching closure, but it is need to note here is that if the result is theoretical saturation after the theoretical sampling step, it should be restarted the second step – selecting cases.

According to the Suddaby’s view (2006), There are 2 key points in the method which described by Glaser and Strauss (1967) – “constant comparison,” and “theoretical sampling,” in which data are collected and ana­lysed simultaneously, and “theoretical sampling,” in which decisions about which data should be collected next are determined by the theory that is being constructed. Therefore, the most important steps in the process are data analysis and theoretical sampling, which are the key difference in contrast with other research methods.

3. Comparison with other methods of qualitative research

Grounded theory and other various ways in social research have different advantages and disadvantages. Possibly different types of methods can be used in different areas. Researchers select different research methods, could means that they have different research ideas and objectives. At the same time, selection and use of methods could more depend on the topic or the attribute of research. The necessary requirement of obtaining the valuable research findings is the appropriate combination between objectives and methods of the research.

Comparison with Hypothesis Testing

The Hypothesis testing method is different from the Grounded theory method. The definition of Hypothesis testing can be described as: “Hypothesis testing research investigates a phenomenon in terms of a relationship between an independent and dependent variable, both of which are measurable numerically. This relationship is called a hypothesis. The aim of the research is to test whether the hypothesized relationship is actually true, using statistical methods.” (Auerbach and Silverstein, 2003, p.3)

Although hypothesis testing and grounded theory are good research methods to do the research in some areas, there are some differences between them. The hypothesis testing method is mainly different from the grounded theory in the process of building theory. In hypothesis testing method, the hypothesis or idea has been generated first. Researchers can make hypothesis without any evidence, then they will look for the evidences or collect data and information to support their hypothesis or idea. In contrast, grounded theory is an inductive method which focuses on the discovery and does not rest on hypothesis testing but on building hypotheses according to the data and relative information. Suddaby (2006) point out: “Glaser and Strauss rejected positivist notions of falsification and hypothesis testing and, instead, described an organic process of theory emergence based on how well data fit conceptual categories identified by an observer, by how well the categories explain or predict ongoing interpre­tations, and by how relevant the categories are to the core issues being observed.” (Suddaby, 2006, p.634) It is clear that the hypothesis testing a grounded theory would be used in different fields, such as the hypothesis could be used for working out the mathematics problem and grounded theory could be used in the research in the social areas. Which method can be chosen for research depends on the objectives of the research.

Comparison with Ethnography

Creswell (1998) argued that ethnography involves prolonged observation of the group, typically through participant observation in which the research is immersed in the day to day lives of thepeople or through one on one interviews with members of the group. Clearly, the ethnography method could be more used in the research of human, culture and language etc.

From the view of Creswell (1998, p148), the following table can describe the differences between grounded theory and ethnography in data analysis process.

Data analysis and representation

Grounded theory

Ethnography

Data managing

Create and organize files for data

Create and organize files for data

Reading, Memoing

Read through text, make margin notes, form initial codes

Read through text, make margin notes, form initial codes

Classifying

Engage in axial coding

Engage in open coding

Analyse data for themes and patterned regularities

Interpreting

Engage in selective coding

Develop a conditional matrix

Interpret and make sense of findings

Representing, Visualizing

Present a visual theory

Present propositions

Present narrative presentation augmented by tables, figures and sketches

Source:

Creswell, J. (1998) Qualitative inquiry and research design: choosing among five traditions

As can be seen clearly, the most difference between grounded and ethnography is from classifying step to visualizing step. The 3 core coding steps play an important role in the data analysis of grounded theory, which make the grounded theory can be developed through the constant comparison. And also it is one of the advantages of grounded theory in contrast with other qualitative methods as an approach to data analysis.

Mello and Flint (2009) believe that the grounded theory primarily uses interviews, but also uses observation and documents analysis like an ethnography method. It differs from an ethnography method because of its purpose, which is to build theory. Like many other interpretive qualitative approaches, grounded theory has helped other disciplines open up fruitful new avenues of research.

Hammersley (1990) argues that much ethnography places emphasis on the ‘description’ as an important purpose of research, there are other strands that focus on a form of ‘theoretical description’. However, while Glaser and Strauss think that grounded theory is related to the wider context of qualitative analysis and method. The grounded theory approach is highly distinctive and unlike other types of qualitative methods.

4. Grounded Theory in management research

It is no doubt that the grounded theory can be used in a wide range of research such like nursing, business and management, mathematics and many types of sociology. Then, I will talk about the contribution of grounded theory focus on the business and management area. Firstly, the following table gives some examples of the grounded theory used in management research.

Examples of grounded theory in management research
Example
references

Senior executives and IT

Systems development

Managing understanding in orgnisations

Organisational culture

Staff perspectives on work

Retailer response to manufactures’

low-cost programmes

Rural women entrepreneurs

Competitive strategy and manufacturing

Process technology

Building co-operation in competitive industries

Consumer behaviour

Advertising and mass media

Marketing

Career development

Electronic data interchange

Leadership in organisations

Strategic alliances

Ideal business images for women

Tourist behaviour

Employment outcomes

Seeley and Targett (1997)

King (1996), Calloway and Ariav (1995)

Brown (1994, 1995)

Turner (1981, 1988)

Clegg et al. (1996)

Nuefeldt et al. (1996)

Manning et al. (1998)

Egan (1997)

McKinley-Wright (1995)

Schroeder and Congden (1995)

Congden (1995)

Browning et al. (1995)

Houston and Venkatesh (1996)

Goulding (1999b,1999c,2000b,2000c)

Hirschman and Thompson (1997)

Burchill and Fine (1997)

De la Cuesta (1994)

Beard (1989)

Sperber-Richie et al. (1997)

Crook and Kumar (1998)

Parry (1998)

Hunt and Ropo (1995)

Lang (1996)

Kimle and Damhost (1997)

Riley (1995, 1996)

Mullins and Roessier (1998)

Source: Goulding, C. (2002) Grounded Theory: A Practical Guide for Management, Business and Market Researchers

From the table above, it is obvious that the grounded theory can be used in many researches about business and explores a wide range of management problems. “These situations merely serve to demonstrate the transcending nature of grounded theory and its potential for application in the field of management research.” (Goulding, 2002, p.51) Taking the marketing field as an example, “grounded theory has begun theoretical development in the areas of the creation of a market oriented firm, moving away from previous research that merely described what a market oriented firm looks like.” (Gebhardt, Carpenter, and Sherry, 2006, citied in Mello, and Flint (2009) A Refined View of Grounded Theory and Its Application to Logistics Research p.109)

5. Grounded theory in the future

What grounded theory will happen in the future? It is no doubt that the grounded theory will be used for doing research in the wider range of fields. Increasing researchers will choose the grounded theory as the first choice.

Youhui (1996) think that one of the characteristics of grounded theory method is that the discover believe that it is necessary to generate theory in the research of sociology and both data analysis and theory building should be focused in qualitative research and any other research methods. Therefore, the grounded theory method is ideally suited to the areas such as: the existing theoretical system which is not perfected, the phenomenon which is very difficult to effectively explain, or the new areas and phenomenon which has no systematical theory currently.

About the Justifying Grounded Theory in the future, Glaser described it as:

“The future will bring less need to legitimize grounded theory; hence, there will be less need to justify using it. Now, many researchers have to explain it and argue for its use. Its future portends that grounded theory will be as accepted as are other methods (e.g., surveys) and will require little or no explanation to justify its use in a research project.” (Glaser, B.G. 1999, pp.845)

Charmaz (2005 citied in Denzin, N.K. and Lincoln, Y.S. (2005) Handbook of Qualitative Research) believe that a major strength of the grounded theory is that they provide tools for analysing process, and these tools hold much potential for studying social justice issues. She also believed that coding practices can help us to see our assumptions, as well as those of our research participants. Rather than raising our code to a level of objectively, we can raise questions about how and why we developed certain codes.

Grounded theory has its own advantages, it is to believe that grounded theory will be developed deeper and suitable for the research, Charmaz (2005 citied in Denzin, N.K. and Lincoln, Y.S. (2005) The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research 3rd ed.) write that:

“As its best, grounded theory provides methods to explicate an empirical process in ways that prompt seeing beyond it. By sticking closely to the leads and explicating the relevant process, the researcher can go deeper into meaning and action than given in words. Thus, the focused inquiry of grounded theory, with its progressive inductive analysis, moves the work theoretically and covers more empirical observations than other approaches. In this way, a focused grounded theory portrays a picture of the whole.” (Charmaz, 2005, pp.529)

Conclusion

To sum up, the grounded theory has a wider use range than other methods. For those social areas which lack current theory and some phenomenon which lack enough evidence and explanation, the grounded theory method is an effective analytical technique as an approach of data analysis. This method not only can help researchers to use inductive methods to abstract the basic theory from the phenomenon in the research, but also it is a good way to build and develop the theoretical system gradually to achieve the combination with the current theory effectively. There are many contributions of grounded theory in many different areas such as business, education, medicine and other many others. In terms of many advantages and characteristics of grounded theory, we believe that it will be use in more range of social research as an approach to data analysis and developed more to be accepted by more researchers.

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Different people of different religions, race, age and culture have different perceptions of death and the way to go about the loss. The following research tries to explain why people behave the way they do in their different manner. It defines death and grief, why, when and how they occur.

It also explains about the misconceptions that people have about death and grief. It gives a more understanding of these phenomena and explores what people go through when they experience them. The paper also gives solutions on how a person should handle the situation once it has happened to him.

Grief is the reaction to loss; it is mainly associated with a loss of something or someone to whom a person had formed a bond with. A person can respond to grief emotionally, socially, physically or even through the way they behave. Grief is caused by loss of a variety of things. It can be as a result of a divorce, an illness, loss of someone’s possessions, status, employment, pets and loved ones (O’Connor, Irwin, & Wellisch, 2009).

Different people react differently when they go through a loss. The different reactions may be as a result of what one has lost. These reactions may be manifested from one person to another or within the same person. The different reactions emanate from peoples diversity cultures, personalities, age, religious and spiritual practices and beliefs (Kubler, 1991)

Grief exacerbates both and physical and psychiatric morbidity. This is common especially after a loss of a spouse. During this period, the bereaved usually exhibits symptoms such as headaches, heart palpitations, dizziness and trembling. The bereaved also tends to suffer from depressive symptoms during the first year after the loss. Those who are bereaved young tend to take more symptom relief drugs as well as showing more physical distress than older people. For the older people, the number of visits to the physician as well as hospitalization increases during the time of physical distress.

Grieving is an early and old phenomenon. During the olden days, people used to seek help with their grief from religious leaders, extended families, and close neighborhoods as well religious institutions. Today, because of secularization, lack of a sense of community and lack of belief in formal religion, has led to the bereaved seeking help from health workers (Worden, 2002).

Children differ in mourning with adults. They tend to return to an earlier behavior like clinging to a toy, thumb sucking or even depicting an angry behavior. They are not mature to mourn like adults but they mourn intensely. A loss in childhood can result to emotional problems as well as physical illness. This poses a great risk as the child can contemplate suicide or become a delinquent. This is mostly common in adolescents (Kubler, 1991)

Dr. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross believed that grief has its own stages. These stages include emotional reactions like denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. She advises that understanding grief is an important part of the human experience as it is a necessary response that helps to heal from the overwhelming experience of loss (Kubler, 1991)

Dr. Kubler suggests some of the things that a griever can engage in order to overcome grief. Some of these things may include participating in support groups which may either be faith based or secular. Those people going through a complicated grieving process are advised to attend a therapy session with a psychologist or any other qualified professional dealing with mental health. She also advises grievers to take food supplements as well as eating healthy foods (Kubler, 1991)

Exercise and work outs like jogging and aerobics are also recommended during this period of grieving. Grieving is also an emotional drainer process thus she recommends enough rest for the person grieving. Places of worship are also known to be very helpful in providing solace and comfort to those grieving. Dr. Kubler recommends that grievers show emotions whenever possible like letting the tears to flow as this facilitates the healing process (Kubler, 1991)

At this point of grieving, the griever requires a lot of acceptance and support from friends, family or the people around. The griever may depict a wide range of emotions that may require a lot of understanding from people around (O’Connor, Irwin, & Wellisch, 2009).

To grieve is more than just to show sadness. It involves positive experiences when it deepens interpersonal connections.

Grief can cause great wear and tear to both the psyche and the physical body. It is experienced in a very personal way although there are some commonalities to grief. Different people may go through similar reactions to grief such as nightmares, hallucinations and problems with appetite. Other people may experience sleeping disorders while others may go short of breath.

Intense or complicated grief can result to complicated responses. These responses may include suicide attempts, murders, shock and even mental disorders. Grief which is complicated can be debilitating, it involves pangs of painful emotions which are recurrent. It may also involve intense longing and yearning for the lost person or thing and also thoughts which are preoccupied with the lost person or thing.

Death

It is the cessation or termination of biological functions that make up a living organism. Death refers to both a particular event and the condition that result thereby. Many religious beliefs tend to be concerned more with the condition than a particular event.

People have different perceptions of dying and death. Many wonder how it occurs or whether the dying just accepts death quietly. Many questions also linger in our minds whether the dying think of their possible decomposition, being consumed by maggots or rotting in hell (Piven, 2004).

The process of dying is a process that is known because it is witnessed and described by those involved in it. Certain factors influence the dying experience. These are interpersonal relationships, gender, nature of a disease and the treatment environment, and age. A young child may not understand the nature of death as a mature adult with diverse life experiences would. The dying process is also influenced by gender as a result of different roles played by women and men. A dying man is more likely to think of financial provisions for his family while a dying woman is more concerned with family integrity. Individuals who have experienced a poor interpersonal relationship experience a greater distress while dying than one who had a good relationship (Wass & Neimeyer, 1995).

Death is seen to be an event as it occurs in a particular time, at a particular place and in a particular way. Death is also seen to be a condition as one is seen to be incapable of carrying the important functions of life. It is a condition that is not reversible. It is also a universal certainty. It forms the centre of many organizations and traditions.

Death can be accidental, intentional or natural. Many species die from predation. Intentional activities causing death may involve death by one’s self i.e. suicide, death by others i.e. homicide and calamities like war. Death by natural causes is mostly caused indirectly by human activities (Appel, 2005).

To determine whether a person is dead or not, there are signs that one can look for. Some of these signs may include; respiration cessation. Breathing stoppage is a good sign that a person is dead. Lack of body metabolism can also suggest that a person is no longer alive. Other signs are a lack of a pulse, body becoming pale a few minutes after the person dies, body temperature reducing and stiffness of the corpse’ limbs (Appel, 2005).

Death can be clinical or legal. When a person ceases to breathe and to circulate blood, the person is declared to be clinically dead. This happens when a person gets a cardiac arrest or the heart simply stops to beat.

During this time, the person losses consciousness and the brain activities stop. Procedures to resuscitate the patient are initiated. These include putting the patient under cardiac life support machine which attempts to restart a heartbeat. The resuscitation continues until the recovery of a heartbeat or when a physician determines that the recovery is impossible and the patient is declared legally dead. A brain dead patient with heart and lungs that are functioning can be pronounced to be legally dead (Safar, 1988).

Legally, the state brain dead defines death. This occurs when the brain activities both voluntary and involuntary are irreversible and hence cannot sustain life. Irreversible loss of brain functions is caused by direct trauma to the head as a result of a gunshot wound or an accident caused by a motor vehicle. Loss of brain functions can also be caused by massive hemorrhage as result of high blood pressure complications (Murray, 1990).

Legal death is when a qualified personnel declares that a patient does not require further medical care and the patient be pronounced dead under the law. Some of the circumstances favorable for a person to be pronounced legally dead is when brain dead. This is when the brain activity is not detected.

Psychology of dying

According to psychologists, when going through the process of dying one goes through the experience of pain, regret, and fear of the unknown. Our social systems also break down death into distinctive dreads. Example, as a means to obtain moral obedience, religions mold death anxiety into fear of agonizing hell (Wass & Neimeyer, 1995).

The fears and ideas that people have about death are not innate; they are learnt from their cultural and social environments. A particular culture’s system of death conditions the behaviors of the living. For instance, their willingness to receive an organ transplant, suicide contemplation, their will to take risks, to purchase a life insurance, preference for cremation or burial, their attitude towards abortion or capital punishment and their hope for resurrection

Religion is also known to shape people’s attitudes toward death. This could be positive or negative. The more religious members display a more consistent attitude of death as measured by the level of fear of death. Those who believe in afterlife have a coherent understanding of situations related to death. Death anxiety, threat and fear result into other forms of psychological distress. Health status is unrelated to the level of fear and anxiety of death (Wass & Neimeyer, 1995).

Pursuing a death-exposure profession like medicine or attending the morgue does not necessarily increase the fear of death or anxiety. Those professionals or volunteers who work closely with the dying show reduced fear of death and much death competency.

Physicians usually have a difficult time with their patients whom they know have no chance of recovery. Telling a patient about his dying is never justified. On the same note, to withhold a patient’s dying information is not warranted.

According to Dr. Kubler (1991), people regardless of their age, religious orientation, race or cultures recognize when they are about to die. Some may start bidding farewell even if death is not expected. Dr. Kubler equates death to being born into a different existence. To die is like to move from one house to another only a more beautiful house this time. It does not matter how death may have occurred because the experience is the same (Kubler, 1991).

When one dies, i.e. when the soul leaves the body, it is still possible to perceive what is happening around the dying place i.e. where the body was left. One is able to register everything with a new awareness different from the earthly consciousness. This happens the same way as when one is lying unconscious having a surgery. During surgery, many patients have an out of body experience where they watch surgeons work on them and can actually hear them talk. The same thing happens when a dying patient is in a deep coma. The patient can neither move nor talk but can hear and understand everything being said to him (Kubler, 1991).

Nobody dies alone. When one leaves the physical existence, one joins another existence where time, space or distance does not exist. The power of thought is able to bridge long distances in a split of a second. Many people have experienced this when someone who lived many thousands of miles away suddenly appears to them and then later come to realize that they just passed away a few hours or days ago.

When patients are on their deathbeds, they report to see people whom they used to see and play with when they were little, only to have forgotten their existence when they grew up. These people die peacefully and happy knowing that someone who loves them will be waiting for them. Generally, people waiting for us on the other side are those who loved us the most (Kubler, 1991).

People die at different times; as little children, as young people or very old people. According to Dr. Kubler, the young have already learnt what they were supposed to learn and the old have accomplished what they were supposed to do at the time of their death. If we live well, we will not worry about dying (Kubler, 1991).

Conclusion

Different people of different religions, race, age and culture have different perceptions of death and the way to go about the loss. The study has identified grief as a reaction to loss, where the victim responds in an emotional, social and physical manner to portray his/her state. In this case, the study has identified that the different reactions exhibited by people as a result of death varies with their diversity cultures, personalities, age, religion and spiritual practices and beliefs. The study has identified several stages taken in a grief process. These include emotional reactions like denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance.

There are, however different ways of overcoming grief, the study has identified a simple method as group participation in a faith based or secular to be an effective approach. On the other hand, individuals undergoing through a complicated grieving process are advised to attend a therapy session with a psychologist or any other qualified professional dealing with mental health. Eating food supplements and healthy eating habits also helps to overcome grief. Death is seen to be an event as it occurs in a specified time, place, and in a certain way. Death is also seen to be a condition as one is seen to be incapable of carrying the important functions of life. It is a condition that is not reversible. Dr. Kubler has argued that people, regardless of their age, religious orientation, race or cultures recognize when they are about to die. People die at different times; as little children, as young people or very old people. When one dies, i.e. when the soul leaves the body, it is still possible to perceive what is happening around the dying place.

Greetings Social Individual

Greetings: assignment

“Greetings are found among many higher primates, as well as any number of preliterate societies and all civilized ones” (Goffman 1971:93). In this essay I will explore some ways in which we express, display and negotiate our social relations through greetings. I will also question if greetings are as individual as society may believe them to be, or are they socially constructed by norms, expectations and situations.

Both Goffman and Kendon have analyzed the expected behaviours when a greeting ritual takes place in Goffman’s chapter on ‘Supportive Interchanges,’ and ‘A description of some human greetings’ by A. Kendon. Using these and other sources, I will explore the ways in which we are expected to act whilst involving ourselves in greeting rituals and if the same applies to other cultures where greetings can also be observed.

According to Goffman, “greetings and farewells provide the ritual brackets around a spate of joint activity” (Goffman 1971:79). This suggests that despite culture, language, and individual differences, without what he refers to as ‘supportive interchanges,’ interaction would make no sense.

This spurred much research into the social construction of greetings. Kendon observed six different social situations where greetings would take place, and he noted down greeting behaviours and stages which commonly occurred in most greetings. The first of these stages is sighting, this means that one or both individuals must, “…identify him as the particular individual he may wish to greet.” (Kendon 1990:165) Once sighted, how quickly the individuals begin a greeting interaction depends on, what the other is doing at the time of sighting, what the individual is doing at the time of sighting, and how urgent the interaction is. (Kendon 1990:165)

Once sighted, the greeting ritual can occur, starting with the ‘distance salutation’, (Kendon 1990:172). This can consist of a call or wave, depending on what the other is doing, and how far away they are (Kendon 1990:172). He also observed a head toss, a head lower and a head nod, which are distinguished by duration and the situation, for example the nod usually only occurs in passing greeting situations (Kendon 1990:175).

The next stage is the ‘Approach’ (Kendon 1990:179). When the two participants move towards one another, and orient themselves so they are facing one another. On the approach, many other behaviours can be observed, “Glance exchange is generally associated with the distance greeting,” (Kendon 1990:180) where neither individual will keep eye contact with the other, exchanging only glances, until close enough for the final stage, close salutation.

Kendon also observed the ‘body cross’ during the approach, where one of the individuals “…bring one or both arms in front of him.” (Kendon 1990:185) Grooming is also likely to be observed in this stage of the greeting. The final approach is most likely to feature vocalisation, smiling and palm presentation, (kendon 1990:188-191). This is the stage which links the approach to close salutation, where both individuals are standing face to face and a hand shake or embrace are likely to be exchanged.

Although these stages have been observed in only six social situations, each behaviour is recognised regularly, and they vary depending on the individuals and the formality of the situation. Most of them are recognisable in every day life. Kendon is not arguing that all of these behaviours take place in one greeting interaction, as many may be specific to certain individuals. These behaviours are also more likely to occur an ‘initial greetings’ or first greetings, as Goffman argues that, “each succeeding contact will be managed with an increasingly attenuated greeting until after a time the two will exhibit the standard minimal middle-class social recognition only” (Goffman 1971:84).

Despite these observations and findings, there appear to be social barriers which determine some aspects of our greeting rituals. Irvine argues that, “As a result of the status associations of the greeting, any two persons who engage in an encounter must place themselves in an unequal ranking: they must come to some tacit agreement about which party is to take the higher ranking role and which the lower. This ranking is inherent in any greeting no matter how abbreviated, because the mere fact of initiating a greeting is itself a statement of relative status” (Irvine 1974:175).

Although to some degree I do agree with this statement, as other research has shown similar findings, for example, in Kendon’s explanation of the ‘body cross,’ he suggests that, “It seems to occur, in a word, in the more vulnerable of the two participants” (Kendon 1990:185) Describing it also as a “protective movement” (Kendon 1990:185).

This suggests that in greetings, one individual is always of a higher social status that the other. However, I do not agree that this takes place in all greetings, as passing greetings are too brief for this to take place, and it does not account for surprise greetings.

Other research also strongly suggests that social status plays a part in constructing our greeting of one another. “First, the prince sent a message to the king to ask if he could call on him. Permission being given, the prince emerged from his apartment, and proceeded through the ante-room and withdrawing room of the kings apartment to the door of his bed chamber.

The king… came to the door-but no further- to welcome him… shortly afterwards the king sent a message to ask if he could call on the prince. Permission being given, the king emerged from his apartment and was met by the prince who, being of an inferior grade of royalty, came out of his apartment to the top of the stairs to greet him” (Girouard 1985:147). This is clearly an outdated document, but it does show that different social ranking, even throughout history, have effected how one is greeted.

More recently, in Kendon’s birthday party, “it would appear that the further the host moves from the centre of the occasion’s action, the greater the show of respect for the guest he creates,” (Kendon 1990:168). This argument is also supported by Irvine, “ If a person ranks relatively lower than oneself or than some other person present, one may delay greeting him until more important people have been greeted” (Irvine 169), and by Goffman, who says, “ A long-absent neighbor will ordinarily be owed less of a show than a long-absent brother” (Goffman 1971:83).

This is typically showing a sign of respect for those of a higher social ranking than ourselves. It can be observed in many social situations, despite some research being outdated, where the host of a party gives a more exaggerated greeting to relatives over distant acquaintances, and where the host of a party would greet, for example his employer, before any co-workers or friends.

It can also be observed when more elderly people are greeted by someone younger than themselves. All three sources agree with each other to an extent and support the theory of greetings being socialty constructed, as in most societies, there is a clear understanding that respect must be shown to guests of more importance.

Greetings are also present “… in every human society and not a few animal ones” (Goffman 1971:73). What is interesting however, is that even across cultures, most greetings can be defined as, “a question; an interjection; or an affirmation” (Firth 2000:10) Questions involve asking the other a question, such as “How do you do?” an interjection, for example “hello” and an affirmation, termed as a “… form of assurance, not a conveyance of information…” (Firth 2000:10), such as “good morning.” These may differ between individuals, but the mere fact that they can be classified into three groups, strongly suggests that they have been socially constructed.

A traditional Chinese greeting can be translated as “Have you eaten your rice?” which of course, is a question, and in Tikopia when greeting one another “… as well as Europeans used the forms of ‘good morning’ etc” (Firth 2000:13). This can be classified as an affirmation. Firth goes on to say that, “The more elaborate formal procedures of many African and Asiatic societies have tended to be given up in modern times as familiarity with Western patterns has permeated these societies” (Firth 2000:33).

From this evidence, it is clear that not only do cultures have their own socially constructed forms of greetings, some have been abandoned, and there is more of a universal construction of greeting rituals. This could be due to the fact that there is much more communication between different cultures in modern society, and this is made easier if greeting rituals and other aspects of cultures are integrated.

This is not to say however, that all cultures have the same greeting practices, even within Europe, “American or English people who might exchange a kiss in private greeting may refrain from such intimacy in public. But this is a highly cultural matter- a Frenchman in office may bestow a kiss on another on a formal public occasion when he would not do so at an informal private meeting” (Firth 2000:4).

Goffman also argues that some cultures have different greeting rituals, as behaviour in some Arab cultures suggests “… Women do not greet men on village paths and men do not greet women” (Goffman 4). These cultural differences show social construction relating to greeting in what is and isn’t socially acceptable. It also does not suggest that their greeting one another is any different from our own in circumstances where it is socially acceptable to do so.

Despite minor cultural differences, relating to social custom, and what is acceptable or not, most cultures have greetings which can be classified into three groups. This evidence strongly suggests that in all cultures, individuals are bound by the social constructions of greeting rituals.

Greeting rituals are also present where face to face interaction does not take place, such as telephone calls and letters, and, “… not only are such communicative structures relevant on a micro-level of social organisation… but they are also on a macro-level as well” (Schiffrin 1977:690), for example, this could include television broadcasts and public speeches, where the level of access is presented to the audience by a host. Social construction is also created by the expectations connected to greetings and farewells, “Greeting behaviour is expected to express pleasure, parting behaviour to express sadness. It is a matter of common knowledge that the reverse may sometimes be the case” (Firth 2000:7).

As greetings and farewells “… are ritual displays that mark a change in degree of access” (Goffman 1971:79), without them, determining the beginning and end of conversation would be impossible, therefore they have been socially constructed to prevent this from happening.

There is much evidence which strongly suggests that greetings are socially constructed, through greeting behaviours, how we treat people of authority and even throughout different cultures. There are, of course, some differences, which vary from different cultures and individual preferences. However, these differences are still within a certain social acceptance of what is expected of greeting rituals. Therefore, what society may feel are individual actions, are in fact constructed by social norms.

Bibliography

Firth, R. (2000) “Verbal and bodily rituals of greeting and parting” in “The Interpretation of Ritual: Essays in honour of A. I. Richards.” pp 1-33 Harpercollins.

Girouard, M. (1985) “Cites and people. A social and architectural history.” New Haven: Yale University Press.

Goffman, E. (1971) “Supportive Interchanges” ch.3 in “Relations in Public.” Harpercollins College Div.

Irvine, J. (1974) “Strategies in status manipulation in the Wolof greeting” in R. Bauman, and J. Shererzer, (eds)“Exploration in the Ethnography of Speaking” pp167-191. London, Cambridge University Press.

Kendon, A. (1990) “A description of some human greetings”ch.6in “Conducting interaction: Patterns of behaviour in focused encounters.”Cambridge University Press.

Schiffrin, D. (1977) “Opening encounters” American Sociological Review [online] [accessed on 30^th November 2007.]

Goffman examines society through individuals face-to-face interactions I everyday life. An important point of his theory is how individuals present themselves in everyday life, when they come to contact with others. This contact signals the activation of the ritual mechanism. Those mechanisms are being activated automatically each time we are coming to interaction with others. They consist social values and express all the expected reactions, which individuals should have in different situations. The reason why these mechanisms are activated automatically is because we have embodied them during the period of socialization and through imitation. Consequently, those mechanisms give us the possibility to understand and foresee how we must react in different interactions, as well as to forego and protect ourselves from potential moments of disgrace and embarrassment. If we do not find a way to manage those moments when they occur, can lead in the collapse of interaction (Goffman, 1959: 12).

The main purpose of individuals is to manipulate the impressions that others form about them (impression management). Individuals, when they are acting on the stage, employ unconsciously different “front” (means of expression). The “front” is comprised from two parts: the “setting” which is the scene in which individuals acting and the “personal front” which concerns the natural characteristics and specific means of expression of each individual. Furthermore, Goffman divide “personal front” into “appearance” and “manner”. “Appearance” is the external characteristics and “manner” is the means of expressions, like the language, the body, face expressions, which individuals adopt during their performance (Goffman, 1953,:22-24). In addition, individuals use symbols to display their positions and the role they aim to play (Goffman, Dec. 1951: 294).

Forby there is the “backstage”, where individuals make their rehearsal for their performance. Namely, which features of themselves, they will cover in order to manipulate their observers. Parallel, only when they are on the backstage, can be their real selves, whereon they have to tackle with their real feelings, which have no relation to the feelings they project on the stage. Nevertheless, Goffman notes that the formation of a role is being strongly affected by the personality, the experience, and the culture of each individual (Swingewood, 2000: 176).

How academic professors maintain their dominant position in the classroom.

The academic professor’s front is his class and what this class includes is the “setting”. His performance takes place while he is teaching. Of course the professor must have a certain style of clothing, for instance he cannot appear in the classroom wearing a sport outfit. Also, he must talk and behave in a way which will attribute him prestige. For instance, the professor will not use slang language during his teaching, on the contrary, he will a sophisticated vocabulary. Furthermore, according to Goffman, first impression is of vital importance. Thus, in his first lecture, he must pay attention to his first impression, because this will form the relation of domination between the professor and the students (Goffman, 1959: 12). Even if he becomes more lenient with his students over the years, he should attempt continually to sustain his authority (impression management).

On the other hand, when the professor ends up alone in the classroom (backstage) he can be his real self. Coincidently at this point he can prepare himself for the teaching (performance) and he can try to limit things which could reduce his pole performance. On the whole, professor possesses a status, which nobody can call in question, regardless of the role he adopts. This is happening because he has certifications of his capacity, which is his degree, which is recognizable from the society (Goffman, 1951: 297). In other words, there can be doubt about his efficiency at work but not for his capacity as a professor.

Bourdieu’s theory.

Bourdieu in contrast with Goffman considers society from a distant viewpoint. He is not centre on individuals’ interaction but he combines them with social structures. He deems that sociologists should overcome the persistence of the contrast between objectivism and subjectivism. We should observe society as a whole including both, structures and actors. Thereby, he creates a theory based on a schema, which constitutes from three main parts: the field, the capital, and the habitus. Each part is directly connected with the others and functions parallel.

The first part is the field. Fields are the social structures, the various spheres of life. While fields exert influence to each other, there are autonomous enough (relative autonomous) in order to be able to study them. Each field has its own clear boundaries, logic and sphere of values, with witch people must be obeyed. People in order to be able to enter a field, should have certain resources according to the demands of each field (Wacquant, 2008: 269). Those resources are the capitals, which are unequal distributed in the society (Swartz, 2002: 655). People, who have more capitals, have more chances to succeed in different fields (Bourdieu, 1986: 241). This is why Bourdieu grasps fields as arenas in which people struggle constantly. Those who have a big part of capital, struggle to maintain their domination and those who have limited capitals, try for their benefits to invert the domination of the former. Thus field is never static. It is moving, changing, evolving.

On the second part of the triadic schema is capital. Capitals are the means of resources which enable people to acquire benefits. Power is in each field different. Bourdieu divides Capital in four categories: economic, cultural, social and symbols. Economic Capital is consisted by money. This capital is very important because every capital can be converted to economic capital. People, who have largely the economic capital, can easier acquire the other three capitals. Then is the Culture Capital, which is consisted by three forms:

The Embodied State concerns the stimuli which people get from their environment during their upbringing and socialization. People receive them unconsciousness or passive-coercive via their families, their culture or traditions. However this does not mean that they acquire them instantaneously. On the contrary, people embodied them over the years according to their habitus. Also in this state, people form their cultivation. People’s cultivation derives, apart from the stimuli of the environment, also from the amount of time and effort they consumed to gain it (Bourdieu, 1986: 244-245).

The other form is the Objectified State, which concerns the possession of items (for instance paintings). Those items have great cultural-aesthetic value but also economic value. In which way people will valid them, it is related with their habitus (Bourdieu, 1986: 245-246).

The third form of Cultural Capital is the Institutionalized State. This state embraces the official documents, that is, they have institutional recognition. Those certifications denote the level of education of each person (Bourdieu, 1986: 246-247).

Moreover, there is the Social Capital. Social Capital is people’s connections which they have or acquire within social networks. Those connections are either positive or negative. In other words, can help people or can make their lives difficult.

Finally, it is the Symbolic Capital, which has to do with the symbols of power. People who possess the symbolic authority can dominate in one or more fields. Those who have it are in the position to decide what is good and what is bad and exert it via recognition and approval and disapproval. Recognition of what people are doing is enjoyable for them. For, people through recognition are becoming established. Symbolic authority can be big in a field while can be mild or small in others. Also symbolic power is hierarchical. It is a circle of alternations of power. Thus there is a constant struggle for the acquisition of power but it is happening unconsciously.

The third part of the schema is Habitus. Habitus is our history, the inheritance of cultural capital. Namely it is embodied of our experiences. The creation of social groups is based on people’s common experiences, hence habitus is person’s beliefs and dispositions. Furthermore, habitus is the social structures in which persons shape their beliefs and ways of thinking (for instance education). In real life habitus and field come always together as a whole (Wacquant, 2008: 269). On the one, habitus affects people’s chances of success or failure in different fields (Bourdieu, 1986: 241). However, people through new experiences, which are not coming from the family, can form a secondary capital in the habitus, which is quite durable and reinforced. This new habitus is becoming gradually their second nature.

Examining academicians through the concepts of Field, Capital and Habitus.

Academicians’ field in which they operate is higher education. To be able to be in this field, they spent too much time and effort in order to acquire this knowledge, that is their cultivation (cultural capital-embodied state). Evidence that hold this knowledge is their diplomas (cultural capital-institutionalized state). Also their connections, that had been either academic or political, played an important role in taking up this position (social capital). On the other, depending on the level of the University attended and depending on their performance, they had similar opportunities to find work. The position of each university is not the same. For, there is a rank of hierarchy. Hierarchy it is likewise in the positions of academic professors. Therefore there is strong competition among them. Their main purpose is to accede to the highest positions and go to the most accredited universities (symbolic capital). To be able to do so, they must constantly enrich their resources (capital). Nevertheless, the academic professors have some common experiences that affiliate them to the same group and allow them to enter in this field, higher education (habitus). But this does not mean that these experiences were the same embodied-in all. That they are professors, do not mean that all derived from the same socio-economic class. Simply they were able to acquire the necessary qualifications and to embrace these experiences in order to enter specific field. Namely, they managed to make second nature another habitus.

Conclusion.

Considering academics through two different approaches, Goffman’s and Bourieu’s, I have come to believe that struggle for domination is an important part of both theories. In Goffman this struggle exist through the management impression, while in Bourdieu exist in the whole triad schema (field, capital, habitus).

Population aging, as a global issue, has become increasingly important in these few decades. Regarding to this issue, the U.S. State Department and the National Institute on Aging (NIA) has hosted a report named “Why Population Aging Matters: A Global Perspective” in March 15, 2007. This report covered nine trends related to population aging which present a snapshot of challenges and opportunities showing why population aging matters. In which the first five trends describe the global demographic changes in recent years and the last four trends show the challenges and opportunities that caused by population aging. We appreciate the effort of the authors in raising global awareness. Every report, however, have strengthens and limitations. By arguing with some points mentioned in the report, we try to perfect it by replenishing it with more information.

Methodology

Aimed at raising public awareness about global aging problems, encouraging more cross-nation scientific research and international studies and stimulating biochemical, economic, behavioral and political dialogues, this report used plenty of statistics to show the impacts of population aging on nations. To show the whole picture of the global issue, the researchers did not conduct interviews and solicit the statistics by themselves; rather, they gathered the existing data from different part of the world. Generally, these data are from the United Nations, US Census Bureau, and the Statistical Office of the European Communities as well as some regional surveys.

Summary of the report
Trend 1 – The overall population is aging

According to the research done by United nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the global percentage of young children is decreasing while the percentage of older people increases sharply especially in the coming decades. In around 2017, older people will outnumber young children in estimation. In 2006, almost 500 million people are older people, who share 8% of global population, and it is expected that the number will increase to 1 billion in 2030. Besides, the speed of population aging is higher in developing countries than in developed countries. For example, France, as a developed country, has taken 115years for the proportion of the older people to increase 7%. However, in some developing countries like Singapore, 19 years is enough to reach the same rate. Population aging is a global trend in which the degree of development of the countries affects the rate of it.

Trend 2 – Life expectancy is increasing

Change in Life expectancy reflects a health transition which is characterized by many changes including a shift from high to low fertility, a steady increase in life expectancy at birth and at older ages and a shift from the predominance of infectious and parasitic diseases to the growing impact of non-communicable diseases and chronic conditions. Some scientific research shows that the human survival curve in both women and men shifted upward. The life expectancy at birth has increased from 45years in 1950 to more than 79 years today.

It implies that the life expectancy increases in every single age and deaths are highly concentrated at older ages.

Trend 3 – The number of oldest old is rising

People aged 85 or about are defined as the oldest old. Currently, the oldest old constitutes 7% of the world’s 65- and-over population, in which 10 % was in more developed countries and 5% was in less developed countries. On a global level, the 85-and-over population is projected to increase 151% between 2005 and 2030.More than half of the world’s oldest old live in China, the United States, India, Japan, Germany, and Russia. Living from birth to age 100 may have risen from 1 in 20 million to 1 in 50 by 2030 for females in low-mortality nation, say, Japan, in estimation.

Trend 4 – Non-communicable diseases are becoming a growing burden

There is an epidemiological transition that the non-communicable diseases have become the focus in light of global aging. In the past, a large number of people were killed by infectious and parasitic disease. However, non- communicable and chronic diseases are the major cause of death in both developed and developing countries nowadays. Regarding to this trend, there are three elaborations of the situation: 1) “Compression of morbidity” – decrease in disability as life expectancy increases; 2) “expansion of morbidity” – increase in disability as life expectancy increases; and 3) decrease in severe disability but increase in milder chronic disease. With the increase in life expectancy in general and the non-correspondent disability rate in different countries, it requires more studies and research to see which elaboration offers a better explanation of the real situation

Trend 5 – Aging and population decline

Simultaneous population aging and population decline are happening in some countries. Where the global population is aging, more than 20 countries are projected to experience population declines in the upcoming decades. A research done by U.S. Census Bureau shows that Russia’s population declines the most rapidly (-18 millions) between 2006 and 2030. Following is Japan. The projected population decline in Japan is 11 millions between 2006 and 2030.

Trend 6 – Changing family structure

In trend 6, it is about the world trend of changing family structure. Low fertility rate means older people have less family care and support. Family structure is change from nuclear or extended family change to other types e.g. divorce, remarriage, non marriage, voluntarily childless.

Many people are living alone in older age. According to the reading, in some European countries, more than 40 percent of women age 65 and older live alone.” And the diagram also show the trend in Japan, the older people living alone have growing faster in 1960-2000. Therefore, the cost of long-term care is a burden to families and society.

Trend 7 – Shifting patterns of work and retirement

People tend to work at older ages. From the figure, we can see the European employment rate at age 55-64 have clear increase during 1994-2005. Beginning in the 1990s, a workforce participation rate for older women has been a steady increase. That means women have ability to accumulate and control economic resources in older age. But the job types of elderly are from full-time job changing to part-time job or transition job.

According to Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), life expectancy has increased and the retirement ages have decreased. In 1960, men on average could expect to spend 46 years in the workforce. In 1995, the number of years in the workforce had decreased to 37. Therefore, if we want to increase workforce, we should set up a high retirement age to maintain enough workforce in the market.

Trend 8 – Evolving Social insurance systems

As the situation of population ageing, the increasing pension expenditure. According to our readings “25 EU countries consumed one-eighth of gross domestic product in 2003”. Many countries reform their old-age social insurance programs. For example, Japan rose the pension age: men’s pension age from 60 to 65, women from 57 to 65. In order to support the economic security, some government Increase tax rate on workers e.g. “Twenty-four Europe countries now have payroll tax rates that equal or exceed 20 percent of wages.”(P.21)

Trend 9 – Emerging economic challenges

It says that population ageing is affecting on local and global economies. Therefore many countries have some social programs that are target to the older population- principally health care and income support programs. 1) Fully fund program: “This describes a superannuation fund whose assets are sufficient to meet all the fund’s liabilities” 2) Pay-as-you-go system: “A method of paying income tax in which the employer deducts a portion of an employee’s monthly salary to remit to the IRS.”

On the other hand, we should be concern is high level of population aging, labor force tends to decline. That make government need high tax rate to solve the problem of growing older populations. The tax burden may discourage future workforce participation.

Overall review
Significance of themes

Population aging is a global issue that can affect many parts of our society in the sense that it takes parts in the changes and adjustment in the economy, labor force, medical system, residential issues, continued development etc. It is important and meaningful for us, the people, to realize the effects it may bring. Though population aging is a global trend, there are only a few governments had taken actions to plan for the long term and tackle the possible challenges that may soon happen in their societies. Clearly, more research and policies are needed regarding to this problem. Raising global awareness regarding to the population aging issue is significant.

Use of data

In this report, many statistics are used to illustrate the trends. However, as a report talking about the global situation, we expect the data should provide us with the whole picture of the world. Since the data are not collected for the sake of supporting this report, some data are not general enough to explain the global situation. Say for example, when illustrating the increases in life expectancy in every age, data of white female survival in the US between 1901 & 2003 is used. Yet, the situation in the US, a developed country, may differ from other developing countries. Race and sexual difference may also lead to different outcome.

In-depth review
“Population aging is driven by declines in fertility and improvement in health and longevity.” [1]

This statement is partially right. It is true that population ageing arises from increased longevity and decreased fertility. An increase in longevity rises the average age of the population by increasing the numbers of surviving older people and a decline in fertility reduces the size of the most recent birth cohorts relative to the previous birth cohorts, hence reducing the size of the youngest age groups relative to that of the older ones. Apart form these, migration, as another demographic effect, also contributes to population aging. Thought immigration usually slows down population aging, for example the women holders of One-way Permit in Hong Kong are likely to be younger and have more children, the other types of migration tend to worsen the situation that the immigration may not make up for the population aging.

Obviously, emigration of working-age adults fastens population aging especially in some Caribbean nations. These people migrate for career development or for money, so they tend not to have or have fewer children. There is also immigration of elderly retirees from other countries. Return migration of former emigrants who are above the average population age is common in some region. It is estimated that migration will have a more prominent role in population aging in the future, particularly in low-fertility countries with stable or declining population size. The effects of migration on population aging are usually stronger in smaller populations, because of higher relative weight of migrants in such populations. [2]

“Non-married women are less likely than non married men to have accumulated assets and pension wealth for use in older age.” [3]

We agree with the statement because we find some support from studies. In the table from Health and Retirement Study Wave 1(1992), it shows that the total wealth of non married men is $191,836 and the total wealth of non married women is $157,098. And a finding of the International Longevity Center-USA, it found that unemployment of women who are in the labor force: “in 1993 the rate was 24% for women compared with 8% for men.”(ILC-USA, 2002) The high rate of economic activity for older men may make low level of old-age pensions.

“Preparing financially for longer lives and finding ways to reduce aging-related disability should become national and global priorities.” [4]

As suggested in trend 6 to 9, it is true that population aging leads to great challenges and demands for changes and adjustments in policy making. Financial preparation and improvement in reducing aging-related disability are important as the large number of old population will definitely increase the burden of the economy as well as the social insurance system. However, in tackling aging problems, we consider other aspects as the same important as the two mentioned in the report.

Firstly, increase fertility is fundamentally important to deal with aging population. As it is rather impossible to shorten people life expectancy and disallow people to migrate due to econ reason, increasing fertility rate seems to be the only feasible way to deal with aging population; in which subsidized child care and childcare leave are possible ways to increase fertility.

Subsidized child care enables women to combine work and family. When comparing the levels of women’s labor-force participation and family size country by country, Daly, an economist, found that in societies that made it easier for women to combine paid employment with children – Sweden, for example – the rate of women’s employment and the birth rate were both high. Also, High employment rates for women would also help countries with aging populations cope with a shortage of workers [5] .

Moreover, baby bonus and childcare leave can also boost fertility. Parents in those countries who can get more help from the government will have relatively high fertility rates. Consider the experience in France. Pregnant women has at least 16 weeks of mandatory, paid maternity leave, as well as guaranteed job security and get a monthly stipend of up to 1,000 euros for a year if she has the third child. The fertility rates of those countries which practice these policies for decades are approaching 2.1, roughly the point where a population can sustain itself without immigration [6] .

Secondary, for the problem of elderly living alone, we think that consolidating the traditional value of Filial piety is rather important. In the table below, we can see most of older people are living with children or grandchildren in Asian country. However, older people who are living with children or grandchildren are three times more compared to Europe and North America.

Asian country can have such result because they have strong value of Filial piety. Such as China, they have strong confusion value that adult children may think take care of the older parents is their responsibilities and they do not think living with elderly is burden. Because elderly not only is care receiver but also can be the care giver.

Nevertheless, adjustments in policy that favorable to longer working life are also the way out. Population ageing is a burden of government in the sense that it increases the pension expenditure and decreases the supply of labor force. It may lower the economy growth of the country. For that reason, increase the pension age is a good suggestion to tackle the aging problem. Elderly also have their ability to work. We can see the example of Singapore. The Minister for Manpower in Singapore wants to encourage older workers to stay active: 1) to remain at work to pay for a more comfortable retirement 2) to ease financial strains on the government 3) to ease strains of reducing younger workforce. As a result, the retirement age in Singapore increased to 62, . “According to preliminary results from Ministry of Manpower’s comprehensive mid-year Labor Force Survey, the employment rate for older residents aged 55 to 64 in Singapore is 57.2%,” said Gan Kim Yong, Minister for Manpower. Therefore, the employment rate for older men in Singapore has increased from 73.8% to 74.7% in 2008 to 2009. After increase the pension age, the supply of workforce will increase and the pension expenditure of government will decrease.

Supplementary information

As we know that, as other parts of the world, population aging becomes serious in recent decades in Hong Kong. We provide the below information about Hong Kong’s welfare provision towards the elderly as supplement of the report in hope of that more people, including the government, can aware of the aging trend happened in our society and take active roles in planning our future. According to the social welfare department, there is about 60% of elderly who are receiving CSSA. It is a burden of Hong Kong economy. As the World Bank published the report “Averting the Old-Age Crisis: Policies to Protect the Old and Promote Growth”. Therefore, the government provides some scheme to solve the problem. They are the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA), the Universal Retirement Protection Scheme and the Mandatory Provident Fund Scheme (MPF) respectively. In the following, a slight discussion will be provided in comparing these social insurance schemes.

Comprehensive Social Security Assistance (CSSA) is the layer of social safety net. Nowadays, People seem to more relay on the safety net because we see the increasing tend on application. The value of Hong Kong people had changed, people try to fight for more welfare from the government. And people think that government had the responsibility to care of the elderly. So the government spending on CSSA is higher in these years and she need to concern.

Universal Retirement Protection Scheme is a retirement fund that can cover the basic spending of the retirement life. In case of many poor elderly in Hong Kong, “Legislative Council urges the Government to set up a sustainable universal retirement protection scheme, so that all senior citizens can enjoy financial security to maintain a basic standard of living immediately after retirement.” proposed by Hon Lee Cheuk-yan. But this scheme may be a burden of Hong Kong government.

Mandatory Provident Fund Schemes (MPF) is a financial security system to protect the working population in their retirement years. After the implementation of MPF, around 87% of the total employers are now covered under retirement schemes. However, it cannot solve the problem immediately because the scheme is only practice for a few years, the fund may not have enough financial support for the elderly and the cumulative of the fund highly depends on the employees’ salary and whether the investment program can receive a good return. Therefore it has limitations that may not be able to protect all people after retirement.

Conclusion:

To conclude, the nine trends suggested in the report are significant in the sense that a global perspective is useful for us to understand the challenges and opportunities brought by population aging. However, we think that both of the method of data collection and the content of the report are to general that may ignore many parts in illustrations. We argue some points mentioned in the report by providing more information regarding to the issue. Moreover, we think the views on population aging held in the report are a bit negative. Actually, older people have ability to contribute to the society by involving in social service. For example, Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP) announced that there are more than 135,000 new volunteers in America last year. Last but not least, the report only pointed out the trends without many suggestions and solutions to the problems. It is hope that more international studies can be done to determine the best ways to address the situation before it is too late.