Category: Free Essays

1.0 Concept of Suicide1.1 Background

Sir Thomas Browned originates the word “suicide” in 1642 in his Religio Medici. It was derived from “SUI” (of oneself) and “CAEDES” (murder).since then, this word has caused much controversy and evoked many professionals to continuous research and debate upon its definition in various ways from every aspects: medical, social, psychological, administrative, legal, spiritual and religious purposes.

Suicide is no longer uncommon in the society and every day, there are people from many walks of life living under the same roof without us knowing what problems they are plagued with. Back centuries, suicide was a taboo subject to be discussed and yet, many are engaged in such behavior although it is believed that most suicide cases are unreported. To some, suicidal actions are glorified especially to cults and religion purposes. As time progresses, the mentality of the society changes along with time and the stigma of suicide is slowly undergoing much debate and understanding. Now, suicide is regarded more of a tragedy instead of ritual because part of the reason is that the society undergoes globalization and no longer practices scarification. Even if there is a minority of tribes who endorses scarification, the groups are negligible throughout the globe. Also, suicide in this era more often is done due to personal reasons; be it mentality, spiritual etc.

In 1763, the first attempt was done scientifically by Merian to understand the rationale behind suicide. It is believed that suicide was not perceived as a sin or a crime. Instead, suicide has been regarded as a disease of mankind. After the death of Jean Jacques Rousseau in 1822, which had sequentially and graphically described circumstances of his death, Farlet manages to conduct a first in-depth examination on suicide. This enables better understanding on suicide with broader perspective. A famous psychiatrist, Dr R. Gaupp, says that amongst people committing suicide they possess unique and bizarre personality traits. For the past 50 years, it is concluded by series of researches that suicide begins from the state of mind, coupled with external factors, resulting in suicide. Herein, we will look in depths of suicide amongst Malaysian school students.

1.2 Definition

A suicide idea is when one thought of ending one’s own life. One thing leads to another, suicide ideas often leads to suicidal attempt and suicidal behaviour. Suicidal behaviours are thoughts or tendencies that started off a person and put them at risk for committing suicide. Simply said, suicide is an intentional or voluntary determination to end one’s life, as defined by the World Health Organization (WHO). A suicidal person often closed one’s options in life, and looks at another darker side of negativity. To them, dying is a pre-requisite for the end of all sufferings. A famous sociologist, Emile Durkheim whom not only proposes the theory of functionalism but also studied on Suicide, states that: “the term suicide is applied to all cases of death resulting directly or indirectly from a positive or negative act of the victim himself, which he knows will produce this result” (1982, p. 110 [excerpt from Suicide]).

1.3 Description

Suicide is not an uncommon issue these days and it is widely discussed in institutions although it is still condemned by the society. Much about discussing facts and truths behind this dark sentiment of life, there are common myths about suicide which we need to eradicate in order to comprehend the problem better we are able to curb this issue. When we listened to people whom talks about suicide, we assumed that these people would not do it since they are open to discussion. To include, people who are open to discussion should not be overlooked because they might also consider the options of suicide since the minds of a person is incomprehensible. In addition, the society views the troubled ones as people whom cannot be saved and are unwilling to seek help. Since they intend to commit suicide, nothing can stop him. These misconstrued assumptions are proven wrong because they are lost and sometimes hope for care and understanding. Indeed, these are individuals whom should not be segregated. Another notion that should be avoided is that people believed that suicide indicates lack of faith in religion. This is incorrect because there are certain religions which encourage suicide in the name of faith.

Thoughts and attempts of suicide as well as committing suicide are major concerns throughout the world and it is still a growing concern amongst the society. Very much obvious, most suicidal case involves adolescents and young teens. The teenage years are one of the most difficult stages in life, as identified by psychologists. Although teenagers are thought to enjoy life without worries of financial stability and mid-life crisis, suicide seems way an inconsiderable option to them since they ought to have no problems at this phase of life besides studying. But many changes in the mind which takes place during puberty can change their identity and their vulnerable self if they may have to cope with a broad range of personal and social obstacles. Since young people are so fragile, they may experience difficulty in dealing with stress.

Children prior to puberty had hardly been bothered by suicidal behavior, probably due to their inability to envisage or execute a suicide plan. When puberty hits adolescence, risky psychiatric factors, such as depression and drug abuse become imminent and play a part in contributing to the causes of frequency in suicidal behaviour. Some children especially girls, view the transition from primary to middle school stressful. In addition, as one gets older parental supervision decreases, so teenagers are more likely to engage in unhealthy behavior without their parents’ consents.

Suicide is divided into several commonly used terms to identify its symptoms and causes. Here are the descriptions provided by the World Health Organization (WHO) regarding suicidal terms that needed to be taken into account:-

Suicide: a planned act of killing oneself intentionally. The act can be performed by the person with or without the full knowledge or expectation of any fatal outcome.
Suicidal attempt: A medical intervention is required in this case, after the person whom intended to end his or her life committed a life-threatening act with a conscious intent.
Suicidal gesture: A series of self-threatening behaviour on display, which may be detrimental or non- detrimental.
Suicidal idea: The power of mind to thought or set up the process to end one’s own life.
Suicidal risk: The tendency of ending one’s life depends on this characteristic, depending on its presence or absence.
Suicidal pact: Two or more people in agreement to die concurrently by committing the act of suicide.
Suicidal cluster: People who gather in groups to commit suicide together, usually for a common objective.
Suicidal counters: To prevent suicide, this set of factors operates within the individual, family or society.
1.4 Facts and Figures

With many reasons believed to be the causes for suicide, facts and figures of statistics below are generally shown to highlight suicide from methods of ending life in different ethnic groups (inference is drawn from analysis of data from suicidal cases from the University Malaya Medical Centre mortuary ) to why it is committed : –

It is estimated that 450 million people suffered from mental of behavioral disorder.
Every year, close to 1 million people committed suicide and 1 in 4 families have at least a member with mental disorder.
There are 25 million schizophrenic patients and 50 million who suffer from epilepsy, which About 40 million or 80% are assumed to live in developing countries
Most of them lived for 33% of the years with disability are due to neuropsychiatric disorders (depression, alcohol-use disorders, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder).
From 2000-2004, University Malaya Medical Centre found suicides of 164 male (65%) and 87 female (35%) victims with their ages ranging from 15 to 80 years.
The age group with the highest total of cases between 21 to 30 (83 of 251; 33.1%)
The highest rate of suicide was among Chinese (ethnic groups) with a total of 120 cases (120 of 251; 47.8%) by using the common method; jumping from height (41%).
Whereas, Indians commonly commit suicide by hanging themselves (49 of 87) and poisoning (20 of 37; 54.1%); and Muslims had shown the lowest cases of suicide (18 of 251; 7.2%).
1.5 Types of suicide

“Collective tendencies have an existence of their own; they are forces as real as cosmic forces, though of another sort; they, likewise, affect the individual from without…” (Thompson, 1982, p. 109 [excerpt from Suicide])

To separate true suicides from accidental deaths, Durkheim proposed this definition of suicide: “the term suicide is applied to all cases of death resulting directly or indirectly from a positive or negative act of the victim himself, which he knows will produce this result” (1982, p. 110 [excerpt from Suicide]). Then, Durkheim proposes four types of suicide:

1) Egoistic suicide

Minimal social integration allows outcasts and segregation of individuals who are not considered fit to be bounded to specific social groups. These individuals are left with little social support or guidance. Thus, tendency to commit suicide increases. For example, students especially girls in schools wanted to belong in groups or so-called cliques. Most of the times, the ones whom are shunned off are the ones to be laughed at and criticized.

2) Altruistic suicide

The opposite of egoistic suicide. This type of suicide results from too much of integration. Self-sacrifice is the prominent trait and members of the group were so integrated that they lost their individuality and ever so willing to sacrifice for the group’s interest. For example, black metal groups in school do underground sacrificial methods at times in their act of worshipping.

3) Anomic suicide (of moral regulation)

When means were unable to fulfill needs, an imbalance of means and needs arise.

i. Acute economic anomie

Traditional institutions such as religion and government failed to practise moral restraints on a capitalist society. Hence, the ruling of private individuals to determine one’s fate in life. This type of suicide does not apply in Malaysia because it is a democratic country where everyone has the equal rights to flourish in their own ability.

ii. Chronic economic anomie

Social regulation gradually diminishes after a revolution or urbanization. As a result, traditional social rules deteriorated. Wealth and property was not enough to make individuals happy, as was demonstrated by higher suicide rates among the wealthy than the poor. For instance, richer students gain easier access to drugs because of their high allowance making it affordable for them. Later on, usage of drug substances will lead to suicide (will be discussed later in this topic). This also explains why students in urban schools are more prone to suicide instead of rural area students.

iii. Acute domestic anomie

The inability of an individual to adapt to sudden changes in life results in this suicide. For instance, a student who could not cope the loss of his or her family members might consider suicide as an option to end the suffering.

iv. Chronic domestic anomie

The way marriage is seen in different regulations and needs for each gender. Bachelors tended to commit suicide at higher rates than married men because of a lack of regulation and established goals and expectations. On the other hand, bachelorettes are lower risk to commit suicide because without marriage, they are not confined to boundaries set by the household. This is not an issue for students in Malaysian schools unless if young girls are married off during schooling. Such cases are rare in Malaysia unless in rural areas like in Sabah or Sarawak.

4) Fatalistic suicide

This type of suicide did not receive much attention because it is a rare phenomenon of the real world. People who are over regulated and receive unrewarding lives like the slaves or childless married women might consider suicide. Their future is relies on others to determine. Cases do happened like prostitution or human trafficking, but this type of suicide does not relate much to the field of education.

1.6 Warning signs

“Rarely, suicide spurs a moment of intense decision”, says Dr Suarn Singh, Head of Psychiatry, Ministry of Health Malaysia.

More often, there are many clues to look out for to identify school students at risk of mental and social distress and signs leading to the actual attempt, such as:

A change in behavior- speech or actions – such as constantly saying that “I can’t go on” or “I want to end it all”.
Attitudes or appearance takes a toll on health and individual becomes recluse and not care of how they look usually by not grooming.
Behaving recklessly by not taking safety measures, e.g.: crossing the road without looking.
Giving away prized possessions and valuable items.
Individual may be accompanied with unpredicatable mood swings like crying, self-mutilation and impulsiveness.
Identify the distress and dramatic change that affects the student’s performance in school (e.g.: attendance and behavior)
Lack of interest in school, overall decline in performance, misconduct in class, unexplainable absence or truancy.
Abuse of substance, smoking or drug (including cannabis).
Violent behaviour which sometimes involves the police.
1.7 Risk Factors and Risk Situations

When accessing suicide patterns amongst students, all parties including school staffs, families and friends should be aware of the victim’s behaviour. Repetitive self mutilation should also be taken into note because distraught teenagers tend to repeat their acts. Particular suicide behaviour under circumstances is interdependent with the environment and genetic factors. Various states or neighbouring countries that features factors of cultural, political and economic differences may play a role in risking the youth’s decisions of suicide. On the other hand, risk situations are hurtful or injurious events which are experienced by the victims. These occurrences may wound the victim’s personal dignity and self-image. Example, a suicidal student may encounter with peer pressure in school, bullying, disappointment and failure in academic or high expectations from parents during examination.

Suicide has become an intense debate, yet, it still remains as an ambiguous subject to fully grasp. A normal person will never understand to what extent these youth will do just to end their lives. Researches were done and found that major risk factors are linked to young people who are plagued with these causes that might have been the reasons leading them to suicide. The major risk factors to include are:

Cultural and sociodemographic factors
Family pattern and negative life events during childhood
Cognitive style and personality
Anxiety disorders
Substance abuse
Eating disorders
Psychotic disorders
Current negative life events as triggers of suicidal behavior
Cultural and sociodemographic factors

Different countries are linked to different cultures and demographic structures. In the third world countries, low socioeconomic status, lack of education system and unemployment are risk factors for suicide. Although Malaysia is a developed country and cannot be compared to third world neighbours, suicide still happens rampantly in urban areas, which is developed and suicide rates are expected to be lower instead of a drastic statistics to show. When urbanization enforces competitions, psychological impact of torture may lead to self-conflict between oneself and the society. One is expected to perform to the standards of society’s customary demands. Likewise, in Malaysian schools, students are very academic inclined. This is a powerful risk factor for students to be depressed and may resort to self-destruction. Also, students and adolescents whom lack of self-identity and cultural roots may opt for this choice of suicide under stressful environment. That said, “Each individual young person’s growth is intertwined with collective cultural tradition”, as stated by World Health Organization (WHO). Since Malaysia is a multiracial country, there are more than one race that plays a greater attribution of gender nonconformity and identity issues. Imagine an Indian girl being placed at a Chinese school with the majority of Chinese, she is hardly accepted into the culture of the majority. When a student begins to fear a serious acceptance problem, they will lack of support in order to experience an optimum growth during that phase of life.

Family pattern and negative life events during childhood

Personal loss and conflict, associated with parents or romantic attachments are one of the commonest reasons for suicide amongst students. Physical or sexual abuse, family feud played a part in suicide contemplation as well. Usually, suicidal youth will leave a note or tracks that they are about to suicide. Like the diary, short notes of apologies, so on and so forth. More often, suicidal students want to escape the pressure from demands of the environment or from psychological aspects that the truth is a painful unbearable fact to handle. Broken families and traumatic experiences e.g. rape, mental torture, etc. leave a scar for life in the child especially when the child is unable to manage with the aftermaths of trauma. There are evidences that suggest suicidal students often come from destructive families with more than one factor risks. The effects are cumulative and these problems are usually not known because suicides are more likely to refrain from seeking help from others. Here are a few negative aspects to take note of a dysfunctional family that often characterizes cases of suicidal students:

Family with the history of suicide.
Alcohol and substance abuse member in the family.
Abusive family (physically, mentally or sexually).
Divorce and separation of family
Very high or very low demands of standards from the parents.
Lack of attention and care from family members.
Cognitive style and personality

It is arguable between the relationship of a certain suicidal trait and an array of cognitive style and personality that risk suicides amongst young people. It is generally equivocal and ambivalent because suicidal patterns vary amongst different individuals. The following traits are observed in a suicidal youth, particularly students during adolescence:

Instability in mood.
Aggressive and needs anger management.
Anti-social
High impulsiveness
Inability to grasp realities and rigid mentality, often in their own world of illusion.
Great feeling of worthlessness and despair.
Anxiety and inferiority.
Provocative behaviour towards others including family and classmates.
Ambivalent relationships with the society (family, friends, people).

Suicidal behaviour is overrated amongst school children and adolescents with the following psychiatric disorders:

Anxiety disorders and Depression

It is known from studies that have proven the connection between anxiety disorder and suicide. Whilst traits of anxiety appear to be independent of depression, its effect always leads to psychosomatic symptoms if not treated. Unlike depression, anxiety disorder is prominent to detect and victim will always shows signs of worries and unhappiness with themselves.

Discussion about depression should be taken seriously. Depression is often beyond recognition. Students may seem fairly disappointed or angry at minor disturbances and may never considered suicide. But if the symptoms of depression last for more than a week or so without improvement, help is needed. The signs of depression noticed amongst students or youth include:

Utter degree of sadness
Gradual withdrawal from everything.
Student becomes recluse and isolated.
School performance dropped with no apparent reasons.
Loss of interest in activities that student used to enjoy.
Feelings of worthlessness, hopelessness, helplessness
Lack of motivation.
Differences in sleeping habits and fatigue.
Change in appetite and eating patterns.
Self-neglect and self-hatred.
Physical complaints, sad thoughts or death.
Anger management needed for reckless attitude and temper.
Substance abuse.
Restlessness and agitation with one self or others.

School students with depression symptoms oftentimes present anti social behavior and both are precursor to suicide. It is noticed that depressed female student will be more silent and withdrawn from others, whereas on their male counterpart, students of that gender becomes aggressive and disrupted and seek a great deal of attention. Prior to that, students can kill themselves too without having to be depressed and they can also be in a state of depression without killing themselves.

Substance abuse

Students who abused alcohol and drugs are often linked to suicide. Teenagers are oftentimes found to have committed the act of suicide after consuming the substances. Sometimes, students used these substances to ease their stress and depression. In another case, youth whom have never thought of suicide may have done so after taken alcohol because alcohol suppresses rationale thinking. Simply, their actions are based on an impulsive act which leads them to ending their lives even so they might never have contemplated suicide when they are sober.

Eating disorders

Eating disorders happen mostly to the female genders whom are dissatisfied with their own bodies. In the eye of the society, thin slender girls are objects of desire. The media often portrays catwalk models, who are skinny and scrawny. In schools, fat students are always being sneered and jeered as well as being outcast. Anorexic and bulimic girls are susceptible towards depression and suicide risk for anorexics are as much as 20 times more than youth in general.

Psychotic disorders

Albeit, we hardly heard of Malaysian students suffering from severe psychiatric disorders like the schizophrenia or manic-depressive disorder, those affected are still in jeopardy with suicide risks. But most psychotic youths started off with other risk factors, such as excessive smoking and substance abuse.

Current negative life events as triggers of suicidal behavior

As aforementioned due to inherited genetic factors, destructive families and negative aspects in life, students of this age find themselves susceptible towards suicide because when current negative life events happen in concurrent with their condition they find it difficult to cope furthermore. This susceptibility makes it difficult to cope with negative life events adequately, and that said, stressful life events precede suicide. They reminds of the student of sense of hopelessness and despair.

2.0 How Schools can Prevent Suicide

Usually, suicidal students hardly attempt suicides within the school compound. But when the outbreak of a student’s suicide takes place, even off school’s territory, the news will shock others, causing extreme emotional distress amongst students, staff, and parents whilst school activities will come to halt for weeks before it is resumed. Hence, schools play an important role for preventing suicides. Many young students whom are affected by mood disorders or substance abuse later on contemplate suicide. Whilst the other emotional setbacks linked to suicide includes conduct disorders, aggression, split personality disorder, and intense feeling degree of hopelessness (Berman, Jobes, and Silverman, 2006).

Here, the school’s responsibility and roles to play are summarized by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) (Poland and Lieberman, 2003):

2.1 Detection/ Awareness

School administration and staff personnel should take note of students’ behaviour for signs of suicide. Interaction on a regular basis is encouraged amongst the school and students. School counselor must play his or her responsibility in helping problematic students before any occurrence of suicide.

2.2 Parent notification

When awareness is created, any changes in attitudes or suspicious acts arise the school should update the parents or guardian of student’s. Face to face discussion is recommended to come about ways of preventing the student from suicide, which includes close supervision or referral to professionals. Also, a record of victim’s parent and victim should be kept confidential.

2.3 Support for students at risk of suicide

The school, psychologists and counselors, should monitor and support suicidal students. Counseling and follow-up services shall be recommended.

2.4 School-Based Suicide Prevention Programs

Schools should train teachers and staffs to help recognize students at risk of suicide. This can be done through training and appropriate mechanisms necessary. These mechanisms include a series of programs specially designed to counteract suicidal risks. Schools must heed these vital steps to control suicide among their students:

O School-based suicide prevention program and school-based mental health services

Health screening, mental health survey and educational activities are carried out at school level to help students recognize and seek help when needed. Programs like health promotion program and risk prevention can be effective if made comprehensive to students.

O Suicide prevention gate keeping program

People who have regular interaction and contact with students in school are teachers. They need to know how to recognize students’ behavioural patterns and warning signs. Also, teachers need to be actively involved in dialogue to explore the risk of suicide amongst students and to ensure that the victim must receive proper guidance and treatment when it is necessary. Records must be kept up to date and problematic students must be scrutinized.

O School crisis preparation and response plan

This prepares the school in the case of emergency, from natural disaster to violence within the school. The school crisis preparation plan should include procedures of preventing self-destructive students as well as students in the midst of contemplation. Also, guidance must be taken into account as a reference for teachers and staffs to respond such cases when such tragedy arises.

O Postvention

Such term is used to measure preventions to be implemented after a tragedy takes place. The purpose of this program is to lessen the risk of those witnesses to be affected directly after the incident. Suicide or unexpected death of another student can result in a traumatized individual. This program includes grief counseling for students and school party. Postvention helps to identify other students whom may be at risk after a trauma, and to support students. Sometimes, school works with the media to ensure such coverage of news does not lead to additional risks of suicide.

3.0Suggestions: A guide for Teachers and School Staffs

It takes time for a student to attempt suicide. Rarely, suicide occurs out of sudden with no warning. Most cases, teachers and members of the society who observe the victim on a daily basis is able to distinguish a behaviour of norm and suicidal. The following are three (3) steps of prevention: before, during and after a suicide:

3.1 General prevention: before any suicidal incident

Early recognition helps save lives. Experts advised that it is not a wise approach to teach about suicide explicitly. Rather, they recommend tackling this problem by replacing issues of suicide with a positive mental health approach.

a) Mental health of schoolteachers and other school staff

Teachers are the role model in any causes. A positive teacher is able to change the outlook of a person’s perspective in a brighter light. Hence, strengthening the mental health of a teacher only can he or she guides the students into the correct path in life.

b) Students’ self-esteem

Positive self-esteem is vital to protect students against suicide. One with topnotch of esteem will cope better with stress even how difficult one’s situation may be. To nurture positivity amongst the students, a few rules should not be taken lightly. Firstly, students must never been pressured constantly to fare better than other students. They must always look on the brighter side of life experiences in order to forge a positive identity. Every student should be cherished as who they are and be accepted for what they are. In addition, the school should work on introducing life skills by having experts giving talks and later on assimilate a positive workshop as part of the curriculum.

Most importantly, the programme is able to send out messages of knowledge to peers on how to be supportive and seek help if necessary. Plus, the school should revise and review the education system to enhance the development of every student holistically.

c) Emotional expression

Students should learn on how to express their emotions appropriates and to take charge of how they feel seriously. When things gone awry, they should confide in parents, teachers, adults, doctor, friends or even religious advisors.

d) Bullying and violence at school

Issues on bullying have been a serious matter for ages since bullying make suicide seemed more pleasant to students to escape from humiliation and personal dignity. Because the victim could not determine what others had done to him/her, the victim had only his own life to control. Thus, specific skills should be taught in schools to prevent bullying and violence. This way, only the school can provide a sanctuary for safety and intolerance of the negative aspects.

e) Information about care services

In Malaysia, Befrienders are not unfamiliar to the society these days. Students should be aware about the availability of these services and by making it accessible to the young people, so that they can utilize the help lines in the case of crisis and psychiatric emergency. To include, there are over 240 Health Centres nationwide in Malaysia that have psychiatric units and also counseling unit for help. The latest news up to date, Prof Hu

This essay will set out to explore Durkheims concept of social facts, and will seek to explain the importance of these facts in relation to his work. Durkheim identified a group phenomena within society which he claimed could be studied independently. These phenomena referred to the different acts that we all engage in within society, such as values, beliefs, and laws that we follow, he referred to these as social facts. (Giddens, 1971)

A social fact is defined in two ways; first is that they are external to the individual, and secondly they have some sort of control over the individual, such as a law that the individual knows exists and therefore certain behaviour will result in some sort of penalty.

Social facts were an important aspect of Durkheim’s work, as he was attempting to see a role for the social which was distinguished from the psychological and biological aspect of life and the individual. He identified that these facts are rooted within society in group beliefs and values; they are not something that affects us in a psychological or biological way, such as eating and sleeping, as although these are done by all within society they are a natural biological process. (Morrison, 1995)

Durkheim identified two different types of social fact; material and non-material. Durkheim saw material social facts as stemming from institutions such as religion, the governments, and law institutions. These are the physical structures within society that exert influence on individuals within society. The nonmaterial social facts come from areas that form our moral codes, beliefs and values which do not have a physical presence. Durkheim’s view was that sociologists should study these social facts in an attempt to find the cause and also the functions of them; whether they are used to pass on values to children to maintain social order, or as a form of control for the institutions. (Durkheim, 1938)

Durkheim’s theory of social facts was initially a breakthrough, as it gave way to study entire societies rather than just the individual. Durkheim developed the idea of studying social facts thorough many studies of his own.

Durkheim theorised that through the study of statistical data it would be possible to view society in an objective manner. One of Durkheim’s most famous studies was the study of Suicide. He sought to explore this as a social fact, and not one which most consider to be a very personal, if not very anti-social act.

He saw suicide as being a social current which are characteristics of society, but may not be as stable as other social facts such as citizenship and work.

The social currents in the case of suicide are shown as suicide rates, a statistical representation of social facts according to Durkheim.

Durkheim’s study showed that there was a pattern within suicide rates amongst different societies and different groups within those societies. This pattern was clear amongst different societies and although the pattern changed, it stayed apparent across all societies that he studied. (Durkheim, 1951)

One of the main patterns that emerged was in religion. Durkheim saw religion as a social fact, which was a controlling factor amongst those who followed it. Therefore to have a pattern amongst suicide emerge due to this control was a breakthrough in terms of his research within social facts.

Durkheim’s research illustrated that there was difference in suicide rates within Protestant and Catholic countries and communities. There were a higher number of suicides within Protestant society then Catholic ones. All branches of religion have a negative view of suicide and condemn it in various ways, therefore Durkheim theorised that there must be some other factor within these two that causes the difference in suicide rates, such as social organisation and family structure. In further studies Durkheim finds that when a family is more integrated the suicide rates drop. (Durkheim, 1951)

Durkheim’s studies led him to believe that differences in suicide rates can be attributed to the degree of integration into society and the regulation of society. Durkheim considers the ‘degree to which collective sentiments are shared’ (Ritzer, 1992) to be the key to the level of integration. As Catholics have a more integrated society and family then Protestants this can be the key attribute as to why Protestants have a higher suicide rate; the main difference being the social organisation between the two religions and how this differs greatly. Durkheim also acknowledged that those who have larger families are less likely to commit suicide then those in smaller families. As Catholics are renowned for having large family organisations this can be seen as another cause for the differences in suicide rates.

The conclusion that Durkheim came to from this study is that the social suicide rate can be explained sociologically. He argued that different groups within society have different consciousness and it is these that can produce different social currents which lead to a difference in suicide rates. Durkheim claims that by studying these different groups within society some of the differences can be analysed which then means the effect on suicide rates can be seen, and also changes within the society in the collective conscious can lead to a change within these currents in society, which again can lead to a difference in the suicide rate patterns within these different groups. (Durkheim, 1951)

Durkheim’s Suicide study was groundbreaking in the sense that it showed how social aspects of life can be used in order to explain the actions of individuals as opposed to the psychological and biological causes. The study illustrated Durkheim’s ideas behind social facts and showed how suicide rates can be an expression of the social currents that can affect the social facts that occur within society.

Durkheim’s method was seen as radical at the time as it made sociology a standalone subject amongst the social sciences. With his method of research and his theories he managed to distance the social from the psychological and biological and be seen as a true subject in its own right. The empirical studies that he did showed that social facts based on the collective conscious couldn’t be categorised within psychological or biological as they existed outside of the individual conscience.

The work he did was important for anthropological studies as well as sociological ones as many researchers after him gathered empirical research of social facts in order to explain different social phenomena.

Durkheim’s work and method of analysis paved the way for analysis today as his method is still used. Social causes are now recognised within causes of suicide and are often used in new studies of suicide rates. Durkheim’s work helped researchers in understanding the social factors that can help explain the phenomena of social facts, and how a social explanation now needs to be found when studying different aspect of society.

Durkheim had created a theory based around the collective conscious which he had reinforced with his social facts, and with this he had created a way to study the effect of these social facts on social phenomena. The methods he had created had completely revolutionised the way in which research could be conducted, and the theories could interpret the behaviour seen in difference societies. He had made way for different thinking in regards to anthropological research and made it possible to study entire societies instead of an individual lost within a society. Many theorists since Durkheim have developed further his ideas in their own research into social facts and explaining the difference causes for behaviour within our society.

The concepts of a nation in which individuals are left open the idea identifying with a territory calling it their identity gave way for the concept of nationalism. Nationalism in its context makes people conscious of the fact that they belong to a nation. This coupled with sentiments of security looking for advancement of the nation will enable visualise nationalism as the whole process of forming and maintaining nations or nation. [1]

Like Marx and Engels agreed with the theory of ideology as a system of beliefs that falsely stimulates the awareness of workers under an economic system established on private ownership of capital, Nationalism employs the concept of nation to achieve its political objectives thus serving as a political ideology.

Whether nationalism depicts an ideology in the sense that it can be seen as a political movement or a collective sentiment of shared identity or a form of loyalty or attachment to the state or a process of nation-building or a set of symbols and myths expressed through a common language or a proactive sentiment and behaviour towards protecting and enhancing the nation’s cultural heritage, it still has its philosophies centred around the visual modalities of psychological impacts in a community to the end that the nation is believed to be the vault for supreme loyalty [2] .

Nation in this context is referred to as a “large social group integrated by a combination of various kinds of objective relationships which includes economic, political, linguistic, cultural, religious, geographical, historical, and their subjective reflection in collective consciousness” [3]

In harmony with its own system of beliefs, Nationalism assumes that in an international pluralism perspective the world is naturally divided into different distinct existence called ‘nations’, each with its own indigenous right to exist, self-rule and be free from foreign encroachment. Although nationalism is perceived to lack political content rather encompasses national identity [4] it assumes that in light of politics being legally authorized, the nation is the ultimate source of political power for the person who rules it. It further supports that each nation has the right to determine it one’s own fate and to embark on its course of action without compulsion [5] . No wonder Breuilly referred to Nationalism as “political movements seeking or exercising state power and justifying such actions with nationalist arguments.” [6]

Taking a close look at how famous individuals define nationalism and comparing views, Handler, described “Nationalism in an anthropologic perspective as an ideology about individuated being. It is an ideology concerned with boundedness, continuity, and homogeneity encompassing diversity. It is an ideology in which social reality, conceived in terms of nationhood, is endowed with the reality of natural things” [7] while Breuilly from a historical perspective relates nationalism with political movements seeking or exercising state power. [8]

Accepting that there are normative differences between nationalist movements does not put in plain words why nationalism has taken such different forms in different societies. Therefore approaching this from an analytical angle will better explain the issue through classifying these dissimilarities.

Beginning with the class of nationalism that absorbs or incorporates culturally distinctive territories in a given state, this State-building type of nationalism which emerged as a result of the premeditated efforts of key leaders who turned a multicultural population into a population of uniform culture is exemplified in the period between the sixteenth and twentieth century when the leaders of England and France attempted to promote the growth of homogeneity by causing populations with distinct cultures in the Celtic regions to assimilate to their own culture. But in as much as this type of nationalism tends to focus primarily on culture, the underlying principle is often motivated by the effects of economic geography on the controlling influence of the state. Conversely, key rulers of a certain culture can unify their country by expelling or exterminating populations of unfamiliar culture.

In order to understand the general inclusive concept of nationalism as an ideology, a system of assumptions and standards that warrants the term and gives it meaning needs to be examined. This is why Michael Freeden logically laid out various key elements of the core structure of nationalism which in turn assists in constructing ideas that argue about and deliberate on the ideology and its application. Topping the list is “the prioritisation of a particular group – the nation – as a key constituting and identifying framework for human beings and their practices”. Followed by, “a positive valorisation is assigned to one’s own nation, granting it specific claims over the conduct of its members”. Thirdly, “the desire to give politico-institutional expression to the first two core concepts”. Fourthly, “the space and time are considered to be crucial determinants of social identity” and lastly, “‘a sense of belonging and membership in which sentiment and emotion play an important role”. [9]

Taking a critical look at the first element of nationalism, notice that nation in this context does not need any particular format to be clearly expressed because it might be envisaged as an entity of the same kind or with different and diverse ethnic, religious, or political backgrounds. Yet, regardless of this imagination, the state of being a nation will always inhibit other modes of categorising the humanity of a particular nation. In light of the above, recognizing that liberal nationalism adopts the existence of entities with the sources of identity and illiberal nationalism incorporates other areas under nationality, therefore in a similar way, the outcome of these nationalist classifications may either be affected equally or given support, the possible ways of assigning political ‘community’ in different categories will be reached. In the Functional aspect of this classification, people often identify with functional rather than territorial groups. This was why Marx, applied his awareness of this belief when he said: “Workers of the world unite!” [10] , a request for workers all over to become unified against the unfair conditions they shared, irrespective of their nationalities.

While the second method is focused on religion which ascertains and sets off loyalties that hardly lean on territorial location or boundaries. In many cases a factor of time and uncontrollable conditions can dramatically change religion as well as gender and class. The third method revolves around regionally and globally.

Having looked at the first key element of the core structure of nationalism, let us examine the second element which explains a nation that identifies with a pluralistic community where members with different ethnic, religious, or political backgrounds exist has slim chances to establish or make certain broad principles or rules centred on its expectations on the behavioural attributes of its members. Conversely, a nation that identifies with a uniform type of homogenous culture has the tendency to control its members. While valorisation in this context includes all spheres of “loyalty demands” and “superiority claims” there is no definite vital link between racism and nationalism. And even though this statement clearly connected with the former parliamentary government of Europe, for instance, the victory of National Front Fascist, Jean-Marie Le Pen in becoming one of the final two candidates to settle a tied election by running for the French presidency in 2002, the reverse was the case for liberal classes of nationalism belonging to the era of colonies becoming independent from the country that used to control them. [11]

Avner made a very important point concerning the forth element of nationalism that over the years, people give emotional attachment to their land [12] . For instance scenarios likened to Africans seeing themselves as sons of their motherland (nation). This depicts a broad view of the concept of nationalism which refers to its land boundaries, people living within the territory; history of people of the land as well as their culture and traditions usually makes people have a sense of belonging to the nation.

CONCLUSION:

After minutely examining the various subjective explanations of the meaning of nationalism both in an ideological perspective and with reference to nation, it is obvious that nationalism is a multilateral and powerful political ideology. Despite the fact that there are normative differences between nationalist movements, in a conclusive way, the elements of nationalism that served in constructing ideas that argue about and deliberate on the ideology and its significance.

Jonung defines the presence of occupational gender segregation as when women and men are differently spread across occupations than is consistent with their overall shares of employment, irrespective of the nature of job allocation. Gender segregation mean when the percentage of one gender is higher than that of males and females in an occupation. It reflects the gender differences in employment opportunity. The number of occupation with segregation against women is far greater than the number of occupations with segregation against men. Occupational gender segregation consists of two main component dimensions known as horizontal and vertical segregation (Blackburn et al, 2000).

Horizontal segregation is known as under or over representation of certain group in the workplace which is not ordered by any criterion (Bettio and Verashchagina, 2009). According to Anker (1998) horizontal segregation is an absolute and universal characteristic of contemporary socio-economic systems.

It focuses mainly when men and women possess different physical, emotional and mental capabilities. Such discrimination occurs when women are categorized as less intelligent, hormonal and sensitive (Acker 1990). Women are labeled as unreliable and dependent workers when they are pregnant. They are less competent as they will not work as long and hard as others. They become more stressful and sensible to tiny issues happen in the workplace. Martin (1994) declared that in masculine management style, most of the time women possess ‘soft skills’ and men possess ‘hard skills’. It is this concept which creates gender segregation in the workplace.

Vertical segregation referred to the under or over representation of a clearly identifiable group of workers in the workplace at the top of an ordering based on ‘desirable’ attributes such as income, prestige, authority and power.

Huffman (1995) finds that women do not possess enough supervisory authority at work, in education, occupational experience and prestige. One reason that women lack authority is because most women are more concentrated in female-dominated occupations which comprise fever position of authority than male-dominated occupations. Moreover, it is viewed that men’s have greater status value, that is men’s personality are more valuable than women’s and they are much more competent. (Broverman et al. 1972; Deaux and Kite 1987; Eagly 1987).

Men possess more powerful position in the workplace (Bridges & Nelson 1989). Women’s wage rates are lower than men’s even when their qualifications are similar. As women enter an occupation, this reduces the amount of prestige associated with the task and men leave these occupations.

Sex discrimination-discrimination, harassment and glass ceiling

In many parts of the world, women have experienced breakthroughs in their rights in employment. Despite these advances, women from every country and culture continue to face sex discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace. The international community has recognized both discrimination based on sex in the terms and conditions of employment and sexual harassment as violations of the fundamental human rights of women (Gudrun and Danya, 1998)

Although sex discrimination is prohibited by law, it continues to be a widespread problem for working women. There are three forms of sex discrimination that have an effect on women in organizations: overt discrimination, sexual harassment and the glass ceiling. Each has negative effects on women’s status and ability to perform well at work.

Overt discrimination

Overt discrimination is defined as the use of gender as a decisive factor for employment-related decisions. This type of discrimination was targeted by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibited making decisions based on sex in employment-related matters such as hiring, firing, and promotions.

It consist such behaviours as to refuse to hire women, to pay them inequitably or even to steer them to “women’s jobs”. Overt discrimination also led to occupational sex segregation where jobs are classified by low pay, low status and short career ladders (Reskin, 1997).

Sexual Harassment

MacKinnon (1979:1) defined sexual harassment as “the unwanted imposition of sexual requirements in the context of a relationship of unequal power”. As in overt discrimination, sexual harassment is a persistent gendered problem for women in the workplace around the world. Sexual harassment, a form of sex discrimination, is but one manifestation of the larger problem of employment-related discrimination against women. It now appears obvious that sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination.

There are three psychological dimensions of sexual harassment that continued to persist worldwide: sexual coercion, gender harassment and unwanted sexual attention ((Fitzgerald et al., 1995; Gelfand et al., 1995). The case of sexual harassment in the workplace is mainly due to obtain more power and status than the opposite sex (e.g., Baugh, 1997; McKinney, 1992; Piotrkowski, 1998; Riger, 1991; Welsh, 1999)

Statistical discrimination is another form of sex discrimination in the workplace, it consists of sex-typed job assignment (i.e. “error discrimination”-Aigner & Cain 1977, England & McCreary 1987, Bielby & Baron 1986a). For example, employers segregate men into jobs with physical demands and women into jobs demanding social skills (Bielby & Baron 1984, Farkas et al 1991). However, employers’ use of sex in job assignments exceeds technical or economic justifications: within the “mixed-sex” occupations that either sex could presumably perform, small differences in job requirements were accompanied by large differences in sex composition (Bielby & Baron 1986a:782).

The Glass ceiling

The term ‘the glass ceiling’ refers to invisible or artificial barriers that do not allow women from advancing past a certain level (Federal Glass Ceiling Commission -FGCC, 1997; Morrison and von Glinow, 1990).

These barriers reflect “discrimination … a deep line of demarcation between those who prosper and those left behind.” The glass ceiling is the “unseen, yet unbreachable barrier that keeps minorities and women from rising to the upper rungs of the corporate ladder, regardless of their qualifications or achievements” (Federal Glass Ceiling Commission 1995b:4; emphasis added). This official description suggests that the definition of a glass ceiling must recognize that it reflects a job inequality that is unexplained by a person’s past “qualifications or achievements”; it reflects labor market discrimination, not just labor market inequality. The usual, but imperfect, method for detecting discrimination is to look for inequalities that are unexplained by prior characteristics of the employees. Inequalities that derive from past discrimination in education or training or from choices that people make to pursue nonmarket goals such as family, volunteer work, or leisure are not generally considered as part of a glass ceiling. Therefore, glass ceiling inequality represents a gender or racial difference that is not explained by other job-relevant characteristics of the employee.

The glass ceiling is a third type of discrimination that affects women in the workplace and it is an important factor for women who do not get enough access to power and status in organizations. It also includes gender stereotypes, lack of opportunities for women to get promotion and prevent women to get higher income than men.

Hell’s Angel is book that gives you the brutal truth about the life after war in America. It gives personal insights to how the sub cultural life in the United States was impacted by the consequences of war. The book isn’t intended for the politically sensitive or readers who expect a romantic perspective of the post-war sub-cultural life in America.

It is a compelling and captivating personal account of a Sony Barger’s life and the scrapes that he managed to get into. Born in California in the year 1938, Barger spent his younger years growing up in Oakland. This was between the early 1940s and 1950s. His mother abandoned him when he was hardly four months old. Barger lived with an alcoholic father and an elder sister. He relay s that he was suspended from school on more than one occasion for physically attacking teachers and fighting with other students.

However looking back at those times now, Barger states that he doesn’t look upon himself as a bully or aberrant person. Despite of losing interest in school he continued to spend a major part of his time reading and working at a grocery store. He emphasizes that he didn’t resort to robbery or stealing. When he enlisted in the army in 1955, he was kicked out fourteen years later after it was found that he was underage (sixteen) and had submitted a forged certificate.

His return from the army led him to a few tedious jobs but he didn’t continue with them for long. He was on the lookout for a purpose in his life, a reason why he existed and he was to discover with time that his purpose in life would later turn out to be a member of a motorcycle club.

While still in high school Barger organized his first club called “Earth Angels” in 1954. Two years later, in 1956, he became the founding member of his first bike club namely Oakland Panthers. He left the club as fast as he had managed to make it because he felt a lacking of unity. In his own words said that he quit the club very early even though he was one of the starting members. Although they use to party a lot and he use to love it, but then there more selfishness than brotherhood.

He talked to some fellow bikers about starting another club, and suggested they name it “Hell’s Angels” after a patch that one of these fellows, Boots Don Reeves wore. The patch had a skull on it wearing an aviator cap and a set of wings. They went along with the idea and got more patches of the same design made in April 1957(Lavigne, 2004).

What is deviance?

“Deviance in a sociological context describes actions or behaviors that violate cultural norms including formally-enacted rules (e.g., crime) as well as informal violations of social norms (e.g., rejecting folkways and mores). It is the purview of sociologists, psychologists, psychiatrists, and criminologists to study how these norms are created, how they change over time and how they are enforced.

Stephen Pfohl has described nine methods of conceiving deviant behavior.”

It is evident from the book that Sonny Barger was totally engaged in deviant behavior. However he failed to perceive his behavior as deviant or unnatural. He was convinced that he was doing “normal” or socially acceptable things like reading and working which he believed would balance out his deviant behavior.

The Classical Perspective

The Classical perspective as described by Pfohl was evolved from three major elements:

Rational choice

Deterrence

Incapacitation and Just Desert

The element of personal choice widely influences deviant behavior. People engage in deviant behavior on the basis of what their concept of rationality or rational choice is. Sonny Barger didn’t perceive that it was irrational to forge his birth certificate to get enlisted in the army. Why? Because people tend to choose any kind of behavior no matter if it is conforming or deviant, in Barger’s case the latter, based on their personal rational calculation. Central to this rational calculation is a cost and benefit analysis. Barger found more pleasure in deviance because it maximized his personal pleasure. Though the classical theory states that “choice can be controlled through the perception and understanding of the potential pain or punishment that will follow an act judged to be in the violation of social good” however Barger’s case was different. A complete understanding of the consequences of his act couldn’t make him stop what he was doing (Sampson, 1967).

General Deterrence is defined as follows:

“People will engage in criminal and deviant activities if they do not fear apprehension and punishment.”

Sony Barger’s case if summarized in a line can be defined as that of general deterrence. Since the beginning of his engagement in deviant behavior, he was aware of what the punishment would be but fear of punishment and apprehension didn’t exist in his mind.

The Social Disorganization Theory

This theory is believed to be one of the most important theories put forward by Chicago School. The theory directly liked high crime rates to ecological characteristics of the neighborhood. Young people from disadvantaged neighborhoods were believed to be participants of a subculture where being delinquent were an approved behavior. The youth acquired criminality through a process of social interaction in social and cultural settings.

The social theory stands on the basic principle that the location of an individual is equally important if not more with the age, gender and race of a person in determining whether they would involve themselves in illegal or criminal activities (Anne, 2004).

Taking Sonny Barger and his book into account it is evident from his family life and neighborhood description that he had a strong impact of the both on his personality and life which led him to engage in criminal activities later on in his life. Abandoned by his mother at the age of four months, and compelled to live with an alcoholic father Barger found solace in his deviant behavior. Assaulting teachers, forging birth certificates and attacking fellow students at school was all part of what he considered to be normal.

Barger has rejected the conception that Hell’s Angels was a criminal organization despite of admitting that its members have had a criminal record, most of us were card-carrying felons. He has admitted the usage of drugs when he said that acid was something we all had in common, selling illegal drug sold heroin from the late sixties into the early seventies directly to junkies, forging driver’s licenses was also printing up fake driver’s licenses.

The social disorganization theory goes on to say that some ethnicities even tend to encourage criminal activity since it is “not considered criminal or wrong”. Research has found that delinquent behavior is highest in those areas that suffer from economic problems. Economic instability and weakness is one of the major drivers of delinquent behavior.

Post World War 2 and in the 1940s and 1950s, Oakland’s shipbuilding industry disappeared and a decline in automobile industry was also observed. Jobs became scarce in this situation. The city was one of the six cities in the county that experienced one of the largest strike movements in history. All this led to the economic instability and downfall of the city and its residents. Financial instability and insecurity may have also triggered Sony Barger’s behavior of deviance and nonconformance. The lack of sense of protection and security that he faced as a child from his home, led him to constitute a club which had members who believed in supporting the fellow members and being united in even the toughest times. The story of Hell’s Angels Motorcycle club represents the best example of brotherhood in which men can even fight to death for each other without regard what the cause is. They stood up for themselves and they believe to be there no matter what happens.

The Functionalist Perspective

The functionalist perspective was shaped by Harvard sociologist Talcott Parsons during the mid of 20th century. However it has its roots in Emile Durkheim’s work. The definition of functionalism is as follows:

Functionalism has a concept that everyone in the society has some kind of purpose, which is the cause of existence.

This school of thought believes that people who are indulging in deviant behavior and nonconformance to societal norms and regulations serve a purpose as important as those who conform to the norms. A widely quoted example to explain this phenomenon is that crime, that is believed to be a nuisance by people all over the globe, is believed to serve a purpose by functionalists. It creates the justification or need of employment of lawmakers, police force, criminal investigators and more. It was concluded by Durkheim that crime and deviance serve three major functions for the society:

Deviant behavior reaffirms social norms. It helps clarify them

It promotes the concept of social unity

It questions or challenges the status quo

If Sony Barger’s life and happenings are looked at from the functionalist perspective, it rationalizes his doings. Despite of his denials that Hell’s Angels is a criminal organization or that he had engaged into any social and moral wrongdoings, his life’s account in the book will help readers realize the importance of conformance to norms. Deviance can prove to be beneficial for the society sometimes. Like in the case of Sony Barger who was convicted of conspiracy to violate federal law to commit murder and served a 4 year sentence in prison, people reading the book will realize how non-conformance will result in a negative repercussion.

Conclusion

In conclusion Sony Barger’s book “Hell’s Angel, The Life and Times of Sonny Barger and the Hell’s Angels Motorcycle Club” are a practical application of some of the major theories that have been analyzed by Stephen Pfohl in “Images of Deviance and control”. Stephen Pfohl’s work helps one gain a deeper insight on Sony Barger’s sociological perceptions and ideology. It helps you understand the reasons or factors that are behind the behavior that was adopted by Barger throughout his life.

Anomie and forced division of labour for Durkheim and rationalization and bureaucracy for Weber summed up the problem of industrial societies. Discuss.

Introduction

Emile Durkheim

Max Weber

Conclusion

Bibliography

Introduction

Anomie represents a concept that was introduced by Emile Durkheim (1997, pp. 303-304) in “The Division of Labor in Society”, which was first printed in 1893. Durkheim (1997, pp. 303-304) utilized the word to describe the deregulation of society whereby the rules representing how people should behave with respect to their interaction with each other was breaking down thus creating confusion as to what in what others expected from one another. In said book, Durkheim (1997, p. 184) advises that that term is where the moral and social norms are not clear, and the removal of behavioural limits represented a path to deviant behaviour. Durkheim is credited with turning sociology into a science as well as its installation as part of the academic curriculum on France, and is considered by many to be the father of sociology (emile-durkheim.com, 2006).

Max Weber (cepa.newschool.edu, 2007) is also recognized as one of the founders of sociology. He advises us on many instances that in the world of modernity, that the gods have deserted us (Turner, 1993, pp. 115-117). As Durkheim focused upon a set of social features that represented the subject of sociology, Weber essentially is considered as defining sociology (Marxists Internet Archive, 1999). This exercise shall delve into concepts and terms with respect to how anomie and forced division of labour under Durkheim, and rationalization and bureaucracy for Weber summed up the problem of industrial societies.

Durkheim

In defining sociology as an academic subject, Durkheim separated sociology from psychology, philosophy as well as economics and other disciplines through stating that sociologists study features of group life (About Sociology, 2007). Durkheim defines solidarity as representing the cohesion of society’s human groupings into social unity, which can consist of mechanical as well as organic (Durkheim, 1997, p. 13-14). Mechanical solidarity represents a condition whereby the individuals within a society are linked via a ‘conscience collective’ (Durkheim, 1997, pp. 61-65). The preceding represents a condition whereby the belief systems and the sentiments that are common in the citizens within the same society (Durkheim, 1997, pp. 31-33). Thus, the individuals within the society are connected, or linked to each other as a result of their common beliefs, thereby belonging to society as opposed to belonging to themselves (Durkheim, 1997, pp. 31-33). A horde is what Durkheim (1997, pp. 126-127) termed a group or collection of people whereby their cohesiveness is founded in resemblances. Such a group, horde, has no organization or form, and within this group the collective membership look upon each other as kin, whether or not such a relationship exists by blood or union (Durkheim, 1997, pp. 126-127). Within such a group, horde, punishments and responsibility are collective in action and nature and represent the more primitive, or non evolved societal types whereby individual personalities are submerged in the collectivity of the group (Durkheim, 1997, pp. 126-127).

As individuals come to rely upon others, outside of themselves for various aspects of life, they have, or are moving towards an organic solidarity (Durkheim, 1997, pp. 69-71). People become and are reliant upon each other whereby individuals have parts to contribute to society as a part of the whole, whereby responsibility to others is a trait as well as moral character (Durkheim, 1997, p. 77). The foregoing is important in understanding the interactions within society that he termed as the moral density (Durkheim, 1997, p. 201). The preceding, moral density is proportionately linked to the division of labor within a society (Turner, 1993, p. 3). Moral density represents an important factor in understanding what causes increased division of labor.

Durkheim’s (1993, pp. 113) believes in this revolved around two facets that he thought were responsible for the preceding, material density and social volume. The former, Durkheim states is (Turner, 1993, p. 113):

“Social life is based on a substratum whose size and form alike are determined. It is made up of the mass of individuals that constitute society, the manner of their geographical distribution and the nature and configuration of the whole range of phenomena that affect collective relations. The social substratum varies in relation to the size or density of the population, to whether it is concentrated in towns or scattered in rural areas, to the layout of the towns and houses, to whether the space occupied by the society concerned is large or small, to the kind of frontiers by which it is bounded, to the transport links which run the length and breadth of it, etc, On the other hand, the makeup of this substratum directly or indirectly affects all social phenomena, in the same way as all psychic phenomena are in mediate or immediate relation to the state of the brain. So these are all problems that are patently concerned with sociology and which, as they all refer to the same object, must be part of one science. It is this science we propose to call social morphology.”

Social volume, Durkheim states is (Turner, 1993, p. 116):

“…as the various elements constituting the group grow more numerous, yet without at the same time ceasing to be closely connected, individuals can only hold their own if they become differentiated, if each chooses a task and a lifestyle of his own in this enlarged battlefield, where the intensity of the struggle grows in keeping with the number of the combatants. The division of labor thus becomes the primary condition of social equilibrium. And indeed, this simultaneous increase in the volume and density of societies is the major new element distinguishing the nations of today from those of former times; this is probably one of the principal factors dominating history as a whole; at any rate, it is the cause which explains the transformations which social solidarity has undergone.”

Durkheim (Turner, 1993, pp. 98-99) brings together the facets of anomie, organic solidarity and “the abnormal forms of the division of labor” through “distinguished three pathological forms: the anomic, the enforced division of labor, and ‘another abnormal form’, which might be termed lack of internal organizational coordination”. With respect to the foregoing anomie “is expressed in economic crises, the antagonism between capital and labor, and anarchy in science, arises at times of rapid change, during which new organs and functions develop without a corresponding development of rules of cooperation and therefore of social ties” (Turner, 1993, p. 98). Anomie, represents the rapid as well as radical change in social conditions that presents itself as “the lack of regulation or deregulation” Turner, 1993, p. 98). Durkheim (Turner, 1993, p. 98) explains that the foregoing does not represent a “fundamental crisis of the system, but rather a crisis of adaptation, and continuous contact will eventually produce new rules and a new functional equilibrium between the divided functions, thus assuring social integration”.

Whereas “anomie can be eliminated by the gradual development of new rules, in the case of the enforced division of labor it is ‘these very rules themselves which are the cause of the ills” (Turner, 1993, p. 98). The preceding represents when the rules and underpinnings of society are not responsive to the underlying changes in the fabric of society, and thus the established order is retained by force (Turner, 1993, p. 98). This represents the abnormal form of the division of labor that is representative of privileged positions being held by birth and social standing as opposed to abilities and talents Turner, 1993, p. 99). The condition, asserts can be alleviated through the adoption of “formal equality of opportunity …” as well as “… freedom to choose a profession” (Durkheim Turner, 1993, p. 99).

Max Weber

Breiner (1996, p. 26) advises that the critics of Weber’s approach to social science have issues with his reduction of “all socially interpreted activity to instrumental rationality”. Those who interpret him in a sympathetic manner see “his focus on the interpretation of the meaningful conduct of social agents a strong argument in favor of the subservience of explanation to the rules or everyday understandings under which actions are intelligible” (Breiner, 1996, p. 26). Turner (1993, p. 4) advises us to be circumspect with regard to Weber’s approach to modernism and rationalization as “he remained highly ambiguous about the content and consequences” with regard to the foregoing. The preceding, Turner (1993, p. 5) states that the preceding is a result of “Weber’s ambiguities over capitalism were also expressed in his ambivalent attitudes to socialism as a rational planning of the market”. He, Weber, argues that “socialism was another step in the growth of rational management of resources; socialism represented a further development of the second serfdom—to calculation, planning, and instrumental rationalism” (Turner, 1993, p. 5). Turner (1993, p. 5) further informs us that “main issue in Weber’s political sociology is the absence of any analysis of the processes of democratization, about which Weber remained skeptical, if not dismissive”. He (Turner, 1993, p. 5) supports the preceding in stating that “In this respect, Weber was significantly influenced by Robert Michels’s theory of ‘the iron law of oligarchy’, which suggested that all mass-party organization would come to depend on an elite”.

To further understand Weber’s meaning, before we delve into the preceding further, we must understand vocational politics, which represents a vocation, stating that “For everything that is striven for through political action, operating with violent means and following an ethic of responsibility, endangers ‘the salvation of the soul” (Breiner, 1996, p. 6). Weber continues:

“If, however, one chases after the ultimate good in a war of beliefs, following a pure ethic of absolute ends, then the goals may be damaged and discredited for generations, because responsibility for the consequences are lacking and those diabolic forces which enter into play remain unknown to the actor. These [forces] are inexorable and produce consequences for his action and even for his inner self, to which he must helplessly submit, unless he perceives them”.

His “ambiguity over whether he is giving an impartial general account of the logic of methodical action or a subjective situation-bound account of the multiple logics that constitute the different terrains of action” along with vocational politics have bearing on his concept of rationalization as it tends to skew his view against democracy “by appealing to objective standards of feasibility while maintaining that commitment to either form is a matter of personal choice” (Breiner, 1996, p. 10). The foregoing has direct bearing upon Weber’s concept of rationalization (Breiner, 1996, p. 10).

The preceding thus permits us to explore Weber’s approach and concepts of modernisation within what Turner (1993, p. 12) calls “a Weberian conceptualization of modern social change”. Within modernity the social as well as cultural facets of life do not point us towards an orderly life, but instead “a number of life spheres whose demands are objective and not influenced by the subject” (Breiner, 1996, p. 59). Each of these spheres is represented by “its own logic of action” (Breiner, 1996, p. 59). Turner (1993, p. 16) advises that “In bureaucracy, rationalization produced a system of reliable, dependable decision-making for the realization of public goals”. Weber argues that “Secularization had liberated human beings from the magical world of the ancients”, and that “the very same processes of rationalization threaten to subordinate imagination and inspiration to the demands of standardized routines and technical procedures” (Turner, 1993, pp. 16-17). Turner (1993, p. 17) continues “they threaten to produce a new characterology of soulless, machine-like robots”. The preceding is contained in context in Weber’s address of September 1919 (Turner, 1993, p. 17).

“The fate of our age, with its characteristic rationalization and intellectualization and above all the disenchantment of the world is that the ultimate, most sublime values have withdrawn from public life, either into the transcendental realm of mystical life or into the brotherhood of immediate personal relationships between individuals. It is no accident that our greatest art is intimate rather than monumental, nor is it fortuitous that today only in the smallest groups, between individuals, something pulsates in pianissmo which corresponds to the prophetic pneuma which formerly swept through great communities like fire and welded them together”

Conclusion

The bureaucratic maze sees “the projects of political actors may collide not only with the maximizing logic of economic actors seeking power over the market but also with the logic or bureaucracy, which undermines this economic logic” (Briener, 1996, pp. 115-116). In order to overcome the preceding, Weber explains that the political actors “may have to mobilize masses of citizens under party machines” (Briener, 1996, p. 116). Turner (1993, p. 92) explains that under “patrimonialism, at each stage of the tax-gathering exercise and at each level of the bureaucracy, the tax-yield was progressively creamed-off by the bureaucracy”. The bureaucratic nature of the new state systems utilized bureaucratic level to administer programs that were overseen by inefficient levels of management and response to the public good, thus creating a tax based support system that stood upon the back of its supporters (Turner, 1993, p. 93). The preceding stifled creativity and innovation within the system as those in power seeking to maintain their power acted out of their own self interests and political interest first, as opposed to a view to the future that would have benefited their nation as a whole. This defensive posture of holding onto the popular and or accepted views in face of better approaches is a hallmark of bureaucracy which dehumises the human element in support of its own well being and safekeeping.

The bureaucracy nature of industrial societies is still in force today, whereby the conforming to the norm represents the belief systems for the majority of its populations thus making Weber’s “soulless, machine-like robots” Turner, 1993, p. 17)a reality for the lower and middle classes. An upper class still does exist as defined by educational attainment and or family heritage, and this can be found throughout the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Japan and other industrialized nations whereby the founders of major corporations have the heirs and or appointees installed as the operative heads of these machines of capitalisation.

This brings us back to Durkheim’s forced division of labor (Turner, 1993, pp. 98-99)which still exists and is a control factor in modern industrialized societies as indicated by the aforementioned educational and heritage facets. The existence of unions and associations to obtain rights and conditions for workers is proof of the foregoing, for if the machinery of society were in fact skewed to all of its individuals, then the need for these types of organizations would not be necessary. This is brings us to what Durkheim (Turner, 1993, p. 98) stated as a “fundamental crisis of the system, but rather a crisis of adaptation, and continuous contact will eventually produce new rules and a new functional equilibrium between the divided functions, thus assuring social integration”. Privileged positions are to a large degree still a factor of one’s birth, with specialised higher education and contacts representing a path to the upper echelons. Thus Durkheim and Weber were prophetic in their analysis and understandings on some facets.

Bibliography

About Sociology (2007) Emile Durkheim. Retrieved o 27 May 2007 from http://www.aboutsociology.com/sociology/Emile_Durkheim

Briener, P. (1996) Max Weber & Democratic Politics. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, N.Y., United States

cepa.newschool.edu (2007) Max Weber, 1864-1920. Retrieved on 27 May 2007 from http://cepa.newschool.edu/het/profiles/weber.htm

Durkheim, E. (1997) The Division of Labor in Society. Free Press. New York, United States

emile-durkheim.com (2006) Emile Durkheim (1858-1917). Retrieved on 27 May 2007 from http://www.emile-durkheim.com/

Marxists Internet Archive (1999) Max Weber: Definition of Sociology. Retrieved on 27 May 2007 from http://www.marxists.org/reference/subject/philosophy/works/ge/weber.htm

Turner, S. (1993) Emile Durkheim: Sociologist and Moralist. Routledge Publishers, New York, United States

Turner, B. (1993) Max Weber: From History to Modernity. Routledge Publications, London, United Kingdom

NAME: LUCKY AMADI

DISCUSS QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH METHODS.

INTRODUCTION.

What is Research?

Research is an inquiry to describe, explain, predict and control the observed development. Research helps to acquire knowledge about a particular thing it is done to understand.

It can also be seen as the systematic investigation into and study of materials and sources in order to establish facts and reach new conclusions.

Research methods are often divided into two main types:

Qualitative Research methods
Quantitative Research methods
Qualitative Method of Research.

Qualitative research which is also called Field research is done to gain a deep understanding of a specific organisation or event rather than the surface description.it is aimed at getting a better understanding through first experience, truthful reports and quotation of actual conversations, also aims to know how participants derive meaning from their surroundings and how their meaning influences their behaviour.

Qualitative research makes use of observation as a data collection method; this is the selection and recording of behaviours of people in their environment, observation is useful for generating in-depth descriptions of organisations or events, for obtaining information that is otherwise inaccessible, and for conducting research when other methods are inadequate. The context or background of behaviour is included in observations of both people and their environment.

Stages in Participatory Observation

Selection of a site and definition of problems, concepts and indicators.

The problem or phenomenon of interest is first identified by the researcher; he tries to discern what will yield the greatest understanding of that problem. The researcher then identifies preliminary concepts and what data will be gathered as indicators of those concepts.

The researcher chooses a strategy to move into the researcher.

This involves an overt or a covert role for the researcher, issues may include how to record observations (writing notes, tape recordings, video tape) as well as ethical issues (privacy, confidentiality, etc.)

Strategies include: adopting a passive role at first, learning the ropes; don’t seek data aggressively until later; be a researcher not a therapist, answer questions but don’t become closely identified with any one person until you are sure it will not cost you information in the long run, be non-persistence.

Selecting people and events to observe.

Primary sources also known as “key informants” of information are identified by the researcher. These people may be relied upon in the beginning to help the researcher get acculturated to the situation. The statements of key informants can be taken as evidence, even if their statements are somewhat self-serving. The researcher must also be aware of possible differences between the validity and intention of volunteered statements that are made in response to the researcher’s questions.

Develop relationships with the participants.

Researchers must have the trust and confidence of the informants. Researchers must speak their “language” and understand their “world”. The researcher can note the differences rather than accept one and reject the other. The researcher must determine whether certain things are not being said because of his or her role as “researcher” or whether they can use their position as “neutral outsider” to gain more information.

Analysing observations.

The researcher can check whether none, all or some proportion of behaviours or events occur under distinct circumstances. A preliminary model can be generated to explain the data collected. Further observations are then collected which can strengthen or weaken the researchers preliminary model.

Final analysis and interpretation.

Models are checked against the evidence. Advanced concepts and evidence for their support and refutation are checked. The major problem is how to present the data in a brief but meaningful form.

Advantages of Qualitative research.

It gives the researcher freedom to let the study unfold more naturally.
The researcher gains more detailed and rich data in the form of comprehensive written descriptions or visual evidence such as photographs.
It looks at the context and social meaning and how it affects individuals.

Disadvantages of Qualitative research.

It is time consuming.
It is difficult to code data.
It is not applicable to widely dispersed social settings
It is difficult to control for researcher bias.

Quantitative Research of Method.

Quantitative research can be seen as explaining phenomena by collecting numerical data that are analysed using mathematically based methods; this method reduces the data into numbers, the researcher helps to analyse the data with the help of statistics. The researcher knows in advance what he/she is looking for and all aspects of the study are carefully designed before the data is collected. Its objective is to develop and employ mathematical models, theories or hypotheses pertaining to phenomena.

Process of Quantitative research method.

Developing models, theories, and hypotheses of what the researcher expects to find.
Developing instruments and methods for measuring the data.
Experimental control and manipulation of variables.
Collecting the data.
Modelling and analysing the data.
Evaluating the results.

Principles of Quantitative Research.

Objectivity is important.
Methods and conclusions are examined by researchers for any possible bias.
Researchers go to great length to ensure that they are really measuring what they claim to be measuring.
External factors which might affect the result must also be controlled as it might be the other factor which produces the result.
When looking at results the P value is important, P stands for probability. It measures the likelihood that a particular finding or observed difference is due to chance, P is between 0 and 1, the closer the result is to 0 the less likely it is that the observed difference is due to change, the closer the result is to 1 the greater the likelihood that the finding is due to chance and that there is no difference between the variables.

Advantages of Quantitative method of research.

It allows researchers to measure and analyse data.
It helps to carry out test for hypotheses in experiments because of its ability to measure data using statistics.
The researcher is more objective about the findings of the research.

Disadvantages of Quantitative research.

It doesn’t study things in a natural setting or discuss the meaning things have for different people unlike qualitative method of research.
A large sample of population must be studied; the larger the sample of people researched the more statistically accurate the results will be.

CONCLUSION.

Each of these researches are done for a purpose just like Qualitative is done to gain understanding of a specific organisation or phenomena, Quantitative is done by analysing data with the help of statistics it has to do with numbers. Just like everything they both have their advantages and disadvantages.

REFERENCES

Anderson, ML and Taylor, H.F (2009) sociology.

The essentials Belmont C.A Thomson Wadsworth.

Feminism has a movement has gained momentum in recent pasts to the extent that there are a number of ‘gender’ gains the world over. The theories of feminism are categorized into five, some of which are distinct and other closely related. These are: Liberal Feminism, Socialist Feminism; Radical Feminism; Post-Modern Feminism; and Multicultural feminism. However, this paper zeroes down on two, namely Liberal and Radical feminism, in an attempt to show the contribution that feminism has made (or continues to make) in the contemporary social analysis.

Liberal Feminism

Some of the proponents of this category of feminism include Mary Wollstonecraft, John Stuart Mill, Betty Friedan and Rebecca Walker.

Liberal feminism is an individualistic form of feminism because it is generally based on women’s ability to assert their equality through their own actions and choices. This is what Eleanor calls ‘faith in rationality” (Eleanor, 1996). Accordingly, the starting point for promoting such equality is based on individual interaction between men and women and that women can change their circumstances. Liberal feminism looks at the personal interactions of men and women as the starting ground from which to transform society into a more gender-equitable place.

The issues important t to liberal feminists include reproductive rights and abortion access, sexual harassment, voting, education, fair compensation for work, affordable childcare, affordable health care, and bringing to light the frequency of sexual and domestic violence against women.

The basic tenet of liberal feminism is that it is anchored on legal and political reform as a means to ensuring equality between men and women. This, according to them, is tailored on looking at the government through lobby groups to bring about legislative changes that promote gender equity. This brings about social and economic equity. Susan Wendell, citing the work of Mackinnon (1987) () says that ‘contemporary feminism is committed to major economic reorganization and considerable redistribution of wealth, since one of the modern political goals most closely associated with liberal feminism is equality of opportunity which would undoubtedly require and lead to both. Liberal feminists argue that all people are equal and that rationality in correcting class differences should be the way to go.

How then does this contribute to social analysis? It does so by seeing the oppression of women as not structural feature of capitalistic economic system. Further, the concept of education as a means to changing women’s status quo has had remarkable gains in recent times. Additionally, the ongoing debate and actions in the world concerning expansion of women participation has fundamentally centered on inclusiveness into the socio-economic as well as the political mainstream,

Radical Feminism

Using Mackinnon, (1987:16), Eleanor observes that that radical feminism is not one form of feminism, but simply feminism ‘unmodified’. Therefore, many others forms of feminism was only a response to ‘male psyche’ modification of feminism as it were. (Eleanor, 1996)

Feminism in its radical sense has it that society is a patriarchy that primarily oppresses women thus radical feminists seek to disband patriarchy. In this, they recognize that women’s oppression is the ‘fundamental oppression’. They further assert profoundly that ‘sexism is at the heart of patriarchy” especially in the family. Willis (1981), for example, in an essay ‘Lust Horizons: Is the women’s movement pro-sex’ argues against making alliances with the political right in opposition to pornographyaˆ¦” In a way they in this sense, echo the Marxist belief that if women wanted to deal with the shackles of patriarchy, then they must deal with the issue of reproduction. (Willis, 1981)

According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, most radical feminists do not universally argue for the criminalization of pornography or objectification of women, but rather that in the absence of patriarchy, the public demand for such materials would drastically decrease as a much smaller percentage of the population would be aroused by viewing women’s oppression and degradation

Conclusively, radical feminism is anchored on total restructuring if society an extreme view which would call for severing relationships with men, that is ending heterosexual relationship with me.

Radical feminists seem to believe that the way to deal with patriarchy and oppression of all kinds is to address the underlying causes of these problems through revolution.

Q2. Cognitive Theory of Social comparison in explaining Crowd behavior at a large (50,000+) sporting events

Introduction

A crowd can be defined in a number of ways but the widely accepted definition of crowd is that of ”large groups of individuals in the same physical environment, sharing a common goal. Usually such individuals act in a different way than when they are alone”. (Reading, 1996):

In a football match scenario, understanding the behavior of the crowd can be grounded on cognitive theory of social comparison. This theory as advanced by Festinger (1952), asserts that people tend to compare their behavior with others that are most like them. Muss and Thulman (1986) using the ideas of Festinger gives a more specific assertion by saying that people, when lacking objective means for appraisal of their opinions and capabilities, compare their opinions and capabilities to those of others that are similar to them. In the process, they attempt to correct any differences found. Basis on this social comparison theory may explain crowd behavior in a football match in the following ways:

Common Stimulus between crowd participants

According to Muss and Thulman (1986), one of the social comparisons theory implications is group formation. This according to them happens to the extent that self evaluation can only be accomplished by means of comparison with other persons. Festinger attributes this to the fact people in a crowd are driven by the desire to belong to the group. In other words, they tend to move to a group which belongs to them and which share their opinion and who have almost similar ability. For instance, it is common to see football fans that support a particular team more interested in being within the physical boundaries of their fellow supporters or those who share in their fantasy.

Imitational behavior

Using Festinger ideas, Muse and Thulman (1986) explains that ”the existence of a discrepancy in a group with respect to opinions or abilities will lead to action on the part of members of that group to reduce the discrepancy”

This should explain some behaviors in a football match setting, including one person starting to sing and the others who support the same team following swiftly. Other examples would include, booing a player, usually started by one person and followed swiftly by others.

A more propounding illustration is such crowd behavior in an event of a stampede. Usually people will tend to run to one direction regardless of if the cause of fear is genuine or not, as long as the one of their own signals them to do so.

Q3. Use sociological theories or concepts to help explain ‘Listening to music on a portable music device”

Introduction

It is common today to see people across all ages and gender alike carrying and listening to music through portable devices publicly. This happens when they are in the office, driving, reading and even walking among others

While there should be a number of theories that can explain this phenomenon, system theory, does that at best in trying to justify the tight schedules that the contemporary society puts on people and the dilemmas therein. In so doing it zeroes on ‘multitasking’ as the issue or as a prime causality to this.

System theory

System theory may be traced back to the ideas of George Hegel (1770-1831), who saw the world as operating within the push of different poles, in the process creating a conflict which negates a ‘solution’ for the functioning of the whole system. Hegel imagined that the world was controlled by two opposing poles pulling towards opposite direction. He called one pole the ‘thesis’ and the opposing side the ‘antithesis’. According to him, these two struggle to create an agreed position he called the ‘synthesis’, which interestingly also come to create the thesis, the antithesis and the cycle goes on and on. In a way, one would argue that this corresponds directly to the conflict theory, but for the purposes of looking at the phenomenon as a response to holistic demands, the perspective is tied to system theory. (Pippin, 1989)

Notably, the person who qualified system theory as we know it today (within a structural functionalism paradigm) is Von Bertalanffy is a book titled ”General system theory: Foundations, Development, Applications” in 1968. He, as a biologist, endeavored to employ organismic knowledge to use the word system to describe those principles which are common to a general system.

In the book, he says that ” …there exist models, principles, and laws that apply to generalized systems or their subclasses, irrespective of their particular kind, the nature of their component elements, and the relationships or “forces” between them. It seems legitimate to ask for a theory, not of systems of a more or less special kind, but of universal principles applying to systems in general”

System theory is based on the belief that for a system (a being, an entity, an organization among others) to work sufficiently, all the parts of that system must be in order, and that there is interrelatedness of the parts.

To qualify this theory in understanding the portable music system public use phenomenon, it is important to relate it to the numerous issues that today’s human responds to, within the confluence of multitasking and not able to respond to other demands of life. Therefore, listening to portable music while responding to other systems, not only works to perpetuate interrelatedness of demands of today but also in satisfying his/her needs.

Death can be defined as the indisputable biological end of life. In order to study and understand this phenomenon, one has to delve into the human perception of it. Woody Allen once said “I don’t mind dying, I just don’t want to be there when it happens”. The experience of such a loss, especially within a group of people as dependent of one another as is the family, is often the cause of grief for the bereaved individuals. The perception of death, nevertheless, seems to differ from culture to culture, as do the rituals encompassing the coping of the family (Kart, and Kinney, 2001).

Zoroastrianism, one of the oldest religions to have ever existed, was characterised by its belief in one God, as well as the need for reservation of the pureness of the elements. Death for the Zoroastrians meant a reuniting of the soul with its guardian and protector, fravashi. The dead were kept in the Tower of Silence, traditionally, to be purified by nature. Life and death were thus not a beginning and an end but parts of a greater hoop of life. East to these Persian grounds survives up-to-day Hinduism, India’s main religion. Hinduism stands for the indestructibility of the soul and hence its cycle from birth to death, before it is reborn. Death again is not regarded as the end, but merely as a stage within a greater loop of meaning. Here, however, cremation is obligatory, minus some exceptions (Garces-Foley, 2005).

Japanese rituals differ in the fact that a bigger part of the community is involved, than the family, mainly due to their collectivistic culture (Kart, and Kinney, 2001). After death, a bedside service is performed where the family is consoled and bathing of the dead body occurs. This is thought to enable the spirit to move on to the next world. The western culture on the contrary, tends to dissociate the living from the dead by allowing as little interaction and exposure to death as possible. A complete stranger is assigned the organising of the funeral, while the hospital cares for the body itself. During the funeral, mourners are to show as little grief as possible in public. Still, the impact of social class is evident here, since the amount of mourning expressed by the family depends on their social and educational background. (Kart, and Kinney, 2001) .

It becomes evident from the above, that a promise to afterlife and the perpetuation of some part of the current existence (soul, body, chemicals, etc) as well as the idea of a “better place”, was and still is intending to help the family proceed with their everyday lives after the bereavement and grief. Apart from religious factors, the difference between cultures might also demonstrate different attempts of people to cope with the grief of death.

Death can be viewed from a multitude of different standpoints, which contribute to the management and expression of mourning from the family and family members. This makes generalisation of behaviours towards grief hard, if not impossible (Bates et al., 1993).

The philosophical approach to death and bereavement suggests the existence of two types of death; good and bad death. For the family, the distinction of these two, very vague notions, depends on the conditions with which the dying person dies. According to Grosz (2003), the dying person must have his/her pain controlled by the treatment, as far as possible. Other conditions for a good death include the ability of the patient to make conscious decisions of his/her own for the treatment, as well as be handled as an individual, bound with experiences from life, and not as an anonymous patient. Moreover, the dying person must have come to terms with his/her disease and manage any unfinished conflicts such as family, busyness or personal affairs. If these conditions are met, then the semblance of a good death could be acquired, thus permitting the surviving members to access their everyday lives faster and healthier, having dealt with the coping of the bereavement faster and more successfully than if a bad death had occurred.

2. Definitions of Bereavement, Grief and Coping

Bereavement is the condition the family and/or individual are involved with, after the death of an important person (Stroebe et al., 2008). This deprivation is only likely to cause grief, the natural response to a loss. Grief can be defined as the internal manifestation of the strong emotions, raised from bereavement (Stroebe et al., 2008). It is often used interchangeably with the term mourning, which is though the external dealing with grief. That is to say, mourning is the exhibition of grief in public, which eventually leads to the addressing and dealing with the latter state (Stroebe et al., 2008). Because the line between grief and mourning is this slim, the two have come to be used as umbrella terms (Grosz, 2003). Coping is the demanding task of adapting oneself psychosocially, to challenging, threatening and/or harmful circumstances (Moshe, 1996). The stress is managed or even eliminated under behavioural and cognitive endeavours (Lazarus, and Folkman, 1984; Moos, and Schaefer, 1993).

Some people though have been observed to have difficulties in reintegrating themselves within their older daily routines or in pertaining to relations with other persons. Maladaptive coping can hinder the recovery rate of the family and/or individuals, giving rise to feelings of loneliness, depression, hallucinations and even health problems related to stress, as is the abdominal pain and breathing difficulties (Parkes, 1972). People who have suffered bereavement very unexpectedly, or experienced it under shocking conditions, like suicide and homicide, are the ones most likely to acquire maladaptive coping (Grosz, 2003).

How individuals cope with bereavement, grief and mourning, depends on a number of factors. Firstly, as it has already been mentioned, spiritual and religious beliefs or practices and culture of the person, tend to affect their way of viewing death, thus promoting a number of different coping methods, which are to be investigated later on. Again, the way death was experienced as well as the bonding the person had with their important one, before death, seems to also affect the coping. The more dependent the person was to the deceased, the harder it is to let go (Grosz, 2003). Finally, the family itself is a factor pivotal to the dealing with the death of the important one, especially when it comes to children and young adults. If the family is open and caring towards each of its members and is ready to share the pain and experiences, then the whole process of dealing with the death of the deceased is greatly facilitated and rapidly overcome (Walsh, and McGoldrick, 2004). All the above factors are, nevertheless, influenced by the very personality of the mourner, which at the end of the day is the most important of all factors.

Stemming from the aforementioned considerations, related to the impact of one’s death on his/her environment, the ultimate aim of this essay is to investigate how people cope with the death of a family member. Further, a number of relevant theoretical points have been introduced for the better understanding of the issue, along with empirical evidence.

3. Stage Theories of Grief

I. The Five Stages of Death (DABDA)

Back in 1969, top thanatologist Kubler-Ross influenced the viewpoint of medical and health psychology, as she sensitised the world public opinion on terminally ill patients and their treatment, in her book On Death and Dying. There, she describes the five stages of grief people undergo while in loss of their important ones. It is of utmost importance as she has underscored many a times herself, to understand that not all people are the same or experience the five stages in the same sequence, for the same amount of time, or even confront some at all. As she supports, it all depends on the individual and their environment. The stages were first thought to only apply to the patients, but later, their application was broadened to any type of loss as is the case of a divorce, loss of occupation, death of a family member.

Denial is considered to be the first of the five stages put forward by Kubler-Ross (1969). She initially correlated this phenomenon to a number of factors influencing the patient, and in our case, the family. She considered the fact that the way one is told of the irreversibility of the terminal disease, along with the pre-existing experiences with the dying person and dependence on him/her, affects somehow the extend to which one is involved with the particular stage. However, though she suggested that everyone did go through this stage at some point, she only noted a very few cases that had kept the denial barrier up until death. Often, the individuals grew more and more confident of the idea of dying.

Anger is the stage thought to follow denial, even if no real pattern can be identified for all individuals as of the sequence of stages, progression and management. Strong emotions as rage and fury, are said to overwhelm the person who displaces this anger to all directions. This, is what makes this stage the most difficult to be dealt with since ire erupts almost at random. To Kubler-Ross (1969), this stage is again something everyone does go through sometime in their grieving period.

Bargaining, although not quite as famous as the rest of the stages, is thought to be of significant importance to the mourning family. At this point, the person would crave for an amendment of the situation or for the time to go back to when ignorance of the event prevailed. Experiencing the death of an important one is often very painful, disrupting the habitual life of the family. This is enough reason for one to be wishing to go back to what they used to consider normal, before the knowledge of death. Bargaining, the asking of a favour in return for another, could be targeting the very self of the person, or even God, the doctors, or chaplain. These favours are often kept confidential, concealing quite often, unexpressed guilt.

After the family has dealt with the new burden of knowledge and emotional awareness of the death and loss of a family member, depression may be often observed. Along with the person, plagued by his/her disease, the family suffers as well. The emotional burden to bear is huge and frequently fights between the members of the family arise. However, this is only a tip of the family’s problems. Funding the treatment of the dying person is quite the times, responsible for the loss of ability to purchase items and needs that were previously thought commonplace. The tension and depression could grow more rapidly from the absence of the dying person, in case the family was dependent on his/her role before the knowledge of the terminal disease. Such could be the case of a money-making husband/wife or mother/father to children.

Acceptance is the last stage to come, according to Kubler-Ross (1969), and unlike the common belief, it is a stage of no happy emotion. As a matter of fact, it is a stage of no emotions whatsoever, but looks more alike a giving up to the inevitability of the situation, weakened and unable to fight it any longer. The family has gone through many hardships and still does, due to their dying important one. However, at a point, the family understands that they cannot affect the situation or death itself, leaving any type of action to the doctors. After acceptance has been reached, re-assimilation to everyday life begins.

Kubler-Ross’ (1969) stage theory has been formulated via many interviews and case studies on terminally ill patients, which were later generalised to the whole of losses. The sampling she used was relatively limited to the USA, and particularly Chicago, Illinois where she first began. Empirical evidence has demonstrated that this stage theory if partially accurate. The study by Maciejewski et al. (2007) studied 233 bereaved people living in the state of Connecticut, USA and for three years. The results added to the psychology of death, elucidating the five stages of grief. People initially demonstrated disbelief, which had been regarded as similar to the stage of Denial, towards the new information. Disbelief diminished gradually, until it disappeared one month post loss. Yearning was the second stage to be identified as it reached a zenith upon the fourth month post loss, and was characterised by the urge of the individual for the bereaved family member. Anger, the ensuing stage, reached a climax of its own five moths post loss and contained the violent emotions of the individual, displaced toward all directions, as the stage theory suggests. Six months post loss were characterised by depression, which was finally followed by acceptance; a process which has escalated from the initial apprehension of bereavement, 24 months post loss. This evidence agrees with Kubler-Ross (1969) and her stage theory, to some extent. The same pattern of organising the mourning of a bereaved in stages is followed, and even some of them are very much alike the stage theory’s ones. Disbelief and anger could be running parallel to denial and anger. Nonetheless, the theory and study class one another, on the basis of grief display. While Kubler-Ross (1969) seems to position Denial as a first illustrator of grief, the results of Maciejewski et al. (2007), propose Yearning to be the main indication of grief from the first month of loss to the twenty-fourth. Moreover, Acceptance is not thought to be an end-stage, but one which develops throughout the mourning period and reaches a peak at the end of it.

The theory of the five stages of death has been overly criticised based on two major areas of clash. Firstly, the theory is said to be solidly based on Kubler-Ross’ personal experiencing of terminal diseases, bereavement and coping. Since 1969, no further evidence other than the interviews has been put forward to fully explain the existence of the five stages of grief as well as their development. While it is a fact that due to the nature of the subject, empirical evidence is hard to obtain, studies as Maciejewski et al.’s (2007) does not portray or confirm any validity or reliability of the theory. Friedman and James (2008) go as far as saying that the stages are more of a misconception of the public and media, who have come to relentlessly utilise the stages of death, than they can be considered a theory. The interviews and case studies Kubler-Ross (1969) puts forward as evidence of the existence of stages, are thought to be too biased from her own assumptions and expectations, to be considered as support to the theory. Nevertheless, it is important to take them into consideration, since they are among the few ways of studying this particular topic of death and dying, without breaking the ethical code. What could be a limitation to her research though would be the small sampling she used, of people in the USA, thus making generalisations only available to similar cases and not for example, people of collectivistic cultures.

Secondly, Kubler-Ross’ (1969) theory has been criticised of being very broad with its description of stages. Due to her saying that not all five stages have to be completed in any particular order, or duration while mourning, the theory has been criticised of being too vague. Stages are supposed to be having a beginning and an end, a duration, and be characteristic to all individuals from at least a group of similar individuals i.e. dying patients and their families. Since the above conditions are not met, they cannot be considered stages. Additionally, the use of the term ‘stages’ is said to cause more harm than good due to the misconception of time. Once one refers to stages, time is involved and people in mourning are likely to stay inactive, waiting for the ‘symptoms’ of the stage to allay. This can of course give rise to more complex psychological traumas and thus harm the individual (Friedman, and James, 2008). When it comes to stages as Depression, the fluidity of the stages of death can be fully seen, due to the free use of the term. That is to say, depression is more of a psychiatric diagnosis of illness rather than ‘sadness’ or any other such emotion. When is the person considered to be sad and when depressed? Subsequently, how to diagnose depression and treat it when it is imposed as a natural stage in the theory of mourning?

Due to the nature of the subject, not much empirical evidence can be gathered for either fully supporting Kubler-Ross’ (1969) theory or proving it inefficient and harmful. All evidence is partially anecdotal and coloured by the researcher’s interpretations, as was Kubler-Ross’ interviews or Friedman and James’ (2008).

II. Alternative Explanation to Grief

An alternative theoretical approach to grief due to the death of a family member, is Bowlby’s theory of grief (1961), where the psychophysiological components are greatly considered. Here, four main stages are to be considered. Numbness to protest is the first of the stages and consists of the confusion and breakdown of the bereavement paired with the psychological and physical dejection, where elevated blood pressure and heart rate might occur. This seems to be the first reaction to the new lifestyle imposed on the family members due to the loss of the important one, and need to get acquainted with the new life. Bowlby has studied the reactions of the body to the stress and strain of bereavement, only to find they match the stages he has put forward. Such indications include abdominal pain, hallucinations, etc.

Alike the indicators put forward from the study of Maciejewski et al. (2007), yearning is identified as the crave to be closer to the deceased, whether that be with the help of inanimate objects, people or even places that trigger memories of the past live with the person. When this second stage is overcome as well, the third of disorganisation and despair arises.

A comparison of Marx and Weber’s theories with respect to their ideas and interpretations on capitalism.

Marx’s view of the industrialist society he lived in was one of inequality and driven by capitalism. His ideas and interpretations of capitalism are based on historical precedent and industrialism. He calls the capitalist ownership class, the bourgeoisie, owning the means of production, whilst describing the working class, the proletariat, who provide the means of production. He viewed this capitalist system as being an unjust and unfair one which exploited the proletariat to provide profit and gains for the bourgeoisie. Marx saw capitalism as merely a progression of previous modes of production, such as slavery and feudalism, becoming a system of production of commodities which exploited the workers for the profitable gain of the capitalist bourgeoisie. In the feudal and slavery systems, however, the medieval lords and slave owners were responsible for the welfare of their workers. Whereas, in the capitalist society he saw the capitalists taking unfair advantage of the workers, with a minority owing and monopolising the ownership of the means of production, whilst gaining big profits at the expense of the workers.

Wage labourers produce commodities, goods which are produced for exchange. The commodities are sold on the market, and the capitalist pays the labourer a wage. The capitalist gives up some of his capital to the wage labourer in the form of wages in return for the use of his/her labour- power. Labour-power is thus itself a commodity; it is bought and sold

A labourer depended on the market value of his skills, or production, to earn a living which the capitalist would sell for maximum profit. However, this profit did not feed back down to the worker, instead it went into the pockets of the already wealthy capitalist. He believed that the workers were exploited for their labour in order to survive.

Marx believed that society had progressed through stages of history with each stage providing its own destruction to allow it to progress to a new stage. He believed that every stage of history only progressed to the next stage through a social revolution of some kind and gave it the term Dialectical Materialism . He believed that the economy and materialism are the driving forces behind historical change. He saw the main difference between men and animals, as man’s ability to produce his own living, in other words, man owns his own mode of production. However, he saw the workers ability becoming diminished in the factories and with manual labour, with the worker being alienated from his means of production by being given solely specific tasks to complete in a production line. Ultimately, he proposed that through the progression of history, capitalism would be overcome by a revolt of the working class in order for them to overcome their oppression by the capitalists, giving way to a fairer and equal society. He argued that economic structure should be planned to suit the people. Unfortunately in some cases, his theories were taken and twisted by others, giving way to an even more oppressive society, for example, communism in the Union of Soviet Republics (Russia) and the Republic of China, where the control of the working classes were still in the hands of the select few. In contrast, Weber believed that Marxist theories were too simple as he thought Marx saw mainly economic grounds being the driving force behind capitalism.

Weber’s ideas and interpretations on capitalism are predominantly derived from his major work The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (1904-05). From most of the readings done for this essay, it would appear at first sight that Weber views religion as the driving force behind capitalism. However, this is too simplistic a view. Weber was not only interested in the role of religion in capitalism; he was also very interested in discovering the values behind the individual’s social behaviour. He saw workers doing what they do because of their commitment to their family, which is why people go to work although the work may not be great and the pay not very substantial. Weber is more interested in the actions of the individual and the affects of society on the individual; therefore, he defines sociology in a different way than Marx, believing that individuals are shaped by their own motives and desires. He liked to use categories and typologies, using three main categories, tradition, charismatic and legal rational authority. Weber had a wide range of interests, class, social stratification, modernity and religion. Being interested in discovering why capitalism was a ‘Western’ phenomenon and developed in certain European countries during the industrial revolution, he undertook a study of these countries. In his work The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (1904-05), Weber makes a connection between protestant beliefs and the emergence of capitalism. Although religion did not bring about capitalism, Weber suggested that religion can cause social change, which in turn could fuel the process of capitalism. He uses Calvinism as an example of how change can be brought about. Calvinists believed that you were already predestined to go to heaven and were either among the “elect” or not, before you were born. Nothing that happened during your life here earth would alter this election. Calvinism was a puritan form of Protestantism, focusing on self denial, hard work and a predetermined selection for entrance into heaven. As Calvinists did not have any way of knowing whether or not they were part of the “elect”, they had to act as if they had been chosen; therefore, they lived good lives here on earth and worked hard. It was this ascetic work ethic that Weber believes drove capitalism as making a lot of money was a sign of hard work and no play. As they denied themselves any comfort and pleasures in life, the money they had over and above their meagre living expenses was ploughed into the business making them different from other money makers, in so much that, they made money for money’s sake which was not spent on the frivolities in life. Weber theorised that this Protestant ethic gave rise, encouraging and promoting modern capitalism. He argues that formal rationalisation (the rationale behind making money) would overtake religion and do away with it altogether. Weber saw capitalism as a process of rationalisation and argues that there are six factors which are necessary for capitalism to succeed :

The appropriation of material means of production;
Market freedom;
Rational technology (principally mechanisation);
Calculable law (forms of adjudication and administration which allow for predictable outcomes);
Formally free labour (persons who voluntarily sell their labour-power but must do so to stave off starvation);
And the commercialisation of economic life.

All these conditions are necessary ingredients in the rise of capitalism in Weber’s view . Weber also saw bureaucracy as playing a major role in capitalism.

Bureaucracy is the form of social organisation in and through which rational-legal authority is exercised and maintained. It is also the form which clearly takes hold with the advent of capitalist economic order. One does not cause the other to arise; they have a h3 affinity

Where Marx felt that alienation of the workers from thier products by division of labour within the capitalist system allowed exploitation of workers for capitalist gains, thereby limiting their true freedom, Weber believed that it was bureacracies and rationalisaton that restricted human freedom. Marx believed that man’s freedom under capitalism was deceptive and not true freedom. He believed that capitalist wage labour restricted the worker and was really a form of forced labour as the worker relied on his wage to live. The worker could only sell his labour for the price the capitalist would pay for this work or production and for Marx, capitalism was predominantly as system of commodity production and an economic driven system.

Weber argued that workers lost control of their work through the forces of rational controlled production and believed that it was inevitable that the bureacracy of the capitalist system would change processes in labour and production order to gain the best profit. “But capitalism is identical with the pursuit of profit, and forever renewed profit, by means of continuous, rational, capitalistic enterprise” . Weber argued that in a capitalist society the individual join the organised structures and orginasations which are put in place to ensure an effecient structure to ensure the best profit. By joining these organisations, the individual loses their individuality and get cut off themselves and lost in the officialdom, and therefore, become alienated.

Weber tends to be seen, or portrayed, as much more pessimistic than Marx. Weber sees society becoming locked in an “Iron Cage” through bureaucracy, rationality and authority.

This order is now bound to the technical and economic conditions of machine production which today determine the lives of all the individuals who are born into this mechanism, not only those directly concerned with economic acquisition, with irresistible force. Perhaps it will so determine them until the last ton of fossilized coal is burnt. In Baxter’s view the care for external goods should only lie on the shoulders of the “saint like a light cloak, which can be thrown aside at any moment.” But fate decreed that the cloak should become an iron cage

Marx was much more optimistic and saw the possibility of social change through a working class revolution, believing that social democracy is an alternative to capitalism.