Assignment

Project

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By the end of this activity, you will have:

• List and describe the basic steps for conducting scientific research and know and discuss the research methods that sociologists use and the strengths and limitations of each.

• Summarize the core concepts of sociology and recognize and explain the "sociological imagination" when viewing social phenomena and your own life..

In this module, you will have an opportunity to put into action what you've learned about sociological research, social norms, socialization and/or deviance. You will write an essay of approximately 1,250 words (5 pages), addressing one of the two options below.

Step 1: Review the research methodology chapter in our textbook (Chap. 5) in order to familiarize yourself with sociological experiments.

Step 2: Decide which research project you would like to do. Please know that you are to complete one of these assignments - there will be no extra credit for completing both.

Option A: Deviance Experiment

Choose a folkway (a non-essential norm) to violate. Although there are many folkways to pick from, you may want to consider such options as wearing the other gender's clothing, breaking into song in a crowded store, talking on a cell phone during a movie or speaking out in a religious service.

If you have any questions about whether your project "fits" the requirements, please do not hesitate to ask. If you are stumped, here are some videos you may find inspirational:

• Hilarious Social Norms Project: Violating Personal Space ; [Flash video 6:42 35.1 MB]
• Social Norm #2 ; [Flash video 1:28 3.5 MB]
• Violation of Social Norm; [Mp4 video 0:51 3.6 MB]

Violate your chosen folkway and document it with photos, videos, and/or notes. Then, write an essay that explores the norm you violated, how you felt about violating this norm/being deviant, and the reactions you received. You may also want to include information about what other people said after you explained what you were doing (wait for their reactions first!). If you do not receive adequate reactions in one situation, try again in another.

In your essay response of approximately 1,250 words (5 pages), please be sure to analyze the experience and include the theories of deviance presented in the text.

Please Note:

This assignment requires that you use your best judgment. In addition to not breaking any laws, please be conscious of the reactions and possible reactions of others. Be careful to avoid activity which is illegal, could be perceived as being illegal (including disorderly conduct), or which creates serious and sustained discomfort for other people. For instance, if you are a large, muscular man, you might not want to violate the personal space of a petite woman alone in an elevator. I strongly suggest you explain to people what is going on after you perform the experiment.

Option B: Socialization Observation

Using participant observation, choose two specific learning situations that can be observed during your daily activities, such as a parent teaching a child, a person watching TV, store or restaurant interactions, or on-the-job training. You must pick two different types of learning situations, and you must observe these during the assigned week - you may not use a memory of something from weeks or months before.

Write up a detailed description of what you observed, and identify the components of culture being taught and/or learned. You should also detail the agent(s) and stage(s) of socialization and how these incidents support one of the theories of socialization developed by Jean Piaget, Carol Gilligan, George H. Mead, Lawrence Kohlberg, or Erik Erikson.

Please note: Please know that for either project option, your completed assignment should be an essay.

Compose your work using a word processor (or other software as appropriate) and save it frequently to your computer. Be sure to check your work and correct any spelling or grammatical errors before you upload it. When you are ready to submit your work, click "Browse My Computer" and find your file. Once you have located your file, click "Open" and, if successful, the file name will appear under the Attached files heading. Scroll to the bottom of the page and click "Submit."