Part 1-

According to sociologist C. Wright Mills, people often believe that their private lives can only be explained in terms of their personal successes and failures. Individuals fail to see the links between their own lives and the larger society around them. The process of interpreting your individual life in the context of your community or the society in which you live is called sociological imagination.

1. Choose 1 of the following social problems:

• Being unemployed and the impact of unemployment on the individual and society
• Being an alcoholic and the broader impact of alcoholism on the individual and society
• Being a drug addict and the broader impact of drug addiction on the individual and society
• Being an unmarried pregnant teenager and the impact that unmarried teen pregnancy has on the individual and society
• Being a homeless person and the broader issue of poverty in society

2. Using your sociological imagination, discuss the connection between the individual experience and the social impact of the social problem that you chose.

Part 2-

Complete the following in preparation for your assignment: Select a movie or TV show that effectively communicates the culture, values, and norms of a society that is different from your own culture. 

-The movie or TV should meet the following requirements:

• Must be a foreign film with subtitles
• Provide you with a glimpse of what life is like in another culture
• The process of watching this movie or TV show should provide you with a unique cultural experience.

-Watch the movie or TV show that you selected, and use your reactions as part of your response to the following topic:

• Define ethnocentrism. Discuss how ethnocentrism affects individuals and societies.

Write a paper of 2-3 pages addressing the following:

• Provide a comprehensive overview of the concept of ethnocentrism.
• Use your cultural experience of watching the selected movie or TV show to discuss the effect of ethnocentrism on individuals and societies.
• Use any personal experiences that you may have had visiting different countries around the world as part of this paper; however, do not let your personal experiences with other cultures be the focal point of this paper.
• The focal point of the paper is your cultural experience watching the selected movie or TV show and your comprehensive overview of the concept of ethnocentrism.
• Please note that this paper is not intended to be a summary of the movie or TV show.
• This paper is not a book review or overview of the movie or TV show you selected.
• Focus on the cultural observations that you are able to make based on this experience and your discussion of the concept of ethnocentrism.

Part 3-

In many cities throughout the United States, the prevalence of hate crimes has increased. You have been asked to provide your insight into this and recommend ways to decrease the occurrence of these types of crimes.

Research the topic of hate crimes and address the following:

• Create a profile of the typical individual who commits hate crimes.
• Who are some targets or victims of hate crimes?
• What are some of the causes and effects of these crimes?
• What actions can be taken to minimize the occurrence of hate crimes?

Part 4-

The Discussion Board (DB) is part of the core of online learning. Classroom discussion in an online environment requires the active participation of students and the instructor to create robust interaction and dialogue. Every student is expected to create an original response to the open-ended DB question as well as engage in dialogue by responding to posts created by others throughout the week. At the end of each unit, DB participation will be assessed based on both level of engagement and the quality of the contribution to the discussion.

At a minimum, each student will be expected to post an original and thoughtful response to the DB question and contribute to the weekly dialogue by responding to at least two other posts from students. The first contribution must be posted before midnight (Central Time) on Wednesday of each week. Two additional responses are required after Wednesday of each week. Students are highly encouraged to engage on the Discussion Board early and often, as that is the primary way the university tracks class attendance and participation.

The purpose of the Discussion Board is to allow students to learn through sharing ideas and experiences as they relate to course content and the DB question. Because it is not possible to engage in two-way dialogue after a conversation has ended, no posts to the DB will be accepted after the end of each unit.

A. Questions for weekly discussions and conversations (not part of the required Discussion Board assignment)

These questions can serve as the starting point for your discussions during the week. They are "thought starters," so that you can explore some ideas associated with the Discussion Board and unit topics. Answers are not required, and they should not be submitted with your required assignment. Answers are not graded.

1. What is the definition of social change? What does social change mean to you in your daily life? Do you think about social change on a daily basis? How can an understanding and awareness of social change impact your daily life?

2. Can social change directly impact or change a culture? Can you provide an example of how social change in the United States brought about large-scale social changes? Can you provide an example of how social change in the United States brought about a change in your life?

B. Required Discussion Board assignment.

Answer the following questions regarding social change:

• How do you think life in the United States will change in the next 10 years?
• How might technology be involved or effect social change in American culture?
• How do you think sociologists might use the Internet to study culture and social change in the United States?

In your own words, please post a response to the Discussion Board and comment on other postings. You will be graded on the quality of your postings.

Part 5-

Sociologists cite the weakening of the family as one of the causes for some of the problems that American society faces today. Do you agree? In your paper, include the following information:

• Identify important or significant changes in families since 1960. What factors are responsible for this change?
• On the balance, are families becoming weaker or simply different in society? What evidence can you cite?
• If you agree that the family has become weaker in American society, what proposals do you have to strengthen the family?
• If you disagree and believe that the family has become stronger in American culture in recent decades, please explain why.

Part 6-

The Discussion Board (DB) is part of the core of online learning. Classroom discussion in an online environment requires the active participation of students and the instructor to create robust interaction and dialogue. Every student is expected to create an original response to the open-ended DB question as well as engage in dialogue by responding to posts created by others throughout the week. At the end of each unit, DB participation will be assessed based on both level of engagement and the quality of the contribution to the discussion.

At a minimum, each student will be expected to post an original and thoughtful response to the DB question and contribute to the weekly dialogue by responding to at least two other posts from students. The first contribution must be posted before midnight (Central Time) on Wednesday of each week. Two additional responses are required after Wednesday of each week. Students are highly encouraged to engage on the Discussion Board early and often, as that is the primary way the university tracks class attendance and participation.

The purpose of the Discussion Board is to allow students to learn through sharing ideas and experiences as they relate to course content and the DB question. Because it is not possible to engage in two-way dialogue after a conversation has ended, no posts to the DB will be accepted after the end of each unit.

A. Questions for weekly discussions and conversations (not part of the required Discussion Board assignment)

These questions can serve as the starting point for your discussions during the week. They are "thought starters," so that you can explore some ideas associated with the Discussion Board and unit topics. Answers are not required, and they should not be submitted with your required assignment. Answers are not graded.

1. Why would researchers want to study the gender, race, and ethnicity of individuals in American prisons? What would researchers hope to learn from this type of study?

2. How can American society benefit from a study such as this that examines the gender, race, and ethnicity of individuals in American prisons? How can the results of this type of study benefit U.S. culture on a large scale?

B. Required Discussion Board assignment.

For this assignment, you will make a posting of 2-3 paragraphs to the Discussion Board in which you must answer the following questions:

• What are some potential methods of researching the gender, race, and ethnicity of individuals in American prisons?
• Specifically, what are ways in which the gender, race, and ethnicity of individuals in American prisons could be studied using interpretative and critical frameworks?
• What would you change, and why?
• What different types of information or data would you likely obtain using this research process?

In your own words, please post a response to the Discussion Board and comment on other postings. You will be graded on the quality of your postings.

Part 7-

A corporation in the United States is about to expand its business globally. As part of this expansion, it will begin to sell its products in Europe and Asia. In addition, it plans to open a manufacturing plant in Asia. The president and chief executive officer (CEO) is concerned; he has heard many stories of companies that have tried to expand globally, but operations either failed miserably or did not live up to expectations because of the cultural differences.

The CEO has asked your group to research problems that other corporations have had with the process of expanding globally and develop a plan to avoid these types of intercultural errors and missteps.

As a group, you will select a multinational corporation or international nonprofit agency that has encountered these problems (this can be a previous or current employer of yours). Using the Internet and the library, each individual in the group will research the corporation or organization to discover any cultural barriers that the corporation or organization encountered as it attempted to expand globally.

Please note that this assignment has both a group component and an individual assignment.

Group Component

• As a group, generate and evaluate reasons why people may not appreciate the cultural point of view of others. Each individual in the group should use at least 5 resources or materials (citations). Note that 3 of the 5 citations may come from the textbook.
• As a group, discuss how appreciating cultural diversity affects peoples' ability to communicate effectively in the context of a multinational corporation or an international nonprofit agency. Feel free to add your own experiences as well as quoting others. Please share the resources, materials, and citations that you find and collect on the small group Discussion Board.

Individual Assignment

Each individual in the group should create and submit his or her own paper of 2-3 pages.

Each individual paper should summarize the group discussions and provide suggestions regarding the steps that the company can take and policies that can be put in place to help ensure that the company's expansion is successful. Each individual can draw from the resources and materials shared on the small group Discussion Board in the process of developing their individual paper. Each individual paper should contain at least 5 references, with at least 3 sociological references that may include the course textbook materials.