Research Portfolio Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Portfolio - Research Paper Example Specific examples of stereotypes are that obese people are lazy and thus are less productive workers; that they have no self-control when they are eating; and that they over-present a good-natured personality in their social relationships because they are afraid of being socially excluded. Purpose of the Study The purpose of this research is to explore the extent to which the everyday lives of obese persons are mediated by a set of socially constructed meanings and how those meanings are present in their social relationships. Moreover, particular interest is paid to the process of establishing and maintaining different types of social relationships and how those bonds are considered to be both meaningful and satisfying. The relationship between being obese and losing weight to be socially accepted will also explored as another area where meaning is socially constructed. Review of the Literature: Obesity and Stigma The subject of obesity has been studied sociologically since the early 1960's, most commonly within the concentration of deviance and social control. Specifically, much of this work has focused its attention on how obesity is a kind of physical deviance and is stigmatized because of the external cues it possesses. Stigmatization stems from the possession of an "attribute or characteristic that conveys a social identity that is devalued in a particular social context" (Crocker cited in Abrams et al. 2004). More widely accepted stigmas associate obesity with laziness, social and sexual undesirability, and the externality theory of eating, which states that an obese individual, if given the opportunity, will eat large quantities of food regardless of how hungry he or she is (Puhl & Brownell, 2003a; Maykovich, 1978). An example of a more remote stigma can be found historically and, to a lesser extent, currently amongst some traditional religious circles who stigmatize the obese on the belief that they are gluttons who lack a moral self  ­restraint in th eir eating practices that will lead to their religious damnation (Puhl & Brownell, 2003a). In his work on stigma Goffman (1963) briefly noted that the stigmatization of obesity is based on the principle of visibility, which he defines to be "how well or how badly the stigma is adapted to provide means of communicating that the individual possesses it" (p. 48). In terms of that communication there are three conditions which must be addressed in order to determine how visible and prevalent a stigma actually is. The first condition has to do with how much is already known about what causes the stigma for a given individual who possesses it (Goffman, 1963, p.49). To apply this notion, if previous interactions with an obese person were to have revealed that his or her obesity was caused by factors beyond his or her control and that argument was convincing, based on what knowledge was available to justify the presence of obesity, perhaps that obese person would less likely be stigmatized by whoever were included within those interactions. Moreover, because obesity is based on external cues, it may negatively affect an obese person's ability or willingness to include him or herself in situations that require social interaction. This addresses the second condition of the

Dependence of Man on the Environment Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

Dependence of Man on the Environment - Essay Example As human beings it is our responsibility to take good care of our nature and our environment. Some people also argue that environment has been created for man and he can use it in any way he wants to. Both have become banners for different power bases, making the arguments itself almost irrelevant. Human beings have the ability to use their actions in a positive way which can be useful for both the environment and their own selves. The idea of working with environmental circumstances rather than trying to control the surroundings must be the motivating idea behind any changes in the relationship with mother earth. Dependence of man on environment is a two-way link; helped in essence by the input that man has manifested within the reigns of the environment itself. The clear cut methodology for having an environmental friendly atmosphere is dependent on the actions (and inactions) of man alone. The development of new and advanced technologies is based on the idea that man can control nature to some extent and thus use it for his defensive ideologies. These changes can range from weather maps to electronic meters, and natural disasters to the natural development of the human race itself. For example, one of the most common motivating factors behind technological development is the environmental aspect of isolated expanding human populations which is, of course, war. Mankind was made and has always been supported by the environment. Both the Bible and the theory of evolution agree with this fact nonetheless. According to Bible, God has created this world and produced human beings. He is the one to have sent Adam as the caretaker of the world as well as its environment. The theory of evolution says that man appeared because he occupied a niche in the environmental scheme of things. The Bible and the theory of evolution agree on other issues as well. They both have concluded t hat mankind can only survive if it cooperates with the environment that exists