Values and Social Institutions Influencing Them

ACHIEVEMENT AND SUCCESS

or "Success Emphasis"

Americans place a high value on personal achievement, especially outdoing others. This value includes getting ahead at work and school and attaining wealth, power, and prestige.

Instructions

Answer all parts of the essay question below using the style formatting of your choice: MLA or APA. Your essay should be at least 900 words, spell checked and edited for grammar. Be sure to include information from your text material and properly cite that information.

You will be graded on your sociological skills, so you need to demonstrate an understanding of the concepts you have learned in this course.

Essay Questions

1. Select one value listed in the Module 1.3's Core U.S. Values (or use the Core American Values link above), that you feel you strongly support. Describe this value and its importance in your life. The best answers involve including specific examples and experiences from your own life (your biography). Stay away from “common sense.”

2. Now select a value that you do not support, and you view as problematic, or perhaps you feel are not that important to you right now. What are these values and why are they not important to you?

3. Identify and describe how two (2) groups of the following might have influenced the development of your values. Then, identify and describe how two (2) social institutions that influenced your values. Be sure to underline or bold these terms in your essay.

        Select two (2) Groups:

        primary groups (Module 2.3)

        secondary groups (Module 2.3)

        reference groups (Module 2.3)

        peer groups (Module 2.2)

         Select two (2) Social Institutions:

        Family (Module 2.2)

        Religion (Module 2.2)

        The Law (Module 2.2)

        Politics (Module 2.2)

        Education (Module 2.2)

        Science (Module 2.2)

        Medicine (Module 2.2)

        The Military (Module 2.2)

        Mass Media (Module 2.2)

4. Conclusion and analysis. Demonstrate creative and critical thinking by providing an analysis concluding how an institution might impact both your groups, you, and your values. Choose one value you support and one you do not to analyze. Be sure to give examples detailing the influences of the institution on the group and you, and why you do, or do not support it. The influence can be either positive or negative. 

5. Reflection. Briefly reflect on how you’ve conformed to group and institutional expectations, or not conformed. Think critically and reflect on ways in which you’ve taken charge of your decisions and actions, and selected life choices that might have run counter to your socialization by groups and institutions.

Evaluating Your Essay

There are no right or wrong answers, however there is good and bad sociology. See the following examples:

Value I support: Material Comfort

Good sociology: Material comfort is an important is a value I support. Medical institutions are essential to well-being. When my mother had breast cancer, I was so thankful for the care she received, and she is doing well. Nutrition is related to health and material comfort. I prefer organic produce and meats, but they are very expensive. My Mother, who is part of my primary group taught me to garden, using traditional Native American methods. We raked up dead fish and dug a hole and put them in, then some dirt, then or “3 Sisters” seeds of beans, corn and squash. It is a lot of work, but is well worth it, since you can eat organic produce through the spring, summer and fall months. While I support medical institutions, I am critical of “quick fixes” and take my own initiative to stay healthy and grow my own organic veggies as a form of prevention. My reference group is those in my secondary group of friends who trade seeds and plants with me. We are also more environmentally conscious and are into using alternative energy technology to fuel our autos and homes.

Bad sociology: Material comfort is something taken for granted by Americans. We want food on the table and a roof over our head. We want our Wi-Fi too!

Value I do not support: Racism and Group Superiority

Good sociology: Racism is a part of many social institutions, including the law, the family (my primary group) and education (and peers). My Dad’s family learned to look down on people of different races and immigrants from their family, and didn’t have contact with these groups while going to school. Some of their peers are still their friends, and I’ve heard them refer to others is demeaning and sometimes hostile terms. They support social and educational segregation, and have instructed us kids to not date outside of our race. However, I attended a somewhat diverse high school, and have friends who are from different races, though I never felt comfortable having them meet my family. I feel their views are outdated and racist.

Bad sociology: I do not support racism since it is harmful to people. It is a huge social problem in America. I was raised by my mom to respect all people.

Before you submit your essay, check your work to make sure you have covered the following:

        Did you understand each value as it was explained in the Learning Activities?

        Did you use it appropriately? Did you provide specific data to support your choices and not use generalizations and common sense?

        Did you demonstrate mastery of the sociological concepts/ terms? If you are not sure about these concepts, review the material again.

        Did you think creatively and critically about how institutions influence groups, individuals and values? How you might have stepped outside of that socialization to pursue your own values and goals?