Category: Social Sciences : Sociology

You can link this to Elias’ work or
Goffman, but also to Bourdieu or ideas of masculinity/femininity
(e.g. Butler or Connell).

 we studied social stratification and how it influences what goes on in many social interactions among people. Imagine you are a sociologist who works for an elected official who has no background in sociology or a related field. You have been assigned the task of identifying an important example of social stratification that impacts the elected official’s constituency. After you have read the textbook and lectures assigned for this week, draft a 2-4 paragraph memo that accomplishes the following:
1. Quotes the definition of social stratification from the textbook and/or lectures in correct APA citation
2. identifies at least one example of social stratification in your communities.
3. Identifies one of the sociological explanations of class inequality in the United States and explain why you think it is helpful in understanding the example you discussed in part 2. For example, you could discuss the classical perspectives of Marx and Weber, the symbolic interactionist perspective, the functionalist perspective, or the conflict perspective. 

Option 2:  Describe and analyze the process of socialization.  For this option, you will analyze the process of socialization in a fictional character.  Select a character in a book, a movie, or a television show (it should be a character that is central to the story).  First, provide a brief description of the selected character.  In your description, make sure to incorporate the concepts we have addressed in the course, such as the roles, statuses, and group memberships of the character.  Also make sure to identify the movie, show, etc. that you are describing.  This portion should be at least 1+ page in length. 
Next, analyze at least 4 agents of socialization that have seemingly impacted the development of the character (such as family, religion, education, peers, or the media).  Describe the socializing agents and analyze what seems to be the impact of those agents on the selected character.  Your analysis of the process of socialization should be 3+ pages in length and incorporate at least 4 additional sociological concepts or theories covered in this course (hint: sociological concepts should be clearly identified and then applied. You are encouraged to use and cite sources here. Any paraphrasing or direct quotes used from another source should include APA formatted in-text citations and a full reference at the end of the essay. Examples of related concepts and theories include the self, moral development, nature and nurture, and resocialization).
Assignment adapted from An Introduction to Sociology: Socialization Exercise
General requirements:
Submissions should be typed, double-spaced, 1″ margins, Times New Roman, Calibri, or similar 11-12 pt font, and saved as .doc, .docx, or .pdf. Do not include a document link; upload the document directly.
Use APA format for citations and references.
View the grading rubric so you understand how you will be assessed on this Assignment. 
Disclaimer- Originality of attachments will be verified by Turnitin. Both you and your instructor will receive the results.

Before your observation, think about the following behaviors you might observe:
Eye contact: Do people avoid making eye contact with you? 
Body language: Do people change their posture near you? Do they move away from you? Do they stop to see what you are doing?
Facial expressions: Do people give you a strange look? Do they appear to be confused by your behavior? Suspicious? Amused? Indifferent? What does their facial expression look like and what does it suggest?
Ignoring you: Do people simply ignore you? What about their behavior suggests that they are ignoring you?
Social Factors: Did you feel your gender, race, ethnicity, or age affected how people responded to your presence? Did you see differences in how people were treated differently based on their gender, race, ethnicity, or age?
In choosing a location for your sociological observation, consider how your race, ethnicity, and gender could affect how people (i.e., management, security) respond to you. Please choose a location where you can feel comfortable and safe to conduct your observation. 
After your observation, answer the following questions in complete sentences (1–3 sentences per question). You must include at least one APA reference related to your observation. Explain whether it supports your observation, and cite it correctly in your explanation. Refer to the module Resources section in the course for help creating APA citations and references. Your responses will be graded using the Module One Worksheet Rubric.