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Women and the birth of Sociogy

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In Sociology, Woman have been ”written out’ from the history of Sociology. This contribuations are no longer recognized despite having been influential and respected in their time. This woman contributions, fifteen prominent woman were effectively and ”written out ” of the Sociology history. In the late 1830-1930, The early female Sociologists were an integrated part of the community shaping the discipline’s eventual direction.The woman Founders, by Patricia Madoo Lengermann and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley. This woman were not recognized for their work and not recognized as much now. They all published several books, studies and theories in history of Sociology. Woman were not giving any specific date which where the names and contributions of fifteen woman expunged and all the credit were given to man associated with Sociology. Several of this woman researched the problems of Race and Ineguality in Sociology.

Woman were not giving any specific date which erasure onlu at some points in time where the names and contributions and credit were giving to man. The reasning was that such a crime of omission were left out and men had all the power, especially educated white man , had everything and ruling class. Whiles woman were looked upon as “Second class Citizens” without any purposed in life but to stay home taking care and raising there children and be pleasing as wives.

I think it is important that we recognized woman role in our Society because we women are trying to work hard as men do. To make this society a better place to live in it and woman deserver tobe recognized for this hard working. This woman made a great changes and impact in the early days of Sociology and every where else.
by Cuteg

Thinness Discussion

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In a world like the one we live in today, where technology and social media are essential to the daily tasks of most civilians, our values as a society are rapidly changing to meet the social requirements and stereotypes of our generation. The media becomes a source of information on how to look, how to dress, and basically, how to live your own life. This may seem fine in moderation but when people take these values and stereotypes too far, it can be seriously detrimental to their health, both mentally and physically. For example, teens and adults choose to put their own health at risk by using sunless tanning beds, and actually pay moneyto be exposed to harmful UV rays. Another example would be the eating disorders that have resulted from this cultural obsession with thinness that our society seems to value. The rise in eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, has affected as many as 7 million women and 1 million men, ages ten to early twenties.

There are three theoretical methods used to better understand and treat these eating disorders that millions of americans are struggling with each year. The first method used in describing the reasons many people develop such eating disorders is called the biomedical model. This model tends to assert that eating disorders are caused by biological factors. These factors could be things such as an imbalance of hormones in one’s body to malfunctioning neurotransmitters in a person’s brain chemistry. The biomedical model points to a person’s genetics and innate physiological features as factors that contribute to the development of such disorders, excluding the many social and cultural factors that people face. The second method, known as the psychological model, views such eating disorders as a multi-dimensional problem and includes biological, psychological and sociological factors as the causes for developing such disorders. This model indicates that these disorders may stem from a range of personal issues that an individual may be facing, such as low self-esteem or strained relationships in a person’s life. Theorists that focus on this model hypothesize that the repressed emotional problems of the individual become expressed through an abnormal relationship with food, while the cultural aspects that society tends to value simply reinforce such behavior that emphasizes thinness.

The psychological model can help explain the relationship between sexual abuse and eating disorders, in which there seems to be a definite correlation. This model suggests that the control an individual has over what they eat may serve as a mechanism for gaining a sense of identity or control over their life. Most victims of sexual abuse feel an immense loss of control over their bodies and even their life in general after being abused. Victims will often feel ashamed of their body afterwards, and may carry a sense of guilt with them for the rest of their lives. Some feel a need to push others away, in order to protect themselves and some turn to addiction to cope. Whether a person turns to drugs or food, binging offers a sense of comfort and control while masking their emotions of pain and anger. Purging may serve as a way to cleanse the victim’s feelings of being dirty and violated, or in some cases it serves as a means of self-punishment. Survivors of abuse often suffer from post traumatic stress disorder, and as the psychological method states, this types of emotional suffering drastically increases their chances of developing an eating disorder.

The third method of understanding these disorders that are dramatically increasing is called the feminist model. This model was created by feminist researchers who focused more on analyzing the nature of these diseases and the way they were classified throughout history to better explain their role throughout society. The feminist model asserts that these eating disorders are not specific to race, but rather to gender. It uses the history of women’s right to show how these eating disorders have formed and how the societal views on women throughout history have reiderated this obsession with thinness.

All three of these theoretical models help us to better understand how these disorders play a role in our society today, and mostly likely in any other society around the globe as well. Eating disorders such as anorexia and bulimia are not confined to the “white americans” and can be found in almost any society today. The fact that racism and class standing have their own contributions to such eating disorders can go overlooked, due to the fact that African men and women and those who live in poverty with these diseases can go undiagnosed and untreated. As the psychological model explains, the emotional state of an individual can have a huge impact on the likelihood of developing an eating disorder. Therefore it can be assumed that people who suffer from external social stressors such as racism and those of class standing, would be more likely to develop these disorders.

All of these models offer useful explanations that aid in understanding how eating disorders can develop, how they can be treated, and how they play a role in the society we live in today. However, I do not believe that these eating disorders can be fully explained by understanding just one method, but rather by understanding all three methods as a whole. The bottom line is that it would be impossible to try and define the reasons for these disorders with solely one method. We must look at each method of analysis to completely understand this cultural obsession with thinness and the many effects it has had on our society.

By: Serene

Women and the Birth of Sociology

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In this reading, Patricia Madoo and Jill Niebrugge-Brantley talk about how woman had been “written out” of sociology. The term “written out” does not mean totally erased. At the time, as I understand in the reading, women were acknowledged. They were public figures. But later their achievements were not. Women were not seen as authority figures. They were not as important as men. But the women’s information and studies were just as accurate and good as the men. Men and women did work together though. But women were not taken seriously. Several of them researched the problem of race and inequality. This is known as the social conflict approach. These woman published books and theories. this reading proves that woman are just as equal as men. Honestly, it must of sucked.There should have never been an issue with sexism or racism. Everyone is capable of anything, men or women.

BY Kendra

THINNESS

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There are so many people struggling with weight issues in today’s society. These people are faced with so many different body image disturbances for example, magazines and advertisements are falsely advertising what the perfect body type should be which, leads people to believe that that is why women are stuggling with weight issues but, what these people don’t realize is that there are more underlining reasons to why women struggle with these weight issues.

Three theoretical models have been designed to give people a better understanding as to what contributes to these eating disorders.(1) The biomedical model. this model gives “important scientific research about the possible physiological causes of eating problems and the physiological dangers of purging and starvation” further more, this model has come up with “medical treatment strategies that may disempower and traumatize women”. unforunatly this model ignores important factors that could influence eating patterns which are “social, historical, and cultural factors”. (2) The psychological model. this model labeld eating problems as “multidimensional disorders” which are “influenced by biological, psychological, and cultural factors”. this model is useful in its exploration of effective treatments however, like the biomedical model ignoring important factors, this one tends to neglect working class women, women of color, and lesbians. (3) The culture of thinness model. This model, designed by feminists, offers information on why “the vast majority of people with eating problems are women, how gender socialization and sexism could relate, and how masculine models of psychological development have shaped theoretical interpretations”. This model is offered as a main reason to why eating problems acure among women rather than men. According to this model, thinness is a “culturally, socially, and economically enforced requirement for female beauty”, which brings on the vulnerability of dieting, weight loss, and subsequent weight gain, resulting in anorexia nervosa and bulimia. After reviewing the feminists model Thomas silber says that “many well-trained professionals have either misdiagnosed or delayed their diagnoses of eating problems among African American and latin women due to stereotypical thinking that these problems are restricted to white women”, which has lead to “being more severe due to extended processes of starvation prior to intervention”. The feminists and sociological research has developed a larger agenda in finding out better ways to “understand how race, class, gender, nationality, and sexuality” plays part in women’s eating problems.

In the eighteen interviews that Becky w. Thompson conducted, “61 percent were survivors of sexual abuse”. eating problems associate with sexual abuse because after being abused these women develop eating problems as a way of coping. Binging helped women “numb out” their feelings. food was seen as something that could be trusted and would always be there when needed which gave women the comfort and security that they needed.

As well as sexual abuse, racism and class standing also played a part in women’s eating problems. African American and Latin families who were working class and interacting with the white community thought that “if you were a truly well-to-do family, then your family was slim and elegant”, which lead the men to pressure their wives and daughters to be thin, resulting in these women developing eating problems.

By Tara

Thinness

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          According to psychology there are three theoretical models used to explain thinness or eating disorder; biomedical, physiological, and feminist models. Mrs. Thompson conducted a study including eighteen African American, Latina, and White women. She interviewed, questioned, and concluded the roots of their eating disorders. She found most lead back to traumas such as: sexual abuse, racism, poverty, sexism, emotional or physical abuse, heterosexism, class injuries, and acculturation. All three examples reference back to suggesting that beauty is the main cause of thinness in women and their obsession with looking fit or thin. Most women loose weight because it can be as a positive influence on their life. There is nothing wrong with this if it is done in a healthy and educated manner. However these women in her study lost weight because of depression that was rooted back to a traumatizing experience.

     Biomedical, physiological and feminist treatment are three very positive ways to help a struggling women with an eating disorder. Biomedical and physiological treatment combine effective problem solving techniques with scientific tactics; while the feminist model looks at the social side of things. Together they create a general and well-rounded understanding of this sad illness in women.

     11 of the 18 women interviewed by Thompson were sexually abused and surprisingly binge eating was the most frequent approach to their coping. But extensive dieting and bulimia were common approaches as well. Thompson says “some women thought that the men had abused them because of their weight” and “they believed that if they were smaller, they might not have been abused.” Racism and Class standing is also a factor of thinness or eating disorders. The women interviewed in the study referred back to family members encouraging them to be slim because it looked better to the rich white business class. Both women were ethnic and their family members shamed them of their natural weight. Family is supposed to be where your support system lays, however in their cases this was were their biggest downfall laid.

 

-MEGHAN

Invisible Privilege

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I see privilege as being invisible because the more possessions people have in their life allows them to become more comfortable with their surroundings, this makes it harder for these people to realize what opportunities are available to them. Andrea in this case has always grown up in this Montclair House with extra amenities throughout that house that people could only wish to have, and the accessibility to sought after schools. Just like Andrea, people who are raised in means that they can not see privilege. Categories that are more likely aware of privilege I believe are those in the lower class brackets than that of those in the higher classes of living.
Andrea was so uncomfortable in Jewel’s Newark House because of how the other kids spoke to each other, which she was not used to, the lack of lighting the house, the second bathroom in the basement having inadequate to no lighting really frightened her when she need to use it. And lastly because she and her Mother were the only two white people there. I do believe that some people can overcome the social differences that are described with these two families. Many people will stick to their old ways of thinking and not change from these ideas. For example middle aged white businessmen with a fixed ideology of how it’s socially acceptable means of living be able to casually co-habitate with men and women of less means.
Some of the elements of privilege that I can identify personally is the ability to be living away from my family, being a full time student, working so few hours at a job and some of the high cost cycling bikes I own.  I feel that these privileges do not affect my relationships with others because the town community I live in is known to be Middle -upper class living and many of the items I own are just an entry point to others, and everyone likes to be apart of one another’s lives.

Invisible Privilege

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Privilege is very often invisible because many people make a conscious effort to fit into their social surroundings with behavior, fashion and activities. It may take a particular situation for a person to notice a major difference. For example, you may work with someone that seems to live a much more extravagant lifestyle and you could have a hard time trying to understand why you cannot live the same way. Learning more about the person may expose that they are from a wealthy family, or have a spouse that makes a significant salary.  This can be troublesome because you see that they have an advantage that you do not.

I believe that in the situation of Andrea and Jewel the knowledge of privilege was not as apparent because of the girls ages, and the fact that the parents of the girls did not point it out. Jewel was amazed and appreciative of all that Andrea and her family had. It did not seem to create a problem. Maybe there was a bit of envy, but it was not expressed.  Andrea became uncomfortable at Jewel’s home for a number of reasons. She was in an unfamiliar situation. She was observing behavior among a family and culture she did not know. Although she was comfortable with her friend for a significant time, this was the part of her life she had not experienced. The unfamiliar setting and the realization that Jewel had much less advantage than Andrea was just too much for her to process. I can’t help but wonder if there was an element of embarrassment. Andrea’s mom had welcomed Jewel into their home and did not show any type of superiority. Jewel’s mom worked very hard to try and give her the same opportunities that Andrea would have. Unfortunately it was not enough to keep Jewel in the school that would have given her a better opportunity. The fact that the family needed to live in the school district which was beyond their financial means is a reminder that the wealthier communities do offer better services because there are more tax dollars to support them. An example of “Invisible Privilege”. As reality set in overcoming social differences was not a probability for the two girls. As much as an individual may want to have a relationship a definite disconnect among social statuses seems to persist.

Invisible Privilege

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When people refer to the invisible privilege, I consider it to be in reference to social class. The determining factor is usually dependent on the family’s income. The first day of class, during a conversation about feminism, someone behind me said, “I know the world is male dominated and complaining about it won’t help. To achieve equality women have to overcome their differences with men, not complain about them.” While the article doesn’t complain about sexism, it says the social class is race dependant, and the saying applies to racial differences as well. People who have been victims of racial class separation and inequality need to stop complaining about being treated differently and need to rise up and demand the equality. If someone wants the “prestige” and complains that it is because of the hand they were dealt or the race they were born with that prevents them from achieving professional or social goals need only look into the mirror for who to blame. History is filled with people who overcame their lack of privilege and gained it for themselves and their people. The fact of it is simple in order to change something you have to fight (not necessarily violently) for it. Given equality does not have the same value as equality (freedom, prestige, money, etc.) that is earned through struggle.
Privilege is usually only known to people who have earned it. Reason being is that they have been without privilege so they know the difference. People who are born with “the invisible privilege” often don’t recognize that they have it because people seem to think of everything as self accomplished and rarely acknowledge he or she received help or had an advantage. When Andrea entered Jewel’s Newark home she was uncomfortable because she was experiencing culture shock. She was being made aware of their social differences and forced to a level she has never known before. This shock can easily be overcome with practice. If Andrea’s mother exposed her to more uncomfortable situations she would develop and tolerance to her surroundings forcing them to become more familiar and less taboo. School funding is not a form of invisible privilege as far as public schools are concerned. I for one went to an out of district school but had to make up the difference in transportation costs. College is where the invisible privilege is most prevalent, with expensive ivy leagues and state universities upper middle and upper class children are usually the only ones who can afford them. I think the invisible privilege is less with race and more with income.
By Nick

Invisible Privilege

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Privilege is often invisible to many people. People are born into this world with what their parents could provide to them. Some people can be more privileged than others due to being in a certain class, race, or gender. Some people need to work harder than others to provide their family a comfortable life. Others don’t need to do much because they are already privileged with a more than comfortable life. It almost isn’t fair because not all people can work up to get to what they want. It’s nice to see people work from the bottom up knowing they deserve everything in their lives including living in a nice home in a beautiful neighborhood with great job. People who work hard to get to where they want to be are more aware of privilege. They set themselves expectations to conquer and are rewarded with privilege. As others don’t see what privilege is because they were born into it and seeing nothing less than what they have.

Andrea was uncomfortable in Jewels Newark home because it was a totally different environment that she was used to. Jewels home was different than Andreas. It was dark, lifeless, and small. It wasn’t homey and comfortable as Andrea had expected. Andrea’s home was big, beautiful and roomy.  It almost scared Andrea because she wasn’t used to these conditions, which made them lose their friendship between one another.

I feel that people can overcome the social differences just like the one explained in this story. I feel that one needs to learn how others live before judging and coming to conclusion. It seems like it was a hard transition for Andrea to see her friend’s home because it was so different. She was too young to understand that her friend’s family is going through a hard time and struggles to keep up with everyday life including making money, powering their house with electricity and feeding themselves. It was two totally different environments they live in, and a person can only understand what they are going through unless they have been through it themselves. I believe people can overcome this as long as one can understand another in order to accept their social differences.

Schools that are better funded have better education to provide for the public. When schools aren’t funded they aren’t able to provide the same quality of education. Things like teachers and learning materials may be worse in the less privileged schools. This can lead to problems because families want their children to go to a school that can provide their needs for a better education. Children don’t see that they are attending a nice school until the go to the less privileged school and see the differences. When people of a lower class can’t afford their children attending these more privileged schools, they also don’t understand the difference between what they have and don’t have until its right in front of their face.

BY ALCIA

Thinness

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1.The biomedical, psychological, and feminist mondels differ in explaining eating disorders. The biomedical model offers important scientific research about possible physiological causes of eating problems and the physiological dangers of purging and starvation. However, this model adopts medical treatment strategies that may disempower and traumatize women. The pychological model identifies eating problems as “multidimesional disorders”, that are influenced by biological, psyhological, and cultural factors. The feminist model asserts that eating problems are gendered. This model explains why the vast majority of people with eating problems are women.

2. Attributing the etiology of eating problems primarily to a womans striving to attain a certai beauty ideal is also problematic because it labels common way that women cope with pain as estentially appearance-based disorders. One blatant example of sexism is the notion that women’s foremost worry is about their appearance. By focusing on the emphasis on slenderness, the eating problems literature falls into the same trap of assuming that the problem reflect women’s “obsession” with appearance. Sexual ause was the most common trauma that the women related to the origins of their eating problems. Results of a number of incidence studies indicate that between one-third and two-thirds of women who have eating problems have been abused.

3. Tomas Silber (1986) asserts that many well-trained professionals have either misdiagnosed or delayed their diagnoses of eating problems mong Afrian American and Latina women due to stereotypical thinking that these problems are restricted to white women . When African American women or Latinas are diagnosed, their eating problems tend to be more severe due to extended processes of starvation prior to intervention. Retha Powers (1989), an african american women, desribes being told not to worry about her eating problems since “fat is more acceptable in the black community”.

BY ALLYSA