...Critically examine psychological explanations for racism Racism is a, persistent, destructive, invasive problem is our society today. Psychologist have taken this complex social issue and for years have brought forward many different perspectives, to understand, theorise within psychology to grasp the possible reasoning behind why this act takes place within society even today. Within this essay I will be attempting to critically examine a range of psychological explanations for racism. According to the oxford dictionary definition Racism is ‘The belief that all members of each race possess characteristics, abilities, or qualities specific to that race, especially so as to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race or races: theories of racism. Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race based on the belief that one’s own race is superior: a programme to combat racism’ [Oxford Dictionary: Online] Social scientist have viewed and taken racism to be a factor that has arisen from our surrounding; built from the people and world around us, whereas clinical psychologist tend to focus on psychological issues assumed to be the primary cause of racial behaviour. Minard (1952) investigated how social norms promote discrimination and racism within individuals, [Gross.R 2014]. The Black and White miner’s behaviour was observed above and below ground, within southern USA. He found below ground 80 of white miners were friendly towards...
Words: 1146 - Pages: 5
...Racism and Power A Formal Research Paper on Racism HSP-3UI-03 Jenna Yates 06/16/2014 -1- Introduction Over the generations, there have been horrific examples of racism around the globe. The holocaust, the slave trade and Apartheid in South Africa are all examples of appalling events throughout history that display racism. In addition to these extreme examples, racism exists on a smaller scale in peoples day to day lives. For example, there are people who face certain disadvantages, like being denied employment, denied an apartment or denied a friendship all because of their race. While there is definitely a movement to eradicate racist actions and beliefs, they still exist. Despite education and a history of horrible experiences with racism, it is still a huge issue in our culture and in our environment. This is so, because there is always a group who benefits from racism and it is hard to let this power and privileges go. Racism has been an effective tool for those in a position of power and privilege to maintain their status, income, recourses, the ability to make decisions, etc. Racism empowers some and disempowers others. Even though we have seen the down side of racism, it is something we continue to repeat from country to country and decade to decade because we know it works to maintain power. Despite all the advances society has seen in research, knowledge and technology, mankind has not been able to abolish racism. Therefore, in spite of our understanding...
Words: 3395 - Pages: 14
...Social Psychology Ginger PSY/400 Social Psychology Our behavior is shaped by many influences, some external and some internal. Humans are social creatures meaning that cultural predispositions define our circumstances. Our attitudes and personalities play a significant role in shaping behavior as well, sometimes offsetting, and sometimes reinforcing social pressures. How we think influences our perceptions of the world and how we think influences our perception of others. Also how we think influences our perceptions of ourselves. Social Psychology differs from other related disciplines in that it focuses on “social” aspects of human behaviors, specifically, how people understand, and interact with others. Social Psychology Social psychology is the study of how and why people think, feel, and do the things they do depending upon the situation they are in (Myers, 2010, p. 4). In other words, social psychology focuses on the individual and relies on scientific research to generate theories of social behavior. The world is a dynamic place and the actions of human beings are constantly changing as individuals respond to various events and situations that confront them. Social psychology plays a role in helping to understand better how individuals view themselves and others in various social and cultural contexts. For example, social psychology can help in better understanding how stereotypes are formed, where attitudes...
Words: 988 - Pages: 4
...Case Study 1: How Racist Are Australians? Think about this topic broadly, but try to also think about the different ways that social scientists could study issues of race and racism in Australia. For example, there are important conceptual issues. How do we define terms like race and racism? Are there different kinds of racism (i.e. old racism? colour racism? new or cultural racism? institutional racism? Can you be racist towards someone on religious grounds, or is that something different? – if interested in the latter see Dunn et al 2007 in refs below). There are also historical and contemporary questions – who has experienced racism in the past in Australia, and who experiences it in today’s Australia? Then there are questions about how we examine the issues surrounding racism. How do we measure racism? Do we use survey questions about people’s beliefs? Are the kinds of questions asked in such surveys really measuring racism? (think about the survey explained in Dunn et al 2004). Can we use qualitative forms of research to investigate racism? What about assessing racism from the perspective of its victims (i.e. from those who have experienced racist acts, or forms of discrimination?) Are there particular groups of people more likely to hold racist beliefs? In what ways can we measure and assess the extent of racial discrimination in Australia? Can you think of any other good research questions that we could ask on this topic? Here are some further ideas of things...
Words: 691 - Pages: 3
...Comparing and Contrasting Essentialist Approaches to Social Psychology with Social Constructionist Approaches to Social Psychology. A widely recognised definition of social psychology is “an effort to understand and explain how the thought, feeling, and behaviour of individuals are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others” (Allport, 1985). However, how to measure this, the research methods to be used and what constitutes useful evidence has caused much debate in the history of social psychology. This essay will compare and contrast the two epistemologies of essentialist and social constructionist approaches to social psychology and the research methods of quantitative and qualitative used in each approach. Essentialists’ view of the world is that the properties possessed by a group are universal in that group and do not depend on context. However, a member of a group may possess other characteristics that are not required to include it as a group member but, it must not have characteristics that preclude it from being a member of the group (Burr, 1995). For example, essentialists believe that personality consists of a number of traits and personality of an individual is established by the level of each of these traits. Essentialists also believe that these traits remain more or less stable over time and it is our personality that influences behaviour (Maltby, 2010). As essentialists are able to classify groups as such, they use quantitative research...
Words: 3936 - Pages: 16
...and racism that make them not want to go. These experiences end up marking youth for the rest of their lives. Some children find an outlet to their problems by bulling others. Over the years bullying has grown tremendously affecting our schools and communities and as a result our future generations and their lively hood are at stake. Historically, bullying took place in the mid 1970s. Dan Olweus, a research professor of psychology, was the first to conduct an intensive study on bullying among students using his own systematic researching methods (Voo, 2007, p. 112). He created the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program (OBPP), which had significant results in reducing school bullying (Hazelden Foundation, 2007). Olweus’s efforts and solutions contributed greatly to the fight against bullying increasing awareness, initiating other professionals to conduct more research, and expanding the knowledge of bullying (Voo, 2007). Because of Olweus’s efforts researchers suggest that there have been a positive impact on decreasing school violence and bringing safety awareness to schools. Bullying and racism are problems that have been a part of America’s history for many years. Bullying can be verbal, physical, I chose to discuss bullying and racism because there have been an increase in our future generations. By discussing these problems, my goal to increase awareness, formulate strategies and methods while crafting solutions. There are many contributing factors to bullying and racism. In...
Words: 861 - Pages: 4
...Racism is a term that is often used to describe a variety of social, culture and economic problems, but has, unfortunately, acquired “so many contradictory meanings that it takes on the aura of a myth,” it has become increasingly difficult to define . Although the term wasn’t officially featured in the Larousse Dictionary until 1932, racism had been a dark cloud hanging over the global horizon for centuries (de Benoist, 1999). Whenever there are people of different cultural and social characteristics introduced into the mix, a recipe for racism and the hostilities it generates is created. Because racism defies a singular definition but is usually represented by the categorizing of people according to certain criteria, it can perhaps best be understood by discussing the issue itself in terms of such categories as the reasons for racism, its causes, why it continues, and how its meaning is ever-changing. It is widely accepted by sociologists that racism is essentially an ideology or belief system with its foundation cemented by three basic ideas. First, there is the fact that human beings can be divided naturally into different physical types (Vorster, 2002). For example, Africans are ‘typed’ by their dark skin color and by their curly hair; Asians are known for their ‘yellowish’ skin color, black hair and slanted eyes, etc. Often, solely on the basis of these physical traits, assumptions are automatically made that become “intrinsically related to their culture...
Words: 1899 - Pages: 8
...Cheryl Boulden , a 52 year old African American employee of the United Stated Forest Service (USFS), expressed that she was the victim of harassment and discrimination by a male supervisor because of her skin color, abilities, and having a relative in higher position. Her testimony shows that she experienced a hostile work environment that worsened after complaining to the Equal Employment Officer. In order to increase the effectiveness of the Affirmative Action Plan( AAP) it is necessary to understand the issue of discrimination in this case. In this context, Boulden was the victim of discrimination that can be attributed to racism from coworkers. From her narrative, we learned that her coworkers placed the blame of the situation on her...
Words: 472 - Pages: 2
...differently when they are a part of a mob (Smith). In To Kill A Mockingbird this trait is seen where Mr. Cunningham changes his attitude whilst in the mob (Lee 205-206). Yet another trait of mob mentality, according to Smith, is that the people in the mobs are often gathered because they are emotional about the same thing. This is seen in the novel where the town gathers in front of the Finch home and Mr. Heck Tate is talking to Atticus (Lee 194). Along with mob mentality, racism also affected this...
Words: 997 - Pages: 4
...The Psychology History of Prejudice and Racism in America Racism and prejudice are problems that have been and still are present in the American society. These problems have brought a lot of suffering and it is of great importance to understand how the two issues work. Racism happens when people of a particular race believe that they are the primary determinants of the human capacities and traits and produce a superiority to another race. Racism works when a particular race wants to defend a system that takes advantage of another on the basis of race (Wellman, 2009). It is a form of prejudice where prejudicial behavior and attitudes are directed towards the members of a specific ethnic group originating from a particular continent. Prejudice is an attitude. It has three concepts; conative-behavior to behave negatively towards a group of people, cognitive-beliefs on a certain people group and affective-dislike (Dovidio, Hewstone, Glick, & Esses). Prejudice and racism is usually described in the form of racial prejudice. Many theories are there to explain the prejudice that is present. The theories focus on a variety of factors and many analyses have been done to classify the racial prejudice. Some define the prejudice in terms of levels, others using culture as a basis while yet, others use society. The different classifications do not show how the different classifications mesh together. There have been different shifts in the history of the racial discrimination in the...
Words: 259 - Pages: 2
...How Environment Plays Role In Learning College 100 American Military University There are a many different factors into why we learn the way we do. In a society where so many variables contribute and influence our day to interactions, how does the environment play a role in our learning? From living conditions, educational influence, social impacts and the forever perceived relevance of race, there are plenty of factors that help diagnose why our environment plays such a significant role in our learning abilities. So what are the effects of growing up in a privileged area versus an area of poverty? What’s the difference between having parents who have a higher degree in learning versus parents who didn’t even graduate high school? How do the crowds students hang out with affect dedication to learn and seek a higher level? We will discuss all if this and more. Studies have shown that individuals growing up in areas have poverty suffer from several risk factors that can inhibit their ability to learn. Kids growing up in less than adequate living conditions also face socioeconomic issues mainly because they do not relate to a majority of the other kids they deal on a day to day basis. According to Eric Jensen, there are four major contributing factors that kids living in poverty deal with, explained as EACH. These steps include; emotional and social challenges, acute and chronic Stressors, cognitive lags and safety Issues. Dealing with these issues can be a major problem...
Words: 1819 - Pages: 8
...Symbolic interactionism is a major sociological perspective that places emphasis on micro-scale social interaction, which is particularly important in subfields such as urban sociology and social psychology. Many people feel as though racism isn’t really important when it comes to the theory of symbolic interactionism but “labeling” is a key concept that is very relevant when it comes to the study of race. Not a lot of television shows deal with racism and the effect that it has on its victims, but on February 4,2005 a Disney show that was reaching out more the black audience took a stand. “That’s So Raven” was a very popular show in the early 2000’s and for black history they decided to do a show on racism , Raven ( a black girl )and her friend Chelsea (a white girl) applied for a job at the same place. At the interview they had to perform jobs such as folding clothes, and creating displays for the store. Chelsea did really poorly while Raven ends up excelling. During the interview the manager’s gestures towards Raven were very rude and obnoxious and it was clear that she wasn’t interested in anything thing that Raven was doing. At the end of the interview Raven was very confident that she got the job but the manger ended up hiring Chelsea. Raven who was very hurt and confused wanted to know why she wasn’t hired when she knew just as well as the manager that she did a better job and was much more qualified for the job so she decided to investigate. It was later discovered...
Words: 495 - Pages: 2
...Racism consists of both prejudice and discrimination based in social perceptions of biological differences between peoples. It often takes the form of social actions, practices or beliefs, or political systems that consider different races to be ranked as inherently superior or inferior to each other, based on presumed shared inheritable traits, abilities, or qualities. It may also hold that members of different races should be treated differently.[1][2][3] Among the questions about how to define racism are the question of whether to include forms of discrimination that are unintentional, such as making assumptions about preferences or abilities of others based on racial stereotypes, whether to include symbolic or institutionalized forms of discrimination such as the circulation of ethnic stereotypes through the media, and whether to include the socio-political dynamics of social stratification that sometimes have a racial component. In sociology and psychology, some definitions only include consciously malignant forms of discrimination.[4][5] Some definitions of racism also include discriminatory behaviors and beliefs based on cultural, national, ethnic, caste, or religious stereotypes.[2][6] One view holds that racism is best understood as 'prejudice plus power' because without the support of political or economic power, prejudice would not be able to manifest as a pervasive cultural, institutional or social phenomenon.[7][8][9] While race and ethnicity are considered...
Words: 353 - Pages: 2
...the basic principles of Critical Psychology, we need to establish what Critical psychology is – what its basic concerns are, etc. After doing that and reaching an understanding of what critical psychology is, we can look at how specific schools can be manipulated to either perpetuate ideologies and ideas or how it can facilitate critical thinking. Critical psychology is an approach rather than a theory, an orientation towards psychological knowledge and practice – and to relations of power in general. It is an orientation that cuts across the various sub-disciplines in psychology and is made up of diverse theoretical perspectives and forms of practice. An omnipresent theme is critical psychology is that of psychology and power itself. At its most basic it is an investigation of the relationship between power and psychology. It is an awareness that psychology itself is powerful and that it plays a role in maintaining and extending existing relations of power. Critical psychology is concerned with both critiquing oppressive uses of psychology and with enabling potentially transformatory forms of practice that disrupt imbalances of power and which have social equality as their goal. The mainstream practice of psychology has attempted to play down its political nature, whereas critical psychology aims to play up this very political nature of psychology. In simpler terms, critical psychology is concerned with the kind of knowledge that psychology produces, knowledge that is seemingly...
Words: 1227 - Pages: 5
...Prejudice, Stereotypes, and Discrimination Ryan Lewis PSY301: Social Psychology Steve Lazarre 8/24/2014 One of the most common subjects in today’s society and all throughout civilization is discrimination, stereotypes, and prejudice. Regardless if it is intentional or not, people will always be against each other. No matter the form of jealously and hatred, upon s one skin or materialistic possessions. Allot of people believe that they are superior and look over all who are inferior to them. Discrimination is a natural thing that humanity conceives because it is in our nature. It starts in the mind and can be infectious throughout others. The decisions that are based upon these prejudices that is immoral. There is moral and ethical war against discrimination, also we must and need to understand different types of discrimination. Some doesn’t know what really does exist in this world and they get lost in their own translation. Plus being aware of what causes it and how can we stop it is also a key to promote a positive future. The types of discrimination exist by ranging from your gender all the way to ethnicity, from the status you are in a lifestyle or all the way to certain preferences like dating. There is a key to link all these groups together in which is they separate one group from another. It’s so easily to discriminate and it is so easy to judge by so many ways. So many find true reasons that are unethical to stat justification, but whom says it is ok to discriminate...
Words: 726 - Pages: 3
