Black Psychology Essay Example

Black Psychology Essay The mission of policemen in America is to serve and protect, but if one reviews the recent history of the police force across the country, one is forced to ask: who is doing the protecting? Africans in America are far too often the victims of police violence, and very infrequently the beneficiaries of it. The police force exists as part of the distorted view of life given to us by the ruling elites. At the root of this twisted unreality is a social system based on economic and racial control. The police force itself is not an inherently evil thing, just a tool to enforce this control. Their effectiveness in maintaining this control would be far less effective if the ideologies underlying the control where not in place. These ideologies are multi-faceted; I will merely bring out a few here. Thefirst is the ideology of blaming the victim, which is the subject of a book by the same name. Blaming the victim holds, quite innocuously it seems atfirst, that people ought to be held personall y responsible for their actions. The logic goes: if you commit a crime, you ought to suffer the consequences. Secondly, the social order defines what crime is. Most often criminal behavior has little to do with absolute standards of justice and more to do with who has the money to justify and sanitize their illegal behavior. White-collar criminals engage in far more heinous behavior without getting caught than the criminals who commit muggings, theft, or drug sales. Thirdly, criminalization of certain behaviors has racial undertones-the overwhelming public perception of crime is linked with people of color, most specifically black males. These all have implications for the sanctioning of violence by the police force. In thefirst place, blaming the victim allows policemen to engage in any action that escalates the level of violence, if it can be demonstrated that such a use of force was necessary to subdue the criminal. Using

Free Essays on Exploring The Affect Society Has On The Shaping Of Human Behavior

There are numerous aspects of social interaction used in the shaping of social relationships. For the purpose of this paper, I thoroughly examined the theories of â€Å"Self-perception† and â€Å"Social perception â€Å"I decided to focus on the views given by Sociologist’s Erving Goffman and Charles Darwin throughout chapter four. According to sociologist Erving Goffman, social interaction should be compared to a theatrical performance, with the members of society playing the roles of actors or actresses. Performers often worry and stress prior to going on stage. They worry about what the spectators will think? Will they ever get another role? How will they know if the spectators like their performance, and if they don’t what will happen to their career? Goffman believes â€Å"self-presenters sometimes worry about being judged incompetent; they often rehearse prior to their performance†. However, performers are not the only individuals who are self -presenters. Society is full of norms and rules that are socially acceptable or unacceptable. These societal norms shape and mold the behavior of human behavior throughout society. Individuals, who try to fit into those norms and rules, often find themselves rehearsing their roles and behavior. For example, applicants going for job interviews often rehearse what they will, and will not say in the interview. An applicant also observes the interviewers body language and responses, in order to figure out if they are being accepted or rejected. Goffman, gives the example of an individual preparing â€Å"for a romantic dinner date, for instance, you might purchase your date’s favorite wine, splash on some enticing cologne, and bring a romantic CD as a gift (the props) that will later be played at the right moment to properly set that stage for your romantic self-presentation. You might even practice your romantic gazes and postures in front of a mirror or rehearse a romantic speech beforehand† (... Free Essays on Exploring The Affect Society Has On The Shaping Of Human Behavior Free Essays on Exploring The Affect Society Has On The Shaping Of Human Behavior There are numerous aspects of social interaction used in the shaping of social relationships. For the purpose of this paper, I thoroughly examined the theories of â€Å"Self-perception† and â€Å"Social perception â€Å"I decided to focus on the views given by Sociologist’s Erving Goffman and Charles Darwin throughout chapter four. According to sociologist Erving Goffman, social interaction should be compared to a theatrical performance, with the members of society playing the roles of actors or actresses. Performers often worry and stress prior to going on stage. They worry about what the spectators will think? Will they ever get another role? How will they know if the spectators like their performance, and if they don’t what will happen to their career? Goffman believes â€Å"self-presenters sometimes worry about being judged incompetent; they often rehearse prior to their performance†. However, performers are not the only individuals who are self -presenters. Society is full of norms and rules that are socially acceptable or unacceptable. These societal norms shape and mold the behavior of human behavior throughout society. Individuals, who try to fit into those norms and rules, often find themselves rehearsing their roles and behavior. For example, applicants going for job interviews often rehearse what they will, and will not say in the interview. An applicant also observes the interviewers body language and responses, in order to figure out if they are being accepted or rejected. Goffman, gives the example of an individual preparing â€Å"for a romantic dinner date, for instance, you might purchase your date’s favorite wine, splash on some enticing cologne, and bring a romantic CD as a gift (the props) that will later be played at the right moment to properly set that stage for your romantic self-presentation. You might even practice your romantic gazes and postures in front of a mirror or rehearse a romantic speech beforehand† (...