Post #5: The Effect of Social Distancing on Society

With the ongoing anxiety regarding the corona virus pandemic, American medical professionals have given the nation advice as to how to stop the rapid spread of the virus. While some actions are basic, such as washing your hands frequently, some are more intense. An example of this is the practice of social distancing. Social distancing is the practice of avoiding large gatherings and close contact of others. This means that restaurants, sporting events, and schools (as we are all aware) are being temporarily closed. While this can be a very efficient way o stop the spread of the virus, it can have unprecedented side effects on our society.

As more people begin to distance themselves from each other, a sense of social isolation will begin to form. Humans are a naturally social species, so being separated from each other for long periods of time can prove to be harmful. According to Science Magazine (https://www.sciencemag.org/news/2020/03/we-are-social-species-how-will-social-distancing-affect-us), "Over long periods of time, social isolation can increase the risk of a variety of health problems, including heart disease, depression, dementia, and even death." In fact, certain individuals, such as those with chronic illnesses or those who already suffer from feelings of loneliness, are more susceptible to suffer from these effects.

Not only are we affected by this pandemic on an individual basis, but our society as a whole also has the potential to suffer from these circumstances. As I stated earlier, large gatherings of people will be temporarily postponed. Therefore, events such as sports gatherings will not be taking place for at least a few months. Because events like this provide people with a sense of togetherness, this may cause people to feel less of a sense of a community within their respective activities. For example, us seniors in high school may not get to have their senior prom, which a lot of students look forward to throughout all of high school. This may cause students to feel apathetic about the rest of their high school experience due to the lack of a sense of community.

While their are plenty of negatives that could come with social distancing, some aspects of this practice could have positive results as well. For example, turnouts in social events after the pandemic is over could prove to be even bigger and more spectacular than ever before. This could also allow people to value human interaction more. There are many more positives that could come out of this situation, but it is most important for us to stay optimistic for the future.

Post #4: Family Influences

One of the most common debates within the sociology community is that of nature vs. nurture. In other words, do our genetics or our environment determine out behaviors. While plenty of people like to choose a side, I tend to thing that our behaviors are determined by a mix of nature and nurture.

As a child, we are first socialized by our family. This means that our family not only contributes to our genes, but also provide our first experiences. Because of this, our family has a huge impact in our early developmental behavior. However, once the child progresses into their elementary school years and beyond, they are socialized with people outside of their own family and are given the opportunity to develop new behaviors and opinions. This opens up the possibility of nurture having a bigger impact on their behaviors.

Looking at the facts listed above, it would be easy to conclude that nurture provides a bigger impact on behavior, but I don't believe this is the case mostly because of genetic disorders. Mental disorders which run in families, such as bipolar disorder, depression, and anxiety, can majorly impact someone's behavior and personality. Because of this, no matter how they are socialized by exterior elements, their genetics still strongly influence their behavior. Along with this, we also tend to inherit personality traits from our family members, even if they are very minor. For example, I inherited being an introvert from my dad, Along with this, I also developed a love for animals from my mom. However, the latter could be debated as a product of nurture since I was raised around so many animals.

As you can see, the line between nature and nurture can also be a blurry one. Am I empathetic because my mom is or because I learned to be empathetic towards others because of my experiences? This line makes it even more difficult to decide whether nature or nurture has a greater impact on behavior.

All in all, I believe that both nature and nurture can equally impact our personalities and behaviors. Without one or the other, we wouldn't be able to be properly socialized.

Post #3: Gender Roles

In my house, my mom tends to do most of the work around the house. However, she constantly attempts to make my dad be more involved and help her out more. He's not against helping her, he just has a much lower level of motivation than her and doesn't mind a little mess. My mom, however, constantly wants the house to be clean despite how exhausted she may be. This creates a difference in opinion, and while my mom may believe that the house is a mess, my dad often does not feel the same way. Because of this, my dad does not clean up the house, which in turn frustrates my mom. Along with this, because my mom likes things done a certain way, my dad often doesn't even bother to try to help because he knows she'll end up re-doing whatever he did in "her way."

The situations described above are most likely common problems in households across America. A lack of communication can create a tense environment in which neither spouse wishes to help out the other as much as they normally would. In order to fix this, I believe that roommates and/or spouses must communicate and work out what they expect the other to do around the house. Creating a defined schedule in which each shares an equal amount of chores not only cuts the work in half for one of these individuals, but can also reduce the tension between the two.

With all of this being said, I believe that it should not be solely the woman's responsibility to do all of the house work. With our world continuously becoming more progressive, we need to end the stigma that women are responsible for doing all of the housework. More than likely the woman of the house works around the same amount of hours as the man does, therefore they both have about the same amount of free time. By working together to get the house chores done rather than expecting the woman to do everything not only relives her of her stress, but also opens up more free time for the two to spend more time together.


All in all, I believe that a healthy relationship requires communication and cooperation on both sides, By applying these to one's relationship, it not only opens up the possibility of creating a more loving environment, but also could help to end the belief that women are responsible for everything around the house by having men share these responsibilities.

Post #2: Immigration Reform

America's foundation was built on the belief that freedom is the most important aspect that our government should always try to obtain. While we've struggled immensely with this concept for centuries, from slavery to racism to sexism, America today is as accepting as ever. That isn't to say, however, that we are not without our discrimination. In this blog post, I will be addressing immigration reform and the wall which is being constructed between the United States and Mexico.

This issue has risen within the past couple of years due to immigration reform. While I understand wanting to enforce rules to ensure legal immigration, I believe that America is displaying ethnocentrism, the belief that one's culture is "better" than others when it comes to this issue. But before I go into this concept further, I will first address the issues some Americans have with immigration.

Most Americans who are supportive of the wall between America and Mexico being built are most likely arguing that the rise in immigrants are taking jobs away from "Americans." However, as the Cato Institute proves through collections of immigration records, higher immigration is not associated with higher unemployment rates (https://www.cato.org/blog/why-unemployment-lower-when-immigration-higher). Furthermore, America was built up by immigrants bringing new ideas to this country and creating diversity within it. By wishing to "get rid" of these immigrants, America is stripping away the aspects which make it unique.

If America did "get rid" of these immigrants, it would definitely be displaying a sense of ethnocentrism. By stripping away it's diversity, America would be displaying that we believe our culture is superior to others by wishing away cultures which are not considered "American." Furthermore, this country was created to be a place for the "land of the free." By restricting immigrants from entering the country, we are contradicting our core belief that every human deserves the right to have freedom.

While there are plenty of topics I could cover why I believe the flow of immigration into America is a key part of our culture, the most important part would be that this flow could potentially create a better sense of cultural relativism, the belief that cultures should not be judged by their own standards, in the U.S. By introducing new cultures into our country, we are exposing ourselves to different customs and ways of life that could open our minds to the world around us. Hopefully as immigrants continue to enter the country, this will allow us to be introduced to different cultural standards other than the ones we have been raised with in America.

All in all, I believe that the flow of immigration should continue in America. Not only does it provide new opportunities for these immigrants, but it provides new opportunities for Americans to expose themselves to new and different cultures.

Post #1: Who am I?

To introduce oneself within a few paragraphs is always a difficult task. How should you start? What is something people would want to know about you? In my opinion, there is not one central interest or quality that defines me or anyone else as a person; rather, we are composed of several, small abilities and strengths which work together to create the individual. 

Along with the struggle to find one central quality within myself, my interests seem to change every day. For example, one day I will enjoy reading a book and maybe even finish one in a sitting, while the next day even the thought of reading would put me to sleep. However, two interests that have remained constant over the past few years are writing and photography. Ever since second grade when I went home and began to write a historical fiction story about the Revolutionary War after learning about it in school, I've loved to create stories. Creative writing has always been something that I've enjoyed, and I hope to pursue it as a side career when I am older. Along with this, photography has been a big part of my life in the past few years. Capturing moments not only allows me to create everlasting memories, but also allows me to express myself in unique ways.

As far as qualities that I have, I would say that selflessness and kindness are examples in which I am most proud of. I always try to give to others even when that same energy isn't given back because it makes me feel good to make others feel good. I try to always show a sense of humor even when I'm feeling down because brightening others' days is important to me and it in turn always seems to make my day better as well. 

I'm not sure yet what I want to do for a career in the future, but I know that I'm going to school for psychology and I'll go from there. While this will be my main career, I would also like to write and have a side photography business as well. I plan to travel a lot, so I probably won't have kids. Other than these things, I don't have much of my future planned out and I intend to keep it that way. I believe that if I take life one day at a time things will eventually work themselves out. 

I didn't intend to make this as lengthy as it is, but I think I've said everything I needed to in order for you to get a better understanding of who I am. With that being said, I hope you somewhat enjoyed having to read this, and I hope you can find some things that we have in common with each other!