by Herman Bailey | Feb 23, 2023 | Essays |
Mokgadi Caster Semenya is 800m athlete from South African, a 2016 Olympic gold medalist as well as the 2009 world championship women in the category of women 800m she was born in 1991. Serena Jameka Williams is a professional tennis player from America who is currently ranked at position 2. And has been dominant in the tennis holding position 1 for the first time in 2002, and she maintained the number one ranking for 186 consecutive weeks (Fishman, 2017).According to Peters (2017), Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama served as the first lady of the United States, she is also a layer, a university administrator as well as a writer. She is the first black American first lady. Sarah Baartman, on the other hand, is a South African woman who was taken to England in 1815 and was used as an exhibit due to the sizes of her curves. She was from the Khoi community
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Serena Williams and her sister Venus have conquered tennis since the nineties when they first appeared. In spite of the dominance in the court, her accomplishment has constantly been overshadowed by the issues of gender and race. Martin (2017), article clearly sees this as the struggle that black women go through when they become successful, as this struggle is similar to that of Semenya whose accomplishment in the field has been overshadowed with the issues of race and gender . Baartman also shares similar predicament as she was taken forcefully from South Africa and taken into England to be used as an exhibit. This was due to the fact that her body was different from that of Scottish or Irish women. This gives a clear indication of how the whites considered the black women as a half human based on their physical appearance in which they considered as freakish. It is important to note that her exhibition brought in much revenue than any other during that time
Due to the fact that Serena William is well built and her race as black women the words that have been used to describe her has a masculinity in it and one could easily question her gender. The words like ‘aggressive’, menacing and threatening have constantly been used on her. In addition to this, words like tranny have always been used to insult Serena as it is a description of a woman who is not a real woman.
The level of the stereotype that black woman face usually override their achievement as the European have a mindset or have standardized beauty in a way that fits them and any deviation by a black woman. The description of Serena from Jason Whitlock as underachiever points out how the achievement of a black woman is downplayed considering Serena is currently ranked 2nd in the world and has been dominating the court since the nineties. Semenya on the other hand after conquering the 800 metres the IAAF had to leak her tests to the world to override her victory and much was said about her gender and race more than her achievement. The fellow athletes like Elisa Cusma referred to Semenya as a Man, this point out at the magnitude of the issue that she faced but it did not deter her from winning, she was determined.
The western world media has put a double standard in measuring or outlining the success of a black woman. Black women have to work hard and be overachievers for them to be considered as successful, the fact that the ability of Serena Williams was seen as not that fulfilling. Michelle Obama was not embraced well as a first lady, she was considered not to be socially appealing this is disturbing as we compare to the wife of President Kennedy whose known achievement was being the wife of a president and nothing else (Martin, 2017).
Both Serena and Semenya will continue to dominate in their respective field. but on the social platform and aspect, they will still remain to have issues courtesy of their race. The stereotype which has been created to body shame them even after proving their worth in their profession is unacceptable. Both Semenya and Serena’s body is symbolic of the way in which stigma act together to create assorted oppressions.
Michelle Obama has also faced the same predicament as questions of her body which according to the public opinion was of a human-ness just by a mere reason of being a black woman. Her position as the first black women in the white house as a first lady did not go well as she was constantly charged with epithets from being called a terrorist, to ape-like while others called her a bitter angry black woman(Peters, 2017). Just like Semenya, Serena and Baartman her achievements in life was overshadowed by her race and gender and this did not bring her down as she became even stronger advocating for equality and defended black women rights. She also owned up to her body
In conclusion, all the articles and personal stories of the 4 black women shows how black women have gone through a lot and even if she achieves something her achievement is usually clouded by her physical appearance. This has taken many centuries during the period of Baartman and to the current years where the stereotype is still there. If only Michelle Obama was white or Semenya or even Baartman was white they would be highly recognized and their achievement could have been speaking acknowledged across the world
References
Fishman, J. M. (2017). Serena Williams.
Martin, R. (2017, January 16). Is Serena Williams the new Sarah Baartman? Retrieved from globalcomment.com/is-serena-williams-the-new-sarah-baartman/
Peters, W. (2017). Michelle Obama.
Roberts, M. (2011, January 01). My Liberal Identity:. Retrieved from transgriot.blogspot.com/2009/08/
With a student-centered approach, I create engaging and informative blog posts that tackle relevant topics for students. My content aims to equip students with the knowledge and tools they need to succeed academically and beyond.
by Herman Bailey | Feb 22, 2023 | Essays |
The functions of the human resource in the selection of the employees for various placements internationally are expected to meet quite a number of challenges from the mobility’s changing nature all over the world. As a result, it is expected of them to work within systems that are globally coordinated and at the same time expected to recognize and be very sensitive to the local needs of the people. Therefore, from this perspective it can be said that the very first challenge the human resource go through during staffing and recruitment is the inability to get a workforce diverse enough to offer exceptional individual and organizational performance (Mannix & Neale, 2005). Business situations that are continuously changing in the global markets expect the personnel of the human resource to have constant recruitments, deployments and replace the current workers. Secondly, the human resource officers also find it quite challenging in the attempts they have when trying to acquire the very best skills for the particular organization despite the geographical location. It is also stated that, they find it very tough in recruitment of individuals who are capable of effectively functioning despite the different laws of labor, the various stages of technological advancements and various values, attitudes for example time, political climate and individuals who are capable of taking risks in an international context.
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The process of recruitment and selection is majorly concerned with choosing, identifying and the attraction of the most suitable person capable of meeting the requirements of the human resource of the organization (Bailey et al., 2018). The two can also be described as the process whereby the given organization contracts, interests and solicits interested appointees with potential then later decide whether it would be ideal to select anyone among them. The major areas of importance of selection and recruitment may include the following; these two are very important to the organization in the achievement of organizational goals. When an organization chooses the right group of individuals, these employees have the capability of producing the very best results and have higher chances of staying in this particular organization and therefore leading to a reduced turn out of employees. In cases where selection of employees is not done carefully, the probability of the employee making mistakes and interfering with the organization’s criteria is very high and may cause financial losses. If not done carefully and keenly, the human resource manager’s time will be wasted for he will be required to redo the process of selection and recruitment in order to get the right employee. From this, it can be said that recruitment and selection when done appropriately, the performance of the organization will be good as hiring the right employee at the right time is very crucial to every organization.
The two recent court cases I will talk about are the following; First and foremost, long-term disability and sickness absence. This was a court case between O’Brien against Bolton St. Catherine’s Academy. This appeal shows the rate at which trends relating to discrimination claims that come from disability have been growing at a very high rate. Ms O’Brien received a dismissal notification from her employer considering she had taken a very long term period of sickness absence. At her appeal hearing, she gave her employer medical evidence that indicated that she had been hospitalized and was now ready to get back to work. Despite her attempts and the evidence, the panel of the appeal was not convinced enough and went ahead and validated the dismissal (O’Dowd, 2016). As much as the case was in the view of the court, it was found not so reasonable for the accused school to ignore new availed evidence without undertaking a medical assessment. It is advised that in different practices, before coming to the dismissal conclusion, employers should put into consideration whether they can or cannot be expected to be patient any longer. If they can be patient, then how long can they be?
The second court case is the enhancement of shared parental pay. This was a court case between Ali versus Capita Customer Management Limited. Since the introduction of shared parental leave in 2015, the problem of whether or not organization employers want to increase shared parental pay after the enhancement of their maternity pay has been considered very controversial. This employment tribunal later brought about more uncertainty. Ali gave a claim regarding the refusal of his employer to increase his payment in a given period of parental leave that was shared to the employment tribunal. He further aired his complaints that, this led to sexual discrimination considering the policy of his employer when it came to increase in maternity pay. His claim was upheld by the employment tribunal stating that, the primary care giver’s role is a choice made by the parents and it is expected to be free of assumptions that are generalized. For example, the assumption that mothers are ever best placed to partake all the primary roles and therefore should be paid fully. Employers in this case are expected to be patient for a decision by an appeal court before there is provision of greater certainty.
References
Bailey, C., Mankin, D., Kelliher, C., & Garavan, T. (2018). Strategic human resource management. Oxford University Press.
Mannix, E., & Neale, M. A. (2005). What differences make a difference? The promise and reality of diverse teams in organizations. Psychological science in the public interest, 6(2), 31-55.
O’Dowd, M. (2016). A history of women in Ireland, 1500-1800. Routledge.
With a student-centered approach, I create engaging and informative blog posts that tackle relevant topics for students. My content aims to equip students with the knowledge and tools they need to succeed academically and beyond.
by Herman Bailey | Feb 21, 2023 | Essays |
Introduction
Science and technology is the threshold for development in modern society. They define today’s innovations which govern our cultures and habits for our routine activities. Science and technology are on a constant verge of advancement, perhaps increasing. Advances in science and technology have revolutionized the world in several ways including improving every occupation that man has designed. Additionally, it has elevated man’s success in unravelling the secrets of the world, which hold to a potential for further development. However, these advancements come at a price. Acknowledging the fact that these advancements bring about more harm is inevitable. Human life has been threatened by advancements in science and technology. Steven Hawking, the Mathematics professor who took the place of Isaac Newton, warned that advances in science and technology are the biggest threat to the human race especially in modern times (Cellan 2). This paper seeks to illustrate how these advances always carry some harm, in an in-depth manner.
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The significant benefits of science and technological advances
These advances are important to the survival of mankind, and so it is imperative to understand the scope of the benefits promised by technological advancements; it has led to the improvement of production ways. Production has been shifted from small-scale to large-scale. Transport and communication systems have been developed to allow the convenient interaction of people. The medical industry has also advanced in the diagnosis of health. Most recently, the vaccine for HIV&AIDs was discovered. This is a revolutionary step not only to the health actors but also to the entire human race. Precisely, advances in science and technology have become the guide to success today with a guarantee of more innovations. However, the harm arising from the innovations are equally significant in the modern world.
Manufacture of drugs and the problem of addiction
Modern technology is under constant reformation by the exploration of science, leading to new discoveries in the designing of alcohol and tobacco. There are over 1000 brands of alcohol today. Classified depending on the production technique, there are several types made from the science of alcohol compounds. Brandy, Whisky, Vodka, Beer, Wines etc. While alcohol consumption is under stern age regulation, it is a free choice solely by the individual. Alcohol is a product consumed globally by the youths, adults and old aged. However, the consumption of alcohol has brought about more problems in the world. From its contribution to car accidents to fatality extremes, it poses a clear threat to humanity. Cases of addiction are on the rise, enslaving individuals to the chronic dependence on alcohol. Drugs like tobacco have been refined a number of times but still claiming more lives than each former decade. The World Health Organization demanded that tobacco processing industries pay more taxes annually because the health cases arising from tobacco consumption is on the rise (WHO 2015).
Medical research and biological weapons
Research in the medical sector has led mankind to solve many health problems. Including the ability to treat infections that were untreatable before, the medical sector has demonstrated significant advancement. However, medical research is a risky experience especially in the handling of deadly viruses. The medical actors may be exposed to the viruses they barely know much about. For instance, late last year, a physician who travelled from Congo to the US was exposed to the Ebola virus in Africa. This was a threat to the entire population around the infected. However, the situation was contained with precaution upon discovery. Furthermore, state conflicts led to the establishment of military groups. Biological weapons were devised to be used in war. Diseases such as Smallpox, Ebola, and yellow fever are believed to be designed by man. The US was the leading manufacturer of the Hemorrhagic Fever Viruses (HFVs) but the production of biological weapons was banned after the First World War. However, these health problems are a threat to the human race today. They have the potential to call for national security measures (Evans & Commins).
Machinery accidents
There is an increasing rate of machinery accidents today. While science seeks to discover ways to build reliable machines, technological innovations seem to claim more lives almost daily. Despite the fact that air transport is the fastest, the possibility of surviving a plane crash is almost zero. The Boeing plane crash on the Ethiopian airlines killed 157 people. It happened about 12 hours after another plane in Canada killed 12 people including a mayor. It led to the suspension of all Boeing planes worldwide. Cargo and travel ships too have demonstrated failure and many have capsized in cases of storms or mechanical malfunction. Car accidents claim far more lives daily. The human desire to explore space also proved unworthy when the Challenger disaster happened. The US rocket exploded 73 seconds after takeoff, killing seven highly trained personnel. Besides, it was a major economic meltdown for NASA, which suspended all its space missions (Resag 250). Evidently, science has led to the designation of modern machinery which do not guarantee the protection of human life, instead, increasing death trolls.
Conclusion
Conclusively, advances in science and technology have proved to be disastrous. The human race is on the verge of extinction because of science and technology. As seen, it increases man’s exposure to risk, which in one way or another, point to futile extremes. Humans are curious creatures and that curiosity drives them to explore science and put it to test through technology. Despite the fact that science has shaped the world today, which seems to be more successful than before, it has created more room for disaster and the manifestation of new challenges. The modern society should regulate science and the innovations made, to preserve the promise for the sustenance of humanity.
(Word count 954)
Works cited
Cellan. Jones, Rory. “Stephen Hawking warns artificial intelligence could end mankind.” *BBC news* 2. 12. (2014): 2014. Evans. G. Nicholas and Commins. A. “When scientific advances can both help and hurt humanity” February 3 2017. Accessed at phys.org/news/2017-02-scientific advances-humanity.html <phys.org/news/2017-02-scientific%09advances-humanity.html> Resag, Jörg. “Quarks, Computers, and the Challenger Disaster.” *Feynman and His Physics*. Springer, Cham, 2018. 249-303.
World Health Organization. *WHO report on the global tobacco epidemic 2015: raising taxes on tobacco*. World Health Organization, 2015.
With a student-centered approach, I create engaging and informative blog posts that tackle relevant topics for students. My content aims to equip students with the knowledge and tools they need to succeed academically and beyond.
by Herman Bailey | Feb 15, 2023 | Essays |
Toker in this article amicably portrays Othello story. At the beginning of the article, Othello is seen as a rare hero with a dark skin something that was not actually well received during this period at Venice (1). Toker captures this by highlighting how Lago and Roderigo referred to Othello as “he” or “him “, “thick lips”, “the Moor” and “the Barbary horse “ (19). Racism theme is portrayed extensively as the Toker takes us through the journey of the past during this period where though the aliens were accepted during this periods to roam the street of Venice their rights were limited (1).This article takes as to a journey of Othello from an “Honorary white” to a transformed mediocre who was pictured as an outcast of both sensual and racial difference.
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Toker takes us down the memory lane to help us to know why racism was outrageous at this period of time (6). He states that this period was the most disgraceful and embarrassing of the western tradition and civilisation. He depicts clearly how a white race was considered superior and socially it was unaccepted for the society to accept a marital union of a black man and a white woman. Toker links the shameful racism to the early modern theories of which accentuated the consequence of purity and the requirement of maintaining the pure nation by avoiding contamination of their seeds by any other consideration to be inferior (8). The article evidently describes how the Elizabethans were seeing themselves as a reflection of God and black in people was seen as a deformity or abnormality of some sort.
Toker points out that, besides the fact, the moor were allowed to walk the street of Venice. Moreover, the whites were allowed to keep them as the slave, and even queen kept them to play music for her they were not full welcomed into the system and even queen Elizabeth despite having interacted with them went ahead to issue manifesto against the Moore in the year the 1590s (7).
In this article Toker shows the approaches and attitudes that the English people used towards the outsiders who were seen as alien (7). The article is used to show the racial prejudice that Othello is subjected to in the hands of civilized and democratic citizens of Venice. The origin of the word “moor” which was used to refer to the blacks, is described by Toker as it came through a period where blacks were accepted after a long period of being seen as of no rights and were subjected to slavery this was around 16th century (7).
Toker sees modern Theory as a catalyst for this kind of racial segregation as the theory linked the northerners as a superior race giving them more advantages than the aliens at the south (8). The south was seen as jealous, physical, fainthearted, savage and diabolic.
Toker also capture’s the humanity aspect of Othello. In this, he wanted to narrow the gap between the races (12). Though hidden he wanted to pass the message that as much as he was black, he was a hero one could relate with, unlike the previous ones whose character was faced by imagery, mysterious convulsion and ghosts.
On the critics of the play, Toker tries to explain how the core theme of this play was involved (6). He points out that as much as racism was there and the black skinned people were seen as of poor race, they were highly regarded, Othello rose through ranks to become a highly ranked general in the army. This was a prestigious position during this time, and this fact downplays the extent portrayed in the play.
Toker criticises the book that is based on racism whereas Othello was highly regarded (10). Othello hated being a moor and always thought of himself as an outsider. Contrary to what the book depicts during this time Toker says the foreigners were highly regarded to the extent they were appointed foreign mercenary generals a position that was high in the military power (10).
According to Toker as much as the play appears to be leaning towards the theme of racial segregation the major and core theme here is emotional jealous (17). He backs this up by the fact that Brabantio saw Othello as a distinguished soldier and an honourable guest, this was before the news of his elopement with Desdemona surfaced. Othello troubles began when his elopement was known to the public and everything he was as a person was diluted and lost including his relationship with Brabantio.
The moor according to Toker was considered as a suitor for the hand of the beautiful and elegant Portia in the merchant of the Venice though after picking the golden casket he was unsuccessful (13). But the fact that he was considered for a suitor points towards some acceptance from the society Othello, on the other hand, was an honourable soldier, but his marriage to Desdemona was what led to his predicament of losing everything even the honour he previously had.
Brabantio and Lago due to the civilized society that they came from according to Toker were not ready to accept their superior race to be contaminated with Othello’s black race. The word that Brabantio uttered immediately he knew Othello was getting married to Desdemona according to Toker indicates. He shouted with anger calling people to come and witness the injustice that is about to happen in their race in regards to matrimony.
The books go against general prejudices as it represents Othello as a noble soldier and a person of rarest quality as observed by Toker, he goes further to illustrate how when the play was watched at the end of it one would hate Lago and Othello would be admired (20).
The use of a black skinned character is illustrated by Toker as he sees it as a tool that Shakespeare used to convince the audience to confine their stereotyped to black skinned people or aliens. Toker points out that when the black slave rose to be a commander and commanded the white soldiers and went an extra mile to fall in love with Angelica this shows devotion in the side of Othello (21).
Worked Cited
s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/36288843/Othello_-_Alien_in_Venice.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A&Expires=1524033613&Signature=XFvp7M%2BUzePXIlCovP3063DjCUQ%3D&response-content-dis… .
With a student-centered approach, I create engaging and informative blog posts that tackle relevant topics for students. My content aims to equip students with the knowledge and tools they need to succeed academically and beyond.
by Herman Bailey | Feb 15, 2023 | Essays |
A government shutdown, in reference to the politics of the United States, happens when the Congress does not pass, or when the President fails to sign agencies, and the appropriations funding federal legislation of the operations of the government. The federal government shutdown in the United States happened in 2018 to 2019 on 22nd December 2018 up to 25 January 2019 making a 35 days’ government shutdown. Notably, in history, it was the longest government shutdown in the United States as well as the government second federal shutdown that involved furloughs during the reigns of Mr. Trump.
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The government shutdown took place when President Donald Trump Republican and the United States 15th Congress did not come to an agreement on the bill appropriations of funding the federal government operations for the fiscal year of 2019, or a temporary resolution continuity focused on extending the bill passing deadline. The Anti-deficiency Act that led to the government shutdown prohibited federal agencies or departments from carrying out non-essential actions without the presence of the appropriations legislation. Consequently, executive departments, around nine of them with approximately 800,000 employees were partially shut down or fully shut down, impacting on more than one-fourth of the activities of the government resulting to forcing of employees to work or furloughing of employees without pay. The office of Congressional Budget approximated the cost of the shutdown to the economy of America to a total of about $ 11 billion, with exclusions of the indirect costs that were not possible to quantify (Gelman et al, 21).
To start with, I believe that even though the government shutdown was supposed to bring out good news through the building of the security wall to stop drug trafficking, massive crime, gangs invasion, and human trafficking in the Southern Border, the shutdown resulted to a significant decrease in the approval rate of President Trump. Remarkably, a good number of Americans were against the shutdown as they regarded it as a strategy of exploitation, pointing a figure on Mr. Trump as being accountable for the government shutdown. Noteworthy, according to the results from the News poll of the CBS, about 71 percent of the Americans termed the construction of the border wall as “not worth” for the government shutdown. Besides, in reference to the Washington Post poll as well as the ABC news, both revealed that about 53 percent of the Americans had all the blames on the Republicans and the president for the shutdown, even though a 34 percent of the Americans had their blames on the Democrats with 10 percent blaming the two parties (Gelman et al, 13). Thus, with examinations of the poll percentages, my opinion is that the government shutdown was so exploitative and the building of the southern border will never equal to the exploitative effects of the government shutdown, hence not worth.
On top of this, due to the government shutdown, more than 800,000 employees in the federal, as well as the natives who mainly depended on the government, were hurt as a result of the shutdown (Gelman et al, 11). Worth mentioning, with a fast, peeking above his bubble, Mr. Trump was supposed to learn a lot on the government employees legions and contractors who had to spent the best part of the holiday season hurting on how the next payment of their mortgage or their grocery store trips or electric bill in case the political charade dragged much longer. With high considerations of how the government shutdown had inflicted much pain on the Americans whose lives had been negatively affected in different ways, in my opinion, the government shutdown to build the security wall was not worth the lives of American Citizens.
Additionally, President Trump insisted on $ 5.7 billion in funding the security border wall. He argued that a security and humanitarian crisis existed in regards to the southern border that was a must to be addressed before the end of the government shutdown. On the other hand, Democrats insisted that there was no crisis big enough to equal to a shutdown, and there was a need to reopen the government before starting any negotiations on the release of any money to fund border security wall building (Gelman et al, 2). I think that as the Democrats have stated on the lack of a crisis that can equal to a government shutdown, the amount of money to be released or the time required for the negotiations in releasing the money is a lot, thus the government operations that were on hold were more important than the building of the security wall.
Most importantly, the building of the security wall was President Trump political action because as documented, Mr. Trump was almost signing a deal on a short term basis involving congressional Democrats in keeping open the government up to 2019 without any funds being released for the funding of the wall, of which he reversed his ideal immediately. This happened because Trump’s base conflicted at his idea of possibly going back on his promise during the campaign of building the wall. The base argued that, if Mr. Trump took that action, he would get nothing in return with the Democrats getting the victory. However, according to Mr. Trump, he did not seem to accept that the security wall was based on political actions but he said that the wall was primarily a border security issue (Gelman et al, 20). Nonetheless, from every Americans’ perspective, the government shutdown was an issue of Mr. Trump’s personal political insecurity since when the Democrats will start raging on him, he will just back off and lose track in front of everyone. Hence, in my opinion, the government shutdown was not the right decision the President made because it was due to political insecurity and the reason was not strong enough to make Americans go through such exploitation.
Conversely, even though the government shutdown affected the Americans negatively, the security wall would result in positive impacts. For example, who does not wish to live in a country free from drug trafficking, human trafficking, gang crisis, or massive crisis? According to Donald Trump, the security wall was supposed to be the beginning of an end to all these crimes since no border security can be achieved without the existence of a wall. He remarked that the technology and the drones were just whistles and bells. For a fact, the American President knew that immigration, which would be stopped by the security wall, was the most important issue cared by his base and that what made him with the 2016 presidential election. Thus, his strongholds were keen on the betrayal signs of the President’s failure to fund the wall, thus a resolution on the money release for the funding of the wall should be negotiated to first stop the government shutdown then release money for the funding of the security wall.
Works Cited
Gelman, Michael, et al. *How individuals smooth spending: Evidence from the 2019 government shutdown using account data*. National Bureau of Economic Research, 2019.
With a student-centered approach, I create engaging and informative blog posts that tackle relevant topics for students. My content aims to equip students with the knowledge and tools they need to succeed academically and beyond.
by Herman Bailey | Feb 14, 2023 | Essays |
Diversity covers the differences that exist in human beings. Previously, diversity in socialization and development of human behavior was considered as the concept of differences between various groups of people, their socialization techniques and culture. However, in recent times, diversity has come to be known as the differences not just between communities but between the human beings themselves. Some of these changes are part of the genetic construction which means that in such cases people sharing particular physical features and traits are prone to the development of certain behavior. On the other hand, there are those differences that stem from life experiences and the environment from which such groups of individuals are socialized. According to (Elster 1999) diversity is the different forms of behavior that stem from the ethnic groups, genders, state of origin and religion among other factors. He continues to say that diversity also includes perspectives of life and life style choices.
On the other hand inclusion tries as much as possible to minimize the diverse nature of human beings. Traditional societies and strict religious groups are perhaps the best example of inclusion in the study of human behavior. Individuals are socialized to dress alike, follow strict procedures in everyday activities even when in private. In such societies, members can be identified simply by their behavior. (Sigelman and Shaffer 1991) in his analysis of such cultures showed that members lack even the basic individual thoughts characteristic of human nature. Such thoughts have been suppressed by what such individuals consider to be the norm and culture. It is almost as if they have been brainwashed, rebellion against the uniformity of the society is not only frowned upon but also attracts severe punishments.
Diversity and Human Behavior
Ashworth (2000) states that diversity in development of human behavior stems not from nature but rather from the varying socialization processes. In all psychological theories relationships are vital in the development of behavior. Psychologists agree that human behavior in itself is not only complex but also diverse in nature. Even in societies where similarities seem to exist and rule; the internal human behavior in individuals within the society is quite different. The uniqueness of each human being in terms of physicality and thoughts leads to different relationships with the environment and socialization process and therefore development of particular behaviors. Diversity is not acquired through nature; it is in fact the nature of the human beings. Human beings cannot exist without diversity.
Darwin in his evolutionary theories built on the basis that human beings are diverse in nature. According to him, the resources required for the existence of human beings are scarce and therefore there exists much completion. Only the strong and the best adjusted human beings in the species survive the competition and evolve to become stronger and more suitably adjusted to the environment. According to this therefore, behavior develops in an attempt to adapt to the fats evolving environment. Each individual designs their own coping mechanisms for that which they consider most suitable to the environment. Since human beings continue to exist in completion and will continue to do so for a long time, young ones will be socialized into an evolving environment. They are required to develop their own unique survival skills in order to continue existing. This is why technology continues to change on a daily basis. Human beings in their own diverse ways are still attempting to survive in the evolving world.
Cognitive theories explaining the development of human behavior are also based on the assumption that diversity is vital and indeed the only way individuals acquire behavioral trends. According to cognitive theorists, behavior begins forming in the mind even before birth. As a child is born, they come into the world with their own view of the existence and world forms. As they interact with the environment such thoughts become influences, transform and change to what the society may consider normative. However, (Wade and Tavris 2000) highlights that diversity in human behavior comes not from the thoughts alone, but in fact from the interaction and relationship between the thoughts and the environment. In an attempt to adapt to the environment, human beings develop a thought process which then guides their behavior. This though process is responsible for adaptation to the changes that they may encounter. For example when two children grow up as orphans, facing almost the same challenges that come from the lack of parental care; one may become focused and in fact achieve high success in an attempt to fight fate, yet another could resign themselves into depression and a longer list of maladaptive tendencies and still another could resort to crime seeing this as the only avenue for success. Each of the individuals have faced the same challenges in a similar environment; what has differed is the relationship between thought and environment.
The humanistic approach to behavior development concurs with the cognitive perspective while at the same time challenging many of the fundamentals and offering a variety of core principles that encourage diversity in human behavior. (Gray 1999). (Bijou and Ribes, 1996) states that the humanistic approach is perhaps the one theory through which the influence of diversity in behavior is not only encourages but best understood. Humanistic theorists begin by indicating that human beings are far from similar. In fact, according to them the differences are astronomical between one individual and another. Children brought up in a similar family, with the same resources and environment are as different as day and light. Human beings are beyond what humanistic theorists call components and parts of a human being. What makes us human is beyond the fact that we have hands, eyes and even a functional brain. These are just components and the behavior of a human being cannot be broken down into such components. Carl Rogers, Maslow and Moustakas focused on this assumption to describe issues such as the self and individuality as it responds to human behavior.
Diversity of human behavior comes not from socialization or learned behavior but from conscious efforts. Human beings are not only aware of their own behavior, they are also aware that they are aware of their behavior. Therefore each decision to pursue a particular behavior is a conscious effort to meet a particular need. Behavior must need this need in order to be emphasized. People move away from norms and values that have been ingrained from them since childhood dimply because such norms no longer meet the state of their needs and requirements. Since they are conscious of themselves, these theorists believe that they cannot be manipulated unless such manipulation is directed at meeting particular needs. The intelligence of the human being comes from this particular characteristic.
(Cicarelli and Mayer, 2006) concur that human beings exist because they have a choice. This is why laws are out in place because human beings have choices in the selection of behavior and because of their diversity not all will elect the normative choice. This choice according to humanistic supporters comes with responsibility which is the main aspect of socialization. Socialization into the society is not a system through which learned behaviors are passed from one generation to another. Rather, it is a system through which human beings become aware of their choices and the reasonability that each choice carries. Children do not steal, not because they have learnt not to steal but because they will go to jail. (Baron and Kalsher 2001) further states that is if they indeed find a way to steal without being caught and therefore escape punishment then that will be the norm and acceptable choice to them despite what they have learnt. The choice factor makes the human being so diverse that they cannot respond to similar circumstances in the same way even when all other factors are held constant. How they respond to the responsibility determines the actual result of the behavior. All behaviors of the human being are not haphazard or as robotic as Freud and skinner described and stated. Human beings engage in a particular behavior because they expect certain rewards to come from such behavior. If the rewards do not come forth, they are most likely to change paths and attempt a new way of gaining the same rewards. For example, an employee will go to work daily, work hard and meet their targets in an attempt to be financially secure. However, after a while they will become corrupt and attempt shorter routes to earn the same money easily and faster.
Inclusion and Human Behavior
There have been many misconceptions surrounding the concept of inclusivity. Many make the assumption that inclusivity means that human beings are mostly similar in majority of their choices and decisions. However, the concept of inclusivity acknowledges that human beings are indeed diverse, and in fact attempts to make explanations with regard to such differences. Inclusivity covers the attempts by society and culture to integrate human beings into similar behaviors. Inclusivity attempts to reduce the diverse nature of individuals by using various socialization methods. In inclusive societies, regulations, norms and beliefs are strict. Punishments for misbehavior or behavior against the norm draw severe punishments. The freedom of thought and free will is in turn curtailed.
Traditional societies are renowned for the concept of inclusivity. Inclusivity allows the survival of societies. This is especially the case where competition for resources is high. Instead of encouraging diverse thoughts and behavior, which would in turn encourage completion among individuals; society encouraged the inclusive similar thoughts on survival. All individuals are expected to act according to the norm under which children are socialized. In such cases, socialization is not expected to draw out differences but rather to make individuals more similar. People and children act in a particular way not because of the law or even because of their conscious thoughts but rather because they come from a particular society which acts in such a way. Therefore, female children will for example cover their heads with hijabs even when others are not; not because of beauty or fashion but rather because they are Muslim and Muslim girls cover their heads. Socialization therefore becomes about mastering the rules and regulations, rather than encouraging individual thought. The root of particular behaviors can be traced back to the socialization to particular rules and regulation specific to that society.
Inclusion requires that behavior be taught rather than naturally acquired. Skinners operant conditioning covers the ideal inclusion system. According to skinner, thoughts can be suppressed and behavior encourage through either positive or negative reinforcement. Majority of the inclusive communities often encourage negative reinforcement. Behavior that is not the norm is punished; individuals are therefore forced to conform. In extreme societies the punishment is also extreme. In a regular society parents punish children for example for hitting another child in order to discourage such behavior. On the other hand, proper eating habits and good grades are awarded thereby reinforcing that particular behavior. Children left to their own diverse nature would deteriorate, and end up without any motivation for good behavior. (Lefton 1997) in his research found that children who come from homes where they are punished for bad behavior and rewarded for good behavior tended to have more focused goals and successful lives. On the other hand, children whose upbringing focused more on their diversity tended to have problems with authority even at the work place, had no clear goals career or otherwise and problems relating with society. A good number of them were in trouble with the law. (Carlson et al 2004) stated that for socialization to work in society, children and generations need to be socialized into particular behaviors rather than be held responsible for their own decisions. Individuals make decisions on the choice of behavior based on what they have been taught and socialized is the norm. Inclusion is designed to promote equitability among the shared resources. Members of the community lack nothing because they share resources equally. Everyone knows what is required of them, resources are shared according to the rules and therefore there is less likelihood of deviant behavior arising from greed to arise and develop.
Freud based his inclusive theory on the nature of human beings. According to him, we are all alike internally, and are made up of the same components. Therefore the development of behavior in each stage can be attributed to a similar characteristic within the human child. He breaks down the stages of development into five stages coinciding with the human being developmental stages: oral stage, anal stage, phallic stage, latency and genital stage. (Allen and Marotz 2000) cites that socialization of children into particular behaviors is designed by society to coincide directly with these stages. For example, toilet training on average begins during the anal stage and is perfected here. On the other hand, the heightened concern for risky sexual behaviors among the teens can be attributed to the poor socialization during the genital stage. In the same way he continues to counter that girls and boys are more attached to parents of the opposite sex citing the experiences of various respondents simple because of the remnant socialization during the phallic stage.
Inclusive behavior development therefore focuses more on the similarities of the human beings, heightening them so that the diversity that indeed exists becomes immaterial and in some cases non-existent in society.
CONCLUSION
Both inclusion and diversity are important aspects that help to understand the development of human behavior. There has often been a common misconception that human behavior is only attributed to the diverse nature of human beings. However, this fails to explain how people who may not even be aware of each other’s existence make almost the same decisions in life, take particular steps and lead a life that is quite similar. Inclusion is vital for society to continue in positive normative development. Left to their own devices and to cultivate the diverse nature, greed, pride and jealousy among other negative feelings are likely to take over leading to the development of negative behaviors.
Diversity on the other hand is the best way to progress. Without diversity, technology, nature and even progress among the human race would be impossible. Diversity encourages people to explore their uniqueness and though this may lead to negative behavior it is vital for purposes of balance. Without diversity, competition for resources would be stiff and the human race would be tottering on the brink of extinction. Human beings by nature are unique, both in mind and physical structure. Such differences are to be explored through positive channels. Socialization into particular behaviors needs to focus on exploring the various channels through which the diverse nature of human beings can be understood. To understand both inclusion and diversity, scholars need to adopt a macro view taking into account human nature and the environment in which particular behaviors are developed. Without this understanding the full potential of inclusion or diversity out together cannot be understood and therefore explored to encourage positive cultural developments and human behavior.
REFERENCES
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Baron, R. A., & Kalsher, M. J. (2001). Psychology. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Bijou, S. W., & Ribes, E. (1996). New directions in behavior development. Reno, NV: Context Press.
Carlson, N. R., Martin, G. N., & Buskist, W. (2004). Psychology. Harlow: Pearson Education.
Ciccarelli, S. K., & Meyer, G. E. (2006). Psychology. Upper Saddle River, N.J: Pearson Prentice Hall.
Elster, J. (1999). Strong feelings: Emotion, addiction, and human behavior. Cambridge, Mass: MIT Press.
Gray, P. (1999). Psychology. New York: Worth Publishers.
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Sigelman, C. K., & Shaffer, D. R. (1991). Life-span human development. Pacific Grove, Calif: Brooks/Cole Pub.
Wade, C., & Tavris, C. (2000). Psychology. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.
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