Chapter 6 Critical Thinking Questions
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Chapter 6 Critical Thinking Questions
Critical Thinking Questions 6.1
Which cultures are you a part of? What are the three important norms of each of these cultures? Are there any conflicts in norms across the different cultures in which you participate? Explain. If you were to be Rubina’s social worker, what value and norm conflicts might come up in your work with her?
My cultures consist of American and Christian. Important norms for these are the types of food I eat, the clothes I wear, and the type of entertainment I enjoy. For Christianity it is more on the holidays we celebrate such as Easter and Christmas, the fact that we pray before every meal, and that, for my family and less for me, that they go to church every Sunday. Some conflicts can arise in the entertainment department where there can be some media that I enjoy that would feature an lgbt couple that would be frowned upon in the group of Christians my family associates with. It is becoming more acceptable in American culture to showcase lgbt couples as well as darker themes that would go against those who believe strongly in the bible. If I was Rubina’s social work value and norm conflicts that might come up in our work would be that I was raised in a (although not nearly conservative at the time) Christian environment and still hold part of those values and norms with me in my day-to-day life. Religion is something that Rubina has found recently that makes her feel better and although I wouldn’t be able to fully relate to her experiences as a Muslim and second-generation American, I would support her in her recent experimentation with a Hijab and talking openly with her family.
Critical Thinking Questions 6.2
As you think about Rubina’s story, what implicit biases do you think people might have about her in the classroom, on the street at the shopping mall, and at home? What are your reactions to the racial categories used by the U.S. Census Bureau? What do you think of the proposal to add a
racial category of “Middle Eastern and North African” to census data? How important are race and ethnicity in your own life? Explain.
Some biases people might have towards Rubina are that, especially if she wears a hijab, she is Muslim probably first generation American, and that she is from the Middle East. Most people, when faced with a conservative Muslim person tend to assume that they are all from the same area and that they could be a terrorist because of that. Since she does not look like the ‘traditional’ American she can also be assumed to be a fresh immigrant to America. The biases at
home would be that she is disobeying her parents because she is wearing a hijab. I believe that the racial categories used by the U.S. Census Bureau are too broad. You can’t classify people based on which continent they originate from; it also doesn’t include a large variety of people such as Latin and South Americans as well as those originating from Australia. Hispanic people
are not white and do not share culture with most European countries. Australia, although having been an English colony has a large native population of dark-skinned people who would not be classified as white. That isn’t even touching how Native American as well as Pacific Islanders have their categories but all of Asia is under one. I believe that the proposal to add more racial identities is overall a good step but there needs to be more than just Middle Eastern and North African. There needs to be more tags, specifically for Hispanics. Race and ethnicity aren’t important in my life. I am white with two white parents. I was raised by my father who was adopted and has no idea of what country his heritage is from. Both of my parents are from long generations within America and no specific cultural traditions that they grew up with or passed down. I could care less about my race and ethnicity but I recognize that is not the norm and that for most people their race and ethnicity are a very important part of their self-identity.
Critical Thinking Questions 6.3
What do you think about the changing ideas about the binary nature of gender and sexuality? What examples have you seen of this cultural change? How important are gender and sexuality labels in your own life? How important has social class been in your own life in the past two days? What role do ability and disability play in your life? What factors can make a difference in how important gender, sexuality, social class, and disability are in people’s lives? Explain your answers.
In contrast to my last response, I care a lot about not only my gender and sexuality. People need to understand and recognize that gender is not binary and is more on a scale of femininity to masculinity. People can identify as male, female, or other no matter how they were born. Many of my friends are on this scale of gender, including myself. Even just five years ago you could say that you were non-binary and be laughed at and mocked but with Gen Z growing older more people are growing more accustomed to having people of a ranging gender. Just last month I was
surprised and glad that the Zoo now has gender-neutral stalls for those who are not comfortable using the proper one. Gender and sexuality labels are important in my life because it is how I live; I don’t have strict pronouns, but I know people who do and I not only respect them I make sure others do as well. The labels help identify who we can relate to most but overall, the entire lgbt community is one of the most welcoming communities I have ever interacted with. Social class, however, is not an important topic of my own life. I am middle class and overall in a good place, both parents in my household work, and we have three vehicles among 5 people in the house with only one of us not working with her being the youngest. Ability and disability play a role in my life in that me and all of my siblings are on the spectrum to some degree which can prevent us from processing information the same way others can but we are all able to work and wouldn’t consider our “disability” disabling. Factors that can make a difference in how important
gender, sexuality, social class, and disability are in people’s lives would be if they affect them or not. If someone identifies as a different gender or is not straight then gender and sexuality will
mean more to them than a straight cis-gendered person. If someone is from a lower social class or is disabled, or takes care of someone who is disabled, those topics will mean more to them.
Critical Thinking Questions 6.4
What have you observed about the impact of the physical environment on your behavior and the behavior of others? How well do stimulation theories, control theories, or behavior settings theories account for the influence of the physical environment on your behavior and the behavior
of other people you know? What do you think of the deep ecological argument that humans have no more value than other forms of nature?
The physical environment affects me by determining what mood I am in and how safe I feel. The
first is more common with me being in an environment I am comfortable with, like the living room with my family, or if I am in a messy unclean environment like my brother’s house. This also is based on what other people are in my physical environment. It can affect others in similar ways as well as making them feel unsafe such as in a high crime area or a house with a drug user.
The better the environment the safer and happier the person tends to be. Stimulation theories are that the physical environment directly affects behavior; control theories are about how much control someone has over their physical environment and behavior settings theories say that consistent uniform behavior occurs in specific environments. All three can account for the influence the physical environment can have on behavior. Sunlight, fresh air, and people I care about, all fighting into the stimulation theory, can all improve my mood and thus behavior. How much space I have and control over that environment also impacts my behavior. These places tend to be the same universally which falls into the behavior settings theories. They all work with
each other to impact the behavior of myself and others. I believe that, while on the surface, we can say that humans are no more important than other forms of nature but that is just the surface level. People are obviously more important than other forms of nature because they are cognizant. We need to chop down trees to build houses and grow and farm plants and animals to eat. We should be more mindful about pollution, but a tree is not more valuable than a person’s life. Neither are animals or other forms of nature.
Critical Thinking Questions 6.5
How might social workers incorporate ecotherapy into their practice in different settings? How do you think social workers should be involved with environmental or ecological justice, if at all? Do you consider yourself a proponent or critic of rapid advancements in information and communication technologies? Explain. How easy would it be for Ben Watson to visit your home,
your favorite restaurant, or your classroom? Explain.
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Social workers could incorporate ecotherapy into their practice by suggesting a client go on a walk or sit outside while on their phone. Just getting them outside to enjoy the fresh air while not
necessarily saying that they have to go to the park or do something that could put them out. I believe that social workers can work to advocate against pollution which is harmful to nature as well as people. They can be involved with environmental and ecological justice because nature affects people and so if something is damaging to the environment then it is damaging to people. I am a proponent of rapid advancements in information and communication technologies. As mentioned above, pollution is a real problem people face throughout the world but because of rapid advancements we now have cleaner fuel supplies. Communication technology is also important because we can now connect with people all across the world, not just by talking to them but also through surgeries. There is a robot that allows a doctor on one side of the world to operate on someone on the other. Although there can be quite a few negatives about these technologies I believe that overall it is for the greater good. Ben would have a difficult time entering my home with all entrances having stairs and wouldn’t even be able to enter my space which is in the basement but he would be able to enter both my favorite restaurant, which has large doors and walkways, and my previous classroom at MCC which had a ramp for those in wheelchairs and a large elevator.