Relative Talk Time Sociology Exercise
EXERCISE #3 Emotions, Social Cognition, Communicate
You will upload your completed file (.doc, .docx, .pdf only)
Please number/letter each response, and make your answers concise.
The objective of this exercise is for you to apply the perspectives and concepts from the course to your own life and life course experiences, and in doing so to show that you have mastered the course material. This is an independent assignment, thus each student’s answers must be unique; “shared” work will result in a shared failing grade. As well as self-reflection, you will need to select a newspaper/online site to complete this assignment (you will include a screenshot or .jpg with your file), and arrange to watch TV. Points are indicated in [brackets], with a total of 100 possible.
1) Emotion [Total=30]
a) Go to a public location, such as a dining hall, shopping mall, or library. Observe the people in the space, and do your best to discern their emotions. Pay attention to contextual clues. Provide as much detail as possible to justify your label (choose 2 cases). [10]
b) Complete box 5.2 in your text; how emotionally intelligent are you? Do you think this is more a product of your personality or your socialization? [10]
c) Examine how your place in the social structure shapes your experience and display of emotions. Consider your gender, your age, your social class, or other factors that you believe influence how you experience and display emotions, and then apply them to any two of the following: happiness, love, anger, or grief. [10]
2) Social Cognition. [Total=30]
a) Select two comic strips (with multiple frames; get the same strip two days in a row). Provide a schematic profile — describe the various social schemas (person, group, role, event) that are enacted/portrayed. Describe any errors in cognitive processing. Were a stereotype threat or self-fulfilling prophecy operating? [10]
b) Think of a time when a decision you made or a behavior you participated in was not aligned with your beliefs and attitudes. How did it make you feel? Did you experience cognitive dissonance? If not, why not; if so, how did you try to resolve the negative feelings? [10]
e) Assume that UCI is concerned about binge drinking, and they’ve hired you to create a campaign or program that will change (i.e., reduce) student’s drinking behavior. Using what you know about the relationship between attitudes and behaviors, what would be the best approach? Justify your reasoning by drawing on social psychological concepts and the studies presented in the chapter. [10]
3) Social Interaction and Communication. [Total=40]
Select a comic strip (must have multiple frames).
a) Briefly describe the place/event/scene, and the participants/roles/relationships. How is the conversation/ communication initiated (or if it is in progress, how do you know?) What non-verbal symbolic vehicles are used – gestures, body language, spacing, physical characteristics and personal effects? How is paralanguage represented? To analyze the verbal communication, consider the type of content, any jargon, the rules of conversation that are followed or not, and the purpose/success of the interaction. Consider the relative “talk time” of each participant, interruptions, topic changes, questions, and requests; is one participant dominant – how do you know? What social structural differences are evident among the participants (gender, age, SES, ethnicity)? [15]
b) Examine three recent conversations or exchanges you had with other people via either email, text, or other electronic media (Twitter, Facebook, online message boards). You do not need all the conversations to come from the same group of people, or use the same electronic media.
Consider how the media shapes communication; in what ways does it restrict how you communicate compared to verbal communication (initiation, feedback, coordination)? Are there any ways in which computer mediated communication allows for more clarity than in verbal communication? How did members of the conversation compensate for any challenges to clarity or accuracy posed by the technology? [10]
c) Consider the major relationships and groups of which you are a part. For each relational tie, describe the bond profile – primary or secondary; including intimacy, task, social power/influence, and/or self-involvement. Contrast the bond profile and typical interactions with your social relationship with your best friend and with your teaching assistant. [15]