Individual and Institutional Discrimination Essay

Choose one of the five questions below. Write an essay response of 250-300 words. In your response, be sure to refer to specific concepts from the readings, lecture notes, and/or discussions, and use these concepts to support your points. Please state the question prior to your answer.

1. Explain what sociologist Howard S. Becker meant when he said, “it is not the act itself, but the reaction to the act, that make something deviant.”
2. Explain the difference between individual and institutional discrimination, giving examples of each type of discrimination. Then explain how these forms of discrimination are different from prejudice and stereotypes.
3. Of the three theories of global stratification (modernization theory, dependency theory, and world systems theory), which do you think is most relevant or useful for understanding global inequality? Explain why in detail, using specific examples to support your points.
4. Explain how functional theory would interpret the causes and consequences of technological advances in American society. Choose one particular type of technology to focus on, such as texting or social networking via Facebook or Twitter.
5. Compare and contrast two social movement theories, such as deprivation theory and resource mobilization theory. Use examples from a specific social movement to support your points.

You must proofread your paper. But do not strictly rely on your computer’s spell-checker and grammar-checker; failure to do so indicates a lack of effort on your part and you can expect your grade to suffer accordingly. Papers with numerous misspelled words and grammatical mistakes will be penalized. Read over your paper – in silence and then aloud – before handing it in and make corrections as necessary. Often it is advantageous to have a friend proofread your paper for obvious errors. Handwritten corrections are preferable to uncorrected mistakes.

Use a standard 10 to 12 point (10 to 12 characters per inch) typeface. Smaller or compressed type and papers with small margins or single-spacing are hard to read. It is better to let your essay run over the recommended number of pages than to try to compress it into fewer pages.

Likewise, large type, large margins, large indentations, triple-spacing, increased leading (space between lines), increased kerning (space between letters), and any other such attempts at “padding” to increase the length of a paper are unacceptable, wasteful of trees, and will not fool your professor.

The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced with a one-inch margin on the top, bottom, and sides of each page. When submitting hard copy, be sure to use white paper and print out using dark ink. If it is hard to read your essay, it will also be hard to follow your argument. Individual and Institutional Discrimination Essay