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SOCIAL GROUPS.
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Examines group theory & personal experience of writer as ethnic group member in U.S. Class, language, attribution error, assimilation.... More...
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Paper Abstract:
Examines group theory & personal experience of writer as ethnic group member in U.S. Class, language, attribution error, assimilation.

Paper Introduction:
FOREIGN VISITOR Everyone belongs to certain collective groups in society and is identified by membership in these groups. These groupings can be seen as different according to the level of interaction between member and the nature of those characteristics that make people members. Social groups have different standing in different societies as well. An individual might find him or herself in a different position if they moved from one society to another even though they wold not change their role or group affiliations. I myself have moved from one society to another and can see how different social groups have different meanings in my home society and where I am now attending college. Individuals belong in certain groupings because they have something in common with other members of that group. Social

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Gudykunst, W.B. Thio, A. Postwar industrialization has changed thefamily and disrupted the traditional village community in Japan (Schneiderand Silverman, 1997, 16-17). A primary social group towhich I belong is my family. An individualmight find him or herself in a different position if they moved from onesociety to another even though they wold not change their role or groupaffiliations. Thesociety as a whole is one such social category, and we speak thus ofAmerican, Britons, French, and so on. "Sociology of English as an additionallanguage." In The other tongue, B.B. New York:McGraw-Hill. These groupings can be seen asdifferent according to the level of interaction between member and thenature of those characteristics that make people members. Americans like to think that they have no social classes, but they do. Third, we tend to attribute our success to personaldispositions and our failures to situational factors--the "ego-protective"bias. Psychology is social. Sociology. Global sociology. Social groupshave different standing in different societies as well. This group is larger, and noone can have interaction with all of them. My family is an extended family, which differs from the more normalnuclear family of American society. New York: Addison Wesley Longman. Middle-class status would be regarded in Japan much as it is here,while class inequalities are much greater in Mexico and more stratified.English is important in Japan as a business advantage. (1998). Attribution theory is concerned with how we use information tomake causal inferences (Krupat, 1982, 13). To some extent, membership in the student body can be seen as adheringto a reference group, for there is certain behavior that is expected of astudent and that helps him or her be identified as such. I also belong to certain social groups. New York: Sage. Urbana: University ofIllinois Press. Krupat, E. A socialcategory is made up of a number of people who have something in common butwho do not interact with one another and do not gather in one place. The members of a society have theirculture and history in common, but they do not interact with one another onthat basis and do not gather in one place. A larger primary group would be found in themembers of the student body of this campus. & Silverman, A. Attributions are made byindividuals and groups all the time based on the degree of information theypossess about a given perception and on the psychological processes thatare engaged in making use of this information. Bridging differences: Effective intergroupcommunication. I believe I am identified less as a member of the middle class than asa member of a different ethnic group so that my middle class status isignored. FOREIGN VISITOR Everyone belongs to certain collective groups in society and isidentified by membership in these groups. He finds certainattitudes go along with this, notably that English is increasinglyassociated with technological modernity and power (Fishman, 1982, 15).However, in the United States the fact that one speaks English as a secondlanguage and so has any trace of an accent is seen as evidence that theycome from a society that is not as modern or powerful as American society,and the person is judged accordingly. Biases have been identifiedby several researchers examining the attribution process. Education is highly prized in Japan, and the role of student wouldcarry a high status, especially a student achieving much. Fishman (1982) notes that there is a process of ongoing nativizationof non-native English speakers around the world. Sociologists have noted that there has been a fragmentation in Americansociety emphasizing class differences in some ways. Still, this is a group with asense of unity that is indeed further fostered by certain group activities,from rallies to sporting events and the like, and school unity is a phraseidentifying the fact that everyone on campus is meant to feel included. Attribution theory has been described as having three propositionswhich define its nature: 1) Attribution is social in origin; 2) Attributionis social in its reference or object; and 3) Attribution is social in thatit is common to the members of a society or group (Gudykunst, 1991, 85-86). Social groups are different.Each is a collection of people who do interact with one another and have afeeling of unity as a result (Thio, 1998, 568). Dallas, Texas: Scott,Foresman and Company. We have several generations livingtogether and maintain close ties across different family relationships,while Americans tend to think of the immediate family first and theremainder of the family as secondary and distant. (1982). (1982). This is called the"fundamental attribution error." Second, we have a tendency to see our ownbehavior as normal and appropriate--the "egocentric" bias--and we thusexplain the different behavior of others as a function of their personaldispositions. (1991). The same could betrue in Mexico, but English is not spreading widely in either countrytoday. In Mexico, the extended family has also been the norm This was oncetrue in Japan as well, though this has changed somewhat because of changesin the social order since World War II. Ethnocentrism refers to the tendency human beingshave to see their own group as the norm and to judge others by thatstandard, and specifically this is a process undertaken when members of onesociety or social group look at and judge members of another. In bothcases there is no necessary interaction among members of the groupingsaside from what is brought about by proximity and no sense of unity. Kachru (ed.). Anyone whois different is categorized as such, which may blur those things they havein common with others. First, it isbelieved that we have a tendency to overestimate the influence of personal,dispositional characteristics and underestimate the influence ofsituational factors when we make attributions. Two significant social categories to which I belong can be identifiedas middle class, and those for whom English is a second language. I myself have moved from one society to another and can seehow different social groups have different meanings in my home society andwhere I am now attending college. Social interaction is the processby which individuals act toward one another and react to other people. Japan is more characterized by anuclear family, but that family has a more rigid structure and hierarchythan the American version. Individuals belong in certain groupings because they have something incommon with other members of that group. Being a studentimplies certain conduct--studying, learning, interacting with others--andbeing part of a specific campus brings other behaviors, based on specificrules of conduct, local norms, traditions, and so on. In Mexico,education has been harder to come by, and the role of student often has apolitical element that has meant attacks and controls by the ruling classand government. Schneider, L. (1997). Works Cited Fishman, J.A. Thedegree of interaction is important, and in some types of groupingsinteraction is small while in others it is more extensive. Differences have beenmagnified across class lines--lifestyle is definitely related to incomelevel and social distinctions in spite of the emphasis on individualism.Society has been fragmented by political and social upheavals intogroupings around certain income levels, ideas, even locations.

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