SOCIAL-PROBLEMS-AND-CURRENT-ISSUES.pptx

social problem in the community

1. SOCIAL PROBLEMS AND CURRENT ISSUES

2. SOCIAL PROBLEMS AND CURRENT ISSUES Define “social problem.” Explain the objective and subjective components of the definition of a social problem. Understand the social constructionist view of social problems. List the stages of the natural history of social problems.  

3. What is Social Problem? A social problem is any condition or behavior that has negative consequences for large numbers of people and that is generally recognized as a condition or behavior that needs to be addressed. This definition has both an  objective  component and a  subjective  component.

4. What is Social Problem? The  objective  component is this: For any condition or behavior to be considered a social problem, it must have negative consequences for large numbers of people . How do we know if a social problem has negative consequences? Reasonable people can and do disagree on whether such consequences exist and, if so, on their extent and seriousness, but ordinarily a body of data accumulates—from work by academic researchers, government agencies, and other sources—that strongly points to extensive and serious consequences.

5. What is Social Problem? The reasons for these consequences are often hotly debated, and sometimes the very existence of these consequences is disputed. A current example is  climate change : Although the overwhelming majority of climate scientists say that climate change (changes in the earth’s climate due to the buildup of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere) is real and serious, fewer than two-thirds of Americans (64 percent) in a 2011 poll said they “think that global warming is happening”(Leiserowitz, et. al., 2011).

6. What is Social Problem? This type of dispute points to the  subjective  component of the definition of social problems: There must be a perception that a condition or behavior needs to be addressed for it to be considered a social problem. This component lies at the heart of the social constructionist view of social problems ( Rubington & Weinberg, 2010). In this view, many types of negative conditions and behaviors exist. Many of these are considered sufficiently negative to acquire the status of a social problem; some do not receive this consideration and thus do not become a social problem; and some become considered a social problem only if citizens, policymakers, or other parties call attention to the condition or behavior.

7. The Natural History of a Social Problem S ocial problems go through a natural history consisting of several stages of their development (Spector & Kitsuse , 2001). Stage 1: Emergence and Claims Making A social problem emerges when a social entity (such as a social change group, the news media, or influential politicians) begins to call attention to a condition or behavior that it perceives to be undesirable and in need of remedy. As part of this process, it tries to influence public perceptions of the problem, the reasons for it, and possible solutions to it. Because the social entity is making claims about all these matters, this aspect of Stage 1 is termed the claims-making process. Not all efforts to turn a condition or behavior into a social problem succeed, and if they do not succeed, a social problem does not emerge.

8. The Natural History of a Social Problem Because of the resources they have or do not have, some social entities are more likely than others to succeed at this stage. A few ordinary individuals have little influence in the public sphere, but masses of individuals who engage in protest or other political activity have greater ability to help a social problem emerge. Because politicians have the ear of the news media and other types of influence, their views about social problems are often very influential. Most studies of this stage of a social problem focus on the efforts of social change groups and the larger social movement to which they may belong, as most social problems begin with bottom-up efforts from such groups. A social problem emerges when a social change group successfully calls attention to a condition or behavior that it considers serious.

9. The Natural History of a Social Problem Stage 2: Legitimacy Once a social group succeeds in turning a condition or behavior into a social problem, it usually tries to persuade the government (local, state, and/or federal) to take some action—spending and policymaking—to address the problem. As part of this effort, it tries to convince the government that its claims about the problem are legitimate—that they make sense and are supported by empirical (research-based) evidence. To the extent that the group succeeds in convincing the government of the legitimacy of its claims, government action is that much more likely to occur.

10. The Natural History of a Social Problem Stage 3: Renewed Claims Making Even if government action does occur, social change groups often conclude that the action is too limited in goals or scope to be able to successfully address the social problem. If they reach this conclusion, they often decide to press their demands anew. They do so by reasserting their claims and by criticizing the official response they have received from the government or other established interests, such as big businesses. This stage may involve a fair amount of tension between the social change groups and these targets of their claims.

11. The Natural History of a Social Problem Stage 4: Development of Alternative Strategies  Despite the renewed claims making, social change groups often conclude that the government and established interests are not responding adequately to their claims. Although the groups may continue to press their claims, they nonetheless realize that these claims may fail to win an adequate response from established interests. This realization leads them to develop their own strategies for addressing the social problem.

12. SOCIAL PROBLEM AND PERSONAL PROBLEM P ersonal Problem - one whose causes and solutions lie within the individual and the individual's immediate environment. S ocial Problem - is one whose causes and solutions lie outside the individual and the immediate environment. The distinction is not based on the individual's experience of suffering, because a certain amount of suffering may occur in either case.

13. SOCIAL PROBLEM AND PERSONAL PROBLEM C. Wright Mills (1959) made a similar distinction, calling personal problems the "personal troubles of milieu" and social problems the "public issues of social structure." He offered many illustrations of the difference between the two. If one individual in a city is unemployed, that individual has personal trouble. The person may be lazy, have personality problems, lack skills, or have family difficulties that consume all of his or her energy. But if there are 100 million jobs in a society and 150 million people are looking for work, we confront a public issue. Even if there are no personal problems, a third of the people will be employed. Such a problem cannot be resolved solely by dealing with individual personalities or motivations.

14. SOCIAL PROBLEM AND PERSONAL PROBLEM Similarly, a man and woman may have personal troubles in their marriage. They may agonize over their troubles and ultimately separate or divorce. If theirs is one of few marriages that experience such problems, we may conclude that they have personal problems and their marriage broke up because of some flaw in their personalities or in their relationship. But when the divorce rate soars and millions of families are broken up, we must look for causes and solutions beyond the personalities of individuals. The quest no longer “What is wrong with those people?" but "What has happened to the institution of marriage and the family in our society?"

15. SOCIAL PROBLEM AND PERSONAL PROBLEM In one sense, defining a particular problem as social or as personal makes no difference. The person who is poor and out of work will still be so whether the cause is laziness, lack of motivation, or the state of the economy. The couple that breaks up will still experience the pain of divorce whether the cause is their inadequacies as people or developments in the society that resulted in a general disruption of the institution of marriage and the family. In other ways, whether we define a problem as social or as personal is crucial. The distinction determines the causes of the problem that we identify, the consequences of the problem , and how we attempt to cope with the problem .

16. SOCIAL PROBLEM AND PERSONAL PROBLEM If a problem is defined as personal, individual strategies will be employed in efforts to cope with the problem. Thus, the victim of the problem will look inward for a solution. Sometimes that solution is found in an escape mechanism , such as neurosis, physical illness, heavy drinking, or self-destructive behavior. At other times the solution is sought from specialists such as psychotherapists or religious advisors who help individuals to change. These specialists may enable the individual to adjust to the problem but not ultimately resolve it. If America s troubled families sought the help of counselors, they might learn to cope with their troubles, or at least learn to bear up under them. But troubled families would continue to appear as fast as ever.

17. SOCIAL PROBLEM AND PERSONAL PROBLEM Helping individuals deal with personal problems is important; however, it can be only a stopgap approach to social problems. On the other hand, to see a problem as social is to put the problem in a much different perspective and lead to far different conclusions and action. Thus, if a man defines his poverty as the result of the state of the economy, he may join in collective action such as a social movement, a rent strike group, or an organization set up to relieve the plight of the poor. He will probably not despise himself, because he will not blame himself for his poverty. He may feel a certain indignation, but he will not hate himself. He will see that his problem is not only a personal problem but a problem of his society, and he will see that he is a victim rather than a culprit.

18. Key Takeaways The definition of a social problem has both an objective component and a subjective component. The objective component involves empirical evidence of the negative consequences of a social condition or behavior, while the subjective component involves the perception that the condition or behavior is indeed a problem that needs to be addressed. The social constructionist view emphasizes that a condition or behavior does not become a social problem unless there is a perception that it should be considered a social problem. The natural history of a social problem consists of four stages: emergence and claims making, legitimacy, renewed claims making, and alternative strategies

19. For your Reflection What do you think is the most important social problem facing our nation right now? Explain your answer. 2. Do you agree with the social constructionist view that a negative social condition or behavior is not a social problem unless there is a perception that it should be considered a social problem? Why or why not?