Race And Ethnicity example essay topic

Our hypothesis is an empirical sociological question. The use of human subjects is an obvious representation of sociology. Secondly, our subjects are studied by means of the group. In addition, we focus on the relationship between these groups of students and in turn apply it to a part of the institution.

With consideration to contextual data the information we find provides insight into the historical, geographical, and social aspects concerning race and ethnicity. Lastly, in considering the resulting trends observed in the opinions and conceptions of our peers, our study most ultimately qualifies as an empirical sociological question. IMPORTANCE OF OUR RESEARCH The importance of our research is multifaceted. Most importantly, we gained insight into the level of racial integration on campus and ultimately the relationship between white students and students of color on campus. Secondly, we studied the purpose, goals, and actions of Unity through the use of printed materials the issued by the college. Additionally, we related these findings to the perceptions of Unity House obtained from the students' honest responses from the surveys.

Our research is not only sociological in nature but also directly related to our Ethnic and Race Relations class. We feel that the most important purpose of the course was to learn more about race and ethnicity, and how these issues affect the world in which we live. More specifically, we feel the goal was to help us understand the hidden nature of identification, and finally integration and segregation. Furthermore by adopting sociological perspectives these goals were exemplified through our research. Our research also related to the course content through the means of investigation. As Beverly Tatum suggests race and ethnicity should be discussed in a classroom, there is a similar way to go about research.

This involves an open-minded and sensitive frame of mind, which we applied to our investigation. We also noticed the correlation between our research and class material through considering the background information of our participants. The geographic location of the student (where they were brought up, where they attended school, and what they were exposed to) is all very relevant in considering their present frame of mind. Their experiences prior to college translate to their involvement and motivation in the exploration of diversity on campus. This relates directly to C. Wright Mills' article entitled The Promise.

Mills defines the sociological imagination as "the idea that the individual can understand his own experience and gauge his own fate by locating himself within his period... that he can know his own chances in life only by becoming aware of those of all individuals in his circumstances". (Mills, p. 13) It is important to put the subjects of our sociological research into context, to allow us to better understand their responses. Personal racial identification also plays a role in this correlation. In the essay Optional Ethnicities, Mary C. Waters proposes that "ethnic identity is optional for most Americans of European background". (Gallagher, p. 491) On the other hand, "the experience of non-whites in the United States is then contrasted. Non-whites have much more limited options with regards to their ethnicity because of particular historical and social circumstances in the United States".

This applies to our research in the sense that there was a wide discrepancy through the identification of many of the phenotypically "white" students. Some used "white", or "Caucasian", while others used "Eastern-European American.".