Entry 1: ISIS beheading
The event reported in the BBC article (BBC. 2015) identify how terrorist groups performing violent acts claim to be acting in the name of their religion. However, it can be seen that the driving forces of their behaviours are more consistent with political goals and personal advancement. Hill & Kinney, (2007) argue that secular political goals combined with the strategic advantage afforded by terrorist methods contribute largely to the acts of terrorist groups. This theory is supported by the report, as it states that groups such as ISIS are not able to engage in military combat with armies such as the US and British armies so they resort to suicidal attacks (known as asymmetrical warfare). The BBC article depicts a public beheading of a US Journalist. De Velasco, (2005) stated that religion is key to the legitimization of the hunger for power in cultures based on traditional principles and that without religion these groups would not receive social support nor legitimization if restricted to purely political discourse. Furthermore, the deindividuation theory argues that the self-awareness of individuals within a group is reduced which results in disinhibited behaviour. This theory provides an explanation for the behaviour of ISIS members who often act in large numbers and are often seen wearing masks. Postmes & Spears, (1998) conducted a meta-analysis which revealed that soldiers that were identifiable acted more aggressively towards the confederate than individualised soldiers. This study proposes an explanation for the actions of terrorist groups such as ISIS where each member is given a uniform to identify with. It can be seen on the BBC. (2015) article that all of the members are wearing the same clothing which is synonymous with soldier uniform and the identifiable members conducted the beheadings. Entry 2: Death of Amy Winehouse In the article by Mitchell (2015) it is documented how drug and alcohol abuse lead to the death of a popular figure. …show more content…
The article covers the detrimental effect that alcohol and drug abuse can have on the body, however, it neglects to cover the causation factors. Alcohol and Drug abuse are widely covered by social psychologists. Lettieri, Sayers & Pearson (1980) indicate that there are benefits to drug use such as being accepted into a sub-society without being judged and gaining a social identity which requires little work to live up to. This poses an interesting argument in the case of public figures as their career comes with the burden of high expectations. Furthermore, it can be argued that there are predetermining factors to drug and alcohol abuse such as social deviance, the study by Lettieri, Sayers, & Pearson, (1980) show that social deviance was a common characteristic amongst the addicts that were monitored in their study. The public figure in question (Amy Winehouse) rose to prominence for a song titled “Rehab” which contains lyrics discussing family and friends recommending rehab for Winehouse which the singer refused to adhere to. This behaviour is synonymous with the self-affirmation theory, which states that the role of the self-system is to preserve self-esteem when challenged the self-system can either respond in a defensive manner or ignore the criticism and use another schema to restore self-esteem (Sherman & Cohen, 2006). DiBello, Neighbors & Ammar (2015) found that cigarette smokers in the control group were defensive to criticism of their smoking addiction, thus shows that although the article by Mitchell, (2015) pertained to a single person, this can also be adopted in this situation where the deceased was surrounded by drugs or alcohol. abuse could be adopted, even by people who have never interacted with drugs or alcohol. Entry 3. The royal wedding The event reported in The Telegraph article (Winnett & Samuel, 2011) identifies nation brought to a standstill to observe a royal wedding. In rare circumstances such as these, nationalism and conformity play a major role on the focus of these events. Huddy & Khatib, (2007) claim that the social identity theory provides an explanation for patriotism, the theory relates to a person’s self-conception as a group member (Hogg, 2006). In this particular instance, the acknowledgement of one’s self as being British increases the likelihood of their desire to witness a historic British moment. The article continues to discuss the international coverage of the wedding
The event reported in the BBC article (BBC. 2015) identify how terrorist groups performing violent acts claim to be acting in the name of their religion. However, it can be seen that the driving forces of their behaviours are more consistent with political goals and personal advancement. Hill & Kinney, (2007) argue that secular political goals combined with the strategic advantage afforded by terrorist methods contribute largely to the acts of terrorist groups. This theory is supported by the report, as it states that groups such as ISIS are not able to engage in military combat with armies such as the US and British armies so they resort to suicidal attacks (known as asymmetrical warfare). The BBC article depicts a public beheading of a US Journalist. De Velasco, (2005) stated that religion is key to the legitimization of the hunger for power in cultures based on traditional principles and that without religion these groups would not receive social support nor legitimization if restricted to purely political discourse. Furthermore, the deindividuation theory argues that the self-awareness of individuals within a group is reduced which results in disinhibited behaviour. This theory provides an explanation for the behaviour of ISIS members who often act in large numbers and are often seen wearing masks. Postmes & Spears, (1998) conducted a meta-analysis which revealed that soldiers that were identifiable acted more aggressively towards the confederate than individualised soldiers. This study proposes an explanation for the actions of terrorist groups such as ISIS where each member is given a uniform to identify with. It can be seen on the BBC. (2015) article that all of the members are wearing the same clothing which is synonymous with soldier uniform and the identifiable members conducted the beheadings. Entry 2: Death of Amy Winehouse In the article by Mitchell (2015) it is documented how drug and alcohol abuse lead to the death of a popular figure. …show more content…
The article covers the detrimental effect that alcohol and drug abuse can have on the body, however, it neglects to cover the causation factors. Alcohol and Drug abuse are widely covered by social psychologists. Lettieri, Sayers & Pearson (1980) indicate that there are benefits to drug use such as being accepted into a sub-society without being judged and gaining a social identity which requires little work to live up to. This poses an interesting argument in the case of public figures as their career comes with the burden of high expectations. Furthermore, it can be argued that there are predetermining factors to drug and alcohol abuse such as social deviance, the study by Lettieri, Sayers, & Pearson, (1980) show that social deviance was a common characteristic amongst the addicts that were monitored in their study. The public figure in question (Amy Winehouse) rose to prominence for a song titled “Rehab” which contains lyrics discussing family and friends recommending rehab for Winehouse which the singer refused to adhere to. This behaviour is synonymous with the self-affirmation theory, which states that the role of the self-system is to preserve self-esteem when challenged the self-system can either respond in a defensive manner or ignore the criticism and use another schema to restore self-esteem (Sherman & Cohen, 2006). DiBello, Neighbors & Ammar (2015) found that cigarette smokers in the control group were defensive to criticism of their smoking addiction, thus shows that although the article by Mitchell, (2015) pertained to a single person, this can also be adopted in this situation where the deceased was surrounded by drugs or alcohol. abuse could be adopted, even by people who have never interacted with drugs or alcohol. Entry 3. The royal wedding The event reported in The Telegraph article (Winnett & Samuel, 2011) identifies nation brought to a standstill to observe a royal wedding. In rare circumstances such as these, nationalism and conformity play a major role on the focus of these events. Huddy & Khatib, (2007) claim that the social identity theory provides an explanation for patriotism, the theory relates to a person’s self-conception as a group member (Hogg, 2006). In this particular instance, the acknowledgement of one’s self as being British increases the likelihood of their desire to witness a historic British moment. The article continues to discuss the international coverage of the wedding