Children In Urban Areas Sociology

Comparatively, the inner-city demographics hindered the boy’s chances of social mobility and personal growth along with the social brutality. A city is like a machine in the sense that every part of the city works together to bring

Childhood itself is a slightly ambiguous term, and is not a fixed definite period of life. The book “AS level sociology” written by Rob webb, Hal Westergaard, Kieth Trobe and Liz Steel defines childhood as “ a socially defined age status” going on to say that there are major differences in how childhood is defined, both historically, and culturally, similarly, Stephen Wagg says of childhood;

A child’s environment, for example, their family or school play a huge part in their development. Some of the main factors that influence a child’s development are their family, where the child lives, and socio-economic status. These factors often cross over and blend as they are related.

Imagine growing up in a small town where everyone knows everyone's business and the nearest Wal-Mart is almost an hour away; then imagine attending a school where the amount of student attending is the same number of people who occupy a small town. The size difference is substantial and plays an important role. When I was younger, I had attended both a small town school and a school in the city. I have had the chance to experience the different lifestyles of these two variations of living. The development of who I am today was because of my surroundings. In the city, I noticed there was different opportunities. The opportunities seemed more readily available depending on funding and sources; which are dependant on the location. Education, development, and opportunities are widely known to be affected by environmental factors; thus, people who live in the city have a different experience than those who reside in small towns.

Family stability can be described in many ways. Traditionally it is defined in terms family structure (for example, single parenthood, extended families, working families, foster care etc) Exploring the various family processes that pertain to stability may be a useful means of understanding the specific characteristics of family stability that support healthy child development. For example,

There is no doubt that communities and cultures have been exposed to one another over the course of time. This interaction is known as the “middle ground” where different groups come in contact for various reasons either accidentally or purposely. This interaction and mixture of communities has the potential of creating a good or bad relationship between the two different groups, depending on the circumstances and their intentions. The reality is that there is fear towards many different communities which is mostly due to the lack of knowledge and lack of comprehension there is for these groups. Communities and cultures cross borders because they want to create a just society; we continue to live in a world full of unjust treatment, the drive to help others and fight for a fair society explains why communities and cultures cross borders. Crossing over of these communities leads to understanding and

The environment inside the mother’s womb can indeed have a dramatic influence on the development of a child but environment influences such as where the child is raised can have a huge affect on a child development as well. Children of a low income tend to live in more polluted areas, where the air and the water are polluted, pollution can cause brain development in children as well lung diseases that can be development in childhood or can affect them later in life. One the factors that can have a huge impact on a child’s life is housing. Those on a low income are more likely to be living in poor housing conditions experiencing stress from overcrowding including noise, lack of privacy, having to wait to use facilities such as the toilets, poor heating and ventilation in winter, poor washing and cooking facilities, the house can have many hazards for a child due to architectural features, dampness, as well the neighbourhood cannot be safe or have poor facilities such as shops and parking. Poor housing is associated with poor health this is due of poor facilities and opportunities, children that grow up within poor housing are more

Childhood is socially construted, this means it is only a human concept and the only reason that 'childhood ' exists is because society makes it that way. Over time childhood has changed as different norms and values over each century of life have been different and is still changing at present. Also in different places of the world there are different cultures and ethics so therefore their veiw of childhood will also be different. As Wagg (1992) states ‘Childhood is socially constructed. It is, in other words, what members of particular societies, at particular times, and in particular places, say it is. There is no single universal childhood, experienced by all. So, childhood isnt “natural” and should be distinguished from mere

Urbanization is inevitable, whether we want it or not. Opposers are constantly bickering about the political and moral consequences of gentrification. This topic is indeed mind boggling and complex. However, there is a need to observe this multi-faceted phenomenon in a different angle. Change is the force of diversity, safety and

If the environment they are living in is negative, lots of conflict within the family home then this is likely to have an adverse effect on the child’s development.

The environment that a child is exposed to is very influential, as a high-quality living environment has been positively linked to cognitive development (Guo & Harris, 2000). Therefore those children living in poverty are at a further disadvantage due to their low-quality living environment.

The United States is considered a melting pot because of the vast array of different cultures, ethnicities, and religious groups who all live within its borders. Other countries with fewer cultural differences have been torn apart by the conflicts that arise between these differing groups. It is believed by some that the United States has been able to avoid such ethical conflicts as have brought down other nations but looking at American history it is evident that this is not true. America's history is one of ethnic conflict because of religion, nationalistic, and particularly ethnic differences. The two centuries that the United States has existed has been a history of racial marginalization particularly against African Americans which culminated with the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s. In the present, the United States likes to claim that as a nation, we are color blind but evidence exists to the contrary. The Klu Klux Klan (KKK) still exists, hate crimes are committed based on ethnicity, and stereotypes are perpetuated in order to minimize and ostracize. Despite these instances, the country has held strong largely because although these instances occur, they are not approved of by the government or those involved in criminal justice.

Social problems, such as family poverty, unemployment, crime, discrimination, drug abuse, and poor health care exist in every setting, whether urban, suburban or rural. These problems affect children development and may become a profound obstacle for their growth. That is why understanding all the negative factors of the area of living is vital for parents who want successfully raise their children.

That scenario does not repeat itself everywhere. Social conflicts can occur when neither party can see nor wants to see the resolution. Some fights are not based on trivial matters. For example, we have the unresolved black-white supremacy battle. It has not been made any better in two hundred years, when we can estimate the contact between the two to have begun. Efforts have been made, but the conflict between white and black is not something that, I think, will ever evaporate. It is a deep-rooted cultural conflict. This type of conflict can manifest itself in many ways. We see it every day in America's truly cosmopolitan society: skin color; accent differences and so on and so on. I myself have plenty of first hand experience with this particular category, as I have lived 'abroad' for over nine years. One thing that has dogged my family and me is the fact that Indian cooking generates a lot of smoke. Thick, filmy smoke that always fills a room, no matter the length of time cooking was done. Often, cultural conflicts bring about racial slurs in our everyday language. Whether it is the British deriding the foolish Irishman - or the French doing the same to a remarkably 'Irish' sounding Belgian - these slurs can become a routine and the conflict can

The economic status of a child’s wider community also can have an effect on their development. The presence or lack of facilities within a community are often related to the prosperity of this wider community. Facilities such as hospitals, childcare centres, medical centres, child health organisations, access to parks, gardens and sporting centres etc all combine to form either a positive or negative influence.