How Can A Group 's Schema Or Personal Beliefs?

In America, gun control laws allow citizens to easily gain access to firearms. Because firearms are so prevalent, mass shootings are common as well. Other things that are results of lenient gun control laws are increased suicide rate, homicide, and injuries and deaths due to accidentally mishandled firearms (Miller, Hemenway, 2008; Azrael, Hemenway, Miller, 2000; Annest, Hargarten, Hootman, Mercy, Ryan, 2000). 53% of all completed suicides were committed with a firearm. Gun suicide in America during this time accounted 40% more deaths than gun homicide (Miller, Hemenway, 2008). According to CNN, the current deadliest mass shooting in America is the shooting by Stephen Paddock at the Mandalay Bay Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. 58 people were killed and almost 500 were injured. Also, there are certain groups in America that are moreso affected by American gun control laws. In most events involving firearms, minorities, such of African Americans and those of Latin descent, have been targets. These lenient gun control laws have also led to more terrorist attacks as well as an increased rate of police brutality. The main reason America is so reluctant to alter its gun control laws is because they are instilled in the nation’s foundation, the Constitution. In addition, according to research by Celinska, Durkheim focused on the concept of individualism and capitalism in his discussion and spoke of the relationship between society and the individual in capitalistic, industrialized economies (Celinska, 2007). This led to the realization of the importance of individualism which is evident in the historic tradition

According to the Schema Theory, knowledge is represented in long-term memory as packets of information called schemas. Our brains process information in chunks for understanding, problem solving and to avoid information overload. Schemas are highly dependent on the use of automation to present ideas, concepts and information... Automation is important in the constriction of schemas because learners have only so much processing capacity (Reiser, pg. 38).

The Ku Klux Klan, or KKK, is an extreme example of symbolic boundaries in which members of this organization felt themselves to be superior, motivated by ideas of white supremacy. Extreme organizations such as this used symbolic boundaries to distinguish themselves from all “others”, who they believed as inferior because of their race, ethnicity and religious beliefs. In order to implement their ideals, the KKK used fear tactics to uphold the boundaries between themselves and “others” while also limiting the capabilities of the “others”. Class, ethnicity, age, and gender along with other social determinants, alone or together, help society to categorize people and thus, generate expectations for

Celinska, Katarzyna. "Individualism and Collectivism in America: The Case of Gun Ownership and Attitudes Toward Gun Control." Sociological Perspectives, vol. 50, no. 2, 2007, pp. 229-247, Psychology Database; Research Library, https://libris.mtsac.edu/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/213988090?accountid=12611.

structures as well as sociology are centeral to the problems of gun control. For example

For decades, the United States has been split by a dichotomy over civilian gun control. “Gun control is the term used to describe how firearms may be legally produced, sold, and used,” (Gale). As stated in the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, “‘A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed,” (Gottesman/Brown). However, “research seems to indicate that owning a gun or even just seeing one [can] change how people behave,” (Striepe). Studies have shown that weapons negatively affect the individual’s psychological processes. Actions of aggression or agitation have been shown to increase during experimental situations in which guns are in view of the subject. The purpose of this project was to determine the extent of how ownership of guns and other weapons could create conflict, and to propose a solution to minimize these consequences. By studying how weapons can affect humans intrinsically and psychologically by slowly changing behaviors and beliefs over time, insight can be gained on the true dangers of gun ownership. This scientific approach also provided a look at the deeper consequences of civilian weapon control, allowing for further refinement in the creation of a solution to reverse the effects of gun control in the future.

The Granovetter model ties together all of the shooting cases, particularly after Columbine, into a growing riot. The theory states that the ongoing riot is in fact a collection of people “in reaction to and in combination with those around them” (Gladwell 6). In other words, our situation is so dangerous as it “is a case of destructive violence that involves a great number of otherwise quite normal people who would not usually be disposed to violence.” This, in effect, gives reason for us to stop viewing each shooter as an individual who is most likely mentally ill. Instead, we can now beg the question that our society is developing a riot that non-like minded people join. The threshold example is logical enough to conclude that school shootings are now a group phenomenon. Correspondingly, Granovetter’s model suggests that “you can’t just look at an individual’s norms and motives. You need to look at the group,” and, “if they evolve, it means they have depth and length and a history” (Gladwell 7). This can be seen in that school shooters recognize and advance the riot through

schemas. At the retrieval stage, recall was influenced by the schemas participants had of what

Link→ Exposure to these aspects of daily life lead us to believe that guns are to blame when media portrayal, mental glitches and cultural inheritance are the real killers.

An example would be a student who believes all teachers are intimidating and bossy from past experiences, but after having a shy and timid teacher, their view may change their internal schema and stereotype of all teachers being individual. Scientists may want to study the reactions of the student and how he or she will integrate the new schema. Social cognition researchers are also interested to study the regulation of activated schemas. It is widely perceived that the situational activation of schemata is automatic, outside of conscious control. However, the regulation and activation of social schemas is self-regulatory and independently motivated.

Bowling for Columbine is an interactive documentary directed by Michael Moore (Fahrenheit 9/11, Where to Invade Next, Sicko). This film looks into the possible influences on the Columbine High School Massacre, which has brought Moore a lot of international recognition and given him the opportunity to attain an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature. I will be discussing a societal reading of what could have caused the tragedy of Columbine back in 1999, which these ideas were brought up by Moore in this film. The main ideas this documentary explores is fear, racism and the accessibility to weapons in America. One of the first ideas brought up in this film is gun accessibility.

In this era, gun control has become a very controversial topic. People have debated whether any person should be able to obtain the privilege of handling or carrying a gun. Scholars, teachers, and politicians consistently go over the fact that guns can be a potential threat to society, especially with the current uprising of shootings across The United States. However, they fail to further analyze the feelings of those who believe that obtaining a gun is essential to feel safe and to ensure their survival. Over the years, violence in our communities has increased significantly, which frightens people and inclines them to carry their own gun. There are several factors that can cause someone to want to carry a firearm such as, a recent

Indeed, gun control has been to a great degree an emotive issue in the United States for a long time with moving news relying upon specific occasions. Case in point, in the outcome of the Sandy Hook Massacre, numerous residents needed stricter understanding of the Second Amendment to guarantee guns do not fall into the wrong hands (Keidan). Be that as it may, the Boston Marathon besieging changed Americans discernments on their wellbeing. Consequently, in the result of the marathon bombarding, more Americans felt the need some type of self-preservation instrument following the administration demonstrated failure to protect them. The civil arguments on firearm control rage on with both sides guarding their positions on the issue. Some of the divergent points of view vary from authorizing of firearms with some calling for mental assessment of all gun holders (Verma). Another major argument regarding gun control is the effect of firearm possession in uplifting aggressive behavior at home.

One of the most relevant and controversial topics being talked about in the U.S., is with regards to what rules should be implemented towards gun purchasing based on the number of incidents occurring that involve gun use. For this assignment, I chose to focus on how the public’s opinion has changed throughout time with regards to having a gun permit before purchasing a gun. The question asked was, “Would you favor or oppose a law which would require a person to obtain a permit before he or she could buy a gun?” I explored the amount, in percentages, of individuals that favored or opposed such law over a period of five decades, the amount of male vs female opposing or favoring the law, as well as the different race/ethnicities that favored or opposed the law. In the images shown below, you will see how the number of individuals that opposed the law and those who favored it, had noticeable changes throughout decades.

“There are many good reasons why, as citizens and as scientists, we should be concerned with studying the ways in which human beings form their opinions and the role that social conditions play.” (Elliot Aronson, Page 17) It’s human nature to instantly form an opinion of someone or something. There’s really no way around it. When someone forms an opinion, they think of their opinion as true, or fact. But can an opinion be fact unless it’s proved? That’s a legit question for Republic. Throughout the entire book of Republic, Socrates argues for many different objectives. It can be assumed that his opinions were never, and were always, stated.