The Lack Of Authenticity : The Cost Of Conformity

“I don’t believe we were put here with all of our differences to conform to a uniform state of mind” ~Sonya Teclat. Conformity is when people change to act the same as other people in their society. The government, media, and social groups are a big part of the society. These things encourage people to conform. One of the books that have people conforming is Among the Hidden by Margaret Peterson. In Among the Hidden Jen, one of the characters is very outgoing and brave. Luke another character is very shy, once he meets Jen he conforms to be brave like her. In addition, society encourages conformity through government, media, and social groups.

Conformity is a form of social influence, when we conform we act and think like members of our group. Often people even alter or change their personal beliefs to match those around them. When we conform we feel pressured to fit in with others, to be a part of the majority. While we may still have contradicting beliefs towards things, we change our behaviors and actions to match what everybody else is

Often times, children remind their parents of the mistakes they previously made. However, if the adults gain enough courage and learn to stand up to their wrongdoings, their children will help them see and reach their upmost greatness. Nathaniel Hawthorne illustrates the life of Pearl, a young girl, in his novel, The Scarlet Letter. Initially, Hester Prynne, Pearl’s mother, marries Roger Chillingworth; however, she soon meets the Puritan Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale, and Pearl results 9 months later. The Puritan society forces Hester to wear a scarlet and gold colored “A” on her chest as a reminder of her crime - adultery. In society’s eyes, Pearl serves as a reminder of Hester’s sin, establishing Pearl as a living scarlet letter, although

Most of society conforms as a whole, otherwise one may appear to be “outside” of the society that they live in, becoming unconventional or dangerous to the “norm” of their society. These conventions have a major role within society because they are general agreements on a social behavior. The force making toward conformity in society is essentially the stability of the society itself, which is created by people conforming to please others. However, people who do not

Often times in life people will feel it necessary to conform in order to fit into certain groups of people. When a person conforms it usually leads to them changing the way they behave. This

An individual’s need to conform stems from our mental psychology, which is something we cannot usually change because it is in our nature. Guandong Song et al described conformity as “…a subject’s behavior or attitudes following those of the object. The subject is the individual who conforms. The object can be external or internal factors that cause conforming actions, in the form of individuals, groups, organizations,

Sexual orientation can be considered as one of America’s most controversial topics. Although the rationale and choice differs from person to person, and is considered to be a private matter of personal preference, many people have experienced negative backlash and harsh criticism due to their individual likings. In general, sexual orientation is defined as: a person 's sexual identity in relation to the gender to which they are attracted; the fact of being heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual. While the definition seems to be straightforward and concise, the subject of sexual orientation encompasses much more than just the intensity of emotional and erotic attraction and response to members of the opposite sex, the same sex, or both

According to Webster Dictionary, conformity is defined as, “in compliance of rules, laws, or standards.” Mark Twain’s, “Cone-pone Opinions,” demonstrates how society reacts to new conformities; individuals eventually conform to popular ideas and inevitably abandon these ideas for something greater. Twain states, “It is our nature to conform; it is force which not many can successfully resist.” (Twain 2). The reason people conform is not for self-approval, but rather, for the approval of others.

Sexual orientation is something that people hear about daily in the news, media, and daily lives of others, especially when it comes to the field of psychology and the nature versus nurture debate. For being as commonly debated and discussed as it is, there are many questions that come along with it: what is sexual orientation, how do people know their sexual orientation, what causes homosexuality, is it normal, is it possible to change, and can wanting LGBT, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, youth to change lead to suicide?

Society makes us feel content with who we are; we feel more protected when we’re with others rather than being alone. Some say “A strong society depends on people to conform to run smoothly. Following the rules and regulations for living within a society allows the group to grow.” (13 pros). Although conformists are needed, society is not dependent on them. We are dependent on individualists like Trump, Martin Luther King, and Elvis Presley. Conforming with society does not always help the group “grow”. Agreeing with others when they are wrong can lead to a

Sexual orientation is a topic that is very debatable and contains a lot of information. The information I have learned since beginning this research paper has been memorable and has taught me alot. The sociology of sexual orientation teaches us a lot without us being aware about it. Looking at someone else’s puzzle piece and incorporating it into one’s own life is the mission of sociology. Dealing with sexual orientation, it teaches us not to discriminate against someone because they are different than what we are accustomed to and learn to accept others who are different. If you look at it from a broader perspective everyone, is different to someone else and once the world understands this, it will be a much more safer and positive place to

In class there was a discussion about virtue and whether it was taught while we read Meno by Plato. Meno and Socrates came to the conclusion that it couldn’t be taught.I feel like this is incorrect and and virtue can be taught. It just really depends on who the teacher is. I believe virtue is being patient, caring and trustworthy. When I went into Johnson Street Elementary I looked hard to find virtue being taught. I didn’t expect to find virtue being taught...especially with the ratios of children to teachers in the classroom.

Major depressive disorder is one of the most common mental illnesses in the United States. In 2013 8.1% of females, and 5.1% of males in America reported having a major depressive episode in the previous year. (National Institute of Mental Health, 2013). According to Lorig and Powell (1988) women are more commonly diagnosed with depression and histrionic personality disorders, while men are more frequently diagnosed with antisocial personality disorders. This is consistent with the theory of shifting standards, which states that stereotyped social groups (e.g. women vs. men or African Americans vs. Caucasians) are held to different standards. For example, often times when you say a woman is tall, it would be in the context of other women. When you say a man is tall, it would be in the context of other men. People’s perceptions of “tallness” are very different for these two groups, based on the stereotypes they hold about each group. The goal of this research is to identify how the shifting standards model applies to sexual orientation and depression.

Conformity is a concept that has been heavily researched in the field of social psychology. Conformity is defined as a change in behavior, beliefs, and attitudes due to group pressure perceived as real (encompassing the presence of others) or imagined (encompassing the pressure of social standards) (Myers, 2010, p. 192). The concept of conformity is a powerful influence on the tendency for people to arrange their thoughts, perspectives, and ideas with others, especially when in a group. This takes away from a person’s individuality because they want to feel accepted by others and therefore, a person will accomplish this basic need of approval through conforming.

To understand why we have a sense of conformity, we must first understand value. “Values are used to learn people’s culture, ideas, and what they want out of life (Henslin 49). Every culture has similar and different values. “Norms are the expectations a group develops concerning the ‘right’ way to reflects its values” (Henslin49). An example of a norm would be personal space and speaking quietly in certain places such as a library. When norms are violated people often begin to question the person’s sanity and well-being based on how extreme the norm violation was.