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Merits and demerits of gossip
A psychology of rumors
A psychology of rumors
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Recommended: Merits and demerits of gossip
Gossip has been known to hurt relationships, damage reputations, and cause other social harms. But can it have any social benefits? In the article “Studies Find That Gossip Isn’t Just Loose Talk”, Alina Tugend argues that certain gossip can have important social functions. She notes that certain gossip can provide people with information about people who might mistreat us. Tugend adds that people have overwhelming urge to gossip about people who they feel have wronged them. However, Tugend notes that some people feel that gossip has no social benefit. Thesis: I found it interesting when the article discusses how certain gossip can make people in a group follow rules and it can protect us from people. Certain gossip can compel people to
First and foremost, it is critical to discuss and unpack the ethics behind online gossiping. The way Klosterman describes online gossiping is by using the word villainy. However, villainy is typically defined as cruel or wicked behavior. In his essay, Klosterman discusses what makes a villain in regards to the online world. Specifically, Klosterman states, “The reason Perez Hilton became a villain was because the intersection of those two qualities: It wasn’t just the content, and it wasn’t just the success. It was the creeping fear that this type of content would become the only way any future person could be successful” (226). This interpretation of villainy is quite different than what most would consider. When people hear the
Crime and deviant behavior surprisingly helps increase “social activity” among various different people within a society. Therefore, crime and deviant behavior brings “people together in a common posture of anger and indignation…when these people come together to express their outrage over the offense…they develop a tighter sense of solidarity than existed earlier” (Erikson 4). For example, in the Steven Avery case, the people of Manitowoc, Wisconsin, all had very strong feelings of Steven Avery and his family, and as a result they were seen as deviant people in their own hometown. Those feelings towards him, and his family, would be a critical factor when he was accused of the horrendous crime (Making). Based on their feelings towards the Avery family, the society in which he lived developed the overall concept of us versus them (Erikson 11). Therefore, another concept that arises as a result of crime and deviant behavior is public temper, which is described as a “mutual group feeling” (Erikson
The article “Anatomy of a Rumor: It Flies on Fear” by Daniel Goleman, was first seen in the New York times in June of 1991. Goleman, a highly accredited psychologist and science journalist, pulled new information from studies done across college campuses. The end results of many suggested that “rumors are kind of opportunistic virus, thriving because of their ability to create the very anxieties that make them spread, and to mutate to fit new situations” (487). Rumors have been spreading for thousands of years and the need to figure out their anatomy and how to reduce the severity of them is ever growing. Anxiety plays a large part in the creation of rumors and the to what extent they are thought to be true. According to Dr. Ralph Rosnow,
...ses a threat of humiliation and maltreating from other individuals that can have a detrimental effect on their lives. A person can go from being a normal school student to a laughing stock on a popular social network or even trend from a emotionally stable individual to a deranged, depressed critter who now hides in the shadows of society hoping never to be revealed. The informative thought of the re-occurrence of public shaming throughout history from Bennett allows the reader to question if this is an issue that is perpetual and something that will never go away. Furthermore, the author conveys the idea that publicizing oneself can be a burden; the darkside of Internet fame. Wrapping up her article, Bennett portrays a warning to the reader stating, “Shame...will always be with you”(115). Harassment from Internet fame can alter a person's life-forever.
Falsehood could be a useful evil in politic, because, apparently, by means of falsehood, the risk of social turmoil could be efficiently minimized or even eliminated. Thus, the ultimate good of the whole,
Blue meth? This is what the TV series Breaking Bad is shaped around. First, I will be discussing why I chose Breaking Bad to analyze. Secondly, I will discuss the topic of communicating verbally with Walter and Jesse. Thirdly, I will see how they managed conflict and power. Fourthly, I will look at Walter White's relationship with his friends. Fifthly, I will see how listing actively played a role in Breaking Bad. Next, I will dissect Walter and Jesse's relationship in the workplace. Lastly, I will see what this means for communication as a whole.
Robert Knapp has come up with some ways to identify different types of rumors in his writing called A Psychology of Rumor. Knapp says, “In practice it has been found that the emotional needs most frequently served by rumors are wish, fear, and hostility” (496). Knapp uses the name Pipe-dream and Wish Rumor to describe the rumors that contain wishful thinking. He also uses the name Bogie Rumor when describing a rumor that comes from the fear and anxiety of the people. Knapp lastly uses The Wedge-driving Aggression Rumor when describing a rumor that is made out of aggression or hatred. One of these names will be chosen to categorize the reading called Paul is Dead by Alan Glen. The name that will categorize the rumor is the Bogie Rumor.
What role does gossip have in society? What significance does it have in the formation of both disputes and disclosures? Gossip is commonly believed to be a cause of conflict between individuals in society; however, one can assert that it can also be beneficial via means of influence. In being influenced, people can harness the gossip for their benefit. Jane Austen’s Sense and Sensibility approaches gossip in a way that shows how it can both resolve and initiate conflicts within the novel’s plot. By exemplifying gossip from this approach, Austen’s novel encapsulates it’s both detrimental and beneficial uses. Gossip exacerbates emerging conflicts because of the both positive or negative influences it has on characters’ perceptions of each other. I will argue that the novel uses conflict-causing and conflict-resolving properties of gossip as a device for moving and turning the plot, demonstrating that to understand the novel, we have to also understand that social conversations, even the most idle and frivolous ones, are what push the plot; the things that are most important in Austen’s world — reputation, marriage, social relationships — are extremely vulnerable to influence by gossip. In this essay, I will analyze three moments of gossip that exemplify consequences of conflict-causing, conflict-resolving, and both, respectively.
...ernet, news and rumours spread alike. It seems like whether it be the hottest celebrity of the time caught in a scandal, or the average government worker releases government information, people are quick to shun people who do something unsavory to the common man’s eyes. Whether that is the right thing for society to do is up to debate, but as of now shunning holds a stronghold on everyday life.
The media is one of the most powerful tools in people’s lives, since it’s used by many as the medium for the delivery of useful information to diverse audience. Over the past few years, the media landscape has undergone noteworthy developments. Prized information about various cultural groups is often relayed through appropriate media, and it’s interesting to note that blogs are currently being utilized as the best medium for celebrity gossip. Celebrity blogs are usually thronged with readers, who would like to know more about their favorite superstars. The entries of different celebrity gossip blogs are often accompanied by paparazzi photos that are usually meant to trigger a stream of comments based on the readers’ observations, enthusiasm and criticisms.
... once it passes the individual who starts it. I feel that “Managing Rumors” by John Doorley and Helio Fred Garcia treats rumors as too much like a machine that can be turned on and turned off without any trouble. Even using a mathematical formula, one is unable to control a person’s beliefs and incentives about a certain subject in my opinion.
We react similarly to information about others. Research by Stanford University professor Rob Willer shows that we take negative gossip about others seriously. We view it as useful information that can protect us. The result — if someone spreads false rumors about you — is that it’s hard to shake off that reputation. Not only can this experience damage
Conversation Analysis (CA) is the study of talk-within-interaction that attempts to describe the orderliness, structure and sequential patterns of interaction in conversation. It is a method of qualitative analysis developed by Harvey Sacks with the aid of Emmanuel Schegloff and Gail Jefferson in the late 1960s to early 1970s. Using the CA frame of mind to view stories shows us that what we may think to be simplistic relaying of information or entertaining our friends is in fact a highly organised social phenomena that is finely tuned in a way that expresses the teller’s motivation behind the talk. (Hutchby & Wooffitt, 2011). It is suggested that CA relies on three main assumptions; talk is a form of social action, action is structurally organised, talk creates and maintains inter-subjectivity (Atkinson & Heritage, 1984).
Have you seen the pictures of Madonna and her baby yet? Have you ever surfed the web and stumbled onto a site about celebrities? Probably so. There are thousands of sites on the web about celebrities; their official web sites, pictorials and biographical information. You can’t even go into a supermarket without being bombarded by tabloids.You can’t listen to the radio in the car. TV shows and whole networks rely on entertainment and celebrities in the news. VH1, MTV and E! are excellent examples of this. Many people make their living off celebrities and their personal lives. But why does this need to be explored? Producers and journalists say they are only making and reporting on what the people want. The general public say they only watch and read this “news” because it is so readily available. Lets face it, it would be easier to find matches for “Madonna and her baby “ on the web than it would be to find “biological engineering”.
Peer pressure and acts of mass blind obedience are all too common occurrences in our everyday society. A person, who under any other circumstances would never act in such a way, will commit unthinkable acts when backed by a single person or even worse, a large mass of individuals. It’s almost always destructive, and the person or persons involved usually always end up feeling regretful and bewildered by their actions. When thinking about group peer pressure, there are several other words that come to mind such as; conformity, compliance, brainwashing and social influence. Group peer pressure can make a person with the purest morals and the highest values act in ways that are more than contradictory. Group peer pressure can turn a saint into a sinner, a leader to a follower, and an individual to a tiny speck in a large and corrupt mass.