BHCC Library Web Page Family Soc-111

Research Paper and Report Assignments for SOC111--Family

The research paper and oral report to class may be done by an individual or by several students working together. Any topic relevant to family formation or development may be chosen. We will broaden our areas of interest by selecting a variety of topics and avoiding duplication. Some or all of these research efforts may be offered orally in class. We will decide that together. I urge you to use databases on the Internet to help with your research. The library is invaluable for that purpose. I will make some suggestions in class that will help.

Term Paper

The term paper is to be a study of a real family, preferably your own. Show how each individual is influenced by other members of the family, by the family as a whole and by the community, social class, peer group and by the total society. Begin with your grandparents generation if possible and note how things have changed or remained the same over the generations. How did your grandparents come to marry? What values and attitudes motivated them? What child rearing practices did they employ? What contact did they have with their extended families? How did they get along? What sorts of things made the relationship better? What made things worse? How do those concepts apply to the next generation? Did the old patterns repeat or did new behavior patterns come about? Write your paper after April first, using your notes and ideas that have been generated during the previous months. The paper is due by April 15th. We will discuss this assignment as well as the other assignments in class.

The two term papers have different but complimentary objectives. One paper is mainly subjective. It is to be based on your own experience in your family of orientation ( the family you grew up in), the family of procreation ( the family you helped to establish), the collateral extended family ( cousins, uncles, aunts, etc.), the lineal extended family ( grandparents and their siblings). This paper will also hopefully, incorporate concepts developed objectively (the ideas confronted during the semester based on readings and discussion).

The research term paper is to be the obverse of the subjective (personal) paper as indicated above. You are to choose a conceptual area that comes under the broad umbrella of family issues( child rearing, adolescent problems, dating and mating, gender and/or sexuality. This paper is to be mainly research oriented rather than subjective and personal.

In the past, research material was found in such places as " Readers Guide to Periodical Literature", " The New York Times Guide", "Eric ", etc. These were the "data-bases" of the pre-computer age. The computer age has, as you know, revolutionized the way research is done. These sources are now included in the numerous data-bases that may be accessed via the Internet through WWW.

In our BHCC library these are mainly Ebscohost and Infotrac.We will discuss in class the ways you may access these data bases to find articles and studies for the research paper. Just as the subjective and personal paper will incorporate in part concepts based on research, your research paper may include in part your own critique (reaction) based on your own experience in nuclear and extended family and with other people you know. This paper is due by April 1st.. There will be a session arranged with the librarian Diane Smith in the library during for guidance with respect to computer based research.

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Last Updated March 01, 2000
Last Reviewed March 01, 2000