Max Weber Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Max Weber - Essay Example (Kilcullen, 1996) This important belief is said to have made the Calvinists quite anxious about their Salvation, and this led to the fact that they attempted to console themselves and get rid of their anxiety by making concerted attempts to succeed in all their economic and other undertakings. The widespread belief may have been that God would quite naturally demonstrate his favor by bestowing prosperity and wealth on the various enterprises and undertakings of the elect. In addition, no Calvinist believed in self indulgence, and this meant that all the finances generated and raised by their present undertakings would perforce be put back into future undertakings, or 'callings' as they were referred to, both by the employer as well as by the employee. The small reward that they expected was a mere earthly one, but this was sufficient for the Calvinist. (Kilcullen, 1996) It was also Max Weber's opinion that Protestant doctrines believed in the fact that men must accept a humbler sort of station in their lives, and that they must devote their energies into performing mundane tasks and duties. Weber also believed that since there was no hierarchical Church structure present, it meant that there would be no episodes of upward mobility and a need for acquisition. however, it was because of the 'work and save' ethic that was being followed by these people that the phenomenon of 'Capitalism' was brought into the picture, and since there is absolutely no doubt that a dedication and a devotion and a deep commitment towards one's work would inevitably bring forth the desired productivity, especially on the part of the Calvinists, who believed in the dedication to one's own 'beruf', or duty, or calling. (Max Weber, 1864 to 1920) It is widely acknowledged everywhere that Max Weber had an ingrained concept of 'rationality and rationalism' in all his works, and according to Rogers Brubaker, it was veritably a 'great unifying theme' in his work, even though it has been stated by some others that the concept was at times 'evasive'. It was Weber's opinion that the very history of 'rationalism' has revealed that it does not follow any type of parallel lines in life in general, and also that the very idea of rationality is both multi directional and multi dimensional. Rationality was, for Weber, the manifestation of individual freedoms, and also another meaning for conceptual lucidity, among various other meanings. (The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) According to Max Weber, sociology as such meant that it was nothing but a 'comprehensive science of social action', and it must be also noted that most of Max Weber's ideals stem from the idea that human beings attach a great many subjective meanings to all their manifold actions and interactions within any specific social context. Therefore, in this context, rationality means that most human beings restlessly strive for a goal, which in itself may not be rational, but for which most people strive through rational means. As most people have diverse numbers of motivational factors, it would mean that most human behavior as such is caused by a mixture of all these motivations. This was in

Cultural Beliefs and Stigma Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Cultural Beliefs and Stigma - Essay Example Investigation of the impact of cultural beliefs and stigma on the treatment journey of infectious patients needs include the burden from the stigma of various health problems and cultural beliefs. In the course of examination of the stigma and its effects on the patient comparisons must be made. These comparisons include the magnitude and character of stigma for different conditions and in different social and cultural settings; identifying distinctive features of stigma that may guide intervention programs; and evaluating changes in the magnitude and character of stigma over time and in response to interventions and social changes. (leininger M (1991) Such research benefits by examining stigma from various vantage points, considering the experience of stigma among persons with a designated health problem, laypersons in the community, and health care providers or other designated subgroups of the community (eg, teachers and policymakers) that have a substantial impact on health. Research on stigma should also consider questions of social policy as they relate to human rights, access to health care, and social services for particular groups. Our review of health research issues and studies considers the role of stigma in specific mental health problems and tropical diseases, mainly in low- and middle-income countries. We also discuss the limitations of this research and the need for complementary quantitative, qualitative, problem-specific, and culture-specific approaches to study of stigma. (Weiss 2001-p 5) The reason hat health research is concerned with stigma is that stigma is an important consideration for health policy and clinical practice for several reasons. It contributes to the suffering from illness in various ways, and it may delay appropriate help-seeking or terminate treatment for treatable health problems. For diseases and disorders that are highly stigmatized, the impact of the meaning of the disease may be as great or a greater source of suffering than symptoms of a disease. An early presentations of paucibacillary leprosy as a painless depigmented or anaesthetic patch is an example. Hearing the diagnosis is more troubling than symptoms of the disease. Social science studies of stigma regard it fundamentally as a problem arising from social interactions. Goffman and other researchers have also recognized self-perceived stigma, which may also be troubling and responsible for diminished self-esteem whether or not it arises from an actual interaction, and whether or not t his perceived stigma accurately reflects the critical views of others. Stigma impairs the quality of life through concerns about disclosure, and it affects work, education, marriage, and family life. Although its impact is likely to be overlooked in the calculation of Disability-adjusted life-years (DALYs), stigma contributes to what WHO's Nations for Mental health Program calls the hidden burden of mental illness. In addition to the suffering it brings, research also shows that stigma and labeling may affect the