Remember to respond to two peers while being respectful of and sensitive to their viewpoints. Consider advancing the discussion in the following ways:
- Post an article, video, or visual related to antisocial behavior to reinforce a peer’s idea or challenge them to see their point from a different perspective.
- Paraphrase something from the original post. Then consider asking a question or sharing your personal experience.
To complete this assignment, review the Psychology Undergraduate Discussion Rubric. You will also need:
PEER 1EB
Are microaggressions real or imagined? Discuss the implications of statements such as “You shouldn’t take offense” and “Oh stop—you’re being too sensitive” on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
There are different types of microaggressions. There are microassults, microinsults, and microinvalidation (Wing Sue 2010). Microassults are conscious discriminatory insults. They are in your face racism, for example wearing the swastika on their shirt. Microinsults are insults that are negative towards a person’s race, culture, or sex. For example, asking an American Indian how they got into college, assumes they only got into the university because of the color of their skin. Microinvalidations are subtly dismissing a person based on their race. For example, asking “Where are you really from?”. Implying that they are a foreigner based on their looks. I think that microaggression are defiantly real. I think some aggression are harmless and the person might not even realize they are giving out microaggressions. Even though it is harmless in their eyes, these microaggressions can really affect the person they are saying them to. It makes the individual feel like you are invalidating their identity. I cannot tell you how many times I have gotten the “Where are you really from?” question. I would like to think that everyone who has asked me that had pure intentions because most of these people were friends, coworkers, educators ect. I don’t think anyone meant to hurt my feelings. It is a good example of how an innocent question can put the receiver on edge.
To what extent can we excuse a person’s motivation to participate in riots or tendency to bully others when it’s an aspect of group behavior? Discuss the implications of group mentality on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
A mob mentality or herding behavior can be a person’s response to uncertainty (Baddeley 2010). This uncertainty can cause someone to follow the crowd because they assume the crowd is better informed about the situation, so they follow along (Baddeley 2010). It is easy to get wrapped up in the moment and copy other’s behavior. An example of group mentality on diversity and inclusion is the Jews and the Nazis. In the 1940 the Germans spread propaganda that the Jews were their enemy. The Germans wee constantly seeing their propaganda and even German children were swept up in the hate. This group mentality of getting rid of the Jews resulted in the death of 6 million Jewish men, women, and children.
Racial stereotyping and discrimination are antisocial behaviors. Given the impact of learning on human behavior, what is the first step that a person could take to unlearn discriminatory behavior and adopt a more accepting and inclusive attitude toward all people?
The first step to unlearning discriminatory behavior is admitting that you are discriminating against people. You must look inside yourself and see that you need to change. I think therapy would help this individual learn about themselves and why they felt the need to discriminate against others. I think unlearning this frame of mind takes time and patience.
Our conception of bad eggs might inadvertently categorize people into specific social groups. How can we reframe the “bad” in people to view them through a less discriminatory and more inclusive, humanistic lens?
To reframe the bad in people to view them through a less discriminatory lens means we must rewire our brains and stop categorizing people. It is human nature to categorize people and things in our lives. We see “good” and “bad” in everything we do in life. We need to start seeing people for who they are and not who we are judging them to be.
How does the concept of antisocial behavior apply to any of the following programmatic course themes:
The concept of anti-social behavior applies to the self-care theme. We need to take care of our mental health and in doing so, we can help ourselves work through inner problems. Taking time to invest in our selves helps us improve our behavior. We can recognize problems within ourselves and work on solutions to make our lives better.
Berger, Brenda 2017 Hate: Learning and Unlearning It https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/hearts-and-minds/201703/hate-learning-and-unlearning-it
Baddeley M. (2010). Herding, social influence and economic decision-making: socio-psychological and neuroscientific analyses. Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences, 365(1538), 281–290. https://doi.org/10.1098/rstb.2009.0169
Wing Sue, Derald 2010 Racial Microaggressions In Everyday Life https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/microaggressions-in-everyday-life/201010/racial-microaggressions-in-everyday-life
Harrison, C., & Tanner, K. D. (2018). Language Matters: Considering Microaggressions in Science. CBE life sciences education, 17(1), fe4. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.18-01-0011
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjzWENcW6NQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPRA4g-3yEk
PEER2-KH
Microaggressions are real but often not seen has harmful by the person saying them. It often is not pointed out to the person displaying the behavior or when they are made aware of their microaggression then they become defensive. Statements such as “You shouldn’t take offense” or “You’re being too sensitive” is a way for the person saying them to invalidate the offended persons feelings. It is also how the offender avoids accountability for their microaggression or actions.
I don’t think there is ever a reason excuse bully behavior or discrimination riots but there are times when you can forgive these behaviors. If someone admits to these behaviors in the past and can admit that the behavior was wrong, how the learned from the poor behavior, and have stopped the behavior then I think it is within reason to forgive. Many of us have displayed racial or gender discrimination before we really understand how wrong and hurtful these actions are for others. According to Citizens advice there are some examples of discrimination that are “okay”, like fire fighter applicants’ ability to pass a performance test. https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/law-and-courts/discrimination/what-are-the-different-types-of-discrimination/justifying-discrimination/
The first step to unlearning discrimination is to understand discrimination, learning from the past, and thinking about equality (Lane, 2008). For me these things rang so true. I have made mistakes and I have stereotyped, and I have displayed microaggression. Once I learned that my actions were wrong and hurtful then I tried not to do them or only did them in “safe places”. When I took my understanding to another level and learned the history behind various forms of discrimination then I stopped the behavior all together.
Categorizing people as “bad eggs” places people in a category that is also treated poorly. Instead of labeling someone as a “bad egg” we could think of them as uninformed or someone who still needs to learn. We can choose to see them as someone with an illness (hate) and that illness can only be cured with information and compassion.
Antisocial behavior relates to the concept of emotional intelligence. For me when I learned about microaggression, discrimination, and antisocial behavior I realized that I was guilty of all of them. I felt horrible that I had ever participated in these behaviors. I felt ashamed of my race. Learning to except my mistakes and to learn from them shows that my emotional intelligence is growing. I have also figured out that if others have different opinions that doesn’t make them bad, it just gives me and opportunity to educated them which also shows emotional intelligence.
References:
Jane Lane. (2008). Young Children and Racial Justice : Taking Action for Racial Equality in the Early Years – Understanding the Past, Thinking About the Present, Planning for the Future. National Children’s Bureau.
Justifying discrimination. Citizens Advice. (n.d.). Retrieved May 31, 2022, from https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/law-and-courts/discrimination/what-are-the-different-types-of-discrimination/justifying-discrimination/
