Unit II: Essay – Exploring A Different Culture

For the Unit II Assignment you will be answering a series of response questions applying concepts you learned in this unit reading (culture and socialization) to a culture different from your own.

For this assignment, choose a culture different from your own and complete Part A, Part B, and Part C as follows:

Part A: Introduce the Culture and Identify Folkways, Values, and Taboos (Mores)

• What culture did you research? Provide a brief introductory and background about the culture you researched.
• Why did you choose to research that particular culture?
• What is at least one interesting folkway in the culture?
• What is at least one important value in the culture?
• What is at least one taboo or more in the culture?

*Please make sure to use concepts and terminology found in your textbook about culture and remember to distinguish which things are the folkways, values, and taboos in your assignment.

Part B: Identify Two Agents of Socialization

What are at least two agents of socialization that are central in teaching some of the particular cultural folkways, values, and taboos you presented?

*Please, make sure to use terminology and concepts found in the textbook regarding agents of socialization as part of your discussion.

Part C: Reflection

What impact did studying this culture have on you? For example, did it reduce stereotypes you held about the culture or give you a greater appreciation for the culture? Did it help you understand more about the differences and similarities between your culture and the one you researched and help to differentiate between the different types of norms?

For this Unit II essay assignment, ensure you follow the requirements below:

1. Answer all of the questions listed in Part A, Part B, and Part C in your assignment.
2. Please answer the response questions in essay-style format. You will not be rewriting each question and answering it. You will be creating an essay that addresses the response questions.
3. Use sociological terms and concepts from the textbook reading in your essay to demonstrate you understand and can apply the concepts.
4. Cite the textbook at least once and cite a web source at least once in the essay, so the assignment requires two sources. APA style in-text citations are required to show how the textbook and the source were used in your essay. An APA style reference list containing the textbook, the web source, and any other sources you cited in the assignment is also required. The following tutorial from CSU’s Writing Center on in-text citations is a great helpful resource. Click on the link to view this tutorial: http://columbiasouthern.adobeconnect.com/intextcitations/

The essay should be approximately two to three pages and should use the following APA style components: APA style title page, double-spaced, 1-inch margins, and 12-point font.

Note: The rubric for this assignment contains a task section. Your task score is based on the following: (a) the page requirement is met; (b) whether unit terms and concepts are directly identified and specifically labeled; (c) all parts of each question are directly answered and clearly demonstrated; and (d) whether the textbook was cited.

The rubric grading criteria involves relevant, informative, and on-topic content. The criteria are based on whether you use in-depth critical analysis and remain on the topic of the questions being asked in the assignment instructions.

Please contact your instructor if you have any questions about the assignment or the unit’s course material.

Can you do this?????

Selecting a Research Method 

Selecting a research method can make or break a research project, so it is important to implement the method most appropriately suited for a given research problem. 

For this assignment, select the most appropriate research method to test the research problem in your research report. Begin by identifying if the research problem is asking for quantitative or qualitative data. Then, consider which type of research design you would select, if you were actually going to conduct the study. Which design is most appropriate? Which design will provide you with results to directly address your research problem? 

Include at least the following for this assignment: 

1. List your research problem at the top of the page (the most current version) 

2. List the purpose of your research report next (the most current version) 

3. List a research method (quantitative or qualitative) 

3. Use the following items to clearly describe your research design: 

 Participants

Instruments (if any)

Design

Procedure 

In a 150-word response, briefly explain why this research method is the best fit for your study (include a specific design in your response) 

Your answers should always be in the form of complete sentences.

1- What does the term melting pot mean?

2- People living here have different heritages, religious beliefs, ethnicity, languages, and national origins. Do you think this is helpful to our country or not? Explain your answer and give examples.

3- What does the term Alien mean in regards to citizenship? What is one thing an Alien may not do that a regular citizen can?

4- What are two things a person who wants to become a citizen must do?

5- Name one duty as well as privilege of being a US citizen.

6- Define in your own words referendum and initiative?

7- What does it mean to you that all Americans are to respect the rights of others?

Find 3 crimes that classify as “crime against property.” Each of the 3 slides will focus on one of the crimes. Respond to the following questions for each of the three crimes that you select:

• Define the elements of the crime, including the actus reus and mens rea for each crime. Make sure to cite a state criminal statute for each crime.
• Identify why the crime is classified as a crime against property.
• Describe a factual scenario, either fictional or true in fact, in which the crime is committed. Should there be different penalties for crimes against property, people, and public order? Why? Do you believe that crimes in one category are more serious? Support your argument with examples as to why these crimes are similar or different.
• Referring to your factual scenario, how would a person’s ideas about multiculturalism and diversity impact the penalties for the crime? For example, depending on the crime a defendant’s sentence might be decided by either a judge or a jury. Based on the particular juror or judge’s socio-economic, cultural or religious backgrounds, do you think that these individuals have certain opinions as to how stringent a defendant’s sentence should be?
• Provide your opinion as to whether judges should be given wide discretion in determining the appropriate sentence for a defendant.
• Your 3-slide requirement is excluding your introduction and reference slides.
• Minimum of 5 lines of content per slide to answer each point above
• Use bullets for your main points.
• Use speaker notes to fully explain what is being discussed in the bullet points as though you are presenting to an audience.

Referencing this week’s readings and lecture, describe the quality issues related to reporting revenue. What is the importance of understanding various inventory valuation methods in determining the quality of reported profits?

Lecture:

Evaluating the Quality of Financial Reports

The collapse of Enron in the early 2000s, which was a result of massive financial manipulation, gave rise to a new era of financial reporting supervision with the establishment of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in 2002. The Act required all executives to give certified and accurate financial information. Various mechanisms were put in place to reduce financial accounting irregularities (Cunningham, 2005). Managers are therefore required to have a clear understanding of the regulations put in place and the bodies which enforce them in order to conform with them accordingly.

Issuance of financial reports and sale of securities to the public is monitored by such organizations as:

1. The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB)
2. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and
3. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FIRA)

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) has developed the financial accounting standards to be used in the U.S. since 1973. Its function is to oversee the preparation of financial reports by non-governmental entities. FASB ensures that financial statements contain information relevant for sound decision making. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been charged with the statutory authority of establishing reporting standards for U.S. public companies. Although it does not develop the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), it has power to monitor financial reporting. The SEC seeks its authority from three security laws: The Securities Act of 1933 (SEC, 2012b), The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (SEC, 2012c), The Investment Company Act of 1940 (SEC, 2012a), The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (SEC, 2005), and The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (SEC, 2014).

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FIRA) regulates securities firms conducting business with the public in the U.S. The International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) develops and Publishes International Financial Reporting Standards through the help of its 15-full time members from different countries working with stakeholders all over the world.

The usefulness of financial reports to readers depends on report quality. The conceptual framework for financial reporting categorizes qualitative characteristics of financial reports into two broad categories: fundamental qualitative characteristics, which include relevance and faithful representation, and enhancing qualitative characteristics, which make financial reports more useful and include comparability, timeliness, verifiability, and understandability. Presentation of financial reporting is limited by materiality and cost constraints. There exist differences in U.S. reporting requirements and the international requirements, although efforts have been undertaken to congregate the U.S. GAAP rules with the international financial reporting rules (Oxford Analytica, 2009). Differences in U.S. reporting requirements and international financial reporting are evident in terms of asset value, revenue recognition, research and development, inventory and discontinued operations.

It is a requirement by law that financial statements of a public company be audited by an external auditing body that reviews the company’s operations and the financial statements to ensure that they are accurate and are in conformity with proper internal controls. They also help cross-check financial statements for creative accounting tricks that companies can use to mislead the public. These include false reporting of revenue, assets, expenses and liabilities.

Forbes School of Business Faculty

References:

Cunningham, C. (2005). The gain and pain of Sarbanes-Oxley. Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/2005/12/29/microsoft-guidant…

Oxford Analytica. (2009). Accounting for a difference of opinion. Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/2009/12/14/global-accounting…