Group+Seven

**Introduction:** Rape is a serious social issue. It leaves victims with both physical and psychological effects. In most cases, victims suffer from psychological effects (mental instability) rather than physical effects (injury from rape, such as pain and bruises). Depression, suicidal ideation and sleep disturbance are common effects of rape, and these symptoms may last for more than a year. As a result of rape, the lifestyles of victims change: they start to avoid going out after dark and avoid social interactions, especially with men. By these effects, social dysfunction may occur because victims won’t be able to work normally as other people. Thus, people need to give this problem careful consideration and find a way to prevent it.

The symbolic interactionist perspective explains how our society uses symbols to define and understand our everyday reaction to things. We behave based on our symbolic definitions of a situation. These symbols may include race, gender, age, income, and occupation. Our reactions tell the type of meaning that we associate with what has taken place. We also use this perspective to generalize about everyday forms of social interactions, most of which are learned. It helps us to observe the relationships between members in society, usually focusing on individuals and small groups, to see how they affect the group as a whole. (Class Notes 2010)
 * Theory:**

Libby O. Ruch writes about how rape affects women. She studied how other things going on in their lives impacted later functionality. Rape victims may have behavioral, emotional, and cognitive responses to the attack. 290 adult female rape victims were studied to determine whether the effects of rape were more severe if a major life change was occurring during the time that it occurred. It was found that women undergoing either a positive or negative major life change were more adversely affected by the rape than those who were not.
 * Lit review:** Shotland explores the idea that the government considers more instances of sexual assault rape than many American students. In order to discover what students considered rape, 287 students were given a questionnaire that gave detailed sexual assault that varied in both male force and female protest. Unless those interviewed had an egalitarian view point, they tended to blame the victim if she did not use verbal and physical refusals or if she had already removed her clothing. Although many still thought that the man’s actions were wrong, they generally did not classify it as rape since they thought that the woman still “desired sex”.

We researched an existing organization that helps victims of rape and provides rape prevention information, resources, and education. This organization is called Rape Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN). Besides being the nation’s largest anti-sexual assault organization, its mission is to “publicize the hotline's free, confidential services; educates the public about sexual assault; and leads national efforts to prevent sexual assault, improve services to victims and ensure that rapists are brought to justice” (Rape and Incest National Network). This organization has put forth many efforts to ensure that the public is informed about the social issue of rape. They utilize connections with television stations and the media to try to inform people about some of the alarming facts about rape. Some of the startling information that appears on RAINN’s home page is that “1 out of every 6 American women has been the victim of an attempted or completed rape in her lifetime ,” “ 60% of rapes/sexual assaults are not reported to the police, according to a statistical average of the past 5 years. Those rapists, of course, never spend a day in prison. Factoring in unreported rapes, only about 6% of rapists ever serve a day in jail,” “Approximately 2/3 of rapes were committed by someone known to the victim ,” and “Every 2 minutes, someone in the U.S. is sexually assaulted” (Rape and Incest National Network). This is the type of information RAINN tries to publicize. They do this through a number of ways. First of all, they provide a 24/7 assault hotline that is in partnership with over 1,100 rape crisis centers throughout the nation (Rape and Incest National Network). This hotline provides free, confidential advice as well as emergency help. RAINN also provides college awareness with “RAINN Days”. These rape awareness days are held on college campuses throughout the nation and they provide students with information, sexual assault hotline cards, survivor’s testimonies, and more. As college students, rape is an extremely heavy topic. “College aged women are 4 times more likely to be sexually assaulted” (Rape and Incest National Network). With that said, our group feels that college awareness of the rape issue is essential! Although RAINN has made great efforts towards college activism and rape awareness through the media and through their sponsored RAINN Days, we have another solution. The symbolic interactionist perspective emphasizes the importance of everyday forms of social interaction. So, in order to make people more aware of rape, the issue needs to be confronted more than it is right now. The more aware people are and the more they can “interact” with the issue, the more preventable it will be, and the more rapist criminals will be brought to justice. We propose that all college campuses nationwide //require// rape and sexual assault education to be a part of the curriculum. Whether it is included in a “Wellness for Life” class or a separate one day seminar, the issue needs to be addressed. Because the majority of rape victims are of college age, we think it is only appropriate that sexual assault education/awareness is required. This will create the interactions that our theory suggests will determine behavior. We also propose that on all student identification cards, there are emergency numbers for the police, campus security, sexual assault hotline, fire department, etc. The last form of action we propose is to have emergency phones available on light poles throughout campuses. This phone will connect directly to the campus security once it is picked up. Having these throughout a college campus will create a sense of safety, accountability, and community.
 * Solution:**

"RAINN." // Rape and Incest National Network //. N.p., 28 Apr 2010. Web. 29 Apr 2010. .
 * __Annotated Bibliographies:__**

[|Just Because She Doesn't Want to Doesn't Mean It's Rape: An Experimentally Based Causal Model of the Perception of Rape in a Dating Situation] R. Lance Shotland, Lynne Goodstein // [|Social Psychology Quarterly] //, Vol. 46, No. 3 (Sep., 1983), pp. 220-232 Published by: American Sociological Association \Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3033793

Main Question: This article explores what variables students use to determine whether or not an act was rape. Methods: 287 students were given a questionnaire that asked them to identify rape. The scenarios included those in which the women protested early, midway, or very late. The woman in the scenario would either protest verbally or verbally and physically. The amount of force the man used was also taken into account. Main Findings: · Acquaintance rape is less likely to be considered real rape. · 50% of high school male students thought that it was okay to use force if the girl had initially consented or had sexually excited him. · If a woman says “no” men were more likely than women to believe that the woman was interested in sex. · If the subjects thought that the woman desired sex, her responsibility for the rape went up in their eyes. · The longer the woman waited to protest the more convinced the subjects were that she desired sex. · If a female goes too far, perhaps by removing her clothing, she desires sex and this idea is not changed by the males behavior. · Blame was laid on the female when low force was used no matter when she started to protest. · When moderate force is used the woman was only blamed if she was entirely undressed. · If the victim protested physically as well as verbally, it was more likely to be considered a violent act. · Those with egalitarian attitudes toward women, generally blame her less for the rape. · For many of the subjects, the man’s actions were wrong but it was not considered rape. · Most rape does not occur at weapon point. Relates: Because of non-egalitarian attitudes, women are more likely to be held responsible for violent sexual acts directed toward them. This causes some acts of sexual violence, even if considered wrong, to be the victims fault and not rape.

> > Main Question: > This article discusses the the life changing impact of rape on women, and the extent of its changing impact. > Method: > Data collected on 267 adult female rape victims who were admitted to the hospital for rape crisis services over a period of 18 months. > Main Findings: Relates: If, as we suggest, a program is implemented that discusses how to deal with sexual assault, it may help victims cope better and have lower levels of trauma post-rape.
 * =====Life Change and Rape Impact=====
 * Libby O. Ruch, Susan Meyers Chandler and Richard A. Harter
 * [|Journal of Health and Social Behavior], Vol. 21, No. 3 (Sep., 1980), pp. 248-260
 * Published by: [|American Sociological Association]
 * Rape victims experience a //rape trauma syndrome.//
 * The importance of factors relating to the victim, such as age, previous sexual experience, ethnicity, and the response of significant others to the victim, as well as the extent of violence and the relationship between the victim and the assailant, can affect rape trauma.
 * Emotional reactions differ from one victim to another.
 * The same victim may experience different types of impact as time passes.
 * Women who had other stressors in their life prior to the rape, i.e., a new move, the birth of a child, starting or ending school or a job, had the highest level of trauma, as compared to the women who had minor life changes preceding the rape.

//everyone// The American dream of equality of opportunity often leads to the misconception that every industrious person will have the opportunity to live without poverty. Max Jackson claims that in our society that we would have no need for a concept of equality if we did not have problems with inequality. Opportunities are limited for a person who has a different culture and values from those who educate and hire people in the better jobs. Who a person’s family is has a huge affect upon where they are likely to go in life. Those born into poverty tend to keep the same culture and values as their family and friends which makes it difficult to enter into a more privileged world. Such disadvantages can also be strongly associated with race and sometimes gender. But Mark Rank point out that it is more than the way in which a person is brought up can bring people to poverty. More than half of all Americans enter into a state of poverty for a short period of time because of a major change such as divorce and just as many receive government aid for at least a year. //not// Jackson, Robert Max. (2007). “Keyword: Inequalities” Contexts. American Sociological Association **__Main Question:__** This article explores the concepts of equality and inequality. Inequality must be present for equality to be a concept in our minds. Jackson writes about how the concept of inequality in society in influenced by the dominant class and how family status, race, and gender contribute to inequality. · Our idea of inequality and equality derive from our experience with inequality and thinking about its moral implications. · Those who are on top can have no concept of what it is like to be poor unless they have experienced it firsthand. · Those who are poor cannot imagine what it is like to be rich. · People of similar status relate to each other better and more frequently than with those of a different status. · People tend to marry someone of the same social status. · Structures of inequality represent and enduring system through which people move. · A person’s status, occupation, wealth, education, and other characteristics are largely inseparable in experience. · How status inequality is embedded in positional inequality is important to its endurance. For example, gender inequality and racial inequality have different relationships to structures of positional inequality. · Although people may not be discriminated against because of race, they are still economically needy. · Family status has a profound effect on children’s culture, interpretation skills, wealth, education and connections · In the US people tend to believe against the evidence that everyone has an equal opportunity. · The views of the ruling class are the ones most prevalent in society. · Some say that inequality is necessary because otherwise higher rewards are needed for people to become accomplished. · Others claim that the elimination of inequality in the modern world prove that they are not necessary.
 * Introduction:**
 * Theory:**
 * Lit Review:**
 * Methods:**
 * Results:**
 * Annotated Bibliographies:**
 * Main Findings: **
 * __Relates:__**

Rank, Mark R. (2003). “As American as Apple Pie: Poverty and Welfare.” Contexts. American Sociological Association __**Main Questions:**__ This article discusses how we, as Americans, look at poverty and welfare and the actual truth behind it. It raises the question of, how do we change the way we look at poverty in the United States? Americans image of poverty and welfare
 * __Main Findings:__**
 * Unwed mothers raising several children
 * Inner city black men
 * High school dropouts
 * Homeless


 * Between 11 and 15% of Americans live below the poverty line each year.
 * Most people are poor only for a short time (1-3 years).
 * Events that trigger falling below the poverty line
 * Loss of a job
 * Family changes (Divorce)
 * To get a better grasp on the problem, studies were done to determine the total number of people who have been touched by poverty, rather than the affected number in any given year. (These findings include adulthood, not childhood.)
 * By the age of 30, 27% of Americans will have experienced a year of poverty
 * By the age of 50, that number will have jumped to 42%
 * By the age of 75, 59% will have been below the poverty line, while 68% will have been near poverty.
 * Using social safety net programs (Between ages 20 and 65)
 * By the age of 65, two-thirds of Americans will have received assistance for at least a year.
 * 40% of those people will have used it for five years.


 * Time
 * Most studies who results for one, five, or ten years.
 * The life table's technique shows results over a lifetime to include unanticipated events
 * Household splits
 * Sickness
 * Losing Jobs
 * The safety net
 * There is little government help in financial emergencies
 * We don't have a universal health care plan.
 * There are not as many social policies, such as there are in Europe and Canada, to help reduce poverty.
 * The labor market
 * Does not provide enough jobs that pay well
 * Increased numbers of low-paying jobs

__**Relates:**__
 * Americans need to understand the normality of poverty.
 * Poverty damges the nation's health, the quality of its workforce, differing race relationships, etc.
 * The public has a viewpoint of the people in poverty as undeserving of help, but research suggests that it is not merely from having attitudes or no motivation.

Crisis pregnancies are a growing phenomenon throughout the United States. Women of all ages can experience an unwanted pregnancy and struggle with what decisions to make; should they abort the baby, keep the baby, or give the baby up for adoption? These are all life changing decisions and the influence of the media and social institutions can play a large factor. Crisis Pregnancy Centers are a type of social institution that aim to give women experiencing a crisis pregnancy alternative options to abortion. Throughout this wiki we will analyze findings from interviews from rural area Crisis Pregnancy Centers. Our goal is to try to answer what the best practices for Crisis Pregnancy Centers in rural areas are through the social conflict perspective. Our theory is the social conflict theory. This theory focuses on how power and resources are distributed throughout a society. In order to fully understand the conflict perspective, one must consider how the "status quo" is established and maintained. This perspective states that society is a constant power struggle in which some benefit and others are oppressed. The people that benefit are called the bourgeoisie and the people that are oppressed are called proletariats. The conflict perspective is also a materialist view on society that consists of a base and superstructure. Similar to the structure of a house, the base holds up the superstructure. The base is the means/mode of production, for example, capitalism can be considered the base of the United States. The basecreates the superstructure. An example of superstructure is the government, or school systems. The superstructure maintains, or legitimates the base. Both the base and superstructure work together. The proletariats in society are those in society who have difficulty getting an advanced education and finding good work (Class Notes 2010). The social conflict perspective can help explain what is going on in Crisis Pregnancy Centers (CPS) in many ways. Before women in crisis pregnancy situations contact a CPC for help, they are being oppressed. Unwanted pregnancies or pregnancies out of wedlock are looked down upon by society. Also, the majority of crisis pregnancies happen to women with in the lower class anyways, so they are definitely being "oppressed". However, once the women contact a CPC they start to benefit. This is because, based on our interviews, almost all CPCs offer free pregnancy tests, supplies, food, and even facilities for those in a crisis pregnancy situation. Some CPCs offer parenting classes as well as other classes to aid parents after the birth of their child. At this point, the volunteers at CPCs could be considered the "oppressed" because, based on the interviews, their biggest struggle is a lack of volunteers or funding. Because CPCs are so generously trying to redistribute resources to women, it could be a reason why they struggle with a lack of volunteers and funding. Even though CPCs offer so much support to women, the majority still end up living on welfare, or as a single parent. In face, 80-90% of the 200,000 crisis pregnancy clients (per year) eventually end up in single parent households and many of those end up without a sufficient financial income and depend on welfare or end up homeless (Mathewes-Green). At this point, the mothers, children, and society are being oppressed. The mothers suffer from an insufficient income, the children suffer from the effects of being in a poverty situation, and the society suffers from paying welfare to a cause that hasn't shown significant improvement. Women in a crisis pregnancy go through an ongoing power struggle. ** Literature Review Unintended pregnancies are very prevalent in the United States especially women who are financially unstable. Unplanned pregnancies occur at least once in 48% of women between the ages of 15 and 44 (Henshaw). When pregnancy is unintended, abortion is chosen 54% of the time. If the rates identified by the study were to continue, women would be expected to have at least one unintended pregnancy by the time they were 45 years old, and 43% of these women would have an abortion (Henshaw). Marriage is a huge factor in whether or not a woman experiencing a crisis pregnancy chooses abortion. ** 60-65% of unmarried women choose abortion, while only 37% of married women choose to have an abortion (Henshaw). For those who choose not to abort the child, adoption is a viable alternative. Frederica Mathewes-Green wrote an article that strongly recommends adoption for those experiencing a crisis pregnancy. This gives the child a change to be raised in a two parent home with economic stability. The majority of children born out of wedlock are raised in poverty and are more likely to have an unintended pregnancy out of wedlock (Mathewes-Green). ** Methods ** In order to form a conclusion to the question "what is the best practice for Crisis Pregnancy Centers" we conducted several interviews in order to obtain qualitative data. A number of students interviewed CPCs that where in rural, Mid-west areas. All the interview questions were the same. The questions were: __Best Practices for Crisis Pregnancy Centers__ __ Interview Script __ 1  In your professional opinion, what are the goals of the crisis pregnancy center? 2 Does your work focus on all women who find themselves unexpectedly pregnant, or specifically those who are unexpectedly pregnant and seeking an abortion? 3 How are your clients affected by their financial resources? 4 What practices has your organization implemented in order to recruit new clients? 5 Which of these practices has proved to be most effective? 6 What have been your greatest obstacles in delivering services? 7 How do other institutions in society (mass media, schools, family, work, etc) influence your clients? 8 How have you overcome these obstacles? 9 How much emphasis do you place on instilling a new set of values in your clients? 10 What kind of advice would you offer to a crisis pregnancy center opening in a rural town? After the interviews were finished, we analyzed the answers using the social conflict theory. Then we looked at the assigned articles for alternate viewpoints. Eglene, Ophelia. “Conducting Best and Current Practices Research: A Starter Kit”. Center for Technology Government, 2003 Ophelia Eglene wrote an article about “Conducting Best and Current Practices Research.” Her steps were the guidelines used throughout the entire project and allowed us to gather quality data in order to determine a conclusion for the best practices for CPCs. __Main Question:__ Conducting Best and Current Research Best and current research will help the organizations learn from others’ experiences, and avoid mistakes. Best and current researches are the more effective, less expensive, innovated ways to get work done. __Current practice:__ "Current practices research" is the process by which you create your questions, identify likely sources of workmanship, and investigate for frank advice. __Best practice:__ to separate mistakes you shouldn't repeat from successes you'd like to follow. We should look deeper into the characteristics which led to success. Conducting current and best practices research is effective for developing a full understanding of a problem and all of its structure which is composed with variable perspectives. ・Using time to read and talk to people who have solved or tried to solve similar problems may provide useful insights into underlying factors, strategies for change, and problems to expect along the way. ・Usually inexpensive and a good investment of time. Unfortunately, however, a lot of organizations skip the process because they have one or more false assumptions about their work. For example; • There is no agency anywhere in the world like mine. • This problem is totally unique and historically unprecedented. • We know more about this problem than anyone else. Different Ways to Conduct Best & Current Practices Research 1. Formulating a clear question •Think about your problem or goal. Break it into key elements or sub-topics. Write down a series of words or phrases describing the topic and elements using different synonyms (this will be useful for doing an Internet search or a literature review). • Investigate your topic well. Think of issues typically associated with your topic. Specify things that are NOT part of your research goals, then you will gain a more comprehensive picture of the issue that has some reasonable limits. 2. Gathering preliminary information • Think of people you know who may have information which is related to the question you’re searching. • Check organizations’ best practices to see if they have anything on the issue you are researching. Look at associations related to the program area of your issue, that is to say, professional associations that focus on government accounting, or social welfare, or environmental protection. Think of states, localities, or federal agencies with good reputations in the area of interest and check their Web sites or contact them. They might have implemented innovative solutions that may help you. • Do a broad Internet search. Start with some of the major search engines using different keywords and word combinations (use the vocabulary expansion). After searching a topic, narrow your results by searching within the search results or formulating a more advanced question. • Search the Internet to find similar organizations solving similar problems. Try to take these examples separately to see whether or not the way you are thinking fits with the example, to make sure that you are on track. Compare the example with the issue. Find dissimilar organizations with similar problems. Finally, think about the technologies or management methods that might be useful in your project, and search for organizations that use them successfully. 3. Having interview selected people in-depth • Don’t hesitate to talk to people, and ask for help and advice. • Describe your project accurately and shortly. • Identify which person would be right to talk to. If the person does not seem know about the issue enough, ask to be directed to someone who knows more about the issue. It will save both time and frustration. • Ask targeted questions. • Know how and when to ask difficult questions (generally about problems and failures). • Have a standard measure for recording the interview results. Conducting best and current practices research is related to the issue because; ・it is used the questions assigned ・it is used the Crises Pregnancy Centers assigned ・Interviewed people at the Crises Pregnancy Center After reading all the interviews and analyzing them, we noticed that the main goals of almost all the CPCs was to provide resources and information to all women regarding their crisis pregnancy. The most effective way to inform women in crisis pregnancies was by "word of mouth" and through networking, and their biggest struggle was a lack of volunteers. The social conflict theory suggests that these women experiencing a crisis pregnancy go through an ongoing cycle of oppression before and after the child is born. CPCs try to redistribute resources to these women in need so that they can benefit, but this in turn leads to a moderate form of oppression in the CPCs because of the struggle to keep dedicated volunteers. Many CPCs try to educate their clients on parenting and life skills in an attempt to prepare them to return to the "real world" but the reality is that 80-90 percent of clients end up in a poverty situation after they give birth to their child (Mathewes-Green). This causes not only oppression for the mother, but oppression for the child as well. Children raised in poverty are twice as likely to give birth out of wedlock, only continuing the cycle (Mathewes-Green). Although efforts are made to benefit the child and the mother by counseling, reality hasn't showed an improvement. We think that the best practice for CPCs is to strongly encourage and inform young women about adoption. Only 2% of births are given up to adoption even though 29% of people polled about what the best form of action for a pregnant unmarried teen said that the baby should be given up for adoption (Mathewes-Green). Adoption was the most recommended option; clearly people value the welfare of the child and feel that a two parent home offers the best care. In fact, pregnant teens who were counseled in a program that mentioned adoption were seven times more likely to choose it (Mathewes-Green). This is why we feel that the best practice for CPCs is to continue counseling, and always mention adoption as an option so that the number of mothers and children being oppressed can decrease.
 * Theory**
 * • ** There is only one way to deal with this problem.
 * Results **

**Eglene, Ophelia. “Conducting Best and Current Practices Research: A Starter Kit”. Center for Technology Government, 2003 ** Main Question: Conducting Best and Current Research Current practice: **an organized attempt to learn from the experience of others. Agent problems seem to have occurred elsewhere, such as in the public, private, or nonprofit sector. Understanding and evaluating the solutions developed by these other organizations is an important step in project planning. These experiences can focus on what works-and what doesn't-in the earliest stages of your project development. "Current practices research" is the process by which you create your questions, identify likely sources of workmanship, and investigate for frank advice. ** Best practice **: to separate mistakes you shouldn't repeat from successes you'd like to follow. We should look deeper into the characteristics which led to success. Conducting current and best practices research is effective for developing a full understanding of a problem and all of its structure which is composed with variable perspectives. ・ <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Using time to read and talk to people who have solved or tried to solve similar problems may provide useful insights into underlying factors, strategies for change, and problems to expect along the way. <span style="font-family: 'ＭＳ 明朝',serif; font-size: 10pt;">・ <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Usually inexpensive and a good investment of time. <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-align: left;"> Unfortunately, however, a lot of organizations skip the process because they have one or more false assumptions about their work. For example; • There is no agency anywhere in the world like mine. • This problem is totally unique and historically unprecedented. • There is only one way to deal with this problem. • We know more about this problem than anyone else. ** <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Different Ways to Conduct Best & Current Practices Research • Investigate your topic well. Think of issues typically associated with your topic. Specify things that are NOT part of your research goals, then you will gain a more comprehensive picture of the issue that has some reasonable limits. Step 2:** • Check organizations’ best practices to see if they have anything on the issue you are researching. Look at associations related to the program area of your issue, that is to say, professional associations that focus on government accounting, or social welfare, or environmental protection. Think of states, localities, or federal agencies with good reputations in the area of interest and check their Web sites or contact them. They might have implemented innovative solutions that may help you. • Do a broad Internet search. Start with some of the major search engines using different keywords and word combinations (use the vocabulary expansion). After searching a topic, narrow your results by searching within the search results or formulating a more advanced question. • Search the Internet to find similar organizations solving similar problems. Try to take these examples separately to see whether or not the way you are thinking fits with the example, to make sure that you are on track. Compare the example with the issue. Find dissimilar organizations with similar problems. Finally, think about the technologies or management methods that might be useful in your project, and search for organizations that use them successfully. Step 3:** • Describe your project accurately and shortly. • Identify which person would be right to talk to. If the person does not seem know about the issue enough, ask to be directed to someone who knows more about the issue. It will save both time and frustration. • Ask targeted questions. • Know how and when to ask difficult questions (generally about problems and failures). • Have a standard measure for recording the interview results. Conducting best and current practices research is related to the issue because; <span style="font-family: 'ＭＳ 明朝',serif; font-size: 10pt;">・ <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">it is used the questions assigned <span style="font-family: 'ＭＳ 明朝',serif; font-size: 10pt;">・ <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">it is used the Crises Pregnancy Centers assigned <span style="font-family: 'ＭＳ 明朝',serif; font-size: 10pt;">・ <span style="font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">Interviewed people at the Crises Pregnancy Center **
 * Annotated Bibliographies **
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-align: left;">Best and current research will help the organizations learn from others’ experiences, and it will make you understand solutions and what not to do to avoid mistakes. Best and current researches are the more effective, less expensive, innovated ways to get work done. **
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-align: left;">Step 1: **
 * •Think about your problem or goal. Break it into key elements or sub-topics. Write down a series of words or phrases describing the topic and elements using different synonyms (this will be useful for doing an Internet search or a literature review).
 * See the matrix on page 3
 * • Think of people you know who may have information which is related to the question you’re searching.
 * see the matrix on page 4
 * • Don’t hesitate to talk to people, and ask for help and advice.
 * helpful resources are available on page 5 (Internet search engine, Meta search engine, tips for an efficient search, literature research, etc.)

Frederica Mathewes-Green. “Pro- Life Dilemma” //Policy Review// (1996) This article addresses the struggles crisis pregnancy centers face in modern society. Although CPCs do a great job helping young women through pregnancies and “saving the baby” they have not been as effective in providing a practical way for the mother to continue to provide for their child. The majority of women who experience a crisis pregnancy end up in financial insufficiency or dependent on welfare. If pregnancy care programs could make a movement towards adoption, it could benefit society by moving from a welfare dependent group of young mothers to a family-based alternative. · Pregnancy centers struggle to assist new mothers after more than a year of the birth of their baby · 80-90% of the 200,000 crisis pregnancy clients (per year) eventually end up in single parent households. Many end up without a sufficient financial income and depend on welfare or end up homeless. · “We all know the eventual outcomes for many of the children born into such households: poverty, low academic achievement, susceptibility to crime. If pregnancy-counseling centers are to serve the best long-term interests of children, many of them will need to think beyond pregnancy and birth--to finding each one a two-parent home.” · Welfare is necessary and without it, young mothers would become even more desperate · We must acknowledge that welfare causes more crisis pregnancies because it makes single parent households possible. This correlates with more crisis pregnancies because girls who grow up without fathers are twice as more likely to give birth out of wedlock · Pregnancy centers need to consider helping mothers in a more practical way by helping them after birth and not just focusing on saving the pregnancy itself, but the child as it grows up · Family Research Council conducted a poll in 1995, asking respondents which course of action was best for an unwed, pregnant teen. 29% said to give the child up for adoption, 24% said she should marry the father, 11% recommended single parenting, and 8% said she should get an abortion. · Reality: in 1991 46% of unwed pregnant teens got an abortion, 44% percent were carried to term (miscarriages make the difference) and only 2% of those births were given up for adoption · “According to the National Council for Adoption, a 1991 study found that pregnant, unmarried teens who were counseled in a program that mentioned adoption to every client were seven times more likely to choose it” · Pregnancy centers must be cautious when talking about adoption. They have been sued before by clients who claimed they were coerced. · Pregnancy centers try to be objective when discussing the differences between adoption and single parenting. · Many women considering adoption change their minds after carrying the baby to full term and their maternal instincts take over. Counselors want to remind mothers to remember the best interest of the baby. · Counselor Anne Pierson thinks that incorporating biblical teachings on adoption and how we are God’s “adopted” children may help women feel more comfortable with adoption and not think of it as “giving up” their child. · LIGHT House pregnancy center has one of the highest averages of 10% of clients choosing adoption. They present objective, real life facts, and also target “abortion-minded” pregnant teens. · Many Pro-lifers practice their beliefs peacefully by standing outside abortion centers offering information on adoption. This article relates to our question on what the best practices are for CPCs because it suggests that pushing adoption is the best practice because it is for the benefit of the child which is the main goal for all CPCs.
 * Pro- Life Dilemma **
 * Main Question**
 * Main Findings**
 * Relates**

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=<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Obesity in the United States and Atchison, Kansas =

=<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Introduction: = <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">There has been an alarming rise in Obesity in the US over the past thirty years. It has lead to health problems, high healthcare costs, and unemployment. Atchison Kansas is no exception. This Wiki will be proposing solutions based on reseach to help overcome this epidemic. =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Theory: = <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Our theory is the Social Conflict theory. This theory focuses on how power and resources are distributed throughout a society. In order to fully understand the conflict perspective, one must consider how the "status quo" is established and maintained. This perspective states that society is a constant power struggle in which some benefit and others are oppressed. The people that benefit are called the bourgeoisie and the people that are oppressed are called proletariats. The conflict perspective is also a materialist view on society that consists of a base and superstructure. Similar to the structure of a house, the base holds up the superstructure. The base is the means/mode of production, for example, capitalism can be considered the base of the United States. The base //<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">creates //<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> the superstructure. An example of superstructure is the government, or school systems. The superstructure //<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">maintains //<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">, or legitimates the base. Both the base and superstructure work together. The proletariats in society are those in society who have difficulty getting an advanced education and finding good work. This can lead to obesity since unhealthy foods are cheaper than healthy foods. Once obesity sets in, it becomes harder to get a job and thus creates an obesity cycle. However, the bourgeoisie are also susceptible to obesity. This is because they can afford to eat out more and are less likely to make their food at home. This wiki will discuss how Atchison can change this superstructure by modifying its people’s environment =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Literature Review: = <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">“According to the World Health Organization, obesity is a disease and is defined as the condition of excess body fat to the extent that health is impaired” (Beydoun, 17). Research shows that obesity has been a growing issue in the United States. A century ago, obesity was not even an issue, in fact, lack of food and being underweight was much more of a concern. That is not the case today. In modern society, obesity “accounts for approximately 400,000 deaths per year, second only to Tobacco” (Finkelstein,Ruhm, Kosa, 239). Research has found many possible causes for the rise in obesity. Some of the causes are the increase of technology which correlates to a decrease in energy expenditure, increase in food consumption, and denser and unhealthier foods becoming cheaper while healthy foods are becoming more expensive. The likelihood of obesity is also affected by race/ethnicity, economic status, age, gender and geographical rates. Although white, blacks, and Mexican-Americans have very little difference in their obesity rates (Beydoun, 14), Asian-Americans have only half the rate of the national average (Beydoun, 4). The socio-economic status is a continuous cycle because obesity reduces the likelihood of a good education and job, but without these benefits obesity will most likely continue. The early years are a good time to stop this cycle. “Childhood and adolescence are key times for persons to form lifelong eating and physical activity habits” (Beydoun, 19). The environment people are in will affect their obesity rate. In neighborhoods with grocery stores the obesity rate is lower than those without grocery stores but with fast food chains. There are also many programs that Atchison could use to decrease their obesity numbers using CDC's various development, research, training, and evaluation programs as a stepping stone. These programs work on creating awareness, promoting healthy lifestyles, supplying helpful information and tools, training personnel, and monitoring/researching the trends dealing with obesity. Atchison can use these programs to gather research information about their obesity rates, advertise healthy lifestyles in the community, and promote good lifestyles by sponsoring programs throughout the area. =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Methods: = <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Before the obesity crisis in Atchison can be overcome, information must be gathered. How does socio-economic status relate to obesity? What is the ratio of supermarkets to fast food chains? What exercise opportunities are available? What is the history of the obesity rate in Atchison, Kansas? In order to answer these questions a survey can be conducted from a realiable sample. Once these things are determined, then improvements can be implemented. Two possible improvements would be increasing the amount of healthy foods served at schools and building a larger supermarket that can sell produce at cheaper rates. For the first the independent variable would be the food served at the school and the dependent variable would be the percentage of obese children. In the second test the independent variable would be the cheaper produce prices and the dependent variable would be the percentage of the obese in Atchison. The data that would be examined would be the change, if any, in obesity rates.

=<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-weight: normal; line-height: 14px;">__Annotated Bibliographies__ =

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 14px;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Eric A. Finkelstein; Ruhm, Christopher J.; Kosa, Katherine M. 2005. Economic Causes and Consequences of Obesity. //<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Annual Review of Public Health. 26. 239-57 // <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">__Main Question__ : This article addresses the main question of “what causes obesity,” and “what are the consequences of obesity?” The article focuses mainly on the alarming rise of obesity in the United States, especially when obesity used to be unheard of until the past century. It goes into depth about many different causes for obesity like reductions in energy expenditure, increase in energy intake, increase in technology, increase in television viewing, larger meal portions, and even the difference of men and women in the work force and how that plays into the rise of obesity. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">__Main Findings:__ · “obesity now accounts for approximately 400,000 deaths per year, second only to Tobacco” · Obesity causes more disease/illnesses “including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, several types of cancer (endometrial, postmenopausal breast, kidney, and colon cancers), musculoskeletal disorders, sleep apnea, and gallbladder disease” (page 239) · Causes for obesity o Reductions in energy expenditure: more technology, less workforce. o Increases in energy intake § “snacking has become more prevalent over time. Cutler et al. (13) found that higher snack calories are responsible for the entire rise in energy intake among females between 1977–1978 and 1994–1996 and for 90% of the increase among males” (page 241) o Causes for increased consumption § “Economists’ first law of demand implies that a decrease in the price of food will cause consumption to increase (43). Moreover, if the price of calorie-dense, prepackaged, and/or prepared foods (e.g., fast food) falls faster than for less calorie dense foods (e.g., vegetables), then individuals will shift their consumption toward these cheaper alternatives” (page 244) § “Between 1985 and 2000, the price of fresh fruits and vegetables, fish, and dairy products increased by 118%, 77%, and 56%, respectively, whereas sugar and sweets, fats and oils, and carbonated beverages (54) increased at lower rates—46%, 35%, and 20%” (page 244) § Americans are eating larger meal portions, and the food they are eating is more dense; even when the food is denser, people are accustomed to eating the same “amount/size” of food. § Television may cause increased consumption/snacking “children are exposed to 10 food commercials per hour of viewing, most for fast foods, soft drinks, sweets, and sugar-sweetened cereals (16), television may increase demand for these products more than computer or video game use” (page 246) § More women work away from home “This trend may partly explain why the consumption of food away from home increased from 18% to 32%” (page 246) · Consequences for Obesity o “obese individuals average 48% more inpatient days per year” (page 247) o “obese adults aged 18–65 years incur annual medical expenditures that are 36% higher than expenditures of normal-weight individuals”(page 248) o “the average taxpayer spends approximately $175 per year to finance obesity-related medical expenditures among Medicare and Medicaid recipients” (page 248) o Obese have a higher rate of work absences · Conclusion o “Even with full information about the benefits of physical activity, the nutrient content of food, and the health consequences of obesity, some fraction of the population will optimally choose to engage in a lifestyle that leads to weight gain because the costs (in terms of time, money, and opportunity costs) of not doing so are just too high” (page 249) o “Technological advancements have allowed us to be increasingly productive at work and at home while" (page 249) __Relates:__ This article suggests that technology and the increase of dense food intake are the main causes for the growing obesity problem in the United States. The article also mentions that knowledge and education are not very beneficial when it comes to slowing the rise in obesity. In fact, the article says that awareness of obesity is the least likely factor to influence a decrease in obesity while self control, time, and money are the main factors that will affect obesity. So, can apply to Atchison by studying the how income and time constraints correlate to the obesity rate.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Beydoun, May A. and Wang, Youfa. “Obesity Epidemic in the United States--- Gender, Age, Socioeconomic, Racial/Ethnic, and Geographic Characteristics: A Systematic Review and Meta-Regression Analysis.” Epidemiologic Reviews May. 2007: 10.1093. This article explores how race/ethnicity, economic status, age, gender and geographical regions affect the likelihood of a person being affected by the increasing obesity rates. __Main Findings:__ “According to the World Health Organization, obesity is a disease and is defined as the condition of excess body fat to the extent that health is impaired (17).” Pg2 “In 2003–2004, among men and women aged 20years or older, approximately two thirds (66.3 percent) were overweight or obese, 32.42 percent were obese, and 4.8percent were extremely obese (BMI !40 kg/m2). The combined prevalence increased with age. Of persons in the United States aged 60 years or older, more than 70 percent were overweight or obese, and the trend was similar for men and women. However, there was no such clear trend with respect to obesity. More men than women were overweight or obese (68.8 percent vs. 61.6 percent in 2001–2002) (32).” Pg 3 · The six largest Asian-American ethnic/racial groups combined have half the prevalence of the national average. · Obesity among Asian-American men is 1/5 as prevalent as US males. · Asian-American women range from a 1-4% prevalence as compared to the national average of 15%. Pg. 4 “Meanwhile, it is possible that there may be a bidirectional causal relation between SES and obesity,because obesity may adversely affect one’s opportunitiesfor education, occupation, and marriage (42).” Pg6 “Black women with less than a high school education had the lowest prevalence compared with those who had higher educational levels. Interestingly, self-reported data from the 2001 BRFSS showed a clearer reverse linear relation between obesity and education than did NHANES. “Pg 6 · States in Southeastern United States have a higher prevalence than the rest of the US. · Only Colorado, Hawaii, Vermont, and Connecticut had obesity rates under 20%. · Seventeen states had 25% rates or higher · Louisiana, Mississippi, and West Viriginia had a 30% rate or higher. pg 7 “Between 1976–1980 and 2003– 2004, the average annual rate of increase was approximately 0.5 percentage points for children and adolescents aged 2 years or older.” Pg 10 · White, black, and Mexican-Americans have small increase differences. · The exception were white adolescent boys who should a slower increase. Pg 14 “Among adolescents, no consistent association was found between SES and overweight for boys, but low-SES adolescent girls had a much higher prevalence than their medium- and high-SES counterparts.” pg 14 · One third of obese preschool children and one half of obese middle school children become obese adult. Pg 15 · Obesity increases the fastest for non-Hispanic white women.Pg 17 · Some racial/ethnic disparities among women, children and adolescents in the US are disproportionally affected. · Asian Americans have a lower prevalence of obesity. · Obesity and overweight has increased at about 0.3-0.8% per year across different sociodemographic groups over the past three decades. Pg 17 · Findings indicate that characteristics are not the dominant factor to which the rising obesity epidemic is ascribed. · Social environmental factors might have a more profound effect in influencing individuals’ body weight because they influence people’s lifestyles. · The US “obesogenic” is characterized by high energy intake and low energy expenditure. · A person’s environment will affect his/her body weight by what foods and exercise materials it makes available. Pg 19 · Increased consumption of snacks, soft drinks, fast foods, and restaurant foods while neglecting fruits and vegetables is likely to increase the risk of obesity in the US. Pg 19 · The availability of supermarkets, which helps healthy eating, is less in Hispanic neighborhoods. Pg 19 “Childhood and adolescence are key times for persons to form lifelong eating and physical activity habits. “Pg 19 · Since obesity is a problem for many races, promotion of health needs to tailored to the different ethnic/racial groups who are struggling. Children and adults should be encouraged to eat healthily and exercise more. One way to encourage this would be to decrease the number of fast food restaurants and increase the number of supermarkets. Also, more fitness centers would promote better exercise and more energy expenditure. expending fewer calories and have also reduced food prices, especially prices for energy dense foods. These changes directly increase net calories and may interact with other factors (e.g., television, the built environment) to further promote weight gain” __Relates:__ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 14px;">This article suggests that technology and the increase of dense food intake are the main causes for the growing obesity problem in the United States. The article also mentions that knowledge and education are not very beneficial when it comes to slowing the rise in obesity. In fact, the article says that awareness of obesity is the least likely factor to influence a decrease in obesity while self control, time, and money are the main factors that will affect obesity. So, can apply to Atchison by studying the how income and time constraints correlate to the obesity rate.
 * <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-weight: normal;">__Main Question:__ **<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Laura Kettle Khan et al. Recommended Community Strategies and Measures to Prevent Obesity in the United States. 2009. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 58: RR-7 <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-weight: normal;">__Main Question__ This article discusses some of the measures that have been taken in an effort to prevent obesity. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">__Main Findings__ Obesity is becoming ever more prevalent in the U.S. today, and the problems stemming from obesity, (i.e. more sick days leading to higher health care costs) are growing as well. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">· <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">2/3 of U.S. adults and 1/5 of U.S. kids are obese (For adults, this means having a body mass index, or BMI greater than 30.0) or overweight (For adults, this means having a BMI of 25.0- 29, for kids this means being at or above the 95% of the gender-specific BMI for growth charts.) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">· <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">During 1980 to 2004, obesity prevalence doubled in U. S. adults. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 200%;">· <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Being obese or overweight increases risk for many chronic diseases, such as heart disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, and certain cancers. Due to this, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, has initiated the Common Community Measures for Obesity Prevention Project, more commonly called the Measures Project. The purpose of this project was to find and suggest strategies that communities and local governments could implement to aid in obesity prevention. Those in charge of the Measures Project came up with 24 recommended strategies for obesity prevention, which could be divided into 6 categories: 1) strategies to promote the availability of affordable healthy food and beverages. 2) strategies to support healthy food and beverage choices. 3) a strategy to encourage breastfeeding. 4) strategies to encourage physical activity or limit sedentary activity among children and youth. 5) strategies to create safe communities that support physical activity. 6) a strategy to encourage communities to organize for change //<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">. //

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2009. Obesity: Halting the Epidemic by Making Healthy Eating Easier. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">__Main Question:__ This article begins by briefly describing why obesity is an important growing concern in the United States. The majority of the writing is spent addressing the way the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) has responded to this epidemic. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> __Main Findings:__ Obesity is a growing concern mainly because of its health consequences and costs. v Findings show that children are developing obesity related diseases that used to only be seen in adults. For example, they now have a much higher chance of obtaining a cardiovascular disease. v Some of the results can be, but are not limited to, cancer, stroke, sleep apnea, respiratory problems and infertility. v Medical costs are more expensive for obese workers than for those with a normal weight. In order to halt obesity we must make some policy and environmental change initiatives. CDC has several responses to this issue. v Support state based programs Ø These programs create policy and environmental change initiatives to § increase physical activity, intake of fruits & vegetables, and breastfeeding. § descrease television viewing and the intake of sugary beverages and high calorie foods. Ø They provide technical assistance and training that § create wide-ranging state plans, community involvement, and leadership facilities. § train public health practitioners. Ø They organize national leadership activities that help highlight progress in prevention and control and also acknowledge ideas to reverse the obesity epidemic. Ø These programs also do examinations and epidemiologic research to monitor obesity trends and support extensive research on prevention and control strategies. (page 3) CDC has also developed numerous original partnerships in order to halt the obesity epidemic. Some of them include the following. v The Healthy Eating Active Living Convergence Partnership (CP) (page 4) Ø This deals with others in fields not normally involved in public health. It focuses primarily on using transportation and food systems to develop active living environments and provide access to healthy foods. v Common Community Measures for Obesity Prevention (Measures Project) evaluates models for monitoring initiatives. (page 4) v Early assessment of programs and policies help prevent childhood obesity. The local program’s priority is placed on targeting low income families. v Addressing obesity through commercial health plans helps public health professionals and administrators improve interventions for medical settings. (page 4) CDC also translates practice based evidence and research for the public to use. v The swift work site assessment and translation helps employees maintain a healthy body weight. (page 4) v They have also created a healthy weight web site that includes a BMI calculator along with steps and tools to understand how to keep a healthy body weight for a lifetime. (page 4) v The weight management research to practice series recaps the science on different weight management topics. (page 4) <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">__Relates:__ The CDC can be very helpful with managing some aspects of obesity. The different programs created by it can be used to help decrease obesity levels in Atchison, Kansas by promoting healthy lifestyles and creating awareness.