Research Blog #7

The main theory that I will be looking at throughout my research paper is how fraternity members feel the need to use alcohol to help them achieve a sense of masculinity.  Once a male enters into a fraternity, it seems like they all of a sudden feel a sense of entitlement and a greater sense of manliness.  I will be studying why this is the case.  The academic source that I think will be most important to this study will be the book "Guyland."  I think this because it is an actual study of men traveling from adolescence to adulthood.  The author interviews males from their late teens until their mid thirties.  This give him a wide range of people to study which is a good thing.  I will be able to see what males from each age bracket think and how they act.  With all this being said, I am looking forward to diving into this study and analyzing everything that I can.

Research Blog #6

I think that this is a good visual representation of my project because it shows two fraternity members consuming alcohol and being rowdy.  This ties into the alcohol and masculinity aspect of my topic because it shows how these young men use alcohol as a way to show how much of a "man" they are.

Literature Review 4

McKee, Shane Patrick. "Mantalk: Fraternity Men and Masculinity." ProQuest LLC (2013). ERIC. Web. 21 Mar. 2016.

This dissertation is about a study made by the author.  In the study, he takes 15 fraternity members and uses them for a ten weeks.  These sessions are where "Mantalk" comes from.  The findings he comes across show that these "ManTalk" experiences allow the participants to became more aware of their masculinity and its intra-personal intersections (race, gender and sexual orientation, body image, feelings and emotions, and self-esteem and self-awareness) as well as its interpersonal intersections (relationships). 

The author of this dissertation is Shane Patrick McKee.  He wrote this while completing his doctoral degree at Washington State University.  There honestly is not much on the author, but considering he completed this study with the approval of the chairs, he seems to be very knowledgeable of the topic.

ManTalk- men's growth group that helps them explore their masculinity

Intra/Inter-personal relationships- communication within oneself/a strong, deep, or close association or acquaintance between two or more people that may range in duration from brief to enduring.

QUOTES

"Although men are not often viewed as an at-risk group and even naming them that way seems counter-intuitive, they have been overlooked as group in recent years even though they struggle in navigating the college experience in very similar ways as other such underrepresented cultural and ethnic minorities do" (Page 1).

"The social constructionist model relating to masculinities subscribes to the notion that man and his behaviors, values, and beliefs are a constantly changing collection of meanings that are constructed through his relationship with himself, with others, and his world" (Page 12).

"It is these early educational experiences combined with boys’ subscription to hegemonic masculine norms that can contribute to their underachievement in the classroom, lack of engagement in school, and struggles outside of the classroom involving violence, alcohol, and other risky behavior – as compared to their female counterparts" (Page 24).

This dissertation will be able to help me with my research because it talks about how fraternity men go through college without a real path for finding their masculinity.  I will be able to use much of the dissertation because the whole study fits well into my topic ideas.  I also think that it will be able to show the bigger picture when it comes to what it means to be a man.

Research Blog 4: Research proposal

Jake Vitaliano

Professor Goeller

Research in Disciplines: College!

February 29, 2016

Research proposal

Working Title: Alcohol and Its Effects on Fraternity Members Masculinity

Topic:

I am going to research the power fraternities and alcohol have on the masculinity and social desirability of young men in the college community.  My paper will show how men in fraternities are able to influence the common undergraduate student with their masculinity, as well as show the connection of the harmful effects that alcohol has on these students and how the universities view said actions.  I am interested in the topic because I am in a fraternity and I have witnessed countless amounts of press that show fraternities doing vulgar things.  I want to know more about these problems and address them so my own fraternity does not ever run into those problems.

Research Question:

My main research question is: Why are fraternities beginning to be seen in a negative way on campus and why are the deans beginning strict policies that inhibit fraternities from participating in alcoholic events?  Also, why are fraternities being kicked off campus more and more?

Theoretical Frame:

Although this is not really a theory, I would like to know why when people think of a fraternity, they think of “drunk idiots,” among other things.  Most people know that negative sides of what happens within a fraternity, but very little know all of the good that fraternities bring.  People think of drugs, drinking, and other forms of behavior that stand out against the community.  Another thing that I would like to understand is why being in a fraternity translates into immediate power hungry attitudes.  Once men join a fraternity, it appears as so they become more masculine.  Do these men think that they are better than their average college male?  From personal experience, I have seen fraternity members treat non-members like they are garbage on the street.

One thing that ties both of these questions together would be the consistent use of alcohol.  Does the alcohol make the fraternity men act the way they do?  Or is it plainly the fact that they get power hungry?  I also want to be able to understand why campuses are really starting to try and change the culture of fraternities.  Why can’t the deans of these organizations realize that no matter what they do, alcohol will always be a part of the fraternities’ culture?  Do they really think that kicking fraternities off campus will make them stop drinking alcohol on a weekly basis?  Clearly, I have a lot of questions and interests about this topic, so I believe I will be able to find a lot of good information while researching this topic.  

Research and Plan:

For starters, I will be using the book The Company He Keeps, by Nicholas L. Syrett.  This book discusses the roles that fraternities have had on their respective college campuses throughout the years.  It also focuses on how men in fraternities show their masculinity through various types of things, one being alcohol.  One of the better articles that I have found is called “An Examination of Alcohol Expectations and Social Desirability in Fraternity Members in America” by Pietro Sasso.  In his article, he talks about how fraternities use alcohol to promote social desirability.  Social desirability is basically how you want others to “desire” or see you as a person.  This article ties in how fraternity members use alcohol to promote this measure of desirability.  It also shows how men outside of a fraternity try and use alcohol to “fit in” when it comes to being a new member of a fraternity.  This article is useful because it gives research on both the use of alcohol within a fraternity and how other members on campus see them.

“MANTALK: Fraternity Men and Masculinity” is another article that I found interesting.  This article will be able to help me because it talks about how men, both inside and outside of fraternities, view their masculinity.  A smaller article that I think will help me understanding why deans on campuses view fraternities in certain ways.  This article is not a scholarly article, but it does seem very insightful.  One important thing that this article tells is how certain forms of media have impacted our views about fraternities.  Animal House, the main argument, is said to have started it all.  So I think that this article will be a good source to the point where I will be able to reference it and make connections to the other articles and books.

Bibliography

Fetters, Ashley. "Pop Culture's War On Fraternities". The Atlantic. N.p., 2014. Web. 1 Mar. 2016.

McKee, Shane Patrick. "Mantalk: Fraternity Men and Masculinity." ProQuest LLC (2013). ERIC. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.

Putney, Clifford. "The Company He Keeps: A History Of White College Fraternities."Biography 4 (2011): 908. Literature Resource Center. Web. 29 Feb. 2016

Ragsdale, Kathleen, et al. "'Liquor Before Beer, You're In The Clear': Binge Drinking And Other Risk Behaviours Among Fraternity/Sorority Members And Their Non-Greek Peers." Journal Of Substance Use 17.4 (2012): 323-339 17p. CINAHL with Full Text. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.

Sasso, Pietro A. "An Examination of Alcohol Expectations and Social Desirability in Fraternity Members on American College Campuses." ProQuest LLC (2012). ERIC. Web. 29 Feb.   2016.

Sasso, Pietro A. "Towards A Typology Of Fraternity/Sorority Programs: A Content Analysis." Oracle: The Research Journal Of The Association Of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors 7.1 (2012): 22. Publisher Provided Full Text Searching File. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.

Lit Blog 3

The visual I have provided is the cover of the book Guyland by Michael Kimmel

Kimmel, Michael S. Guyland. New York: Harper, 2008. Print.

This book is about the difficult transition from adolescence into adulthood.  Mainly, about how men act when they are in high school, college, and recent graduates of college.  The author describes many interviews that he has had with men of all ages, races, and sexual preferences.  A major theme throughout the book is how men will continually delay the transition into adulthood.

The author of this book is Michael Kimmel.  He is a sociologist who specializes in gender studies.  He actually taught at Rutgers for a brief time.  He has earned many distinctions for his work in gender studies, so I believe he has credible knowledge for this topic.

Guyland- world in where young men live
Drunkenness- the state of being intoxicated

"After everyone seems good and drunk the brothers swarm over to the pledges, yelling their demands to recite the fraternity's mission statement, rituals, and membership information.  Screw it up, the brothers yell, and you might not make it," (Page 96).

"...Guyland that lurks beneath the surface of all that "fun": its chronic insecurity, its desperate need for validation is withheld and then conferred," (Page 97).

"Here's what guys know.  They know that every more, every utterance, every gesture is being carefully monitored by the self-appointed gender police, ensuring that everyone constantly complies with the Guy Code-even if they don't want to," (Page 97-98).

These three quotes, along with the rest of book, will help me with my topic of masculinity.  As you can see, young men think that they need to drink the most, or take all of the embarrassing things that happen in order to actually "be men."  This idea will help show how and why men in fraternities feel the need to act this way.

research blog 5: Bibliography

Bibliography

Brown-Rice, Kathleen A., Susan Furr, and Maribeth Jorgensen. "Analyzing Greek Members Alcohol 

     Consumption By Gender And The Impact Of Alcohol Education Interventions." Journal Of          

     Alcohol & Drug Education 59.1 (2015): 19-38 20p. CINAHL with Full Text. Web. 7 Mar. 2016.

Brown-Rice, Kathleen, and Susan Furr. "Differences In College Greek Members’ Binge Drinking             Behaviors: A Dry/Wet House Comparison". N.p., 2016. Web. 7 Mar. 2016.

McKee, Shane Patrick. "Mantalk: Fraternity Men and Masculinity." ProQuest LLC (2013).                       ERIC. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.

Putney, Clifford. "The Company He Keeps: A History Of White College Fraternities."Biography   4         (2011): 908. Literature Resource Center. Web. 29 Feb. 2016

Sasso, Pietro A. "An Examination of Alcohol Expectations and Social Desirability in Fraternity                 Members on American College Campuses." ProQuest LLC (2012). ERIC. Web. 29 Feb.   2016.

Sasso, Pietro A. "Towards A Typology Of Fraternity/Sorority Programs: A Content Analysis."                 Oracle: The Research Journal Of The Association Of Fraternity/Sorority Advisors 7.1    (2012):           22. Publisher Provided Full Text Searching File. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.