SOC 260

DEVIANCE
ASK ME ANYTHING ASSIGNMENT Danielle Dirks, Ph.D. Assistant Professor of Sociology
dirks@oxy.edu @danielledirks

OBJECTIVES AND DESCRIPTION To enhance your understanding of identity and deviance-related course concepts and develop your ability to communicate your thinking on deviance, you will write a brief piece that addresses some aspect of your identity to share anonymously with the class. The goal is for all of us to be able to learn from each other by drawing upon our unique backgrounds, identities and experiences. The topics for each of your pieces will be drawn from an anonymous fishbowl exercise in which your peers will ask questions about identities and experiences they have always wanted to understand. You will choose one of the topics, write a brief (4-6 paragraph) post that you will be submitted to the course website to share with the class (you may submit it yourself or ask me to submit it anonymously). This assignment will count toward 15 points toward your final grade. Please submit your posts online by 3/29, 12 PM and your hard copy by 3/29, 3 PM in class. GUIDELINES 1. Please upload your assignment topic ideas to collectively generate them here: http://bit.ly/GBYwiw 2. Choose a topic to write about by viewing your peers collective ideas here: http://bit.ly/GH8kcu 3. Please write a 4-6 paragraph post that addresses the topic you chose so that we may learn from your unique background, identities and experiences. Think of this as autobiographical writing (helpful advice here: http://bit.ly/GTF43p). Some questions you may want to address: a. Is this experience deviant to you? How is it defined by yourself and/or others? b. Does this experience follow the process of deviance (i.e., becoming deviant, identity, resisting designations, etc.)? c. Have you experienced stigma related to this deviance? How do you manage? d. How does this experience shape your daily life if at all? e. Why is it important for you to write about this topic over others? 4. Submit your completed post and the information below to the course website ANONYMOUSLY (even from me) here: http://bit.ly/GTHHCj a. A title that begins with: Ask Me Anything: (My Porn Addiction: Who Needs Sex When Porn Exists?! / My Strange Obsession with Teletubbies - for example!) b. The specific topic you chose from our collective list. c. The body of your post (please, please use paragraphs they are amazing!) d. Three to five descriptive tags (lower case, separated by commas) that relate to your topic so it can be found on the site (e.g., pornography, addiction, labeling, sex, teletubbies, secret deviance) 5. Print out the confirmation sheet from your post submission.

6. Please write 2-3 paragraphs (single-spaced) that reflect on the experience of sharing this part of your identity, experience or background anonymously with the class. Please be sure that I will not be able to identify your post from your reflection. Some questions you may want to address: a. What was the process of sharing this like? What emotions might you be feeling? Why? b. Have you ever discussed this experience formally or informally? Why or why not? c. Why do you think you are having this reaction (or, non-reaction)? d. How have you come to view this deviance in light of what we have been learning in class? e. Any other thoughts/reflections? 7. Staple the confirmation sheet and your reflection piece together and submit them as a hard copy in class on 3/29. Please be sure to write/type your name on both sheets. REQUIREMENTS Your post will be posted on our course website from an anonymous handle called AskMeAnything. Your post MUST protect your identity and that of anyone else mentioned in your post (i.e., do not include any names, identifying information, etc.; please use pseudonyms). There should be no way of your peers or me knowing your identity from your post. Relatedly, I will be unable to retrieve any post online, so please be sure to keep a secure backup copy for your records before submitting. EVALUATION You will not be evaluated on what you share in your post but rather on 1) the quality and details of your reflection piece and 2) your ability to relate your reflection to the course concepts we have learned so far. I expect that your work will be detailed and insightful. If you have any questions, please let me know immediately.