The paradoxical relationship between religious belief and criminality

With God on my side: The paradoxical relationship between religious belief and criminality among hardcore street offenders

From Theoretical Criminology

Research has found that many street offenders anticipate an early death, making them less prone to delay gratification, more likely to discount the future costs of crime, and thus more likely to offend. Ironically, many such offenders also hold strong religious convictions, including those related to the punitive afterlife consequences of offending. In this study 48 active street offenders were interviewed to determine their expectation of an early demise, belief in the afterlife, and notions of redemption and punishment. Findings suggest that religious belief and criminality co-exist. Offenders in this study overwhelmingly professed a belief in God and identified themselves with a particular religion, but also regularly engaged in serious criminality. Even more interesting however, the data further suggest a possible criminogenic role for religious belief among the sample of hardcore street offenders; these offenders actively referenced religious doctrine to justify past offenses and to excuse the continuation of serious criminal conduct. The authors have argued, religious belief deters crime for most people, but facilitates criminal conduct for certain subgroups. They find that offenders have a propensity to co-opt religious doctrine to permit and even encourage their criminal activity, thereby preserving their identity as criminals and maintaining their ability to pursue illicit action.

The benefits of racial diversity in the classroom

The Impact of racial diversity in the classroom: Activating the sociological imagination

From Teaching Sociology 

Diverse college campuses have been conclusively associated with a variety of positive outcomes for all students. This article provides evidence that diversity has the potential to play a positive role in the formal learning environment by uncovering the differences in the ways that black and white students engage with course material and integrate their own experiences with theories and concepts presented in the classroom. When examined it has been found that black students are more likely than whites to find connections between course material and daily life, a central task of the sociological imagination. Black students are significantly more likely to discuss minority groups, bring up personal experiences with course topics, discuss anger or other emotions, and make connections to social theory or theorists in their journal entries. They discuss course material in ways that are autobiographical. The need to understand how diversity impacts college classrooms has arguably never been greater as higher education in the United States continues to attract a broader base of students who bring with them a variety of life experiences.

Are biotechnological advances fueled by the quest to improve the happiness of humankind or to procure greater profits?

The ethical issues of biotechnology: Religious culture and the value of life

From Current Sociology

Human society faces many sensitive problems over the value of life as a result of the advancement of bioethics and medical technologies.  Over the last 2 decades many countries have strengthened policies promoting bioscience and advanced medicine. One of the most notable areas is progress in decoding the human genome, increased knowledge about genes, and manipulation and use of the human germline (embryos, sperm and eggs) by technological intervention. This progress has caused concern for some as important questions have been raised about the value of life and unease has been expressed over the potential direction of science and technology. It is argued that the globalized competition in science and technology makes it necessary to transcend the views concerning the value of life propagated by particular religious cultures.  This article investigates how the value of life is conceptualized by religious cultures in regard to the emerging threats.

The Jesus factor of the iPhone

How the iPhone became divine: new media, religion and the intertextual circulation of meaning

From New  Media & Society

The labeling of the iPhone as the ‘Jesus phone’ illustrates how new media objects can possess multiple layers of meaning, which can shape how they are perceived by the public. This study explores the relationship between religious language, imagery and technology. In advance of its launch in 2007 bloggers had branded the forthcoming device not only as a revolutionary technology, but as a technological savior by combining the power of an iPod, cellphone and PDA. The iPhone was being referred to as the ‘Jesus phone’ online ‘the holy grail of all gadgets’. Media embraced the religious language and imagery, and eventually Apple’s iPhone media campaign incorporated this mystical aura into its ads, subtly appropriating the divine imagery for its own benefit. The study suggests a need to test the extent to which religious metaphors have sticking power.