Positive Sociology

I met Bette and her oldest son, Joey, during a death penalty trial in Center City.  It was the sentencing phase for the two men who killed her youngest son, Timmy, who was gunned down execution-style when he was 15. Caroline, an advocate with the Families of Murder Victims, introduced us.  "Bette, this is Jooyoung.  He's a researcher and wants to interview you."  Joey sized me up and seemed protective of his mom, who had already been through so much.  Her eyes were red from crying, so I said, "I'm really sorry to hear about what happened." She smiled a little and said in her Tacony accent, "Thank you. It's been such a long day.  But, call me whenever, sure." I spent the next day with Bette and her family at the courthouse and visited them weekly over the next year.  I hadn't planned on following the families of murder victims, but my ongoing research in Philly had pushed me in this direction.   While getting to know gunshot...

We live in a world of haters.  Do you have friends or a partner who brings you down? Maybe you have coworkers who are always complaining about things?  Or maybe you're spending time dealing with the trolls who cruise social media looking to get a rise out of anyone listening.  Whatever the case may be, I'm convinced of two things: 1)There are too many haters out there, 2) We give them  way too much of our precious time and energy. Because, let's face it.  Haters are the worst.  The absolute worst.  They always have something negative to say and they become a drain on our emotional energy.  This distracts us from our goals and worse, it rob us of our most precious resource: time.  It's the one resource we can never get back. Who's been hating in your life?  Identify these people and eliminate them from your daily thoughts and actions.  Or, at least come up with a protocol on how to limit the time and energy you give them. ...

Let me just say: Cormac McCarthy is a damn good writer.  The man can put words to page. I finished "No Country for Old Men" last week and am still blown away by it.  Unlike his earlier and more experimental work (see Blood Meridian), the writing in "No Country for Old Men" is terse and immediate.  He uses simple declarative sentences.  The violence is raw and the tone is apocalyptic.  I didn't want the book to end! We can all learn a lot from McCarthy The book made me want to learn more about the man behind the book.  I dug around a little and found an old interview he did with Oprah.  At one point, she asks him if he's passionate about writing.  McCarthy responds, " I like what I do ."  He says he doesn't understand writers who find the work torturous and then says, " You always have this image of the 'perfect thing', which you can never achieve, but which you never stop trying to achieve ." I thought this was so ...

I recently came across a great little quote by Martin Luther, the 15th century German professor/priest and leader of the Protestant Reformation.  Luther wrote, "Even if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant my apple tree." Martin Luther authored the 95 Theses What a beautiful quote!  It's an optimist's creed, a reminder that no matter what happens in the world, we still have the power to find meaning, purpose, and beauty in everyday life. We can  choose to live with hope and joy, or we can choose to live with dread. This is something that the film, Life is Beautiful , so poignantly captures and it's a hallmark in the world of self-help and psychology. Look for the mundane miracles I know what you're probably thinking: That's easier said than done, particularly at this moment in history.  As an American living in Canada, I am genuinely concerned about the present and future of the US. There are days when I...

I'm reading Norman Mailer's "The Spooky Art: Some Thoughts on Writing," and came across a great little passage.  Mailer, who wrote great books like The Fight (a nonfiction account of "The Rumble in the Jungle"), Executioner's Song , and  The Naked and the Dead , writes: Before we can talk about lore, skill, or practice, it may prove of use to discuss the most common occupational hazard of the writer--a bad mood. What a wonderful little piece of advice!  Mailer was a divisive figure in the literary world, but he's a gifted and bold writer who has some wonderful writing tips for us fledgling academics. Mailer has good ideas about writing Anyways, back to good moods. Have you ever noticed that you are way more productive on days where you feel happy and relaxed?  Have you also noticed that anxiety cripples your ability to sit down and crank out some pages?  I've tried to pay more attention to my writing mood lately, and have noticed that ...

I've always been struck by how little Torontonians smile during the winter.  As a native Californian, smiling/grinning/laughing is a default emotional setting in everyday life.  It's quite common for strangers to exude positive vibes at the grocery store, in line at the movies, or while riding around on public transit.  Of course, one big exception is the bottleneck traffic along the 405 in LA, but I digress... Anyways, I've always felt that Torontonians are somewhat cold in their outward affect, particularly when it gets cold, dark, and slushy.  It's not that people are scowling or frowning.  It's more that they have this serious, morose look on their faces.  For whatever reason, I'm very sensitive to this and feel the general emotional energy of settings whenever I enter into them.   Today, I decided to do an on the spot survey of people's emotional expressions within a Sobey's near my apartment.  I know you social scientists out there are ...

The Weeknd is killing the game right now.  His new album, Starboy , debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 a couple weeks ago.  Since then, he's been on a tear, touring, performing, and promoting the hell out of Starboy , which is bound to go platinum. "Sidewalks" (featuring Kendrick Lamar) might be the dopest track on the album. The Weeknd and Kdot recently performed this song live in LA.  It was a crazy dope performance!   Check it out here ... Anyways, I love different parts of this song, but especially when The Weeknd sings, "Every time you see me pulling up in Aventadors/ Just know we been grinding on them sidewalks." The Weeknd has been busy hustling in 2016! Of course, there's a danger in reifying the "rags to riches" story (particularly since it creates the myth of individual success and glosses structural constraints that limit people's options in life), but putting these things aside for a moment, what can we learn from a song ...