Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Final Blog Post

Google Maps


I have lived in the wonderful city of Charlotte, North Carolina my whole life.  There are many different neighborhoods within this big, southern city of Charlotte.  The different neighborhoods that I represented are Ballantyne, South Park, Myers Park, Dilworth, South End, Plaza Midwood, and NoDa.   All of these neighborhoods have very different identities and many different people live within these culturally diverse neighborhoods.  

The Ballantyne area of Charlotte is a newly developed area of town.  Just recently it was farm area, now it's filled with great shopping and lots of corporate areas.  This area of town is known to have what's called "new money."  These are people who didn't grow up with money and trust funds and have reached success on their own.  Many of the residents live in Ballantyne Country Club.

Many people recognize the name South Park because of the mall.  This is a very upscale area of town that has a prestigious shopping mall and is also the largest business and residential neighborhood in Charlotte.  

Myers Park has the most prestigious addresses in Charlotte.  This area of town is known to have "old money."  These people grew up with money and have trust funds.  The streets of Myers Park are lined with gorgeous Oak Trees and the houses are big and beautiful.  

The Dilworth area seems like it's own little town within the city of Charlotte.  It is a historic area filled with Bungalow style homes.  There are many diverse shops and restaurants in the area.  This area is filled with many young families.

South End is another historic neighborhood right around the corner from Dilworth.  This neighborhood has a very relaxed atmosphere.  It is filled with awesome furniture and antique shops.  Many events are hosted in this very innovative part of town.  

The most ethnically and socially diverse area of Charlotte is Plaza Midwood.  This neighborhood definitely has that cool-city living feel to it.  Plaza Midwood definitely has a rough and not so good area of town but it is also the home of Charlotte Country Club, which is the most prestigious country club in all of Charlotte.

NoDa is short for North Davidson Street.  This Bohemian chic area of town has a lot of funky galleries and performance venues.  Many people perform on the street corners and there are many artsy people who live in this area.  This area of Charlotte isn't your typical southern neighborhood.  

There are definitely parts of Charlotte that I don’t know much about and that is because I never venture there, or outside of my comfort zone for that matter.  One of these neighborhoods for example is West Charlotte.  Being that I’m from Charlotte, I have heard that West Charlotte isn’t the best side of town.  There is a lot of crime that takes place in this area and I don’t want to be a part of that.  People that come out of this area may be perceived as troublemakers, but that very well may not be true.  There definitely are many misconceptions about people’s identities just because of the neighborhood that they grew up in.  Many times these identities are falsely placed on individuals and it’s not fair to them. 

Charlotte has a population of 751,087 and many of these people don’t live in these neighborhoods.  I live in an area of south Charlotte that is in the middle of Ballantyne and Myers Park.  There are many areas just like where I live that aren’t as affluent, yet they still fit perfectly into the great city of Charlotte.  Just like the neighborhoods of Charlotte, many individuals don’t have the identity of the popular cheerleader, jock, or nerd but they still seem to fit perfectly into their environment. 

Charlotte is a very large city and there are many different types of neighborhoods that make it what it is and that build its identity.  Many people connect identity to people and who they are but I have connected identity to neighborhoods in a big city.  According to the article Social Identity Theory and the Organization, people tend to classify themselves and others into various social categories.  These social categories are definitely represented in Charlotte.  People in Myers Park are definitely known for having gobs and gobs of money and many of them are doctors or they work at the big banks downtown.  In this article it states that "A person is assigned the prototypical characteristics of the category to which he or she is classified." (Ashforth, and Mael 20-39).  The people that live in these neighborhoods are characterized based on where they live.  These people maybe wealthy bankers or guitar playing free spirits.  I always wonder where these identities came from.  Who decided that one day that these neighborhoods had a certain identity and who came up with these identities?  I have lived in Charlotte for 19 years and the identities haven't changed.  People of these identities are drawn to that specific neighborhood.  I wonder what would happen is somebody tried to disrupt and conform these neighborhoods that have remained consistent for so long.  

Ashforth, Blake, and Fred Mael. "Social Identity Theory and the Organization." Academy of Management Review. 14.1 (Jan., 1989): 20-39. Print.


Monday, April 15, 2013

Mini Project 3



I have lived in the wonderful city of Charlotte, North Carolina my whole life.  There are many different neighborhoods within this big, southern city of Charlotte.  The different neighborhoods that I represented are Ballantyne, South Park, Myers Park, Dilworth, South End, Plaza Midwood, and NoDa.   All of these neighborhoods have very different identities and many different people live within these culturally diverse neighborhoods.  

The Ballantyne area of Charlotte is a very newly developed area of town.  Just recently it was just farm area, now it's filled with great shopping and lots of corporate areas.  This area of town is known to have what's called "new money."  These are people  who didn't grow up with money and trust funds and have reached success on their own.  Many of the residents live in Ballantyne Country Club.

Many people recognize the name South Park because of the mall.  This is a very upscale area of town that has a prestigious shopping mall and is also the largest business and residential neighborhood in Charlotte.  

Myers Park has the most prestigious addresses in Charlotte.  This area of town is known to have "old money."  These people grew up with money and have trust funds.  The streets of Myers Park are lined with gorgeous Oak Trees and the houses are big and beautiful.  

The Dilworth area seems like it's own little town within the city of Charlotte.  It is a historic area filled with Bungalow style homes.  There are many diverse shops and restaurants in the area.  This area is filled with young families.

South End is another historic neighborhood right around the corner from Dilworth.  This neighborhood is has a very relaxed atmosphere.  It is filled with awesome furniture and antique shops.  Many events are hosted in this very innovative part of town.  

The most ethnically and socially diverse area of Charlotte is Plaza Midwood.  This neighborhood definitely has that cool-city living feel to it.  Plaza Midwood definitely has a rough and not so good area of town but it is also the home of Charlotte Country Club which is the most prestigious country club in all of Charlotte.

NoDa is short for North Davidson Street.  This Bohemian chic area of town has a lot of funky galleries and performance venues.  Many people perform on the street corners and there are many artsy people who live in this area.  This area of Charlotte isn't your typical southern neighborhood.  

Charlotte is a very large city and their are many different types of neighborhoods that make it what it is and that build its identity.  Many people connect identity to people and who they are but I have connected identity to neighborhoods in a big city.  According to the article Social Identity Theory and the Organization, people tend to classify themselves and others into various social categories.  These social categories are definitely represented in Charlotte.  People in Myers Park are definitely known for having gobs and gobs of money and many of them are doctors or they work at the big banks downtown.  In this article is states that "A person is assigned the prototypical characteristics of the category to which he or she is classified." The people that live in these neighborhoods are characterized based on where they live.  These maybe wealthy bankers or guitar playing free spirits.  I always wonder where these identities came from.  Who decided that one day that these neighborhoods had a certain identity and who cam up with these identities.  I have lived in Charlotte for 19 years and the identities haven't changed.  People of those identities are drawn to that specific neighborhood.  I wonder what would happen is somebody tried to disrupt and conform these neighborhoods that have remained consistent for so long.  


Social Identity Theory and the Organization
Blake E. Ashforth and Fred Mael
The Academy of Management Review , Vol. 14, No. 1 (Jan., 1989), pp. 20-39

Monday, April 8, 2013

Mini Project 2



In this info-graphic I used the characters from the television show One Tree Hill.  They all have different identities yet they come together and form a great group of friends.  They have the nerd, popular cheerleader, the sensitive guy, dark yet popular girl, the jock, and the goody-two-shoes.  As said in the article From Nerds to Normal: The Recovery of Identity among Adolescents from Middle School to High School by David A. Kinney "a supportive adolescent peer group as the primary social arena in which adolescents develop a healthy sense of identity as they experiment various social roles." This group of high school students all have a sense of identity even though they go through struggles.  There are always going to be the "popular" kids and the "nerds" in high school and that's what forms social cliques.  Students form all different identities and these identities can affect them in many different ways.  Even though all of the characters from One Tree Hill have different identities they come together.  

Kinney, D. (n.d.). From Nerds to Normal: The Recovery of Identity Among Adolescents From Middle School to High School. In Sociology of Education (Vol. 66). doi:www.jstor.org/stable/2112783

Monday, April 1, 2013

Mini Project 1

Fashion in Academics

The popular girls

Nerd/ Weird kids

Hippy


Preppy

Designer Labels


The clothes that an individual wears can say a lot about them.  Students are definitely judged based on the clothes that they wear to school.  The most popular girls in school are usually very well dressed and pretty much dressed in the same style.  Many students are envious of their style choices and strive to be like them.  If a student isn't wearing what is in style or cool for the time they may be discriminated against and said to be not cool or a weird kid.  It's sad to say, but it is incredibly true.  The hippies in school are thought to smoke weed and are tree huggers.  Most of the time it's not true, it's just the style of clothing that they prefer to wear.  Students who like to wear bright colored button downs and shorts are said to be preppy.  These students are the goody two-shoes of the school who are well put together and have a trust fund waiting for them.  The girls who are carrying their Chanel and Louis Vuitton bags and wearing their Rockin' Republic Jeans with their Michael Kors watch are the rich, stuck up girls who think they are better than everybody.  Many students are intimidated by these wealthy girls, but there really isn't a reason to be.  They are the same as the other students, they just have more money.  

Why are there so many stereotypes against what students wear to school?  Everybody expresses themselves the way that they please and nobody should care what other people choose to wear.  There are so many different styles out today that every individual has a different sense of style.  The way that a student dresses could in a way represent their academic interests.  They obviously have a certain sense of style and this style can roll over to their academic style.  Hippies are considered to be "tree huggers", maybe they are interested in science and how the environment that surrounds us works.  Some students can't afford the Chanel purse or Lilly Pulitzer shorts so they don't have access to the clothing that they truly love and they are unable to express themselves the way that they would like to.  Fashion is everywhere, just like academics.