sociology You will develop a research design with research problem, hypothesis and operational definitions for variables

Russell,Andrea Observation paper 1 1

Andrea Russell

Field Observation paper 1

SOC1213

American Public University

The Social setting I have chosen is my place of work the Brew Supply Store. On my day off last week I came in and sat down in an area where I knew I would not be bothered and made sure to wear clothes that would allow me to blend in. This way no one would ask me work questions in case I ran into someone I knew, like a regular customer.

The Brew Supply store is on Main Street, in a small town called Enterprise. The brick building it is in dates back to the 1930’s. When you walk into the store you are going to immediately smell this earthy wood smell and then it kind of goes more robust. Inside the store has a rustic almost industrial look. The ceiling is open and you can see fixtures, the fans and immediate lighting fixtures. Since the ceilings look so high the building looks really big. The lights are a brass color with candle looking bulbs. A long the ceiling there are two bicycles that are double riders painted in a rustic green color. Decorated with fun stickers some with peace signs, and beer labels, and some politically geared.

I remember coming in the first time and thinking to myself, am I really still in Alabama? Honestly, the ambiance inside the room transported you to a much more industrial part of the country. Because the city we are in is the picture perfect small town United States city. Smack dab in the middle of all the rural feel there is a piece of property that is a little different than the typical buildings. Around the initial room you can see a million different kind of gadgets that all have to do with brewing. It is honestly a little overwhelming at first. Alongside all of this there are grains for making beer this is where the robust smell comes into play. There are many different kinds of malts and oats. Some are dark and smoky flavored, these are our chocolate malts. Others smells are lighter like wheat oats. These are kept in special buckets that have been carefully mounted onto a stand made just for them.

The wine section is full of different kinds of kits, with cans full of fruits juices, and extracts. Local canned produce harvested in mason jars made specifically for brewing gives the room a huge burst of color. Recycling is a huge message the store wants to address, here we will find “the donate” a wine bottle rack. It is a huge piece of art that has been constructed to hold many wine bottles. Every beverage has its own huge amount of gadgets so it is a huge assortment of different things.

On the walls there is local art from many different kinds of people. Fort Rucker is the local military installation the city of Enterprise exists mainly because of it. Famous for being the aviation school of the Army. Many of the groups that come into the shop are pilots here for helicopter school the owner of the store is a retired Pilot, a long side his wife and a few employees they run the store. The art represents a great military theme but there is art of every kind hanging on the walls. The copper brick interior gives the whole area a very bohemian feel.

The best time to people watch is in the late afternoon once every one is getting off work. A lot of the single girls love working this shift. They are usually in their early twenties, eager to learn, and often physically attractive as an initial impression. Usually these shifts are full of young pilots coming in to do an ice breaker event or simply learning to brew something as a hobby during their stay here. The rotations last around two years. So often, new faces are always coming in. These guys and gals are commonly stereotyped as the kind of American who is the alpha, the leader type of categorization. Their social category is high up. By being an excellent specimen of human for lack of better words. Physically fit, and often college educated. Add being a member to a discrete group, like the Army which is a social institution. Their behavior and demeanor will automatically let you know if they are part of it even without the obvious which is, that most of the male population shares the same haircut, use the same kind of language, and often share similar styles in dress when not wearing their uniform. It is an exciting opportunity to meet worldly people in a not so worldly place.

Earlier in the hour there was a young married couple in the store, the young wife seems to still be staring at her husband as if he were the last man on earth, or better yet the only man on earth. A shiny diamond on her left hand glared with the lighting of the store. She was probably in her mid-twenties. Her dress suggested she must have been raised somewhere in the mid-west. She had long brown honey hair and wore jean shorts that looked like they could be from Abercrombie and Fitch. With a pinch of boho vibe her purse was a bright colored over the shoulder bag that had squares of indigenous patterns. Her husband has the typical glare of a budding pilot. A nice crew cut, a polo shirt, usually a polo or Izod brand. Khaki shorts, and boat shoes to follow. His hair was a dusty blonde and he sounded like one of those people who could talk for hours and you could get over his cocky ego because he has that Mr. Interesting attitude just oozing from him. This was the kind of guy the single employees hoped to find.

However later in the hour something interesting occurred; a part from the young crowd that is reserved for later in the day our Thursday rush of regulars seem to have come in much later than they normally do. This was my early afternoon scene. Usually older men who are often prior military, they too share their own unique commonalities. These men are often in their mid-fifties to seventies. They work on the military installation as contractors. Our Social perception of these men is one of hard working. Their hands show signs of years of manual labor. Less attractive for the younger girls. It is often a struggle for the girls to keep up with the subtyping. This crowd is rough on them. Women in brewing is still a new thing. It is hard to be taken seriously. You can often catch these guys ignoring these employees almost completely until it comes to check out time. It is most certainly a difficult atmosphere to maneuver. The intimidation is there.

Today, one of these employees decided that she was going to jump in. I sat here with my head staring like a dear in the head lights hiding in the back. I could hear and see what was going on but for all intents and purposes I was supposed to be invisible. There would be no rescuing here. The older gentlemen in a worn bright orange and green work vest cocked his head somewhat. His thick southern accent, as I have come to learn throughout my time in the south is a Georgian accent. In a condemning tone started his sentence with the word “missy”; yet without a missed beat she continued the conversation and broke the ice by then saying “my name isn’t missy it’s Jeane”. I realized here that trait centrality has taken place. By kind of brushing off the blatant sexism here the first impression she’s given has made an abrasive impact. Sadly, it is a tactic used often because, women especially young pretty women are still something odd in this particular group. They have an established set of rules. Their influence is felt in the community. Acceptance into the old boys club is not always open.

This building buzzes between two age groups the young and the old. As well as, it constantly takes on stratification within society. By challenging gender roles in a place where some roles are expected. Class structure plays an immense role as well. In most places throughout the country brewing is seen as an elitist hobby. Yet in the good ole’ American south it is seen as the poor man’s pass time. We time warp daily between generations.

My hour is drawing to a close, but during this time an immense amount of interaction went down. The big question here is one of theoretical perspectives. Why? Why do these customers act the way they do. The melting pot of a military town is always one that is unique to observe. There is so much going on, with people from absolutely every corner of the globe. The diversity felt is all over. Here we observer prejudice, and sexism, along with the ability to see how established norms and barriers are broken. Even in the middle of Alabama can we observe the study of human behavior at its most prime.

References:

DeLamater, J. D., Collett, J. L., & Myers, D. J. (2014). Social Psychology. New York: Routledge.