Job Insecurity/Cultural Dilemmas
Job Insecurity creates cultural dilemmas in ways that are hard to understand. Many parts of the world today are in a statea state is an independent political entity with a centralized government and set geographical boundaries where control is exercised by police or military; a state claims the right to defend itself from both internal and external threats by use of force; a state may have many villages and cities and/or millions or billions of people as in China and India of cultural upheaval for a variety of reasons. Security is the buzzword of our time. However, insecurity might be a more important talking point, especially when it relates to jobs.
There are insecurities worldwide, and they should be addressed in a more focused way. For instance, there is food insecuritythe state of being without reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable nutritious food (not just starving children), job insecurity (not just unemployment percentages), financial insecurity (not just disparities in incomes), and health insecurity (not just about healthcare insurance), to mention a few insecurities. From a cultural viewpoint, why should we discuss unemployment insecurity rather than unemployment percentages? What do we mean when we refer to insecurities? One example: “Job insecurity is everywhere,” and, “the effects of this insecurity are “more or less identical.” (Anthropologist, Pierre BourdieuPierre Bourdieu (1930-2002) was a French sociologist and anthropologist who declared ground-breaking theories known as "cultural capital," "reflexivity," and "habitus," He sought to connect his theories with sound empirical research., 1998) But in delving deeper, we find that insecurity of jobs does not always create “more or less identical” cultural outcomes. To see this clearer, follow the link about young Tajik women in Tajikistan.
After learning of the predicament that Tajik women are facing due to job insecurity in their country, Explore More! to learn more about what often happens when job insecurities threaten cultures. Making a Living is a course where this primary cultural survival method of all populations everywhere is examined. Making a Living, from a cultural standpoint, cannot be understood simply by statistics on a chart. Online cultural education at itsallaboutculture.com provides a very different perspective when discussing both security and insecurity and making a living. Cultural knowledge is imperative.
Changes from typing to texting, cows to currency, health to human resources, and environments to Ebola, illustrates how cultureculture is not genetically inherited, it is shared, learned, and dynamic- never static is a driving force, which creates insecurity as well as security for human beings.
We may encounter environmental disasters, diseases, warWar: A state of armed conflict between different nations or states or different groups within a nation or state., ethno and genocides, displacement from our homeland, and terrorist takeovers. Creative cultural solutions become the ways in which we deal with such dilemmas as Tajik women are facing. Understanding the functions of culture, in varied historical, social, political and ideological contexts is necessary.
Join in the discussions, or sign up for a course at itsallaboutculture.com. Learn how culture works to create lasting solutions for both security and insecurity. Check out the lessons in the course about Subsistencea method whereby humans are able to continue their existence; condition of being able to stay alive; practices that maintain survival Practices/Making a Living.
