Torch, Summer 1989

Interviews with Cedarville College faeulty members Dr. Robe rt Parr .A.ssociateProfessor of Sociology Q. What influences from our society as a whole have had the most impact on the way individuals treat each other? A. The nature of contemporary society is such that most of our relationships are impersonal and secondary. The tendency is to relate to others for the purpose of achieving personal goals. Indirect forms of communica– tion, such as memos and phone calls, can maintain relationships that are casual, specialized, and even detached. When there are schedules to follow and deadlines to meet, people may be treated as a means to an end. The current breakdown of the family aggravates the problem by eliminating the few personal, intimate, stable relationships that exist in an individual's life. As a result, many young adults enter marriage with demands for emotional support that are impossible for any human to fulfill. Di·. Stanley Ballard Professor of Psychology and Chair of the Department of Psychology QeFrom a psychological perspec– tive, why are we less mannerly today than in the past? A. Social Learning Theory proposes that we imitate what is modeled before us. What is modeled before us today does not involve much in the way of manners-not in the home and certainly not in the media or the world around us. And if good manners are modeled in the home, the power of peer in– fluence usually is greater than parental influence, especially during adolescence. Today our lives are stress-filled. With so many demands on us, we tend to put what we must do in a hierarchy. Exhibiting kindness and taking time with people are sometimes low on the priority lists of many people. With so many stressors on us we sometimes act as though we don't have time to be people of good manners.