Drug Addiction: A Brain Disease? :: Biology Essays Research Papers

Drug Addiction: A Brain Disease? When people hear the words drug addict, these words have negative connotations and stigmas attached to them. People visualize a person who does not care about anything, including family, work, or commitments, except for obtaining money to buy drugs to get high. However, there are many people who are drug addicts that maintain a normal, functioning life. Before we can examine why these people are addicted to drugs, one must first define the word addict. George F. Koob defines addiction as a compulsion to take a drug without control over the intake and a chronic relapse disorder (1). The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders of the American Psychiatric Association defined "substance dependence" as a syndrome basically equivalent to addiction, and the diagnostic criteria used to describe the symptoms of substance dependence to a large extent define compulsion and loss of control of drug intake (1). Considering drug addiction as a disorder implies that there are some biological factors as well as social factors. There are many biological factors that are involved with the addicted brain. "The addicted brain is distinctly different from the nonaddicted brain, as manifested by changes in brain metabolic activity, receptor availability, gene expression, and responsiveness to environmental cues." (2) In the brain, there are many changes that take place when drugs enter a person's blood stream. The pathway in the brain that the drugs take is first to the ventral tegmentum to the nucleus accumbens, and the drugs also go to the limbic system and the orbitofrontal cortex, which is called the mesolimbic reward system. The activation of this reward system seems to be the common element in what hooks drug users on drugs (2). Drugs seem to cause surges in dopamine neurotransmitters and other pleasure brain messengers. However, the brain quickly adapts and these circuits desensitize, which allows for withdrawal symptoms to occur (3). Drug addiction works on some of the same neurobiological mechanisms that aid in learning and memories (3). "This new view of dopamine as an aid to learning rather than a pleasure mediator may help explain why many addictive drugs, which unleash massive surges of the neurotransmitter in the brain, can drive continued use without producing pleasure-as when cocaine addicts continue to take hits long after the euphoric effects of the drug have worn off or when smokers smoke after cigarettes become distasteful." (4) Since memory and pleasure zones are intertwined in the brain, many researchers have been using psychological approaches to stop drug use.

Historical biases and how the truth was altered Essay

Taking into account the nature of historical truth, it cannot be viewed from absolutist position, but rather from relativist perspective. The values, dictated by the certain epoch, determine the purpose and the context of history, so there is a number of historical biases (again, from modern viewpoint) in the writings, describing and explaining the past experiences. The paper is designed to focus on the main historical biases and highlight the influence of modern media on the construction of new biases. Due to the fact that there is a plenty of historiographic schools, one can presume that each of them chooses specific symbol or aspect as a baseline and develops its argument through certain prism. In this sense, the book by Edwars Said, ‘Orientalism’, to great extent emphasizes the faultiness of Western historiographic approach to the diametrically opposite culture. The scholar writes: â€Å"The Orient is not only adjacent to Europe; it is also the place of Europe’s greatest and richest and oldest colonies, the source of its civilizations and languages, its cultural contestant, and one of its deepest and most recurring images of the Other† (Said, 1979, pp. 1-2). Orientalism therefore comprises the historically biased attitude towards the cultural ‘otherness’, so the author concludes that eastern studies cannot be completely independent from the polarization and confrontation between the two civilizations. Furthermore, social stratification determined the status of certain individual in society and consequently resulted in the creation of ‘middle class’ or ‘aristocratic’ approach to making historical notes, and, more importantly, religious approach had been predominant in this sense over more than a thousand years the issues related to heresy and Inquisition contributed to medieval historiography, whereas the social protest against religious dogmas was an overall Western historiographic framework in the 18th -20th centuries. Both approaches naturally distorted objective reality in an attempt to fit it into narrow Procrustean bed of sociopolitical context. Furthermore, it is important to keep in mind that the purpose of history hasn’t been static over the societal developmental course – it has altered a number of times – from the simple glorification of the certain ruler’s deeds to the formation of public consciousness and stereotypes. Historians, as the members of society, naturally shared most stereotypes and social convictions , even writing purely ‘for the sake of history’. Nowadays, historical biases are close-knit to the issues, which arise in connection with social, gender and racial equality, so the modern media are concentrating on covering these issues and determining public opinion. Information therefore is presented is extremely available manner, which allows remembering the content of the article without any ‘unnecessary’ reflections or more profound analysis. The ‘raw’ information (news, editorials) has attractive cover, so the digestion and informational metabolism have been enhanced over the last century, whereas the description of events still remains biased in terms of the author’s political and social position, or personal views. On the other hand, the freedom of printed word prohibits the misrepresentation of facts, yet the interpretation of certain data still may vary among journalists – this principle is widely used to put the most appropriate and suitable emphases, thus except the provision of recent news, media are responsible for creating images, persuading public and imposing certain moral or ethical evaluation of the event or phenomenon (for more utility and convenience, from the position of ‘right’ and ‘wrong’). To sum up, it is impossible to eradicate historical biases – historiography, like all descriptive and analytical sciences, follows relativist principles of ‘minor’ or ‘major’ truth. Nevertheless, with regard to high availability of historical writings, one has an opportunity to analyze the positions of several historiographic schools and draw more independent conclusions.

The Globalization of Capitalism

Capitalism, as an economic system, first debuted in the 14th century and existed in three different historical epochs before it evolved into the global capitalism that it is today. Lets take a look at the process of globalizing the system, which changed it from a Keynesian, New Deal capitalism to the neoliberal and global model that exists today. Foundation The foundation of today’s global capitalism was laid, in the aftermath of World War II, at the Bretton Woods Conference, which took place at the Mount Washington Hotel in Bretton Woods, New Hampshire in 1944. The conference was attended by delegates from all Allied nations, and its goal was to create a new internationally integrated system of trade and finance that would foster the rebuilding of nations devastated by the war. The delegates agreed to a new financial system of fixed exchange rates based on the value of the U.S. dollar. They created the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development,  now a part of the World Bank,  to manage the agreed upon policies of finance and trade management. A few years later, the General Agreement  on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) was established in 1947, which was designed to foster â€Å"free trade† between member nations, premised on low to non-existent import and export tariffs. (These are complex institutions, and require further reading for deeper understanding. For the purposes of this discussion, it’s simply important to know that these institutions were created at this time because they go on to play very important and consequential roles during our current epoch of global capitalism.) The regulation of finance, corporations, and social welfare programs defined the third epoch, New Deal capitalism, during much of the 20th century. The state interventions in the economy of that time, including the institution of a minimum wage, the cap of a 40 hour work week, and support for labor unionization, also laid pieces of the foundation of global capitalism. When the recession of the 1970s hit, U.S. corporations found themselves struggling to maintain the key capitalist goals of ever-growing profit and wealth accumulation. Protections of workers rights limited the extent to which corporations could exploit their labor for profit, so economists, political leaders, and heads of corporations and financial institutions devised a solution to this crisis of capitalism: They would shake off the regulatory shackles of the nation-state and go global. Ronald Reagan and Deregulation Ronald Reagan’s presidency is well known as an era of deregulation. Much of the regulation created during Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s presidency, through legislation, administrative bodies, and social welfare, was torn down during Reagan’s reign. This process continued to unfold over the coming decades and is still unfolding today. The approach to economics popularized by Reagan, and his British contemporary, Margaret Thatcher,  is known as neoliberalism, so named because it is a new form of liberal economics, or in other words, a return to free-market ideology. Reagan oversaw cutting of social welfare programs, reductions to federal income tax and taxes on corporate earnings, and removal of regulations on production, trade, and finance. While this era of neoliberal economics brought the deregulation of national economics, it also facilitated the liberalization of trade between nations, or an increased emphasis on â€Å"free trade.† Conceived under Reagan’s presidency, a very significant neoliberal free trade agreement, NAFTA, was signed into law by former president Clinton in 1993. A key feature of NAFTA and other free trade agreements are Free Trade Zones and Export Processing Zones, which are crucial to how production was globalized during this era. These zones allow for U.S. corporations, like Nike and Apple, for example, to produce their goods overseas, without paying import or export tariffs on them as they move from site to site in the process of production, nor when they come back to the U.S. for distribution and sale to consumers. Importantly, these zones in poorer nations give corporations access to labor that is far cheaper than labor in the U.S. Consequently, most manufacturing jobs left the U.S. as these processes unfolded, and left many cities in a post-industrial crisis. Most notably, and sadly, we see the legacy of neoliberalism in the devastated city of Detroit, Michigan. World Trade Organization On the heels of NAFTA, the World Trade Organization (WTO) was launched in 1995 after many years of negotiation and effectively replaced the GATT. The WTO stewards and promotes neoliberal free trade policies among member nations, and serves as a body for resolving trade disputes between nations. Today, the WTO operates in close concert with the IMF and the World Bank, and together, they determine, govern, and implement global trade and development. Today, in our epoch of global capitalism, neoliberal trade policies and free trade agreements have brought those of us in consuming nations access to an incredible variety and quantity of affordable  goods, but, they have also produced unprecedented levels of wealth accumulation for corporations and those who run them; complex, globally dispersed, and largely unregulated systems of production; job insecurity for billions of people around the world who find themselves among the globalized â€Å"flexible† labor pool; crushing debt within developing nations due to neoliberal trade and development policies; and, a race to the bottom in wages around the world.

A Historical Perspective On Anxiety Management Training Essay

In the article by Richard M. Suinn, of Colorado State University, titled â€Å"Clinical Practice, University Research, and Students: A Historical Perspective on Anxiety Management Training† from The American Psychologist, Suinn discusses the history and application of Anxiety Management Training, AMT. He first explains his development of AMT through is many years of educating at various universities. Suinn first talks how he first â€Å"examined how anxiety influenced the relationship between self-acceptance and acceptance of others and the association between anxiety and identification† at Whitman College. (Suinn, 1995, p. 287) After many years of research he along with one of his student, Hunter Hill, they found â€Å"that anxiety disrupts the trend for self-perceptions to color evaluations of others and is significantly associated with low self-esteem.† (Suinn, 1995, p. 287) While at Whitman he also conducted research with another student, Tom Smith, where they hypothesized that is a correlation between high identification and low anxiety. However, this hypothesis was proven to be wrong and they found no relationship between the two. Suinn, then talks about his time at the University of Hawaii. Here, along with some of his students, investigated if group desensiti zation or individual desensitization was more effective. It was found that they were both equally affected, even more so they discovered that a briefer approach was just as successful as a longer approach when reducingShow MoreRelatedThe Field Of Organizational Development1564 Words   |  7 PagesThe field of organizational development (OD) has a rich history of research and practice that is driven by a variety of business needs such as change management, leadership development, internal communications and business process re-engineering. OD has been, and arguably still is, the major approach to organizational change across the Western world, and is globally increasing. However, the ambiguity of the OD discipline is challenged with a posture to curve a standard definition. Richard BeckhardRead MoreJoining A Graduate Student Support Group Essay936 Words   |  4 Pagesdissertation, it is easy to lose sight of why you ever chose this particular path. 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Most organizations of the world, irrespective of its size, type and product distinction employ the use of performance appraisal; but with different level of accomplishment as an instrument used to drive a mixture of human resource management purpose (Pettijohn L. et al 2001). Past literatures’ suggested that performance appraisal existed based on several rationales which includes making provision for selection decisions, a yardstick for salary increment, a medium for providing feed-backRead MoreEmployment, Relief and the Breadwinner Ideal: A Historiography of the Great Depression in Canada1408 Words   |  6 Pagesof gender restrictions and major economic stagnation, that the Toronto economy supported significant female employment. Strigley also explains that certain areas of employment such as domestic service and positions that required busines s school training, such as typing, remained female dominated, in spite the high rates of male unemployment. Despite unemployment many people would not cross the boundary lines of gendered work or interfere with the breadwinner ideal of the times. Strikwerda discussesRead MoreEssay about Human Resource Management3025 Words   |  13 PagesHuman Resource Management Effective human resource management is undoubtedly critical to the success of virtually all firms. Thus its importance is huge in the study of business strategy; which is the system of the firm’s important choices that are critical to the firm’s survival and relative success (Boxall and Purcell 2003). 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Creon as Tragic Hero of Sophocles Antigone Essay - 593 Words

There are certain qualities that a character must posses in order to qualify as a tragic hero. Ideally, the tragic hero is a person of some status, usually king. Although the fact that Antigone was part of the royal lineage, being a descendent of Oedipus, Creons position of King of Thebes suits a tragic character much more effectively. Also, at the end of the play it is customary for the tragic hero to have lost everything, to be reduced to nothing. At the end of Antigone, Creon had lost his kingdom, his son, his wife, and his will to live, but is doomed to live on in his pain. Antigone loses her life, but it was not a loss in vain, for she did accomplish what she set out to do. It is questionable as to whether Antigone was seeking martyrdom, but she certainly did become one, dying for her beliefs. The most important characteristic of the tragic hero is the tragic flaw, the one attribute that causes the inevitable downfall of the character. It is argued that Antigones tragic flaw was stubbornness. She is called stubborn in the play by Creon and also by the chorus. Yet, some would call her steadfast, rather than stubborn. A stubborn person would continue to argue even after he or she realized they were wrong. For Antigone, no such realization was made. In her own eyes, the eyes of the people, and even the eyes of the gods, Antigone was certainly in the right. Creon, on the other hand, possessed a classic flaw, hubris, or excessive pride. Because of his pride,Show MoreRelatedEssay on Creon as the Tragic Hero in Sophocles Antigone1326 Words   |  6 PagesCreon as the Tragic Hero in Antigone     Ã‚   This essay will compare two of the characters in â€Å"Antigone†, Antigone and Creon, in an effort to determine the identity of the tragic hero in this tale.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   To identify the tragic hero in Sophocles’ renowned play â€Å"Antigone†, we should first consider both the elements present in Greek tragedies and what characteristics define a tragic hero. 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He possesses the tragic flaws of excessive pride and an oversized ego. This causes the tragic reversal that leads to his emotional ruin and eventual remorse and repentance. As King of Thebes, Creon is forced to make difficult decisions. As a new ruler, he feelsRead MoreEssay about The Tragic Hero Creon in Antigone by Sophocles818 Words   |  4 PagesIn the play, Antigone by Sophocles, at first glance readers assume that Antigone is the tragic hero. However, this is not the case. Although Antigone does display some characteristics of a tragic hero, I believe that Creon is the true tragic hero. For many readers, it may be a challenge to see Creon as the tragic hero; however, when you take a second look at the play, you can see that Creon displays every quality of a tragic hero. 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Although this short story is titled after Antigone, Creon is the main character and he provides the moral significance in the play. First, Creon withholds the respect of his citizens but it is clear to them he is not perfect through his pride (tragic flaw). Secondly, his radical reversal of fortune is made clear afterRead MoreEssay about The True Tragic Hero of Creon in Sophocles Antigone1621 Words   |  7 PagesThe True Tragic Hero of Creon in Sophocles Antigone There has always been a great debate over who is the true tragic hero in Sophocles Antigone. Many scholars would stake claim to Antigone possessing all the necessary characteristics of a true tragic hero, but many others would argue that Creon holds many qualities as well. It is hard to discount Antigone as a tragic hero, because in fact, the play bears her name, but from careful reading, Creon meets Aristotles criteria exactly and fits

Blood Brothers Essay Questions Example For Students

Blood Brothers Essay Questions How does Russell display to his audience the ways that class affects his characters?  Willy Russells musical, Blood Brothers is an entertaining story, written with didactic intent. At first look, it is about two twins who are separated at birth, and then become blood brothers and best friends, until both of their lives end in tragedy. At the end of the play, the narrator leaves us with a question hanging as the explanation of the tragedy that occurs-  And do we blame superstition for what came to pass?  Or could it be what we, the English, have came to know as class?. Russells intent is to show his audience how class effects peoples everyday lives, and causes problems in society. He does this by showing us an extreme situation using identical twins; just to show us how two people born exactly the same in every way are affected and changed by the social class system. The play is about two families who Russell uses to represent the two different sides of the class system. He shows us how they face different problems in everyday life and how what class you are in, affects the life you live. Russell also sends the message through this play that money cannot buy everything and cannot always bring love; as Mrs Lyons finds out with her son Eddie. The play also makes the audience realise how other classes are often ignorant of other classes issues, and are naà ¯Ã‚ ¿Ã‚ ½ve of their problems. Russell makes it as clear that the families are at two opposite ends of the class system. This is show through scenery in the houses, clothing the characters wear, manners the characters use or in some case the lack of them and the way in which they speak and the language they use.  He uses two very stereotypical families in the different social classes. Mrs Johnstone is a poor single mother with eight children, and who everyday struggles with the simplest things in life such as money, clothes, food and a decent job. We immediately see Mrs J as at the lower end of the social class system you owe me you pay today Ill be forced to cut off your deliveries. She has had a hard life and is compared to that of Marilyn Monroe. Russell uses Monroe as an icon in the play and compares Mrs Johnstone to her as both of their lives were very tragic. At the beginning, when she tells us the story of how her and her husband met, she tells us that he told her she was sexier than Marilyn Monroe- Page 5.  Right from the beginning, Russell wants us to feel sympathy for Mrs Johnstone. She has been left on her own with all these problems and a bad quality of life. Through the first song Marilyn Monroe he tells us the hard life she has had. Russell also makes the Lyons as a typical high class family. We see instantly that Mrs Lyons is in the upper class, as she has a cleaner to look after her huge house- its a pity its so big-Page 7. Mrs Johnstone has to work as Mrs Lyons cleaner and then we see the two classes right next to each other in obvious contrast. This makes us then feels sympathy for Mrs J as we see Mrs L who had everything, and she who has nothing. Another reason the audience fell sympathy for Mrs J is because they know so much about her past and her family, and therefore there are more reasons to sympathise with her. As we know less about Mrs L, we dont have as many things to sympathise and because Russell makes it obvious that she is wealthier, and has everything she wants, apart from children Page 8. As the audience, we do then feel sorry for Mrs L, as she cannot have children and she desperately wants them. .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e , .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e .postImageUrl , .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e , .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e:hover , .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e:visited , .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e:active { border:0!important; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e:active , .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .u265d1184297d4d8fd8100e46a2f5af4e:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: The play An Inspector Calls Essay SummaryBlood Brothers is a play that could be played like a tennis match with every scene showing first the working-class situation and then a parallel scene showing the middle-class side of it. The only time I allowed myself to do that was in the scene with the policeman. I thought for that tiny scene, if I did it only once, it would be very effective.- Willy Russell.  The policeman scene (Page 37 38) shows just once the complete contrast between the two classes. As Russell says, doing that just the once gives maximum effect, as oppose to repeating it throughout the play. This scene shows us how being a different social status affects how you treated in society. The policemen judges Mickey due to his class, and assumes that Eddies action are his doing, and that he is a criminal. He was about to commit a serious crimeyou dont wanna end up in court again, doy?. To Mrs J the policeman makes the situation very serious and threatens Mrs J about keeping control of her children. The fact that the policeman makes the assumption about Mickey is ironic, as it is actually Eddie who has the stone in his hand and is poised ready to launch it through a window. The way the policeman treats Mr Lyons is very different to the way he does Mrs Johnstone. It is immediately obvious from the stage directions and dialogue, used that he has a lot more respect for Mr Lyons. The policeman has removed his helmet- . He speaks more politely describing the incident and acts as though it were nothing more than a prank- As I say, it was more as a prankId just dock his pocket money if I was you. (Laughs.).

Social Systems Essays - Structural Functionalism,

Social Systems WHAT ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT FEATURES OF THE CONCEPT OF A SOCIAL SYSTEM? A social system as a concept in sociological theory is one of great importance and indeed necessary. As a theoretical concept and component of theoretical explanation, it highlights the intricate nature of the society we live in. (Craib 1992) Talcott Parsons, a dominant functionalist theorist, focused much of his work on the concept of a social system. (Water 1994) Such a concept is indeed synonymous with his work. Whilst there is no universal sociological definition of the concept, Parsons defined a social system as: a plurality of individual actors interacting with each other in a situation which has at least a physical or environmental aspect, actors who are motivated in terms of the tendency to the optimization of gratification and whose relation to their situations, including each other, is defined and mediated in terms of a system of culturally structured symbols. (cited in Wallace & Wolf 1999) In order to fully grasp the features of Parsons' social system it is necessary to examine such a concept in the context of his all-embracing system theory, or more in particular his theory of action. However, theoretical vices become apparent, thus it is imperative to briefly address the concept from an alternative perspective, such as Dahrendorf's theory, in order to highlight varying features of the concept of a social system, but also the interpretative nature such a concept entails. Therefore this essay primarily will deal only with those highlights or 'features'. From a functionalist perspective, society is viewed as a system insofar as it is made up of parts, which mesh together. The basic unit of analysis is society, and its various parts are understood primarily in terms of their relationship to the whole. (Craib 1992) The early functionalists often drew an analogy between society and organisms, such as the human body. Such an analogy involves the understanding of any organ of the body and its relationship to other bodily organs, and in particular its contribution to the maintenance of the body organism as a whole. (Haralambos & van Krieken & Smith & Holborn 1996 p, 673)) In the same way, an understanding of any part of society requires an analysis of its relationship to other parts, and most importantly, of its contribution to the maintenance of society. (Haralambos et al 1996 p, 673) As can be deduced from the above definition, Parsons takes a similar approach to the concept of a social system. Sociological perspectives are well known for their penetrating breadth, but also for their high level of abstractness, which may often have led to more confusion than clarification in discussing their relevance. ( Deflem 1998)This is in fact a foundational feature of the concept of a social system, as well as most theoretical concepts, whereby the intricateness and complexity of the concept immediately becomes apparent. The abstractness therefore accentuates the inability to grasp its features at face value without delving further in to Parsons' system theory. (Craib 1992) Parsons posits that the most empirically significant sociological theory must be concerned with complex systems, that is systems composed of many subsystems. The primary empirical type reference is to society, which is highly complex. (Craib 1992) He understands a modern social system to be a distinct entity, different from but interdependent with three other action systems or subsystems. Those of the culture system, personality system and the behavioural organism system. (Waters 1994) Each system contributes specialised functions to any other subsystem as well as to the entire social system. Parsons' functional references diverge from the structural components in a dynamic direction and serve the purpose of integrating, mediating between the system's structure and that imposed by environing systems. (Collins 1988) Parsons attributes the functions of adaptation (A) to the behavioural organism, goal attainment (G) to the personality system; integration (I) to the social system; and latency (L) to the cultural system. (Collins 1988) The structural elements of social system are treated as constants over certain ranges of variation. These four types of independently variable components include role (A), collectivity (G), norms (I) and value (L). (Waters 1994) These roughly cover the social structure from individual to social system and form the fundamental integrating principle in society.