Essay - Current Events - Sociological Perspective Article Review in Sociological Perspective...

Current Events - Sociological Perspective

ARTICLE REVIEW IN SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE

Structural Formalism and Stem Cell Research: Structural formalism is a sociologic*****l concept that considers the importance of societal constructs to the meanings associated with issues, ideas, and symbols in human society (Gerrig & Zimbardo 2005). Embryonic stem cell research is one example of a political issue capable of generating completely opposite emotions and opinions, depending on specific cultural beliefs and other subjective elements ***** social perspective. In his article Why Science Can't Save the GOP, Times Magazine columnist

Michael Kinsley explains ***** degree ***** which political motivati***** has shaped the current presidential administration's position on ***** embryonic stem ***** research issue.

According to Kinsley, this avenue of medical research is so valuable ***** potentially beneficial that it ***** inexcusable for the Bush administration to have politicized it and supported legislation against it ***** political gain (Kinsley 2007). Structural formalism plays a significant role in that the ***** beliefs of those *****clined ***** ***** religious right point of view consider any form of embryonic research reprehensible because ***** their ***** belief that human life, in God's image, beg*****s at *****ion. Those who support embryonic ***** cell ***** reject ***** such objection because they do not share the underlying formalistic interpret*****ion posed by ***** religious *****s. In this case, structural formalism is responsible for ***** diametrically opposite moral conclusions about the *****sue whereby a belief system completely external to the matter itself determines whe*****r ***** ***** of research it is viewed as a ***** obligation or an absolute m*****al travesty. REFERENCES

*****, R.J., *****, R.G. (2005)

Psychology ***** Life 18th Ed.

***** Jersey: Prentice Hall. *****, M. Why Science ***** Save the GOP;

Time Magazine (12/10/07)