time. The institutionalization of one value nationalism has thus produced a threat to a whole chain of other values, as modern war sets in motion or intensifies many
of the most pressing problems of our society.
2. Social values may conflict
. Social values may also give rise to confusion as to whether or not a situation is actually a social problem. The same behavior may be
defined differently by different groups, depending upon which value judgments are paramount. In our society, there are various situations that are defined as
problems by some groups and not by others. The employment of children under fifteen years of age, for example, in such difficult and hazardous jobs as mining
and heavy industry is generally considered a social problem. The democratic value of equal opportunity to education and an equal chance in life is threatened
by such a situation. Other groups with other social values do not consider this situation a social problem, however, but rather think of it as an opportunity for the
child to earn money and acquire practical experience at an early age. Furthermore, certain religious groups regard any attempt to ameliorate this situation by federal
law as an unwarranted interference with the right of the family to decide what is best for the child.
Another situations in which social values conflict is the practice of racial discrimination. The democratic creed, embodied in such documents as the
Declaration of independence and the Bill of Rights, asserts the basic equality of all man, regardless of race, creed, or nationality. Discrimination against the Negro
in the South is widely regarded as an infringement upon these values, and hence
Denny Thiorida. S. : The Social Problems In Stephen Crane’s Maggie: A Girl Of The Streets
, 2009 USU Repository © 2008
as a social problem. The institution against the Negro in the south is widely regarded as an infringement upon these values, and hence as a social problem. The
institutional structure of the south, on the other, is based upon the denial of certain rights to the Negro, on the ground that without this discrimination the values of
white supremacy and “race purity” would be seriously endangered. Attitudes that sanction discrimination are early incorporated into personality of the white child,
and the practice of discrimination is regarded as at worst a necessary evil and at best a desirable way of life. The social practices of the North, it is true, are by no
means free of prejudice and discrimination. But such activities are viewed as social problem, unfortunate departures from a value system, and not as desirable
in themselves. Two sets of social values thus produce conflicts in the definition of the situation.
3. Social values may obstruct solution
