Ginnifer
Mastarone’s lecture on Health Communication, survey research, and Social
Network Science gave a glimpse into the information economy. She began by
introducing how through communication, people create and share information
online (Comm. 101, Mastarone). She then went on to discuss her research in
Health Communication, specifically her research involving people who have
suffered a Traumatic Brain Injury, (TBI), and how this injury can affect how
they interact with others. Further, she discussed the Social Capital theory,
which is defined as the “sum of resources, either virtual or physical that are
created through social interactions” (Comm. 101, Mastarone).
As
I was reviewing my notes, I began to think about people who suffer from TBI.
Ginnifer mentioned that there are many people who can suffer from this injury,
but I had only heard about TBI when listening to news reports about the Iraq
war years ago. So when I heard it in class I started thinking about soldiers.
In any case, while reviewing my notes I began to think of soldiers again
specifically, which led me to think about the ethical principle of justice and
the veil of ignorance. In my mind, because this principle is based on “what is
moral is what is fair for all,” this principle can be applied to Ginnifer’s
lecture, and research (Tubbs 204).
When
a soldier is diagnosed with a TBI, this can alter how she, or he functions in
their family, and in society. Moreover, it can negatively impact how they
assimilate into the civilian working world. In other words, a TBI can weaken a
previously productive member of society. This directly relates to the Social Capital theory, and when the principle of the veil of
ignorance is applied, we would have a moral duty to take care of those soldiers
diagnosed with this injury. Also, I think our society has a duty to support the
families of the injured. In short, Mastarone’s research focuses on a special
population, but also addresses the politics of how people can be left behind or
excluded, especially with advances in technology.
Mastarone’s
research is valuable. I am going into information science, so it was important
for me to see that it is a field with an endless amount of substance, and
opportunity. Also, it was important to have Ginnifer reinforce the importance
of quantitative data. I am an English major/Communication minor, but I don’t
have an aversion to numbers—it’s more about being lazy. That being said, I
realize that the numbers are going to give any research that I do more weight.
Kellee E. Warren
Kellee-
ReplyDeleteI really enojyed reading your post. I personally did not relate her lecture to the soldiers, but the information you just gave in your post was really informational and directly correlates to what Prof Mastarone spoke about. I can tell you and Prof Mastarone seem to "click" well and would be interested in alot of the same things. I really enjoyed thoughts in your post.
Kelle,
ReplyDeleteI loved how you discussed the emotional side of Ginnifer's research. She spoke about her love of stats and graphs and numbers, which seemed to take the moral/ethical aspect out of it. But when working with people who suffer from TBI, it's hard not to realize that this affects a multitude of people on a much deeper level.
I understand the connection you made with TBI to the soldiers. I know someone that was in a near death car accident and not suffers from a TBI. It is sad but like Prof Mastarone said some people make recoveries and he is on his way to getting back to a possibly self sufficient person once again.
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