Global Concepts in Residential Fire Safety

Question: Discuss about the Global Concepts in Residential Fire Safety. Answer: Introduction: The fire service has been existent in the Australian continent for a very long. Historically, it has been observed to be a profession dominated by males. Women form a very small percentage of the rank of fire-fighters. It is to be understood that the barriers that women face in a blue-collar job like that of a fire-fighter might be behavioural, attitudinal and even structural in nature (Chikerotis, 2006). These barriers often act as a hindrance in the path of progress for many women in any blue-collar male-dominated job. As per researches the major perspectives that helps in explaining the development of barriers based on the gender are The organisational structure The gender-centred perspective Social role theory Masculinity theory. The perspective centred on the gender states that the internal differences that arise between women and men are directly related to the male to women ration in the post of the senior management. It is to be noted that the identity of an individual in the social norm is formed at a very young age and that the different genders are allocated tasks based on the difference. It is a common known fact that the society in large believes men in having the traits pertaining to masculinity, which supposedly helps in the post of a higher authority (Global concepts in residential fire safety, 2008). The very differences presumed causes difference in aspirations between the two genders and brings forth the rift in mentality to involve women in jobs requiring male attributes. Yes this mentality can be changed by proper education and training of all males within the specified job and by giving the men to have the role of mentors to their women counterpart. The media is considered to be a medium for change, although it generally refers to a medium that spreads and forms norms and ideologies. The media makes use of various words, images, personae or characters for conveying their own values and ideas. Thus it can be safely assumed that the representations by the media are neither objective nor neutral in nature. These representations by the media are constructing a play and are playing an important part in giving out ideas (Gorman, Gorman, 2010). Thus the question arises at this point, is the media really producing the different ideologies or are they just reflecting the ideologies of the present society. In this modern age it is very difficult to segregate the mirrored reality from the created reality. These days the media is omnipresent. It is composed of various forms of modern day technology and communication methods. We are growing up in a world that cannot be devoid of media, especially digital media. The major question that makes round nowadays is whether the media is helping in forming a self identity which lacks any self esteem. It is a widely known fact that Face book is one of the most used social sites in the modern world. Professionals and psychiatrists believe that we are hooked onto a social website as it helps to portray us in a manner which increases our self esteem (Kleinberg, McMahon, Barrett, Nelson, 2005). Thus it can be observed that the media has a huge role to play in forming our identity as well as forming our ideologies and beliefs. Example of gender discrimination in media can be obtained from shows such as FATHER KNOWS BEST or LEAVE IT TO BEAVER, moreover the newspapers and any other print media would use a huge amount of gender stereotype while advertising certain products. The primary task for any teenage for improving on their self-esteem is to change the image that they have of themselves. The self-concept is one of the primary factors that are affecting the ability of a woman to retain their job and progress in any blue-collared male-dominated profession in the labour market. The second important aspect is to have belief in their abilities in performing a task in the labour market (Mitchell, Larson, 1987). It is often found that the teenage girls have a preset idea about a particular profession and they can only visualise a male workforce working in that profession, this visualisation acts a decremented factor for the self-esteem of the teenage girls. It has been observed that steps are being taken by various organisations and institutions to educate the teenage girls about the skills that are necessary for an individual trying to enter the present male-dominated labour market. Although there has been a increase in girls in schools and higher educa tion system, yet the number of women in the working environment has not increased as expected. This is primarily due to the lack of proper job oriented training for the women and the teenage girls (Protective clothing for fire-fighters, 2006). Thus it is pertinent to state that with proper job oriented training and embedding proper skill necessary for the present labour market it will be much easier for women to enter the labour market. In terms of psychology, an identity of an individuals is considered to be beliefs, the qualities, the personalitys expressions and the looks of an individual. Identity of an individual can be segregated into two forms one being the self-identity, which is the identity that the individual has of their own self, while the other being a social identity (Wheeler, 2003). Generally the term psychological identity is referring to ones self-image their individuality and their self-esteem. Gender identity is also an important aspect, which to a certain degree forms an idea about oneself and their abilities. Other sources of identities can be based on religion, race, occupational, ethnic and various other sources. Through researches in sociology it has been observed that an identity of an individual is often formed through their own personal experiences in the role that they play in the social circle. This process is basically a step wherein an individual is trying to negotiate with the societ y and form an identity of their own through their roles within the society. Yes it is true that the nature of a job such as that of male-dominated blue-collared jobs do have an effect on our identities (Whiting, Rawlins, 2010). This is because we try and relate ourselves with the predetermined ideas that we have about the job, thus through that mode of comparison we are setting our own characteristics and identity. References Chikerotis, S. (2006).Firefighters from the heart(1st ed.). Australia: Thomson Delmar Learning. Global concepts in residential fire safety. (2008) (1st ed.). Arlington, Va. Gorman, J., Gorman, J. (2010).Firefighters(1st ed.). New York, NY: Gareth Stevens Pub. Kleinberg, N., McMahon, K., Barrett, J., Nelson, M. (2005).Firefighters!(1st ed.). New York: Random House. Mitchell, T., Larson, J. (1987).People in organizations(1st ed.). New York ; Montre?al: McGraw-Hill. Protective clothing for firefighters. (2006) (1st ed.). Sydney, NSW. Wheeler, J. (2003).Firefighters(1st ed.). Edina, Minn.: Abdo Pub. Whiting, S., Rawlins, D. (2010).The firefighters(1st ed.). Newtown, N.S.W.: Walker Books Australia.