Cory:
This week I willdefine the different kinds of reciprocity that are discussed in the readings. Explain these using examples of each from your own life. The two main types of reciprocity are generalized reciprocity and balanced reciprocity. Generalized reciprocity is when good or other items of need are given to someone with out the expectation of getting something in return. Balanced reciprocity is where goods or items are given with the expectation of getting something in return of equal value.
I have used generalized reciprocity while serving in the military, while conducting a field exercise we had a large fire fight and when the fire fight ended I had to go down the line of my soldiers and check on how much ammo they had as well as water. Since some soldiers were in heaver contact than others they used more ammo so we had to cross load ammo amongst each other. There was no expectations of getting anything in return we knew that it had to be done in order for us to continue the mission.
As far as balanced reciprocity I'm sure that everyone uses this one in everyday life since nothing is free. Anytime that we go to the store to buy anything we have an exchange of goods with the expectation of us giving the store money for them. The use of balanced reciprocity is more in practice today than that of general you might find the practice of general reciprocity more so in the homesteads of Alaska or in villages in a third world country or even between family members here in the states.
Justin:
This week focused on types of reciprocity, which is the non-market exchange of labor and goods. Specifically generalized reciprocity is given without an expectation of any type of return and balanced reciprocity where resources are given with an expectation of a return.
An example of generalized reciprocity is when I was younger my neighbor had a huge part of his deck rot out and needed to replace it but didn't know exactly how. Then when I found out I offered to help him do it, for the most part I did almost all the work because he didn't have any idea of what he was doing. I didn't get anything out of it he paid for the lumber and nails I just showed him how to and didn't expect anything out of it.
That is a good example of generalized reciprocity. The other type of reciprocity that we studied was balanced reciprocity which is when you give something and expect an equal return from the effort you put in it. Another example of this would be about a year before I joined the Marine Corps I did tree work. My wages I charged the company I worked with 150 dollars a day for my labor. I would not have done any of the work with that company if they were not going to pay me the 150 dollars a day because that is what I felt my time is worth.
References
Elyseeva, J. (2015). Generalized reciprocity principle for discrete symplectic systems. Electronic Journal of Qualitative Theory of Differential Equations, 2015(95), 1-12. doi:10.14232/ejqtde.2015.1.95
Steph:
For this forum assignment, I have chosen to look at the Hawaiian kinship system. I have several friends that are Hawaiian, so this one looked the most interesting to me.
The Hawaiian kinship system is one of six major kinship systems also including Eskimo, Iroquois, Crow, Omaha, and Sudanese. (Hawaiian Kinship, n.d.) The Hawaiian Kinship is a generational system that is used by families to specify which family the person is in and the bloodlines from which they came. (Hawaiian Kinship, n.d.) This kinship has a unique titling system and is as follows:
All females in the Mothers generation are called "Mother" (Hawaiian Kinship, n.d.)
All males in the Fathers generation are called "Father"
For children, the male's generation of brothers and cousins are called "Brother" (Hawaiian Kinship, n.d.)
All females in the generation of sisters and cousin are called "Sister" (Hawaiian Kinship, n.d.)
The Hawaiian kin naming pattern is the least complex of all the kin naming patterns. (Schwimmer, 1996) Sex and generation are the only determining factors of the Hawaiian kin naming pattern. (Schwimmer, 1996) It was thought this could be because in the early history of Hawaiian culture, the actual parents were impossible to know, so in the family lines, they used this kinship naming pattern to keep the family as one.
However, it is now known that even though the words of "mother" and "father" may be the same, the way it is said within the culture is different and will actually determine the blood mother and father of the child. (Schwimmer, 1996)
I have a very small immediate family, so a huge difference for me would be the change in all of the relatives being so close and calling them by different names. I kind of relate it to when you grow up with a good friend and start calling their parents mom or dad as well as your own. While they are not your biological or legal parents, they are still someone you would look to as a mother or father figure just as you may look at a good friend as a sibling.
References:
"Hawaiian kinship" on Revolvy.com. (n.d.).