Socialization.pdf / Portable Document Format - First Class ...

WHAT ARE THE FACTORS THAT
INFLUENCE AND SHAPE BEHAVIOUR?
SOCIALIZATION

What is Socialization?
Def’n – the life-long process through
which humans learn the skills and attitudes
they need to function in society.
Humans learn the expectations of
society through socialization.
Socialization is different based on race,
gender and class.

Socialization as Social Control

Socialization
What is the goal
of socialization?
*to turn us into
conforming
members of
society.
Consequences of
Socialization
1. Establishes self-concepts.
2. Creates the capacity for role
taking.
3. Creates the tendency for
people to act in socially
acceptable ways.
4. Makes people bearers of
culture.

Agents of Socialization
Institutions pass on expectations about appropriate
social behavior:
Family
School
Peers
Media
Religion
Sports

The Family
Families introduce children to
the expectations of society.
How parents define and treat
a child is crucial to the
development of the child’s
sense of self.
Some families emphasize
educational achievement;
some may be more permissive,
whereas others emphasize
strict obedience and discipline.

School
School is the first agent to make us deal with formal
rules
It is also the first place where we are looked after by
officials who are not our family members
Teaches us two things:
Manifest function – teach us the academic skills we need to
prosper in society
Latent function (Hidden Curriculum) – to socialize us to
understand and co-operate with strangers, gender roles,
being on time, being neat, etc.

Peers
For children, peer culture is an
important source of identity.
Through interaction with peers,
children learn concepts of self,
gain social skills, and form values
and attitudes.
Girls’ peer groups tend to be
closely knit and egalitarian.
Boys’ peer groups tend to be
more hierarchical, with evident
status distinctions between
members.

The Media
The average young person (age 8–
19) spends 6.75 hours per day
immersed in media in various forms,
often using multiple media forms
simultaneously.
Television is the dominant medium,
although half of all youth use a
computer daily.
Analysts estimate that by age 18,
the average child will have
witnessed at least 18,000
simulated murders on television.

Polling Question
Which media source do you think has the strongest
impact on attitudes and behaviors of your
generation?
A. Advertising
B. Television
C. Music and music videos
D. The Internet
E. Magazines

Religion
Children tend to develop the same
religious beliefs as their parents.
Very often those who disavow
religion return to their original
faith at some point in their life,
especially if they have strong ties
to their family of origin and after
they form families of their own.
Religious socialization also
influences beliefs about sexuality,
including the likelihood of
tolerance for gay and lesbian
sexuality.

Sports
Through sports, men and women
learn concepts of self.
Men learn that being competitive
in sports is considered a part of
“manhood.”
Current research finds that women
in sports develop a strong sense
of bodily competence, which is
typically denied to them by the
prevailing cultural images of
women’s bodies.

Student-Athletes: The Impact of Title IX

Polling Question
Which agent of socialization do you think is the most
responsible for gender differences in how males and
females are socialized?
A. The family
B. Religion
C. The peer group
D. Education
E. Mass media

Moments in America for Children
Every 9 seconds a high school student drops out.
Every 20 seconds a child is arrested.
Every 37 seconds a child is born to a mother who is
not a high school graduate.
Every 43 seconds a child is born into poverty.
Every minute a child is born to a teen mother.
Every 2 minutes a child is born at low birth weight.

Moments in America for Children
Every 4 minutes a child is born to a mother who
received late or no prenatal care.
Every 4 minutes a child is arrested for drug abuse.
Every 8 minutes a child is arrested for a violent
crime.
Every 19 minutes a baby dies.

Moments in America for Children
Every 3 hours a child or youth under 20 is killed by a
firearm.
Every 3 hours a child or youth under 20 is a homicide
victim.
Every 5 hours a child or youth under 20 commits
suicide.
Every day a young person under 25 dies from HIV
infection.

Socialization and Self-Esteem
How much value one sees in oneself is greatly
affected by socialization how you are seen by society.
A national study of 9th and 12th graders examined
the eating behaviors:
57% of the girls and 31% of the boys reported
eating disorders.
Fear about one’s appearance to others was is
associated with this risky behavior.

Socialization Across the Life Cycle
Childhood - establish identity and values.
Adolescence - form a consistent identity.
Adulthood and Old Age - learn new roles and
expectations in adult life.

Resocialization
Existing social roles are altered or
replaced.
Takes place in organizations that maintain
strict social control.
Examples: military, prison, cults,
fraternities and sororities

PART TWO: SOCIALIZATION
Theories of Socialization

Theories of Socialization
Psychoanalytic
Object Relations
Social Learning Theory
Functionalist
Conflict
Jean Piaget
George Herbert Mead

Psychoanalytic Theory of Socialization
Individual
Learning
process
Formation of self
Influence of
society
Unconscious mind shapes
behavior
Emerges from tension
between id and superego
Societal expectations are
represented by the
superego

Object Relations Theory of Socialization
Individual Learning
process
Formation of self
Infants identify with
same-sex parent
Emerges through
separating oneself from
primary caretaker
Influence of society Division of labor in the
family shapes identity

Social Learning Theory of Socialization
Individual
Learning process
Formation of self
Influence of
society
People respond to social
stimuli in their
environment
Created through
interaction of mental and
social worlds
Young children learn
principles that shape the
external world

Functionalist Theory of Socialization
Individual
Learning
process
Formation of
self
Influence of
society
People internalize role
expectations in society
Internalizing the values of
society reinforces social
consensus
Society relies on
conformity to maintain
social equilibrium

Conflict Theory of Socialization
Individual
Learning
process
Formation of
self
Influence of
society
Aspirations that are part of
identity are shaped by
available opportunities
Group consciousness is
formed in the context of a
system of inequality
Social control agents exert
pressure to conform

Symbolic Interaction Theory of
Socialization
Individual
Learning
process
Formation of
self
Influence of
society
Children learn by taking the
role of significant others
Emerges as the creative self
interacts with social
expectations of others
Expectations of others form
the context for learning social
roles

Piaget: Social Learning Theory

Piaget’s Theory

Charles Horton Cooley
• Looking Glass Self
• How we think we
appear to others.
• How we think others
judge us.
• How these make us
feel - proud,
embarrassed or
something else.

Mead: Taking the Role of the Other
1. Imitation stage - children imitate behavior of
those around them.
2. Play stage - children take on the role of significant
others.
3. Game stage - children internalize an abstract
understanding of how society sees them.

QUICK QUIZ

1. According to Piaget, at what stage do children
begin to use language and other symbols?
a.play stage
b. sensorimotor stage
c. concrete operational stage
d.preoperational stage

Answer: d
According to Piaget, children begin to use language
and other symbols at the preoperational stage.

2. According to Mead, at what stage do children
become capable of taking on a variety of roles at
the same time?
a.the preoperational stage
b. the imitation stage
c. the play stage
d.the game stage

Answer: d
According to Mead, children become capable of
taking on a variety of roles at the same time at
the game stage.

3. Psychoanalytic theory originates in the work of:
a. George Herbert Mead
b. Sigmund Freud
c. Charles Horton Cooley
d. Jean Piaget

Answer: b
Psychoanalytic theory originates in the work of
Sigmund Freud.

4. The process of resocialization involves:
a.learning the values and beliefs of a
new school
b. relearning existing social roles
c. changing or replacing existing social
roles
d.adjusting to new significant others

Answer: c
The process of resocialization involves changing or
replacing existing social
roles.

5. Society has no influence on one's
identity.
a. True
b. False

Answer: False
Society does influence one's
identity.

6. Socialization is a subtle form of social control.
a. True
b. False

Answer: True
Socialization is a subtle form of social control.