Why is family considered the most important agent of socialization?
Family is the first most agent that interacts with the child, and this interaction shapes up
the child's later personality. It is one's parents who internalize norms, values, manners and teach
ways to live with others. Our family is responsible for nurturing and guiding us as the mini
creature and making us learn to adapt to the naive environment that might encounter us at any
stage of our life. That's why the absence of family might result in complexes and a negative
socialization process. This social development is enhanced as the child grows, and they get to
learn from their family how to experience the outside world. The family's efforts ensure that
child is ready to enter school and later on in one's practical life. In sort of adversities, the family
is always beside the person to hold and make one out of the problem, thus ensuring proper
emotional development.
The family also play an important role in one's emotional development. Not only parents
but the presence of supporting siblings results in enhanced wellbeing. Moreover, according to the
Social Convoy Model of Social Relations (Antonucci, 2014), receiving positive emotional and
instrumental support from one's immediate network leads to a better quality of life and thus
enhance one's successful ageing. In collectivistic societies, the extended family is also there to
nurture and assist the individual in difficult times. So, family is considered the most important
agent of socialization throughout the globe.
References
Antonucci, T. C., Ajrouch, K. J., & Birditt, K. S. (2014). The convoy model: Explaining social
relations from a multidisciplinary perspective. The Gerontologist, 54(1), 82-92.