Socialization
Personality Development
Goals to Be Met
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Goal 5: The learner will analyze the process of socialization.
Objectives
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5.01 Define socialization.
5.02 List the agents of socialization.
5.03 Describe how the process of socialization is culturally
determined.
5.04 Explain the various theoretical perspectives on socialization.
5.05 Trace how socialization is a life-long process.
5.06 Evaluate the functions and roles of socializing agents.
Socialization
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Socialization: Process by which society transmits
its values to individuals so that they function
properly
Most important outcome of socialization is personality
Personality
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Personality: Sum total of behaviors, attitudes,
beliefs, and values that are characteristic of an
individual
Personality traits determine how we adjust to our
environment and how we react in specific situations
Continues to develop throughout lifetime
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More obviously during childhood and slow down during
adulthood
Nature v. Nurture
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Debate over what determines personality and social behavior
Nature: Much of human behavior is instinctual in
origin
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Instinct: Unchanging, biologically inherited behavior pattern
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Most often applied to animal behavior
Nurture: Behavior and personality are result of his/her
social environment and learning
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Ivan Pavlov = Pavlov’s Dog Experiment = Dog, Bell, Salvation
John B. Watson = Claimed he could take a dozen healthy infants and
train them to become anything he wanted
Sociobiology
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Sociobiology: Systematic study of the biological
basis of all social behavior
Argued most of human social life is determined by
biological factors
Personality and social behavior result from blending of
hereditary and social environmental influences
Environmental factors have the greatest influence
Heredity
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Heredity:Transmission of genetic characteristics from
parents to children
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Some argue heredity and others suggest social environment
determines personality
Heredity sets limits on temperament, intelligence, and aptitude but
socialization plays a key role in determining achievement
What is inherited can be changed by socialization
Aptitude: Capacity to learn a particular skill or acquire
a particular body of knowledge (Ex: natural talent for
music)
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Most social scientists believe that some aptitudes can be learned, but
some believe inherited aptitudes often develop due to environment
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Ex: Baby moves and smiles to music so they sign baby up for dance
Heredity (cont’d)
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We inherit genetic characteristics, but we also inherit
certain basic needs and capacities
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Humans have biological drives
Drives do not determine our behavior, we learn these
from interaction with others
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Ex: Hunger drive does not tell us when, what, and how to eat
Heredity plays a role in shaping human personalities by
setting limits on individuals
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Ex: If you are 5-feet tall you are not likely to be a star
basketball player
Birth Order and Parental Characteristics
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Birth Order
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Personality is influenced by whether we have brothers,
sisters, both.
Research indicated that 1st born children are more likely to be
achievement-oriented and responsible; later-born children tend
to be better in social relationships and are more affectionate
and friendly
Parental Characteristics
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Education, age, religion, socioeconomic status (SES), culture,
and job background of parents can influence child’s
personality
The Cultural Environment
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Determines basic types of personalities found in
society
Each culture gives rise to a series of personality traits that
are typical of members of that society (model
personality)
How we experience culture influences our
personalities
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Ex: Our experiences differ depending on whether we are a boy
or girl
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Boys and girls are treated differently from the moment of birth (boys
= blue, girls = pink)
Boys/girls are nudged in different directions: clothes, activities, speech,
habits, and ideas
Isolation in Childhood
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Feral Children: (Wild or untamed) Have few human
characteristics other than appearance
Anna and Isabelle
Discovered in the late 1930s
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Anna
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Born to an unmarried woman (enraged mother’s father)
Confined to attic room
Discovered by social worker at 6 years old
Couldn’t walk, talk, or feed herself and could only talk in phrases and follow simple
directions
Isabelle
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Born to unmarried deaf mother
Grandfather kept her and mother confined in a dark room
Had advantage of mother’s company, but did not learn to speak
Found at age 6 and after training began to speak
Concluded that because of constant contact with her mother and training she
overcame social deprivation
Isolation in Childhood (Cont’d)
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Genie
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Discovered in 1970 when she was 13
Father hated children and confined her to a small bedroom
tied to a potty chair at the age of 20 months
When found she couldn’t stand strait and had social and
psychological skills of a 1-year-old
After 8 years of training she had not progressed past the level
of a 3rd grade student
Eventually mastered language and learned to conform to social
norms
Isolation in Childhood (cont’d)
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Children living in institutions (orphanages and
hospitals) may show some characteristics of
isolated children
Rene Spitz Study
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In 1945 Spitz studied effects of institutionalization on group of
infants living in an orphanage
Within 2 years 1/3 of children died
Of the survivors less than 25% could walk by themselves, dress
themselves, or use a spoon
Only 1 child could speak in complete sentences
They seemed to have simply wasted away from lack of cuddling
and loving