SOCIALIZATION: Becoming
Human; Becoming Culturally Competent
“Born this way” (Lady Gaga)
”It matters not what
someone is born, but
what they grow out to
be” (J.K. Rowling)
The Nature – Nurture War
• “While some general behavioural
propensities may be shaped by our
genes, their manifestation is
dependent upon socialization and
cultural context” (Witt and Hermiston
2010, p. 69).
–Examples of “general behavioural
propensities”are walking, speech,
and sex.
The Nature – Nurture War
• Genes, in making possible the
development of human consciousness,
have surrendered their power both to
determine the individual and its
environment. They have been replaced by
an entirely new level of causation, that of
socialization (R.C. LEWONTIN,
Cambridge, Massachusetts, 16 July 1991).
SOCIALIZATION = Transmission of Culture
Inter-generationally
MAJOR CONCEPTS
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Life Course
Primary Socialization
Secondary Socialization
Anticipatory Socialization
Oversocialization
Undersocialization
Resocialization
Agents of Socialization
AGENTS OF SOCIALIZATION
FAMILY
Primary
socialization
PEER GROUP
Secondary
socialization
INDIVIDUAL
WORKPLACE
Secondary
socialization
COMMUNITY
Secondary
socialization
SCHOOL
MEDIA
RELIGION
Anticipatory &
Secondary
socialization
Secondary
socialization
Secondary
socialization
AGENTS & TYPES OF SOCIALIZATION
AND LIFE COURSE
•
The influence of socialization agents and types of socialization differ
from one stage of the life course to another not because of biological
imperatives, but rather the demands of social forces:
AGENTS OF SOCIALIZATION
FAMILY
FAM, SCH,
PG, CM
PG, SCH’
M, WKPL
WKPL, CM,
SCH, FAM, R
Adolescence
Early
Adulthood
WKPL,
FAM, R
FAM, R
TI, R
FA
LIFE COURSE
Prenatal &
Infancy
Childhood
Middle
Old
Dying
Adulthood Adulthood
TYPES OF SOCIALIZATION
PRIMARY SOCIALIZATION
ANTICIPATORY
SOCIALIZATION
ANTICIPATORY
& SECONDARY
SOCIALIZATION
SECONDARY
SOCIALIZATION
RESOC
QUIZ 12
• A mother, after observing her child developing
from infancy to adulthood, concludes that as
children age and interact with more and more
persons, the self begins to grow. What causes
the self to grow, according to sociology?
• A) Interaction between biological maturation and
cultural processes.
• B) Interaction with agents of socialization
• C) DNA
• D) Parents
Are We Prisoners of
Socialization?
• Yes, we are prisoners of socialization:
• Socialization turns people into conforming
members of a dominant culture, subculture
or counterculture.
– Individuals cannot help what they do,
think, or feel, for everything is simply a
result of their exposure to socializing
agents
• MACRO-SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE or
SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION:
– Functionalism
Are We Prisoners of
Socialization?
• No, we are not Prisoners of Socialization:
• The self is dynamic. It is not a sponge that
passively absorbs influences from the
agencies of socialization but a vigorous,
essential part of our being that allows us to
act upon our social environment (Wrong
1961; Meltzer et a. 1975; Couch 1989).
• MICRO-SOCIOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE or
SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF REALITY.
– Interactionism
UNDERSTANDING THE SOCIALIZATION PROCESS
SOCIALIZATION
EFFECTS
OBJECTIVES
1. Social Control
and social inequality
- Social Conflict &
Feminist Paradigms
2. Conformity to norms
-Functionalist Paradim
3. Acquisition of Knowledge,
skills, attitudes, values
beliefs, language
- Functionalist Paradigm
4. Development of the self
-Interactionist Paradigm
AGENCIES
FAMILY
SCHOOL
PEER GROUP
WORKPLACE
MEDIA
RELIGION & COMMUNITY
LIFE
COURSE
PRE-NATAL
INFANCY
CHILDHOOD
ADOLESCENCE
ADULTHOOD
OLD AGE
PRODUCT
MAKES THE SELF:
MAKES PEOPLE HUMAN BEINGS BY PUTTING CULTURE
IN THEM and CONTRIBUTES TO HOMEOSTASIS:
Interaction
Experiences
Emotions
Thinking
Image
Identity
Aspirations
Dreams
Status
QUIZ #13
• After reading C. Wright Mill’s (1959) concept
of ‘sociological imagination’, an introductory
sociology student concludes that this
concept implies that individuals do not
shape their particular life experiences. This
student is …………about this conclusion.
• a) right
• b) wrong
• c)
dysfunctional
• d) functional