Chapter 3 notes - Summary Principles of Sociology PDF

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Sociology: Text Book Notes: Chapter 3: -

The Family:  During infancy and childhood our family constitutes the most significant agent of socialization  Families provide the primary source of our early emotional attachments and learning  Through family rituals and activities children are taught to reproduce social patterns and behaviors familiar to adults  Families are also sites of power and control relations prevalent in wider society  Changes in family structure, transformations in work and greater gender role equality and continuing high rates of immigration contribute to the diversification and experience of family  Intra-familial factors such as the age of parents when child is born, the number of siblings and social support received from others can profoundly influence socialization  Extra-familial factors such as the neighborhood in which family lives, work/employment experiences, social class background and culture also play role in these experiences  Social class an influence the kinds of life chances and values that are being transmitted to children  Ethnic and immigration background can also shape opportunities and socialization experiences and produce norms, values, and obligations pertaining to values and many family roles  Social scientists view socialization as a reciprocal or two way process  Reciprocal socialization the simultaneity of parenting and child behaviors and outcomes - The Peer Group:  The peer group is commonly regarded as the second most potent socialization agent  Age-grading of our society means that we are often placed into situations with people of similar age and characteristics  Friends typically do not consciously intend to socialize us  Interactions with friends also allow children to begin to separate themselves from the family’s all-encompassing influence  Peer groups also provide a setting for engaging in and trying new behaviors which can have many positive aspects  Peer networks are socially structured by other sociological variables such as gender and social class - Schools:  Schools provide a social environment that is separate from the family, and teachers and schoolmates widen our early learning and experiences  On a micro level the school also plays an important role in political socialization since it inculcates children with the basic beliefs and values of their society  On macro level the educational system provides an allocation function as it channels students through programs of occupational preparation into various positions in the socio economic and labour structure of society

“hidden curriculum” which refers to implicit messages in education that may not be consciously taught or planned  These messages emphasize dominant societal values and social hierarchies based on social class, gender, race, and sexual orientation  Bullying, harassment and social isolation are more commonly experiences by children who differ from the social norm or are perceived as different Mass Media:  Television, computers, newspapers, radio, magazines and entertainment such as movies are readily available and constitute another powerful source of socialization  Children can now participate in a much wider range of media related activities than ever before including online social networking, texting, and viewing digitally recorded photographs and home movies  On positive side media can be educational, informative, and entertaining and can provide new avenues for social interaction  Some critics link media exposure to the significant rise in childhood obesity and to eating related disorders such as anorexia and bulimia  Music television if often a target of criticism for its sexual content and for depicting violence, promiscuous sex, and sexism  Media corporations target children and youths as a profitable group of consumers  Socialization also takes place in religious contexts and in the workplace The Life Course, Aging, and Socialization:  Anticipatory socialization a term used to refer to how individuals acquire the values and orientations they will likely take up in the future  In childhood this includes doing chores, child jobs, sports, dance lessons, and dating experiences that give youngsters an opportunity to rehearse for the kinds of roles that await the min adulthood Socialization Processes: Pawns, Puppets or Free Agents?  “over socialized conception of man” a term coined by sociologist Wrong in 1961 it reflects a critique of Parson’s functionalist theory of socialization that assumes we passively accept what is taught to us in order to conform to social norms  Resocialization by total institutions refers to any group or organization that has almost total, continuous control over the individual and that attempts to erase the effects of previous socialization 

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