Principles of Sociology Chapter 4 Notes PDF

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Chapter 4: Socialization  

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Socialization: the lifelong process through which people learn culture and becoming functioning members of society Four key functions of socialization 1. Establishes our social identity 2. Teaches us role taking 3. Controls our behavior  Internalization: the process of learning cultural behaviors and expectations so deeply that we accept them without question 4. Transmits culture to the next generation Nature vs. nurture 1. Those who argue that nature (biology) shapes behavior point to two kinds of evidence - developmental and health differences between males and females, and cases of unsuccessful sex reassignment. 2. Most sociologists maintain that nurture is more significant that nature because socialization and culture shape human behavior. The case of Brenda/David Sociological explanations of socialization 1. In sociology, however, two influential approaches that explain how socialization works on a micro level are social learning theories and symbolic interaction theories. 2. Social learning theories: people learn new attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors through social interaction, especially during childhood 3. The learning is direct and indirect, and a result of observation, reinforcement, and imitation. 4. Direct and indirect learning  Reinforcement occurs when we receive direct or indirect rewards or punishments for particular behaviors.  Children also learn through indirect reinforcement.  Children also learn through observation and imitation.  Parents are emotionally important to their children, they're typically a child's most powerful role models. 5. Role model: people we admire and whose behavior we imitate.  E.g. sisters, brothers, cousins, teachers, celebrities, etc. 6. Learning and performing 7. Social learning theorists also distinguish between learning and performing behavior.  E.g. ABC song 8. Critical evaluation 9. Social learning theories help us understand why we behave as we do, but much of the emphasis is on early socialization rather than on what occurs throughout life. Symbolic interaction theories 1. They have had a major impact in explaining social development. 2. Sociologists Charles Horton Cooley (1864-1929), George Herbert Mead (18631931), and Erving Goffman (1922-1982) were especially influential in showing how social interaction shapes socialization.

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Charles Horton Cooley is known for the "Looking Glass-self" concept. Newborn infants lack a sense of self. Self: an awareness of the social identity Development of the "self" is a gradual occurrence. Charles Horton Cooley (1909-1983) concluded that children acquire a sense of who they are through their interactions with others, especially by imagining how others view them. 8. The sense of self is not innate; it emerges out of social relationship. 9. Cooley called the social self the reflected self, or the looking-glass self.  The Looking Glass Self: a self-image based on how we think others see us.  The Looking Glass Self Develops in 3 stages  Phase 1: Perception  We imagine how we appear to others and how they perceive us.  Phase 2: Interpretation of the perception  We imagine how others judge us.  Our interpretation of others' perception may be totally wrong.  Phase 3: Response  We experience self feelings based on how others judge us.  The looking-glass self refers to how we think others see us rather than how they actually see us.  Our perceptions of other people's views - whether we're right or wrong affect our self-image, which then affects our behavior. 10. George Herbert Mead: Development of the self and role taking  For Mead (1934), the most critical social interaction occurs in the family, the foundation of socialization.  Our self develops, according to Mead, when we learn to differentiate the me from the I - two parts of the self.  The "I" is creative, imaginative, impulsive, spontaneous, nonconformist, self-centered, and sometimes unpredictable.  The "me" that has been successfully socialized, is aware of the attitudes of others, has self-control, and has internalized social roles.  For Mead, the me forms as children engage in role taking.  Role taking: learning to take the perspective of others  Children gradually acquire this ability early in the socialization process through three sequential stages:  Preparatory stage (roughly birth to 2 years)  Children begin to imitate.  They first emulate the words and behavior of significant others.  Significant others: the people who are important in one's life, such as parents (or other primary caregivers), siblings, and grandparents

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Children also experience anticipatory socialization.  Anticipatory socialization: the process of learning how to perform a role they don’t occupy  Play stage (roughly 2 to 6 years)  Role playing.  Game stage (roughly 6 years and older)  Children understand and take the role of the generalized other.  Generalized other: people who don’t have close ties to a child but who influence her or his internalization of society's norms and value Erving Goffman: Staging the self in everyday life  Erving Goffman (1959, 1969) extended these analyses by showing that we interact differently in different settings throughout adulthood  Goffman said that we are performers on a stage and we behave as if life were a theater.  We engage in "role performances," want to influence an audience," and can have considerable control over the image that we project while we're "on stage."  Impression management: we provide information and cues to others to present ourselves in a favorable light while down-playing or concealing our less appealing characteristics  Being successful in this presentation of the self requires managing three types of expressive resources.  We try to control the setting - the physical space, or "scene," where the interaction takes place.  Controlling appearance, such as clothing and titles that convey information about our social status.  Manner is also an expressive resource - the mood or style of behavior we display that sends important messages to the audience.  As children get older, we must remember that they may have several reference groups.  Reference groups: groups of people who shape an individual's self-image, behavior, values, and attitudes in different contexts  Babies are actively engaged in the socialization process, but the family, friends, peer groups, teachers, and the media are some of the primary socialization agents.  Socialization agents: the individuals, groups, or institutions that teach us how to participate effectively in society

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Family, peer groups, teachers and schools, and friends are examples of primary agents of socialization.  Multigenerational households: homes in which three or more generations live together A peer group consists of people who are similar in age, social status, and interests. Play helps children socialize. Peer influence usually increases as young children get older. Schools and teachers are very influential in a child's socialization. The school's primary purpose is to instruct children and enhance their cognitive development. Schools don’t simply transmit knowledge; they also teach children to think about the world in different ways. Teachers are among the most important socialization agents. Pop culture and the media are also very important in the socialization and development of children.

Resocialization 1. Throughout life, many people undergo resocialization. 2. Resocialization: the process of unlearning old ways of doing things and adopting new attitudes, values, norms, and behavior 3. Resocialization ranges from mild to intense, and can be voluntary or involuntary.  E.g. deaths, break-ups, etc. Key terms 1. Socialization 2. Internalization 3. Social learning theories 4. Role models 5. Self 6. Looking Glass Self 7. Role taking 8. Significant other 9. Anticipatory Socialization 10. Generalized other 11. Impression management 12. Reference group 13. Peer group 14. Socialization agents 15. Multigenerational households 16. Resocialization...