SOCIOLOGY PROJECT ON

THE CONCEPT AND THEORIES OF SOCIALIZATION

Hidayatullah National Law University

Raipur, Chhattisgarh

Submitted to:

Mr U. K. PANDA

(FACULTY OF SOCIOLOGY, HNLU Raipur)

Submitted by:

RAHUL MANDAVI

Roll No.-125

Section A Semester- II. B.A.L.LB. (Hons.)

Date of Submission 13/11/2015

 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Introduction

Socialization is predominately an unconscious process by which a newborn child learns the

values, beliefs, rules and regulations of society or internalizes the culture in which it is
born. Socialization, in fact, includes learning of three important processes: (1) cognitive;
(2) affective, and (3) evaluative. In other words, socialization includes the knowledge of
how things are caused and the establishment of emotional links with the rest of the
members of the society. Socialization, therefore, equips an individual in such a way that he
can perform his duties in his society. Who are the agents of socialization? The agents of
socialization vary from society to society. However, in most of the cases, it is the family
which is a major socializing agent, that is, the nearest kinsmen are the first and the most
important agents of socialization. The other groups which are socializing units in a society
vary according to the complexity. Thus, in modern complex society, the important
socializing agents are educational institutions, while in primitive societies, clans and
lineages play a more important role. Socialization is a slow process.

There is no fixed time regarding the beginning and the end of this process. However, some
sociologists formulated different stages of socialization. These are (1) oral stage, (2) anal
stage (3) oedipal stage, and (4) adolescence. In all these stages, especially in the first three,
the main socializing agent is the family. The first stage is that of a new-born child when he
is not involved in the family as a whole but only with his mother. He does not recognize
anyone except his mother. The time at which the second stage begins is generally after first
year and ends when the infant is around three. At this stage, the child separates the role of
his mother and his own. Also during this time force is used on the child, that is, he is made
to learn a few basic things. The third stage extends from about fourth year to 12th to 13th
year, that is, till puberty. During this time, the child becomes a member of the family as a
whole and identifies himself with the social role ascribed to him. The fourth stage begins at
puberty when a child wants freedom from parental control. He has to choose a job and a
partner for himself. He also learns about incest taboo.

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Objectives of the project

To understand the concept of socialization.

To discuss the characteristics of socialization.

To study the theories of socialization.

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This research paper is descriptive & analytical in approach. It is largely based on

secondary & electronic sources. Books & other reference as guided by faculty of sociology
are primarily helpful for the completion of this project.

Relevance

Socialization is the basic part of ones life. From the birth of a child till the death there is
one or the other change in a person, for example when the child is born he does not know
anything but as the time passes he learns many different aspects of life. When he is a kid
he knows only who are his friends, relatives & parents. But as the time passes he knows
many other people, he comes to know about celebrities, nature, scientists, players etc. So
this is also a kind of socialization.

In my research work I have discussed about the process of socialization in an

individual and the development which is seen in him with the passage of time. I have also
discussed about many sociologists who hold different views regarding socialization.

Hypothesis

The process and concept of socialization and its impact on an individual. The process of
socialization develops a persons character. The development could be positive or may be
negative as per the socialization of that particular individual.

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Table of Content

Concept of Socialization..........................................5

Socialization process..7

Goals of Socialization......9

Theories of Socialization.....10

Types of Socialization.12

Conclusion...14

Bibliography....15

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Concept of Socialization

Socialization - The lifelong process of social interaction and learning through which a
child learns the intellectual, physical, and social skills needed to function as a member of
society.

As a lifelong process, socialization takes place in many social settings (e.g., family,
school, peer groups, mass media, religion and workplace).

Socialization contributes to the formation of personality (i.e., the patterns of behavior and
ways of thinking and feeling that are distinctive for each individual) and ultimately a
sense of self (a changing but enduring dimension of personality composed of an
individual's self awareness and self-image that develops via socialization. George Herbert
Mead defined self as the individual's active awareness of existing as a distinct object in
the midst of society).

When homo-sapiens have experiences they learn from these and such experiences form a
foundation from which to draw in future social interactions. We should always be aware
that the new homo-sapien is not entering into a social vacuum. A culture is present that
predated the new human and it will provide for him/her a language which, when learned,
will open the cultural framework that will in turn surround and shape the individual.

It is through socialization and the learning of cultural values, norms, attitudes, and roles,
that the homo-sapien becomes more human and less animal. Are you comfortable with
thinking of babies as more animal than human?

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Fundamental to a healthy start in the socialization process is development of attachment

bonds (i.e., human relationships where meaningful interaction and emotional bonding
develop between the significant other [the adult] and neophyte [the child]).

Erik H. Erikson is one of the first to clearly conceptualize socialization as a life-long

process and to impress upon our thinking important issues or "crises" of a biological,
psychological, and sociological nature that must be addressed successfully at each life
stage for the self to develop normally..

Erikson reasoned that "crises" were brought on "by two factors: biological changes in the
developing individual and social expectations and stresses" that are socially
constructed. Resolution of the conflict at these stages is important to a healthy life
throughout the life-course.

Socialization Process

Socialization is the process by which children and adults learn from others. We begin
learning from others during the early days of life; and most people continue their social
learning all through life (unless some mental or physical disability slows or stops the
learning process). Sometimes the learning is fun, as when we learn a new sport, art or
musical technique from a friend we like. At other times, social learning is painful, as when
we learn not to drive too fast by receiving a large fine for speeding.

Natural socialization occurs when infants and youngsters explore, play and discover the
social world around them. Planned socialization occurs when other people take actions
designed to teach or train others -- from infancy on. Natural socialization is easily seen
when looking at the young of almost any mammalian species (and some birds). Planned
socialization is mostly a human phenomenon; and all through history, people have been
making plans for teaching or training others. Both natural and planned socialization can

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

have good and bad features: It is wise to learn the best features of both natural and planned
socialization and weave them into our lives.

Positive socialization is the type of social learning that is based on pleasurable and exciting
experiences. We tend to like the people who fill our social learning processes with positive
motivation, loving care, and rewarding opportunities. Negative socialization occurs when
others use punishment, harsh criticisms or anger to try to "teach us a lesson;" and often we
come to dislike both negative socialization and the people who impose it on us.

There are all types of mixes of positive and negative socialization; and the more positive
social learning experiences we have, the happier we tend to be -- especially if we learn
useful information that helps us cope well with the challenges of life. A high ratio of
negative to positive socialization can make a person unhappy, defeated or pessimistic
about life. Some people will defend negative socialization, since painful training can
prepare people to be ready to fight and die in battle, put themselves at great risk in order to
save others, endure torture and hardship. This is true; but many people receive far more
negative socialization than they need, and hopefully fewer and fewer people will need to
be trained for battle, torture and hardship.

Our prior socialization helps explain a gigantic chunk of who we are at present -- what we
think and feel, where we plan to go in life. But we are not limited by the things given to us
by our prior social learning experiences; we can take all our remaining days and steer
our future social learning in directions that we value. The more that we know about the
socialization process, the more effective we can be in directing our future learning in the
ways that will help us most.

Because we were not able to select our parents, we were not able to control much of the
first 10 or 20 years of our socialization. However, most people learn to influence their own
socialization as they gain experience in life. It takes special skills to steer and direct our
own socialization, and many of us pick up some of those skills naturally as we go through
life. Having a course on socialization can help us understand which skills are most effective
in guiding our socialization toward the goals we most value.

It is important to know that we all come into life with a variety of psychology systems that
foster self-actualization and favor the development of our human potential. These are the

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

biosocial mechanisms that underlie natural socialization. We can see and study natural
socialization by examining the socialization of primates and other mammals. Once we
under the natural biosocial processes, we can try to build strategies of self-actualization
that are compatible with the natural biosocial mechanisms we are born with to make self-
development as easy and rewarding as possible.

Goals of Socialization

Arnett in presenting a new theoretical understanding of socialization (see below), outlined

what he believes to be the three goals of socialization:

impulse control and the development of a conscience

role preparation and performance, including occupational roles, gender roles, and roles in
institutions such as marriage and parenthood

the cultivation of sources of meaning, or what is important, valued, and to be lived for

In short, socialization is the process that prepares humans to function in social life. It
should be re-iterated here that socialization is culturally relative - people in different
cultures are socialized differently. This distinction does not and should not inherently force
an evaluative judgment. Socialization, because it is the adoption of culture, is going to be
different in every culture. Socialization, as both process or an outcome, is not better or
worse in any particular culture.

It should also be noted that, while socialization is a key sociological process in the
development of individuals who can function in human society, not every aspect of human
behavior is learned. For instance, there is evidence that most children have innate empathy
for individuals who are willfully injured and consider it wrong. Thus, some aspects of
human behavior that one might believe are learned, like empathy and morals, may, in fact,
be biologically determined. To what extent human behavior is biologically determined vs.
learned is still an open question in the study of human behavior.

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Theories of Socialization

The major modern theories of socialization find their roots in the antebellum South and the
social uprisings of the mid-1800s. Modern sociology looks at social learning using three
levels: macro, mezzo, and micro. The macrolevel looks at how society as a whole
functions and where people fit in to it. The mezzo and microlevels explain how friends and
our own experiences effect our socialization, respectively.

History

Theories of socialization, under the broad term of sociology, are a fairly new science
compared to traditional sciences like physics and chemistry. The idea that academia can
explain social phenomena arose during the industrial revolution and the height of slavery.
The official pursuit of sociological theories using empirical evidence began when the
University of Chicago established the first school of sociology in 1892.

Macro level

Macro level theories of socialization try to explain how society as a whole works, not
necessarily the individual parts. The main macrolevel theories of socialization consist of
functionalism or conflict theory. According to "Human Behavior and The Social
Environment, Macro Level," functionalism believes that all parts of society are necessary
for the system to function. An example of functionalism is the criminal underground.
According to functionalism, these groups provide a service that the public wants, such as
illicit drugs. Political corruption then comes into existence to serve the needs of the
marginalized criminal society.

Conflict Theory views society as a struggle between the powerful and the non powerful.
The elite of society make key decisions and have similar socioeconomic backgrounds,
while the underpowered are kept in a docile position in society.

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Mezzo Level

The mezzo level of analysis in socialization theories involves how a person reacts to other
members of society. The dominant theory is social reaction, or labeling theory. Social
Reaction Theory believes that people become what others in society want them to become.
An example of reaction theory might be a child who gets caught cheating and then moved
to a classroom full of those with "behavioral problems"; the parents may even treat the
child differently, reinforcing the stereotype of a "troublemaker."

Micro level

According to micro level socialization theories, people learn through social conditioning
and/or observation. A person learns conditional socialization by personal experiences,
easily exhibited by the common emotion of fear. For example, if a child bitten by a rat at a
young age comes to associate rats with pain, the mind then learns to fear rats.
Observational socialization occurs when a person learns by another individual's actions. A
child may grow to believe that spousal abuse is normal if the child sees a parent perform
abuse.

Applications

Theories of socialization are often used in criminology to set drug policies and prevent
drug use, according to the "Handbook of Drug Abuse Prevention." Studies on drug use
show that siblings and friends remain the most-important influence, even through drug
"revolutions" that provide new channels to illicit drugs. This helps set drug policy and
shows that antidrug messages have little effect on curbing drug use, compared to theories
that explain drug socialization.

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Types of Socialization

The concept of socialization has been divided in many types. These types are based on the
age of the person concerned and the development in his personality with respect to the age.
The types of socialization is as distinguished below:-

Primary socialization

Primary socialization occurs when a child learns the attitudes, values, and actions
appropriate to individuals as members of a particular culture. For example if a child saw
his/her mother expressing a discriminatory opinion about a minority group, then that child
may think this behavior is acceptable and could continue to have this opinion about
minority groups.

Secondary socialization

Secondary socialization refers to the process of learning, what is appropriate behavior as a

member of a smaller group within the larger society. It is usually associated with teenagers
and adults, and involves smaller changes than those occurring in primary socialization. eg.
entering a new profession, relocating to a new environment or society.

Developmental socialization

Developmental socialization is the process of learning behavior in a social institution or

developing your social skills.

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Anticipatory socialization

Anticipatory socialization refers to the processes of socialization in which a person

"rehearses" for future positions, occupations, and social relationships.

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Conclusion

Socialization plays an important role in a developing a person. We are brought up and

developed in a person in the society. We learn rules and laws of life in a society. In the
beginning we do not know anything about the society but as the time we learn many things
in society, for example in the beginning we do not who are our parents or uncle etc, but
gradually we learn it, further we learn how to write and read alphabets, then sentences,
then small stories later on novels etc.
As a child grows, he has impact of socialization from his neighborhood. The
socialization could be positive or may be negative. Positive could be like developing things
like learning pleasurable and exciting things. We tend to like the people who fill our social
learning processes with positive motivation, loving care, and rewarding opportunities. Negative
socialization occurs when others use punishment, harsh criticisms or anger to try to "teach us a
lesson;" and often we come to dislike both negative socialization and the people who impose it on
us.
Thus, Socialization plays a very important role in developing ones character and building
his identity in the society.

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 The Concept and Theories of Socialization

Bibliography

Socialization by S. Chand, CN Shankar Rao, From this book I have taken the concept of
socialization and process of Socialization.

http://www.soc.ucsb.edu/faculty/baldwin/classes/soc142/scznDEF.html
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Types_of_socialization

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