Socialization and Resocialization Quiz

Socialization and Resocialization

• Humans learn behavioral patterns through socialization, unlike animals whose behaviors are largely instinctual.
• Cultural norms dictate appropriate behavior in society.

Socialization

• Socialization is a lifelong process of learning cultural norms and values, shaping acceptable behavior within society
• Socialization helps individuals become well-integrated members of society.
• Socialization continually adjusts and evolves throughout life as new experiences come into play.
• People need to understand the expectations tied to their specific roles and societies.
• This process allows for predictability and avoids the chaos of unpredictable social interactions.

Resocialization

• Resocialization happens when individuals get removed from their familiar environments and placed into new situations.
• Individuals must relearn new norms and values to function effectively in their new environment.

Erving Goffman's "Asylums" (Total Institutions)

• Asylums serve as a vivid example of the process of resocialization within total institutions.
• Individuals lose their existing identities, and their personal characteristics are stripped away, and they are forced to adopt a new identity.
• Loss of individuality, conformity to strict rules, and the mortification of the self are key aspects of this example of resocialization.

Resocialization Example

• Resocialization can occur with significant changes to an individual's roles in society like in military, monasteries, prisons or psychiatric hospitals.
• A person may undergo significant change, sometimes to the point of stigmatization.

Nature versus Nurture

• Nature refers to biological attributes and predispositions
• Nurture refers to environmental influences, in particular upbringing/socialization.
• Both nature and nurture are vital factors in shaping human development.

Failed Socialization

• Feral children are examples of failures in socialization.
• These children lacked essential social interaction during their early years, resulting in significant delays in their development.
• This lack of interaction impaired their normal development in regards to social behavior, language and general development.

Identity and Social Construction

• Identity is socially constructed; it forms through the socialization process, not innate or biological.
• Identity is defined by individuals within societies and groups, meaning it is not inherently fixed or predetermined.
• Individuals learn about others, and about themselves and how others perceive them during the socialization process.

Primary Socialization

• Primary socialization occurs during early childhood (usually the first few years).
• It typically takes place within the family and immediate community.
• The family and community impart values and social norms through their interactions with the child.

Talcott Parsons and Functionalism

• Parsons saw primary socialization as a primary tool in helping children assimilate into society (functionalism).
• Important in helping children become social members and integrating into society's rules and norms.
• Learning expected behavior (norms and values) and expected behaviors.

Secondary Socialization

• Secondary socialization is a continued process beyond the initial family and community.
• Learning occurs through broader social institutions.
• This process is continuously ongoing and is influenced by peers, schools, media, and other social agents.

Agencies of Socialization (Examples)

• Family, peer groups, educational institutions, political parties, mass media, and religious institutions.
• These organizations greatly influence and shape individuals' understandings and behaviors through socialization.

The Educational System

• Children learn valuable information and societal norms through educational institutions.
• Learning social rules, regulations, and behaviours takes place in institutions.
• Education acts as a bridge between family values and societal norms.
• functionalist perspective- Emile Durkheim: describes school as a society in miniature where students learn about rules/regulations of society and get punished when behaviour is inappropriate. Talcott Parsons: describes school as the bridge between family and society, important as it teaches universalistic values unlike the particularistic ones taught in the family
• Marxists such as Bourdieu, Bowles and Gintis see school as a tool for the powerful to justify their authority, believing that school reproduces and legitimizes social class inequalities

The Peer Group

• Strong desire for acceptance and friendship, impacting identity formation.
• Fear of rejection can influence behavior.
• Peer interaction shapes an individual's identity.

The Workplace

• The importance of the group in the workplace and conforming to the workplace environment.
• Learning from others in the workplace, and following and developing norms in the workplace.

The Media

• Media plays a vital role in shaping how individuals receive information, view society, and shape their understanding of their social world.
• Different theoretical perspectives (functionalist, Marxist) view the media differently in regard to its functions in society.
• functionalists suggest that the media provides a beneficial socializing function in society by building value consensus and social stability
• Marxists see the media as a form of repression, lulling the masses into passive and mindless spectators which encourages conformity.

Religious Institutions

• Religious beliefs often affect an individual's principles, morals and values.
• Functionalist theorists view religion as a means to provide a shared group identity and uphold societal norms, maintaining cultural norms that establish rules for social life
• Durkheim (functionalist) believes that religion forms a collective conscience, the form of awareness of a group which decreases the risk of social anomie.
• Marxists view religion as a tool used by the powerful to maintain control. Marx sees religion as the 'opium of the people'. reinforces inequalities and exploitation of power- blindfold preventing class consciousness.
• Althusser (Marxist) sees religion as an ideological state apparatus, religion justifies power and social differences thus preventing change
• Gramsci (Marxist) hegemony: consent and acceptance of the people that their position is unchangeable

Social Construction of Self and Identity

• Socialization plays a key role in shaping an individual's view of themselves and how they fit into their social world.
• Individuals learn expectations of others.

Test your understanding of socialization and resocialization as presented in Erving Goffman's 'Asylums'. This quiz explores the processes by which individuals learn cultural norms, the impact of environments on behavior, and the continual adjustment required throughout life. Assess how well you grasp these sociological concepts and their significance in society.