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Chapter 5

The document summarizes key concepts relating to socialization and the development of the self from a sociological perspective. It discusses how (1) socialization is the lifelong process by which individuals learn culture and develop their human potential through social experience, (2) both nature and nurture influence personality but nurture matters more from a sociological view, and (3) George Herbert Mead argued that the self develops through social experience, particularly by imagining the perspectives of others.

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55 views16 pages

Chapter 5

The document summarizes key concepts relating to socialization and the development of the self from a sociological perspective. It discusses how (1) socialization is the lifelong process by which individuals learn culture and develop their human potential through social experience, (2) both nature and nurture influence personality but nurture matters more from a sociological view, and (3) George Herbert Mead argued that the self develops through social experience, particularly by imagining the perspectives of others.

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Rohit
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Introduction to

Sociology
Socialization
The lifelong social experience by which people
develop their human potential and learn culture
Social Experience
o Socialization: The lifelong social experience by which
individuals develop their human potential and learn patterns of their
culture.
o Personality: A person’s fairly consistent patterns of thinking,
feeling, and acting
o Could a person’s personality develop without social interaction?
Nature and Nurture
o Biological sciences – The role of nature
o Elements of society have a biological root.
o Social sciences–The role of nurture
o Most of who and what we are as a species is learned, or social
in nature.
o Behaviorism – John Watson’s theory that behavior (human
attitude) is not instinctive but learned.
o Nature or nurture?
o It’s both, but from a sociological perspective, nurture matters
more.
Social Isolation
o Effect on nonhuman primates:
o Harlows’ experiments on Rhesus Monkeys
o Six months of complete isolation was enough to disturb
development.

o Effect on children:
o Anna and Isabelle
o Years of isolation left both children damaged and only capable of
approximating a normal life after intensive rehabilitation.
o Genie
o Somewhat less isolated, but suffered permanent disabilities
George Herbert Mead: Social Self
o Self: The part of an individual’s personality
composed of self-awareness and self-image
1. Self is not there at birth, it develops.
2. Self develops only with social experience.
3. Social experience is the exchange of symbols.
4. Seeking meaning leads people to imagine other people’s
intentions.
5. Understanding intention requires imagining the situation
from the other’s point of view.
6. By taking the role of the other, we become self-aware
Mead: Looking-Glass Self
o Looking-glass self: A self-image based on how we think others
see us.
o The I and Me:
o The self has two parts.
o Active side of the self is “I” – how we are
o Objective side of the self is “me” – how others see us
Looking-Glass Self Maybe?
Mead: Development of Self
How self develops:
o Imitation
o Infants mimic behavior without understanding
intentions.
o Play
o Taking the roles of significant others, people who have
special importance in our lives
o Games
o Taking the roles of several others at once
o Generalized other: Widespread cultural norms and
values we use as a reference in evaluating ourselves
Figure 5.1 Building on Social Experience
George Herbert Mead described the development of the self as a process of gaining social experience. That is,
the self develops as we expand our capacity to take the role of the other.
Agents of Socialization
o The Family
o The School
o The Peer Group
o The Mass Media
Socialization and Life Course
o Each stage of life is linked to the process of aging.
o Societies organize the life course by age.
o Other factors that shape lives include race class,
ethnicity and gender.
o Stages present problems and transitions that involve
learning.
The Life Course
o Childhood (birth through 12)
o The “hurried child”
o Adolescence (the teenage years)
o Turmoil attributed to cultural inconsistencies.
o Adulthood
o Early: 20-40, conflicting priorities
o Middle: 40-60, concerns over health, career and family
o Old age (mid-60s and older)
o More seniors than teenagers
o Less anti-elderly bias
o Role exiting
Total Institutions
o Total Institution: A setting in which people are
isolated from the rest of society and
manipulated by an administrative staff.
o Erving Goffman
o Staff supervises all daily life activities
o Environment is standardized.
o Formal rules and daily schedules
Resocialization
o Resocialization: Efforts to radically change an
inmate’s personality by carefully controlling the
environment.
o Staff breaks down identity.
o Goffman: “Abasements, degradations, humiliations,
and profanations of self”
o Staff rebuilds personality using rewards and
punishments.
o Total institutions affect people in different ways.
o Some develop an institutionalized personality.
Thank You

Questions?

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