Chapter 4; Socialization Flashcards
what is the personal-social identity continuum and what does it include?
range of traits you posses that emphasize the way you see yourself as an individual on one end and those that define your membership in a group on the other side; includes physical attributes, ascribed characteristics (ex. Indigenous, male), likes/dislikes, group affiliations
master status
the most influential status in a persons status set, are so fundamental to who we are they shape almost every aspect of our lives and take precedence over other characteristics, central to how other people view you; sex, gender, race, ethnicity
auxiliary traits
other characteristics associated with a master status, ex. parent= nurturing, however others might associate parent with strict
self
our knowledge of ourselves as entities separate and distinct from others
self-concept
an individual’s sense of who they are based on perceived similarities and differences from other, subjective, social
how do we develop the basis of comparison that creates our self-concept?
through interaction with others and internalization of cultural standards
socialization
life-long process through which people learn about themselves and their roles in society in relation to one another; includes learning the norms, values, language, knowledge, understanding, and experiences that shape our social and personal identities
social identities
who we are in terms of the social groups we are a part of
personal identities
the ways we consider ourselves to be unique from others
biological determinism
belief that human behaviour is controlled by genetics
sociobiology
evolutionary perspective focused on how groups develop social behaviours and adapt to environments given existing genetic traits
sexual strategies theory
explains varied mate preferences and selection behaviours as an adaptive function
what biological factors can help explain social behaviours?
genes, enzymes, and hormones, ex. serotonin, norepinephrine, testosterone can affect aggression
behaviourism
John B. Watson, nurture side of the debate; school of thought that claims all behaviour could be attributed to learning from the environment and denies free will
Methodological/radical behaviourism
B.F. Skinner; learning is a function of the consequences that follow behaviours (rewards/reinforcements and punishments)
Bandura
learning comes from observation and imitation
Bio-ecological theory of human development
Bronfenbrenner; views human development as a process of reciprocal interaction in which humans play an important role in shaping the environments they develop in; include micro-level influences like parents, peers as well as macro-level influences like the economy, social services, politics
epigenetics
study of how genes changes
Mead on development
human capacity for acting and reacting in relation to others based on shared meanings is the essence of developing the social self
reflexive self
can take into account itself (as an object), itself in relation to others (as a subject), and the views of wider society (generalized other)
prepatory stage
Mead; the stage of play where children only imitate
play stage
the stage where children take on one role at a time, ex. playing house
game stage
the stage where children can account for several different roles at once, at this point they have developed the generalized other
socialized self/generalized other
the ability to perceive the expectations of society and the perspectives of other people
“I” part of the self
Mead; uninhibited, spontaneous, impulsive self that is unique to the person; one’s personality traits that form self-concept, subconscious desires, and creative potential
“Me” part of the self
socialized self and internalized set of attitudes gained from role-taking/ interacting with others based on societal expectations (generalized other)
looking-glass self
Charles Horton Cooley; sense of ourselves that we develop based on our perceptions of how others view us, 3 core components:
1. we imagine how we appear to others
2. we imagine how they judge that appearance
3. we incorporate the perceived judgement into our own self of sense
looking-glass self orientation
people who are more dependent on other’s perceptions for their self of sense, causes less stability in ones identity and a higher chance of depression and anxiety
agents of socialization
the groups institutions and social settings that have the greatest ammount of influence on the developing self. principle agents are the family, the school, the peer group, and the mass media.
The family
most important agent, children learn 2 important attitudes from the family: self esteem: an evaluation of one’s self worth, and interpersonal trust: perception that another person can be relied on and has your best interest at heart
The family from a functional perspective
role is to provide support and guidance along the path to becoming productive adult members of society
The family from a conflict perspective
a hub of disagreement where there are ongoing struggles that demonstrate power differences among individual members
The school
where kids learn personal management and plays a central role in the transmission of cultural values and norms. Maintains the differential treatment of particular groups
The peer group
teaches acceptance/rejection. Introduces social comparison: self-evaluation of appearance, merit, and abilities in comparison with others
The mass media
the most influential agent of socialization; communications that target large audiences through print, audio and images. Media companies construct reality and shape our perceptions
social structure
status
social position that exists independently of any individual who holds it; social position that exists in relation to others
role
the behavioural component of a status
anticipatory status
process where people learn about the roles associated with a particular status before taking on that status
status set
sum total of all the statuses held by a person at a given time
ascribed status
social positions inherited at birth or acquired involuntarily (ex. son, aunt)
achieved status
social positions people obtain through personal actions (ex. lawyer, wife, graduate, criminal)
role conflict
a situations where incompatible role demands exist between 2 or more statuses held at the same time
role strain
a situation where incompatible role demands exist within one status
social groups
2 or more people who share cultural elements and interact frequently (ex. coworkers,family); part of broader social structure
social network
a system of social relationships of varying purpose, relevance, intimacy, and importance
social institutions
relatively permanent societal structures that govern the behaviour of groups/promote social order ex. the church, schools, government, economy, media
formal organization
highly structured social institutions; has a bureaucracy
bureaucracy
formal organizational model with a chain of authority and a set of procedures that guide the processes that exist within
ideal type
analytical construct that has the main features of a social phenomenon but isn’t found in reality ex. Max Weber’s Ideal bureaucracy
What does Weber’s Ideal bureaucracy consist of?
- division of labour
2.hierarchy of authority/chain of command - rules and regulations
- impersonality in decision making
- employment based on qualifications
I dont hate every rat
McDonalization of Society, Ritzer
- Efficiency/speed, ex. drive throughs
- calculability, ex. extra value meal
3.control (over customers)
cons of bureaucracy
processes are slow and tedious, divisions of labour aren’t generally clear cut
resocialization
a person radically altering their identity by giving up an existing status for a new one
total institutions
an isolated social system in which certain individuals are housed apart from wider society
total institutions, Goffman
total institutions are characterized by 24/7 supervision, strict schedules/ standardized procedures, operate as bureaucracies
