Socialisation Flashcards
Agencies of Socialisation
Social groups and institutions that teach us how to behave, e.g. family, education, mass media, peer groups, religion etc.
Primary Socialisation
The first stage in learning how to behave as part of society. This takes place during our early childhood (0-5yrs). The main agency for socialisation is family - we are taught how to walk, communicate and have morals.
Secondary Socialisation
The second stage of learning how to behave as part of society. It is during our late childhood (5-15yrs) we are taught norms and values. The main agencies of socialisation include peer groups, media, education etc. We learn how to interact with different age groups, obey authority and more.
Morals
Knowing the principles of right and wrong.
Norms
Unwritten rules of appropriate or expected behaviour, e.g. wearing clothes in public.
Values
Beliefs held in importance, e.g. honesty.
Culture
The way of life for a social group, i.e. values, language traditions.
Cultural Relativity
Refers to variations in the way different social groups conduct themselves, e.g. traditionally Chinese people eat with chopsticks where British people eat with a knife and fork.
Cultural Universals
Similarities in the way different social groups conduct themselves, e.g. having manners is important to the majority of people in society.
Dominant Culture
Refers to a widespread and massively influential way people live in society, e.g. language, religion, social customs.
Subculture
A social group who has beliefs and behaviours which are different to the rest of society, e.g. gangsters or hippies.
Formal Socialisation
Learning skills, values and norms with planned, organised experiences.
Informal Socialisation
Learning skills, values and norms outside of an institute or formal procedure.
Social Control
Ways of managing society using a combination of rewards and sanctions.
Agencies of Social Control
Refers to social groups or institutes which manage our behaviour - split into formal and informal, depending in the severity of the sanction.
Formal - Police + Courts (prison vs freedom/rights)
Informal - Family + Education (certificates/verbal praise vs exclusion)
Feral Children
Unsocialised children who have been kept apart from the rest of society during early development (childhood), e.g. kept captive or raised in the jungle.
Socialisation
The process through which we learn the culture and appropriate behaviour (norms and values) of the particular group in society we are born into. This prepares us for the roles we play in society.
Wild Boy of Aveyron
- Victor of Aveyron was a French feral child who was found in the woods at the age of around twelve.
- He was described as a strange creature, looking more animal-like than human. He spoke in shrill, strange-sounding cries, relieved himself as he wanted and refused to wear clothes.
- Was only toilet-trained and taught to speak a few words.
Gender Socialisation
The process through which individuals learn appropriate masculine or feminine behaviour to acquire their gender identity.
Sex
Refers to physical attributes which make us a man or woman, in particular our secondary sex characteristics.