Sociology Ch.5
Building Identity: Socialization
Identity – most essential and personal characteristic; consists of our membership in various social groups (race,
ethnicity, religion, gender, etc(, the traits we show to others, and the traits they ascribe to us
Identity locates us in the social world, thoroughly affecting everything we do, feel, say, and think in our
lives
As much a product of our social setting and the significant people in our lives as a product of our physical
traits and innate predispositions
Genes, Social Structure, and the Construction of Human Beings
Debate between nature and nurture
oCultural mood – late 19th early 20th century: genetic inheritance became a population explanation
for human behavior, including poverty, crime, alcoholism, and mental deficiency
oEugenics – controlled mating to ensure that the “defective” genes of troublesome individuals
wouldn’t be passed on to future generations (Nazi Germany)
Freakonomics – “It isn’t so much a matter of what you do as a parent; it’s who you are” – genetics
Society can magnify genetic and physical differences or cover them up
Epigenetics – focuses on how gene expression or suppression is dictated by environmental influences
oWhile our genes may have a role to play in who we become, the behaviors and attitudes of
significant people in our lives and the cultural and institutional forces that structure our lives are
just as important
Socialization: Becoming Who We Are
Structural-functionalist perspective reminds us that the fundamental task of any society is to reproduce
itself – to create members whose behaviors, desires, and goals correspond to those that particular society
deems appropriate and desirable
Socialization – the needs of the society become the needs of the individual
oProcess of learning
oThe way we learn how to perceive our world; how to interact with others; what it means to be male
or female; how, when, why, and with whom to be sexual; what we should and shouldn’t do to and
for others under certain circumstances; what our society defines as moral and immoral
Agents of socialization – entities that come into contact with during the course of his/her life
oCan be family, friends, peers, teammates, teachers, religious institutions, media
oCan influence our self-concepts, attitudes, tastes, values, emotions, and behavior
Anticipatory socialization – some of the socialization that occurs during childhood
oPrimary means by which young individuals acquire the values and orientations found in the
statuses they will likely enter in the future
The Acquisition of Self
Most important outcome of the socialization process is the development of a sense of self
oSelf – unique traits, behaviors, and attitudes that distinguish one person from the next; both the
active source of behavior and its passive order
Reflexive behavior – perceive, evaluate, motivate, and even talk to oneself
The Differentiation of Self
First step in acquisition of self is learning to distinguish our own faces and bodies from the rest of the
physical environment
Newborns are incapable of recognizing themselves, but they also can’t discriminate the boundaries b/w
their bodies and bodies of others
Language Acquisition and the Looking-Glass Self
Next step in acquisition of self is the development of speech
Symbolic interactionism points out that mastery of language is crucial in children’s efforts to differentiate
themselves as distinct social as well as physical objects
Looking-glass self – we use the reaction of others toward us as looking glasses in which we see ourselves
and determine our self-worth
oWe imagine how we might look to other people, we interpret their response to us, and we form a
self-concept
1
Building Identity: Socialization
Identity – most essential and personal characteristic; consists of our membership in various social groups (race,
ethnicity, religion, gender, etc(, the traits we show to others, and the traits they ascribe to us
Identity locates us in the social world, thoroughly affecting everything we do, feel, say, and think in our
lives
As much a product of our social setting and the significant people in our lives as a product of our physical
traits and innate predispositions
Genes, Social Structure, and the Construction of Human Beings
Debate between nature and nurture
oCultural mood – late 19th early 20th century: genetic inheritance became a population explanation
for human behavior, including poverty, crime, alcoholism, and mental deficiency
oEugenics – controlled mating to ensure that the “defective” genes of troublesome individuals
wouldn’t be passed on to future generations (Nazi Germany)
Freakonomics – “It isn’t so much a matter of what you do as a parent; it’s who you are” – genetics
Society can magnify genetic and physical differences or cover them up
Epigenetics – focuses on how gene expression or suppression is dictated by environmental influences
oWhile our genes may have a role to play in who we become, the behaviors and attitudes of
significant people in our lives and the cultural and institutional forces that structure our lives are
just as important
Socialization: Becoming Who We Are
Structural-functionalist perspective reminds us that the fundamental task of any society is to reproduce
itself – to create members whose behaviors, desires, and goals correspond to those that particular society
deems appropriate and desirable
Socialization – the needs of the society become the needs of the individual
oProcess of learning
oThe way we learn how to perceive our world; how to interact with others; what it means to be male
or female; how, when, why, and with whom to be sexual; what we should and shouldn’t do to and
for others under certain circumstances; what our society defines as moral and immoral
Agents of socialization – entities that come into contact with during the course of his/her life
oCan be family, friends, peers, teammates, teachers, religious institutions, media
oCan influence our self-concepts, attitudes, tastes, values, emotions, and behavior
Anticipatory socialization – some of the socialization that occurs during childhood
oPrimary means by which young individuals acquire the values and orientations found in the
statuses they will likely enter in the future
The Acquisition of Self
Most important outcome of the socialization process is the development of a sense of self
oSelf – unique traits, behaviors, and attitudes that distinguish one person from the next; both the
active source of behavior and its passive order
Reflexive behavior – perceive, evaluate, motivate, and even talk to oneself
The Differentiation of Self
First step in acquisition of self is learning to distinguish our own faces and bodies from the rest of the
physical environment
Newborns are incapable of recognizing themselves, but they also can’t discriminate the boundaries b/w
their bodies and bodies of others
Language Acquisition and the Looking-Glass Self
Next step in acquisition of self is the development of speech
Symbolic interactionism points out that mastery of language is crucial in children’s efforts to differentiate
themselves as distinct social as well as physical objects
Looking-glass self – we use the reaction of others toward us as looking glasses in which we see ourselves
and determine our self-worth
oWe imagine how we might look to other people, we interpret their response to us, and we form a
self-concept
1
