Agents Of Socialization

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Agents of Socialization

Introduction

When children are born, it is highly unlikely that they are going to be knowing anything about how the society is supposed to work and what are some of the that are needed to be kept in mind in this regard (Darling et al, 2007, p,311). This is where the socialization plays an important role as it allows an individual to make sure that they can acquire the cultural sensibilities and integrate well into the society. Not only that, in that manner, the people who are part of the society are able to make themselves familiar with the language, the culture, norms and values under which any society is operating (Darling et al, 2007, p,311). There are people though who tend to think that these agents are not that important and it is the internal learning from the person that plays its role regarding the way the whole process is going to be managed in terms of the broader interaction that is carried out among people at the particular point of time. In this paper, it is going to be seen that what is the importance of the each of the agent of the socialization and what role they play in the personality development of the person (Darling et al, 2007, p,311).

Thesis Statement

The importance of the agents of the socialization and whether they play an important role in the integration of the child in any culture.

Agents of the Socialization

There are four major agents of the socialization that are needed to be kept in mind when looking at the way this whole thing is supposed to be discussed. The important element of the way it works is that how different stakeholders are supposed to be involved in the whole process and what sort of value addition is being carried out by them at the given point of time. Most of the times, the way these agents work is that they tend to ensure that how the internalization of the societal values is being carried out. Other than that, they also look at how the people are going to ensure that they meet the societal standards that are placed on them at the particular point of time (Darling et al, 2007, p,311). In the next section, each of the social agent is going to be discussed and looked at and it would be seen what sort of role they play in terms of the way socialization is carried out.

Family

One of the first emotional tie of the individual is their family. They play an important role in terms of how the process of socialization is carried out. For instance, infants as soon as they are born are supposed to rely on the other people to survive and the parents are the one that assume the role of guiding them into the position that they are eventually able to take care of themselves (Darling et al, 2007, p,311). At the same time, there are parents and guardians that are providing the children with the initial system of beliefs that and norms that is going to allow them to ensure that they can integrate well into the society at the point of time. The social status religion and all other constraints play an important role in terms of the development of the value system of the children during the early stages of their life. At the same time, the system also intends to ensure that how the definition of the social class and status is ingrained among the child during the given time period (Darling et al, 2007, p,311). The family represents a child's first emotional tie, and it is by far the most significant agent of the socialization process.

Schools and Educational Institutes

The schools and the educational institutes are setup in the manner that they ensure acquiring education is made to be the part of the value system of the children. One of the key aspects of this whole thing is that how the children are going to be instructed to formal skills that are going to play major role in their life (Darling et al, 2007, p,311). For instance, skills like reading, learning and writing as well as the other skills such as arithmetic’s are taught at the school. Not only that, they also understand how the treatment of the authority figures is supposed to be carried out. What they tend to do is that they make sure that the values are reinforced into the children all the time and they are able to establish themselves into the world based on these practices. Then there is a role of how the hidden curriculum is supposed to work. For instance, the way regulations, expectations and other aspects of the society are needed to be worked goes a long way towards making sure that the children can learn different set of skills at the given point of time. Not only that, they make their social circle in the schools and learn the value of interacting with the other people who belong to outside the family circle (Darling et al, 2007, p,311).

Peers

These are the groups that are made of the age mates as well as the children who tend to share the similar status. Most of the times these groups tend to make sure that they children develop this ability have bonding with the other people (Harm, 2000, p.21). The peer group also allows the children during their formative years to have an idea about how the learning aspects of the job are supposed to be carried out. At times, these groups are accidental in nature whereas at times they are deliberate choices made by the children (Harm, 2000, p.21).

Mass Media

The mass media includes the television programs, magazines, shows, music and games that the children tend to play (Harm, 2000, p.21). What happens is that these aspects tend to have an influence over the preference of the person and how the popular culture is supposed to work (Lewis, 1973, p.156). At times, it is quite hard to determine the exact effect the mass media is going to have over the mind of the children. Not only that, currently, internet has played an important role as far as the development of the perception and allowing children an exposure to the people of different mindset (Lewis, 1973, p.156).

Conclusion

In the hindsight, each of the agent of the socialization plays an important role in making sure that the people can have an insight about regarding how the learning process with regards to the society is supposed to be carried out. Most of the times, there is very strong correlation among the personality of the person and the type of the socialization agents that they are exposed to at the given point of time (Lewis, 1973, p.156). Through the socialization process, a person forms their personality and sense of self. Successful socialization manifests as a uniformity within a particular society. Governments, for example, tend to standardize education to nurture law-abiders and control potential radicals. In any society, there exist individuals who, because they did not internalize society's values, do not conform to the set standards. There are several sources of socialization called agents which are family, peers, schools, and mass media.

Works Cited

Darling, Nancy, Patricio Cumsille, and M. Loreto Martínez. "Adolescents’ as active agents in the socialization process: Legitimacy of parental authority and obligation to obey as predictors of obedience." Journal of adolescence 30.2 (2007): 297-311.

Harm, Bobble. "The cycle of socialization." Readings for diversity and social justice (2000): 15-21.

Lewis, Robert A. "Parents and peers: Socialization agents in the coital behavior of young adults." Journal of Sex Research9.2 (1973): 156-170.