CH 4 The Self and Socialization Through The Life Course Sociological Approaches to the Self others Sociologists recognize that our concept of who we are the self emerges as we interact with others The Self is a distinct identity that sets us apart from others Charles Horton Cooley believed that we learn who we are by interaction with Used the phrase Looking glass self to emphasize that the self is the product of our social interactions 3 Phases of self identity We imagine how we present ourselves Imagine how others evaluate us attractive intelligent shy We develop a feeling about ourselves respect shame Mead Stages of the Self and Theory of the Self George Herbert Mead Developed a useful model of the process by which the self emerges Self Generalized Other define by 3 distinct stages Preparatory play and game stages The Preparatory Stage Children will begin to understand symbols They imi tate the people around them The Play Stage They begin to pretend to be other people Doctor Ship cap tain parent Role taking is the process of mentally assuming the perspective of an other responding from that imaged viewpoint Ex A child will learn when its best to ask parents for favors The Game Stage About 8 9 years old they begin to consider several tasks and relationships simultaneously like social position Generalized Other Refers to attitudes viewpoints and expectations of society as a whole that a child takes into account in his behavior Mead Theory of the Self The self begins at a privileged central position in a per son s world Self is shaped by parents teachers coaches co workers Goffman Presentation of the Self Suggested that many of our daily activities involve attempts to convey impres sions of who we are Impression Management Individual learns to slant his presentation of the self in order to create distinctive appearances and satisfy particular audiences Dramaturgical Approach A view of social interaction in which people are seen Face Work The efforts people make to maintain the proper image and avoid as theatrical performers public embarrassment Psychological Approaches to the Self Sigmund Freud Stressed the roles of of inborn drives like sexual gratification in channeling human behavior Self influenced by parents Psychoanalysis Jean Piaget Emphasized the stages through which human beings progress as the self develops 4 Stages of Cognitive Development Sensorimotor Young children use their senses to make discoveries Preoperational Children begin to use words and symbols to distinguish ob jects and ideas Concrete Operational Children engage in more logical thinking Formal Operational Adolescents become capable of sophisticated abstract thought and can deal with ideas and values in a logical manner Piaget says social interaction is the key to development The Life Course Rites of Passage A ritual marking the symbolic transition from one social tran sition to another Ex Graduation ceremony or Initiation into an organization Life Course Approach A representation in which sociologists look closely at the social factors that influence people throughout their lives including gender and in come Anticipatory Socialization and Resocialization Anticipatory Socialization Processes of socialization in which a person re hearses for future positions occupations and relationships Ex high school students start to consider what college they wanna attend Resocialization Refers to the process of discarding former behavior patterns and accepting new ones as part of a transition in one s life Ex religious convos pris ons reform schools therapy groups Total Institution An institution that regulates all aspects of a person s life un der single authority such as prisons military 7 Agents of Socialization Family Most important agent of socialization Gender Role Refers to the expectations regarding the proper behavior atti tudes and activities of males and females Parents are the primary guidance of children into gender roles followed by other adults siblings schools School Have an explicit mandate to socialize people in the US into our norms and values of our culture Samuel Bowles and Herbert Gintis observed that schools foster competition through built in systems of reward and punishment Functionalists point out that schools fulfill the function of teaching children the values and customs of the larger society Peer Group As children grow older the family becomes less important in social dev Giordano Within the peer group young people associate with others who are approximately their age and who often enjoy a similar social status Popularity paths are taken by males and females to fit in Mass Media and Technology Have become important agents of socialization Internet and TV are critical forces for children Workplace Learning how to behave in an occupation is a fundamental aspect of hu man socialization Adolescents seek jobs to make spending money Educators complain that students that work affect schoolwork Socialization in the workplace changes when it involves a shift from an after school job to a full time job Religion and the State Social scientists are recognizing the importance of these 2 as pects of religion and government the state Both have impacted the life course by reinstituting some of the rites of passage once observed in agricultural communities and early industrial societies Government is under pressure to become a provider of childcare CH 5 Social Interaction The ways people respond to one another Social Structure The way society is organized into predictable relationships work to gether Social Interaction and Reality Herbet Blumer the distinctive characteristic of social interaction among people is that human beings interpret or define each other s actions instead of reacting to each other s actions The meaning that we attach to people s behavior are shaped by our interactions with them and with the larger society Understanding Groups Groups A collection of people who interact with one another and have a sense of common identity Primary Group Small group characterized by intimate face to face associa tion and cooperation Ex Gangs family in same household frats and sororities Secondary Group Refers to a formal impersonal group in which there is little social intimacy or mutual understanding Ex Workplace social groups In groups Any group or category to which people feel they belong Regarded as we or us Ex clique or society Out groups A group or category to which people feel they do not belong
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