Socialization Summary

1. Socialization is important for at least two reasons. First, it is the process by which people
learn the culture of their society. Second, it is the process by which they become fully
human in terms of behavior, emotions, and cognitive ability. The unfortunate examples of
feral children reinforce the importance of socialization in these respects.

2. Charles Horton Cooley and George Herbert Mead both theorized about how the self
develops through socialization. Cooley’s concept of the looking-glass self-recognized
that we see ourselves when we interact with other people and through this process
develop our self-image. Mead’s concept of “taking the role of the other” stressed that
children play at various roles and so learn what others expect of them. Locke’s concept
revolves on the importance of interaction with others as humans are born as empty slates,
devoid of knowledge as to how they can survive in this world.

3. Several agents of socialization exist. The most important one is arguably the family, as
parents socialize their children in any number of ways; children end up resembling their
parents not only biologically but also sociologically. Schools, peers, the mass media, and,
to some extent, religion all also play important roles in socializing not only children but
also older individuals.

4. Resocialization involves a dramatic change in an individual’s values, beliefs, and

behavior. It is often the goal of total institutions, such as military boot camp, convents
and monasteries, mental institutions, and prisons, as it was with the Nazi death camps.
Total institutions often exercise arbitrary power and in many ways try to achieve total
control over the individual and remove their sense of individual identity.

5. Erving Goffman used a theatrical metaphor called dramaturgy to understand social

interaction, which he likened to behavior on a stage in a play. More generally, many
sociologists stress the concept of roles in social interaction. Although we usually play our
roles automatically, social order occasionally breaks down when people don’t play their
roles. This breakdown illustrates the fragility of social order.

6. Although roles help us interact, they can also lead to problems such as role conflict and
role strain. In another problem, some individuals may be expected to carry out a role that
demands a personality they do not have.