unit 7 - lecture notes Flashcards
What are three examples that can be used when understanding the effects of social deprivation?
- examples of feral and isolated children.
- Harlow’s experiments from the ‘60’s
- Observational study by R. A. Spritz
Who are three examples of feral or isolated children? What is notable about each one?
- Wild boy of Aveyron - found in the 1800’s; had intelligence and reasoning power but spoke a different language and was missing all social aspects.
- Oxana Malaya - found in 1991; was abandoned as an infant, mimicked dog behvaiour.
- Genie Wiley - found in 1970; was strapped to a party chair from 20 months till when she was found.
What are the two most notable experiments from Harlow?
- Isolated monkeys for various lengths of time to see what would happen socially.
- Had two artificial wire mother dolls, one had Terry cloth but no milk and the other had milk but no terry cloth. The experiment was to see the social behavior of baby monkeys, which wire doll they would go to for what.
What observational study did R.A. Spritz conduct?
He observed a prison nursery as well as an orphanage nursery.
This study was conducted over 4 years, his conclusion was that the babies in the orphanage were socially and psychologically underdeveloped whereas some babies in the prison nursery had died.
What are 4 features of socialization?
- It is in the best interest both the individual and the society that the individual receives socialization.
- It is a lifelong process.
- It is never total.
- It is trapped in the nature nurture debate.
Socialization must occur as it’s in the best interest of both the individual and the society, why?
Individual - socialization is how one learns the prerequisites for functioning in a particular culture and how you become a member of your own community and culture.
Society - How societies and cultures perpetrate themselves; a method of social reproduction.
Socialization is a life long process, what are examples of ways one is socialized throughout the course of their life?
Socialization occurs within your own family, in a workplace, at school, in a lifelong partnership, when you retire etc.
The most powerful socialization happens when?
During childhood.
Socialization is never total, what does this mean?
Individuals never fully, totally conform.
Socialization is trapped in a nature v. nurture debate, what is the main question of this debate?
The debate asks the question of how much are we a product of nature and biology and how much are we a product of nurture and our social environment?
In relation to the nature versus nurture debate, what do sociologists argue?
Sociologists argue that most of what makes up a person comes from our social environment.
Nurture can sometimes shape nature, list two examples of how this can occur.
the social environment and conditions cause a change in biology:
ex. When someone is site impaired, they may learn to read Braille. If they do so, it will increase the size of area in the brain that controls their reading finger.
ex. High levels of aggression can result in increased levels of testosterone.
What are the four types of socialization? What do they mean?
- Primary- the basic socialization that occurs in childhood.
- Secondary- into adulthood, new technologies, and occupations, vocations, and interests.
- Anticipatory- adapting to the ways of a group to which one aspires but does not yet belong.
- Resocialization- when a new role or situation requires a person to replace an established pattern of thought or behavior with a new one.
What is an example of primary socialization?
- learning language
- individual identity
- values
What is an example of secondary socialization?
- life partnering
- cohabitating
- parenting
What is an example of anticipatory socialization?
A child pretending to be a teacher may be anticipatory if the child then becomes a teacher as an adult.
What are the two types of resocialization? What is an example of resocialization for each type?
- Voluntary
ex. religious conversion, attending therapy etc. - Involuntary
ex. prisoners, child soldiers etc.
What is the purpose of total institutions? What are examples?
The purpose is to resocialize the individual; all aspects of life for the individual are controlled.
ex. holocaust camp, religious cults, mental hospitals etc.
Why is symbolic interactionism relevant to the theories of socialization?
Symbolic interactionism is interested in individual face to face interactions. Socialization is understood by symbolic interactionists through developing an understanding on how individual consciousness is learned.
What does Cooley’s “looking glass self” mean?
It’s a way of understanding how we see ourselves through the eyes of the other.
It includes:
Using a mirror then imagining how we appear to the other. Through this, we can imagine the other’s judgment of our appearance. In this way we are able to understand how we construct our own ideas of ourselves through the judgment of the other.
In understanding Cooley’s “looking glass self,” what is important to do in adulthood?
It’s important to look into the mirror and be able to acknowledge when harsh judgments of the perceived other are fair and when they are not.
What is the question to be asked when Cooley’s “looking glass self” theory is understood?
The question is what mirror will you allow to have the most influence in your life?
What is concept of Mead’s, “taking the role of the other”?
The concept is there is an “I” and a “me.”
I is the self as subject.
ex. I want that
Me is the self as an object.
ex. They might laugh at me.
In relation to Meads, “taking the role of the other,” what is the relevance of the self?
Within the self, an internal conversation is always happening between the “I” and the “me.”
In this conversation, the self acknowledges the things that you want to enact but pauses to consider, “how will that be perceived by others in my world?”
