PROSES SOSIOLISASIhttp://cikguskskr.blogspot.my/2012/06/proses-sosialisasi.html

Pengertian Sosialisasi

Pengertian sosialisasi mengacu pada suatu proses belajar seorang individu yang akan mengubah dari seseorang yang tidak tahu menahu tentang diri dan lingkungannya menjadi lebih tahu dan memahami. Sosialisasi merupakan suatu proses di mana seseorang menghayati (mendarahdagingkan - internalize) norma-norma kelompok di mana ia hidup sehingga timbullah diri yang unik, kerana pada awal kehidupannya tidak ditemukan apa yang disebut dengan “diri”.Dengan mempelajari bagaimana orang berinteraksi maka kita dapat memahami orang lain dengan lebih baik. Dengan memperhatikan orang lain, diri sendiri dan posisi kita di masyarakat maka kita dapat memahami bagaimana kita berfikir dan bertindak.Terdapat beberapa konsep yang berkaitan dengan sosialisasi, iaitu “the significant others , the generalized other , looking glass self serta impression management” Masing-masing konsep tersebut memberikan sumbangan yang bererti dalam diri seorang individu yang mengalami proses sosialisasi.Produk penting dari proses sosialisasi adalah self/personality/diri. Dalam rangka interaksi dengan orang lain, seseorang akan mengembangkan suatu keunikan dalam hal perilaku, pemikiran dan perasaan yang secara bersama-sama akan membentuk self. Agen sosialisasi meliputi:-

keluarga, rakan sebaya, sekolah atau institusi, masyarakat atau komuniti dan media massa. 

1. Keluarga

Ibu bapa merupakan orang yang paling peka terhadap perkembangan moral seseorang kanak-kanak pada peringkat awal. Kanak-kanak akan diasuh menerusi proses praktis pemeliharaan dan menerusi tingkahlaku yang akan diteladani. Asuhan memainkan peranan yang penting dalam proses sosialisasi individu. Ibu bapa yang bersikap penguasaan serta autokratik akan mendapati anak-anaknya begitu taat pada arahan tetapi menjadi pasif dalam tingkah laku mereka. Sebaliknya, ibu bapa yang mengamalkan sikap bebas akan mendapati sikap anak-anaknya tidak bersopan -santun, tidak bertanggungjawab dan tidak boleh berdikari.

Ibu bapa yang mengamalkan cara demokrasi dan sering berbincang masalah-masalah dengan anak-anak mereka serta mempertimbangkan pendapat-pendapat anak-anak, apabila membuat keputusan-keputusan penting akan mendapati anak-anak mereka mempunyai keyakinan diri yang tinggi. Kanak-kanak juga menjadi lebih aktif, cerdas dan lebih bersopan-santun.

Selain itu, saiz keluarga juga akan mempengaruhi proses sosialisasi individu, iaitu dengan interaksi secara lisan dan fizikal antara individu, contohnya di antara adik-beradik. Interaksi ini akan membantu individu bercakap lebih awal serta memperkembangkan dan menambahkan perbendaharaan katanya. Nilai-nilai yang diwujudkan oleh adik-beradiknya akan disanjung oleh seseorang individu.

2. Rakan Sebaya

Rakan sebaya merupakan satu lagi faktor yang mempengaruhi proses sosialisasi. Pengaruh keluarga semakin merosot apabila kanak-kanak meningkat remaja. Apabila mereka menjadi semakin dewasa, kumpulan sebaya menjadi pengaruh yang lebih berkesan dalam proses pembentukan budi pekerti mereka. Oleh kerana keperluan untuk diterima oleh kumpulan

sebaya amat penting kepadanya, seseorang remaja akan menepati norma dan nilai yang ditonjolkan oleh kumpulan tertentu. Ini boleh membawa sama ada kesan positif ataupun negatif. Cara berpakaian, fesyen rambut dan sifat seseorang boleh dipengaruhi oleh kegemaran dan khayalan kumpulan tersebut.

Bandura juga berpendapat bahawa ibu bapa bukanlah role model untuk kanak-kanak. Perlakuan orang dewasa yang lain, rakan sebaya dan punca-punca simbolik yang lain juga ditiru oleh kanak-kanak. Pengaruh kumpulan sebaya menjadi lebih utama di peringkat remaja.

Kumpulan remaja merupakan satu punca nilai-nilai dan akan memainkan peranan yang utama dalam menentukan kedudukan nilai yang diterima dan diamalkan oleh seseorang individu terutamanya mengenai corak dan tingkahlaku yang mereka anggap perlu dipatuhi. Walaupun pengaruh kumpulan sebaya amat mempengaruhi di peringkat remaja, ia juga berperanan penting dalam pelbagai peringkat umur. Ia juga penting di peringkat ‘geng’ iaitu semasa kanak-kanak berumur antara tujuh tahun. Piaget mengatakan bahawa bukan sahaja pembelajaran yang berlaku di antara rakan sebaya juga merupakan prasyarat bagi perkembangan autonomi. Sebaliknya Kohlberg menyatakan bahawa perkembangan moral di kalangan kanak-kanak yang dipencil atau diasingkan adalah tidak berbeza daripada kanak-kanak yang banyak menerima pendedahan.

3. Sekolah/Institusi

Sekolah merupakan agen kebudayaan dan sebahagian daripada fungsi pengajaran adalah untuk melahirkan nilai-nilai kebudayaan. Dengan itu, proses sosialisasi pelajar-pelajar merupakan satu fungsi yang sah serta positif untuk dikendalikan oleh pihak sekolah.

Menurut Durkheim, peranan pendidikan moral dan tugas sekolah adalah untuk mengajar pelajar-pelajar tentang nilai-nilai kemanusiaan dan kemasyarakatan. Beliau berpendapat bahawa keluarga terlalu kecil dan terlalu berunsur peribadi untuk menggambarkan keseluruhan sistem sosial. Juga, beliau menganggapkan guru sebagai agen yang utama dan merupakan pertalian yang kritikal dalam proses pengaliran kebudayaan.

Ahli-ahli teori pembelajaran sosial lebih mementingkan peranan ibu bapa tetapi model tersebut adalah konsisten dengan pendapat Durkheim yang mengatakan bahawa sekolah merupakan alat masyarakat untuk mengalirkan nilai-nilai moral dan kebudayaan.

Oleh kerana pelajar-pelajar berada di sekolah setiap hari selama enam hingga lapan jam, sekolah amat mempengaruhi perkembangan pelajar-pelajar tersebut. Kadangkala konflik nilai boleh berlaku akibat perbezaan di antara nilai dan norma pelajar yang diajar di rumah dan di sekolah. Contohnya, sekolah mengajar pelajar tentang keburukan merokok, manakala di rumah, terdapat ibu bapa yang merokok dan tidak menghiraukan sama ada anak mereka mencontohi dan mengikut tabiat mereka atau tidak.

4. Komuniti/Masyarakat

Masyarakat di mana seseorang itu dibesarkan mempunyai peranan yang tidak kurang pentingnya dalam membentuk personaliti anggotanya. Ahli psikologi Margaret Mead telah menjalankan kajian ke atas beberapa masyarakat primitif. Mead mendapati dalam masyarakat Samoa terdapat zaman perantaraan yang harmoni antara zaman kanak-kanak dan dewasa. Mereka dibimbing oleh masyarakat sekeliling dan hidup ditentukan dengan jelas melalui permuafakatan dan tidak terdapat punca-punca yang nyata bagi menimbulkan sebarang kerunsingan. Jarang terdapat perbuatan kurang bermoral di dalam masyarakat tersebut kerana setiap anggotanya dianggap sebagai ahli keluarga terdekat yang perlu dijaga dengan sempurna. Kajian beliau di Amerika Syarikat adalah sebaliknya. Masyarakatnya tidak mempedulikan hal orang lain menyebabkan pelbagai perbuatan kurang bermoral dari peringkat kanak-kanak lagi. Menurut Kohlberg (1981) pula, kanak-kanak perlu berinteraksi dengan masyakarat tidak kira tahap umur kerana ini membolehkan mereka bertingkahlaku sesuai dengan norma-norma masyarakat seperti orang dewasa. Masyarakat yang sensitif melahirkan kanak-kanak yang peka terhadap keadaan sekeliling.

5. Media Massa

Satu lagi faktor yang mempengaruhi proses sosialisasi ialah media massa. Kanak-kanak didedahkan kepada pelbagai jenis media massa seperti radio, suratkhabar, dan televisyen ataupun buku-buku yang memang mempengaruhi perkembangan moral mereka. Iklan-iklan dari majalah, surat khabar dan sebagainya juga memainkan peranan yang sama.

Melalui peniruan dan modelling, kanak-kanak mudah dipengaruhi oleh model-model yang simbolik daripada media massa. Secara tidak disedari, melalui program dan bahan yang dihasilkan khas untuk kanak-kanak, pengajaran moral dan peranan kanak-kanak sebagai anggota masyarakat disampaikan kepada mereka. Contohnya seperti cerita-cerita dongeng, dan sebagainya. Namun, masalah yang serius mungkin timbul apabila program dan bahan bacaan yang tidak sesuai timbul, misalnya keganasan, kebendaan dan pergaulan bebas ditonton dan dibaca oleh kanak-kanak. Pengiklanan, khususnya jenis iklan memujuk, yang menumpukan kepada keinginan memiliki barang atau perkhidmatan, juga boleh meninggalkan kesan buruk atau pengaruh yang tidak baik kepada kanak-kanak.

Dengan perkembangan sains dan teknologi, media massa boleh mempengaruhi kemoralan sesuatu kelompok atau masyarakat dengan mendedahkan masyarakat itu kepada norma dan nilai masyarakat lain. Dengan itu, maka perlulah diadakan satu tahap atau standard untuk sebarang tingkahlaku yang membayangkan kemoralan masyarakat Malaysia yang tidak tercemar. Pelajar-pelajar pula hendaklah diberi perlindungan dan dididik sebaiknya agar mereka dapat menilai pengaruh luar, mana yang baik dan bermoral, mana pula yang sebaliknya.

Peranan dan tanggungjwab guru dalam melahirkan generasi yang berwawasan dan berkualiti.

Dalam era moden kini, tugas dan peranan seorang guru semakin berat untuk dipikul. Semakin hari kita didedahkan dengan pelbagai perlakuan yang tidak bermoral di kalangan pelajar sekolah. Terlalu banyak usaha-usaha yang telah dijalankan oleh pihak kerajaan untuk melahirkan insan yang bermoral selaras dengan Falsafah Pendidikan Negara yang menitikberatkan setiap perkembangan moral rakyatnya,tetapi apa yang berlaku kini? Ramai pelajar telah menjadi manusia yang tidak bermoral dengan melakukan pelbagai gejala yang tidak sihat. Bahkan ada yang pelajar yang sanggup membunuh demi kepuasan dirinya. Satu persoalan yang timbul, kenapakah pelajar dahulu dan sekarang mempunyai nilai yang jauh berbeza sehinggakan mereka kini terpaksa diajar subjek Pendidikan Moral dan Nilai-Nilai Murni dalam Bahasa Melayu Penulisan. Sesungguhnya apakah faktor-faktor yang menjadi penyebab kepada kemerosotan nilai dalam kehidupan masyarakat pelajar pada masa kini?.Sebagai seorang guru, adalah menjadi tanggungjawab dan tugas kita untuk melahirkan pelajar yang berwawasan serta mempunyai etika dan kemoralan yang tinggi. Setiap guru harus sedar bahawa tugas sebagai seorang guru bukan sekadar hanya mengajar, tapi perlu menganggap diri mereka sebagai teman, fasilitator dan kaunselor kepada pelajar. Sistem hubungan dua hala antara guru dan pelajar bukan sekadar melibatkan masalah akademik tetapi juga masalah peribadi pelajar untuk membolehkan pihak sekolah mengesan gejala yang tidak sihat di peringkat awal sebelum mereka benar-benar terjebak dalam kes polis.

a. Guru sebagai role model.

Harus diingat bahawa, pelakuan seharian kita sebagai seorang guru sentiasa diperhatikan dan seringkali ditiru oleh pelajar. Seorang guru harus menunjukkan contoh yang terbaik supaya kita menjadi role model kepada setiap pelajar kita. Guru lelaki yang menasihati pelajarnya agar tidak merokok ibarat ketam mengajar anaknya berjalan, sekiranya guru itu sendiri merokok di khalayak ramai seperti di kantin sekolah, di padang ataupun di tempat-tempat lain yang kononnya tersembunyi. Begitu juga dengan sebahagian guru wanita yang menasihati anak muridnya supaya tidak berkuku panjang sedangkan dia sendiri yang berkuku panjang. Jadi, haruslah diingat di sini bahawa, sebagai seorang guru, kita seharusnya

memperbetulkan dan merperindahkan dulu budi pekerti dan kemoralan diri kita sebelum menasihat atau menegur pelajar supaya pelajar menyanjung dan memartabatkan kita sebagai role model terbaik untuk dirinya.

b. Kaedah pengajaran

Dewasa ini, mata pelajaran Pendidikan Islam atau Pendidikan Moral seringdianggap sebagai subjek pelengkap di kalangan pelajar. Dengan kata lain, subjek ini dipelajari hanya disebabkan subjek ini adalah mata pelajaran wajib yang diambil kira dalam Penilaian Menengah Rendah (PMR) dan Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM). Justeru itu, para pelajar kurang penghayatan terhadap subjek ketika proses pengajaran dan pembelajaran di sekolah. Kurang penghayatan dalam mata pelajaran kerohanian ini akan memberikan pelbagai implikasi negatif yang membimbangkan. Antaranya, wujud gejala sosial dan keruntuhan akhlak dalam masyarakat yang membabitkan kes-kes jenayah terutama salah laku seksual. 

Memandangkan mata pelajaran Pendidikan Islam dan Moral merupakan satu-satunya mekanisme yang mampu membina jiwa, membentuk kerohanian dan memupuk akhlak mulia dalam diri pelajar, guru-guru sewajarnya memainkan peranan mencegah salah laku seksual ataupun pelbagai gejala negatif lain yang tidak bermoral dengan menekankan penghayatan subjek-subjek ini kepada pelajar di sekolah. Guru seharusnya mempelbagaikan kaedah pengajaran supaya dapat menarik minat pelajar terhadap mata pelajaran tersebut. Guru seharusnya cuba berusaha mendekati pelajar, membimbing dan menjadi rakan terbaik kepada pelajar supaya pelajar merasakan diri mereka hampir dengan guru agar segala permasalahannya dapat diluahkan.

Kelemahan kaedah penyampaian sesuatu mata pelajaran boleh menghapuskan minat seseorang pelajar terhadap pelajaran tersebut. Sikap guru yang hanya sekadar menyampaikan maklumat mengenai mata pelajaran yang dipertanggungjawabkan ke atasnya sahaja, perlu diperbetulkan. Dalam apa juga mata pelajaran di sekolah, guru boleh menerangkan mengenai pengajaran dan ikhtibar yang boleh diambil daripada sesuatu perkara yang diajar. Pelbagai peristiwa dalam sejarah boleh digunakan sebagai contoh. Tayangan video ataupun VCD tentang apa sahaja yang berkaitan dengan moral boleh ditayangkan kepada pelajar demi menarik mereka terhadap pelajaran tersebut. Dalam erti kata lain, guru di zaman globalisasi kini seharusnya lebih kreatif dan inovatif dalam penyampaian kaedah pengajaran supaya pelajar lebih cenderung ke arah perlakuan yang lebih beretika dan bermoral.

c. Pemupukan nilai-nilai murni

Nilai-nilai murni merujuk kepada perkara-perkara yang positif yang diamalkan oleh seseorang itu. Nilai ini turut beriringan dengan norma-norma budaya negara yang memberi penekanan terhadap aspek kesopanan seseorang. Cuma perkara yang dikesalkan dalam aspek ini ialah pelajar pada zaman ini sudah mula melupakan nilai-nilai murni ini. Mereka sudah melupai jati diri mereka yang seharusnya menghormati ibu bapa, beradap sopan apabila berbicara, bersikap jujur dan amanah dan pelbagai lagi nilai-nilai murni yang lain, yang kian hari kian lenyap dalam diri mereka. Pemantapan komponen akhlak dalam Pendidikan Islam dan Pendidikan Moral dapat membantu pelajar dalam penghayatan nilai-nilai murni tersebut. Guru dikehendaki menerapkan nilai-nilai murni dan akhlak Islam ketika menerangkan adab dan amalannya dalam kehidupan pelajar. Penerapan nilai-nilai murni dalam diri seperti amalan berdisiplin, adil, bertanggungjawab, kerjasama dan toleransi perlu dicanai dalam diri mereka. Ini kerana, pendidikan akhlak merupakan wadah penting untuk merungkai permasalahan akhlak dan melahirkan manusia yang baik. Agama Islam sebagai ad-Deen atau cara hidup amat menekankan kepada pendidikan akhlak. Selain itu, Pendidikan Moral juga merupakan satu program yang mendidik murid supaya menjadi insan yang bermoral atau berakhlak mulia dengan menekankan aspek perkembangan pemikiran, perasaan moral dan tingkah laku moral. 

d. Melayan pelajar sebagai pelanggan

Kualiti diertikan sesuatu yang memenuhi kehendak pelanggan iaitu apa-apa yang pelanggan (pelajar) mahu dari kita. Keperluan pelajar sepatutnya dipenuhi dan bagaimana keperluan pelajar itu dilihat sebagai faktor penting terhadap kejayaan. Keperluan-keperluan yang dimaksudkan di sini boleh terdiri dari perkhidmatan dan layanan yang ingin diterima oleh pelajar. Antara ciri-ciri guru yang baik pada pandangan pelajar ialah guru bukan sahaja boleh menyampaikan isi pelajaran tetapi juga dapat memahami pelajar sebagai individu, sentiasa disenangi dan mudah dibawa berbincang. Setiap kehendak pelajar harus diikuti asalkan kehendaknya itu tidak melampaui batasan. Guru seharusnya bersabar dengan karenah pelajar yang “macam-macam”. Perbuatan, tuturkata dan tingkahlaku guru yang menggambarkan sifat penyayang dan nilai baik seperti saling menghormati, mempercayai, membimbing, memberi sokongan dan pengiktirafan, dapat menolong dan membantu guru melaksanakan tugas dengan perasaan gembira dan menyeronokkan. 

Di samping itu, sifat-sifat seperti ini juga dapat mempengaruhi perlakuan dan tingkah laku pelajar. Guru yang bermoral dan beretika, dapat melahirkan pelajar yang lebih bertanggungjawab dan berwawasan kerana guru sebegitu adalah idola pelajarnya. Guru bagaikan ibu bapa kepada murid atau pelajar. Kalau ibu bapa kandung memberi tempat tinggal, pakaian dan makan minum, guru pula memberikan ilmu, didikan, budi dan akhlak serta membentuk kepandaian dalam kehidupan. Guru yang penyayang akan mengambil tahu masalah muridnya serta sedia mendengar dan memberi perhatian kepada muridnya. Murid yang lemah dikasihani, yang silap ditegur dengan baik. Kecemerlangan pelajar adalah kejayaannya. Sebarang bantuan diperlukan oleh pelajar akan dibantu guru. Itulah guru yang penyayang. Guru seumpama itu akan disanjung dan diingati oleh pelajarnya. Pelajar akan terasa rindu untuk ke sekolah. Pelajar akan mengikut arahan dan meniru peribadinya. Pendek kata guru itu akan menjadi idola kepada pelajarnya. Hasil jalinan kasih sayang ini, sekolah akan menjadi model pendidikan yang terbaik. Kejayaan dalam bidang akademik dan kokurikulum akan dapat dicipta oleh sekolah tersebut hasil kerjasama erat. Dalam masa yang sama akhlak dan etika pelajar juga dapat dibentuk, digilap dan dibajai dengan secukupnya supaya menjadi generasi yang bertanggungjawab dan berwawasan.

Penutup

Sejak berkurun lamanya, institusi pendidikan telah memainkan peranan dalam mencorakkan kualiti moral dan akhlak yang mulia seperti yang dituntut oleh masyarakat. Melalui sistem pendidikan, pelajar akan melalui proses sosialisasi moral dan proses pembesaran yang diorientasikan dan diperkukuhkan dengan pelbagai tanggungjawab sosial. Pembangunan serta perubahan sosial dalam masyarakat memerlukan perubahan dalam sistem pendidikan di sekolah bagi memenuhi pelajar sesuai dengan keadaan sekeliling. Kita perlu memikirkan kembali sejauh manakah keberkesanan sistem pendidikan kita pada hari ini memandangkan isu gejala sosial remaja semakin hari semakin menular. 

Perkembangan manusia yang sempurna perlu dilengkapkan dengan penguasaan emosi dan insaniah sejajar dengan kepentingan akademik. Kedua-dua bentuk kurikulum (formal atau tidak formal) di dalam dan di luar bilik darjah, perlu digunakan sepenuhnya dan secara bersepadu untuk memastikan penerapan nilai-nilai murni berhasil dan berkesan. Penilaian terhadap pelajar perlulah menyeluruh. Kualiti pendidikan dapat ditegakkan dengan cara membina benteng ketahanan dalam diri seseorang pelajar melalui penggarapan nilai-nilai moral dan etika. Penggarapan nilai-nilai moral dan etika mampu untuk membebaskan masyarakat daripada sebarang gejala buruk dan menjadi asas kepada pembentukan masyarakat yang bebas dari gejala jenayah dan keruntuhan moral. Oleh yang demikian, seluruh kaum pendidik hendaklah mempunyai visi, wawasan dan keterampilan bagi menghadapi cabaran alaf akan datang. Mereka wajar mempunyai ciri-ciri kecemerlangan dan melakukan anjakan paradigma bagi membolehkan mereka diiktiraf, sekaligus berperanan bertanggungjawab melahirkan pelajar yang berwawasan dan berkualiti.

SocializationHuman infants are born without any culture.  They must be transformed by their parents, teachers, and others into cultural and socially adept animals.  The general process of acquiring culture is referred to as socialization  .  During socialization, we learn the language of the culture we are born into as well as the roles we are to play in life.  For instance, girls learn how to be daughters, sisters, friends, wives, and mothers.  In addition, they learn about the occupational roles that their society has in store for them.  We also learn and usually adopt our culture's norms   through the socialization process.  Norms are the conceptions of appropriate and expected behavior that are held by most members of the society.  While socialization refers to the general process of acquiring culture, anthropologists use the term enculturation   for the process of being socialized to a particular culture.  You were enculturated to your specific culture by your parents and the other people who raised you.

Socialization is important in the process of personality formation.  While much of human personality is the result of our genes, the socialization process can mold it in particular directions by encouraging specific beliefs and attitudes as well as selectively providing experiences.  This very likely accounts for much of the difference between the common personality types in one society in comparison to another.  For instance, the Semai   tribesmen of the central Malay Peninsula of Malaysia typically are gentle people who do not like violent, aggressive individuals.  In fact, they avoid them whenever possible.  In contrast, the Yanomamö Indians on the border area between Venezuela and Brazil usually train their boys to be tough and aggressive.  The ideal Yanomamö man does not shrink from violence and strong emotions.  In fact, he seeks them out.  Likewise, Shiite Muslim men of Iran are expected at times to publicly express their religious faith through the emotionally powerful act of self-inflicted pain.

Shiite Muslim men in Iranritually beating themselvesbloody with hands and chainsas an act of religious faithcommemorating the deathof Imam Hussein in 680 a.d.

Successful socialization can result in uniformity within a society.  If all children receive the same socialization, it is likely that they will share the same beliefs and expectations.  This fact has been a strong motivation for national governments around the world to standardize education and make it compulsory for all children.  Deciding what things will be taught and how they are taught is a powerful political tool for controlling people.  Those who internalize the norms of standard school

curriculum to assure a broad acceptanceof society's norms

society are less likely to break the law or to want radical social changes.   In all societies, however, there are individuals who do not conform to culturally defined standards of normalcy because they were "abnormally" socialized, which is to say that they have not internalized the norms of society.  These people are usually labeled by their society as deviant or even mentally ill. 

Large-scale societies, such as the United States, are usually composed of many ethnic groups.  As a consequence, early socialization in different families often varies in techniques, goals, and expectations.  Since these complex societies are not culturally homogenous, they do not have unanimous agreement about what should be the shared norms.  Not surprisingly, this national ambiguity usually results in more tolerance of social deviancy--it is more acceptable to be different in appearance, personality, and actions in such large-scale societies.

How are Children Socialized?Socialization is a learning process that begins shortly after birth.  Early childhood is the period of the most intense and the most crucial socialization.  It is then that we acquire language and learn the fundamentals of our culture.  It is also when much of our personality takes shape.  However, we continue to be socialized throughout our lives.  As we age, we enter new statuses and need to learn the appropriate roles for them.  We also have experiences that teach us lessons and potentially lead us to alter our expectations, beliefs, and personality.  For instance, the experience of being raped is likely to cause a woman to be distrustful of others.

Looking around the world, we see that different cultures use different techniques to socialize their children.  There are two broad types of teaching methods--formal and informal. Formal education is what primarily happens in a classroom.  It usually is structured, controlled, and directed primarily by adult teachers who are professional "knowers."  In contrast, informal education can occur anywhere.  It involves imitation of what others do and say as well as experimentation and repetitive practice of basic skills.  This is what happens when children role-play adult interactions in their games.

young men undergoing rigorouslystandardized formal education ina Buddhist monastery

  older adults being informally  socialized for their role as  retired senior citizens

Most of the crucial early socialization throughout the world is done informally under the supervision of women and girls.  Initially, mothers and their female relatives are primarily responsible for socialization.  Later, when children enter the lower school grades, they are usually under the control of women teachers.  In North America and some other industrialized nations, baby-sitters are most often teenage girls who live in

the neighborhood.  In other societies, they are likely to be older sisters or grandmothers.

    North American mother     informally socializing her    daughter

baby in Bhutanunder the careof an older sister

 grandmother in North America helping to socialize her grandchild

During the early 1950's, John and Beatrice Whitiing led an extensive field study of early socialization practices in six different societies.  They were the Gusii   of Kenya, the Rajputs   of India, the village of Taira   on the island of Okinawa in Japan, the Tarong   of the Philippines, the Mixteca   Indians of central Mexico, and a New England community that was given the pseudonym Orchardtown.  All of these societies shared in common the fact that they were relatively homogeneous culturally.  Two general conclusions emerged from this study.  First, socialization practices varied markedly from society to society.  Second, the socialization practices were generally similar among people of the same society.  This is not surprising since people from the same culture and community are likely to share core values and perceptions.  In addition, we generally socialize our children in much the same way that our parents socialized us.  The Whitings and their fellow researchers found that different methods were used to control children in these six societies.  For instance, the Gusii primarily used fear and physical punishment.  In contrast, the people of Taira used parental praise and the threat of withholding praise.  The Tarong mainly relied on teasing and scaring.

Location of the societies in the 1950's cross-cultural study of child rearing practices

This cross-cultural study of socialization is provocative.  Perhaps, you are now asking yourself what methods you would use to control the behavior of your children.  Would you spank them or threaten to do so?  Would you only use praise?  Would you belittle or tease them for not behaving?  Would you try to make your children independent and self-reliant or would you discourage it in favor of continuing dependence?  At some time in our lives, most of us will be involved in raising children.  Will you do it in the same way that you were raised?  Very likely you will because you were socialized that way.  Abusive parents were, in most cases, abused by their parents.  Likewise, gentle, indulgent parents were raised that way themselves.  Is there a right or wrong way to socialize children?  To a certain extent the answer depends on the frame of reference.  What is right in one culture may be wrong in another.

Even seemingly insignificant actions of parents can have major impacts on the socialization of their children.  For instance, what would you do if your baby cried continuously but was not ill, hungry, or in need of a diaper change?  Would you hold your baby, rock back and forth, walk around, or sing gently until the crying stopped, even if it took hours.  The answer that you give very likely depends on your culture.  The traditional Navajo   Indian response usually was to remove the baby from social contact until the crying stopped.  After making sure that the baby was not ill or in physical distress, he or she would be taken outside of the small single room  house and left in a safe place until the crying stopped.  Then the baby would be brought indoors again to join the family.  Perhaps as a result, Navajo babies raised in this way are usually very quiet.  They learn early that making noise causes them to be removed from social contact.  In most North American families today, we would hold our baby in this situation until the crying stopped.  The lesson that we inadvertently may be giving is that crying results in social contact.  Is this wrong?  Not necessarily, but it is a different socialization technique.

http://anthro.palomar.edu/social/soc_1.htm

SocializationSocialization is predominately an unconscious process by which a newborn child learns the values, beliefs, rules and regulations of society or internalizes the culture in which it is born. Socialization, in fact, includes learning of three important processes: (1) cognitive; (2) affective, and (3) evaluative. In other words, socialization includes the knowledge of how things are caused and the establishment of emotional links with the rest of the members of the society. Socialization, therefore, equips an individual in such a way that he can perform his duties in his society. Who are the agents of socialization? The agents of socialization vary from society to society. However, in most of the cases, it is the family which is a major socializing agent, that is, the nearest kinsmen are the first and the most important agents of socialization. The other groups which are socializing units in a society vary according to the complexity. Thus, in modern complex society, the important socializing agents are educational institutions, while in primitive societies, clans and lineages play a more important role. Socialization is a slow process.

There is no fixed time regarding the beginning and the end of this process. However, some sociologists formulated different stages of socialization. These are (1) oral stage, (2) anal stage (3) oedipal stage, and (4) adolescence. In all these stages, especially in the first three, the main socializing agent is the family. The first stage is that of a new-born child when he is not involved in the family as a whole but only with his mother. He does not recognize anyone except his mother. The time at which the second stage begins is generally after first year and ends when the infant is around three. At this stage, the child separates the role of his mother and his own. Also during this time force is used on the child, that is, he is made to learn a few basic things. The third stage extends from about fourth year to 12th to 13th year, that is, till puberty. During this time, the child becomes a member of the family as a whole and identifies himself with the social role ascribed to him. The fourth stage begins at puberty when a child wants freedom from parental control. He has to choose a job and a partner for himself. He also learns about incest taboo.http://www.sociologyguide.com/basic-concepts/Socialization.php

“Becoming a Member of Society Through Socialization”From Caroline Hodges Persell. 1990. Chapter 5, pp. 98-107

inUnderstanding Society: An Introduction to Sociology. 3rd ed. New York, NY: Harper & Row, Publishers, Inc.

Socialization

A girl named Genie was found in the United States in 1970. Genie's father had kept her locked in a room from the age of 20 months until age 13. Genie was harnessed naked to an infant's potty seat and left alone for hours and days through the years. When she was remembered at night, she was put to bed in a homemade straitjacket. There were no radios or televisions in the house, people spoke in hushed tones, and the only language Genie heard was an occasional obscenity from her father. He hated noise, and if Genie made any sound her father would growl at her like a dog or beat her with a stick. As a result of her confinement, Genie could not walk and her eyes could not focus beyond the boundaries of her room. She was malnourished, incontinent, and salivated constantly [Curtiss, 1977]. Despite all this, when the psychologist Susan Curtiss first met her, Genie was alert, curious, and intensely eager for human contact. When frightened or frustrated she would erupt into silent frenzies of rage--flailing about, scratching, spitting, throwing objects, but never uttering a sound. Aside from not speaking, her lack of socialization was apparent in her behavior: She would urinate in unacceptable places, go up to someone in a store and take whatever she liked of theirs, and peer intently into the faces of strangers at close range. Although Curtiss worked with her for several years, Genie never developed language abilities beyond those of a 4-year-old, and she ended up being placed in an institution. The story of Genie shows the importance of socialization in human society.Socialization refers to preparing newcomers to become members of an existing group and to think, feel, and act in ways the group considers appropriate. Viewed from the group's point of view, it is a process of member replacement. Such widely diverse situations as child rearing, teaching someone a new game, orienting a new member of an organization, preparing someone who has been in sales work to become a manager, or acquainting an immigrant with the life and culture of a new society are all instances of socialization.Socialization is a central process in social life. Its importance has been noted by sociologists for a long time, but their image of it has shifted over the last hundred years.  In the early years of American sociology, socialization was equated with civilization. The issue was one of taming fierce individualists so they would willingly cooperate with others on common endeavors. An unruly human nature was assumed to exist prior to an individual's encounter with society. This nature had to be shaped to conform to socially acceptable ways of behaving.As time went on, however, socialization came to be seen more and more as the end result-- that is, as internalization. Internalization means taking social norms, roles, and values into one's own mind. Society was seen as the

primary factor responsible for how individuals learned to think and behave. This view is evident in the work of functionalist Talcott Parsons, who gave no hint that the result of socialization might be uncertain or might vary from person to person. If people failed to play their expected roles or behaved strangely, functionalists explained this in terms of incomplete or inadequate socialization. Such people were said to be "unsocialized"--they had not yet learned what was expected of them. The trouble is, they might very well know what was expected but simply be rejecting it. Someone who runs a red light, for example, knows perfectly well that one is not supposed to do that but is doing it anyway. The possibility that individuals might have needs, desires, values, or behaviors different from those that society expects (or demands) of them was not seriously considered by functionalists .As Parsons used the term "internalization," it referred to the tendency for individuals to accept particular values and norms and to conform to them in their conduct. Dennis Wrong (1961) deplored this view of internalization as being an "oversocialized" conception of human beings. It left no room for the "animal" or biological side of human existence, where motivational drives might conflict with the discipline of internalized social norms. Functionalists deny the presence in humans "of motivational forces bucking against the hold that social discipline has over them" (Wrong, 1961, p. 187). Individual drives do sometimes conflict with social expectations, however. For example, a common theme in movies and TV is that of married people becoming involved in sexual relationships with persons other than their spouses. They knowthey are not supposed to have an affair, but they do so anyway.Undoubtedly as a reaction to the overly determined Parsonian view of socialization, a group of interpretive sociologists has reasserted the independence of individuals . They reject Parsons's view of socialization as internalized values, norms, and habits, and they reject the notion of society as something out there (a given) that affects individuals the way Parsons suggested it did. The interpretive perspective sees socialization as an interactive process. Individuals negotiate their definitions of the situation with others. A couple, for example, may negotiate between themselves a conception of marriage that is sharply different from the view of marriage held by people in the larger society. The interpretive view offers an "undersocialized" view of human behavior, since it tends to minimize the importance of historical social structures and the deep internalization of social values and norms (Wentworth, 1980). But the innovative couple may find that their personally developed conception of marriage is challenged or undermined by friends, in-laws, legal systems, employers, or others.Both the functionalist and the interpretive views of socialization are incomplete. Each is relevant for understanding some features, but both tend to ignore other important aspects of social life. It is useful to combine the helpful points of each approach into a more complete view of socialization. Wentworth (1980) proposes exactly such a synthesis. He suggests that an adequate view of socialization must leave room for free will and human autonomy, though noting the patterned social structures and processes that influence individuals. Wentworth's combined view clarifies the socialization that occurs in families, schools, groups, sports teams, organizations, and

societies. We can distinguish three major aspects of socialization:1. The context in which it occurs2. The actual content and processes people use to socialize others3. The results arising from those contexts and processesThe context is like the theater or stage in which socialization occurs. Social context includes culture, language, and social structures such as the class, ethnic, and gender hierarchies of a society. Context also includes social and historical events, power and control in social life, and the people and institutions with whom individuals come in contact in the course of their socialization.The content and process of socialization is like the play, the lines, and the actors. It includes the structure of the socializing activity--how intense and prolonged it is, who does it, how it is done, whether it is a total experience or only a partial process, how aware the individual is of alternatives, and how attractive those alternatives are.Content refers specifically to what is passed from member to novice. Processes are those interactions that convey to new members how they are to speak, behave, think, and even feel. The view of socialization as an interactive process stands in contrast to the deterministic views of how socialization occurs. Old and new members interact, and in the process exercise mutual influence on each other.Outcomes may properly be defined as what happens later, after someone has been exposed to particular content and processes. New members may learn the behaviors, attitudes, and values that old members hoped they would learn. What do these include? First and foremost among humans is learning how to speak and to apply the rules of language to creating new sentences. Like learning to play chess, learning a language involves being shown some of the ways vocabulary and grammar can be combined (like learning how the various pieces can be moved in a chess game), and then creating one's own combinations from those possibilities. Closely related to learning to use a language is gaining a sense of the rules underlying a society's culture. Even learning to walk in an upright position appears to be the result of socialization.THE CONTEXT OF SOCIALIZATIONSocialization occurs within biological, psychological, and social contexts. Each of these offers possibilities and limitations that may influence socialization.The Biological Context Biological features are regularly suggested as sources of human behavior. Sociobiologists (see Chapter 3) suggest that some human capacities may be "wired into" our biological makeup. For example, even newborn babies seem to strive for maximum social interaction. They move their heads back and forth in burrowing or "rooting" motions looking for milk; they have powerful, grasping fingers that cling tightly to other human fingers or bodies; and they move so as to maximize body contact with their caregivers. These facts suggest that infants are born wanting human contact.Sociobiologists argue that traits which aid survival and reproduction (like learning not to eat things that induce vomiting) will survive, whereas others (like unusual whiteness in certain animals, which makes them easier prey)

will tend to die out. Although this evidence suggests that biological factors clearly play a role in development, it does not show that all human behavior is biologically determined. Biology sets the stage, on which a very broad range of human behavior occurs. Most or all of the important differences between societies are due to social rather than biological factors.As educators have become more aware of children with "learning disabilities," they have begun to wonder if some conditions, such as those labeled "dyslexia" (that is, the inability to grasp the meaning of something one reads) are due to the incomplete development of certain nerve pathways in the brain that may scramble signals on the way to the brain, making it likely that children will "see" bs instead of ds, qs rather than ps, and so forth. Such problems may be part of the biological context of socialization. They may interact in significant ways with psychological and social factors during socialization and have important effects on the outcomes-- for example, if children are labeled retarded or develop a sense of worthlessness, they may be less likely to learn.In short, biology provides rich potential for becoming human and may present general tendencies, such as the tendency to seek out social interaction or to use language, but it does not determine the particular form such social development takes.The Psychological Context Emotional States and the Unconscious The primary factor in the psychological context of socialization is the psychological state of the person being socialized. Psychological states include feelings such as fear, anger, grief, love, and happiness or a sense of emotional deprivation. Strongly feeling one or more of these emotions might very well inhibit or promote socialization of a particular kind. Fear may make it difficult for young children to be socialized in school, whereas people in love may leant very quickly what makes their loved ones happy. Emotions can also influence how individuals perceive the content of socialization, whether in becoming a member of a family group or a religious sect. Knowing something about the feelings of the people involved (the psychological context) helps explain the results of the socialization process.Cognitive Development Theories A number of psychologists emphasize the series of stages through which humans progress. Although emotional concerns can be involved, these theorists focus oncognitive (intellectual) development, which occurs in a systematic, universal sequence through a series of stages. The most influential theorist of intellectual development was the Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget. A sharp observer of children's development, Piaget stressed that children need to master the skills and operations of one stage of intellectual development before they are able to learn something at the next stage.Whether or not they all agree on the unfolding of specific stages, cognitive development theorists see children as increasingly trying to make sense of their social worlds as they grow up. Children try to see patterns in the way things happen.Social contexts influence individual development. Culture exists before the socialization of new members begins. Parents, for example, do not need to

decide alone what they arc going to teach their children, since much of what they will pass along they have themselves learned through socialization. Besides culture, individuals are affected by social and historical events and by a number of individuals who actively try to socialize them.Social and Historical Events Major social and historical events can be a force in socializing an entire generation. Such major events as the Great Depression of the 1930s, the Holocaust in Europe during World War II, or the civil rights movement that took shape in the United States in the 1960s have profound implications for individual socialization. Elder (1974) compared children whose families were very poor during the 1930s with others whose families were more comfortable. Those suffering greater deprivation depended less on formal education for their life achievements and more on effort and accomplishment outside of education. Their health as adults tended to be affected negatively by their economic hardships. Finally, they tended to value marriage and family more highly as a result of their economic deprivation (Elder, 1974). Thus individuals who live in extraordinary times appear to be influenced by the historical events around them.Participants in Socialization Obviously, parents and the immediate family of infants are important to their early care and development. Major changes in the family are increasing the importance of other caregivers as well. Teachers and schools transmit formal skills, knowledge, and social values. As infants mature, they have more and more contact with other children their age, called peers. Inevitably, children are affected by the community and nation in which they are reared. Children in the United States today spend a great deal of time with the mass media. Radio, movies, and-- most significantly--television have transformed the way we experience the world and what we know about it.THE FAMILY. In rural societies, children have most of their early social contact with the family. Today, however, the family's importance in the child's life is changing. The American family no longer necessarily conforms to the stereotypical nuclear family with two parents and two or more dependent children. Fewer than one family in five consists of a working father, full-time homemaker mother, and at least one child. There are more and more single-parent families, and 56 percent of all mothers with children under 6 years old are working (U. S. Bureau of the Census, 1985a, p. 399). More and more children are receiving their early and primary care from others in addition to their parents. What are the effects on young children of having only one parent in the home? Of having a mother who works outside the home? One study suggests that single parents with adequate financial and emotional support are able to raise their children quite effectively (Monaghan-Leckband, 1978).Although most children growing up in America today will spend a great deal of time with people other than members of their families, this does not mean that the participation of families in socialization has ended.On the contrary, the family continues to be a major means of passing on values, attitudes, and behaviors. As we saw in Chapter 1, in the case of Alex and Alice as compared to Albert and his wife, family origin does a great deal

to shape a child's social opportunities, resources, and experience. Different social positions may be related to different socialization for children even when they live in the same society.DAY CARE. Nearly 10 million children 5 years old or younger have mothers who work away from home. This includes 48 percent of the mothers of children 3 years old or younger. For these children, day care is an important agent of socialization. In 1982 there were more than 30,000 day-care centers, ranging from informal arrangements at the home of a neighbor to large nurseries run by schools, churches, charities, corporations, and occasionally employers (Lindsey, 1984). Figure 5.1 shows the primary childcare arrangements for children under age 5 whose mothers work outside the home.When the ratio of staff to children is at least one to ten or lower, when the groups of children are not larger than 20, and when caregivers are trained in early childhood development and are attentive to the children, the children who attend day care do very well (Collins, 1984; Lindsey, 1984). Children from very low income families have benefited considerably over the long term as a result of federally financed Head Start and other early day-care programs (Deutsch et al., 1985; Schweinhart and Weikart, 1987).SCHOOLS. As societies become more complex and there is a greater division of labor, family members cannot spend all day every day teaching children what they need to know to function effectively as adults in society. Therefore, most societies have established schools to teach youngsters certain skills. Schools teach values and attitudes as well. These values and attitudes include, for example, competitiveness or cooperation, conformity or innovation.Schools try to impress upon children the importance of working for rewards, and they try to teach neatness, punctuality, orderliness, and respect for authority. Teachers are called upon to evaluate how well children perform a particular task or how much skill they have. Thus, in school, children's relationships with adults move from nurture and behavioral concerns to performance of tasks and skills determined by others.PEERS. A peer group consists of friends and associates who are about the same age and social status. As children get older, going to school brings them into regular contact with other children of their age. As early as first or second grade, children form social groups. In these early peer groups, children learn to share toys and other scarce resources (such as the teacher's attention). Peers may reinforce behaviors that are stressed by parents and schools--for example, whether it is all right to hit someone else and what arc acceptable behaviors for boys and girls. As children move through school, the interests of peer groups may diverge more and more from those of adults. This is particularly true of the United States but seems also to be the case in certain socialist societies today. Youthful concerns may center on popular music and movies, sports, sex, or illegal activities. Parents and teachers, on the other hand, want children to do schoolwork, help at home, and "stay out of trouble." Peer groups may provide social rewards--praise, prestige, and attention--to individuals for doing things adults disapprove of.In the former Soviet Union, the peer group was used by authorities to

reinforce the behaviors and attitudes they desire. For example, if a child camesto school late, it was not only the teacher who noted this (perhaps by praising children who are on time) but also those in the child's row in the classroom, who might be enlisted to urge the child to come to school on time (Bronfenbrenner, 1970). Peer sanctions (punishments) are particularly effective. In Israel, for instance, in a collective farm group, a child who breaks a rule such as using a tractor when it is not allowed and damaging the machine in the process may be formally ostracized for some time. During this period the other children will not speak to or play with the child. Although effective in achieving social goals, the united effect of peer and official authority is more powerful and painful than official authority alone for the individual who does not conform. In our society, adolescents are heavily influenced by their peers when it comes to dress, musical fads, cheating, and drug use. In making their future life plans, however, they are influenced more by their parents than by their peers (Davies and Kandel, 1981; Kandel and Lesser, 1972; Krosnick and Judd, 1982; Williams, 1972). Girls seem to be somewhat more influenced in their future life plans by peers than are boys (Bush, 1985; Davies and Kandel, 1981; Simmons et al., 1979).COMMUNITY AND COUNTRY. Every society tries to influence how young people grow up. Much of this influence is expressed through parents, schools, and peers, but it is worth considering for a moment how children become exposed to the political and economic ideas that are considered important for citizens of a particular country.Children learn political information and attitudes rapidly during the elementary school years, particularly between fourth and fifth grades (Hess and Torney, 1967). One of the first things they learn is that they belong to some kind of a political unit. Even very young children develop a sense of "we" in relation to their own country and learn to see other countries in terms of"they." Children also tend to believe that their own country and language are superior to others. This bond may be the most critical socialization feature relating to the political life of the nation (Hess and Torney, 1967). The family helps provide this basic loyalty to country, but the school also shapes the political concepts that expand and develop children's early feelings of attachment. Political orientations develop early and reach nearly adult levels by the end of elementary school, but there are still some critical changes that occur at other points during the life cycle. High school students become more aware of differences between political parties and tend to become more active politically. In the first decade of adult life people modify their political orientations as they take on new occupational and family roles (Jennings and Niemi, 1968).Children form economic ideas fairly early in life. One study examined how youngsters are socialized into capitalism. When third-graders were compared with twelfth-graders, the older students were found to hold more negative attitudes toward labor unions and more favorable attitudes toward business than did the younger children (Cummings and Taebel, 1978), suggesting that, over time, they developed attitudes that were more favorable toward capitalism, perhaps because of what they learned at school, from the media, or at home.MASS MEDIA. The mass media include many forms of communication--

such as books, magazines, radio, television, and movies--that reach large numbers of people without personal contact between senders and receivers. In the last few decades, children have been dramatically socialized by one source in particular: television. Studies have found that children spend more time watching TV than they spend in school.It seems unbelievable that in 1945 the pollster George Gallup asked Americans, "Do you know what television is?" Now virtually every American home has at least one television set, and the average set is on almost 7 hours a day (Comstock et al., 1978). How has this transformation affected children? Reports vary, but children in the fifth to eighth grades view an average of 4 to 6 hours daily (B. S. Greenberg and Dervin, 1970; Lyle and Hoffman, 1972). Most of the research on the effects of television has been on the cognitive and behavioral results of TV watching. The topic most often studied has been the influence of television on antisocial behavior, especially violence. Current research supports the view that seeing violence on television increases the chance that a child will be aggressive (Comstock et al., 1978). No publicly available studies unambiguously relate changes in behavior (such as food habits or drug use) to exposure to television advertising (Comstock et al., 1978) .Research also suggests that young people obtain considerable political and social information from television, but that how they perceive the information depends largely on parental influence (Comstock et al., 1978). For example, during the Vietnam War, television was the most important source of public information about the war. Yet how young people felt about it-- whether they favored or opposed it--seemed to be influenced more by their parents than by the opinions presented on television. Those who opposed the war interpreted the news on TV as opposing the war, whereas those favoring it saw the news as favoring it (Comstock et al., 1978).Most researchers studying the effects of television on children have focused on the content of the programs and not on the total experience of television watching. They argue that there is too much violence and sex on children's programs and that more good educational programs for children are needed.Winn (1977) suggests that the experience of watching television itself is limiting. When people watch television, no matter what the program, they are simply watchers and are not having any other experience. According to Winn, and many agree, children need to develop family relationships, the capacity for self direction, and the basic skills of communication (reading, writing, and speaking); to discover their own strengths and limitations, and to learn the rules that keep social interaction alive. Television works against all these goals by putting children in a passive situation where they do not speak, interact, experiment, explore, or do anything else active because they are watching a small moving picture on a machine. This research shows the growing importance of television as a medium of socialization, although clearly it is only one among a number of important influences.Social Position as Part of the Context Your family's social class, economic position, and ethnic background--as well as your gender--can affect the ways in which you will be socialized. People in more advantageous positions, like Alice and Alex in Chapter 1, tend to

develop higher self-evaluations. As a result, they feel justified in having more resources. Similarly, those in less desired positions tend to have lower self-evaluations and may feel that their lower status is deserved (Della Fave, 1980).Sociologists ask if children in different social classes are socialized differently. For instance are middle-class children socialized differently from lower-class children? If so, why and how? Middle-class parents are slightly less likely to use physical punishment than are lower-class parents (Gecas, 1979). Middle-class parents appear to be more concerned about their children's intentions than with the negative consequences of their actions. Thus, if a child breaks a dish a middle-class parent will be concerned with whether he or she did it "on purpose" or whether it was an accident, and the reaction will vary accordingly. Lower-class parents tend to react in about the same way whatever the intention of the child (Kohn, 1969).These differences in parental response may stem from the life situations of people in different classes. Different parental experiences in the occupational world color the view of what children need to learn (Kohn, 1969, 1976; Kohn and Schooler, 1983; Pearlin, 1971).Parents who are closely supervised on the job (more often blue-collar workers) value conformity more than do less supervised parents (usually white-collar workers). Both blue- and white-collar parents increasingly prefer more autonomy in their children, at least in the Detroit area (Alwin, 1984).Cross-cultural studies show that members of agrarian and herding societies (where food can be accumulated and stored) tend to emphasize compliance in their socialization practices. In societies where food cannot be stored (as in hunting, gathering, or fishing economies), members more often stress individual achievement and self-reliance (Barry, Child, and Bacon, 1959).Political structure may also be related to socialization practices. Autocratic states tend to have more "severe" socialization, show clear power and deference relationships, and stress obedience (Stephens, 1963). The Soviet Union, for example, works harder to socialize children to conformity than does the United States (Bronfenbrenner, 1970) . By way of contrast, tribal societies that lack a centralized or autocratic political system allow children to be less obedient and less conforming (Stephens, 1963).All these studies suggest that parents value different traits for their children, depending on the economic, political, and social situations they face. In general, when adults have more opportunities for self-determination, they value and try to develop greater self-reliance in their children (Ellis, Lee, and Petersen, 1978). All groups try to socialize their children as well as they can, but they stress different behaviors, depending on what they see as needed in their own situation. Just as different societies may see the need for different behaviors and skills in their children, subgroups within society may do the same thing. They try to prepare their children as well as possible for the positions they are likely to hold.References

Alwin, Duane F. 1984. “Trends in Parental Socializaiton Values: Detroit, 1958-1983.”American Journal of Sociology 90: 359-82.Barry, Herbert III. Irvin Child, and Maragaret Bacon. 1959. “Relationship of

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