Write
short notes on the following:
a)
Primary socialization and Secondary Socialization
While many clusters of people are loosely understood
as groups in everyday
Conversation,
the term strictly from a sociological view point can be defined as s set of
persons who have common interests, as patterned behaviour, who interact with
each other in such as the members fell a strong connection to the collection
and can justify use the term “us.”
From this broad collection Charles Cooley further distinguished two types of groups: the primary group and the secondary group. Cooley’s Primary Group is characterized by face to face interaction, emotional support, a place where there member is recognized as an individual, exhibits spontaneous behaviour and is seen as an en in themselves. One major primary group is the family and to some extent the peer group.
On the other hand secondary groups
are characterized by distance sometimes—meaning there is little opportunity for
intimate communication, members are sometimes typed instead of seen as
individuals, behaviour is planned and patterned and most importantly they are
task driven. Such groups include, political arties, the wider peer group and
co-worker. Even though there is a clear distinction between primary and
secondary groups, sometimes the increase level of interaction between members
in a secondary group can transform it into a primary group for example the peer
group.
b)
Ethnocentrism and Cultural Relativism
Structural Functionalists regard culture as the “
glue that hold society together,”
considering
that culture is that all encompassing entity that regulates how members of
society think and act, they may indeed be correct. Because different cultures are associated with different societies this often leads to many problems when members of one society travels elsewhere.
Ethnocentrism is the belief that
one’s own culture is right and as such, judges other cultures by their own
cultural standards. For example in India the cow is a sacred animal and not to
be harmed, they may look at Westerners who consume large amounts of beef
everyday as unholy or profane individuals. Ethnocentrism also poses a problem
when people travel expecting to encounter their own “right” culture in a
foreign land. When their expectations prove false, culture shock takes place,
which can be very paralysing for many people.
Nevertheless these difficulties are
avoidable if members engage in cultural relativism, the act of judging another
culture by that culture’s standards. For instance the Indians previously
mentioned would not overwhelmingly regard us Westerners as unclean of unholy
because that or our beef eating practices, but they would recognize that we are
simply carrying out normative behaviour as it relates to out culture. Culture
Relativism require that persons strip themselves of their culturally biased
value which they have know all their lives and understand someone else’s
culture. This is a very hard feat and so may people are unable or unwilling to
do so, hence continuing many misunderstandings.
c)
Why is socialization important? Discuss with reference to the role of
the following agents of socialization; (i) the church and (ii) peer groups.
Socialization is the process by which members of a
given society learn the way(s) of life of their society. Without socialization,
new members would learn nothing or very little about their environment and then
disorder would reign, leading to the complete breakdown of society. Not only is
socialization important for the wider society, but it is so for the individual.
Many regard it as the process by which we become human, if socialization is the
means by which we acquire the skills to function in society—such as language,
beliefs, ideas etc. then without it we would simply be only shells of persons.
The point is strengthened when one considers the stories of Genie, Anna and
Isabella, al children who were locked away for many years without the
interaction that socialization offers. As a result they showed extremely
juvenile mental abilities even when ell into adolescence.
This all important function is carried out by many
institutions and/or agents in society. The church is one such agent. Its role
in the socialization process is to inculcate the more moral aspect of society
into the individuals. It is a secondary agent that—like the school—helps the
individual to internalise the universalistic values of society in order to
continue the social stability. Nevertheless, this agent has lost some of its
influence in recent years due to the far-reaching seductive influences of other
agents—such as the Mass Media.
Peer groups are a more emotional setting for
individuals to learn about themselves. It allows individual members of society
to develop and identity away from the family and wider society that they can
call their own. In my opinion it is the agent that best exemplifies Mead’s
argument that who we are is as a consequence of social experience. While other
agents overtly instruct the members of society how to behave, the peer group is
a free flowing body that allows the member somewhat unrestricted learning.
Socialisation and by extension its agents form a
vital part of the existence and continuation of society.