Agencies of Socialisation - Class 11 PDF Download

Agencies of Socialisation: Family, School, Peer Groups and Mass Media!

In general, it may be said that the total society is the agency for socia­lisation and that each person with whom one comes into contact and interact is in some way an agent of socialisation. Socialisation is found in all interactions but the most influential interaction occurs in particular groups which are referred to as agencies of socialisation.

The oblivious beginning of the process for the new-born child is-his immediate family group, but this is soon extended to many other groups. Other than the family, the most important are the schools, the peer groups (friends circle) and the mass media.

The family:

The child’s first world is that of his family. It is a world in itself, in which the child learns to live, to move and to have his being. Within it, not only the biological tasks of birth, protection and feeding take place, but also develop those first and intimate associations with persons of different ages and sexes which form the basis of the child’s personality development.

The family is the primary agency of socialisation. It is here that the child develops an initial sense of self and habit-training—eating, sleeping etc. To a very large extent, the indoctrination of the child, whether in primitive or modem complex society, occurs within the circle of the primary family group. The child’s first human relation­ships are with the immediate members of his family—mother or nurse, siblings, father and other close relatives.

Here, he experiences love, cooperation, authority, direction and protection. Language (a particular dialect) is also learnt from family in childhood. People’s perceptions of behaviour appropriate of their sex are the result of socialisation and major part of this is learnt in the family.

As the primary agents of childhood socialisation, parents play a critical role in guiding children into their gender roles deemed appropriate in a society. They continue to teach gender role behaviour either consciously or unconsciously, throughout childhood. Families also teach children values they will hold throughout life. They frequently adopt their parents’ attitudes not only about work but also about the importance of education, patriotism and religion.

School:

After family the educational institutions take over the charge of socialisation. In some societies (simple non-literate societies), sociali­sation takes place almost entirely within the family but in highly complex societies children are also socialised by the educational system. Schools not only teach reading, writing and other basic skills, they also teach students to develop themselves, to discipline themselves, to cooperate with others, to obey rules and to test their achievements through competition.

Schools teach sets of expecta­tions about the work, profession or occupations they will follow when they mature. Schools have the formal responsibility of imparting knowledge in those disciplines which are most central to adult functioning in our society. It has been said that learning at home is on a personal, emotional level, whereas learning at school is basically intellectual.

Peer group:

Besides the world of family and school fellows, the peer group (the people of their own age and similar social status) and playmates highly influence the process of socialisation. In the peer group, the young child learns to confirm to the accepted ways of a group and to appreciate the fact that social life is based on rules. Peer group becomes significant others in the terminology of G.H. Mead for the young child. Peer group socialisation has been increasing day by day these days.

Young people today spend considerable time with one another outside home and family. Young people living in cities or suburbs and who have access to automobiles spend a great deal of time together away from their families. Studies show that they create their own unique sub-cultures—the college campus culture, the drug culture, motorcycle cults, athletic group culture etc. Peer groups serve a valuable function by assisting the transition to adult responsi­bilities.

Teenagers imitate their friends in part because the peer group maintains a meaningful system of rewards and punishments. The group may encourage a young person to follow pursuits that society considers admirable.

On the other hand, the group may encourage someone to violate the culture’s norms and values by driving recklessly, shoplifting, stealing automobiles, engaging in acts of vandalism and the like. Some studies of deviant behaviour show that the peer group influence to cultivate behaviour patterns is more than the family.

Why do some youths select peer groups which generally support the socially approved adult values while others choose peer groups which are at war with adult society? The choice seems to be related to self-image. Perhaps, this dictum works—”seeing- is behaving”. How do we see ourselves is how we behave.

The habitual delinquent sees himself as unloved, unworthy, unable, unaccepted and unappreciated. He joins with other such deprived youths in a delinquent peer group which reinforces and sanctions his resentful and aggressive behaviour. The law-abiding youth sees himself as loved, worthy, able, accepted and appreciated. He joins with other such youths in a conforming peer group which reinforces socially approved behaviour.

Mass media:

From early forms of print technology to electronic communication (radio, TV, etc.), the media is playing a central role in shaping the personality of the individuals. Since the last century, technological innovations such as radio, motion pictures, recorded music and television have become important agents of socialisation.

Television, in particular, is a critical force in the socialisation of children almost all over the new world. According to a study conducted in America, the average young person (between the ages of 6 and 18) spends more time watching the ‘tube’ (15,000 to 16,000 hours) than studying in school. Apart from sleeping, watching television is the most time-consuming activity of young people.

Relative to other agents of socialisation discussed above, such as family, peer group and school, TV has certain distinctive character­istics. It permits imitation and role playing but does not encourage more complex forms of learning. Watching TV is a passive experience. Psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner (1970) has expressed concern about the ‘insidious influence’ of TV in encouraging children to forsake human interaction for passive viewing.

Workplace:

A fundamental aspect of human socialisation involves learning to behave appropriately within an occupation. Occupational sociali­sation cannot be separated from the socialisation experience that occurs during childhood and adolescence. We are mostly exposed to occupational roles through observing the work of our parents, of people whom we meet while they are performing their duties, and of people portrayed in the media.

The state:

Social scientists have increasingly recognised the importance of the state as an agent of socialisation because of its growing impact on the life cycle. The protective functions, which were previously performed by family members, have steadily been taken over by outside agencies such as hospitals, health clinics and insurance companies. Thus, the state has become a provider of child care, which gives it a new and direct role in the socialisation of infants and young children.

Not only this, as a citizen, the life of a person is greatly influenced by national interests. For example, labour unions and political parties serve as intermediaries between the individual and the state. By regulating the life cycle to some degree, the state shapes the station process by influencing our views of appropriate behaviour at particular ages.