Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
5.3 Agents of Socialisation, School, Workplace, Religion, Government, Mass…
-
School
Most students in the UK spend around 5-6 hours a day in school. Schools provide a latent function in society by socialising children into behaviours like teamwork, following a schedule and using textbooks. Schools also socialise children by teaching them overtly about citizenship and nationalism.
Workplace
Most adults spend a significant amount of their time at their workplace. Although they have been influenced by many other factors during their younger years, they still gain another level of socialisation from their peers during their time at work. This is due to the variation in behaviours required during a work environment. For example, when working in a office there are many skills which will need to be developed such as learning how to use new forms of word processing or the new printer. In addition to this, behavioural development will occur from spending time in the workplace, such as understanding how to speak to the boss respectfully in comparison to speaking to your co workers more casually. As many people in this generation often posses multiple jobs within their lifetime, we often become socialised to multiple job environments during our time in employment.
Religion
Religion is a highly influential and socialised part of many people's lives. Many places such as synagogues, churches and mosques are places for people to gather and learn. Due to this, many people gain their values through the teachings of their religion, which often reinforce stereotypical norms within society such as gender stereotypes and power dynamics, specifically within the family.
Government
The government provides our country with the law and rules of society. Typically, we do not realise that our norms have been established by them in the first place. To be defined as an “adult” usually means being 18 years old, the age at which a person becomes legally responsible for themselves. And 65 is the start of “old age” since most people become eligible for senior benefits at that point. Whether you are an adult, a student etc, we are all socialised into these roles throughout our lifetime and we don't even realise.
Mass Media
This is widely distributed impersonal information which often influences many social norms in todays society. It is spread through television, newspapers and the internet which often set standards for those who consume it. Often without realising, mass media affects our personal norms and views through the media we consume daily. This media causes us to set new standards and can alter our self perception drastically.
Family
Family is the first agent of socialisation. Parents teach us everything we need to know from a young age. For example: they read story books, interact using toys and help us learn everyday things. Throughout the decades, the way a child is brought up has changed. Sixty years ago it was not strict to hit a child as punishment whereas now it is considered abuse. Our norms and values are purely influenced by our parents at an early stage.
Peer Groups
A peer group is made up of people who are similar in age and social status and who share interests. Group socialisations usually begins in the earliest years, such as when children are playing together in school. As children grow into teenagers, this process continues. Peer groups help build confidence and independence. Peer groups provide first major socialisation outside the realm of their families.
-
-
-
The social institutions of our culture also inform our socialisation. Formal institutions—like schools, workplaces, and the government—teach people how to behave in and navigate these systems. Other institutions, like the media, contribute to socialisation by inundating us with messages about norms and expectations.
-
-
-
-