Transcript What makes you you? - New Providence School

Unit 3 Socializing the Individual:
What makes you you?
How did you become the person you are.
Think about:
-Parents: How much are you like them physically
/ personality
-Sense of Humor: where did it come from?
-Did where you grew up shape you?
-Did your Ethnic Background shape you?
- Did major life events: tragedies / victories
shape you?
What makes you you?
•NATURE VS. NURTURE: Are you the product of
your GENETIC INHERITANCE (Nature)
or your ENVIRONMENT (Nurture)?
•SOCIOBIOLOGISTS: Biology (genetics, nature) is
the basis of most social behavior
•Most sociologists reject the purely socio-biological approach;
to them social factors (nurture) are key factors influencing
personality and social behavior
• John Locke’s theory:
Tabula Rosa: Locke
believed that we are born
with no personality, that
all is learned (super nurture)
• WHO IS RIGHT?????????
Self Test
• What personality traits of your parents do
you think you share?
• Do you believe those traits can be traced to
nature or nurture?
• Which factor is more powerful: nature or
nurture?
• Why would a sociobiologist disagree with
John Locke?
• How would you predict the oldest child in a
family would be different from the youngest?
The Social Self
•Socialization: Interactive
process by which
individuals learn the
norms, values and
behavior patterns of
society.
A Lack of Socialization leads to
Social Isolation
• Human contact is critical to normal
human development.
• Isolated Children ( Wild or Feral
Children) have been documented and
the developmental damage done to
them is usually severe.
How does when shape who?
• BIRTH ORDER: When you were born affects
who you are
• FIRST BORN: ACHIEVEMENT ORIENTED,
COOPERATIVE, CAUTIOUS
• LATER BORN: MORE SOCIAL, AFFECTIONATE,
FRIENDLY, CREATIVE
The Looking Glass Self
•The belief that we
develop an image of
ourselves based on how
we imagine we appear to
other people.
• Closely related to the SelfFulfilling Prophecy
AGENTS OF SOCIALIZATION
• FAMILY: Most important!
• PEER / SCHOOL: Next significant
agent in socialization beginning at
age 5 (school)
• MASS MEDIA: Music, Television, Films
• RELIGION
• SOCIAL ORGANIZATIONS: Girl
Scouts, Sports, Chess club
RESOCIALIZATION
• Changing the Norms and Values of your
initial SOCIALIZATION process and
adopting a new set of Norms and Values
example: Military Boot Camp
• TOTAL INSTITUTION: When individuals
are isolated from society (by choice or
force) and adapt to new norms and values
example: Prisons, Monastaries
Rites of Passage
• The transition from one developmental
period to another is often recognized and
celebrated by the social group.
• Puberty is recognized in most cultures as
the entrance into the world of adulthood,
and usually is accompanied by a “rite of
passage”
• Rites of Passage are usually social events
and vary based on cultural norms and
gender.
Gender Roles and Socialization
• "Sex" refers to the biological and physiological
characteristics that define men and women.
• "Gender" refers to the socially constructed roles, behaviors,
activities, and attributes that a given society considers
appropriate for men and women.
• Each society creates its own rules about appropriate Gender
Roles
• Traditional gender roles that emerged in our society were
based on women as mothers and fathers at providers
• Societies frequently limit acceptable roles for either sex based
on their perceived gender roles
Teen Suicide
The stress of adolescence triggers teens
to commit suicide in numbers
disproportionate to the general
population
Sociology and Suicide
• Although suicide is generally the act of
individuals
• strong social forces influence the decision
to commit suicide.
Teen Suicide
Extreme levels of
- Group identification or
- Isolation
both predictors of greater incidence of teen
suicide.
1. Very high levels of integration = the group is
more important than the individual LESS
COMMON IN OUR CULTURE
Teen Suicide
• 2. Low levels of social interaction = predictor
of suicide (low interaction is the BY FAR THE
stronger factor)
Teen Suicide
• CLUSTER EFFECT: Adolescent suicide can
trigger other suicides within the
adolescent community.
• Characteristics of Adolescents:
– Biological growth and development
– Undefined status
– Increased decision making
– Increased Pressure
– The Search for Self
The Elderly
Baby Boom: 1946 – 1964
The Baby Boomers are now
starting to retire
People used to live about 11 years
after retirement. Now that can be
expected to live 20 years or more
after retiring
Implications
• Seniors do not save enough money for a long
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retirement
Poor health and medical expenses increase as we age
Pension and Social Security funds will go broke to
paying for these long-lived retirees.
Seniors re-enter the job market and compete against
the young and uneducated for entry level jobs
Elder abuse: Number of elderly will strain care
facilities and the quality of these facilities will drop
Elder Fraud: Older people fall victim to fraud,
deception, and scams.