History response 17 - Assignment Example

Socialization The two concepts that I derive from the reading, “What we Really Miss about the 1950s?” by  Stephanie Coontz, are that of family and that of culture. Culture refers to the values that members of a certain group prescribe to, hold dear, the norms that such as group follows and the material good they create. Culture is closely associated with socialization; different variation that humans have are linked to various types of societies. In fact, without society, culture cannot exist; also, without culture, no society can exist, as such socialization cannot occur.

Family, on the other hand, is the basic unit of society. The concept of family is important in understanding socialization since it is one of the most important agents of socialization that every one person is subjected to; in fact, it is the basis through which one is introduced to the values, norms, beliefs, interpersonal relationships, and opinions. From the TED Talk; I gathered that education and technology, which are important tenets of culture, play a critical role in socialization. The social realities that people are faced with, taught or experience, usually shape their understanding of their cultures.

It is true that people always interpret their social actions through morals, norms, sentiments, and values, as the essence of social life (Grusec and Hastings 83). Family socialization alone cannot influence the upbringing of a child, social institutions and formal education also plays a major role in the shaping of the life of a person. It is worth, reiterating that socialization is that process through which people acculturate, people learn about their society’s norms, values, and beliefs.

It is through socialization that a person can bear resemblance to another person; this is why a person is usually defined as being normal on the basis of the beliefs, standards and norms of the society that he is in (Grusec and Hastings 102).People are indirectly and directly influenced by the education they acquire from school, the family, church, media, as well as peer groups. Family, as a unit of socialization imparts beliefs, sociological or otherwise in on children through its acceptance, biases or approval of certain beliefs, values, or ideologies.

The fundamental scope of socialization, however, remains embedded in culturalization; it is a lifelong happening (Grusec and Hastings 112). The culturalization of persons is achieved through a myriad of social institutions in the society, of which the family, church, and school are part of. Thus, it is clear to note that the process of socialization is multispatial; it encompasses political institutions as well. Polity agents that play a part in culturalization are important in the process of socialization, especially of man.

This is because, man relies on political institution for many aspects of his/her, and thus this institution contributes, considerably to the perspectives and beliefs that an individual forms with regards to his/her society; politically and socially. Therefore, socialization cannot be considered to be linked to the primary agent, the family, alone.Work CitedCoontz, Stephanie. “What We Really Miss About the 1950s.” The Way We Really Are: Coming to Terms with America’s Changing Families.

New York, NY: Basic Books, 1997. 33–50. Print.Grusec, Joan E., and Paul D. Hastings. Handbook of Socialization: Theory and Research. New York: Guilford Press, 2007. Print.