Political Socialisation - Essay Example

Political Socialisation In what ways does the process of political socialisation militate against large numbers of women in politics? Introduction The process of political socialisation has long been regarded as one of the major threats to the inclusion and free performance of large numbers of women in politics. It also has resulted in several types of decayed practices in the political and social spheres of the modern nations and political thinkers have been almost unanimous about the defects of the system. “Political socialization is the processes through which people acquire knowledge and attitudes about politics.” (Britain: Political Culture and Political Socialization). Political socialisation is a process that can be conceived both narrowly and broadly. In the narrow perspective, it is the purposeful inculcation of political knowledge, values and practices by the formal agencies and agents who are appointed with this responsibility, whereas it, in its broader perspective, includes all types of political as well as non-political learning which influences the learning of politically relevant attitudes and the growth of politically relevant group and individual behaviour. “It is scarcely a dazzling insight to suggest that, in all nations and all empires, political socialisation has had most often as its purpose acceptance of the dominant ideology, promotion of compliance with the prevailing social order and its values, adjustment to its economic, political and military requirements and rejection of alternatives.” (Mangan P. 2). Therefore, it is pertinent to comprehend that the dominant groups in politics attempts first to act as innovatory which finally turn out to become a conserving influence. This process results in the sidelining of the different sects of people in politics on the basis of gender, etc and thus the process of political socialisation militate against large numbers of women in politics. In this paper, a reflective analysis of the process of political socialisation is carried out so as to determine how this process affects large numbers of women in politics, especially in the background of British politics. The process of political socialisation and women in politics One of the major criticisms against the process of political socialisation has been that it adversely affects the large numbers of women in politics and the recent evidences from the politics of world nations substantiate this view. Politics is all about power and power relationships and the people who enjoy power have always been superior in politics. The process of political socialisation has the power of defining the relationships among the members of the society and this process decides the matters and topics of political discussions. “The process of political socialisation invariably involves the power to define relationships ‘including the capacity to nominate others as equal or unequal memorable or abject, discusser or the discussed.’” (Mangan P. 2). In this process of political socialisation, the involvement of women in the political matters is greatly affected. In the social system of the day, men are always regarded as the superior gender that have the potential in determining the course of political and social destinies of a nation and the role of women has been sidelined. The impact of the process of political socialisation on the status of the large number of women in politics is largely due to the interference of society in the long process of political socialisation. Political and feminist thinkers from time to time have been in criticism on the process of political socialisation which deteriorates the role of female politicians all over the world. Kate Millett has been an acute critic of this process which, according to her, subjugates the female gender to the superiority of the opposite gender. Thus, Millett has described the female’s ‘consent’ to the male-over-female paradigm “as a process of socialisation in which women were constrained to be passive, ignorant, valued if at all for bearing children, a function shared with animals; men were distinguished by the distinctly human characteristics.” (Cowley 2003. P 20). According to her, women have been socialised to recognize the superiority of men as well as their own inferiority, and the assertions of male biological superiority justified this feeling. “Patriarchy itself was seen as inevitably derived from the superior physical strength of the male. Millett went on to hypothesise a civilisation that was pre-patriarchy; if this civilisation existed, she reasoned, then male strength could not be the signature reason for patriarchy.” (Cowley 2003. P 20). Therefore, the political as well as feminist thinkers have long condemned the process of political socialisation which, due to its long process of make-believe, results in the low participation of women in the political process. It is pertinent to realise the realities of political participation of women all over the world and an end to the underrepresentation of women in the political systems of nations has been a long-heard plea of the feminist activists. “The core of the problem of the under-representation of women in politics is that it is such a persistent phenomenon as well as a global one. According to the Inter Parliamentary Union ... in the 183 existing parliaments in the world as of 31 May 2004 ... only 15 per cent of legislators are women.” (Leyenaar 2004. P. 1). Therefore, the status of women in political circles is affected all over the world due mainly to the impact of political socialisation and this impact of the process is at a high rate in almost all the European nations. The impact of political socialisation on the women of the European nations in general and England in particular has been huge which has remained one of the major topics of international discussions and researches. “The problem of ensuring that women are at the heart of political decision-making is now very topical in Europe. This is because, despite all the international agreements, the research, the recommendations and the untold other efforts, the participation of women in political bodies remains low in all European countries. (Leyenaar 2004. P. 1). It is, therefore, most pertinent to relate here that the influence of the process of political socialisation is most evident in the examples of European politics in general and that of England in particular. A more relevant consideration in this study has been connected with the various ways in which the process of political socialisation militates against large numbers of women in politics. In such an analysis of the various factors in the process of political socialisation which affect the participation of women in politics, it is important to consider the political culture of the nations which encourage this process and political culture means the people’s attitudes and beliefs concerning their political system. Therefore, an understanding of the political culture of England is important as it determines legitimate political activity of the nation as well as the role of its citizens within the political system of the nation. The political culture of England varies considerably from that of the US or China and it is the result of the mixture of the various views and attitudes of the individual citizens in England. To comprehend the political culture of England, it may be noted that here the people conserve the traditional legitimacy of the system which tend to preserve the process of political socialisation. The survey results of major studies confirm that only about 95% of the population in the UK oppose the view that the traditional system of politics need to be drastically changed by revolutionary actions. “In terms of the UK as a whole, the vast majority of the population accepts the legitimacy of the system.... The importance of tradition in Britain is difficult to overstate... This role of tradition is also emphasized by such events as the opening of parliament, the use of the staff to quiet unruly house members by the speaker and the presence of the many landmarks of British history.” (Britain: Political Culture and Political Socialization). Therefore, the political culture of England very much supports the process of political socialisation which is evident in the various aspects of the society. In Britain, political socialisation is the result mainly of three sources – the family, school, and work culture. Family, a central player in the socialization process, transmits information on the political process as well as the players within the system of politics which determine the political conscience of the members of the family. Therefore, discussions of politics at the dinner etc influence the individuals in the shaping of their political conscience and there is a tendency to identify with the political party of the parents and their values. Schools, the agencies which teach the workings of the political system as well as the values concerning the selection of decision makers and decision making, also play a central role in the political socialisation of the individuals. The role of the working environment in the process of political socialisation cannot be discarded. However, media plays a more important role in the process of socialisation as it brings events from distant places into consciousness. “News media shapes our views of the world around us, as discussed in an earlier section one of the most important elements of political socialisation... Criticism of the media is seemingly ubiquitous, yet it still accounts for our primary view of the world outside immediate experiences.” (Britain: Political Culture and Political Socialization). In England, where the media is greatly national in character, the influence of media on the process of political socialisation needs to be emphasised particularly. The process of political socialisation is a long and complex one that makes the members of the society define the political attitudes in a specific way. The attitudes of the people towards the system of politics in a particular society which is shaped in a complicated process over a long period affect their participation in the workings of the political system. “Political learning in the family supposedly develops partisan attachment, ideology, national loyalty, orientations toward authority, sense of regime legitimacy, and recruitment to bureaucratic and governmental roles. The family, according to the theories of childhood socialization, affects the acquisition of participant values; these values then determine subsequent levels of political activism, party identification, political knowledge, and sense of political efficacy.” (Cohen, Jones, and Tronto 1997, P. 225). Therefore, it is the long rooted attitudes of the people toward the process of political socialisation which affect the large number of females in politics in most of the modern nations and the case of Britain is not different. However, in the case of England, this process of political socialisation has been traditional which has sidelined the role of females in political process over time. Thus, one finds that the political culture of Britain, which characterises political obedience and loyalty of the citizens, shapes the political perspectives of the people. This is the process of political socialisation resulting in the low performance of females in the political activities and it has been present in British politics over a long period of time. “Except in times of revolution and unusual political stress, obedience is a learned and habituated response — something one does as a result of his political ‘socialisation’ and which he may not realize he is doing.” (Schochet 1988, P. 73). In short, the impact of political socialisation has been present in British politics from the earlier periods and this has resulted in the superiority of men in comparison to women in political activities. Another major characteristic of the process of political socialisation in England has been the fact that there is a possibility for a substantial change in the process due, manly, to the changes that have been taking place in the recent times. Thus, it may be noted that “many of the main agencies of socialisation in British society have undergone substantial change in recent years, and this might lead us to expect correspondingly important changes in the political attitudes and behaviour...” (Jones 1992, P. 98). It is most illumining to undertake a comparative analysis of the influence of political socialisation among the women of different nations including Britain. “In most European countries, the political empowerment of women happened at a slow pace but, at the turn of the century, we find that women representatives became more visible. Of special interest is the difference between countries in the rate of increase of women’s representation.” (Leyenaar 2004. P. 17). Thus, it becomes evident that there is no much similarity in the type of political socialisation as well as its impact on the women in Europe, except for the fact that all these different types of the process locate in the same continent. The variety in the political and party systems in these nations is reflected in the political representation of women in legislatures. While there is development in the number of woman workers in all these nations and there is lesser distinction between the genders in connection to profession, there is no significant change in the political participation of women in various nations. The most significant reason behind this factor is the process of political socialisation, which continues to influence the political behaviour and attitudes of people. Conclusion Political socialisation has been a long process of the society in which people are made to shape their political attitudes and behaviours and this process has a major impact on the many females in politics. It also reduces the political participation of women in different nations and it is particularly evident in British politics where the authority of the political system has been greatly admitted. The process of political socialisation has been long rooted in the political culture of England in comparison with the other nations and the impact of the process is very much visible in the participation of women in British politics. Similarly, England also has shown some kind of shift in the process of political socialisation due to the changes in the political and party systems in the nation. In comparison to the previous time, there is lesser influence of political socialisation in the participation of women in politics and this may result in favourable developments in political thinking and activities. Bibliography “Britain: Political Culture and Political Socialization.” [online]. Last Accessed 13 January 2009 at: http://www.bemidjistate.edu/academics/departments/political_science/faculty/beech_notes/comp/UK2CULSO.htm COHEN, Cathy J., JONES, Kathleen B., and TRONTO, Joan C. (1997). Women Transforming Politics: An Alternative Reader. NYU Press, P. 225. COWLEY, Jason. (2003). 12 Great Thinkers of Our Time. New Statesman. 132 (4646). P. 20. JONES, Bill. (1992). Two Decades in British Politics: Essays to Mark Twenty-one Years of the Politics Association, 1969-90. London: Manchester University Press ND. P. 98. LEYENAAR, Monique. (2004). Political Empowerment of Women: The Netherlands and Other Countries. Boston: Martinus Nijhoff.. P. 1. MANGAN, J. A. Making Imperial Mentalities: Socialisation and British Imperialism. London: Manchester University Press ND. P. 2. SCHOCHET, Gordon J. ( 1988). The Authoritarian Family and Political Attitudes in 17th- Century England: Patriarchalism in Political Thought. Transaction Publishers. P. 73. Read More