Socialization of personality - factors, forms, stages of socialization

Socialization is a boring topic. All theory and abstruse reasoning about society. But it seems so only at first glance. In fact, socialization is everything to us. When your parents taught you to eat with a fork, use the toilet and communicate, and your neighbor Marya Ivanovna shook her finger and insisted that walking on the lawns was bad, you were socialized. And this process continues to this day.

YouTube and television, church and work collective - all these institutions put certain values and norms in our heads, carrying out socialization. Read the article further and you will find out the details, and also understand why socialization is so important and what will happen if it is not passed in childhood. Spoiler: it will be very bad.

Factors of socialization.

Socialization factors are the mechanisms through which the socialization process occurs. The main factors identified by social educator A.V. Mudrikom, three:

Macro factors are global mechanisms that influence the social development of an individual (planet, space, state, country, society, government).
Mesofactors are conditions that influence socialization, mainly on a territorial or ethnic basis (place and type of settlement, region, town, city, people, ethnicity).
Microfactors are factors that have a direct impact on a person’s socialization (family, peers, school, place of study and work).

Each factor has an active element, thanks to which socialization occurs. For example, in a family there are parents, brothers, sisters, in school there are teachers and classmates. These elements are called agents of socialization.

Family functions in human socialization: features

Family and socialization
Human socialization begins with the family. It greatly affects the physical and mental qualities of the individual. The family is one of the main institutions of education. In particular, it lays down the future qualities of a person.

A family is a group of people united by kinship ties. It always has its own traditions and foundations. It is the main institution that forms the child’s life principles and moral principles.

Thus, the family promotes personality development, strengthens mental health, develops reliability and confidence in children, and also helps in self-realization and security. In addition, in the family, children learn to express their individuality.

The success of a child’s socialization depends on the structure of his family, that is, whether it is complete or not, and relatives can also raise the child. When the family is incomplete, there is a decrease in educational abilities. In particular, the child begins to experience a lack of emotions, or too many feelings are shown towards him. At the same time, in dysfunctional families, socialization is difficult and even disrupted. In this case, the basic family functions are ignored, and there are shortcomings in upbringing. This is where “difficult” children appear.

The role of agents and institutions

Sociologists distinguish 2 groups of people who influence the development and formation of personality in the process of socialization:

Primary - familiar people, or informal agents. These include members of a small community who are well known to each other: family, parents, neighbors;
Secondary – strangers are formal agents or institutions. This is a set of people connected by formal relationships: kindergarten, school, company, enterprise, city, state, etc.

Both groups play different roles and influence the formation of personality in a certain direction:

The education and upbringing of a child from 0 to 3 years old occurs under the influence of the main agents: parents and immediate relatives. They form the motivation and primary attitude of the individual towards others.

After 3 years, the individual enters into relationships with additional agents: educators, teachers, doctors. Most preschool children actively master thinking and cognitive skills under the influence of informal agents.
At the age of 8 - 15 (school period) they are influenced by their peers, adults belonging to different social groups, the media, and the Internet. Such a diverse environment does not exclude a negative impact on the individual and the possibility of antisocial behavior.
Thus, by the age of 15-18, the personality is considered formed. In the future, other social institutions play their role. They use other means that influence her moral and psychological changes.

How the state influences human socialization: examples

State and socialization
The state is an agent that helps in the socialization of a person. It has great potential and influences the integration of the individual into the requirements of society. Moreover, the state regulates this process.

The methods of regulation are:

Ideology . Within the framework of this method, a person rethinks the history of his nation, its place in modern society, as well as problems and prospects. In addition, a person develops values that are important for the consolidation of the nation and are approved at certain stages of development. At the same time, a value system is mandatory for every member of society. They are oriented by basic institutions such as the media, family, and education. So, in order to become part of society, a person must accept all this as his own.
Institutional . In this case, the state regulates the activities of basic institutions. That is, the education system, parties, media. This is especially important during the transition from traditional to modern society. If the intensity of the processes is too high, then the person simply does not have time to adapt.

Thus, the state has a priority role in the process of managing socialization. This manifests itself on these two levels. The state forms social values and develops basic institutions that allow people to assimilate these same values.

Mechanisms

Every society has socialization mechanisms through which people convey information about social reality to each other. In sociological terms, there are some “translators” of social experience. These are means that transmit accumulated experience from generation to generation, contributing to the fact that each new generation begins to socialize. Such translators include various sign systems, cultural elements, educational systems, and social roles. Socialization mechanisms are divided into two categories: socio-psychological and socio-pedagogical.

Socio-psychological mechanisms:

Imprinting is the imprinting of information on the receptor and subconscious levels. More common in infancy.
Existential pressure - the assimilation of language and norms of behavior at an unconscious level.
Imitation is following a model, voluntary or involuntary.
Reflection is an internal dialogue during which a person critically thinks about and then accepts or rejects certain social values.

Social and pedagogical mechanisms:

Traditional - a person’s assimilation of prevailing stereotypes, which occurs, as a rule, at an unconscious level.
Institutional - triggered by a person’s interaction with various institutions and organizations.
Stylized - functions when included in any subcultures.
Interpersonal - turns on whenever there is contact with persons who are subjectively significant to a person.

Socialization functions

This mechanism is of great importance for the development of personality. Among the main functions there are:

Normative and regulatory. This means that absolutely everything that surrounds a person can have one influence or another on him. In this case, we are talking about family, country politics, religion and much more.
Personally transformative. In the process of communicating with other people, a person begins to show his individual qualities and characteristics. Thus, it is separated from the total mass.
Value-oriented. This category is reminiscent of the regulatory category. However, in this case, a person adopts from everything around him not experience, but certain values.
Information and communication. In this case, the individual’s lifestyle forms its way of life based on the experience of communicating with various representatives of society.
Creative. If a person is brought up in the right environment, this will help a person learn to improve the world around him.

Socialization of older people: features

Socialization of the elderly
Socialization of the elderly is currently one of the most pressing problems. The fact is that it is difficult for older people to maintain interaction with society and self-realization.

As with other periods of life, late adulthood is defined in many ways. Most scientists are of the opinion that it occurs at age 60, but in fact, in women it can occur earlier, at about 58 years. The change in psychosocial status is different in that opportunities are already limited. The process takes place in two stages - old age and retirement.

As a rule, satisfaction with life and successful adaptation are largely determined by health. Typically, the negative effect is reduced through comparison. In addition, financial situation and acceptance of the change itself are important. When a person retires, he wants to quit his job. However, this process should be perceived as an opportunity to do something interesting, for which there was not enough time before. It is important for every person in older age not to lose social activity. There is a lot of interesting things for pensioners - they can visit special clubs and societies.

Often, older people have this problem when people seem to fall out of communication. So they need to try not to lose it. For example, the circle of friends often becomes very narrow and the need for friendships and friendly contacts arises. Anxiety and concern appear. Accordingly, lack of communication can lead to the development of depression.

It is also important to consider that values, standards and traditions cannot be considered separately for older people, because they are all parallel and dependent on each other.

At the same time, problems in communicating with generations are due to the fact that values do not coincide. Older people can fulfill the social roles of retirees, but other group norms are already a little lost.

Therefore, it is important to understand that the socialization of older people depends on how involved a person is in the communication process and how he interacts with certain social and age groups.

Definition of socialization

Before discussing this topic, it is necessary to understand what socialization as such is.

Psychological science says that socialization

is the process of an individual’s entry into a social system, mastering its norms, rules of behavior, values, knowledge and skills, and psychological attitudes.

Another, “unofficial” definition says that socialization is what allows a person to live in harmony with the world around him. How is this harmony achieved?

Man is the only creature who, let’s say, is not born by himself. Any animal at birth belongs to a certain species - the same one to which its parents belonged. And only a person, in order to obtain the characteristics inherent to his species, is obliged to undergo a long and complex process of socialization, individual forms of which occur throughout his entire life. In fact, if a newborn is left in the forest and there he randomly survives, then he will not learn to speak, or build, or even hunt. Certain forms of learning, of course, exist in many animals, but they take place only for a short time; an animal that has not undergone “socialization” still has a great chance of surviving and producing offspring, since the basic skills are embedded in its instincts. Long and complex socialization is observed only in higher primates, which proves that this phenomenon did not arise suddenly, but was inherited from our animal ancestors and evolved over thousands of years.

In what cases is a person called a victim of socialization?

Victims of socialization
It happens that a person’s socialization goes far enough and he becomes its victim. Of course, everyone is capable of creating their own life and setting certain goals for themselves, and therefore a person can be considered as a subject of socialization.

When a person becomes a victim of socialization, he has internal contradictions. That is, successful socialization is when a person has effectively adapted to society and is also able to resist it to some extent. More precisely, to fight those collisions that do not allow normal development and self-affirmation. However, this conflict must be balanced. Then the adaptation is considered successful.

If a person completely accepts society as it is and has no conflict, that is, he is a conformist, then he may well be considered a victim. This can also be called a dissident or dissident who is in no way adapted to society. That is, he constantly deviates from the norms accepted in society.

There are such victims in every society. For example, a democratic society, contrary to its principles, most often produces victims. At the same time, a totalitarian society forces conformists to appear.

Types and agents of socialization.

Socialization

- the process of an individual’s assimilation of patterns of behavior, psychological attitudes, social norms and values, knowledge, skills that allow him to function successfully in society, beginning in infancy and ending in old age.

Types of socialization: 1. Primary socialization

. This stage covers the process of formation and development of personality, that is, the process of caring for, raising and educating children primarily in the family, carried out by those agents of socialization who are in direct and regular contact with the child in early and late childhood. During primary socialization, passive assimilation of information, skills, and ideas predominates.

2. Secondary socialization.

This stage covers the rest of the person’s “adult” life. At this stage, the development of the social environment occurs consciously, most of the information coming from outside is subjected to critical consideration. The individual makes a meaningful choice from several options.

3 Early socialization

represents a “rehearsal” for future social relations. For example, a young couple may live together before marriage in order to have an idea of what family life will be like.

4. Resocialization

is re-socialization that occurs throughout an individual's life. Resocialization is carried out by changes in the individual’s attitudes, goals, norms and values of life

5. Organizational socialization

is the process by which an individual acquires the values, abilities, norms of behavior and social outlook that are important for gaining weight in the organization and full participation in it as an employee

6. Group socialization

is socialization within a specific social group. Group socialization is the process of inculcating ideas and principles into an individual as he internalizes the basic values and symbols of the group in which he is involved.

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7. Gender socialization

- this is the assimilation, internalization of social roles, differentiation of activities, statuses, rights and responsibilities of individuals depending on gender.

Agents of Socialization

- these are structural groups or environments in which the most important processes of socialization take place. In all cultures, the most important agent of primary socialization for a child is the family. However, in later stages of life, many other agents of socialization come into play. Agents of secondary socialization of an individual are school, university, army, church.

Peer groups, the media, mass printed publications, and electronic communications have a great socializing effect on a person.

The Importance of Socialization

Despite the fact that socialization is often of an inculcating nature, it is worth recognizing its necessity and importance for both the individual and the entire society.

First of all, this process helps to master skills necessary for life, such as speaking, walking, reading, writing, using the toilet, caring for oneself and much more. There are documented observations of children who, for various reasons, did not undergo socialization at an early age, which led to extremely negative consequences. In his book Sociology, Professor John Shepard gives several shocking examples:

Anna was given birth to an unmarried woman, whose father was categorically against the child. Fearing his anger, the woman hid Anna in the attic for 5 years. When the girl was discovered, she was barely alive, could not walk, talk and did not show any signs of intelligence. Anna was placed in a boarding school, where over time she learned to understand simple commands, recognize people she had once seen, and walk. By age eight, she could jump and catch a ball, participate in group activities, use the toilet, and feed and dress herself. Her speech, mental development and social maturity were at the level of a two-year-old child. At the age of 10, Anna died.
Ginny spent 13 years in an isolated room where her father placed her. She was not accustomed to clothing, could not speak, walk or chew, and her social behavior was extremely primitive. Four years of attempts to socialize Ginny were unsuccessful: she could not read and spoke only in short phrases [Shepard JM, 2020].

Socialization of children is especially important. The given examples illustrate this. Through socialization, people learn not only to perform basic everyday tasks, but also grow intellectually. This is the second important function of personality socialization - to promote continuous development. When a person is in society and learns its values and norms, he is not in danger of stagnation, because society is dynamic and its laws are changeable.

Thirdly, the more socialized a person is, the easier it is for him to find his place in society. In the 1960s, American psychologist Harry Harlow conducted a series of experiments on rhesus monkeys. Although these experiments were controversial, unethical, and even cruel, Harlow's empirical work is considered a "classic" in behavioral science: it led to an understanding of the role that social relationships play in early development.

Baby rhesus macaques were taken from their mothers and raised in laboratory conditions, some placed in separate cages without the opportunity to contact other monkeys. In social isolation, macaques exhibited inappropriate behavior, freezing in one position in the corner of the cage and engaging in self-mutilation.

When they were returned to a group of other monkeys, they did not know how to interact with them: they avoided their fellow monkeys, showed aggression and were not capable of normal sexual behavior, and some even died after refusing to eat [Harlow HF, Dodsworth RO, Harlow, MK, 1965]. This experience shows that the lack of social learning leads to the most disastrous consequences.

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In his article “Broad and Narrow Socialization: The Family in the Context of Cultural Theory,” psychology professor and Ph.D. Jeffrey Arnett identified three more key functions of socialization , believing that it:

Teaches impulse control, promotes the development of self-regulation and conscience. Impulse control and the ability to self-regulate begin to develop in childhood when, through socialization, children learn that if they follow their selfish desires and simply do what they like, they will displease those around them (parents, siblings, other adults, or peers) and may suffer from their reactions.
Prepares for the performance of social roles: gender, professional, family or even racial, ethnic, caste.
Helps to find the source of meaning. Every person needs a source of meaning in order to understand what is important, valuable, and worth living for. Typically, people find meaning through socialization when they gain knowledge about religion, the significance of family relationships, individual achievements, or commitment to an ethnic group or nation [Arnett JJ, 2011].

Socialization is necessary not only so that people can function successfully in society and not have problems with personal adaptation, but also for the survival of the entire human species as a whole. The reproduction of a way of life, culture, and knowledge depends on the transmission of social values, norms and rules from generation to generation. Babies are born completely helpless, and if the process of socialization is excluded, they will not survive and society will eventually cease to exist.

Successful socialization

In the process of socialization, a person goes through three main phases of development:

Adaptation is the mastery of sign systems and social roles.
Individualization is the isolation of an individual, the desire to stand out, to find “your own way.”
Integration is integration into society, achieving a balance between the individual and society.

A person is considered socialized if he is taught to think and act in accordance with age, gender and social situation. However, this is not enough for successful socialization.

The secret of self-realization and success is a person’s active life position. It manifests itself in the courage of initiative, determination, conscious actions, and responsibility. A person’s real actions shape his active lifestyle and help him occupy a certain position in society. Such a person, on the one hand, obeys the norms of society, on the other, strives to lead. For successful socialization, to succeed in life, a person must have the following basic characteristics:

desire for self-development and self-actualization;
willingness to make independent decisions in situations of choice;
successful presentation of individual abilities;
communication culture;
maturity and moral stability.

A passive life position reflects a person’s tendency to submit to the world around him and follow circumstances. As a rule, he finds reasons not to make efforts, strives to avoid responsibility, and blames other people for his failures.

Despite the fact that the formation of a person’s life position is rooted in his childhood and depends on the environment in which he is located, it can be realized, comprehended and transformed. It's never too late to change yourself, especially for the better. People are born a person, but they become a person.

Socialization structure

Socialization is a two-way process, including, on the one hand, the assimilation by an individual of social experience by entering into a social environment, a system of social connections, on the other hand, the process of active reproduction of a system of social connections by an individual due to his active activity, active activity, active inclusion into the social environment. Thus, in the structure of socialization two interrelated processes can be distinguished:

The process of internalization of social experience (social typification) – the subject’s assimilation of social norms, values and standards of behavior.
The process of exteriorization (individualization, autonomization) of social experience is the active recreation by a person of acquired experience in the process of independent activity, behavior and communication, the reproduction by the subject of social relations through his own activity.

Features of socialization of children with disabilities

The socialization of children with disabilities - disabilities - provides for their right to diagnosis, special programs of psychocorrectional work, organizational and methodological assistance to families, differentiated and individual education. For children with special educational needs the following are created:

Specialized preschool educational institutions, schools or correctional classes in regular schools.
Health educational institutions of sanatorium type.
Special correctional educational institutions.
Educational institutions for children in need of psychological, pedagogical and medical and social assistance.
Educational institutions of primary vocational education.

Opportunities for obtaining secondary vocational and higher vocational education are being created for children with disabilities. For this purpose, special educational institutions are created, and various forms of integration are provided for in general institutions.

Despite this, the problem of socialization of children and adolescents with disabilities continues to remain relevant. The question of their integration into the society of “healthy” peers raises a lot of controversy and discussion.

What does it contribute to?

Socialization and adaptation make it possible to form in a person’s brain the necessary set of values and rules that he will subsequently apply to the world. These processes begin in childhood, when the parents of a young child begin to lay the foundation for the first mental and physical skills. After this, the person undergoes training in kindergarten, school and college. During this period, he gains more knowledge from other people, continuing to explore the world. Thanks to this, a person learns to communicate with the individuals around him and understands that the form of interaction with them can be different.

In addition, the socialization of the child is very important, as it teaches him self-control. Gradually, a person begins to learn how to react to certain events in his life. Thanks to this, he learns to distinguish between the internal and external worlds.

What is human socialization like: forms

It is important to know what forms a person’s socialization takes. In general, there are two main ones.

Non-directional . Personality formation occurs spontaneously when a person is influenced by the immediate social environment. Then a person develops certain qualities. That is why it is spontaneous. In this case, the environment includes relatives, friends and colleagues.
Directed . In this case, a special method of influence is provided, that is, people are specially attached to certain values and qualities that are important to society. In particular, this concerns education. From childhood, parents instill in their children a certain set of values and attitudes so that in the future they can develop a perception of the world that allows them to become part of society. In other words, parents prepare the child for life in society.

Forms of socialization may be related, but there may be no coordination. If there are contradictions, they can become an obstacle to a person’s socialization.

Desocialization

The concept of desocialization of the individual is closely related to resocialization, and means the destruction of previously mastered and accepted norms and rules of behavior, the destruction of previous attitudes.
What is it and why is this process needed? This process is used by psychologists when a person’s learned norms of behavior prevent him from successfully fitting into society. In this case, a person must desocialize - abandon previous attitudes, and then resocialize - accept new rules of behavior adopted in the group.

Desocialization is necessary for victims of domestic violence, people who went through wars and lived in combat zones, as well as those who moved to other countries with a different cultural heritage or when re-educating individuals suffering from deviant behavior - alcoholics, drug addicts, criminals. “Reconfiguration” of the head in such cases is necessary, and the process plan usually begins with an assessment of the attitudes that the individual sees as unshakable, and proof that this unshakability is apparent.

Differences in the socialization of a growing and adult person: features

The socialization of an adult and a growing person is different. This is reflected in several factors:

In adults, socialization consists of changing external behavior. At the same time, children’s basic value orientations are corrected
Children often have only two concepts - good and bad. As for adults, they always understand that there are many “shades of gray” between these two concepts.
The socialization of an adult consists of him mastering certain skills. At the same time, in children, socialization largely forms the motivation for their behavior.

This is precisely what distinguishes the socialization of an adult from a child.

Stages and factors of personality socialization.

Socialization of personality

- this is the process of assimilating social norms, forming one’s own “I” to demonstrate the uniqueness of the individual as a person. That is, the process of socialization represents the establishment of identity. Society constantly dictates its rules and norms of behavior to us, so the duration of this process takes a lifetime, its main part being the period of childhood and adolescence.

The main goal of socialization is to prepare the individual to fulfill social roles for communication and the preservation of society. Instilling qualities and values is the main factor in personality formation.

Childhood

—The stage of human development from birth to the onset of puberty. Although the time frame for the latter is individual, not constant over time and depends on the adopted age periodization system, the upper limit of childhood is defined as approximately 11-13 years. During childhood, extremely intense physical and mental development occurs. A critical period of development is early childhood. Its violation, for example, isolation from human society, can lead to irreversible mental disorders.

Youth is the most difficult period of socialization. Social and psychological maturity very often does not keep up with physical maturity. The importance of the teenage stage lies in the fact that the formation of the foundation of the personality—the worldview—ends;

awareness of one’s “I” occurs as an understanding of one’s place in life; There is a constant search for moral guidelines.

Maturity

is the flowering of the human personality. This is a long period, it consists of several cycles. The lower boundary is blurred, approximately 21-23 years. In an extreme situation, growing up occurs early; in calm times, it stretches out. The upper limit is indicated by retirement - 55 years for women, 60 years for men.

The main criterion of maturity: independence. “Criteria of independence”: Self-sufficiency of means of subsistence. The ability to manage money independently of others, Independence in choosing a lifestyle.

Living independently from parents. Adulthood is the most active period of socialization, since it is at this time that a large number of social roles in real life are mastered. Maturity is the most active creative age.

Old age

- this is the period of human life that begins after adulthood and is divided into several cycles: up to 71 years - old age; from 71 to 90 - senile; The age of a person over 90 years old is considered the age of longevity. Old age is a physical condition characterized by the gradual decline of all vital functions. Old age entails separation from certain social roles. First of all and most importantly, the elderly are waiting for retirement.

Death.

Awareness of impending death requires the individual to adapt to a new definition of his own essence. The concept of “dying” implies something more than just the occurrence of some biochemical processes. It entails the acceptance of a social status in which social structures not only accompany, but also shape the experience of contact with death.

Socialization factors

- these are circumstances that encourage a person to take active action. There are only three factors of socialization - these are macro factors (space, planet, country, society, state), meso factors (ethnicity, type of settlement, media) and micro factors (family, peer groups, organizations).

1. megafactors (mega - very large, universal) - space, planet, world, which to one degree or another through other groups of factors influence the socialization of all inhabitants of the Earth.

2. macro factors (macro - large) - country, ethnic group, society, state, which influence the socialization of everyone living in certain countries (this influence is mediated by two other groups of factors).

3. mesofactors (meso - average, intermediate), conditions for the socialization of large groups of people, distinguished: by the area and type of settlement in which they live (region, village, city, town); by belonging to the audience of certain mass communication networks (radio, television, etc.); according to belonging to certain subcultures.

4. Mesofactors influence socialization both directly and indirectly through the fourth group - microfactors. These include factors that directly influence specific people who interact with them - family and home, neighborhood, peer groups, educational organizations, various public, state, religious, private and counter-social organizations, microsociety.

How do phobias interfere with a person's socialization?

As we have already said, the process of socialization is quite complex. At the same time, some people have a lot of problems with it. The fact is that there is such a condition as social phobia. This is nothing more than fear of society. Accordingly, when a person gets into any group, he becomes uncomfortable. There are other phobias. For example, demophobia is the fear of crowds, and anthrophobia is the general concept of the fear of people. In the latter case, a person feels bad, not only in the company of several people, but even one person already evokes not the best emotions.

Each of these phobias can lead to problems with a person’s socialization. He will close himself off and gradually lose all communication skills. For him, any exit into a public place will be considered a big problem, but without communication he cannot live fully.

So, every person should not be afraid to express their own opinion and the negativity that may ultimately be exerted on them. In addition, it is important not to be afraid to come to meetings and not to avoid communicating on the phone. It may be very difficult at first, but it is important not to give up and try to deal with it. When people don’t communicate with anyone for a long time, they not only lose their communication skills, but their diction also changes. It is difficult for people to formulate their speech correctly. To prevent this from being a problem, constant communication is required.

Types of socialization

Socialization is a difficult, even contradictory process. In the process of his development, an individual becomes acquainted with both humanity as a whole and individual groups of people who have their own rules, goals and guidelines.

Therefore, experts distinguish several types of this phenomenon:

Primary socialization begins at the birth of a child and ends with the formation of a mature personality. It lays the foundations for all subsequent development of a person, and to some extent determines the scenario of his future life. The family is of greatest importance, because it is the first thing a child sees in his life. It is necessary to keep in mind that children perceive what they see around them uncritically, therefore they regard the behavior of adults in the family as basic, standard. Alcoholism and sloppiness, unsanitary conditions in the house - all this is “imprinted” in the child’s mind and can remain with him for life if he does not go through the subsequent stages of socialization. And vice versa - intelligence and cleanliness learned in the family will also accompany him in the future. In the future, kindergarten, school, a group of friends and peers become new social environments, where the child has to get accustomed to a new environment and act in accordance with new rules.

Secondary socialization, or resocialization, is the process of eliminating previous patterns of behavior and learning new ones. This process continues throughout the individual's life. During resocialization, a person experiences a complete break with his past and feels the need to assimilate new values that are strikingly different from those that he previously adhered to. Typically, the changes that occur during secondary socialization are less than during primary socialization.

Group socialization is a process that takes place within a social group. So, if a child spends more time with his peers than in the family, then he more actively adopts the norms and rules inherent in the peer group.

Gender socialization is a process that involves learning the role of a man or woman in society. At the same time, boys learn to be men, and girls learn to be women.

In the past, gender socialization was an important and necessary part of a person's entry into society, but nowadays gender has largely ceased to have any meaning. Equality of rights and opportunities eliminates the need to “command” and “obey”, and representatives of both sexes have the opportunity to master the same professions, occupy the same positions and take on the same social roles (for example, in a family, both parents can take turns working and raising children, either the wife works, and the husband looks after the household and raises the children, or “the old fashioned way” - the husband works, and the wife takes care of the household and children)

The principles of gender socialization are still strong in traditional, backward societies (in the countries of Asia and Africa), but even there they are gradually losing their position.

Organizational socialization is a process in which an individual who is part of an organization learns its norms and rules and masters the skills of his work within its framework.

Early socialization is the process of mastering norms, rules and skills that do not correspond to the current level of physical, psychological and social development. First of all, this type of socialization is understood as a game - a kind of “rehearsal” for future social activity.

Socialization theories

Unlike other living things, whose behavior is biologically determined, humans require social experience to reproduce their culture and survive. Because socialization is so important, psychologists, anthropologists, educators, sociologists and others have always sought to understand how it occurs and what impact it has on the formation of self-identity. The results of their research were various theories of socialization. They will be discussed further.

"Mirror Me"

In 1902, American sociologist and social psychologist Charles Horton Cooley developed the concept of the “mirror self,” which states that people develop self-image by observing how others perceive them. In other words, our self or sense of self develops through interactions with other people.

According to Cooley, this process consists of three parts: first, a person imagines how other people see him, then interprets their reactions to his behavior, and finally forms a self-esteem based on these interpretations. Favorable reflection in the “social mirror” develops positive self-esteem, while negative reflection leads to negative self-esteem.

For example, a person gets a job and is confident that he can easily demonstrate professionalism and competence. When interacting with his new colleagues, he pays attention to their body language, the way they speak and generally react to him. When colleagues show kindness, such as making eye contact or shaking hands firmly, a person's confidence in their professionalism is strengthened. If a person receives negative feedback, such as colleagues looking away or quickly ending the conversation, he may doubt his own professionalism.

According to Cooley, not all reactions carry equal weight. People take more seriously the opinions of those who matter to them and are trustworthy. Even if their reaction was misinterpreted, these erroneous judgments still affect self-esteem [Rousseau N., 2002].

Socialization through play

American psychologist, sociologist and philosopher George Herbert Mead believed that through socialization we learn to understand and anticipate what other people think and feel, as well as to be aware of ourselves. Mead essentially agreed with Cooley, but added that the process of children's play is critical to personality development. This is how he described it.

At first, the child simply imitates the adults with whom he regularly communicates (primarily parents), imitating their gestures, movements and words. This is followed by a stage of play, during which the child begins to take on the roles of the parents, acting out adult behavior, for example, dressing up as “Mom”, or talking on a toy phone like Dad.

By pretending to be mom and dad, the child treats his dolls the way he thinks his parents treat him. This way he better understands what behavior is expected of him. Older children, through play, begin to take on the roles of not only significant loved ones, but also other people, learning the general behavioral expectations of society from them (instead of the word “society,” Mead used the term “generalized other,” meaning the norms, values, and expectations of people in in general) [Mead GH, 1934].

According to Mead, the formation of a true self occurs when a person begins to perceive himself as an object. This becomes possible only through the assimilation of attitudes obtained from interaction with others [Belik A. A., 2011].

Id, Ego, Super-Ego

The father of psychoanalysis, Austrian psychologist Sigmund Freud, argued that personality consists of three elements: the id, the ego and the superego. Their formation occurs in childhood.

The id is the unconscious, impulsive part of the psyche that demands the satisfaction of basic needs such as attention, safety, food and sex. The ego balances between the needs of the id and the demands of society, being the rational part of the personality. The super-ego (or social consciousness) develops as the norms and values of society are internalized, i.e. through socialization. It creates feelings of guilt or shame when one breaks social rules, and feelings of pride and self-righteousness when one follows them.

According to Freud, the purpose of the superego is to improve and civilize behavior. It is necessary to suppress all unacceptable impulses. If the Super-Ego does not become strong enough, a person is at risk of the Id pushing him into antisocial behavior [Freud S., 1926].

Theory of psychosocial personality development

Psychologist Erik Erikson was a follower of Freud, believing, however, that personality development occurs throughout life and consists of 8 stages. Socialization occupies a central place in his theory: if it is successfully completed at each of the life stages, a person continues to develop, if not, then he stagnates.

Cognitive development theory

Swiss psychologist and philosopher Jean Piaget specialized in child psychology, and viewed the role of socialization through the prism of 4 stages of cognitive skill development:

The first stage is sensorimotor, lasting from birth to 2 years. At this stage, the child constructs an understanding of the world only through direct contact with it (touching, listening, seeing).
The second stage is preoperative (2-7 years). The child learns language and begins to use symbols to represent objects.
The third stage is the stage of specific operations (7-12 years). The child now understands numbers, cause and effect, and can make rational decisions based on observed phenomena, but has difficulty with abstract concepts such as truth.
The fourth stage is the stage of formal operations (12+). The child acquires the ability for abstract thinking, hypothetical and deductive reasoning [Wood KC, Smith H., Grossniklaus D., 2001].

Piaget argued that children best progress through these stages of development through play and through active interaction with adults. He encouraged asking children questions to force them to think about their behavior, and believed that it was instructive for them to see contradictions in their reasoning.

Moral development theory

American psychologist Lawrence Kohlberg agreed with Piaget's theory, but decided to supplement it with his own ideas. He was particularly interested in how people learn to understand what social “good” and “bad” are. A consequence of Kohlberg's work was the theory of moral development, according to which a person goes through several stages on the path to morality:

The first stage is pre-conventional morality. At this stage, the child accepts the social rules taught to him by authority figures (parents, teachers) and follows them in order to avoid punishment.
The second stage is generally accepted morality. The child follows the norms and values of society, sincerely believing that this is necessary to ensure positive relationships and social order.
The third stage is post-conventional morality. At this stage, a person begins to doubt the fairness and correctness of some social laws and rules.

According to Kohlberg, a person is guided by his own moral values, realizing that he is a separate entity that is not obliged to obey generally accepted rules if they are incompatible with his personal principles [Lind G., 1989].

Adaptation of Moral Development Theory

American psychologist, sociologist and feminist Carol Gilligan disagreed with Kohlberg's findings, believing that they demonstrated gender bias, since Kohlberg conducted his research exclusively on boys. Gilligan believes that boys and girls tend to think differently, especially when it comes to morality.

In his research, Gilligan argues that boys strive for justice by emphasizing compliance with formal rules and laws. For girls, interpersonal relationships, care and sensitivity towards others are more important, which influences their moral decision-making. If it is necessary to break some universal rule in order to help another person, a woman will not consider this immoral [Gilligan C., 1982].

Despite the fact that the listed points of view on the socialization process have been repeatedly criticized, they continue to make an important contribution to the work of scientists from various fields of knowledge.

To summarize, socialization is the process by which rules and norms corresponding to the social order are transmitted from generation to generation. Agents of socialization teach each person to think, act and behave in accordance with the expectations of the society into which he was born, thus adapting him to normal life.

Friends, we wish you to be in harmony with others and yourself. Good luck! Yes, and don’t forget to take a short test to reinforce the article’s material:

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Key words:1Communication

Types of personality socialization

There are several types of socialization, which depend on different factors. Mechanisms of personality socialization can be divided into two groups:

Primary
– implying the perception of society in childhood. The child is socialized, focusing on the cultural position of the family in which he is raised, and on the perception of the world by the adults around him. From this we can conclude that parents shape the first social experience of their child.
Secondary
- have no duration and last until a person enters a certain social group. With age, the child begins to get into different formations, for example, into a kindergarten or sports sections, where he learns new roles and, on the basis of this, learns to perceive himself from a different perspective. It is worth noting that socialization and personality often encounter certain inconsistencies, for example, family values do not correspond to the interests of the selected group, and then a person goes through self-identification and makes a choice based on experience and feelings.

Gender-role socialization of personality

This type is also called gender socialization, and it involves a person’s assimilation of the peculiar differences between men and women. There is an acceptance of existing behavior patterns, norms and values of both sexes, as well as the influence of the public and the social environment in order to instill a number of rules and standards. This continues throughout life. The concept of personality socialization in gender terms highlights the following mechanisms for its implementation:

Socially acceptable behavior will be rewarded, and deviations from the norm will be punished.
A person chooses suitable gender role models in close groups, that is, in the family, among peers, and so on.

Family socialization of personality

A child learns to perceive the world not only through the direct influence of adults, that is, upbringing, but also by observing the behavior of people around him.

It is important to note that often the development and socialization of the individual in the family comes across a discrepancy between the behavior patterns of parents and the requirements that they put forward for the child. An example is a smoking ban, but one of the parents or other family members has such a bad habit

The main factors of personality socialization are:

Family composition and structure, that is, how relatives interact with each other.
The child’s position in the family, for example, he may be a grandson to his grandmother, a brother to his sister, a son to his father, and a stepson to his stepmother. It has been proven that the socialization of a child raised in a two-parent family and a single mother is different.
The chosen parenting style, so parents and grandparents can instill different values in the child.
The moral and creative potential of the family is no less important for the socialization of the individual.

Professional and labor socialization

When a person gets to work, there is a change or adjustment in his character and behavior during activities. Features of the socialization of the individual in the labor sphere are expressed in the fact that adaptation is carried out both within the team and in professional stratification. To improve one’s own status, the availability and development of labor skills is of great importance.

Subcultural-group socialization

Each person must master social roles that are related to the culture of the environment where he lived, studied, worked, communicated, and so on. The essence of personal socialization is based on the fact that each region has its own distinctive features, due to which society is formed. If we focus on subcultural-group socialization, then nationality, religious affiliation, age, field of activity and other factors will be taken into account.

Stages (stages) of socialization

Socialization occurs throughout a person’s life, but most intensively in childhood, adolescence and adolescence. In relation to work activity, three main stages of the socialization process can be distinguished:

Pre-labor stage of socialization covers the entire period of a person’s life before starting work. This stage is divided into two more or less independent periods:
stage of learning , which includes the entire period of adolescence in the broad sense of the term. This stage, of course, includes the entire time of schooling. At this stage, a more conscious, intensive assimilation of social experience occurs.
The labor stage of socialization covers the period of human maturity, although the demographic boundaries of “mature” age are conditional; fixing such a stage is not difficult - this is the entire period of a person’s working activity. At this stage, social experience is reproduced, a person’s impact on the environment occurs.
The post-work stage of socialization covers old age. This stage is characterized by the transfer of social experience to new generations.

The essence of socialization

The need for socialization is determined by human nature itself. He is a unique phenomenon, because he is the only living creature that has virtually no innate forms of behavior. A child who has not undergone socialization is unable to communicate as a person, establish relationships with relatives, or behave as is customary in society. It is a cat or a dog that has innate programs of species behavior, but a person needs to learn everything.

Socialization, in essence, is the process of human adaptation in society. But this is not just knowledge of how to behave in a given situation. Knowledge of social norms does not guarantee compliance with them. For example, a criminal does not steal because he does not know that it is illegal. He knows this very well. But the norm “don’t steal” did not go through the process of socialization, was not appropriated by him, and did not become his intrapersonal norm of behavior. The phenomenon of transition of a social norm or meaning from the external to the internal level is called internalization.

This is the basis of socialization, its basic process. Initially, all norms of behavior and methods of social activity are external for the child. Parents, sometimes through persuasion and sometimes through coercion, instill in their child the habit of performing certain actions, making assessments of their own actions and the actions of others. For example, a small child does not feel any need to eat with a spoon, fasten buttons on his blouse, brush his teeth, say hello, much less put away his toys. But if the parents are persistent and patient enough, then these actions become habitual, and in a similar situation the child himself will feel the need for them. So, we, adults, will experience obvious discomfort if we have to eat salad with our hands or go out to strangers casually dressed.

The complexity of socialization also lies in the fact that a person is a member of different social groups with different norms and rules. We have to undergo additional socialization in every society we happen to find ourselves in.

Where does primary and secondary socialization of a person take place?

Forms of socialization

There is such a thing as primary and secondary socialization of a person.

Primary socialization , as a rule, is also called childhood socialization. This process occurs unconsciously. It’s just that the child is influenced by various factors and with their help he already learns certain norms of behavior. At the same time, parents, educators and relatives act as assistants in this matter. The older a child gets, the more aware he becomes. As a result, after reaching a certain age, he may reject some norms of behavior and behave differently than others. Thus, he gets the right to choose his own line of behavior. At the same time, the very first place where the first social qualities are formed is the family.
As for secondary socialization , this already occurs as the child grows up. In any case, he continues to assimilate social norms of behavior. And here secondary socialization begins, when you have to get used to different groups. For example, a child enters a university, where there is a different society and new norms of behavior. They have to conform. It is much more difficult when a person moves to another country, because in this case you have to change habits and accept new traditions, and this is quite difficult. Often people cannot cope without professional help.

Organizational socialization

Organizational or professional socialization is the process of an individual mastering the skills and attitudes adopted in an organization for the successful performance of basic functions, as well as for establishing relationships with colleagues.

At first, upon entering the workforce, newcomers become familiar with generally accepted standards of behavior in the organization, master the jargon, communication style, learn to comply with the dress code, and perceive the balance of power between people. This is also the socialization of the individual, and very important - often we have problems with work not because we are bad professionals, but only because even an excellent professional who is unable to establish relationships with people will bring nothing but harm to the organization.

To improve organizational socialization, it is customary for companies to organize various joint holidays, field trips, and conduct games and activities to improve communication between colleagues.

The ability to successfully fit into any system is useful to everyone, and one cannot think that socialization is important only for those who are not successful and do not fit into the framework. Since any framework has its values exclusively in a given period of time, and there is no guarantee that tomorrow the concept of the norm will not change, and that yesterday’s successful person will not find himself on the sidelines of life with his mossy concepts of the norm.

Socialization of people with disabilities: features

Socialization of a disabled child
Socialization of a person with a disability is a complex process in which he has to master accepted norms of behavior and stereotypes. The difficulty lies precisely in the person’s position, because a disabled person is a person who has certain physical or psychological disabilities. Accordingly, he requires special care. In addition, he requires support from the state and society as a whole.

Among other things, socialization presupposes the acquisition of certain skills and knowledge, as well as values that are quite difficult for people with disabilities to assimilate. Thus, among people with disabilities, one of the forms of socialization is continuous learning. With its help, a disabled person can participate in processes such as:

Compensation for psychological defects. For example, a person has some mental problems that make him in some way different from others
Formation of positive attitudes
Development of other abilities that have been lost, for example, a person has lost the ability to walk due to an accident. Then we need to help him learn to walk again, if possible.

Learning is always about mastering behavior and environment. Often, when people with disabilities are treated differently from others, they become uncomfortable. In this case, the help of a psychologist is required, and training a person in such a way that he can interact with others and it will not be noticeable that he is not like that. In addition, adaptation and participation in public or social activities are important for people with disabilities.

Of course, the socialization of a disabled person has certain characteristics. In this case, everything depends on the pathology itself, for example, developmental delay or loss of some functions. In addition, gender and age are important, as well as initial position in society, family, state. There are people who are simply not noticed and no one cares about their socialization. It is much more difficult for them, because in addition to their peculiarity, they are isolated from society.

For example, disabled people with mental retardation can achieve independence, but for this they need to constantly work and memorize every action. Today there are even special trainings.

Disabled people aged 16-25 years, in addition to having disabilities, may experience difficulties communicating with peers. This makes the situation worse. However, in some cases, disability is the main obstacle, not even for the person himself, but for those around him. This can cause the person to withdraw or begin to behave antisocially. So training programs must necessarily take into account all the limitations of a disabled person.